Monday, December 29 to Monday, January 5, 2015 - Winter Break, NO SCHOOL
Tuesday, January 6 - First day of second semester; schedule distribution begins at 7:30 a.m. in the New Gym
Wednesday, January 7 - Financial Aid Night for seniors and their parents, 7 p.m., PAC Cafeteria; Spanish language session in the Library. (see article)
Tuesday, January 13 - Math contest at lunch
Tuesday, January 13 - Sophomore Parent Information Night, 7 p.m., PAC Cafeteria (see article)
Wednesday, January 14 - February TriVocis article deadline
Wednesday, January 14 - SUHSD Board Meeting, 5:30 p.m.
Friday, January 16 - Last day to add a second semester class
Monday, January 19 - Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, NO SCHOOL

Happy Holidays!

The BearNotes staff wishes everyone a safe and happy holiday break. The next edition will be on Sunday, January 4, 2015.

Cheers and Happy New Year!

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Administration

M-A Today! for Winter Break, 2014 - Here's the recent M-A Today! winter break show, so that everyone knows what's going on. Make your transition to second semester a smooth one.

Financial Aid Night for Seniors and Their Parents - This event takes place on Wednesday, January 7 at 7 p.m. in the PAC Cafeteria. Come learn about financial aid and the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form. Please RSVP. Click the link to print the worksheet and remember to bring it to Financial Aid Night.

Conferencia de Asistencia Financiera en "College" para estudiantes seniors (grado 12) y sus padres Miércoles 7 de Enero a las 7 p.m. Asista para aprender acerca de la ayuda financiera para estudiantes en "college." También aprenderá como llenar la solicitud gratuita para esta ayuda financiera llamada FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid), así como la solicitud financiera Dream Act. Habrá dos sesiones que tendrán lugar al mismo tiempo: una en inglés (en la cafetería PAC) y la segunda en español (en la biblioteca). Para la conferencia en inglés, favor de confirmar su asistencia. Para la conferencia en español, no es necesario confirmar su asistencia. No deje de asistir ya que "college" está al alcance de todos! Cuidado de niños estará disponible.

Sophomore Parent College Information Night - This event will be held in the PAC Cafeteria on Tuesday, January 13, from 7 to 9 p.m. College advisor Alice Kleeman will talk to parents of sophomores about college admission, college testing, financial aid, scholarships, and more. A representative from the College Board will attend the meeting to introduce parents to the new SAT. Please RSVP. This event is for parents only, not students. Simultaneous translation to Spanish will be available.

Zero Period SAT Class Still Has Openings - Hopefully all Junior students received their PSAT results during finals week. Students can still sign up for spring semester zero-period class. If interested, send an email to Mr. Whitnah at gwhitnah@seq.org.

AP Calculus BC 2015 Summer Dates - Each year M-A offers AP Calculus BC as a three-semester course with the first semester held during the first four weeks of summer. In 2015, the Calculus program will be offered from Monday, June 8, through Thursday, July 2, from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. An informational meeting for all parents with students currently in Precalculus will be held on Tuesday, January 20, at both 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. in Room D-20. If your student is not currently enrolled in Precalculus but you are interested in learning about the AP Calculus BC program, you are also welcome to attend this meeting.

M-A's Own PSAT/SAT Prep - Parents and students who need to reach Jane King should use jccking@att.net, starting immediately. The former email address has been cancelled.

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PTA News

Reflections Arts Competition - This year marked the first year M-A has participated in the National PTA's Reflections Arts Competition. The students created a work of art based on the theme "The World Would Be a Better Place If...." Three students from M-A will be advancing to the District level:

Taylor Fryling for her painting Beach Bliss in the Visual Arts category
Alexandra Watson-Tremellen for her film The World Would Be A Better Place If We Start Right Here in the Film Production category
Jerry Liu for his composition Drought, Death, Water in the Music Composition category

Congratulations to all students who entered and to those students whose work is advancing to the District level. Good luck!

Used Computers Needed - If your family or company has surplus computers, please consider donating them to the PTA. All information is securely erased. The computers are then reloaded with software and are either sent home with needy students or placed in classrooms at M-A. To donate, please contact Sue Kayton at kayton@alum.mit.edu or 650-853-1711. Visit the Computer Donation Program which also lists other needed equipment.

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Foundation News

Twelve Ways of M-A Foundation Funding

(Sing to the Tune of "Twelve Days of Christmas")

Since the first day of school, the Foundation has given to M-A:

Twelve+ Smaller Classes (actually over 250!)

Eleven Course Electives (to give students lots of choices like French and Journalism + help on many other items like music supplies, technology and science equipment)

Ten+ Weeks of Homework Centers (to improve grades through tutoring)

Nine AP and AS classes (wait I mean 16!)

Eight % of Foundation Budget on College Career Success (additional guidance counselor, college advising)

Seven % of Budget on Teacher Excellence (including Professional Development and Departmental Collaboration)

Six SAT Prep Classes (to prepare for testing)

Five Arts Programs (including drama, choral, stagecraft, guitar, and orchestra)

Four Critical Programs (Partnership for Success, Honors Institute, Compass, and StarVista Counseling)

Three Types of Teacher Incentive Awards (to recognize and reward outstanding performance)

Two Summer Math Classes For Advancement

One College Advisor (to help students with college app process)

And a whole lot of more things as well!

As the year winds to a close, please consider giving by Wednesday, December 31 and help make it a "Great Day @ M-A!" for all students. Please visit Foundation for the Future to make your secure gift online or mail a check made payable to M-A Foundation, P.O. Box 1228, Menlo Park CA 94026.

Happy holiday wishes from the M-A Foundation for the Future!

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Parent Education

The Well-Balanced Student

Denise Pope, PhD, Stanford University, Challenge Success

Tuesday, February 3

7 - 8:30 p.m. in the M-A PAC

Please come to an outstanding presentation by Dr. Denise Pope, nationally and internationally recognized educator, award-winning lecturer at Stanford University, and co-founder of Challenge Success, a non-profit organization dedicated to increasing the well-being, engagement, and integrity of students.

Today's high-pressure, fast-paced culture can interfere with healthy child development. When we are too focused on test scores, performance, and grades, we may deny kids the time and energy they need to effectively tackle the demanding work of growing up. This workshop examines the tensions that can occur between students, parents, and educators over issues such as homework, grades, and the culture of competition. Research-based strategies to create healthier home and school environments will be shared. In this presentation, you will learn:

How students cope with the academic pressure they face
How to reduce academic stress without sacrificing achievement or engagement
Strategies to increase resilience, creativity, and well-being for your child

Please register at Eventbrite. M-A Parent Education Series events are free, sponsored by the M-A PTA, the Sequoia Healthcare District, and the Sequoia Union High School District. This event is also made possible by a grant from the La Entrada PTA.

For more information, contact Charlene Margot, The Parent Education Series, Founder/Program Director, at cmargot@csmconsulting.net or 650-868-0590.

The Parent Education Series is on Facebook! Now you can "like" us on Facebook! The Parent Education Series Facebook page will keep you posted about upcoming SUHSD Parent Ed events, research on parenting and education, community events, and more.

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Athletics

Check out the Athletics Calendar!

Weekly Sports Wrap-Up

Girls JV Soccer - The Bears played Woodside on Saturday to a 1-1 draw at San Mateo in the last leg of the Burlingame Tournament. The first half saw both sides testing each other's defenses and the Bears had a couple of good chances off of direct free kicks from 20+ yards out, one of which missed the top left corner by a foot and another that rattled the crossbar. First half goalkeeper Rosa Kurtz made easy work of the few Woodside attempts to keep the score 0-0 at halftime.

In the second half play resumed with Woodside pressing hard. Second half goalkeeper Baylee Schroeder made several spectacular saves including a desperation finger-tip swipe to keep the ball from rolling in over the goal line. The Bears tried to answer back and the stalemate continued until the 65th minute when Woodside managed a tap-in from a corner kick to go up 1-0. The Bears responded quickly and with a dash of fortune. A Woodside own-goal off a cross from Grace Briegher on the right wing leveled the match 1-1 at the 66th minute. Both teams tried to find a winner in the remaining 4 minutes but the 1-1 score would stand at the final whistle, wrapping up the Bears' successful tournament with 2 wins and a draw.

The Bears are now off for the holiday break and will resume their campaign Tuesday, January 6 with their home opener against Burlingame.

Girls Varsity Soccer - The Bears won the gold division of the preseason Burlingame Tournament for the second straight year in dominating fashion with a 3-0 victory over Christopher at Burlingame on Saturday. With the victory, the M-A Bears finished 3-0 in the tournament, outscoring their opponents 11-1 and earning 29 out of a possible 30 points. The game started a bit slow with M-A's best scoring chances thwarted by 3 offside calls. Annie Harrier finally got the Bears on the board just before the halftime whistle when she picked off a back pass to the keeper and took it straight to the open goal for an easy tap-in and a 1-0 halftime lead. In the second half, Josephine Cotto found the net in the 20th minute on a beautiful pass through the middle from Katie Guenin. Cotto's goal put the Bears up 2-0 midway through the second half. Less than 10 minutes later, Cotto found the net again - this time on a feed by Miranda Simes. Goalkeeper Breanna Sandoval earned a shutout victory with the final score at 3-0. The Bears wrap up the preseason at 3-1-1 and will come back from the winter break ready to open league play at home against Burlingame on Tuesday, January 6. The Bears then travel to San Mateo on Thursday, January 8.

Girls Varsity Basketball - On Friday night the Bears defeated Menlo 50-44. Played at Menlo School in front of a boisterous and predominantly M-A crowd, the Bears jumped out to a 6-0 lead and pushed the lead to 12-8 on two 3-point shots from senior Sarah Howell. In the second quarter, the Knights aggressive defense slowed the Bears and Menlo hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to take the lead 22-21 at the half. In the third quarter, three Knights hit 3-pointers, but the Bears began to break the Menlo press and got their low post game working. Sophomore post Ofa Sili scored 7 of her 8 points in the third quarter. Sili also had 14 rebounds and an assist on the night. With 3 minutes remaining and the game tied at 42, M-A went on an 8-0 run to put the game away and hand the Knights their first loss. The run was keyed by sisters Naomi and Ilana Baer who drove hard to the basket, picked up fouls, and converted free throws. Senior N. Baer led M-A with 12 points, 3 assists, 3 steals, and 4 rebounds. With the win the Bears improve to 5-1 on the season.

The Bears will remain busy during winter break. On Tuesday, December 23 the Bears enjoy their first home game against Presentation at 7 p.m. On Saturday, December 27, Monday, December 29, and Tuesday, December 30 the team travels across the Dumbarton Bridge to participate in the Newark Optimist Club - Newark Memorial Cougars Classic Tournament. Finally, the Bears host Palo Alto on Saturday, January 3 at 2:30 p.m.

Boys Varsity Basketball - The Bears' pre-season record is 3-5 following two losses over the weekend. In the loudest game to date (good job, 6th man club!), at Menlo, M-A lost a heart-breaker, 44-41. The lead seemed to change hands with each basket for the entire second half, as neither team could pull away. With the score 38-38, and under two minutes to play, Menlo hit a 3-pointer to take a 3-point lead. Freshman Myles Nunez countered with a 3-pointer to tie the game at 41 with about a minute to go. Menlo then hit a two and the Bears were unable to answer and forced to foul. Ryan Cole again led the Bear scoring with 10 points, while Christian Fioretti added 9. The next night, the Bears traveled to San Mateo to battle WCAL-powerhouse Serra, which has lost only one game in the pre-season. The Bears hung with the Padres for a quarter, down 12-9 after the first quarter, but the size, speed, and aggressiveness of Serra took hold from then on. The Bears found themselves down 14 at halftime on their way to a 65-36 loss. Cole's 9 points and Lucas Fioretti's 6 points led the Bears. M-A is off until Monday, December 29, 7 p.m. at Carmel. On Tuesday, December 30, 6 p.m., Pacific Grove hosts M-A. On Friday, January 2, 3 p.m., the Bears travel to Jefferson - Daly City, before hosting Half Moon Bay, on Saturday, January 3, 6:30 p.m., to conclude the pre-season.

The Bears spent Sunday morning supporting Ecumenical Hunger, a non-profit organization that assists local families and individuals who are experiencing economic and personal hardships. Ecumenical Hunger provides food, clothing, furniture, household essentials, support, and advocacy. The team handed out gifts and gift certificates to families and individuals in need.

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Community News

Study on Preparing for College - Silicon Valley high school students who are applying to college in Fall 2014 are being recruited to participate in a study on how high school students and their families prepare for college. Participation involves three personal interviews, each approximately one hour long, spaced out over the school year. Students will be compensated $30 for each interview. At least one parent or guardian must also agree to be interviewed three times during the school year. For more information about this study, please contact Johanna Massé at johamass@umich.edu or 310-488-4670.

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Quote of the Week

It's not what we have in our life, but who we have in our life that counts.

~J.M. Laurence

BearNotes Submissions

Email proofread submissions to BearNotes@mabearspta.org by Thursday midnight.
Please keep submissions concise and include the organization name, event, date, time, location, and contact information, including website URL.
All submissions are subject to editing by the PTA.
For the PTA policy on BearNotes publication, please go to the M-A PTA website.
M-A PTA does not endorse third-party events or submissions, nor take responsibility regarding the content of any third-party websites.

Go Bears. Grrrr!

Thank you from the BearNotes Staff: Cindy Butler, Dianne Child, Pam Fernandes, Sue Olson, Jenny Pont, Kelly Stewart, and Bobbie Wood