Imagine Kissimmee Charter Academy
February Parent Newsletter - January 27 2020
Character Corner: Kindness
14 Little Ways to Encourage Kindness
These simple ideas teach your children to be nice, generous people, one good deed at a time.
Great thinkers from Martin Luther King Jr. to the Dalai Lama to my daughter, Addison, all have had something to say about the importance of helping others. The civil-rights leader stated, "Life's most persistent and nagging question is 'What are you doing for others?'" The soft-spoken spiritual leader called doing good deeds "our prime purpose." And my 12-year-old put it this way: "Helping feels good because it's nice for the other person and for you."
Smart words. And as it turns out, kids are actually hardwired to be considerate and kind. "The desire to help is innate," says David Schonfeld, M.D., director of developmental and behavioral pediatrics at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. And their sense of doing good develops as they grow. "At first, children like to help others because it helps them get what they want. Next, they do so because they get praise. Finally, they begin to anticipate the needs of others, and it becomes intrinsically rewarding to do nice things for people in their lives."
Bottom line: Kids want to help. And as parents, it's our job to nurture and guide a child's natural inclination to pitch in so it becomes a lifelong habit. "It's important to be a good role model—children learn to be helpful from watching you," says Dr. Schonfeld. Try out a few of these simple ways to nudge your kid's helping gene.
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By Kristine Breese
Out of Field Teachers
Tech Safety with Bark
Is Tik Tok Safe? Monitor Bullying and More
A new app is sweeping the social media landscape. It’s become even more popular in the App Store than Snapchat and Facebook. TikTok (formerly Musical.ly) is a video-sharing platform that allows users to create, share, and react to short videos that play over a soundtrack. It’s essentially a hub of home music videos. TikTok can be fun for everyone if it’s used in the right spirit. But is Tik Tok safe for kids?
Not everyone uses the app how it was intended. Just like other social media platforms, TikTok is quickly becoming a hotbed of abuses ranging from cyberbullying to sexploitation that parents should monitor with Bark. Here we dive into the app’s development and unpack what you need to know as a parent.
What is TikTok?
In 2014, an app called Musical.ly was introduced, which became a popular way for teens to share videos of themselves lip-syncing to their favorite songs. Three years later, Beijing-based company ByteDance acquired it. They then merged it with another app it owns — TikTok — consolidating their audiences to edge out competitors. TikTok is now a social force to be reckoned with, equipped with all-new features and spreading like a virus.
Each video lasts up to 15 seconds, and users can add a variety of filters and effects to enhance them. They also have the ability to send videos privately among friends or with the general public. Anyone can see public videos, even if they don’t have an account. The app compiles the most popular videos into a feed serving as a highlight reel for the entire global platform. Needless to say, TikTok can lead to some unsettling online activity.
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by Daniel Grammer
Regional Science Fair
Medicine and Health
Biochemistry
Behavioral and Social Science
February Dates to Remember
Tuesday, February 4th - Title 1 Parent Meeting 5:00PM*
Tuesday, February 4th - PTO Meeting 6:00PM*
Friday, February 7th - Spirit Day & Smelly Pencil Sales
Wednesday, February 12th - PTO Chick-fila Night*
Thursday, February 13th - Jump Rope for Heart
Friday, February 14th - Spirit Day & Smelly Pencil Sales
Monday, February 17th - Progress Reports
Thursday, February 20th - Cici's Night
Friday, February 21st - Rodeo Day - No School
Thursday, February 27th - SAC Meeting 5:00PM*
Thursday, February 27th - SAB Meeting 6:00PM*
Friday, February 28th - Spirit Day & Smelly Pencil Sales
*Volunteer Opportunities
IMAGINE KISSIMMEE CHARTER ACADEMY
Website: http://www.imaginekca.org
Location: 2850 Bill Beck Boulevard, Kissimmee, FL, USA
Phone: (407)847-1400
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Imagine-Kissimmee-Charter-Academy