Content Row
ALMOND THURSDAY WORD
January 26, 2017
UPCOMING DATES TO REMEMBER
SCHOOL MESSAGE
...from Mrs. Benadom
Please. Watch THIS. The whole thing.
Now, let’s talk about math.
When I sat in math classes as a learner, I identified with that meerkat. Not because it lulled me to sleep, but instead because my brain went into a frantic state of panic. My amygdala response sent my thoughts into doubt and worry. “What if I get the answer wrong?” “Hurry up Erika! Everyone else is done and you’re still working on the problem.” “What is that darn formula?!?!?! I thought I had it memorized but I can’t retrieve it from my working memory.” “Why do I even need to learn this stuff? I am NEVER going to use this.”
Thank goodness I became an educator and as such have poured over tons of research that speaks to the impact of our beliefs on our achievement. And, I’m so grateful I learned this before I became a parent. This understanding has made me keenly aware of my self talk in front of my children. They have never heard me utter, “I’m not good at math,” or “math is so hard.” In fact, my poor husband got the look of death from me once when he suggested that the kids go to him for math help because mom’s better at creative things and he’s the mathematically minded of us two. He has never made another such a statement ;-).
This week I joined a team of 14 educators from LASD to hear from Jo Boaler, renown Stanford Professor of Mathematics at the Stanford Graduate School of Education. What an incredible two days! It provided our team with a deep sense of validation in our work around “the growth mindset”, reminded us of the importance to encourage students to develop varied strategies in solving problems, and also introduced us to new ways to deepen conceptual learning.
The following is directly from the youcubed website.
“These 9 findings have very strong implications for mathematics classrooms. If acted upon they could unleash the potential of millions more students.
Here’s to guiding a whole generation of thinkers into a realm where numbers, variables and symbols are friends...not foes.
PTA & SCHOOL ANNOUNCEMENTS - NEW
SPRING BOOK FAIR CHAIR NEEDED
The PTA still has not been able to identify a volunteer to head up the annual spring book fair. This event not only raises funds for Almond, but it also brings a bookstore right to us. Children enjoy perusing the books and get excited about losing themselves in stories or non-fiction texts. If we do not have a person (or people - could be a partnership) identified by 1/31, we will not hold a spring book fair this year. :-( Please contact Jon Meyer if you are interested in supporting this initiative at our school.
SCHOOL COFFEE
Keith Rocha, the Egan Principal, will be our honored guest at the school coffee on Thursday, 2/9. He will discuss how parents can support the transition from elementary school to junior high. You do not need to be a 6th grade parent to attend. It will be valuable information for any Almond parent with children in any grade level. We hope you’ll join us.
STUDENT COUNCIL
LAEF’S BILLBOARD UPDATED TO THE $3M MARK!
Did you notice the growing arrow on the LAEF sign in front of our school? The 21 parent volunteers on our Board of Directors are pleased to announce that LAEF just reached the $3,000,000 mark! 100 families contributed in December, with donations ranging from $20 to $5,000. Thank you! With $700,000 to go to meet our $3.7M goal, every dollar counts. That’s why we’re counting on another 400 families to participate this school year. To donate or learn more about the many ways to give, please go to www.LAEFonline.org.
AFTER SCHOOL OPPORTUNITY
Egan Girl Scout Troop 61015 is holding an after-school playdate on Friday, February 10 from 2:25 - 4:45 in the Almond multi. The troop will provide supervised play and activities to Almond students in grades K-3 (and siblings ages 3 and up who are potty trained). The kids will have a lot of fun with board games, legos, arts and crafts, and play time on the playground, and snacks will be provided. Most of the scouts have earned their babysitting badge and are Red Cross babysitting certified, and several adults will be on hand to help supervise. The fee is $25 per child and $10 for each additional sibling - you can pay at drop off or pick up. We plan use use the funds for our summer trip. To sign up, please click here by February 8th. Please email Sara Elkin with any questions.
PTA & SCHOOL ANNOUNCEMENTS - REPEATED
BOOKWAVE
REMINDER OF LOST & FOUND PURGE PROTOCOL
Starting with January, we will clear out the Lost & Found at the end of each month to keep it from getting ridiculously full. Please put your child's name or at least a family name in your children's clothing and we will do our best to return it to you. Remind your children to look in the Lost & Found regularly.
COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS
It is Girl Scout Cookie Time!!
WANT TO SUBMIT SOMETHING TO THE THURSDAY WORD?
Send announcements to us at AlmondThursdayWord@lasdschools.org by 12:00pm Monday, for that week's Word. Keep your announcements brief and, if applicable, send a PDF version of any flyer or additional information to be posted on the website.
Quick Links…
School & Community News now found via Peachjar:
https://www.peachjar.com/index.php?a=28&b=138®ion=53999
Almond Elementary School Website
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11/14/24 9:56 AM