RECOGNITIONS

Consistent with the central Amana value of stewardship, our families embarked on not one, but two stewardship projects on the same day. Yet there was no shortage of hands to contribute to each.

September 28 was the date of Georgia's annual Rivers Alive event. Amana families and the City of Alpharetta joined forces to give Wills Park a new butterfly garden. Volunteers spread soil, tilled, and planted shrubs specifically chosen to attract butterflies and other pollinators. The site chosen lies directly across from the Alpharetta Community Center. For park users, the new garden enhances the natural beauty of the park and connects it further to the region's rich ecosystem. For Amana students, it was not only a way to give back to the City, but an integral part of their curriculum. As part of their Environmental Education class, they have been visiting the garden to observe the growth of the plants and their new insect visitors. And, yes, butterflies have begun to visit!

September 28 was also National Public Lands Day, and over 20 Amana students and family members trekked out to Kennesaw Mountain National Park to join a trail improvement project sponsored by REI and the Kennesaw Mountain Trail Club. Volunteers got to lay down an entirely new section of trail-an exciting experience! Young and old hauled buckets of sand and crushed gravel, and tamped it down to form a smooth approach to a newly built bridge. The new trail will be used by park visitors at next year's 150^th Civil War Battle Commemoration. Not only did our students work hard, but they learned about a particularly moving chapter of our national history.

Both projects combined civic duty with respect for the natural environment we live in. Amana strives to teach these principles in the classroom, but we truly succeed when our students choose to donate their own time to taking care of the planet they live on. 

Click here for more photos on our website.

Congratulations to the following students who were nominated by their teachers as Student of the Month Citizen Scholars.  These students were chosen because they demonstrated behavior consistent with the Expeditionary Learning Design Principles.

Expeditionary Learning Design Principles 

• The Primacy of Self Discovery (students undertake tasks that require perseverance, fitness, craftsmanship, imagination, self-discipline, and significant achievement)
• The Having Of Wonderful Ideas (curiosity about the world)
• The Responsibility for Learning (responsible for directing their own personal and collective learning.)
• Empathy and Caring (help foster a community of respect and mutual trust)
• Success And Failure (confidence and capacity to take risks and meet increasingly difficult challenges, learn from their failures, to persevere)
• Collaboration and Competition (compete not against each other, but with their own personal best and with rigorous standards of excellence)
• Diversity and Inclusion (Embraces, investigate and values their different histories and talents as well as those of other communities and cultures)
• The Natural World (stewards of the earth and of future generations)
• Solitude and Reflection (ability to explore their own thoughts, make their own connections, and create their own ideas, as well as exchange their reflections with other students and with adults.)
• Service and Compassion (As a crew, students show attitudes and skills to learn from and be of service.

Have Brush, Will Paint

Just in time for the opening of our new middle school wing, volunteers prepared and painted our school's entire cafeteria at Hands On Amana Day!  This was a monumental feat that took three days (October 4th-6th), buckets of paint, dozens of rollers & brushes, and over 40 volunteers.  The volunteers included parents, students from all grades, Amana graduates, and friends (thank you Girl Scout Troop 28316!).  Hands On Amana days have become a valued tradition at Amana, as they bring our families together while saving the school thousands of dollars.  Thank you volunteers for a quality job well done!

Here are some of our amazing volunteers.  It was evident by the final product that they strove for craftsmanship - ownership & pride in their work, and attending to details.

Grandparents Go Back to School

In honor of National Grandparents Day, Amana welcomed grandparents and other special friends to Amana's annual Grandparents Day event on September 27. Approximately 200 grandparents visited, some from as far away as Saudi Arabia. Their grandchildren greeted them in the cafeteria, where the two generations cooperated in activities to learn the differences-and similarities-between their lives. One grandchild asked his grandmother for the price of milk when she was a child. "We never paid for milk," she replied. "We got it from the cow!"

After First Grade performed their community circle for the visitors, all joined to enjoy a delicious brunch. For the grandparents, it was enough to be able to share time with their grandchildren in a place that is so vital to their lives.

Amana Eats Mor Chickin!

LEARNING SNAPSHOTS

Field Notes:  What do the new Common Core Standards mean for my child?

Last year, Georgia became one of over 40 states to implement Common Core Performance Standards (CCGPS) for English Language Arts and Mathematics.  The Common Core State Standards provide a consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn, so teachers and parents know what they need to do to help them.  The standards are designed to be robust and relevant to the real world, reflecting the knowledge and skills that our students need for success.  With students fully prepared for the future, they will be positioned to compete successfully in the global economy.

 

The CCGPS sounds great, but what does it really meant?  Join us on November 15 at 8:30 AM for a special one-hour Cafe Conversations on the Common Core standards, where you'll get information on what these instructional shifts mean for your child and the practical, hands-on ways you can help your child be successful this year.

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS / REMINDERS

From the School Counselor:  October is National Bullying Prevention Month

Bullying has become a serious issue in our nation today. With many students hurting themselves and others in response to being bullied, it is important that stakeholders become aware of what bullying is and is not, how to prevent bullying, and what to do in response to bullying.

Bullying is aggressive behavior with the intent to cause harm. There is always an imbalance of power between the parties and it must be in repetition. An imbalance of power can include imbalance of strength, intelligence, popularity, and many more. The way I describe it to some students is that they feel like someone has more control over them than they have over themselves.

Most of the time we see this behavior exhibited in the older grades. Developmentally, younger aged children are still learning how to regulate their emotions, so their aggressive behavior may be a result of this. It is important to reinforce at home in the early grade (K-2) the idea of being a good friend. What does a good friend look like and sound like? If we do not agree with someone or do not get along with someone, how should we treat them? What does it look like and sound like to communicate with someone we may not consider out friend?

In older grades, it is important to still convey how important it is to communicate respectfully and appreciate diversity. The beauty of the world is that we all see things through different lenses, and that we define pretty and ugly for ourselves. As parents, it is important to keep your lines of communication open with your kids. Take time out of your day, even on the drive to school, to give your children the stage they need to express their feelings and thoughts. When you see a change in behavior, ask them what is going on.

When you notice that your child may have been bullied, please inform your child's teacher, counselor, or administrator. It is our responsibility to make all children feel safe and welcome at school. We will investigate the situation to ensure the safety of all students.

I will be hosting a Cafe Conversation Friday, November 1 at 8:30 AM around the topic of bullying. Please attend if you would like more information. Here are some resources to help you research on your own:

www.stopbullying.gov

 www.rosalindwiseman.com

http://www.education.com/topic/school-bullying-teasing/

Additionally, if you have topics that you would like see featured
at future Cafe Conversations, please let me know by filling out this form. 

October 13-19 Was Teen Read Week

 The Library ran a raffle to give away several Young Adult books. The 7th and 8th grade received one raffle ticket every time they came and checked-out a book.

Ahmad Abubaker

Sedrah Mashour

Sadia Mehnoor

Nothing Like an Apple Fresh off the Tree!

No Amana tradition is quite like apple picking! This year, the weather was perfect: warm day with a cool breeze, the trees freshly washed from a rainstorm the day before, and of course, crowds and crowds of people! 

This unique Family Fun event was held at the B. J. Reece Orchards in Ellijay, an hour's drive north of Amana in the scenic north Georgia mountains. 116 Amana members made the journey and spent hours rambling through the orchards, trying to choose between varieties like Golden Delicious, Rome Beauty, and Arkansas Black, and discovering the maximum number of apples one could stuff into a ¼ peck bag without breaking it. Some chose the fun of firing the apple cannon at a rusted old car, while others preferred to hike the quieter outer reaches of the orchards. A few weeks later, those apples are still making appearances in Amana lunchboxes and in apple tarts brought to meetings. And no doubt, as our students crunch in to those sweet apples, that mental connection between farm and table fires again within their minds. 

BEHIND THE SCENES

CONNECT WITH US 

If you ever have any questions or concerns, please contact your child's teacher directly, or any one of our Administrative team members.  If your question was not addressed, then feel free to contact our Governing Board.  Amana's main number is (678) 624-0989 and you may also find email contact information for all of our staff by visiting the Amana Staff Directory.

On behalf of the Governing Board, the Amana faculty and staff, and the school Administration, thank you for entrusting your child's education to us.  With your continued support, we will continue to mold the very best and brightest global leaders!