Useful Links

• Morrisville School Website
• Odyssey of the Mind
• Wake County Public School System Website
• Year-Round School Calendar

Education With Communication

1. Give positive feedback and show appreciation for teachers and the principal.
2. Approach interactions with school administration and staff with a positive attitude and an open mind.
3. Listen to others' viewpoints when having a discussion.
4. Share your child's strengths, talents, and interests with teachers.
5. Share expectations and set goals for your child with his or her teacher.
6. Make appointments as needed to discuss your child's progress or concerns.
7. Attend parent-teacher conferences with specific questions you want to ask.
8. Decide with your child's teacher the best way to stay in touch (phone, e-mail, notes, etc.).
9. Understand and reinforce school rules and expectations at home.
10. Participate in informal opportunities to talk with and get to know school administration, teachers, and other staff.
11. Address concerns or questions honestly, openly, and early on.
12. Attend PTA or parent meetings regularly.
13. Read classroom and/or school newsletters.
14. Visit your school's Web page.
15. Know the names of your child's teacher(s), school principal, and school nurse.
16. Read and know your school's handbook.
17. Request that information be available in all languages spoken by school families.
18. Share your family's practices related to culture, values, and parenting with your child's school.
19. Communicate your perceptions of how parents are treated and, when necessary, work with school staff to improve perceptions and school climate.
20. Notify teachers of any significant changes that have taken place in a child's life (such as death of a pet, family move, loss of income, family member's illness, divorce).

Helpful Carpool Tips

• The "coned" area around the carpool lane is the designated "safety zone".
• For the safety of the students, only load or unload within the "safety zone".
• Left turns out of the parking lot are NOT allowed. Please see the sign located on the right hand side of the drive as you exit with specific times this rule is in effect. (Morrisville Police have been known to enforce this rule).
• Please do not park in the fire lane (even if you are only planning to stay a couple of minutes).
• Passing other cars in the "safety zone" is highly discouraged. It is not safe for the students and could cause "fender benders". School personnel will direct cars around other vehicles when necessary.
• Please remember to park only in the visitor parking lot. The bus/teacher parking lot is not set-up to handle student traffic beyond bus riders.

4 Steps to Safe Backpack Use

Below are helpful tips to insure you know how to safely use your backpack in order to promote good spinal health and bone growth.

Step 1: Choose Right. Choosing the right size backpack is the most important step to safe backpack use.
Tip: Bring a friend to help you measure your backpack properly. The backpack should not fall below the waist nor should it sway from side to side. A waist belt is good.

Step 2: Pack Right. The maximum weight of the loaded backpack should not exceed 15% of your body weight, so pack only what is needed. And do not pack items top heavy.
Tip: If the backpack forces the wearer to move forward to carry, it's overloaded.

Step 3: Lift Right. Face the Pack -Bend at the Knees - Use both hands and check the weight of the pack. - Lift with the legs - Apply one shoulder strap and then the other.
Tip: Don't sling the backpack onto one shoulder.

Step 4: Wear Right. Use both shoulder straps - snug, but not too tight.
Tip: When the backpack has a waist strap - use it.

It is important to note that if a backpack is overloaded it will create stress on the spine. Improper backpack use can lead to a lifetime of health problems and irregular spinal development for a child. Also, Wearing a backpack improperly over one shoulder can cause permanent misalignment of the spine, muscle fatigue, and a lowered state of health.

So parents, when you pack your child's backpack, please consider it's weight, alignment, and fit.

NC Child Restraint & Booster Seat Laws

• All children less then 16 years of age must be properly restrained in a child restraint, booster seat, or safety belt no matter where they sit in the car.
• Children less then age 5 and less then 40 lbs. must be properly restrained in the BACK seat if the vehicle is equipped with an active front passenger-side air bag.
• Children less then age 8 and less then 80 lbs. must ride in weight appropriate child restraint or booster seat certified to meet federal motor vehicle safety standards.
• When a child reaches age 8 (regardless of weight) or 80 lbs. (regardless of age), a properly fitted safety belt may be used to restrain the child.
• If there is no lap or shoulder belt equipped seating postion available for using a belt-positioning booster seat, a child less then age 8 between 40 and 80 lbs. may be restrained by a properly fitted lap belt only.

WARNING: Belt positioning booster seats must never be used with just a lap belt.

The penalty for non-compliance with this new law is 2 points on your drivers license, a $25 fine and $100 court costs.

What Is A Stranger?

We all know that a stranger is a person we don't know.

However, most adults and many children have strong, often unpleasant feelings and pictures in their minds when they think of the word "stranger." Those pictures can actually interfere with our efforts to stay safe, and to keep our children safe, by distracting us from the fact that strangers are simply people we don't know, including men, women, people in wheelchairs or holding puppies, seniors, and children. This visual sterotype can lead us to give confusing messages to our children; we may find ourselves telling them not to talk to strangers and then expecting them to talk to strangers such as other children at the park, fellow guests at weddings and parties, or the grocery clerk at the corner store.

In reality, almost everyone is a stranger to everyone else - and that's wonderful! The world is full of exciting people most of us haven't met yet. Because we want our children to live rich and full lives, most of us understand that our children will need opportunities to meet new people, but we want them to meet new people safely.

We tell children that we believe most people in the world are good. That means most strangers are good, and that if they ever need help, most people, including most strangers, would want to help them. However, since we can't tell just by looking at someone whether they would be one of the very few people out there who might feel like causing a problem for someone, we have basic safety habits so we don't have to worry about it.

Children appreciate hearing from calm, upbeat parents that all of us, not just children, behave differently when we're together with others who could help us out and when we're on our own. When young children know their rule is "Check first with the grown-up in charge before you talk to strangers when you're on your own," and when they have the chance to practice actually performing that skill in a positive, success-based way, they are more likely to use that skill in real life.

With very young children, parents can lay the groundwork for this family rule and make sure the child's experience is consistent with it by saying something like, "We're going to meet lots of strangers of all ages at this show - I think it will be a lot of fun. When we're inside this room, you can talk to anyone you want because you are with me!"

Children often have surprising ideas about who they know and who they don't know -- they may feel like the mail carrier is someone they definitely know! A powerful way to start building a matter-of-fact, clear understanding of the word "stranger" in the mind of your child is to start using the word itself as frequently and as accurately as possible. This can include cheerfully asking your young child to point out all the strangers they see in a magazine (most likely 100% of the people in it!) and making matter-of-fact comments such as, "Grandma's bringing a friend to dinner with us tonight. She's a stranger to us, but not to Grandma! I'm excited to meet her."

With a solid understanding of what a stranger REALLY is, children are more prepared to make safe choices, to follow family safety rules about talking with strangers, and to enrich their lives with the companionship of people who make them happy.

Safety Corner Tips from McGruff

Help your children stay safe as they ride the bus or walk to and from school with these tips from McGruff the Crime Dog. For more tips like these, visit McGruff's website at www.mcgruff.org.

Safety on the Bus

• Have your children arrive at the bus stop at least five minutes before the bus is scheduled to pick them up.
• Make sure children know to stand on the sidewalk or on the grass while waiting for the bus.
• Teach children to make sure that they can see the bus driver and the bus driver can see them before they cross in front of the bus. Tell them to never walk behind the bus.
• Be aware that bullying often takes place on the school bus. Ask children about their experiences on the bus--who they sit with, who they talk to, and what the other kids do. Let them know that if they see someone being bullied or are bullied themselves, they can talk to you, the bus driver, or another trusted adult.

Walking to School Safely

• Map out with your children a safe way for them to walk to school or to the bus stop. Avoid busy roads and intersections. Do a trial run with them to point out places they should avoid along the way, such as vacant lots, construction areas, and parks where there aren't many people.
• Teach children to follow traffic signals and rules when walking or biking. Stress that they should cross the street at crosswalks or intersections with crossing guards when they can.
• Encourage children to walk to school or the bus stop with a sibling or friend and to wait at the bus stop with other children.
• Teach children not to talk to strangers, go anywhere with them, or accept gifts from them without your permission. Tell them that if they see a suspicious stranger hanging around the neighborhood or in their school, they should tell an adult.
• Help children memorize their phone number and full address. Write down other important phone numbers such as your work and cell phone on a card for your children to carry with them.

Is Your Child Sleeping Enough?

The quality and quantity of a child's sleep affects the well-being of everyone in the household, not to mention that child's performance in the classroom, at lessons, on the ball field.

Kid's behaviors can directly reflect their lack of sleep in a way that may not be immediately obvious. Too little sleep for children may cause irritable or hyperactive behavior and can also make a condition like attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) worse.

Most children's sleep requirements fall within a predictable range of hours based on their age, but remember that your child is a unique individual with distinct sleep needs. Here are some approximations based on age.

Preschoolers age 3 to 5 need about 10 to 12 hours of sleep. Younger children often supplement the amount they sleep at night with a nap during the daytime. Most kindergarteners generally stop napping but care should be taken to see that they get a minimum of 10 hours of sleep at night.

Kids age 6 to 9 need about 10 hours of sleep per night. An occasional source of bedtime difficulties at this age results from a child's need for private time with parents, without siblings around. Try to set aside a short special time with each child just before bed that can be used to share confidences, discuss problems, accomplishments, and plans.

Preteens and teens need about 8 to 9.5 hours of sleep per night, and as they progress through puberty, may actually need more. Because of their busy schedules, teens are often chronically sleep deprived, a state that is down right dangerous, especially when driving.

And remember, sleep deprivation adds up over time, an hour less per night is like a full night without sleep by the end of the week.

Take the time as this school year gets underway to note how many hours of sleep per night your children actually get. You may find that a simple adjustment solves a whole host of minor problems. And don't forget, you need sufficient sleep too!

Adapted from the Nemours Foundation - KidsHealth for Parents

Be Cyber Security Aware

DID YOU KNOW?

• the fastest growing crime is Cyber Crime such as Identity Theft;
• that the NC Information Technology services office estimates that approximately 300,000 North Carolinians will have their personal information stolen and used to commit financial fraud this year;
• of the estimated 24 million child Internet users, one in five children online is sexually solicited -- yet only 1 in 4 told a parent or guardian;
• one of every 17 minors online has been threatened or harassed online;
• 77% of youths are contacted by online predators by age 14, and 22% of children ages 10 to 13 are approached;

BE SAFE ONLINE You lock your doors at home and in your car. But do you apply that same level of vigilance to your Internet use? Are you worried about falling prey to a phishing scam? Want to know how to lower the risk of your computer being infected with spyware or viruses? Do you want to know about the latest online nuisance, known as SPIT - spam over Internet telephony?

Consumers now have several great weapons to help fight Internet fraud, secure computers, protect personal information and keep kids safe online. Two recently updated websites - OnGuardOnline.gov and StaySafeOnline.org offer a wealth of information and practical tips about the constantly evolving threats that exploit today’s technologies.

OnGuardOnline.gov includes videos, tutorials and interactive quizzes on a wide range of computer-security and onlinesafety topics. The site was created by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and is easy to navigate, and in both English and Spanish.

Also useful National Cyber Security Alliance website, StaySafeOnline.org with cyber security tips and pointers to kidfriendly websites and resources.