March 24 - This week’s best tips, resources and events for Sonoma students, parents and teachers

Curious when school starts in August? The Sonoma Valley School District calendar for the 2015-2016 school year has now been posted on the district website at svusdca.org/. Opening day is Monday, Aug. 17. The last day of school is Thursday, June 2, 2016.

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A new study has found that parents who tell their kids that they are better than other children can create narcissistic tendencies. Parents are really divided on this topic as the trend in recent years has been unwavering praise and installing in children a sense of how special they are. How do you walk the fine line between promoting healthy self-esteem and creating entitled kids who think the world revolves around them? NPR had a good story on the issue here: tinyurl.com/lw8sndp

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The University of California system received a record 193,873 applications this year - 158,146 from freshman applicants and 35,727 from prospective transfer students. This represents an increase of 6.5 percent and 2.6 percent, respectively. All nine UC undergraduate campuses saw increases in freshman applicants. Statistics on undergraduate applications to each campus can be found at ucop.edu/news/studstaff.html

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If your teen is a high school senior, be sure to check out the complete list of local, regional and national scholarships available on the Sonoma Valley High School website. This list is updated almost daily and last year, SVHS students received hundreds of thousands of dollars of scholarships from the organizations on this list: sonomavalleyhigh.org/collegeadvising.html

Here is one notable one: the Sonoma Valley Vintners & Growers Alliance Scholarship is accepting applications now for its Friday, April 10 deadline. Students must have a parent who works for a grower or vintner member. The big news from SVVGA is that this year it has $100,000 to give away locally. sonomavalleywine.com

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If your son or daughter is a student athlete (of any age) with serious hopes of one day being recruited to play at the college level, be sure to attend the workshop on college athletics recruiting at 11:40 a.m. on Tuesday, March 31, in the College and Career Center at Sonoma Valley High School.

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“Serial” got many teens (and their parents) interested in podcasts. Teachers around the country are using podcasts in the classroom because better listening skills is a critical Common Core educational goal, and students love the format. Studies have found that students can listen to content two-to-three grade levels higher than they can read. Interested in more ideas? Check out Listen Current which has resources to “teach your students to listen with the power of public radio.” listencurrent.com. If you haven’t tuned in, Serial’s first season consisted of 12 40-to-45-minute “chapters” narrated by a reporter, involving interviews with former witnesses, detectives, lawyers and classmates of a teen who was convicted of the murder of his ex-girlfriend. serialpodcast.org

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Some experts contend that happiness is a skill, that it can be learned and/or taught. The Happify app’s free activities and games are based on serious academic research. The program is designed to train people to disrupt patterns of negative thinking, manage stress and build skills to overcome life challenges. Happify recommends daily activities and the site claims it can teach all ages valuable skills to find peace of mind and feel more engaged, motivated and … well, happy. happify.com

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The driver’s education course at Sonoma Valley High School has been cancelled due to low enrollment, according to the school newspaper. Reporter Allison Gray (junior) pointed out in the piece that cancelling the class may not be legal, however, as California law mandates its availability. The instructor quoted said that students currently prefer to wait to get their license until they are 17, because they are most interested in driving their friends, which they cannot do with the provisional license that is available at 15.5 years old.

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Pepperwood Preserve in Santa Rosa is offering a five-week photography/field biology internship. The internship will take place in July and is open to students ages 13 to 18. Interns will receive their own digital cameras, letters of completion, and 90 volunteer hours. Applications are due today, April 24. pepperwoodpreserve.org

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Congratulations to the six Sonoma Valley students who placed in the top four of their divisions in the recent FFA public speaking competition at Elsie Allen High School. They will move on to the regional finals on Friday, March 27. Sophomore Paul Shafer came in third place in impromptu, senior Ava Castro came in second place in impromptu, senior Rick Taggesell came in second place in prepared, senior Mia Castro came in fourth place in extemporaneous, sophomore Jasmine Johnstone came in third place in extemporaneous and senior Gabby Reed came in fourth place in job interview.

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Several Sonoma Valley students competed at the recent Sonoma County Spelling Bee and while they narrowing missed moving on to the state tournament, big congratulations are in order. At the elementary level (grades 4 to 6), fifth grader Lucca Sebastiani came in fifth place overall out of 17 students. At the middle school level (grades 7 to 9), Altimira Middle School eighth grader Isaac Munger came in fifth place and eighth grader Lillian Ling came in ninth place overall, out of 36 contestants.

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KID Power is offering a self-defense and “people safety” workshop for children ages 9 to 12 and their parents from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 28. The cost is $45 per child/adult pair and the class will be held at the Sonoma Tae Kwon Do Center on West Napa Street. Learn more at kidpower.org.

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Teens should register now for the free Teen Services Sonoma Ready to Work sessions that begin Monday, March 30. Teens will learn how to prepare a resume, practice interviewing techniques and get ready for the job opportunities that STS helps to provide. This is a terrific series of classes that will make all the difference in a teen’s ability to find work. teenservicessonoma.org

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Dunbar School has begun preparations for the 23rd season of its fifth grade melodrama project. Auditions have been held, casting is complete and rehearsals have begun. The 25 students in the cast will be directed by Kate Kennedy in her 13th year as director, with assistance from the teachers Wendi Wellander, Brandy Melendy and Nora Alexander-Short, principal Melanie Blake, parent volunteers Grace Mejia and Maria Fajardo, and staff/parent volunteers. The play, “Wrongful Doings at Woeful Ranch,” will be held on Memorial Day weekend at Dunbar. Donations can be dropped off at the school office or mailed to 11700 Dunbar Road, Glen Ellen, CA 95442.

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The Sonoma Community Center is offering new Craft Club for Kids from 3:30 to 5 p.m. on Wednesdays, April 1 to May 6. Activities will include ceramics, drawing, painting, collage and more. sonomacommunitycenter.org

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Senior project events:

Marilyn Gonzalez has organized a Baskin Robbins Scoop Night to raise money for a scholarship for a Belizean student. Visit the store from 2:30 p.m. to closing on Wednesday, March 25, and 20 percent of the proceeds will be donated to her cause.

Adrian Hernandez is organizing a video game tournament that will raise money to benefit Child’s Play which gives toys and games to children in hospitals. Contact Ahernandez1540@gmail.com to enter. The cost is $10 and the tournament will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, March 28 at Sonoma Valley High School Library.

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Here is a question for you. Why is it socially acceptable to say you are bad at math but not to say you are bad at reading?