Dreaded Final Exams

January is not that far off, and with January comes the end of the first semester of the school year... and the dreaded final exams. Students world-wide always welcome the end-term exams with trepidation and anxiety. And, of course, the anxiety is greater when students are not doing as well as they'd like.

But there are ways to minimize final exam anxiety if students begin to prepare for the tests early, and, now, is the time to begin studying. Here are suggestions to help prepare students for final exams.

• Review all notes for the semester (September to December) by recopying them, and reorganizing and synthesizing them into study guides. For example, in a beginning foreign language class, notes can be organized by vocabulary themes and grammar topics (like verbs and pronouns).
• When the notes are unclear or confusing, ask the teacher specific questions to clarify the notes.
• Make arrrangements to study with friends and quiz each other on the subject matter.
• Take advantage of tutoring opportunities from teachers, school organizations like NHS, and peers.
• Review old tests and quizzes. Make corrections. If a correction cannot be made, ask the teacher for help.
• Don't wait to the last minutes to start studying. Procrastination always creates great anxiety and stress.
• Finally the night before exams, get a good night's rest (go to bed early) and have a good protein-filled breakfast the morning of exams. (Protein keeps the brain alert.)

Help a Family in Need

We are now in the season of Advent, a time when we reflect on the greatest gift of love God gave to us, His Son, Jesus. Today, we are being asked to give a great give of love, too, but the gift is to the family of one of our students.

Tuesday night, December 4, 2007, the home of one of our students burned to the ground. The family lost everything in the fire. Food, furniture, clothing--everything was destroyed. This family is part of the Bishop Conaty-Our Lady of Loretto High School Community, and it is up to all of us to respond generously to their needs.

We are asking for donations of clothing for a teenage girls 15 years, a 12 year old boy, a 7 year old, and their mother. We are also seeking donations of food, household items, and money to help them rebuild their lives and start anew. Please open your hearts and be generous.
Donations may be brought to the main office. Make checks payable to Bishop Conaty-Loretto and indicate memo line "family in need." For further information, contact Mrs. Lopez in the main office at (323) 737-0012.

Thank you in advance for your generous gifts toward this family in need. May you and your family receive God's blessings.

Are you an energy vampire?

A group of senior is researching environmentalism for their senior project in an effort to help Bishop Conaty-Loretto to go more "green." Recently, after reading an article from the San Jose Mercury News about wasteful energy use, I posed the following questions to the faculty and staff: "Are you an energy vampire? Do you leave cell phone and lap top computer chargers plugged in well after the appliance is recharged? Do you leave you computer on all the time day and night?"

Read the article about wasteful appliance standby mode on line at http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_7318977?source=rss and decide how you can help yourself and the school save energy.

Gloria Molina Visits Bishop Conaty-Loretto

October 10, 2007, during our Hispanic Heritage Month activities, Los Angeles County Supervisor Gloria Molina came to school to speak to the student body about her experiences as a Latina political leader. Ms. Molina shared her story with the students. She spoke of how she, the daughter of immigrants and the eldest of ten children, overcame many hardships to go to college, form grass-root efforts to give a political voice to the Mexican-Americans in East Los Angeles, especially Mexican-American women, and become the first Latina to have been elected to the California State Legislature, Los Angeles City Council, and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. She shared how she was a shy girl who found her voice in serving others. Her message was very meaningful to the students, because like Ms. Molina, they, too, are daugthers of immigrants. She left a lasting impression of the importance of hard work, risk-taking, and standing up for what is right. She showed the students that it is possible to succeed in life if they persevere. We thank Ms Molina for taking time out of her busy schedule to share a morning with us.

Does your daughter get enough sleep each night?

I ask this because many times when I taught in the classroom I caught students complaining about being sleepy and dosing off, and most mornings I notice students arriving to school dragging their feet, half asleep. When I asked the girls what time they went to bed the previous night, they tell me 1:00 AM or 2:00 AM, and occasionally 3:00 AM! When I ask them why so late, they tell me that they were surfing the Internet or instant messaging their friends on-line. It has never been because of homework.

Research shows that teenagers (and most adults) need 8 to 9 hours of sleep every night. Less than seven hours negatively impacts students’ success in school. Bishop Conaty-Loretto starts at 8:10 AM (and 7:15 AM for Zero Period classes). That means to get to school on time most students have to get up at least 6:00 AM or 6:30 AM. (If students have to take the bus, they have to get up much earlier.) If student had gone to bed well after midnight, they have had no more than six hours of sleep.

How can parents help their teenagers get enough sleep? Monitor their use of the computer and get them to go to bed by 10:00 PM.

MSNBC ran an article yesterday on this topic. Check it out at http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20476346/.
Here’s an article from the Boston Globe about the importance of teen sleep: http://www.boston.com/news/globe/health_science/articles/2005/06/21/teenagers_need_help_to_form_better_sleep_habits/.

Back-to-School Night

It was wonderful to meet all the parents at Back-to-School Night. We, the Administration, faculty and Staff, hope you found the evening beneficial. I would like to thank you for attending. I would also like to extend thanks to the teachers and students hostesses, without whom Back-to School Night would not have been possible.


The purpose of Back-to-School Night was an orientation for parents, a time to meet with teachers and learn their expections for their classes. It was not intended to be a conference time. If parents wish to discuss individual difficulties that a student may already be experiencing, they should schedule an appointment with their child's teachers.



If you did not have the opportunity to complete and submit the Back-to-School Night Evaluation at the end of the evening, feel free to respond to this blog. Below is the questionnaire. Your comments and contributions are always appreciated. Thank you.



1 My best experience at Back-to-School Night was…

2 My least pleasant experience was…

3 My suggestions for this program are…

4 My general comments are…



Remember to regulary check the school's web site and your daughter's teachers' wep pages and blogs for more information and important announcements.

Help Students Study

How can you help your daughter study at home? Here are some ideas for providing a good study environment. Do you have some more?

· Minimize distractions.

· Limit telephone and cell phone use.

· Limit Internet use.

· Limit television viewing.

· Help her budget her time.

· Balance chores and studying.

Remember, your daughter has homework every night in every class, even if it is just studying, reviewing or rewriting the day's class notes, or reading.

Welcome to the New School Year

Welcome to the Principal’s Blog. Via this blog, I will communicate and discuss issues relevant to the Bishop Conaty-Our Lady of Loretto High School community—students, parents/guardians, faculty, staff, alumnae, and friends. In this first blog, I invite comments on our new vision statement for the school and our goals for this academic year.

VISION STATEMENT

Bishop Conaty-Our Lady of Loretto High School is a comprehensive, college preparatory, Catholic high school that prepares young women for success in the 21st Century. With high expectations for excellence, Bishop Conaty-Loretto educates the whole person spiritually, academically, artistically, physically, and technologically. An inclusive, Christ-centered high school, Bishop Conaty-Loretto accepts female students of all races and creeds, and takes them where they are academically and provides them with the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in the college or university of their choice. Bishop Conaty-Loretto graduates will be leaders of their church, workplace, community and home.

To promote this vision, Bishop Conaty-Our Lady of Loretto High School provides:
· Personalization of the student educational experience.
· Focus on student learning.
· Engaging, enriching, challenging curriculum.
· Teaching for success.
· Autonomous educational leaders and innovators
· Variety of teaching methods and assessment techniques.
· Integration of new and traditional technologies into the curriculum.
· Strong co-curricular program to develop student interests and leadership skills.
· Appreciation of the fine and performing arts.
· Culture of respect for self, each other, the school and the community.
· Embracement of diversity and multiculturalism.
· Senior interdepartmental project.
· Community service learning and projects.
· Collaborative decision making.
· Safe nurturing environment.

This year we plan to integrate new technologies into all aspects of learning, strengthen the college preparatory program with the inclusion of more AP courses, strengthen the fine arts program, and begin developing a School Council.

What do you think? How can you contribute to making a great high school, Bishop Conaty-Loretto, even greater?

Finally, we will begin our WASC Self-Study this year. About every six years, schools audit their educational programs to identify strengths and areas for growth in order to reapply for accreditation. During the process we will be seeking participation from all members of the Bishop Conaty-Loretto school community—teachers, students, parents, alumnae and friends. Keep checking the school's web site for information and up-dates on these and other activities.