1 *AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM REMINDER* December Payment Is Due Now. Please make sure to submit your payment online or directly to the Business Office. Thank you. Table of Contents Page Jacque’s Note 2 Community News 3-9 MS News 10-11 HS News 12-17 Senior News 18 December 3, 2014 Wednesday Packet Important Dates/Information BARNES AND NOBLE BOOK FAIR Now through December 4 Purchase In-Store Nationwide Now through December 9 Purchase On-Line Use Code 11509866 for purchases Monday, December 8 6:00pm in The Cougar Center HIGH SCHOOL PLAY Tuesday, December 9 8:00am OR Wednesday, December 10 5:30pm In the Media Center MANDATORY 8 TH GRADE TRANSITION TO HIGH SCHOOL MEETING Tuesday-Thursday, December 16-18 HIGH SCHOOL EXAMS – Noon Dismissal HS Thursday, December 18 No School for MS Only MIDDLE SCHOOL TEACHER WORK DAY December 19-January 2 No School TCS Offices Closed December 24-January 1 WINTER HOLIDAY January 5, 2015 SECOND SEMESTER BEGINS
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Transcript
1
*AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM REMINDER*
December Payment Is Due Now.
Please make sure to submit your
payment online or directly
to the Business Office.
Thank you.
h -
Table of Contents Page
Jacque’s Note 2 Community News 3-9 MS News 10-11 HS News 12-17 Senior News 18
December 3, 2014
Wednesday Packet
Important Dates/Information BARNES AND NOBLE BOOK FAIR Now through December 4 Purchase In-Store Nationwide Now through December 9 Purchase On-Line Use Code 11509866 for purchases
Monday, December 8 6:00pm in The Cougar Center HIGH SCHOOL PLAY
Tuesday, December 9 8:00am OR Wednesday, December 10 5:30pm In the Media Center MANDATORY 8TH GRADE TRANSITION TO HIGH SCHOOL MEETING
Tuesday-Thursday, December 16-18 HIGH SCHOOL EXAMS – Noon Dismissal HS
Thursday, December 18 No School for MS Only MIDDLE SCHOOL TEACHER WORK DAY
December 19-January 2 No School TCS Offices Closed December 24-January 1 WINTER HOLIDAY
January 5, 2015 SECOND SEMESTER BEGINS
2
One of our recent GISA speakers, Paul Tough, explained how important having “grit” is to a child’s ability to be successful. In this age of high stakes testing and designer school choices, it was refreshing to hear someone who knows nothing about TCS share a portion of our philosophy. Besides all of the fabulous programming and unique management system we use here, many parents select TCS because they believe their child will learn self-reliance and develop a strong sense of self. Paul Tough’s research falls well within the daily lessons and expectations that our staff delivers. All children need protection. Children with life challenges need more protection, at least for a while. There is a period in a child’s development in which they are entirely dependent on the adults around them. However, at some point, in order to become self-sufficient and confident, the onus must begin to shift from responsible adult to capable child. As a child matures they must begin the process of managing life when things go wrong. This means they learn to handle, in fact, master failure. They must have confidence in their capabilities in order to get through a challenge or a crisis event. This is not nearly as simple as it sounds! When our family lived in Chamblee, one of our neighborhood teens was the product of the Thalidomide debacle. Thousands of young pregnant women who had taken the drug to decrease nausea bore children with extreme limb deformities. Allen was a typical teenager in every way except his wrists and hands were connected directly to his shoulder sockets. To our amazement, Allen mowed his parent’s lawn, played tennis with precision and success, completed high school and went on to be a tennis pro at a local country club. How did this young man develop the ability to overcome a disability that, to many of us, would seem debilitating? He did so because his parents were determined that he had to learn how to do the things he wanted to do without fearing the failure that would be a critical part of each lesson. Teens with ADHD and other neurological issues are not challenged in the physical way that Allen was. In most cases, the struggles they have are far less obvious and severe. However, they must also learn to manage the consequences of their own choices. In order to begin to make decisions that are good for them, they must experience the impact of those decisions they make which may not be very good for them. In order to recover from the major disappointments that often accompany adulthood, they must begin to learn to bounce back from the small disappointments that childhood and adolescence offer up. The skills and strength required to build a resilient and confident adult are not outwardly visible, but the existence of these skills is manifested in an adult’s emotional stability, relationship building and goal achievement. In a structured and nurturing environment like TCS, a teen can make choices and learn from the outcome. Supportive staff and families guide our teens as they navigate the intricacies of academic performance, social pressure, impulsivity and conflict management. When they move on to settings that are more demanding and less responsive, they are able to use their “grit” to continue their journey with confidence and success.
December 3, 2014
Jacque’s Note
Advancement Angle
News you can use to help raise money for The Cottage School
It is still not too late to
participate in Georgia
Goal! If you have not yet
signed up, please do so by
December 15th to ensure
your form is submitted to the Georgia Department of Revenue on
January 1st.
Click here to apply online.
A giant ROAR of thanks to everyone who attended “Breakfast for Champions”
WE HOPE YOU HAD AS MUCH FUN ATTENDING GRANDPARENTS
AND GRAND-PALS RECOGNITION DAY AS WE DID HOSTING!
We know money doesn’t grow on trees which is why
ALL size gifts matter to the Key Annual Fund!
Remember- Donations to TCS postmarked by December 31st
are deductible on this year’s tax return.
During the holidays, the Advancement Office will be
available for gift processing. If you are planning to
ATTENTION HS Parents and Students: In an effort to help our teenagers learn the concept of Sick/Personal Leave in the work place, we have a system that tracks their attendance hours as if they were on the job. Each student earns 8 hours (1 day) every 4 weeks and can use or accumulate up to 32 hours (4 days) per semester. If they are absent more than their allotted hours, they make them up. If they save the hours, they can cash them in for days off during exams- like we save days for vacation at work. Please check accumulated/negative attendance hours with your student, and verify with their homeroom teacher during weekly calls. Students who have saved hours are eligible to take early exams and buy-off their exam days for an extended break! Students who are eligible to buy off exam days will bring home an Exam Buy-off Form with their positive hours listed and they will need your signature to be able to take advantage of this privilege. If your student has negative hours, it is imperative that they make-up negative hours prior to Saturday School on December 13. If they fail to do so, they will have to attend Saturday School. Students who owe hours and who do not attend Saturday School will be suspended for the three days following December 13th per our school policy. This means that suspended students will miss several days of exams and will receive a ‘0’ for those exams. For students who owe hours, they may come in early from 7 to 8 A.M. (+1 hour) or stay after school from 3 to 4 P.M. (+1 hour). We strongly encourage them to make up their hours daily, so they can avoid Saturday School all together!
Thank you,
H.S. Exam Schedule Fall Semester 2014
Exam Schedule Thursday 12/11 1:15 - 2:40 7th period exam Monday 12/15 1:15 - 2:40 6th period exam