November 2010 Newsletter

Holiday Greetings…

Download the November 2010 Newsletter

It’s a snowy day in Alturas and winter is on the march. Next week is Thanksgiving and students have the 24- 25th off. I hope you have fun things planned for the break and are able to spend quality time with your family.

This month I attended a training to get us ready to do our self study for accreditation. We are in the 5th year of our 6 year accreditation and are entering the year when we take a good look at ourselves in anticipation of a visit and evaluation by Western Accrediting Commission for Schools in the spring of 2012.

We will be looking for in- put from parents and students to help us complete the study. It is a wonderful chance to do some long term planning and to set goals for our school. I look forward to the process and opportunities to interact with everyone toward a bright future.

My son and I just returned from a short trip to Yosemite with friends. We studied geology, the human history of the area, learned about rock climbing, sat in the meadows, and marveled at the Sequoia Big Trees. What a blessing to be able to learn with our kids.
Laura VanAcker – Director

Congrats to NDA students in the Shasta Youth Symphony Orchestra!

New Day Academy is very proud to have several students in the Shasta Youth Symphony.

They put on their fall concert this Sunday. It’s a scary thing to have to get up in front of a large audience and perform, and we applaud you for you bravery and determination. The Fall Concert is put on every year. This was its 11th season under the direction of Dr. Richard Fiske.

“The Shasta Youth Orchestra is a college course for .5 units; as such, students not only gain the opportunity to perform in a quality orchestral setting, they also may earn college credit prior to graduating from high school. ”

We encourage more musical NDA students to get involved next year!

Lava Beds Field Trip Fun

Despite the cold weather and sur- rounding snowy condi- tions, several New Day Academy families made it to the Lava Beds National Monument Field Trip.

The best part was that the caves created their own insulation, so it was much warmer inside the caves than it was out- side! We enjoyed a guided tour of Valen- tine Cave, named accordingly because it was discovered on Valentine’s Day.

New Day Academy teacher Lisa Bernal took us on a mini hike through Captain Jack’s stronghold. Students were able to see the caves where the Native Americans survived the winter hiding out, as well as Captain Jack’s lookout post.    It was amaz- ing to see the small rock walls, built by warriors, still standing. The warriors would lay behind the walls with their weapons ready to defend and attack.

Lastly, we made our way along Petroglyph Point. Theentireareausedtobealake. Native Americans would maneuver their boats up alongside the cliffs to carve symbols and pictures into the soft rock wall. The petroglyphs have begun to fade due to weather and vandalism, but there was still one good spot to see the etchings.

That’s when the hail started, and our field trip came to a close.

We hope to return to the Lava Beds for a future field trip during better weather conditions. Our apologies to
the families who were unable to attend!

The Ross Ragland Theatre: Winter Line Up

“The Ross Ragland Theater is a visual and performing arts center committed to providing quality, affordable, culturally diverse events and related educational opportunities. ”

The theatre is located in downtown Klamath Falls, OR. Here is a list of some of the upcoming events this holiday season:

• Dec. 3rd, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy’s Wild and Swingin’ Holiday Party (swing dance revival)
• Dec. 11th Esquire Jazz Orchestra (hits from the “Big Band Era”)
• Dec. 17th—19th Community Production: Irving Berlin’s White Christmas (stage version of the popular family-classic 1954 movie.)
• Dec. 27th Eugene Ballet’s The Nutcracker (classic ballet)
• Jan. 21st Ailey II (dance company) Sometimes new experiences are the best gift a family can give one another.

Contact the Ross Ragland Theatre to request their Performance Season Catalogue. (541) 884-0651

Turning Over a New Leaf: A Festive Family Craft

Thanksgiving is all about giving thanks, so what better way to encourage your children to do so with a fun family craft?

1. Go for a walk and have the kids collect leaves.
2. Seal the leaves in between Con-Tact Paper. (You can buy this at any office supplies store.)
3. Then have each member of the family write something they are thankful for onto one of the pressed leaves with permanent marker.
4. Create a trunk out of construction paper, then attach the leaves to the truck.

This is a tradition you can do every year. Children will enjoy looking back in years past at all the thinks they had to be thankful for.

Don’t have access to leaves or Contact paper?

Instead, have each member of the family write what they are thankful for on strips of paper. Put all the strips into a bowl or hat, then take turns pulling out a “thanks” to share with the whole family. Try spreading it out over a week, each person adding at least one “thanks” for each day, then sharing them Thanksgiving night.

Ruth Ann’s Pumpkin Pie Squares

Cooking and baking is a great way to teach kids about math and science. Plus they are rewarded for their hard work with a yummy treat!

Try this recipe from one of our New Day Academy teachers for a festive dessert:

RUTH ANN’S PUMPKIN PIE SQUARES
Combine eggs, milk, spice, salt, sugar, and pumpkin. Pour into a 9×13 pan. Sprinkle dry cake mix over top. Drizzle butter over top. Sprinkle nuts over top. Bake at 350 F. for about 50 to 60 minutes. Serve with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Ingredients

3 eggs, beaten
1 c. sugar
1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk
4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp. salt
1 can (15 oz.) PLAIN pumpkin
1 pkg. yellow cake mix
3/4 c. butter, melted
1 1/2 c. chopped nuts

Bookmobile Holiday Hours

The bookmobile will be at the Sports Authority Parking lot every Thursday in Redding from 10:00 to 1:00 EXCEPT for the following dates due to holiday breaks:

• November 25th
• December 23rd
• December 30th

Be sure to put your books on hold before these dates to ensure you get everything you need.

Otherwise your holds will have to wait until after the New Year.

Questions and concerns? Call the main office at (530) 233-3861.

“Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body.”
~ Joseph Addison

“Reading is a basic tool in the living of a good life.”
~ Mortimer J. Adler

NEW! Parent Corner

Welcome to our new Parent Corner! We would like to use this space in each news- letter to highlight you, the parents!

Have something special about your family you would like to share?

Do you have a craft or tradition you think other families would enjoy?

If so, please share it with New Day. You can email your story/information to kelly.mcgarva [at] newdayacademy.net

Feel free to add a picture or two to help illustrate what it is you and your family do.

From homeschooling to baking fresh, homemade bread to making soap….that is what Debbie McHugh loves to do. A former resident of Modoc county, Debbie learned how to make soap in Alturas and has been making it ever since.

Last year she started her own business and with help, created The Essential Olive website. The soap is made from organic olive, coconut and palm oils that are natural and healthy for your skin.

Along with soap, Debbie also makes natural lip balms, sea salt scrubs, body oils and laundry soap. She has also made glycerine soaps with kids for parties and school activities. Debbie and her husband Tom, along with their three children, two which are NDA students, now reside in Redding.

You can check out Debbie’s website at www.TheEssentialOlive.com.

Nutcracker Field Trip: Revised

As it turns out, parents were not allowed to attend the special student showing of the Nutcracker at the Cascade Theatre on Friday.

So instead, New Day Academy purchased matinee tickets for December 11th at 2:00. New Day was also able to pay for all New Day Academy student tickets, as well as one parent/chaperone ticket.

Thank you to all the families that signed up.

All spaces are full. A reminder to those who have more than one parent/ chaperone coming per family: New Day Academy will need to be reimbursed for each extra ticket.

Please mail your reimbursement checks to New Day Academy, 214 W. 1st Street, Alturas, CA, 96101.

Thank you, and we look forward to seeing you there!

We hope you enjoy the Thanksgiving break!