Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Jacobson Entrepreneurship Academy



Just a heads up on an opportunity for Carlisle 6th through 8th graders this summer. The Jacobson Institute is offering a week-long camp for students who want to learn how to make big money, follow their dreams, or start their own business. If you are a Carlisle middle school student, you are eligible to apply for this camp. Their is a cost involved and that cost is $175.00. Lunch, snacks, a t-shirt, and a few other things are provided. Extended daily stays to help with daycare or parents work schedule can be purchased for $10/day. The week ends with the students presenting their business model, getting judged by actual business owners and entrepreneurs, and the winners getting a cash award! Sounds like a fun week for the right students who might have a strong interest in management, business, money, and creative ideas. Please visit this website for more information: "Jacobson Institute" or give me a call/email. I hope that we get some kids involved in this program this summer! --Ben Barry, MS Counselor

Financial Aid Scams

The FTC (Federal Trade Commission) cautions students & parents to look for tell tale lines:

· "The scholarship is guaranteed or your money back."

· "You can't get this information anywhere else."

· "I just need your credit card or bank account number to hold this scholarship."

· "We'll do all the work."

· "The scholarship will cost some money."

· "You've been selected by a 'national foundation' to receive a scholarship" or "You're a finalist" in a contest you never entered.

The bottom line is: YOU SHOULD NEVER PAY FOR SCHOLARSHIPS, GRANTS, OR ANY OTHER FINANCIAL AID!

Here are the facts:

  1. Students have tons of free help to find scholarships. These include: the college they plan to attend, national and state scholarship databases, Iowa College Access Network and your school counselor.
  2. No one can find grants for you. Eligibility for grant money is based on information from the FAFSA.
  3. Make sure you’re on the right website. www.fafsa.gov is right, www.fafsa.com is wrong

Check out our website for local scholarships and links to national scholarship databases at www.carlisle.k12.ia.us/HS_guidance.php?image=HS_guidance

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Kids Bowl Free This Summer!




Do your kids like bowling? Do you like FREE stuff? If you answered yes to both, or at least yes to the 2nd question, then listen up! Kids can bowl for free again this summer as a popular summer nationwide program is continuing this year. **(One catch is that most bowling alleys still require you to pay for shoe rental, so maybe not completely free....but close!)** My family did this last year, but got so busy with several things, never actually used it. But oh well, it was free. This year, we hope to use it several times as 2 of our 3 kids went bowling a couple times recently and loved it. We just wish it was cheaper....maybe even free! Now it is and we hope many of your families can take part in this program this year.

How can something like this be worth your time? Why is a counselor like me interested in a program like this? Here are some reasons I see that this can be a great thing....

*Activity and Exercise: Your children get some exercise and get to move around by playing a fun and climate controlled sport. Even if for only an hour or two, it is still a few hours away from the TV.

*If parents or grandparents can go, it is a great family activity. Getting a chance to do family activities outside the home can be costly at times, but this one is FREE!

*Can be a good time to have some important talks and talk about life. Maybe some one-on-one time with each kid by taking just one kid each time. Quality time one-on-one is very rare in our fast and busy lives.

*Interact with other people and watch other people. Kids learn by doing and by observing. If a lot of people sign up for free bowling, then a lot of kids and families are going to be bowling this summer and your family can meet new families or simply go bowling with your current friends and current family friends.

So....how do you get signed up and how do you learn more? Well, I'm going to link you to a great blogger, Richard Byrne, and his blog Free Technology for Teachers. He has a great blog entry with some videos you can watch to learn more. Go to his blog by clicking here.

If you don't need more information and you just want to sign up, click here to get to the Free Bowling for Kids page.

Happy Bowling!! (By the way....bonus points if anyone can beat Mr. Barry's record game. I bowled a 199 when I was in college! So close to 200, but I blew it in the last frame!)

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Great Leadership Opportunity

Iowa Congressman Tom Latham invites all high school students in the 4th congressional district to the 2011 Iowa Youth Leadership Summit on April 28 from 8:15-3:30 at the Scheman Building at ISU.

The summit gives Iowa students a chance to sharpen their leadership skills, develop goals and meet other young leaders from around the state. Students will take part in a series of activities and discussions aimed at developing leadership and citizenship. The keynote speaker will be University of Iowa football coach, Kirk Ferentz (via satellite).

Registration is free, but there is a $10 charge for lunch that day. If you're interested, please see Mrs. Lee or Mrs. Heidemann in the guidance office. Students must register by April 15th.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Parenting Children with Difficult Behavior Seminar Series. And it's FREE!




Parents: Heads up on an upcoming class that is FREE!!!

If you want more details, please email me or call, but here are the basics. Sounds like a good deal and not too much of a time commitment.

What is it?: This class series is designed for parents of children (ages 5-12) who are diagnosed with ADHD and/or other behavioral disorders and for parents who are having challenges managing their children's behavior. You will receive concrete strategies for dealing with behavioral challenges in your children. Come, listen, and share! CHILDCARE AND SNACKS ARE PROVIDED!

Where is it?: Family Enrichment Center, 2309 Euclid Ave., Des Moines, IA

When is it?: 5:30-7:00 p.m. on 12 Tuesday evenings from March 22nd to June 7th. So, it starts VERY soon! It is highly recommended that you attend ALL sessions in order to increase the success of the strategies presented.

Space is limited, so call today for more information or to get signed up. Call Child Abuse Prevention Council at 515-725-3682. If you have other questions, you can also contact me through email or phone at the school. (Even though it is Spring Break, I am still checking my messages)




Cybersafety and Cyberbullying



When walking around KidsFest with my own kids, I got a ton of information from a booth about Preventing Child Abuse. The information was wide-ranging, so I plan to post some of it in my blog in a series of posts on different topics. All of this information comes from a group with their own website: www.preventchildabusenc.org Please visit their site and see what else they have for information or resources.


First off, here are some tips the group had on keeping your kids safe on the Internet. I have summarized and paraphrased in order to keep the information short and sweet!

*Be computer literate and know what websites your children are visiting. Visit these sites and look around to see if they are appropriate and safe.

*Be willing to restrict access to certain sites, chat rooms, etc. Your internet provider can help you with how to do this. You want your children to be independent and free, but you are still the parent and need to set boundaries. As they grow and mature, some of these sites may become more appropriate.

*Set up guidelines for time on the Internet and where they go. Make a sign as a reminder and post this near the computer or in their room.

*Open lines of discussion early so that kids know they can come to you if they get messages, emails, chat messages, etc. that make them feel uncomfortable or unsafe. Help your children understand how good some people are at tricky young people into thinking they are someone different or have only good intentions.

*Keep the computer in a high traffic area of the house. This includes the Ipod, tablet PC, cell phone, or anything else that has the internet on it.

*Make sure you know what personal information your child is sharing online and where this information goes. If someone solicits or contacts your child unwantedly, get the police involved.

*And watch for Cyberbullying that may be occurring. Monitor your child's social networks, chatrooms, or IMs. This is where a bully or bullies like to attack. Speaking of Cyberbullying....


So, if you liked those tips, here are more tips and ideas, this time in the area of preventing Cyberbullying.

(But if you are unfamiliar with what Cyberbullying is and why it is so different and so much worse than bullying when we were all in school, please visit an earlier post by me found HERE. Also, you can click on the tag "bullying" at the end of this post and you will get all of my previous posts about bullying on one page)

*Cyberbullying is when a child is threatened harrassed, humiliated, or targeted by another person(s) through the use of internet or technology.

*Victims often have lower self-esteem, feel scared/angry/and depressed, increased anxiety often affects their school work and performance, and can lead to mental health problems.

*Cyberbullies act for the normal bully reasons: anger, frustration, revenge, power. But they also use the cyberbully method because they are online and bored, looking for a reaction, and can many times quickly erase some of their evidence.

*40% of kids have been victims of cyberbullying and cyberbullying typically begins around the middle school years and can continue into the child's college years. Talking with your child before middle school begins and before they start social networking sites or surfing the net can only help.

*Simply ask your child if they know what cyberbullying is and if they feel they have ever been a victim.

*Many people who get bullied will turn and cyberbully another as size and looks don't matter. Talk with your child about online expectations and what is not accepted. Use the old "what if you were them, how would you feel" method. This simple method works most of the time.

*If your child is being cyberbullied, DO NOT immediately take away all electronics and online capabilities of your child. If you do this, you have punished the victim. Have the child "Stop, block, and delete" anything from the bully. Print any evidence before you do this. And as tempting as it sometimes is....do not respond to the bully, nor have your child respond. Responding negatively is the equivalent of fighting back and then both kids could get in trouble.

*So if you don't respond back and your child stays online, what do you do? If it worsens or continues beyond a one-time event, report to school, bully's parent, authorities, etc. Sometimes, students think if it happens outside of school then it is not a school issue and they cannot be punished. Well....if the victim starts skipping school or grades drop due to the constant online bullying, then it becomes a school issue. Many times talking with the school, the counselor, or the bully's parents can help solve the situation. If it doesn't, the police/authorities are the best place to turn to for help.


Hopefully, these tips and ideas have helped you learn more about what to do as your child grows up "online". If you have further questions, please visit these sites or contact me. Thank you!






And thanks again to Prevent Child Abuse, North Carolina for much of this information!




Powerpoint for Today's Teen Trials!

Parents and students....listen up! Many of you may have heard about the great night several parents and students had at Carlisle High School on March 3rd, 2011. That was the night where many from our district enjoyed a free sub sandwich meal before a great 90 minutes of information, speakers, and conversation about drugs and alcohol in our community and what we can all do to fight this battle. While the night presented a variety of speakers and information and you truly did have to be there to understand and appreciate the whole event, Mike Wenger has given me permission to publish his powerpoint, the same powerpoint he presented that night, in my blog. Although you can't view the 2 videos (you might be able to search them on Youtube), the information in the slides is wonderful....and scary. I recommend viewing the powerpoint with your children as well as we are hopeful that this powerpoint and our March 3rd event will start the conversation at home, with the family, and then spread through the community. And with this conversation spreading, our community can win the battle against drug and alcohol experimentation, use, and abuse. Thank you and please see the powerpoint below!

Here is the powerpoint that Mike Wenger presented as part of the Today's Teen Trials event at Carlisle High School on March 3rd, 2011

Friday, March 4, 2011

ACT prep

ACT Prep



Are you a junior looking at attending a 4 year college right after high school? Are you planning on taking the ACT in April or June? ACT Prep can help you get ready! We will have review sessions at the high school from 3:30-5:30 on March 22 (overview), 24 (English/Math), 28 (Reading/Science) and April 6 (pick your area).



It only costs $10 to attend all four nights, but you need to register with the guidance office by Thursday, March 10th. See you there!



Some other helpful sites for preparing for the ACT are:

http://www.march2success.com/

http://www.number2.com/

http://www.ihaveaplaniowa.gov/



These all have ACT practice tests and the best part is that they are FREE and available anytime!

Thursday, March 3, 2011

College Planning Night

Attention all Junior Parents!! Attend College Planning Night

College Planning Night gives juniors and their parents an opportunity to get a jump start on the college planning process. A representative from the Iowa College Access Network(ICAN) will be here to discuss the following topics: preparing for college, what to consider when choosing a college, campus visits, scholarship scams, and an overview of financial aid.

We'll be meeting at 6:30 in the HS Auditorium Tuesday, March 8th (during conferences). Bring lots of questions! We look forward to seeing you there!