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Looking for free flashcards that can be downloaded to your child's phone? Check out www.studyblue.com Check out the Parent Resources page for the 2011-12 Parenting Resource Center class and workshop schedule. Kids in the Middle, Legal Jams, and Coping With Grief classes begin in November. Six Ways to Be a Media-Savvy Parent in 2012  Facebook. YouTube. Video games. Texting. Every day, there's something new in our kids' digital lives. Getting up to speed -- plus giving our kids guidance and limits -- is a daily challenge. But here's the thing: You don't have to become an expert in all things digital in order to know what your kids are up to. The six steps below will give you a solid understanding of your kids' main media activities so that you can develop a strategy to manage them. Media and technology are huge parts of our kids' lives. By getting involved, you can help them use these tools responsibly, respectfully, and safely. Visit an online social networking site. If you have young kids, check out Club Penguin to see how children use this virtual world. Embrace your kids' enthusiasm, but educate yourself about what goes on. Get a Facebook page, or sign up for Twitter. Ask your kids to show you their pages. Play a video game with your kid. Even if you're not a gamer, you can have fun (and gain a lot of insight) by playing along with your kid. Try one of the Guitar Hero games or Beatles Rock Band. Play a sports game on the Wii, or pass a football with Madden. The best way to keep kids away from violent games is to enjoy other games together. Download something your kids will like. Pick a song they've never heard. Then ask them to play something for you that you've never heard. Have a conversation about the music. Check out YouTube. YouTube is pretty much mandatory viewing for kids of a certain age, so click around and watch some videos. Visit the comedy section and enjoy some laughs with your kids. Take control of your TV. There are lots of ways to exert more control over what your kids watch. You can use a digital video recorder, on-demand programming, and websites like Hulu to watch what you want when you want it. This allows you to be choosier about what your kids see. You can preview the shows, fast forward through the ads, use the mute button, and avoid the stuff you don't want your kids to watch. Learn how to manage your kids' digital lives. When you give your kids digital devices -- cell phones, computers, and other personal electronics -- set rules around responsible, respectful usage. Check in on where your kids are going online -- look at browser histories, set appropriate age filters, and check out the parental controls. Teach your kids the basics of safe searching (Google has a safe-search setting), and give them a digital code of conduct. Don't let them figure it all out by themselves. Wondering about what's appropriate for your children to watch? Check out www.commonsensemedia.org, sign up, and join our other members! Not sure if you want to sign up? Check out the following links to gain a better sense of all the pertinent information Common Sense Media provides. (If the links are not active, copy and paste each one on your browser.) http://www.commonsensemedia.org/advice-for-parents/bullying-everybodys-business http://www.commonsensemedia.org/new/search-backpack-minus-brand?utm_source=newsletter08.04.11&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=feature1 http://www.commonsensemedia.org/new/movies-and-fast-food-bad-deal-kids?utm_source=newsletter06.30.11&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=feature1 http://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-lists/streaming-movies-kids?utm_source=newsletter06.30.11&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=feature2 Our character theme for the month of February is Perseverance. Here are some quotes pertaining to perseverance to talk about with your children:
I never failed once. It just happened to be a 2000-step process.
— Thomas Edison, American inventor) (1847-1931), responding to a reporter who asked how it felt to fail 2000 times before successfully inventing the light bulb
Be patient and calm—for no one can catch fish in anger.
— Herbert Hoover, American public servant and 31st president (1874-1964)
Fall seven times. Stand up eight.
— Japanese proverb
If you have made mistakes, even serious ones, there is always another chance for you. What we call failure is not the falling down, but the staying down.
— Mary Pickford (Gladys Louise Smith), American actress (1893-1979)
The way to succeed is never quit. That's it. But really be humble about it.
— Alex Haley, American author (1921-1992) What does not destroy makes me stronger.
— Friedrich Nietzsche, German philosopher (1844-1900)
Have patience with all things, but chiefly have patience with yourself. Do not lose courage in considering your own imperfections, but instantly set about remedying them—every day begin the task anew.
— Saint Francis de Sales, bishop of Geneva (1567-1622)
Success consists of getting up just one more time than you fall.
— Oliver Goldsmith, English author (1730-1774) Energy and persistence conquer all things.
— Benjamin Franklin, American Founding Father, inventor and statesman (1706-1790)
Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan press on has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.
— Calvin Coolidge, 30th American president (1872-1933)
People may fail many times, but they become failures only when they begin to blame someone else.
— Unknown
One is defeated only when one accepts defeat.
— Marshal Foch, French general and war hero (1851-1929)
It is not falling into the water, but lying in it, that drowns.
— Unknown
Winners are losers who got up and gave it one more try.
— Dennis DeYoung, songwriter and member of the pop rock band Styx (b. 1947)
Check out the Classroom News page for a list of Recognition Assembly dates. Music performances are starting in October!
September's theme, RESPECT, is the cornerstone for all of the themes that follow the rest of the year.
If we all respect ourselves and others we will greatly reduce the number of problems that are sure to crop up in our lives if we don't follow simple rules of respect.
Remember, it's important to talk about the material your children are exposed to in the media and to give children an idea of what is acceptable and what is not. For more information on movie ratings visit www.commonsensemedia.org
Please check out the My Resources section of this page for additional information including links to some great web sites.
Mr. Benjamin's Elementary/Middle School Guidance Site
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