(also located at http://alamedaclc.org/)

2. Schoolwide Bladium Sports Day

4 Younger Boys and All Girls vs. Redwood; 3:00 p.m. at Crab Cove

7. Governing Board meeting; 7 – 9 p.m.

10. SAT test
11. WASC reception; 4:30 – 5:30 p.m. at ACLC

12 – 13 WASC visit to ACLC

16 ACLC snow trip to Squaw Valley; 4:00 a.m. – 7:30 a.m. - 8:30 p.m.

16 – 17 EHS Drama presents the musical, "Footloose"; 7:30 p.m.

16 - 19 Trimester Break – No school

17 Ultimeat Festival at Crown Memorial Beach; 8 a.m. – 6 p.m.

23. Healthy Lunch

23 – 24 EHS Drama presents the musical, "Footloose"; 7:30 p.m.

28 CCEF meeting: 6:00 p.m. at ACLC

30 12:15 Dismissal/ Staff Development

Constitutional Convention; 8 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.

4 Governing Board meeting; 7 – 9 p.m.

6. Healthy Lunch

7 – 8 States Ultimate Frisbee Tournament in Santa Cruz

9 – 13 Spring Break

25 CCEF meeting; 6:00 p.m. at ACLC

On March 11 - 13, ACLC will be visited by a committee from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, an accreditation institution which will be determining whether or not to extend our current term of accreditation. We’ve all worked hard to address the recommendations from our last visit and anticipate that everything will go smoothly.

The Rosetta Stone online foreign language program is up and running. 85 learners are participating and here is the language breakdown: Chinese - 4, Danish - 1, French - 6, German - 5, Greek - 3, Japanese - 12, Korean - 1, Latin - 5, Russian - 5, Spanish - 37, Swedish - 1, Italian - 1, Pashto - 1, Welch - 3. What I really like about this program is that it is not just about learning a foreign language; it is definitely about learning to be a self-directed learner. Online learning is definitely part of the future. (The state of Michigan requires that every high school student pass an online course as part of their graduation requirements. It is something we might consider in the future.) It just occurred to me that this also might be an opportunity to start some special groups of learners that are studying the same language. Perhaps there is a parent out there in our community who speaks these languages and would be willing to meet once a week with the kids either after school, during school, or on Wednesday evenings. Please let me know if you are interested and I will see what I can set up.

Lora is currently writing the course descriptions for a UC approved Spanish 1 and 2 program for next year. The Governing Board has given the finance committee the authority to budget for an additional facilitator next year to facilitate an ACLC Spanish program for younger learners and UC approved courses for Spanish 1 and 2. We will keep you posted on the progress of hiring that new facilitator as the spring progresses.

The finance committee will be working on next year’s budget soon. Some minor adjustments will be necessary, but the school is in good financial health and is not anticipating any major changes if the governor’s budget is approved.

We continue to explore possible expansion plans for next year. At this writing, we have 161 applications for approximately 33 openings for next year. Locating a suitable facility for a second small school campus for ACLC seems to be the biggest challenge. If we actually get a serious plan together, a community meeting will be called to discuss the pros and cons of such an expansion before we move forward. – Paul Bentz

CCEF Meetings are on the last Wednesday of the month at 6:00 p.m. at the Center. Please join us.

Next Meeting: Wednesday, March 28th at 6:00 p.m.

CCEF would like to thank all of the ACLC families who have donated through our direct donation program this school year. Approximately 30% of ACLC families have participated in the direct donation program and we have reached approximately 75% of our budget goal of $25,000.00. Please consider CCEF for your charitable contributions. If you pledged a donation, please remember to forward the donation to CCEF.

The CCEF Board recently voted to help support a plan for every learner to receive the 2006-2007 Yearbook. Jason Scott, Jeanette Cazares and Eric Ramos presented their plan to the CCEF Board, in coordination with Leadership and ACLC. We also voted to fund a new ceiling-mounted projector for the math portable requested by math facilitator, Carlton Grizzle.

This month’s meeting was held on Tuesday, February 28, 2007 at Otaez restaurant, 6:30 p.m.

Attendees: Lynn Kameny, Mo Deierling, Iris DeMello, Jason Scott, Vickie Miyashiro, Fran Kahane (co-chair)

Social Events:

Healthy Lunch:

Next lunch March. 23rd – Spring Salad Bar: Chicken Caesar, Caesar, pasta, potato, bean, spinach, fruit

Extra-curricular Events:

Fundraising:

Communications and Facilities: No update.

NEXT MEETING:

WEDNESDAY, March 28th, 7:00 p.m. at ACLC (after the CCEF meeting) - Fran Kahane

Mar. 23rd Spring in Salad Bar

April 6th Sandwich Island

Sandwiches

Potato Salad, Crudities, Chips, Fruit

v v v v Facilitator Class Messages v v v v

Math 6: Do you know what day is Pi day? Learners at ACLC are participating in a contest trying to memorize as many digits of Pi as they can. (Pi is the ratio of the circumference of a circle divided by its diameter.). On March 14th (Pi day!) learners will recite as many digits of Pi as they can. Nations Hamburgers is donating Pies to the winners!!

We are back working in our Foundations for Algebra book. We just finished a chapter on ratio and proportion. Learners finished the unit by presenting a model of the solar system drawn out on 1 meter, 2 meter, 3 meter and 12 meter strips. Two teams also built a proportional model of the planets using clay with the largest planet measuring 12 cm in diameter. Learners were surprised by how large Neptune was in relation to Earth, which was not much larger than a marble!

I have been talking with the 6th grade learners about their math placement for next year. Many of the 6th graders will be taking pre-algebra next year. This is the traditional 7th grade course and follows the 7th grade California Math Standards. A few learners, however, may take Algebra next year. A matrix is used to determine math placement. Included in the matrix is the learner’s grade in the class, the learner’s Alameda Arithmetic Test (AAT) score, the learner’s score on the Algebra Readiness Test, as well as their California Standards Test score. If you would like more information on this matrix please contact Patricia. (from Patricia)

Science 6: We had the good fortune to have a generous donation of rocks and minerals. Learners are currently working on an end of unit project where they are using their newly acquired skills and are classifying the rocks and minerals that were donated. There are some very interesting and even beautiful examples of rocks and minerals from this collection.

Next we will be studying plate tectonics. Learners will take virtual field trips to locations around the world where there are spectacular examples of tectonic activity. These field trips present learners with the opportunity to act as scientists to gather evidence of plate tectonics from around the world. They will use the evidence to define and support a unifying theory that explains important geological phenomena, such as global seismic and volcanic activity, as well as the location and structure of major mountain ranges.

After this unit we will begin our Lego league! (from Patricia)

Pre-algebra: Do you know what day is Pi day? Learners at ACLC are participating in a contest trying to memorize as many digits of Pi as they can. (Pi is the ratio of the circumference of a circle divided by its diameter.). On March 14th (Pi day!) learners will recite as many digits of Pi as they can. Nations Hamburgers is donating Pies to the winners!

We are back working in our Foundations for Algebra text. We just finished a chapter on ratio. Ratio is one of the most fundamental and widely used concepts in mathematics. Learners extended their knowledge with the use of ratios to write and solve proportions.

Our next chapter will focus on division of fractions, reciprocals, solving equations with fractional coefficients, simple and compound interest, markup and selling prices, discount and sale prices, percent of increase and decrease, as well as distance, rate and time problems. The chapter will culminate with a class tournament to review the main concepts introduced in the chapter.

I have been talking with the pre-algebra learners about their math placement for next year. A matrix is used to determine math placement. Included in the matrix is the learner’s grade in the class, the learner’s Alameda Arithmetic Test (AAT) score, the learner’s score on the Algebra Readiness Test, as well as their California Standards Test score. Each of these is given a score of 1 to 5. To progress to Algebra next year learners need to get an average score of 3.7 or higher if in seventh grade, and 3.5 or higher if in 8th grade. We will work to place your learner in the appropriate math placement for next year. Ask your learner to see a copy of this matrix. If you would like more information on this matrix please contact Patricia.

Geometry: Learners have started a math toolkit—a series of cards with definitions, formulas, postulates, and theorems—that are organized in a folder. They will be allowed to use these cards on homework assignments and some tests. We just started Chapter 6, Simple Transformations, which contains a few fun activities. (from Carlton)

Bridges to Algebra: We just finished a unit on calculating percentages. Your learner should be able to help you calculate the tip that should be left next time you go out to eat! Also they have been working on calculating interest earned on a savings account. Learners should be working at home as well as at the center on the Carnegie portion of their math. They should be through Unit 20 by now. (from Patricia)

Algebra 1:. Learners have started a math toolkit—a series of cards with definitions, formulas, equations, and methods that are organized in a folder. They will be allowed to use these cards on homework assignments and some tests. We will be finishing Chapter 5 on linear equations and will have a chapter test next week. Learners should be finished with Unit 17 in the Carnegie program by the time they take the test. (from Carlton)

Precalculus: Precalculus learners are finishing the chapter on polynomial and rational functions and will have a test early next week. In addition, they are working on a project in which they construct a flowchart poster describing the process for solving complex polynomials. (from Carlton)

Humanities 6: The sixth graders continue to work with the novel The Giver. We are reading the novel in small groups and doing a variety of comprehension activities. In Writing Workshop, we continue to create personal Memoir booklets. (from Lora)

Sixth Grade Social Studies: Students are analyzing the geographic, political, economic, religious, and social structures of the early civilizations of India.

4. Outline the social structure of the caste system.

Creative Writing Wheel (7^th Grade): I’m thoroughly enjoying working with this new group! We’re off to a great start with some fun group writing activities and innovative prompts intended to spark amazing writing! (from Lora)

English 7/8: English: Learners have been presenting amazing speeches in class. Winners from our school-wide speech contest will continue on to the city-wide contest at the Alameda Free Library 1-5pm on 3/11. In the month of March the 7th and 8th graders will be writing compare and contrast essays. Also, in the middle of March they will begin reading books in small groups (literature circles). (from Syl)

History 7/8: We have been studying China in the middle ages and we will move on the Japan in the month of March. (from Syl)

Honors English 10: The learners wrote amazing essays interpreting The Razor's Edge. We have started reading When the Elephants Dance, a novel set in the Phillipines during the Japanese occupation. (from Syl)

English 12 (Senior Seminar): Having recently completed Brave New World, we’re beginning to look at a variety of films about dystopian societies. Next up, we’ll be reading Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale. (from Lora)

Creative Writing: The older writers continue to explore a variety of genres through assigned prompts. (from Lora)

Modern World History: Students are analyzing the causes and course of the First World War.

American Government: Students in grade twelve are pursuing a deeper understanding of the institutions of American government. They are comparing systems of government in the world today and analyzing the history and changing interpretations of the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the current state of the legislative, executive, and judiciary branches of government. An emphasis is placed on analyzing the relationship among federal, state, and local governments, with particular attention paid to important historical documents such as the Federalist Papers. (from Jacob)

Visual Communication - 7th grade Wheel: During February, the 7th grade group explored the elements of art and completed assignments involving Line, Shape and Color. Their two current assignments ask them to incorporate text into an image in a meaningful way and to combine computer drawn imagery with photo imagery. Learners have been using an excellent website that introduces them to art concepts (the elements and principles of art and design) and will move on this month to an interactive website that demonstrates the properties and psychology of color. Assignments involving the use of color to create a desired affect will follow. (from Carrie)

Visual Communication – High School: The older group has moved on to our second semester focus - applications of art in the world. Their first assignment was to analyze the effectiveness of an illustration for a published article. They are now busy creating their own illustrations for articles they have selected. They will be moving on to a learner-created assignment that gives them all the same starting point (a figure image and an object image) from which they will diverge. The resulting slide show should be very interesting indeed! (from Carrie)

DVS: The new semester brings new roles and assignments for the DVS as we have begun production on a new television magazine show on the state of education in Alameda and California. We have set our sights on the recently proposed budget cuts here in the AUSD and Governor Schwarzenegger's new policies. With Casey Friedman already embedded with the school board for the Alameda Sun we are briefed weekly on new developments and are crafting an incredible show that will keep our community informed on this breaking news. In a couple of weeks, we will head over to the Comcast studio at Marina Village to rehearse and record our show live! (from Josiah)

DVS Wheel: The DVS Wheel class has some new blood and they are raring to go out and make some cool videos. We have already picked out topics and created our production teams. We will be looking into the role fashion plays at our school. We will also investigate the powers of the Rosetta Stone on-line language program as well as the Deca lunch cart, which is rumored to have healthier food than the cafeteria but is off limits to middle schoolers. Learners are also examining the new hall monitors that are patrolling the halls of the Encinal campus for tardy students and last but not least, we have a critique of the sexualization of children's dolls in a cutting edge stop motion video which is sure to shock our viewers!

EHS Drama: EHS Drama will be presenting the musical "Footloose" on Friday, March 16 & Saturday, March 17, and Friday, March 23 & Saturday, March 24; all shows are at 7:30 p.m. For reservations call Encinal High School, 510-748-4023, ext. 1701. Tickets are $15 reserved seats (front 3 row), $10 general admission and $8 general admission for students and senior citizens. Five ACLC learners are singing and dancing their hearts out in this production so come support our learners and enjoy the show! (from Fran)

The Ultimeat Festival includes an Ultimate tournament, a barbecue competition and BBQ lunch. We are scheduled for Saturday, March 17th , 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. at Crown Memorial Beach in Alameda. Ultimate high school and middle school teams throughout the area are already signing up to participate in our second annual Ultimeat Festival. It's a fun filled day and a great way to support ACLC's Ultimate teams.

Adult tickets - $7.00

With the adult ticket you get a burger or 2 hot dogs, salad, chips, dessert, a drink and 2 tasting tickets for barbecue competition dishes.

Youth tickets (under 11 yrs. old) - $5.00

(With the youth ticket you get a burger or a hot dog, salad, chips, dessert and a drink.

Please mail in or give your checks made out to ACLC - Ultimate to Juanita. Please indicate how many tickets (adult and/or youth) you want. I can also sell you tickets at the Monday night practices at Crab Cove. (4:30 - 5:30 p.m.)

Adult tickets- $8.00

Youth tickets (under 11 yrs. old) - $6.00

If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at idemello@alamedanet.net or call me at 510-337-0585. (from Iris)

Mondays - Crab Cove - Everyone 3:30 - 5:30 p.m.

Wednesdays - EHS track - Required Sweet Meat and Dark Meat 3:30 - 4:30 p.m.

Evening Practices - EHS - Sweet Meat and Dark Meat 7 – 9 p.m.

Weekend Practices (Saturday Mornings) Upon Notice, More as the season progresses

Tournament Schedule: (now posted on yahoo group calendar)

March 2 - Dark Meat vs. Miramonte, Crab Cove, 4:15 p.m.

March 4 - Younger Boys and All Girls vs. Redwood, Crab Cove, 3:00 p.m.

March 17 - Ultimeat Festival, Crown Memorial Beach, Alameda - Everyone

8:00 a.m. – 6:00 pm.

April 28 - 29 - States, Santa Cruz - Everyone

May 12 - 13 - Seattle - Dark Meat and Sweet Meat

More local scrimmages and competitions TBA

All players are expected to make all appropriate practices and give prior notice for absences.

All players must bring a disc and appropriate attire to practice (i.e. no jeans please)

All players should be on time (cleats on at start time) and remain until scheduled time.

Families please understand that we are trying to work to hold players accountable for being part of a team (i.e. attendance and commitment).

Parents are asked to support the team through supporting the various events, fundraisers and trips necessary to make this program successful.

Each learner needs to take responsibility for his/her education. As the semester comes to a close and we begin a new semester I wanted to make it clear that Ultimate is a school sponsored athletic program and that players must be holding to their school responsibilities.

I will be collecting a copy of all players grade reports before each tournament from here on out. If you are not achieving a 2.0 GPA then you will not be eligible to play in that competition. These reports will include an attendance report as well. Learners who fail to attend classes or have problems with tardiness will also be held accountable. If families have a problem with this expectation than please contact me. If you feel like there is a problem meeting this expectation please communicate with me ASAP so we can develop a plan for success.

More and Better Communication (especially concerning schedule)

More Local Scrimmages and Events

More Publicity

More activities for younger players

Support for developing Girls' Team

Creative Fundraising

Parent Organizers for Events

Running Workout Sessions (Dates can be determined by your availability)

Supervising Pick-up Games for Younger Players (Dates can be determined by

your availability)

Meatfest - Saturday, March 17th, Crab Cove - Tournament, BBQ Food Sale, BBQ

Meat Competition

States - April 28 - 29, Santa Cruz, CA - Everyone - Transportation, Frisbee Central, Administration

Western Nationals - May 12-13, Seattle, WA - Dark and Sweet Meat - Chaperones

March 2 - Schoolwide Bladium Sports day

March 16 - ACLC Snow Trip to Squaw Valley

March 23 - ASTI/Base Basketball Game and Potluck at ASTI gym

March 30 - Constitutional Convention; 8 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.

I am checking transcripts and making sure that our seniors are on track for graduation. If you have not looked at your transcript lately, I suggest you make sure that all incompletes have been taken care of and if by chance there are F's that they have or are in the process of being

made up. As well, internships should be underway at this point. If there is a problem with any of this come see me and let's talk.

I have started a middle school girls’ group that meets every Thursday at lunch. A peer counselor is co-facilitating this with me. We have already had some good discussions. I explained to the girls in the beginning that what we discuss is confidential. I did talk about limits of confidentiality however, that I must adhere to. If your daughter is participating in our group I need to have the permission slip I gave to the girls signed and sent back. My objective for the group is to establish a safe place to talk about feelings.

We have many learners who are taking online courses to further their education and to meet both graduation requirements and UC requirements. It is up to ACLC to approve the particular course and online school. We have recently introduced the Rosetta Stone online program to our learners. At this point the courses taken with Rosetta can be used to fulfill high school language requirements but are not UC approved. Before signing up with an online course be sure to talk to Carlton to make sure the school and the course are acceptable.

Recently there has been confusion regarding how "+" and "-" are calculated into GPA. It is the Alameda Unified School District policy not to use them in GPA calculation. Many teachers, facilitators want to still use them in reporting grades to learners, however they cannot be used on transcripts.

There is a Spanish tutor available to our learners at Encinal. The tutor will be in portable 703, Monday –Thursday, 3:30 - 4:30 p.m. It is important that learners commit to this if they want tutoring as last year the tutor had to leave due to lack of commitment.

March 10, 2007

May 5, 2007

June 2, 2007

April 14, 2007

June 9, 2007

The ACT is another test that most colleges accept and is comparable to the SAT reasoning.

For most competitive colleges, it is required that students take the SAT reasoning and/or the ACT and two SAT subject tests.

Most colleges want all testing to be completed by December of the senior year.

- Gail Smith-Pratt

The staff would like to remind everyone that all learners in grades 6 - 12 are required by California state law to attend school from the hours of 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Those learners who have college classes are eligible for our Off Campus Contract, but their request to leave campus to attend classes must first be approved by the Curriculum Committee of our Governing Board. The necessary paperwork has been handed out and must be returned and approved before learners can legally be away from the ACLC during the school day.

Those learners without college classes or other eligible Off Campus activities are expected to be at ACLC by 8 a.m. each school day. Those who have an unexcused tardy, will be assigned detention. Habitual tardiness may result in more serious consequences.

Please help the ACLC abide by the state laws for compulsory school attendance by getting learners to school on time and reminding them to sign in each day.

If your Learner is taking ANY courses at Encinal High school, you must call Encinal High at 510-748-4023 to report all ABSENCES AND TARDIES FOR THE PERIOD TAKEN.

Last Name        CALL

A-L                  510-748-4023 x 3108 Pat Rios

M-Z                  510-748-4023 x 3109 Theresa Lee

School Phone#’s & Emails