Connecting Waters Charter
School
September 2003
Parent
News
Our Parent Orientation/Back to School Night on Tuesday, August 26 at Waterford High’s multipurpose room was informative and exciting! The evening began with a high school guidance overview presented by a representative from MJC. You certainly missed a treat if you missed hearing the president of IEM, Randy Gaschler, discuss the philosophy of parent choice. Catherine Miller, the ES Support Division Manager discussed how her department supports the ES and the parents.
Parents enjoyed meeting our
wonderful Contract Program instructors.
We were given updated class schedules for the Manteca and Modesto
Learning centers and met the coordinators for each center. We were given an electrifying tae kwon
do demonstration by 6 youth, which kept us on the edge of our seats. Each youth said what they have gained
from being part of the tae kwon do program. We enjoyed refreshments, mingling and
meeting ESs and new parents. One of
our parent council members kept the students grade 1-6 occupied by doing crafts
in the back of the room. What would
we do without our dedicated and creative parents?
There is always something new
and exciting with our school. We
were able to experience an exciting new curriculum choice, Odessey Ware. This is a fully standard aligned
curriculum that is contained on a CD.
You can take it on the road with you while traveling. You may be able to
pick up a sample demo CD at the centers while supplies last. You just don’t know what you might miss
at a CWCS gathering. Make sure that
you don’t miss the next opportunity to get to meet the staff and make new
friends!
New
Software!
We are happy to announce that
we have purchased a new assessment software system! Our previous software simply
did not serve our assessment needs.
This software provides a tool that will help ESs and parents assess the
areas of need for their students!
In the past, the best that we have been able to do is give our families
their STAR or CAHSEE results and tell them to work on general areas of
need.
Now, we can offer you
Edusoft! This is an online database
system that takes previous state test results and can target the areas of need
and generate tests that will help our students master a given state standard.
Our standardized tests are based on mastery of the state standards. An example of a mathematics standard for
a second grader would be, “student understands the relationship between numbers
quantities, and place value in whole numbers up to 1,000”. The parent will have
the ability to generate tests in minutes to help their student achieve mastery
of a given standard.
You may tour Edusoft free by visiting their website at
http://www.edusoft.com/. You can create your own tests or create
a test from the bank of questions provided with the software. Regular test results can be obtained by
going to a local center and scanning the results or by mailing in your answer
sheet into the Waterford office.
All of these features will be available to you through Edusoft’s
teacher/parent view feature. We
will be offering training in the near future. This training will be available to
parents and ESs. The first training
session will be in Waterford where we will be able to use their computer
lab. An exact date has not yet been
determined but we would like to do it in October. Space is limited so call today and
reserve your space. If you would
not like to use the Edusoft teacher/ parent view this school year, please
email your ES, or we will set everyone up to be able to use this wonderful new
system. We will be training your ES
on the system in September, and then we will offer group trainings to parents as
needed. We will let you know when you can begin to use this system, which we
hope you will find to be another of the valuable free resources CWCS can provide
for your student’s continued success!
Manteca
Learning Center News
Cathy Moretto, Site Program Coordinator
Kim Davis
& Kathrin Gardea, Site Clerks
Welcome to a new school year. We hope
you had a restful summer and are ready to begin the Fall semester. We are here
to serve you. Our hours will be:
Monday: Closed
Tuesday-Thursday:
9-4
Friday- 10-3:30
To ensure the safety of our clerks and minimize
disruption to our classes, no one will be allowed to use the back door to the
site (#14) to enter or leave the site. We will be having classes in the back
room and will not answer the back door. Please always enter and leave through
the front door (#9). Everyone will be required to sign in every time they enter
so we can monitor site use. Please get your site agreements in ASAP as we are
solely funded through student use funds. Thank you for your
cooperation.
We have many materials for checkout, including texts and
answer keys, computer software, videos, and Science equipment. Drop by and see
what we have for your use.
We are continuing to set up new classes at the
center for your students. So far, we have the following classes available,
pending class approval. Have your ES sign your students up for these ASAP as
they fill up fast. Please let us know of other classes you would like to see at
the center.
Manteca Learning Center
Fall ‘03
Classes
Course Name Grades Dates Time Instructor
Cost
TUESDAYS
School Sponsored 8/26-9/30
Better Writing
3-4th 6 Weeks 1-2:00 W. Arotca $7
School Sponsored 8/26-9/30
Better
Writing 5-7th 6 Weeks 2:15-3:30 W. Arotca $7
HS Writing 8-11 8/26-12/16
11-12:00 T. Matranga $144
Lynx (Painting) 4-12 8/26-12/9 9-11:00 Timeless
Treasures $220 PO
Seascape 4-12 8/26-12/9 11-1 Timeless Treasures $220
PO
Landscape 4-12 8/26-12/9 1-2 Timeless Treasures $160
PO
Landscape 4-12 8/26-12/9 2-3 Timeless Treasures $160
PO
WEDNESDAY/FRIDAYS
Grammar &
Lit. 9-12 9/2-12/18 10-11:30 J. Case $261
Psychology 9-12 9/2-12/18
12-1:30 J. Case $261
Public Speaking 9-12 9/2-12/18 1:45-3:15 J. Case
$261
THURSDAYS
Math Prep 4-5 9/4-12/18 10-11:00 D. Campa
175.00
Hands-On Science 3-5 9/4-12/18 11:15-12:30 D. Campa
180.00
Also Available
*Ice skating- Oak Park Ice Rink,
Stockton, 937-8123. $6.50 per 2-hour session, includes lesson, skates, and ice
time. Thursdays starting September 4, 10:00-12:00. 15 sessions in the
semester.
*Karate- Mitoses, Union & Lathrop Rd in Raleys Shopping
Center. $60 per month. Mondays-Thursdays 6-7:00 PM. 2-4 sessions per week.
823-2662 evenings or Lily Cortez, 825-1543 daytime.
*Cindy's Kids Can
Sew- $30 for a pattern package + $35 per month or Sept- Dec for $140. Cindy
Hall, Eleanor Lane, Manteca, 825-5956. Call Cindy for availability and class
times.
The
Modesto/Ceres Learning Center
Take An Adventure …
Would you like to take a trip back to the quiet town of Avonlea and meet the imaginative Anne Shirley from the Anne of Green Gables series? Or would you like to float down the Mississippi River on a steamboat with Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huck Finn? Maybe you would like to take an ocean journey with Herman Melville’s Moby Dick or Jules Verne’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea? Whatever your interest, our new library is home to wonderful classics that allow you to take adventures you will never forget! Stop by the Modesto/Ceres Learning Center and begin an adventure that will exercise your mind!
“Reading is to the mind what exercise is to
the body.
It is wholesome and bracing for the
mind
to have its faculties kept on the
stretch.”
Sir Richard Steele
Question: What do Piano, Psychology, Art, and Algebra have in common?
Answer: These are all classes we offer this semester at the Modesto Learning Center! It’s not too late to sign up for a class this semester; some classes begin mid September. Other classes we offer include: Choir, Writing, English, Science, Biology, and Health and Exercise. Ask your ES about specific times and dates and take advantage of the opportunities for your children to be taught by experts in a collaborative group setting!
September Spotlight – Geo Safari Talking
Globe Geography Quiz Game
What is the capital of Canada? Where is Tai Pei? Where is Yugoslavia?
Where is Korea? What is the capital of France?
If you aren’t sure of the answers to these questions, come in and check out our Geo Safari Talking Globe! This is a talking Globe that asks thousands of questions about continents, countries, oceans and mountains. This is a way to make learning geography fun for the whole family!
Our Hours
The Modesto/Ceres Learning Center will be open:
Monday 2-6
Tuesday 11:30-5
Wednesday 9-5
Thursday 11:30-5
Friday 9-4:30
By Marsha Silva
Are you looking for something educational and fun to do with the children? Here are some art websites with ideas that you all might enjoy!!
Virtual Museum for Children presents links to children’s museums throughout the world.
http://www.museums.reading.ac.uk/children/#museums
AskERIC Lesson Plans provides more than 25 lesson plans for students in grades K-12
http://www.ericir.syr.edu/Virtual/Lessons/Arts/Art_Actitivies/
“ART/CRAFTS for Kids contains a treasury of lesson plans, art activities, crafts, art history, museums, galleries, drawing, cartooning, visual arts, multicultural, architecture, crafty recipes, and much more.”
http://www.kidsartscrafts.about.com/kids/kidsartscrafts/
“Coloring.com is an interactive coloring book for primary school pupils. Kids can color pictures online from a variety of categories and e-0mail their pictures to family and friends.”
“Craft Finder, by Family Fun Magazine, is an interactive Web site offering elementary school kids the chance to select materials from a list which Craft Finder then puts together and suggests ideas for great projects.”
http://www.family.go.com/crafts
“Art Safari allows kids to explore painting and sculptures from the Museum of Modern Art accompanied by a series of questions where they are encouraged to write about what they observe. They can also submit their own art work.”
http://www.artsafari.moma.org/
Kinder Art, provided by the Jarea Art Studio, features more than 100 free art lesson plans of every kind for kids ages 4-12. Topics include drawing, painting, printmaking, sculpture, multicultural art, cross-curricular art lessons, and coloring pages. The site also offers seasonal activities and art recipes in the Kinder Art Littles section.
http://www.kinderart.com/lessons.htm
DTLK’s Crafts for Kids features a variety of fun children’s crafts and coloring pages, including projects for holidays, educational themes, and children’s favorite cartoon characters. There are lots of crafts to make for space study and science and printable templates suitable for preschoolers and elementary school children. For each craft, you’ll find a detailed materials list, mostly everyday household items, and instructions.
But Mom, I don’t
know what to read.
Did you know that the First Lady of the United States of America has a special page with a recommended reading list? You will find it on the official White House web page at http://www.whitehouse.gov/ choose First Lady at the top of the page, then choose Recommended Reading from the menu on the left side of the page. Or if it is easier for you, go to the this link: http://www.whitehouse.gov/
ENJOY!!!
General Mills wants to contribute to education. They have chosen to do so using their Box Tops 4 Education program. They will give the school 10 cents for every coupon that we redeem from General Mills!!
Earn cash for our school every time you shop for groceries. Clip Box Tops coupons from hundreds of your favorite products found at your local grocery store. Each coupon is worth 10 cents when our school redeems them from General Mills.
Please go to www.boxtops4education.com for more information and a list of the products.