jan2002.htm

Community Newsletter January 2002

Greetings from Glenn...

Every new year brings with it promises of new things to come and a chance to take a fresh look at the world around us. Sometimes I find it difficult to step back and reflect, but when that chance presents itself I find it fascinating to see the trail that the CLC has traveled over the course of the past three plus years.

The CLC is still a very young enterprise. Each year the CLC has grown and with that growth has come even more changes. The CLC is unique in that besides getting things done everyday, our community is charged with figuring out the efficiencies behind the process as well. This is quite a challenge.

It is my hope that our affiliation with the Coalition of Essential Schools will focus our thinking about both process and function. This process will result in a gain in confidence as things fall into place. I recently shared with CLC staff the following principles to consider as we tackle future challenges:

We are a research-based, child centered organization. We intend, through honest examination of our environment and our work and our problems, to meet the unmet needs of our community with problem-solving design and development. We are committed to good design in products and systems.

We intend to make a contribution to society. We wish to make that contribution through the services we offer, and through the manner in which we offer them. We intend to be socially responsible and responsive.

We are dedicated to quality. We are talking about the quality of the services. We are also talking about the quality of our relationships and the quality of our caring and honest communications and the quality of our promises to one another.

I would ask us all to consider these principles as well. Best wishes for a bright new year!

Team News and Updates
8th grade
The 8th graders have put together a weekly news page in order to share the most up-to-date information about what's happening in the 8th grade team. Check out the Friday News link off of Mark's team web page.

Team 3
As Team 3's project on social reform movements nears its final deadline, the students work diligently to finish part three: the Historic Movements Webpage. Part two of the project challenged the students to incorporate their research and knowledge of the particular social reform movement they studied into a magazine complete with feature and editorial articles, editorial or political cartoons, and advertisements. The magazine was completed and handed in last week, and assessments will be going out in the January 11 Friday Folders. Semi-Independent Projects begin February 9th with a new twist on an old concept. The next independent project will have a theme: Science. The independent projects to date have allowed the students to choose any topic which interests them and which they would like to research. As you can imagine, some of the topics that came across our desks were quite "creative" but, at times, lacked the depth we hoped for in learning something new and exciting. So, for this round of independent projects, students will pick from a list of science-related topics.

Team 4
Many times in the past month, visitors stopping by Team 4 have found us in a circle having discussions. Over the course of our project on World History and World Culture, we have shared observations, beliefs, and differing opinions as we have examined what is taking place in the world. Our biggest goal has been to look at as many different perspectives about the world events as possible. We have tried to understand what led up to the events on Sept. 11 as well as what has occurred since then. There are as many responses and opinions in the class as there are people, but students have done an incredible job listening and responding to each other. As part of this project, we invited in two speakers. We heard from Sam Jones, a reservist in the U.S. Army who is currently serving our country; he spoke on terrorism and shared some of his experiences working in the military. We were also fortunate to hear from Dr. Julie Belz, a Muslim-American who teaches at Penn State. She spoke about Islam and many of the inaccurate perceptions regarding this religion. Students (and teachers) are frantically trying to get the final play ready for Friday, Jan. 18. The production team has written a thoughtful script which highlights many of the points discussed in our circles. The actors are busy memorizing lines, and everyone is excited to share our work. We hope you can join us for the show.

Team 5
Team 5 has been working with Donna and Jalynn on an Inventions Project during this block. Each student is currently experiencing the inventive process as they develop their own original invention. Team 5 students will be presenting their original inventions in the Invention Exhibition Hall during the CLC mini-conference to be held on Thursday, January 17th. In addition to creating their original inventions, Team 5 has researched about significant inventors from Leonardo da Vinci to Mohamad Farbood. We were fortunate to have George Hamilton, a local Penn State professor and inventor, come and speak to the Team about his experiences as an inventor. We are currently exploring the concepts of simple and complex machines and are applying our knowledge to developing Rube-Goldberg style inventions.
Meanwhile, the 5/6 POD has set the stage for our next COMMUNITY SERVICE venture--communication (letters, cards, artwork) with the residents of Beaver Avenue House of Care. A student steering committee will be inviting the HOC Director to CLC to share info and advice. The communication exchanges between HOC residents and CLC students will be optional. Parents with questions should contact Team 5 or Team 6 teachers.

Team 6
While Team 5 has been INVENTING with Donna and Jalynn, Joe and Sara have invited Team 6 along for a four-part Journeys Project. Indirectly, at least, we've traveled along the Transcontinental Railroad, climbed Mt. Everest, and rushed for gold by studying the tracks these events could have left behind. The resulting JOURNEY MAPS forced the creators to capture the essence of this history and the interpreters to come up with hunches about "what happened here". To encourage "perspective-taking" skills (and with help from the Centre County/Penn State Visitor Center), we've also been fashioning ITINERARIES for potential travelers to the Centre Region and look forward to interviewing seniors (Wilbert Keefe and Elton Tait) as they reveal their LIFE JOURNEYS. Rounding out the project are TIME-LINES (due 1/14) that will parallel highlights from Team Sixers' lives with events of local or national significance.
Team 6 has also been focusing on several mini-projects with Donna and Jalynn during this project block. During our Writer's Workshop, Team 6 has been undertaking the enormous task of writing their autobiographies. The students have been reflecting on their earliest memories, shining moments, heros, pets, and more. With the team's permission, we will link some of their writing to our Autobiography Project web page. In addition to the Autobiography Project, we have introduced "Project Care." Look at the link on Team 6's Project Page to learn more about this community service project. Teams 5 and 6 are endeavoring to learn about the needs of people who live in Centre County. Part of the project requires the students to have a coach to help them get an action plan going. If any member of the CLC community would be comfortable offering their guidance to a small group of students, or to offer ideas for community needs, we would be open to hearing from you. It will be exciting to see what impact we can make on our community.

You're invited!
Please come to the Team 4 presentation of the play Sept. 11: Up to and Beyond. The world premier will take place in the Big Room on Friday, January 18, at 10 a.m. This play, the culmination of our project on World History and World Culture, presents many viewpoints on the current events in the world. Students have spent many hours researching, writing, discussing, and directing this play, and we look forward to sharing it with the community.

January Parent Meeting - Thursday, Jan. 17, 7:00
This month, the plan is to bring the monthly parent meeting back to a large group. After announcements and a short presentations by Joe on "Project Care", the focus of the meeting will be social to give parents and staff a chance to touch base now that we are half-way through the school year. (Glenn is encouraging parents to bring any of their technology questions!)

January Board Meeting - Thursday, Jan. 24, 7:00

Parent Board Elections
To date, we have received only one nomination for the position of parent representative on the CLC Board. We have extended the nomination period to January 14th. This is the last call for nominations. If you have any questions about this position, please contact Glenn.

Transitioning to High School - Attention parents of CLC 8th graders!
We are in the process of gathering information from the 4 local school districts regarding this year's dates for high school registration and open houses. Most of the districts are still in the process of finalizing their 2002-2003 course booklets and we will be sent the information as soon as it's available. Please check out the link we have created off of our home page which we will update daily with pertinent dates and other specific information for parents.

New Specials Block starts 1/18/02
Students are in the process of choosing new classes for art and P.E. for the next block. Art options include Stained Glass, Weaving, Drama, Mask Making (mulit-media), Landscapes (drawing, painting, collage), Photography, and Figure Sculpture II. Fitness choices this block will Active Games and Personal Wellness. For those students taking F.L.E.X., Madhu P. (Krishna - Team 4) will be teaching Hindu and the culture of India.

Welcome New Community Members!
Katharine (Lead Teacher - Team 3 ) and Jeff are the proud parents of a new baby girl, Emily Lynn, born on Monday, Dec. 31!
And, former CLC teacher Lisa S. and her husband, Andy, are the proud parents of Sadie who was born in late November. Congratulations to both families!

On a different note, we would also like to welcome Rachel, our PSU intern, to our community. Rachel is currently a senior at Penn State in the Human Development and Family Studies program. She will be working at CLC as a full time intern until the end of April. During her internship at CLC, she will be concentrating on three main projects which include developing a peer mediation program, creating a resource library for use by parents, teachers and students, and helping with team building exercises on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. She will also be working under Kim Rimmey in areas of counseling and interventions. In the fall, Rachel intends to go to graduate school forher Masters in School Psychology. She is looking forward to gaining a new perspective on education from the learner-centered environment that CLC provides. If you have any further questions about her role at CLC, feel free to contact Rachel or M.J. at the school. Rachel will be working Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m.

Health Screening Reminder
Health screenings are scheduled for all CLC students on Monday, Jan. 28. The school nurse from the Mt. Nittany Middle School will be here all day to do the screenings. The following are the screening requirements for each grade level:
5th grade: height, weight, vision
6th grade: height, weight, vision and scoliosis screening (checking their back for curvature of the spine). Scoliosis screening is required on those students who do not have a 6th grade physical exam on record.
7th grade: height, weight, vision, hearing, dental, and scoliosis screening
8th grade: height, weight, vision

Ski Club
Students who have purchased ski passes and have signed up for the CLC Ski Club will begin skiing on Monday, Jan. 14. After school on Monday, students will sign in to ESP and then board the bus for Tussey Mountain around 3:45. Ski dates for the club are as follows: 1/14, 1/28, 2/4, 2/11, 2/25, and 3/11. There is no school on Monday, 1/21 or on Monday, 2/18, therefore there will be no ski club on those days.

Winter Weather
Just a reminder that we follow the State College School District's decision on school closings due to weather conditions. If State College is closed, we're closed. The closings are usually broadcast on the local radio stations and on Channel 4 on T.V. For Bellefonte, Bald Eagle and Penns Valley students, your transportation is dictated by the individual district's decision to close or start late/dismiss early. If Bald Eagle has a 2 hour delay, but State College is on time, your Bald Eagle bus will run on the Bald Eagle schedule, two hours late. If Penns Valley is open, but State College is closed, CLC will be closed. Does all of this make sense?

A reminder to make sure your children are appropriately dressed for the cold weather when they leave the house in the morning. We do take students outside for recess and after school throughout the winter. Also, please remember to write their name on the tag of their jackets, gloves, hats, etc. so that when these items are left behind in the big room (and, inevitably, they will be at some point this winter) they can be returned to your child.

Recognizing the CLC Staff Appreciation Lunch "chefs"!
Thanks to the following parents who have provided fabulous food for the CLC Staff Appreciation Lunch in January: Sally D. (Eric - 8th grade), Becky B. (Brittany - 8th grade), Kathy B. (James - Team 6), Liz K. (Mouse - Team 3), Lynn P.-K. (Sarah - 8th grde), Alis R. (Alex - team 4). Also, thanks to Jean M. (Chris - 8th grade), Janine G. (Leela - Team 5), Cindy W. (Colby - Team 5) for volunteering their time to help cover the classrooms during the meal. And, Annie L. (Willie - Team 3) and Liz K. for their organization of the monthly feast. We truly appreciate your thoughtfulness.
If you want to volunteer to contribute a dish or to help cover the classrooms during the lunch, please call Annie L. (237-3672 or ajl@kirkof.meche.psu.edu) or Liz K. (231-4095 or exk13@psu.edu). Bon Appetit!

Calendar

January 14	Ski Club begins (ESP)
January 17	Parent Meeting 7:00 p.m.
January 17	CLC Mini-Conference - 10 a.m. - noon
January 18	Presentation of Team 4's play Sept. 11: Up to and Beyond.
January 21	Act 80 Day - No School
January 24	CLC Board Meeting, 7:00 p.m.
January 28	Health Screenings