-
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI)
However you and yours celebrate, Happy Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Ōmisoka, Boxing Day, and Christmas! -
Parent Education
“Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgiving, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.” -Proverb borrowed from our Parent Partners at Campolindo
Often, the holiday season can bring high expectations for a cozy and festive time of the year. However, for many this time brings feelings of anxiety or being overwhelmed by the never-ending “to do” list. New research suggests that one aspect of the holiday season can actually lift the spirits and rewire our brains – practicing gratitude and giving. Read more in this blog from the Harvard Medical School or from Cal Berkeley’s Greater Good Magazine. Research reports that being grateful helps people connect to something larger than themselves as individuals – whether to other people, nature or a higher power. The Neuroscience of Gratitude is well-documented in research and there are very simple acts that you can incorporate into your family’s life and encourage your teens to do to help them practice gratitude:- Take a moment to simply acknowledge your gratitude daily. Start each morning with writing or sharing 5 things you are grateful for.
- Write a thank you note – to a teacher or a friend or a neighbor or our local fire or police department – to express your gratitude.
- Find opportunities to volunteer or give. Our students just participated in a few donation drives but several local charities can use our help. A few include GratefulGatherings and the Food Bank of Contra Costa County.
Tuesday, Dec 14 at 4pm Challenge Success Healthier Approach to College Admissions Talk - This event will help parents support their students’ well-being during the college admission process and beyond. Registration link is here with a recording sent afterwards for those who cannot attend the live event. Cost is $10.
Save the Date - Thursday, Jan 20 Challenge Success Well-Balanced Student Virtual Workshop.
Finally, if your teen is struggling with academics or feeling down or frustrated about school, don’t forget to connect with our Counselors, our Nurse, and our Wellness Center.
Feel free to reach out and connect with us with ideas for future topics, shareable resources, or thoughts at parented@acalanesparentsclub.com. -
Student Activities
Adopt-a-Family Thank you to our incredible community for opting in to adopt 74 families this holiday season (it is the most EVER)! We delivered the gifts to Families First on Friday and they were overwhelmed with gratitude for our school’s support and response to need. THANK YOU!
Sock & Heavy Coat Drive Together, Stanley & Acalanes, donated 25 FULL black bags of heavy coats & socks to a homeless encampment in Martinez over the weekend. THANK YOU for all your support!
Acalanes Spirit Wear Spiritwear is still available and pick-up is this week! Purchase via the web store. Check them out!
As we end the first semester, we just want to say thank you for all your support, energy, spirit, thoughts & participation. It has been SUCH a pleasure to be back & we look forward to all that is to come in 2022!
Katherine Walton, Student Activities Director -
Wellness Center
Finals are here! These are sure to be highly stressful times for most students. In addition to the standard stressors such as jobs, extracurriculars and homework, the changes in weather as well as the desire to perform well on finals have the potential to throw students for a loop. To help your student perform at their best, help them beat stress by utilizing “Four A’s”:
- Avoid unnecessary stress- Teach your students the importance of boundaries and prioritization. It is okay for them to say no to people and activities that might add extra stress during finals preparation.
- Alter the situation- Encourage your students to talk about their stress instead of keeping it in. This is also a great opportunity to reinforce the value of self care activities that might help them decompress instead of overloading on academics.
- Adapt to the stressor- Take the time to help your students shift their behaviors toward things that will benefit them during this time. Scientists recognize that teens need 8 to 10 hours of sleep each night. Unfortunately, most teens sleep only 7 hours each night or less during finals. Sleeping and eating, regularly not only decreases stress but powers your students bodies to perform their best mentally.
- Accept things you can’t change- Finals aren’t going away. By accepting this reality, students have greater control over the things they can change in relation to finals. Study time, gratitude, personal time and self care are in your students’ control. Each of these things can work toward positively influencing their finals experience.
(Source: Keep Calm During finals by Lisa Brickert, MSW, LCSW)
Kiara Thomas- Wellness Intake Specialist -
College & Career
Seniors
- Scholarship Opportunity - Check out this site for many scholarships!
- Rossmoor Scholarship Foundation: If your family has financial need and your child has been actively involved in community service, please check out this generous $2,500 scholarship!
- American Association of University Women: (AAUW) offers three $2,000 Scholarships to a graduating young woman who demonstrates a sustained commitment to community service as well as a grade point average of at least 3.0. If you know someone who meets these criteria, please share or email me.
- Academy - The priority deadline for Cal State Application for many campuses has been extended to December 15. We will continue working on any application support. Students can share essays on Google Docs with me too!
Juniors
- Parent Night-Mark your calendar! Susan Martin, our counselor, and Debbie Levy will host a Junior Parent night to learn more about the college application timeline and career opportunities on Wednesday, January 12, 2022 in the PAC at 6:30pm. The event will be recorded and posted.
- PSAT review - Please set up a 1:1 appointment to go over your child’s PSAT scores and take a deeper look at your students’ strengths and areas for growth.
- University of California TIPS for next year! Check out this to learn the Comprehensive Review criteria for which the UC’s follow to evaluate students for admission.
Sophomores/Freshmen
- PSAT review - Please set up an appointment to go over your student’s PSAT scores if taken.
- Jobs! There are many job opportunities once your child turns 16. Please send them to the CCC to learn more.
- Volunteer Here are some volunteer options to get you started. Check out the newforms for tracking volunteer service hours for recognized service awards.
Resources:
-
Counseling
Counselor assignments are by last name.
A - Dr Anne Schonauer
Du-Kr Christine Todd
Ku-Rog Marissa Meadows
Roh-Z Susan Martin
Tuesday, Dec 14 through Friday, Dec 17 Final Exams 2nd Quarter is almost over! Here is the finals week schedule:
Semester Grades First semester grades will be available by Friday, January 7th. Report cards will be mailed home to all students.
Second Semester Class Changes Counselors will be changing some student schedules during the first 10 days of second semester only. There are limited options, as our classes are year-long by design. Have your student see their counselor if they wish to discuss a class change. -
School Nurse
We are still very much in a pandemic. We are seeing some cases of COVID and also needing to quarantine some students. Please continue to keep your students home when they have illness symptoms, and test as warranted/concerned.
COVID VACCINE: We still don’t have records submitted on all students who have had both COVID vaccines. This is not yet required, but helps a lot when there are exposures. Please turn your student’s COVID vaccine record in to me if you have not. I continue to encourage you to get your students and your families vaccinated. Please contact me for support if needed. Don’t forget to get your FLU shot too!
Proof of vaccination: Try this site: https://myvaccinerecord.cdph.ca.gov/ iPhone users: you can now put your vaccination record in your Apple Health app (and Apple Wallet)
FINALS are next week! How can you support your students?- Keep lots of healthy food available, especially fresh vegetables and fruits. Do the work for them- buy, clean, peel, cut, chop, etc. Put it into easy containers, put it out for them during study breaks with hummus, guacamole, and salsa.
- Help them with their calendar this week. Try to reduce their busy schedule. Schedule study times and times for restorative exercise.
- Support sleep. You can create “quiet hours” in your house (9pm to 7am). Most of your kids need at least 9 hours of sleep for optimal health (and good grades!).
Need ideas for holiday gifts? Refresh your student’s mask supply with some fun new designs!
PLEASE EAT MORE PLANTS to keep your student and your family healthier and smarter.
Please be in touch with me to discuss any medical, health, or wellness concerns.
Stay healthy and be well,
Dvora Citron, RN, MS
dcitron@auhsdschools.org
925-280-2970 x7128
Acalanes School Nurse Google Site
IG: acalanesschoolnurse
Social Media
