“The more that you read, the more things you will know.

The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”
― Dr. Seuss,

I Can Read With My Eyes Shut!

The Honorable Bill Wells, Mayor of El Cajon, was our featured guest during Jamacha’s Read Across America Week. Mayor Wells read the Dr. Seuss book I Can Read With My Eyes Shut! to the entire school via video after reading to his grandson’s class, and was followed by a visit from Miss Piggy to congratulate Jamacha scholars for their efforts to support Jamacha’s library through the Feed the Pig Campaign.

Kathy Skube, Principal
Jamacha Elementary School

This coming Friday is Digital Learning Day. This is a national initiative to improve American public schools by providing students and teachers access to modern tools for teaching and learning. Two years ago Cajon Valley Middle School made national news because of their recognition on Digital Learning Day. See below.

This year, in order to allow all Cajon Valley students and teachers to participate, teachers across the district worked together with Ed Services to create “What Do You Do With an Idea?” #CVDLD2015 Follow this link to access an introductory video for your students, a short list of pre-planned activities, and links to resources. This is also a great opportunity to give your students a chance to give a TEDx talk. http://www.cajonvalley.net/education.cfm?subpage=1330876

Thank you to Janet Ilko, Stephanie Ibrahim, Jennifer Petraglia, Stacy Isom, Bethany Dizon, Sarah Wright, Susan Plack, Kathy Gligo, Celine Ohara, Deb Jordan, Holly French, Liz Loether, and the Ed Services Team for making this possible. We will look forward to seeing all Cajon Valley Schools shine on Digital Learning Day…

http://www.cajonvalley.net/education.cfm?subpage=1330876

Applications for TEDxKids@ElCajon are starting to roll in. I’d like to encourage you to stop for a moment, take a look around and ask yourself, “where is the inspiration in this room?” I’m betting you are surrounded by it. Is it sitting quietly in the corner? Maybe it’s drawing furiously on a whiteboard? Tinkering with some gaming code? Please let that person know that you think that they have an idea, a story, a concept or some talent to share from a TEDx stage. Give them the opportunity to have there talk showcased on the global TEDx platform.

Send them to TEDxKid@ElCajon to sign up. Spend a few moments to encourage them to write down their talk. It only takes one little spark to inspire great change. Please reach out and let your students and friends know what they say is important.

Here is the link to the application page http://www.tedxkidscv.com/tedxkidselcajon-nomination/

We will also have spots for adult speakers. If you have an idea worth spreading or know someone who would be a great addition to our lineup…follow this link. http://www.tedxkidscv.com/tedxkidselcajon-adults/

Be aware that we will do our best to support all participants in crafting the very best Talk or Talk & Performance as they can! We have seasoned TEDxTalk coaches to guide speaker and mentor teams on speed dial so don’t hesitate to make your nomination today.
Ever wonder what makes a great TED Talk? The video below is TED curator Chris Anderson sharing the components of an effective TED talk and what sets TED apart from other. Anyone considering speaking at TEDxKids@ElCajon should watch this video.

Yours Respectfully,
Patricia Stitson
Consultant
TEDxKids@ElCajon
Cajon Valley’s Got Talent
email: info@patriciastitson.com
cell: 619-920-9046

W.D. Hall was selected as the Grand Prize winner for the CVUSD Hour of Code contest. All of our students are participating in a field trip to the Code Campus at Emerald Middle School, compliments of Code to the Future. I had the pleasure of visiting Emerald and seeing our students actively engaged in Coding. It is an incredible opportunity and experience. Students, teachers, and parent volunteers who have attended the field trip are raving about it. Many students are now choosing to attend the Saturday Code School opportunities. Teachers are continuing to provide Coding opportunities within the classroom and building on students’ knowledge, enthusiasm and interests. Thank you to Andrew Svehaug, Kevin Weiss, Keith Walsh, David Phillips and all of those involved with Code to the Future. Special thanks to Steven Bailey for hosting this program and for his support.

It was another amazing day filled with student-driven innovation, project-based learning, and fun at Montgomery Middle School! Dr. Miyashiro and board member, Justin Slagle toured the campus with Dr. Luzak. They visited many classrooms centered on blended learning and student reflection. An inspiring part of the visit was the “Maker Lab” where students were hard at work designing and building their LED bracelets. The addition of the “Maker Lab” has invigorated student creativity and married together the fundamental philosophies of the International Baccalaureate Program and elements of 21st century learning. Students at MMS are getting an educational experience that prepares them for their future careers. From Spanish to English, to science and math, to art and history….the classrooms at Montgomery are teeming with students who ask critical questions, analyze their work, create their own original pieces, share them on blogs, and seek to become well-rounded citizens. The staff and students at MMS enjoyed showing that hard work pays off.

Something is different at Lexington these days. We have parents in the classroom learning how to help their child read. On Tuesday, we had over 40 parents join us in First grade classrooms on this incredible journey. We asked parents how we can better support their family and they wanted to better help their child learn. Each grade level will participate over the next two weeks. It takes only 30 minutes at the beginning of the day and the result is very positive. The Children were thrilled that Mom or Dad came to their school and the parents were so proud to be here. Each parent left with a “Comprehension Bookmark” in their language to help at home with comprehension questions. We hope to have one more round before the year is up. What a perfect way to kick off “Literacy Week”.

Kevin Honeycutt is a technology integrationist and a staff developer from Central Kansas. He spent 13 years teaching K-12 art and now travels the country and the world sharing ideas with educators.  He is currently serving his ninth year as a Technology Integration Specialist at ESSDACK, an educational service center based in Hutchinson, Kansas. Here he researches and designs programs, training and staff development with a strong passion for helping teachers and learners become successful with educational uses of technology.  This session will focus on not just effective, but essential parenting and teaching tools to raising responsible and successful kids in the digital age. Kevin will speak directly to staff, parents, and kids w/ age appropriate material for all.

Thank you to Spencer Caldwell for capturing the video and making it available to all CVUSD Family and Friends.

See more at: http://www.eccalifornian.com/article/anza-elementary-gets-lesson-finance-thanks-junior-achievement#sthash.kLl4PuRs.dpuf

From learning how to count money to creating their own budget, volunteer teachers for Junior Achievement taught valuable financial lessons to students at Anza Elementary School last Friday as part of Junior Achievement (JA) Day. During JA Days, students in kindergarten through 12th grade attend a one-day workshop led by volunteers that educate them in financial literacy, work readiness, and entrepreneurship through hands-on activities. Each volunteer teacher presents a lesson specially aimed at the grade level they are assigned to teach. Kristi Zimsky, public relations manager for Junior Achievement said, “JA Days serve as the missing link between schools and the community where we are able to invest in children now to prepare for the future.”
At Anza Elementary School, 23 volunteers had the opportunity to lead lesson plans in classrooms of students ranging from kindergarten to 5th grade. This special day presented children in the community with financial responsibility while giving them the excitement of having a new face in the classroom. Junior Achievement CEO Joanne Pastula said, “JA days are so great because the students are receiving materials correlated with state standards from a source other than their teachers, and the volunteers get just as much out of the events as the students do.”
Following the event, volunteer Linda Madsen said that her favorite part of the day was “when the students ask for help and they are so sincere and responsive to the activities we are doing with them. They truly enjoy what we bring to the classroom.”
Senator Joel Anderson awarded the event volunteers with Senate certificates of recognition for their commitment to giving the youth of our community the tools they need to succeed. An Executive Legislative intern from his office, Alyssa Thompson, participated in this JA Day as a volunteer teacher.
“Junior Achievement of San Diego County is an outstanding organization that prepares students with economics and personal finance training that they’ll need to succeed. I am grateful we have many volunteers who share their knowledge with these students and help these students build toward financial literacy for a lifetime,” said Anderson.
JA Days has upcoming events on March 20 at Chase Elementary School, and on March 27 at Naranca Elementary School. For more information regarding Junior Achievement Days visit www.jasandiego.org. If interested in volunteering for an upcoming Junior Achievement event, contact Laura Keller at lkeller@jasandiego.org or at 619-906-4917.