Sequoia Sentinel
February 21, 2021
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Sequoia PTSA's weekly eNewsletter in partnership with the Sequoia High School Education Foundation |
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EDITORS’ NOTE: Beginning with this issue we will change to Sunday 8 a.m. distribution for the Sentinel. Sunday was the clear winner of our 6-week open rate test, and to back up the numbers, several subscribers wrote in to say that reading the Sentinel on the weekend helps them better plan for the school week. We hope you enjoy the change.
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There are ebbs and flows in the school calendar that I’ve come to recognize over the last twenty years working in high schools. The comments I’m hearing with greater frequency (“My student has lost all motivation!”) echo the conversations I overhear from teachers in the mailroom around this time of year. It’s frustrating for parents at an acute level just like it’s frustrating for a teacher to watch a lesson they’ve worked hard to develop fall flat when senioritis or the sophomore slump overwhelm their classes.
Luckily, we educators have a few tricks to weather these periodic lows in the academic cycle. Please borrow liberally from the below ideas and see if it helps turn the tide around in your house:
Maintaining Ownership, Agency, and Pride
Get input about how your student would like to structure their day or break up their routine. Have them explain their reasoning to you. Encourage them to build in time for non-academic pursuits (even video games!). Talk to your student about how you structure your day and why you make the choices you do when it comes to managing time and responsibilities. Maybe you’ll discover overlapping interests you can build into your routine.
Kids -- even teenagers -- like showing off their accomplishments. The highest functioning classrooms I’ve observed often cover the walls with up-to-date, relevant student work. Sometimes this is as simple as a set of 1-page essays on a bulletin board. Students miss being able to have their work celebrated in this way. Ask them what they’re proud of, find a way to laud it and show it off. With so much of the students’ work this year existing in digital form, a printer or an email to a grandparent might have to suffice.
When you communicate praise or pride, it’s always more powerful to be specific. Take notice when they revise their work or show improvement that you can see. Frame questions about what your student is working on around growth, progress, or the development of new skills (“Wow, your writing is getting stronger, what strategies are you using?”). Remind students who are discouraged that failure is essential to growth. We keep trying because the payoff is worth the heartbreak.
Being Your Own Champion
We use mindfulness practices at Sequoia to help kids manage the significant noise in their lives that distract them. Often, that noise takes the form of a negative internal monologue cataloguing all the ways they’re falling short. By the same token, teens have incredible talent for seeing the best in their peers. A successful prompt I’ve seen teachers use asks students to articulate what they would say to a friend struggling with the self doubt. While we’re at it, make some space for yourself. Many parents’ inner voices are merciless. What would your good friend say about how you’re managing all this? What would you tell a friend?
Change things up periodically to decompress. The boisterous, noisy pep rallies we hold three times a year really do serve an educational purpose. It’s a break in the routine (and one that I’ll NEVER take for granted again). Once a month, why not grab a burrito on Wednesday and go have a picnic?
At more regular intervals, get outside. Make movement a part of your routine. Meet with a friend who lives nearby. Consider healthy eating as a family goal. Most importantly, know where to turn if your students’ mental health situation reaches a degree where you need help. This deck is a compendium of school and community resources we’ve shared with students this year. Keep it at the ready and make sure your student knows about it, as well.
Fueling the Motivation Motor
Framing is powerful. Remember adding and subtracting M&Ms to practice foundational arithmetic? More fun than fingers. Apply these principles to your student’s orientation to their schoolwork. Excitement is contagious. Successful teachers know that as soon as you make proclamations like “C’mon everyone, I know this is boring but we have to get through it,” you’ve lost them -- especially in October or March.
If you are taking a behaviorist approach, be mindful that consequences are most effective when they are natural. “No Xbox until you finish your homework” doesn’t engender intrinsic motivation as well as, “There are three hours left in the day, finish your work and they’ll be time to play Portal.” When setting up incentive systems, bring your student into the process of determining benchmarks. Praise progress regularly.
Don’t read too much into a grumpiness or defeatism. Those behaviors are more often than not manifestations of insecurity or anxiety. The calmer you stay, the less you take things personally (stipulated that nobody knows your weak spot quite like your own kid!), the quicker these things blow over and the less frequently they appear. Humor is always a great counterbalance. The best teachers always have a few self-effacing humdingers on the ready to help dissipate the dark clouds.
For what it’s worth, these are all things I periodically have to remind myself as both a parent and an educator. Remember, the landing of Perseverance on Mars last week was the just the latest step in 40-years of human endeavor to reach the red planet. More importantly, two of every three missions during that time have failed. We’re all doing our best work. Here’s to our successful launch into another great week at Sequoia!
Best,
Sean
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Feb. 24: Virtual author visit
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Mar. 3: Connecting to mental health webinar
Join the Sequoia Teen Wellness Center Youth Advisory Board on Mar. 3, 3:00-4:00 p.m. in a fun and calming webinar, where we discuss mental health and learn ways to incorporate breaks into our everyday lives!
Everyone needs to de-stress and take breaks. Learn coping skills like breathing exercises, journaling, and more! District counselors Ms. Judy Romero, Mrs. Elaine Dessus, and Maureen Lin will be available to provide guidance and answer students’ questions. Talk with fellow youth in a safe space of mindfulness. For all interested SUHSD students. For questions, please contact yabanswers@gmail.com. Click here to register.
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Reserve your 2021 yearbook
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Rad 2021 senior threads coming soon!
Look here for the STORE LINK SOON!
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Congratulations to Sequoia’s National Merit Finalists!
Sequoia is proud to announce that Andrew Mancini, Anne Marlow, and Arth Shukla have been selected as finalists from a pool of 16,000 semifinalists by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation.
To become a finalist, the semifinalist and a high school official must submit an application which includes the semifinalist’s academic record, participation in activities, demonstration of leadership, employment, and honors received. A semifinalist must have an outstanding academic record, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, and write an essay. This spring, finalists have an opportunity to compete for National Merit Scholarships worth more than $30 million.
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Creative approach to gratitude
Distance Learning hasn't stopped us from celebrating Sequoia staff, but it has challenged the Staff Appreciation team to be more creative!
- We distributed customized Sequoia face masks at the beginning of this school year.
- Clubs & ASB helped PTSA at Thanksgiving to deliver personalized notes of gratitude.
- Kicking off 2021, PTSA collaborated with SHSEF to buy $10 digital Starbucks cards.
- We showed our staff love on Valentine's Day with a digital message using words of gratitude curated by students.
We’ll keep showering Sequoia staff with love and appreciation throughout the year. If you have any ideas or would like to help with Staff Appreciation, please contact Jenn DiGrande, or Linda Solon.
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That's So Raven will be back next week!
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SHSEF Family support fund provides 240 valentine gifts to students in need
SHSEF's Family Support Fund was delighted to provide Valentine care packages for 240 of Sequoia's students-in-most-need before the mid-winter break.
A big THANK YOU to: Elvira & Ramiro Macias, Jane Slater, and Evelyn Valencia for their help with the project; our generous SHSEF donors, Redwood City Rotary Club, the Mendez family and their "Brighten Your Day" team, and Drs. Anthony and Carliza Marcos DDS for their financial and in-kind support; the 23 parent, student and community volunteers who helped with gift bag assembly; and the 40 parent and community volunteers who helped with the home deliveries.
Each bag included a bilingual (Spanish-English) Valentine card, See's Candies chocolates, a heart-shaped stress-ball, Burts Bees chapstick, Valentine-themed pencils, toothbrushes, toothpaste, and dental floss packs for the student, AND hot cocoa packs for the whole family.
For more information about volunteering or supporting our students-in-most-need, please contact: Elisa Niño-Sears, ATLAS Director, Sequoia High School & Family Support Chair, SHSEF, by email or (650) 387-8390.
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PTSA action on the reopening of our schools (Spanish translation below)
When we last heard from SUHSD Interim Superintendent, Crystal Leach, on January 29, she outlined the criteria for the reopening of our high schools: Superintendent's message.
We know some of our parents still have concerns, questions and comments they would like to raise with the school district about reopening, and as an advocate for our students and families, and in partnership with our teachers and staff, we have outlined a plan of action below:
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We have created a shared document for you to add your questions and comments. Please enter your comments here.
- Your comments will be sent to the SUHSD Superintendent, SMCOE, County Supervisor Warren Slocum, and CA Assemblymember Kevin Mullin.
- Isha Bhatt, our PTSA President is also collaborating with the other PTSAs in our district for a united approach at the district level.
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We encourage you to attend the school board meeting on February 24, 6.00 p.m. Click here to join the meeting and please register your questions in advance.
- We are asking the Superintendent to hold a Town Hall so families can share their views and have their voices heard. (More news on this coming soon)
The mission of the PTA is Every Child, One Voice, we are part of that voice, and last week Celia Jaffe, President of the California PTA, sent this op-ed to Governor Newsom:
Op-Ed by Celia Jaffe, President of the California PTA (CAPTA), Feb 8, 2021
These are the 10 points the PTA believes are necessary for the safe reopening of our schools.
“Schools need to open as soon as practically possible while protecting the health and well-being of students, staff and families,” Jaffe says in the piece, which prioritizes equitable, sufficient funding to cover reopening costs, robust school-parent communication, and expanded learning programs to address learning loss over the last 10 months.”
“Not only are children falling behind academically, but the social isolation and fears of illness and death are taking an enormous toll on their emotional health. California’s students are counting on the legislature and the governor to come up with a realistic school reopening plan that meets the needs of all our school communities.” (Celia Jaffe, 02.08.21)
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Acción de la Organización de PTSA sobre la reapertura de nuestras escuelas
La última vez que escuchamos a la Superintendente interna del Distrito, Sra. Crystal Leach, el 29 de enero, describió los criterios para la reapertura de las escuelas preparatorias: Superintendent's message.
El mensaje de la superintendente, sabemos que algunos de nuestros padres todavía tienen inquietudes, preguntas, y comentarios que les gustaría plantear al distrito escolar sobre la reapertura, y como defensores de todos nuestros estudiantes y familias, hemos delineado un plan de acción a continuación:
- Sus comentarios serán enviados al la Superintendente del Distrito Sequoia y el Supervisor del Condado de San Mateo, Warren Slocum, y al Asambleísta de California, Kevin Mullin.
- Isha Bhatt, nuestra presidenta del PTSA también está colaborando con los otros PTSA de nuestro distrito para lograr un enfoque unido a nivel distrital.
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Le animamos a que asista a la reunión de la junta de la mesa directiva el 24 de febrero a las 6:00 de la tarde. Haga clic aquí para unirse a la reunión y registre sus preguntas con anticipación.
- Le pedimos al la superintendente que lleve a cabo un ayuntamiento para que las familias puedan compartir sus puntos de vista y hacer que se escuchen sus voces. Más noticias sobre esto próximamente.
La misión de PTA es "Todo Niño, Una Voz," somos parte de esa voz, y la semana pasada Celia Jaffe, Presidenta de PTA (Asociación de padres y maestros) de California, envió este artículo de opinión al gobernador Newsom:
Artículo de opinión de Celia Jaffe, Presidenta de PTA de California (CAPTA), 8 de febrero del 2021
"Las escuelas deben abrir tan pronto como sea posible en práctica mientras se protege la salud y el bienestar de los estudiantes, el personal y las familias," dice Jaffe en el artículo, que prioriza fondos suficientes equitativos para cubrir los costos de reapertura, una sólida comunicación entre la escuela y los padres y programas de aprendizaje ampliado para abordar la pérdida de aprendizaje durante los últimos 10 meses."
"No solo los estudiantes se están quedando atrás académicamente, sino que el aislamiento social y el miedo a la enfermedad y la muerte están afectando enormemente su salud emocional. Los estudiantes de California cuentan con la legislatura y el gobernador para elaborar un plan realista de reapertura escolar que satisfaga las necesidades de todas nuestras comunidades escolares." (Celia Jaffe, 08/02/21)
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Are you a WordPress programmer?
The PTSA is looking for a WordPress programmer that can help develop a new PTSA website. If you would like to help out or have questions, please contact Cynthia Wiggin.
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The Parent Education Series |
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Join Silicon Valley digital media experts for a panel discussion on the well-being of children during COVID-era schooling. Register here.
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Join Sequoia Healthcare District to discuss the impact of COVID-19 on heart health for children and adults. Simultaneous Spanish interpretation will be provided (via Zoom). Register now.
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Community Resources and Events |
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SUHSD Middle College applications due March 19
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Sentinel Newsletter:
Our readers enjoy hearing about activities, events, and accomplishments of Sequoia students, staff and community.
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