From the Principal:

Magazine Drive: This week we concluded our annual Los Cerros Magazine Drive. The participation and enthusiasm were fantastic and the students clearly made great efforts to support our extra-curricular programs with their sales. I want to thank all of the parents who helped their students achieve their sales goals as I realize it is a team effort.

There will be upcoming celebrations for students to celebrate their success. Winning homerooms received racing pigs for the upcoming competitions and there will also be ice cream treats distributed at lunch.

Progress Reports: With the district adoption of School Loop this year Los Cerros is in a position to update the distribution of progress reports. Instead of the costs and environmental impact of mailing Progress Reports we will use School Loop to disseminate grade information. Our first progress report date is September 30th and as of 5:00pm, your student's progress report will be updated and available online. If you are not currently on School Loop we will mail a copy to you. Quarter report cards will still be mailed to families with first quarter grades due November 3rd.

Conference Week: Our fall Conference Week is October 6-10 from 12:30 to 3:00pm each day. Teachers are currently identifying students who would benefit from a conference and those lists will be firmed up by the end of next week. After that you will receive a postcard with your scheduled conference time. We look forward to the opportunity to meet with you and your student in support of their academic growth.

Phyllis Roach, Principal

PAW PRINTS: Calling all Los Cerros writers and artists! Paw Prints Art and Literary Magazine is ready to organize. Students are invited to attend the first meeting on Wednesday, September 24th at 2:30pm in Room 12. We meet regularly on Wednesday's after school to organize writing and art contests for the school year. Come share your school spirit and ideas. Popcorn provided!

DRAMA NEWS: Auditions for the fall school play will be Tuesday and Wednesday, September 23rd and 24th. The play is "Alice in Wonderland". All students in all grades are welcome to try out. We will meet in the MPR at 2:30 and auditions will run until 4pm. Rehearsals will begin on Monday September 29 from 2:30 to 4:30 pm and will be Monday through Thursday until the play opens. The play opens on November 12th and runs for two evenings, with an assembly performance on the 15th. Please prepare a short, memorized monologue. You may be asked to do a cold reading of the play. Please see Mrs. Kaplan in the drama room with any questions you may have.

AMERICAN HERITAGE TRIP: PARENT INFORMATIONAL MEETING
WHO: 6th Grade, 7th Grade, 8th Grade students and parents
WHEN: Wednesday, October 15th at 7pm
WHERE: Room 14
WHAT: Each year students and parents join Mr. Simonds on a historical adventure exploring Washington D.C., Gettysburg, Philadelphia and New York City. The trip will take place during 2009 "Spring Break". Please join us!

31ST ANNUAL SKI AND SNOWBOARD SWAP:
The San Ramon Valley High School Parent Teacher Student Association has been hosting this community-wide ski and snowboard swap for 30 years. This year the event takes place on November 1st and 2nd from 10am to 4pm each day. Admission is $5 with children 14 and under free when accompanied by an adult. Community members are invited to sell their own ski/snowboard equipment and clothing on consignment. Instructions for bringing merchandise for sale are posted on our website. Pre-register your consigned equipment at http://danville.com/skiswap.

Tuesday, September 23rd
6th grade flag football - AWAY at Pine Valley
8th grade flag football - Home vs Iron Horse

Cross Country at Oak Hill Park

Thursday, September 25th
7th grade flag football - Home vs Pine Valley
8th grade flag football - AWAY at Pine Valley

All games start around 3:30pm and will end around 4:30pm. Please make sure all permission slips are in order prior to the start of the games. Thanks and let's have a great season!

Have you ever wondered if your child's behavior is affected by what (s)he eats? Pam McDonald, board certified Nurse Practitioner, will discuss nutrition and how it may impact your child's behavior and well-being. Topics covered include food coloring, artificial preservatives and additives, and the gluten-free/casein-free (GFCF) diet.

AD/HD Awareness Week (September 14 to September 20) "From first years to golden years: AD/HD and life's relationships" www.add.org/awareness for more information.

Academic Interventions: Starting October 13th we will begin our homework club, math help and peer tutoring. A complete list is available in the counseling office. If you would like a peer tutor for your student, please email Ms. Schubb nschubb@srvusd.net.

Organization Bootcamp will be offered beginning 10/21/08. Class size is limited and students will be placed based on teacher recommendation. If you would like to submit your student's name, please email Ms. Schubb, being sure to indicate "bootcamp" in the subject heading. nschubb@srvusd.net.

Eighth Grade Parents: If you would like a "parent mentor" to support you and your student's transition from 8th to 9th grade, please email Ms. Schubb nschubb@srvusd. Mentors are last year's 8th grade parents who are willing to offer words of wisdom and support as your student moves from middle school to high school.

Safe School Ambassadors: Los Cerros will be beginning our fourth year of the Safe School Ambassadors (SSA) program. We will begin our selection process of approximately 6-8 students from each grade level to receive intensive training on conflict resolution skills. The SSA Program model allows Ambassadors to be safe, cool, and effective. Ambassadors first intervene with their close friends and others they know well; this familiarity increases their effectiveness and reduces the risk of retaliation. Ambassadors also act in the moment as cruelty is happening so their impact is immediate; they don't need to wait for an appointment with a counselor or mediator. The selection process will begin in September. Students are selected through a combination of peer recommendation; teacher recommendation; and self selection. Training will be the week of conferences in October. For more information on this program, please see www.safeschoolambassadors.org.

Our Fourth Annual Career Day will be Friday, November 7th, 2008 from 1035am to 12:50pm in the multi-purpose room. If you wiould like to share your career with our students and/or volunteer your time, please contact Jena Lindberg j.lindberg@sbcglobal.net

Keeping Kids Out of High-Tech Trouble: In the real world, we as adults can set up physical boundaries to help us contain our children to spaces we deem safe.

When we take them to the park, we make sure our kids stay inside the fence.
When we visit a video store, we stick with the children's section and we don't let them venture into the back room toward the adult videos.
Schools have hallways, some have fences, and they all have procedures for making sure that kids get from one place to the other while being supervised and monitored.
At home, we activate our alarm systems at night to ward off intruders. Other boundaries in the form of rules exist.
We don't allow our children to play beyond a certain perimeter in our neighborhoods or communities.
We wouldn't take them with us to a night club where adult activities take place.
There are laws in place so that our children cannot simply go to a convenience store and purchase alcohol, tobacco, or adult magazines.
If an underage child or minor takes a flight, an attendant escorts him the entire way and checks for identification when delivering the child to his destination.
Technology has at least blurred if not eliminated these real world boundaries. The Internet and other high-tech gadgets have essentially introduced a high-speed interstate upon which we all travel yet a driver's license is not necessarily required. Road signs are unclear or non-existent. The small number of "rules of the road" are not typically enforced and the "strip joints' are right next door to the ice cream shops. Very few people verify a "driver's " age and traffic occurs at all hours of the day and night. The Internet connected computer in particular has become a potential "back door" for children (and others) to enter or exit our homes as they please.

Support your child's school in teaching the skills, knowledge and attitudes included in technology/media literacy.

You can download a basic child-parent agreement at http: //www.schoolcounselor.com/pdf/student-contract.pdf
Keep your home computer in a location that is easily viewable
Turn on the Safe Filtering mode on your search engines. In addition, use other filtering/blocking software such as Cybersitter (which I use and highly recommend).
Another option to consider is to investigate and choose a "family friendly" internet service provider (ISP). Read more by visiting http: //tinyurl.com/f2zxd.
If you choose to give your child a cell phone, purchase one that is "child friendly" where users can only send and receive from callers approved by the parents.
Gain personal and practical experience of various technologies so you can listen and talk with your children with authority. That is, become more technologically literate yourself. For example, set up your own myspace.com account and learn how it is used.
visit www.guardingkids.com/links for helpful resources and materials.
In essence, technology provides us with tools to help us accomplish our work more effectively and efficiently beyond what we can do without it. Computers, cell phones, gaming devices, ipods and other gadgets help us to stay connected, have fun and learn better. Such power however comes with great responsibility and sometimes at a premium price. We must all make certain that we are using high-tech tools responsibly for ourselves and for our society. We must ensure that our children understand how to embrace the tools of the 21st century in a manner that is safe and secure. Technological literacy for adults and children alike will help us to make decisions that are right and realistic. It is important that we each make a personal commitment and take the time to evaluate the use and impact of technology in the lives of our families. Then, with great care, it is critical that we appropriately learn, teach, monitor, and supervise so that we may appropriately guard our kids from high-tech trouble.