Monday, July 29, 2013 THE NEW MEXICAN
EDUCATION ‘Block party’ is all about schools S anta Fe Public Schools starts class tion so interested adults can join them. again on Wednesday, Aug. 14 — and She said often parents believe they cannot to prepare parents, the district is get involved in their schools or are afraid working with the city of Santa Fe to throw they would not be welcome. “We need to a block party. Sort of. increase communication with parents,” she said. “We have to let The district’s back to school them know what is available at event, designed to encourage the schools.” parents to get involved in their She said the district is working schools, runs from 10 a.m. to on creating a parents’ portal on 4 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 3, at the its website, www.sfps.info. Santa Fe Place mall at the intersection of Cerrillos and Rodeo Early registration for school roads. Superintendent Joel Boyd runs through Aug. 6, and parand members of his adminisents can receive information Robert Nott about school registration and trative team will be on hand Learning Curve to answer questions about the register their kids for schooldistrict and emphasize parental bus transportation at Saturday’s involvement in achieving student event. Light refreshments will be success. available, and several local music groups The event will include a short, recurring including Baile Folklórico, a hip-hop group, and Mariachi soloist Amanda Quintana, parental-involvement workshop run in will provide entertainment. “One of our both English and Spanish by the district’s parents will run a Zumba [dance workout] chief of staff, Latifah Phillips, who is bilinsession,” Phillips said. gual. “It’s a one-stop shop for parents and students to meet us, find out information Back to school block parties are popular about the coming school year, and discover in both smaller communities and large ways to get involved in their schools,” she urban districts including New York City said. and Philadelphia, serving up fun and community spirit as the new school year All the district’s schools have school approaches. advisory councils, and many — though not all — have established parent/teacher The district chose this coming weekend associations. Phillips said the district is because it is also the state’s annual back-toworking to compile a complete list of these school tax holiday. No gross receipts taxes organizations including contact informawill be charged on certain clothing, school
supplies and computer equipment sold in New Mexico retail stores, including Santa Fe Place. The tax holiday, which started in 2005, begins 12:01 a.m. Friday, Aug. 2, and concludes at midnight Aug. 4. Note: there are limitations to the deal. For instance, desktop or laptop computers and tablet computers must be priced at $1,000 or less, while the limit for computer equipment is $500 per item. Clothing and shoes must cost less than $100 per item, and school supplies must cost less than $30 per item. Phillips is also the coordinator of the district’s new Parent Academy, which offers courses to parents to help them succeed both with their children’s course work and their own career goals. She said this year the district will once again hold free classes in Spanish and English as well as a basic-computer skills class. Check the website for information. Along similar lines, the Interfaith Coalition for Public Education hosts the forum, “It Takes a Village: Strategies for Excellence in the Santa Fe Public Schools” from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 31, at Temple Beth Shalom, 205 E. Barcelona Road. Community leaders will join superintendent Joel Boyd in a discussion about ways to support the district’s most-challenged schools. The event is free.
Family best bets Tuesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Casablanca 8 p.m. on TCM
Prom 4:30 p.m. on FAM
Legally Blonde 5 p.m. on FAM
“Play it once, Sam. For old times’ sake.” An exiled and bitter American (Humphrey Bogart) running a popular nightclub in Casablanca can’t help but fall in love again with his one-time sweetheart (Ingrid Bergman) in this 1942 film that is one of the true Hollywood classics. He decides to use stolen documents to escape Nazioccupied Morocco with her, but things don’t go as planned. Horror-film icon Peter Lorre gives a fine supporting performance.
The big school dance is approaching in this Disney comedy, and one of the students most looking forward to it (Aimee Teegarden) is dejected that her boyfriend won’t be around for it. All may not be lost, though, thanks to a “bad boy” (Thomas McDonell) who just might prove to be the ideal standin. The content is just a touch more mature here than one often finds in a Disney effort, but it also retains a basic sweetness and allages appeal.
Nancy Drew 8 a.m. on HBO The teen sleuth devised by novelist Carolyn Keene has fueled several movie and television projects over the years, and the latest casts Emma Roberts in the title role. Nancy and her dad (Tate Donovan) go to Los Angeles and stay in a rented house known as the site of an actress’s death. Of course, Nancy’s natural curiosity prompts her to investigate the tragedy. Josh Flitter (The Greatest Game Ever Played) is quite funny as Nancy’s young sidekick.
Reese Witherspoon graduated into the league of top screen actresses with this 2001 comedy, which succeeds largely on her performance as a law-school novice. She plays sorority girl Elle Woods, who is dumped by her blue-blooded beau (Matthew Davis), then follows him to Harvard, intent on winning him back. Instead, she finds a new cause while surprising her professors. Luke Wilson, Selma Blair and Victor Garber (Alias) co-star.
Summer camp woes won’t ruin your kid for life
Question: My 10-year-old son is having a miserable experience at the two-week camp we sent him to. He says he hates it there, that the other kids don’t like him and the counselor he was assigned to is mean. All this after just two days. He wants to come home. My instinct is to go get him, but my best friend says he’s manipulating me. What should we do? Answer: First, this is not apocalyptic. No matter what decision you make, your son’s future is not compromised. If you go and get him, he hasn’t beaten you at some mind game. In other words, I would disagree with your friend. Your son’s not trying to manipulate you. He’s trying to John get you to come get him and bring him home, and he’s being rather blatant about Rosemond it. Manipulation is much more subtle than Living With he’s capable of at this point in his life. FurChildren thermore, I’m reasonably certain you can take his complaints at face value. He hates it there. The question becomes, “So what?” If, on the other hand, you leave him there, he will not become catatonic and require confinement in a rubber room for the remainder of his life. He’ll get over it. In fact, if you ignore his complaints, or simply respond with, “We made our decision when we wrote the check,” he will probably give up and find some reason to make his camp experience tolerable. If I was in your shoes, I’d leave him there. But I’m a man, and men tend to have little sympathy for complaints of this sort, especially from their sons. Questions: Our 6-year-old says she’s afraid to go to sleep in her own bed, on her own. She wants one of us to stay in there with her until she falls asleep, which takes up to an hour. The further problem is she wakes up in the middle of the night screaming for us, and we have to sit with her again. This is getting old quick, not to mention we haven’t had a good night’s sleep in months. Your ideas? Answer: I recently had the parents of a 4-year-old with the very same problem tell their daughter that they had talked to a doctor who told them that bedtime fears happen when a child isn’t getting enough sleep. The fictional doctor prescribed a strict 6:30 bedtime until the child’s fears, including the screaming in the middle of the night, stopped for two straight weeks. At bedtime, the parents simply asked the girl, “Do you want us to stay with you?” If she said yes, then the two weeks started over the next day. The parents later told me that it took three days for the child to realize that early bedtime was not worth having her parents stay with her while she fell asleep. At that point, she began proudly going to bed and off to sleep on her own. It’s important to mention that I also told this little girl’s parents that they absolutely had to stop talking about the child’s fears. Asking questions like, “What are you afraid of?” only makes matters worse. Why? Who knows? Anyway, you might try the doctor’s solution on for size.
Family psychologist John Rosemond answers parents’ questions on his website at www.rosemond.com.
The Four Cs
© 2013 by Vicki Whiting, Editor Jeff Schinkel, Graphics Vol. 29, No. 33
Topaz
Pearl
Aquamarine
Sapphire
Amethyst
Diamond
Emerald
1. Find the month you were born in the box below.
They are valued by their cut, color, carat and clarity.
2. Next to your birthday month, there are two symbols. The first symbol shows you which horizontal line to follow on the Intergalactic Gem Stone Locator Grid. The second symbol tells you which vertical line to follow.
Cut
3. The gem at the point where the two lines meet is your personal birthstone!
Garnet
Ruby
Standards Link: Research; locate information through interview and investigation.
GARNET
Standards Link: Math; measure time using calendars. Reading Comprehension; follow simple written directions.
Turquoise
Ruby – red Peridot – light green Sapphire – blue Opal – blue and green and white Topaz – orangish yellow Turquoise – light blue
B I R G A R N E T S
DIAMOND
A P E R I D O T U D
EMERALD
M T R H S E T O R I
PEARL
E N I R A M A U Q A
RUBY
T Y H N L E E Z U M
PERIDOT
H B P E A R L A O O
SAPPHIRE
Y U P S P A Q P I N
OPAL
S R A U O L I O S D
TOPAZ
T M S N O D A T E T
13 7 4 4 15 16
+ + -
9 2 3 4 6 5
= = = = = =
Standards Link: Health; connect personal characteristics that contribute to positive self-esteem. Math: Calculate sums and differences.
1. Good thinking 2. Contentment 3. Married happiness 4. Dependability 5. Sincerity 6. Hope 7. Courage 8. Innocence 9. Love 10. Loyalty 11. Health 12. Success
Most diamonds contain some color and the most common are shades of yellow or blue. A colorless diamond is both rare and expensive.
Carat
A carat is a measurement of weight. 142 carats make one ounce. A diamond that weighs a full carat is worth more than one that weighs slightly less.
Clarity
A completely clear diamond is said to be flawless but that is rare and most diamonds have spots or bubbles.
Standards Link: Letter sequencing. Recognizing identical words. Skim and scan reading. Recall spelling patterns.
A
Fact and Opinion
A newspaper publishes both facts and opinions. Look through the newspaper for three examples of each. Discuss with a parent how you can tell the difference.
Standards Link: Reading Comprehension; follow written directions. Matching.
Each birthstone has a special meaning. To find out, do each math problem, put your answer on the line next to each gem and then find the answer in the list on the right. Garnet 18 - 16 = Ruby Amethyst 9 - 6 = Peridot Aquamarine 11 - 10 = Sapphire Diamond 2+4 = Opal Emerald 8+2 = Topaz Pearl 16 - 4 = Turquoise
Find the words in the puzzle, then in this week’s Kid Scoop stories and activities.
AMETHYST
TURQUOISE
Garnet – purplish red Amethyst – purple Aquamarine – greenish blue Diamond – white Emerald – green Pearl – white
The most common cut is known as the “brilliant.” This has 58 facets or surfaces and the light reflected in the surfaces splits into the colors of the rainbow.
Color AQUAMARINE
Opal
Peridot
Diamonds are the hardest natural materials known and they are the most popular of all the gemstones for jewelry because of their brilliance. They can only be scratched by another diamond.
Look through the newspaper for words that attract you to read more. The words could be used to attract you to an ad or a story. Can you find five? Use these words to write a story. Standards Link: Vocabulary Development; recognize words and phrases that show rather than tell events.
B
Standards Link: Reading Comprehension: Distinguish between fact and opinion.
C
Imagine that you find a diamond ring at the park. You know it’s worth a lot of money, but someone clearly lost it. What would you do?
D
Standards Link: Visual Discrimination: Identify similarities and differences in common objects. ANSWER: B & C.
You know you have a birthDAY. Did you know you also have a birthSTONE? A special gem stone has been selected to be the birthstone for each month of the year.
A-9