Moreau Heights Principal Newsletter
September 2017
Contact Information
Email: suzanna.haugen@jcschools.us
Website: www.jcschools.us
Location: 1410 Hough Park Road, Jefferson City, MO, United States
Phone: (573)659-3180
Twitter: @JCMH_tweets
Message from the Principal
Our Back to School Nights were well attended and we appreciate the time that families took to learn more about our school and how to support their child/ren. How fortunate our students are to have such amazing families!
We are looking forward to getting our Watch DOGS program back up and running this year. It is a wonderful program that gets male role models involved in our school and in the lives of our students. We hope you will join us for our Watch DOGS recruitment event on Thursday, September 21st at 6:00! Come learn more and see how you can get involved!
Watch for more information about our kindergarten and 1st grade parent groups that focus on using Conscious Discipline strategies and building a support network among parents. The meetings are at 11:00 once per month.
Sue Haugen
Principal
Follow us on Twitter at @JCMH_tweets
Calendar of Events
Tuesday, September 19
*Shakespeare's Pizza Fundraiser Kick-Off
Wednesday, September 20
*Early Release - students dismissed at 1:15
Thursday, September 21
*Watch DOGS recruiting night 6:00 - 7:00 p.m.
Friday, September 22
*PBS Assemblies
- 8:30 for grades 3-5
- 9:40 for grades k-2
Wednesday, September 27
*Fall Pictures
Friday, September 29 - Saturday, September 30
*Moreau Heights PTO Mums and Pumpkin Sale
Tuesday, October 10
*Conscious Discipline Parent group grades k-1 at 11:00 in library
*PTO meeting 6:00 in library
Tuesday, October 17
*End of 1st Quarter
Wednesday, October 18
*Early Dismissal, students released at 1:15
Friday, October 20
*PBS Assemblies
- 8:30 grades 3-5
- 9:40 grades k-2
*PTO Carnival 5:30 - 8:00 p.m.
October 23 - 27 Red Ribbon Week
Wednesday, October 25
- Parent Teacher conferences 3:30 - 7:30
- Fundraiser Pick-up 3:15 - 7:30
Thursday, October 26
- Parent Teacher conferences 3:30 - 7:30
Friday, October 27
- No School
Support our PTO and our School!
Thank you for supporting PTO efforts!
Important Information
- Please follow our procedures for morning drop-off and pick-up that have been created to keep our students safe. We use the lower driveway, of off Carol Street. Staff will be present to help with unloading and loading cars.
- If you need to change transportation plans for the day, please contact the office, 659-3180, by 2:15.
- We believe in supporting our students as a COMMUNITY, which means we value working with families to see that students are successful. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact his/her teacher to discuss things. Our teachers are happy to work with parents for student success!
- Feel free to join your child for lunch any day! Talk to your child's teacher about specific lunch times.
Attendance Matters!
- Having students at school by 8:10
- Scheduling appointments around school hours (8:15 - 3:15) when possible
- Making on time arrival at school a priority by having a morning routine
- Seeing that students are getting to bed at a reasonable time and are allowed a restful night of sleep
Thank you for your help by letting your child know that school is important to you!
Focus on Parenting
A couple came to me and described the trouble they used to have getting their four-year-old son, Liam, to brush his teeth. Each morning, one of them would turn to Liam and say, “Okay, we need to hurry. Please go brush your teeth.”
“I don’t want to!” Liam would complain.
Frustrated, Dad would yell, “How many times do I have to ask you to brush your teeth? You get in that bathroom and brush your teeth!”
Liam would shake his head, and say, “No!”
What a frustrating ordeal for these parents.
After the couple finished telling this part of their story, the mother smiled and said, “But we’ve been studying Love and Logic and a lot of this stuff has been making sense and working.”
It was a typical morning; Mom kneeled next to Liam and asked him, “Have you brushed your teeth?” Liam looked, began to nod, and said, “I did it, Mommy. Yes.”
Suspicious, Mom walked upstairs, went to the sink, and felt his little toothbrush. Dry as a bone. He’d never lied about brushing, and she was temporarily thrown off balance.
Then, she remembered one comforting thought she’d learned from Love and Logic: “Anger and frustration feed misbehavior.”
She suddenly remembered a second thing she had learned from Love and Logic: “It’s okay to delay a consequence until I’m calm and have a plan.”
Mom walked over to Liam and said, “This is really sad. I need to know you will tell me the truth about things. I’ll have to do something about this, but not right now. Try not to worry about what’s going to happen.”
That evening, Liam gobbled down his macaroni and cheese and said, “I made a happy plate. I finished! I want my blue sucker — the one with gum inside.”
Dad put on a sad face and said, “Mommy and I give treats to kids who protect their teeth by brushing.”
Liam yelled, “I brushed ’em — I did it! I want my sucker! I hate you!”
Dad responded with empathy, “We still love you.” Liam continued with, “I want it, I want it, I want it.”
Dad looked sad for Liam and sang, “Uh-ohhh, looks like a little bedroom time. This is so sad.” When the room became quiet, Dad opened the door to see Liam weeping softly on his bed. Dad sat down, hugged his little son, and said, “Let’s go read a book before bed.”
After the bedtime story, Mom asked, “Will you go brush your teeth, Liam?” He dropped to the floor. “I don’t want to, Mommy,” he whined. Dad turned to him, raised his eyebrows, and said, “Uh-ohhhhhh.” Liam’s eyebrows lifted a bit, too, as he ran into the bathroom, squeezed a dab of toothpaste on his little toothbrush, and went to work on his teeth.
Love and Logic parents learn to regain control in their homes by following two simple rules:
1. Parents take good care of themselves by providing limits in a loving way.
2. Parents replace punishment with equal parts of empathy and logical consequences.
“This is so sad,” forced Liam to own the pain of his misbehavior rather than blaming it on his parents. Wouldn’t we all love to give our kids these gifts?