February 25, 2010

Dear Parents:

We had a wonderful few days with author Vanessa Van Petten.  I wanted to share a few notes from her discussions with both parents and students . Vanessa is a vibrant, bright 24 year old who was a triple major at Emory University, is writing her third book and has one of the most successful parenting websites online. She also has a tween/teen website that uses 82 teen intern writers, all over the country. She is sponsored by some of the biggest corporations and has been a speaker for CNN, a mediator on “Housewives of Orange County” and most recently appeared on “The Doctors.”

Vanessa spoke with parents on Tuesday night and the fourth through eighth grade students on Wednesday.  As I am sure you are aware, about 95% of these students are online, and from  fifth through eighth grade a majority is using a social network site like Facebook.  Please continue to monitor your children on line- not only for safety in terms of predators but for content, personal information and photos that are posted.

Vanessa spoke about privacy settings.  Please make sure that if your child is using Facebook, or a social networking site that their page  has appropriate privacy settings so that only invited “friends” and family can view their personal content.  I did a random check on Tuesday night, TOO MANY students had “open” pages.  I could see where they live, what school they attended, their age and photos.  I told your students this and so did Vanessa. I went on last night to see Vanessa’s impact- THE MAJORITY HAD CHANGED THEIR PRIVACY SETTINGS but not all.

Vanessa spoke about students doing a “teacher test” on their content and photos online.

• Would I show these comments to my teacher?
• Would I show these photos to my teachers?
• Are my applications appropriate?

She also told them that they need to have a plan of what to do if someone does something online they do not like:

• STOP- before acting
• SAVE- Save and print the offensive material/photo
• REPORT- to a parent, a teacher, the site or to ANCOMM.COM (anonymously report anything is you are afraid to do it yourself)

She spoke about making sure children protect their PASSWORD. Many children admitted they share their passwords.  This leads to many problems such as cyberbullying and email/page tampering.

She recommends using “Zoobuh” for safe email options for children.

DID YOU KNOW...

• 63% of teens say they know how to hide what they do online from their parents (Harris Interactive-McAfee 10/2008)
• One in five kids have engaged in cyberbullying behavior -- posting embarrassing photos, spreading rumors, and more. (Harris Interactive-McAfee, 10/2008)
• 69% of teens regularly receive personal messages online from people they don't know and most don't tell a trusted adult about it. (Cox Communications in partnership with NCMEC and John Walsh, 2007).
• More than one in 10 students have accepted an invitation to meet an online stranger in person (Rochester Institute of Technology, 2008).

I can already see the impact Vanessa made in her short visit.  The children were bombarding her with great questions both during and after her presentation.  The facial expressions and exchange of looks during her presentations were PRICELESS.

Check out her website Radicalparenting.com!

Thanks for allowing us the privilege of helping your children grow up safely!

Danielle Ockman

• On Tuesday, February 2nd, Meyer Academy made spelling bee history. After using the 275 official words designated by the 2010 Scripps National Spelling Bee, four students were left standing. On day two of the spelling bee, the finalists included Uri Brookmyer, Lillian Lesser, Livia Nason, and Felicia Tucker. First and second place winners, Lillian and Uri, will head on to St. Andrew’s next month with Livia Nason as an alternate. Congratulation s to all four students for an extraordinary job!
• Students in fifth grade spent a wonderful extended day at Epcot. They participated in the Millennium Cultures program, sponsored by Disney, which integrated into the language arts/social studies world cultures program. Everyone returned to the campus mid-evening exhilarated, but exhausted.
• Meyer Academy Grandparent Day’s took place on February 11th (kindergarten through fourth grade) and February 12th (fifth through eighth grade).  The visit started in Strauss Hall where grandparents were welcomed by members of the Grandparent Committee.  Then the grandparents followed specially prepared schedules that provided time for them to observe  their grandchildren in several classes and participate in that day’s lessons in each room.  The school was filled with love, laughter, and learning.The books of Dr. Seuss continue to be a mainstay of young readers.  To help us celebrate the creativity and imagination of Theodore Geisel, the author, kindergartners and their parents joined us for the annual Meyer Academy Dr. Seuss Night.  What could be better than pizza, pajamas, cookies and milk, the Cat in the Hat, math games and a special good night blessing before going home to be.  What a fun-filled evening it was!
• First and second graders went on an exciting and educational trip to JetBlue at the Ft. Lauderdale airport. Students ate on an actual airplane, made announcements, donned life jackets, visited the cockpit, checked in both baggage and passengers, and all in all had a wonderful time. Special thanks to our own JetBlue First Officer, Ellen Berris, who made it all happen, and special thanks also to the snow up North that allowed us to stay on the airplane for a much longer period of time.
• On February 19th first grade students got their personal siddurim. Parents and grandparents were invited to the ceremony. This exciting event was a landmark  in their Jewish education!
• Kindergarten, first, and second graders participated in a dental health presentation. The program was interactive and included a magician and dental health educator, each of whom helped to explain how to take care of teeth, tooth anatomy, proper nutrition, and care of gums. Students had the opportunity to participate in a short skit about oral care. At the end of the presentation each student received dental goody bag in which there was a new toothbrush, toothpaste, a dental health booklet, and a small toy. Everyone learned a lot and had fun while doing so.
• February 23rd we had a fantastic parent turnout to hear author Vanessa Van Petten speak about the “Dirt-E Secrets of an Internet Kid.” Ms. Van Petten has been on CNN, Housewives of Orange County as a family mediator and most recently on “The Doctors”. She wrote her book when she was 17 years old.  At 24  years old she is writing hr 3rd book, has a website that has been voted one of the best parenting blogs and travels the world as a speaker. We were lucky to have Ms. Van Petten speak with the 4th-8th grade students about internet safety and cyberbullying.
• Friday, February 26th was the day that all students at the Meyer Academy celebrated Purim.  From the costume parade to the special classroom reading of the Megillah to the exchange of mashloach manot to the annual Purim carnival festivities, all the day was spent in fun and games and rejoicing.  What a wonderful way to welcome Shabbat and Purim. First and second graders were excited about wearing clothing in creative ways. Fifth graders visited Morse Geriatric and sang Purim songs with the residents.

News 5 Covers AIMJA's "Paint Your Heart Out" Program from MeyerAcademy on Vimeo.