Character Education is infused into everything we do at Kincaid. We integrate good character traits into our curriculum and we use positive discipline principles based on having good character. Our staff models good character because we know that children pay more attention to what we do than to what we say! In April and May we will be discussing accomplishment, pride and appreciation for attaining one's goals. This is an exciting and important time of year to look back at how much your child has grown and make sure he or she recognizes that growth!
CHADD
CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) is starting a chapter in East Cobb! If you have a child with ADHD and/or want to learn more about ADHD you can attend the first meeting on May 5, 2009 6:45-8:30 pm at the East Cobb Government Center. The address is 4400 Lower Roswell Rd. Marietta, GA 30068. Contact: east-cobb@chadd.net
Summer Groups Offered
The following groups will be offered this summer in our area. Please contact Cecelia Myers if you are interested in these groups for your child.
Divorce Recovery
Social Skills
Girls Groups- Welcome to Middle School Girls!
COMMUNITY EVENT ABOUT A.D.D.
FREE Parent Workshop
"What is A.D.D. and What is NOT"
Thursday, March 19, 7:00 PM
Sanctuary, East Cobb United Methodist Church
Featured Speaker: Gary Dudley, Ph. D.
of Atlanta
Invite your neighbors and friends. This Community Event is sponsored by the
Children's Ministries of ECUMC.
Growing Up Letters
As many of you have heard, we are trying to conserve paper at Kincaid--good for the environment and good for the budget:-) Therefore, our Growing Up letters will stop coming home in hard copy. Look for our Growing Up page on the left side of this site.
Investments and Returns
At this time in our history, we are hearing alot about the best investments to make, strategies for investing wisely, and, unfortunately, diminished returns! Here is an investment with a great rate of return--PARENTING:-) There is quite a bit of research out there that tells us that parental involvement promotes good behavior and success in academics. There is even a study that shows that children who sit down to dinner with their parents score better on the SAT verbal section. Time is a factor is our ever-busy schedules but prioritizing and spending time with your child will be the best investment you can make!
Goals for the New Year
We all know about New Year's Resolutions. But what if we look at who we are and where we are and focus on what and where we want to be? What if we identify goals to give us something concrete on which to focus? We can use these goals as a road map to help us get where we want to be. It is very empowering to realize that we can change! We do not have to stay the same. As a family, identify things you all want to work on and write down a plan. Be accountable to each other as you take this journey for success! Your children may need guidance in assessing what goals to focus on this year. Perhaps learning math facts, or completing homework, or getting their bookbags and binders organized would be a good place to start! Identify your own goals so your children can watch and learn from your success!
The Homework Battle
If you feel like homework is a constant battle and you hear, "I'll do it later" or they "forget", you are not alone. Many parents struggle with the homework battle. Jackie Burson, MS, NCC, LPC has some suggestions:
- Establish a daily routine including a homework time. This daily routine can be made into a schedule, with pictures for younger kids. You can place this schedule in a visible place such as the refrigerator and even have the child check off each time of day or task as it passes. A dry erase chart would work well for this so that you could erase each week and start over.
- Offer positive feedback when they finish their homework and become involved by checking over their work. This shows your child that homework is a priority in your home.
- If your child forgets their homework often, try using a strategy to motivate your child. Sit down and discuss what the homework expectations are. You can try a contract with rewards and consequences. You could make a chart for every day of the week and discuss the homework goals. For example, if they remember their homework 4 out of 5 days they receive a reward. If they forget more than once they receive a consequence. It is important to discuss expectations, rewards and consequences with your child before implementing a contract or chart. It is appropriate to involve your child in the decision making process when it comes to rewards and consequences.
We like to tell the students that school is their job right now. If we as adults do not do our jobs, problems will occur just as problems occur when students do not do their jobs. At Kincaid, K-2 students have a "homework folder" and students in grades 3-5 have an "agenda". Please check these items daily. All homework should be written in these folders and agendas. If your student is not writing his or her homework in their agenda, speak with them about the importance of this organizational step. You can enlist the help of the teacher or counselor if assignments are continually not written down.
We hope this information will be helpful to you and as always, feel free to contact us if you have questions or concerns.
Happy Homeworking!
Cecelia Myers and Marilynn Mueller
Rescue or Support?
Parents deal with this question constantly. As parents, we love our children and want what is best for them. It would seem logical that “rescue” would be the answer. But, is it really? When we don’t allow natural consequences to occur, we create an “unreal” world for our children. Think about it. When we do something in our work environment that is less than what is expected, do we get rescued? Of course we don’t. If we get caught speeding, can we call our parents to get the police to throw the ticket away? NoJ So, out of love for our children and wanting what is best for them, we have to stand by them and support them, but allow natural consequences to occur. The following is a quote by Dr. James Dobson in his book Hide or Seek:
“Those children who have learned to conquer their problems are more secure than those who have never faced them. Our task as parents, therefore, is not to eliminate every challenge for our children; it is to serve as a confident ally to help them through them.”
Make This Year Count!
“Failure in people is caused more by lack of determination than lack in talent.” (Unknown)
Think about that! Determination makes the difference in whether our child succeeds in school or not. Success is cultivated by people who refuse to settle for “I can’t” and by supportive parents and teachers who continually cheer them on to “I can!” This can be a wonderful academic year for your child to show progress but we can’t just let that happen. We have to be determined and model that determination.
Mary Cantwell, author of American Girl, writes in her book about her struggle to do math like the other children in her class. Her father was less than gentle with his help so her mother stepped in to work with her. She talks about how her mother sat with her for several nights and patiently used strategies that worked! She realized she could add! She describes the “eureka” moment as second to succeeding in tying her shoesJ
What does your child need support in? Talk to the teacher or your school counselor to seek strategies to help. Collaborate with your child to set goals and ways to achieve them. Come up with a monitoring system to check the progress of making that goal(s). Let’s make this year count!
Testing 1, 2, 3...
On Wednesday, September 17th, our first, third and fifth graders will begin the Cogat test. It will continue through Friday, September 19th. This is an abilities test. September 22nd through September 26th, the third and fifth graders will take the Iowa Basic Skills Test. This is an achievement test and is norm-referenced to show how our students are doing compared to other students around the country. All of this information is helpful in showing us how we can best meet the needs of each student. As parents, there are things you can do to help make this testing period successful. Please look at the following tips:
1. Reassure your child that he or she does not have to answer all the questions correctly to pass.
2. Tell your child to attempt to answer all of the questions and not leave any blanks.
3. Remind your child that the test is important.
4. Explain to your child the importance of using time wisely.
5. Make certain your child gets a good night's sleep and a good breakfast. (Limit caffeine and sugarJ )
6. Try to make the morning of the test a pleasant one.
7. Get your child to school on time the day of the test.
8. Remind you child to listen carefully to the teacher.
9. Encourage your child to stay focused.
10. Remind your child to mark all answers .
11. Be positive and your child will be also:)
