DMS Counseling : Bi-Weekly News
Weeks of November 9th to November 22nd
Defender Families,
Keep on hanging in there. You are doing great! Whether you are a student, parent, guardian, or a friend, this is just a simple reminder that any progress is great progress. The power of staying positive and focusing on things that we can control are two essential ideas that can mentally, physically and emotionally help our students/families move forward during this time.
Below are a few of the updates that can help move our community in this direction.
NEWSLETTER TABLE of CONTENT
General Information
- College Week Recap
- Let's Get Social - More Lunch Time Hangouts
- 8th Grade Academic Check-In
- College Words of the Week
- Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Support- School Social Work Intern
- GRAB & GO Lunch (REMINDER)
- What Can I Do As a Parent?
- Having A Problem With Grades
- Counseling Emergency
- Need an Appointment
- Additional Resources...
THEME FOR THE WEEK: "GOALS - Planning for the Future"
Goals can be small or large. Planning for the future allows our students to set goals to make more progress with anything they pursue. Whether our goals are academic, college/career, or social/emotional, planning the steps towards success can help our students move in the right direction.
GENERAL INFORMATION
- TVUSD ReOpening Plans- Click HERE (update October 30, 2020)
- TVUSD Online Learning - Student Code of Conduct
College Week Recap (Oct. 26th-30th)
During the last week of October, Counselors had collaborated with ASB in celebrating College Week to help students understand the importance of continuing education after high school. Whether it is a 4-year University, Community College, trade school or the military, continuing to pursue education after high school has proven to build more success for their futures.
Activities included an ASB sponsored virtual College Fair and grade-level activities, such as Kahoot games, College Virtual Tours, and Career Inventory Survey's that were available in Counseling Canvas student link. We encourage you to sit down with your student and review some of these activities in their Canvas. It is never to early to explore college/career opportunities. Posted pictures for each day are on Instagram @dmsschoolcounselors. If you participated, tag us.
Let's Get Social! More Lunch Time Hangouts!
Looking for more social time? During this time of isolation, it is very import to inspire our children to join groups whenever possible so they can continue to feel connected to school during online learning. Counseling has collaborated with teachers and staff in providing more times and virtual places to hang out during the school day. Interest groups ranging from sports to check and painting to playing music, there's a place for you to join and just be social. Check out all the new Lunch time hangouts by clicking out the Counseling Canvas link on your Canvas Dashboard. See you there!
8th Grade Academic Check-In
Unfortunately, we did miss a few of these 8th graders because of Attendance. We look to do a follow up meeting with these 8th grade students in need who did not make Academic Check-in. Please on the look out for communications be sent by your DMS Counselor.
COLLEGE WORDS OF THE WEEK
Advanced Placement: Better known as AP courses, these high school courses that encourage college-level critical thinking & analyzing. At the end, you take an AP exams to qualify and receive college credit. AP courses can strengthen your GPA because they are worth more points than regular classes.
A - G Requirements: Subject requirements that students must take and pass in order to be eligible for the University of California (UC) and the California State University (CSU). Click HERE to see basic outline A - G Requirements
Loan: Borrowed money used to pay for college courses which must be paid back.
Major: A subject or field of study chosen by a college student.
Master’s Degree: A type of graduate degree normally consisting of six years of college (when combined with a Bachelor’s).
Post-Secondary Education: Any education beyond high school.
Vocational/Trade School: A secondary school teaching a skilled trade.
Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Support - School Social Worker Update (Ms. Harris)
As a reminder, you can also check out Ms. Harris' Smore newsletter and her Bitmoji Classroom, which has a wealth of social emotional support tools for students to use. Click HERE to access her most current newsletter. Click HERE to access the Bitmoji classroom. Be sure to check it out. *Please note that her actual Bitmoji classroom is on SLIDE 4 of the slide deck.
Need Lunch? Necesitas Almuerzo? GRAB N' GO LUNCHES
Una nueva exención del USDA * permite a los departamentos de Servicios de Nutrición proporcionar a CUALQUIER niño, de 1 a 18 años de edad, comidas GRATIS hasta el 31 de diciembre de 2020. Haga clic AQUI para mas informacion en espanol.
Online Learning Tips
- Clever. Students can make it simple: Log-in through Clever to access all teacher’s CANVAS Classrooms. Click HERE for video instruction on how to log into Clever.
- Need easier tips on accessing the programs for Online Learning, check out Temecula Online Student/Parent Tips - Click HERE
What Can I Do As a Parent to Help My Student?
Monitoring -
Although middle schoolers demonstrate signs of working independently, their progress should continue to be monitored frequently. This may include checking grades regularly, looking to see if they have logged on-line to class properly, or simply that are not distracted. Remember that it is typical for students to exhibit different behavior in the school setting than they would in the home setting. So in the case that your child may not be performing a their typical level, monitoring may just do the trick.Encouragement -
This may seem like a give, but during a these stressful times, the ability to encourage your students may not be as easy. Many students may feel frustrated or overwhelmed with the change and structure in online learning. Continue to encourage your student to move forward by recognizing progress they are making (as opposed to what they may not be doing) is a simple way to help our kids stay motivated.Having A Problem With Grades?
As a reminder, the IC Portal has a number of tools to message parent and students regularly when grade's fall below passing or if assignments are missing. Cick HERE, if you need help on how to access the Infinite Campus (IC) Portal. And yes....there is an App for that!
HOW TO CONNECT WITH THE COUNSELORS
by Email/Phone/Text during work hours 8am-3pm, Monday to Friday
Mr. Bayaca (A-Li)
(951) 401-4782 updated
Mrs. Krumheuer (Ll-Z)
(951) 401-4423 updated
Mr. Acosta (LCAP)
(951) 401-9958 updated
Counseling EMERGENCY?
For EMERGENCIES call 911 or
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
1-800-273-8255 or 1-800-273-TALK
Does Your Student Need to Schedule an Appointment with their DMS School Counselor?
Additional Resources...
- Visit our Counseling Website: Click HERE!
- Have your student "Accept" the DMS Counseling Canvas invite for a number of DMS Counseling support right on their Canvas Dashboard.
- Follow us on Instagram @dmsschoolcounselors
- DMS COVID-19 Local and Immediate Resources