N O V E M B E R
3 - 7 ,
2 0 1 4
El Semanario
Edison Language Academy – Together Through Two Languages (310) 828-0335 www.edison.smmusd.org
FROM THE PRINCIPAL’S DESK: SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING
ANNOUNCEMENTS PARENT TEACHER CONFERENCES continue during minimum days on October 30, 31 and November 3,4, 5. Please adjust your pick up plans and/or child care as needed. Don’t miss this important opportunity for a 1:1 conference with your child’s teacher. CHILD DEVELOPMENT SERVICES (CDS) has full cost openings in its School-Age Childcare Program (K – 3) at Edison. For additional information or to enroll, contact CDS at (310) 399-5865. HALLOWEEN COSTUME PARADE IS AT FALL FESTIVAL – We will NOT be having a costume parade on Halloween – there’s just not enough room to do it safely on campus during the school day while we’re still under construction. Another reason we look forward to having our playgrounds back!! OPERATION GRATITUDE – Share your candy after Halloween and give our active duty troops and vets a sweet surprise! PTA will have candy collection boxes at school on th November 3 and 4 in the morning in the breezeway (where we hold Cafecito). VISIT FROM LOS ANGELES COUNTY IMMERSION EDUCATORS – Last week we served as a demonstration program for the Los Angeles County Office of Education and hosted over 40 teachers and administrators from immersion schools across LA County. Our guests loved the opportunity to see a mature and successful immersion program in action and we were proud to showcase the excellent teaching and programs at our school! REFLECTIONS ART PROJECT—Come by the cafeteria to see a display of art our students created for the PTA Reflections Art Project. Thanks to Tait Chatmon-Alvarez and Audrey Berry for working with students during noon recesses and for putting the art show together! LEARN TO MAKE TAMALES and enjoy the camaraderie of a Tamalada at Edison on Thursday afternoon and evening on November 6. Sign up on the volunteer board.
Each year Edison devotes time and resources to the social and emotional learning (SEL) of our students. This kind of learning is necessary for students’ own development and also develops the kind of caring, engaged, and safe school climate where all children learn best. Scientific studies are increasingly showing that kindness has many physical, emotional, and mental health benefits, including helping children thrive as healthy, happy, well-rounded individuals. Patty O'Grady, PhD, an expert in neuroscience, emotional learning, and positive psychology, wrote in a 2013 blog for Psychology Today that “Kindness changes the brain by the experience of kindness. Children and adolescents do not learn kindness by only thinking about it and talking about it. Kindness is best learned by feeling it so that they can reproduce it.” At school we work on SEL by talking with students about our school values, explicitly teaching problem solving skills and Cool Tools and holding class meetings about inclusion and treating others with respect. We teach and role play antibullying strategies and read stories about characters who demonstrate kindness, respect, empathy and inclusion. We offer opportunities for children to be of service to others to experience empathy, and draw on the skills of school counselors for small group and class work on friendship. And we hold an annual Kindness and Justice Challenge provide structured practice in being kind, empathetic, and fair. While what we do at school is important, parents are the first and most important teachers about kindness and empathy. Some of the things that we can do as parents to try to deliberately grow kindness and empathy in our children include: Noticing Kindness - Identify the feeling whenever you observe it. “You must feel kindness toward your friend because you were patient waiting for her to finish.” If you’re dropping off your child in the morning and you notice him or her treating classmates with kindness and respect, tell them that you’re proud of their behavior choice. If you see something that is unkind or doesn’t take someone else’s feelings into account, talk with your child about that too. Recognize or Reward Kindness – Instead of just recognizing children for things like getting their homework done or picking up their rooms, find ways to also recognize them for the kind things they do for others. Teach Empathetic Tolerance –. When you see things that are unkind, ask your child to imagine how the person who was treated unkindly might have felt and how things could have been done differently Model Kindness – Let your children see the things you do in your daily life to be kind to others and the decisions you make because you have empathy for others. If you give to charity, open a door for someone who has their hands full, etc., let them know the values that motivate you to do those things. Teaching and practicing these values is something that we all have to do consistently and over time to help children develop SEL. Thanks for partnering with us!
November 5 – PTA BOARD MEETING 6:00-8:00 P.M.
November 6 – TAMALADA Afternoon and evening Staff Dining Room/Kitchen
November 8 – FESTIVAL DE OTONO – 1:00-5:00 p.m. Halloween Parade