February 1, 2016
Dear CCMS Families,
Happy February! January flew by with new lessons
and preparation for 2nd semester. During our January PTO
meeting we enjoyed a Webinar and follow up discussions on
“Connections Matter” presented by our Parent Involvement
Committee. If you missed it, please contact the office for
handouts.
We have a busy February planned with Community
Service events, field trips, Upper Elementary basketball
games begin, Open Enrollment and National Montessori
Week.
Take a moment to read the article about labels.
Labels begin when we are born and continue throughout
life. Help your child change their self-perception about
labels.
This Wednesday we have Student-led Parent
Conferences. Please sign up to have your child show you
their portfolio this Wednesday.
The Lower Elementary has begun cooking in the
classrooms. We have made Chicken Noodle Soup, Vegetable
Soup and two kinds of bread. The Middle School students
made Healthy Smoothies last week with all kinds of fruit. If
you have any great recipes for us to try please share.
We are searching for a volunteer for Cross Country
Practices. Practice will be Monday mornings from 7:158:00. Please call office for more information.
We are thankful for our parents and our students
and want to thank you for allowing us to share in your lives.
Warmly,
Cerise Weeks
[email protected]
We still are in need of…

Paper towels

Copy Paper

Hand soap

Clorox Wipes

Dust wipes
Reminders about Car Line

Pull up behind the next car
in line

Stay in your car (unless you
park on the street or in the
lot)

If your child forgot
something please pull
around and park


No Cell Phones
February
2016seats and
Children
in car
buckled. It is the Law.
February 1st Intent to Return Letters Home
 Look
students
February
3rd out
12:30for
Dismissal
Student Led Conferences
crossing
February
9th Upper Elementary Basketball
games begin
February 12th Friendship Treats
Intent to Return Letters Due
February 15th Staff Development Day
No School
th
February 16 Progress Reports home
February 19th We Love Our Committee Day
February 23rd PTO Meeting, 6 p.m.
February 29th – March 4th
National Montessori Week
Scholastic Book Fair
“When
we give cheerfully and accept
gratefully, everyone is blessed.”
― Maya Angelou
Helping Your Child Change
Self-Perception
(For example capable, responsible, persistent,
courageous, abilities to work with others, etc.)
Written by Maren Schmidt
The challenge is to find situations where your child can
begin to see him or herself possessing these qualities.
Labels. We all are labeled by the roles we play or how
others perceive us.
We need to look at opportunities for our
children to see themselves differently.
On the day we are born, the labeling begins. “He looks
just like his daddy. She’s an angel. He’s a handful. She’s
fussy. He’s scatterbrained. She has no patience. He’s
greedy.”
Names and adjectives are used to describe children and
tend to reinforce roles that become difficult for our
children to get out of.
Joey, whose mother tells him almost every day that he’d
lose his head if it weren’t attached, sees himself as
forgetful. The ten or twenty responsible and attentive
actions Joey performs each day are never mentioned.
Joey’s mother makes forgetting to take out the garbage
into a national incident. Joey sees himself as an “airbrain” and the self-fulfilling prophecy begins.
How we view our children can influence the way they
see themselves and can affect their behavior.
Mysteriously, whether we are seen in a positive or
negative light, we can be cast in a lifetime role that may
be very difficult to change.



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The good big brother may never be able to
express anger or set personal limits on others’
requirements from him.
The temperamental little sister may always get
her way by pouting, even when she’s 45 years
old.
The humorous child or class clown may never
learn how to express painful feelings or ask for
emotional support.
The popular child may not develop the backbone
to take an opposing view or stand up for his or
her rights.
Take a few minutes and think if there is a role into which
your child may have been cast, either at home or school,
by friends or relatives.
1. What are those roles?
2. What are the positive aspects of the role?
3. How would you like your child to think of him
or herself?
For our children who are forgetful, we need to remind
them of the times they do remember things. If Joey’s
mother had approached Joey’s missed chores with a
comment like this: “Joey, you are usually so responsible
and remember to do your chores. The garbage didn’t get
taken out to the curb this morning. I’m sure you’ll
remember next week.”…how do you think that would
affect Joey’s air-brained self-perception?
For the children who are labeled as “good”, we need to
help them learn that that are loved unconditionally and
that our love is not based on their behavior. Straight–A
students may become unwilling to explore new
intellectual territory or put time into relationships for
fear of losing their “perfect” academic record. Children
who are labeled as good have self-perception challenges
and may suppress anger, disappointment, frustration and
fear in order to retain their tag of being good, happy, or
helpful.
Sarah was an even-tempered ten-year-old. Three
of her friends did not show up for her birthday party, but
Sarah seemed to take it all in stride and had a good time.
After the party, instead of her usual compliment to Sarah
of “You handled that situation so maturely,” Sarah’s
mom decided to help Sarah see herself differently.
“You must have been really upset that your friends
didn’t show up or call. It must have taken a lot of selfcontrol to keep smiling and make sure that your party
was fun for everyone.”
“Yeah, it really hurt that they didn’t call. I think they are
the rudest friends a girl could have,” Sarah said through
her sobs.
Sarah’s mom helped Sarah step out of the role of
“mature” to be able to express anger, disappointment and
frustration, along with the fear of losing friends. Sarah
learned that it was okay to act like she was ten-years-old,
and Mom would still love her.
Don’t underestimate the power of your words on a
child’s life.