Fall Break

Today our students and staff crossed the first leg of the school year and have now gathered around the collective Gatorade cooler to refresh themselves.

Whew... Today I witnessed character education in the form of a story about the square pumpkin, a class store where young entrepreneurs worked deals, and a middle school Halloween dance! Mrs. Garcia was sure cutting a rug during that song, "Thriller".

Just know how proud we are of our staff- this was classified appreciation week and as Valerie said these employees are , "WORTH THEIR WEIGHT IN GOLD." I am amazed at how creative and challenging these teachers can be as well.

Enjoy this needed respite Quest and we will see you again in November! Thanksgiving may be coming soon but know we don't wait for any holidays to be thankful for you!

The Power of Praise- not always good...

I was reading a book recommended by our 6th grade science teacher Nick Davis. Nurtureshock is a book about children- how we raise them and how we make mistakes that seem to be the opposite of what we intended; like praising children. The first chapter is about the research of Carol Dweck on praise. She discovered that praising gifted kids about their intelligence had a negative effect and her work has been a hot topic: "Carol Dweck is a flat-out genius. I hope the work is taken seriously. It scares people when they see these results.”

Here is a link to the article:HOW NOT TO TALK TO YOUR KIDS

Let me know what you think...

Cookies Are A Fruit

Yes, I know that sounds funny- but think about it... character education produces something in our children. The fruit- the results of our work around guiding principles was discovered in a hallway the other day when I was visiting classrooms. Bailey, Kara, Samantha, and Briana were walking around with a plate of cookies (by the way, they were delicious) and I was curious as to what they were up to. Their answer was inspirational. "You see Mr. Roth, we wanted to treat the 5th graders the way we wish we could have been treated last year. SO we made them some cookies- to show them that we are glad they are here at Quest. WOW, let me say it again... WOW! In the spirit of Pay it Forward I was inspired. Please understand that this school is dedicated to principles like compassion, respect, and excellence. We saw the fruit of that dedication in the ipod that day...