We had a special presentation last night here at OCS so that parents could get together to hear about the latest trends in drug and alcohol abuse by young people today and to be able to discuss ideas they have with other parents. While it was very disheartening to see how few parents came out to take advantage of this opportunity, it was good to share ideas with others. As the parent of children who are older, I remember the conversations and the lessons we shared with our children. I also was thankful that the message we were talking to our children about was being reinforced in their schools.
Here at OCS we spend time each year discussing the dangers of abusing drugs and alcohol so that we can act in partnership with our community. The world is a difficult place for kids to grow up --and the dangers and pressures of alcohol and drug use are issues they will face. Hopefully we have all helped them to make the right choices. Hope may be all we have in this fight!
till next time...
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Friday, October 14, 2011
In between
Here we are in the middle of October, one week removed from the Week of Respect and a week away from Red Ribbon Week....I wonder what do we do in between? Life is like that... in between. In between decisions, activities, family events, we always seem to be in between. After the Week of Respect we are reminded that we need to keep the momentum going in between as we move to the next event. We need to keep respect in our minds and in our deeds. Respect is not soemthig that we should let go of in our interactions with each other. Respect is not an idea that we shuld pick and choose to use. It should not be something in between that we get to once in a while in our busy lives. Show each other respect. That is what we add to our lessons here at OCS. You don't always have to agree with people, but you should respect their right to have ideas different than yours. In between classes, show respect. It is a powerful way to act and it can help change the world... but we can't show respect in between the activities of our lives... it is something that should be done all the time....
Till next time...
Till next time...
Monday, October 10, 2011
Columbus Day...
has come and gone and we mark the middle of the first marking period. The year has been cooking by! I wanted to let everyone know that I am very thankful that we had nearly 100% of our parents return the student handbook acknowledgement form this year! Amazing what a little encouragement can do for the numbers! thank you.
Till next time...
Till next time...
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Leave anyone behind?
I can always remember my mom and dad as we pulled away from a rest stop or a gas station break looking into the back seat where my sisters and I would be stowed away and ask, "Did we leave anyone behind?" Thankfully the answer for them was always "No! Looks like we have them all!" Of course I was sitting there secretly wishing we had temporarily misplaced one of my sisters!! But I digress...that is a topic for another blog entry....
The newspapers have been full of information lately concerning the No Child Left Behind waivers being applied for by state across the U.S., including NJ. With the legislation renewal still sitting on the stove down in DC, the NJ Department of Education has asked that NJ be released from certain aspects of the law that still feel unattainable and impractical, namely, the looming 2014 deadline for 100% proficiency and the jump in AYP proficiency scores annually. It will be interesting to see how things will unfold here in NJ (and the rest of the country) with these waivers and with any new version of NCLB legislation that districts such as ours may face in the coming months...
Over the past six years that I have been here at OCS we have consistently looked at the progress our kids have been making from year to year. Not only do we look at them as a group but also as sub-groups, for example, boys and girls. We read often that boys are being left behind in Language Arts as they get older and that girls are not showing progress in Math and in Science.
I am happy to say that we have pulled out of the parking lot, checked the back seat and can proclaim that we did not leave anyone behind! Even in the face of our elementary students not making Adequate Yearly Progress in Language Arts (even though we outperformed he state averages) , we have 94% of our 3-8 girls proficient or advanced proficient in Math and 91% of the same girls proficient or above in Science! Our pre-teen and teenage boys have also done well in Language Arts -- where we had 100% of our 6-8 grade boys achieve proficient or higherthis past year! Over the past three years we have seen a steady growth with our male students and the scores they achieve in Language Arts!
Success is something we have been demonstrating each year here at OCS!
Till next time...
The newspapers have been full of information lately concerning the No Child Left Behind waivers being applied for by state across the U.S., including NJ. With the legislation renewal still sitting on the stove down in DC, the NJ Department of Education has asked that NJ be released from certain aspects of the law that still feel unattainable and impractical, namely, the looming 2014 deadline for 100% proficiency and the jump in AYP proficiency scores annually. It will be interesting to see how things will unfold here in NJ (and the rest of the country) with these waivers and with any new version of NCLB legislation that districts such as ours may face in the coming months...
Over the past six years that I have been here at OCS we have consistently looked at the progress our kids have been making from year to year. Not only do we look at them as a group but also as sub-groups, for example, boys and girls. We read often that boys are being left behind in Language Arts as they get older and that girls are not showing progress in Math and in Science.
I am happy to say that we have pulled out of the parking lot, checked the back seat and can proclaim that we did not leave anyone behind! Even in the face of our elementary students not making Adequate Yearly Progress in Language Arts (even though we outperformed he state averages) , we have 94% of our 3-8 girls proficient or advanced proficient in Math and 91% of the same girls proficient or above in Science! Our pre-teen and teenage boys have also done well in Language Arts -- where we had 100% of our 6-8 grade boys achieve proficient or higherthis past year! Over the past three years we have seen a steady growth with our male students and the scores they achieve in Language Arts!
Success is something we have been demonstrating each year here at OCS!
Till next time...
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