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K and freshman enrollment, core standards, Apple textbooks, tips for grades

Education Roundup

All local schools are beginning their enrollment period. Kindergarten registration for the public schools starts the first week in February. On Feb. 1 from 5 p.m. to 6:15 p.m. there will be an information session regarding all schools at Sassarini Elementary School (652 Fifth St. W.), followed by a session in Spanish from 6:30 to 7:45 p.m. (childcare available). Registration packets will be available there and online at svusdca.org and at the elementary schools, starting Feb. 2. Kindergarten registration will also take place at each of the elementary schools on Feb. 8 and Feb. 15 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Note that as part of the changes in California law, this year Sonoma will offer a transitional kindergarten program for students who will turn 5 between Nov. 2 and Dec. 2 of 2012. That information session will be Feb. 29 at 5 p.m. at Sassarini.

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For students entering high school in the fall, Sonoma Valley High School is holding two information sessions, one on Jan. 31 at 6:30 p.m. at Altimira (17805 Arnold Drive), and one on Feb. 2 at 6:30 p.m. at Adele Harrison (1150 Broadway). Charter and private school students are invited to attend their date. Call 933-4030 for more information.

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Each fall, the U.S. Department of Education announces which K-12 schools have received “Blue Ribbon” designation. In 2011, 20 California public schools made the list, but there were no schools from Sonoma, Napa, Lake, Mendocino, Humboldt or Marin counties. According to the U.S. Department of Education, this program “is part of a larger effort to identify and disseminate knowledge about best school leadership and teaching practices.” The other program you frequently hear about run by the Department of Education is the California Distinguished School Award, which honors California’s most exemplary and inspiring public schools. Schools selected for the Distinguished School Award demonstrate significant gains in narrowing the achievement gap. The two Sonoma County school districts honored in 2011 under that program were Healdsburg Unified and Santa Rosa city schools.

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Family Circle magazine ran an interesting article in the most recent issue on whether students should get As for doing their homework, being on time and all-around good behavior, or should top marks only go to students who master the material. Amazingly, the article works off the assumption that most schools grade via the former basis, not the latter, but I’ve had trouble finding statistics on this. Author Peg Tyre recently wrote a book titled “The Good School: How Smart Parents Get Their Kids the Education They Deserve.”

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The book, “How to Be a High School Superstar,” by Cal Newport, suggests three tips for better grades: 1 – Disconnect. He suggests that each night students unplug the cable that connects their computer to the modem, wrap it around their cell phone and hand the bundle to a parent until the work is done. 2 – Follow the fortnight rule. He says a calendar should be hung in a central location and all deadlines, tests and due dates should be posted. Look ahead two weeks and plan accordingly. 3 – Never highlight. Newport believes that top students all study the same way … by explaining textbook concepts out loud in complete sentences. He says it leads to better comprehension than highlighting, in less time.

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Wondering what all the talk is about regarding common core standards? Up until recently, the standards for what students should know and be able to do has varied dramatically from state-to-state. In 2010, a national initiative was launched with the aim of developing “common core standards” for grades K-12. Calfornia has been very active in helping to develop these standards. Any changes in what the state’s schools teach is now being phased in gradually, but if you want to learn more about how this is playing out at your school in particular, you might ask your curriculum director or principal. The end goal is to be able to compare student performance across states (apples to apples rather than apples to oranges).

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Bilingual students are needed to volunteer at La Luz to help tutor adults to earn their GED in Spanish.  Students are also needed to volunteer as greeters, interpreters and screeners to help with tax preparation.  This is a great chance to gain valuable work experience.  For more information, call 938-5131 or stop by La Luz at 17560 Greger St.

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Apple made a big announcement last week that is expected to “reinvent” the school textbook. It announced two new applications: iBooks 2 (a free download for iPads) and iBooks Author (a tool to create interactive iPad lessons. The new interactive books would cost $14.99, much less than today’s paper textbooks, and could be updated continually. Most amazing is that they have teamed up with the publishers responsible for 90 percent of the school textbooks used in the United States today. Apple also said it was expanding iTunes U beyond college content to include elementary and high schools, allowing teachers put their lectures online.

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In the meantime, students at universities or junior colleges, should consider www.campusbookrentals.com to rent their textbooks rather than buying them. On average, it costs about one third as much to rent a book as to buy a used copy. Round trip shipping is free. At the end of the semester, you have the option to buy the book for the used price if you want to own it. Locals have found that, among the various options, www.campusbookrentals is the cheapest and easiest company to work with.

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Chef de Cuisine, Andrew Cain of Santé, at the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn, is hosting a five-course dinner paired with B.R. Cohn wines on Jan. 26. A percentage of proceeds from the event will be donated to the high school ag department. The cost is $145 a person and reservations are limited. Call 939-2415.

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January is National Mentoring Month. Spend the month learning more and then consider joining the Sonoma Valley Mentoring Alliance for their annual Mentor Recruitment Event on Feb. 8, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at MacArthur Place. There is a huge waiting list of students seeking mentors; please consider changing a child’s life.

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Sonoma Valley High School continues to offer free geometry and algebra 2 tutoring, every Wednesday after school, but students must sign up in room J-7 by 3 p.m., the previous Tuesday.   Class is limited to eight students.

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Woodland Star has an opening on its Aftercare Team. They are looking for a new aftercare assistant four days a week, from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. The aftercare team teaches, observes, interacts, mediates and plays in the Waldorf way with children ranging in age from 5 to 12 years of age.  This is a paid position.  To apply, contact Gaylan Paige at Woodland Star, 996-3849. 

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On Jan. 25, Kim John Payne, a well-known school counselor/educator/consultant/researcher, is speaking on, “How Parents Can Raise a Socially Resilient Child” at the Summerfield Waldorf School in Santa Rosa (655 Willowside). Tickets are $10 at the door. Payne will cover teasing, family balance, resilient children, building friendships and more.

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Sonoma Valley Adult School has new classes starting up at the end of January, including “Organize Your Photos,” “Photo Album Layout” and “Scrapbooking,” running on Tuesday nights from 6 to 9:30 p.m., and taught by Caroline Matz. Bill O’Connor will be teaching a course on the U.S. Constitution. 
“We the People – A Fresh Look at the Constitution,” is not a course on constitutional law, nor is it an indoctrination session advocating certain political positions, but rather is a chance to read the Constitution and gain important information about the one document that is central to our lives as Americans.
 O’Connor has practiced law for more than 35 years and has taught at San Francisco Law School and USF. Wednesdays 7 to 9 p.m., starting Feb. 8 and ending March 14. Register online at sonomavalleyadultschool.org or call 933-4033.

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All University of California (UC) campuses will ban smoking indoors and outdoors over the next two years, the chancellor announced last week.