.Hello from the Executive Director.
It is the month of June,
The month of leaves and roses,
When pleasant sights salute the eyes,
And pleasant scents the noses.
~Nathaniel P. Willis
Hello Bronco Families,
Happy June! There are so many fun activities on the horizon at CCCS. We are happy to celebrate the accomplishments of your children, our staff, and our school community over the past school year.
This week, our 8th graders celebrate the years they’ve spent together here at CCCS growing, learning, and creating with a culminating bonding experience at Camp Dakota. This trip is a milestone signifying the transition from being a kid in grade school to beginning the high school journey to adulthood. We are so proud of these students and can’t wait to see where they will go!
Our 5th graders will be headed for the coast this week for an interesting and fun oceanography learning experience. We are grateful for the dedication of our teachers who plan and take on the responsibility and provide enriching off campus educational experiences for a large group of students and for the families who jump in to support, chaperone, and drive on these trips.
On Friday, our amazing PCS team is facilitating the annual CCCS Jogathon and Bookfair. Nothing nourishes the soul like fun exercise and cuddling up with a good book. Thank you to the organizers and volunteers who are working hard to ensure this will be a spectacular day for our kids!
The learning won’t stop when the regular school year ends. We are planning a July summer session for students interested in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). Please read below for more information about the summer school program. If you have additional questions, contact Mrs. Sepulveda via email at m.sepulveda@coburgcharter.org.
Best,
Lisa
.Hello from the Dean of Student Services.
It’s June! The season of warm weather and reduced productivity is nearly upon us!
Still, we have several important weeks of school remaining: weeks of buttoning up the year, celebrations and special events, and *yes* report cards.
Report cards are an educational staple: standard feedback. They are an old tradition of giving information to children about how they are performing to reach goals. The feedback arrives in written comments and grades at the end, but before that feedback happens daily with verbal comments in the class, conferences, and even small moments like smiles and nods, surprised looks, a lifted eyebrow, or a thank you as forms of feedback.
Why does this feedback matter? How should this feedback be received and used? Do grades matter (at this stage)?
I became interested in this topic because my childhood motivations around grades were dubious. I was very motivated by the Mexican restaurant in town that gave us a free taco for every A we earned, the movie store that awarded free VHS(!) rentals, and the grocery store that offered a liter of soda. Good grades were a form of money in my little town.
Consequently, I learned to get an A, but didn’t necessarily learn to be a diligent student or care about learning. I was not internally motivated, though I did want to feel like a good girl and to earn other rewards such as giving speeches, earning scholarships, etc. They were another form of reward for me.
College was a major shock to that end. Working hard when I hit obstacles was a real challenge - I didn’t love improving or overcoming challenges as much as I loved tacos.
I’ll never forget the experience of meeting with a professor who walked me slowly and gently through a paper. He said, “These words do not mean what you think they mean. I feel confused here.” It was a moment of genuine feedback - it wasn’t that my paper was an “A” or a “B” - it was that I was not able to communicate what I wanted. I understood and saw myself more clearly.
The ultimate goal of feedback is for children to understand what they are producing so they can slowly live and work more skillfully. Humans need feedback desperately. (We can’t even understand our own faces without mirrors and cameras - and friends who tell us to wipe toothpaste off our lips or get spinach out of our teeth.)
Grades are feedback that, like mirrors, offer us help so we can change and tweak as needed. Parents and teachers try to keep the mirror clean and not let it get cloudy.
Rewards are what we call extrinsic motivations - those things outside of us that prompt us toward actions. Families and communities often reward good grades to increase motivation. This can be a powerful technique depending on the child and the family. In a best case scenario, rewards can build healthy rhythms. Children can learn how to motivate themselves, if they understand and notice what works. (If I eat this cinnamon roll after I clean my room, I get it done more quickly and happily. If I listen to music while I’m working, I’ll do more.)
These rewards can sometimes distract from self-knowledge, if communities aren’t careful.
There are, however, other rewards we can think about offering our children in line with the goal of seeing themselves more clearly.
For most people, self-respect is a large and long lasting reward. The mirror of feedback can offer that kind of reward if we let it. Am I proud of myself? Did I do my best? Did I make progress? Can I live with making mistakes? Can I still be brave? Can I find something to like about myself?
A Jewish Proverb states that a foolish person ignores correction, while a wise person craves it. It’s an idea worth some weight in education.
It takes incredible courage and security to feel confident enough to crave real learning, feedback, and growth. It is easier to seek other rewards like looking good, and feeling important. Those needs are real too, but as parents we can help our children understand and respond to grades by understanding they are tools of reflection that feed into bigger rewards.
In 1908, educational pioneer John Dewey and philosopher James Tufts wrote an essay about freedom (“Responsibility and Freedom”). They argued that true freedom was not just an absence of restraint or rules, but depended on 1) the possession of means to achieve what one desires, and 2) the mental skills to choose wisely.
Schools exist to help people learn strong thinking - not because it gets us tacos, makes us better than others, or ensures us a more secure economic future. Our country was founded on the idea that good thinking and good decision making are a genuine part of being free.
When you look at grades or talk about grades with your children, if it helps, you can remember that you’re helping them look in a mirror. You’re helping them crave better thinking, more growth, and finding confidence by understanding themselves better. We’re all in that process, constantly.
Best,
Liz
.General Information.
Calendar:
Friday, June 3- Jog-A-Thon, Book Fair & Friday Funday!
Monday, June 6- Board Meeting at 6pm
Yearbooks:
2021-22 school year memories are yours to keep if you order a CCCS yearbook. You can order online at ybpay.com with yearbook code 14666122. Order your yearbook today!
Used Books:
There will be used books on sale outside the library for the following prices: .25, .50 or 1.00
Lost & Found:
Please look through the lost and found over the next couple of weeks!
Library:
Last day to check out books is 6/03
All library books are due by 6/09
.PCS Corner.
Happy June from PCS! This week is all about the fun activities this Friday…
1. FRIDAY FUN-DAY: This Friday 6/3! Let's celebrate the last Friday of the school year (grandparents and all Bronco family members welcome)...
The Jogathon will kick off the events from 10:30-11:15 am with Ms. Bruno as DJ, bubbles, balloons, and the Coburg Fire truck spraying runners (details below);
Then head to the Book Fair (open 11:15-12:30) - for more info including how to create an e-wallet for your student to shop the fair cashless, visit the CCCS Scholastic webpage + please sign up to volunteer to help our Book Fair Chair, Shannon Hay (hayshannon@gmail.com);
Enjoy popcorn balls and garden art made/sold by the middle schoolers;
Pick-up your 6/12 Ems tickets - for those of you that bought tickets, we will begin handing them out on Friday - look for Kelsey and Brenda at a picnic table near the garden (more info on pre-game opportunities to come);
Visit the clothing closet to stock up on $2 pre-owned logo wear; and
Bring your chairs and a picnic lunch to hang out with other families!
2. JOG-A-THON: FRIDAY @ 10:30 am! We need more volunteers - please sign up to volunteer (shifts run from 9:45-11:15 am). And please encourage your student to participate and help with the technology fundraising goal (there are a ton of fun prizes too)! Donation envelopes are due back on Friday (hand into teachers or put into the PCS black box in front of the school; cash or checks can be made out to “PCS” or donate on-line through this link). Don’t forget students can wear bright/tie-dye running clothes (and should wear running shoes and have a water bottle). Questions? Contact our Jog-A-Thon Chair, Kalee Powell).
WHY SUPPORT? We recognize a lot is being packed into these last few weeks. However, we haven’t had a traditional jog-a-thon in 2.5 years and these funds are essential for our technology budget. When the middle schoolers started at CCCS, there were only 25 chromebooks for the entire school. Thankfully jog-a-thon funds ensured there was a chromebook for every student before the pandemic hit. Distance learning has put a lot of wear and tear on our technology (chromebooks, headphones, smart boards, etc.). It’s not flashy, but it’s critical. Thank you!
To stay up to date, join us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/coburgpcs. Other questions or comments? E-mail PCS@coburgcharter.org. Thank you!
.Board Corner.
The next Board meeting will be held on Monday, June 6th at 6pm. The link to join can be found by clicking HERE with the following details:
Meeting ID: 867 2411 4980; Passcode: 091190
Dial by your location: 1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose))
.Community Corner.
Thank you to our June sponsor, Complete Vision Center. They keep you looking and seeing your best, while providing a truly exceptional experience. They’re offering our community 40% off a second pair of eyewear!
Thank you to our volunteers this past week, Janel M, Ernie M, Stacey A, Suzanne H, Colleen M, Sheila G, Natalie B, Jen F, Rose E, Rachel S, Jenny B, Stacy H, Liz S, Lisa V, Heather T, Matthew G, Melissa M, Shannon T, Kalee P, Donna V, Josh J, Ashley L, Matt L, Andrea M, Brenda W & Kelsey B!
Thank you to our June sponsor!
