Citizens!

C3 Scholar Citizens of the Year 2009-2010

Rather than one Scholar of the Year and one Citizen of the Year, four Scholar Citizens have been chosen to represent C3 this year.  Scholarship’ is not about scores alone, but rather an attitude towards learning that leads to high scores because of its nature, not because of its goal.  And ‘citizenship’ by definition involves scholarship, because citizenship is about participation, and participation in school can only lead to excellent scholarship.  A well-deserved “Congratulations” to Raphaella, Jaime, Kaylani and Hana!

Hana is exemplary of all the qualities of Citizenship and all the qualities of Scholarship every minute that she breathes. Hana’s character displays that indeed excellence is excellence whether you call it scholarship, citizenship, success, or any other name. Hana’s scholarship – her remarkably high academic achievement and attitude towards learning – is just a byproduct of her understanding that by making every minute count and putting her best into everything she does, success will be a natural outcome. This same mindset applies to her social behavior and relationships. Indeed, as citizenship is a measure of one’s participation in the life of the group and a fulfillment of one’s obligation to bring a constructive attitude to the group, Hana puts 100% into our class as a participant and as a positive influence every day. She is kind, treats all with equal respect regardless of their own actions, she grabs every chance to try something new, and she is interested in each day. Hana is a RockStar, a dancer, a top reader, and an inaugural member of our GATE Program for next year, but most of all Hana is a truly exceptional young person who serves as a model to all of us of what we could be if we were our very best in everything.

Kaylani is amazing. Her intelligence is that of an old soul’s curiosity eager to master a new subject or new skills, but even more eager to be challenged and stretched. Kaylani loves to show what she knows, but she loves more to be shown what she doesn’t. It is this attitude of true scholarship – not an accumulation of high scores (which she has barrel-fulls of) – in seeking the unknown and not settling for less than mastery – that makes the label of Scholar fitting. Kaylani has an inherent sense of balance that allows her to be both highly competitive and very laid back simultaneously. It is this balance that also serves her to be an exceptional academic and a very well-developed social citizen as well. Kaylani is helpful, kind, and egalitarian with her classmates, and she participates in the class and indeed our school as it is meant to be. Kaylani sees all of the opportunities offered to young people as possibilities, and she takes on as many of them as she can. Kaylani understands that participation is the key to experience, experience is the key to understanding, and understanding is the goal of our lives. Scholar and Citizen are all the same thing to Kaylani because they are both just partial measures of achieved potential, and Kaylani strives each day to fulfill all of her potential.

Jaime is the child every parent hopes their son to be. He is smart, funny, personable with everyone, fiercely interested in learning, fun to hang out with, deferential when need be and commanding when need be, widely interested, as enthusiastic as a young child, and as mature as a young man. And he is really cool! Beyond those great personal attributes however, Jaime is also a true Scholar in his academic success and in his pursuit of knowledge. It is an intrinsic drive that pushes Jaime to learn and succeed, not a score or a parent or a teacher. Jaime drives Jaime to succeed. And all along the way to this success, Jaime does the impossible in impressing all of his peers and being the guy that every type of young person admires. He is egalitarian in his Citizenship and bestows the grace of his gentility on all of us equally. We are blessed and lucky every day to be able to spend it with Jaime. And when they get the chance, so are Jack Black and Jennifer Love Hewitt! Don’t forget us, Hollywood Jaime!

Raphaella is a quiet force inthe universe. She sits, but does not rest, at the pinnacle of excellence in both Scholarship and Citizenship. Ella is one of the kindest, gentlest young ladies I have ever known, but within her lies an intense spirit of determination to succeed and achieve. Her scholarship has placed her in our advanced Algebra group and made her a standout in our studies of both Shakespeare and Greek Epics. Ella’s participation as a Palmer Way Citizen inside the classroom is exempary and extends itself outside of the classroom in our RockStars Program. Raphaella exhibits many of the habits of effective people in her life: She is proactive, she gets things done, and she works with others in a way that presumes the success of all, not one over the other. Ella is quiet on the outside, but her heart beats loudly with love, and her mind buzzes and hums with thought. Beware the sleeping giant!

C3 2009-2010 PERFECT Attendance

CONGRATULATIONS TO Jerick, Eddie, Raphaella, Mark, and Hana

 

C3 Citizens of the Month, 2009-2010

Brianna is one of those people that has the power to eliminate anything causing you woe just by her presence.  She is loving, kind, and thoughtful.  She also happens to be a top academic superstar excelling in all areas at the highest level.  Brianna is unassuming in her excellence and compassion and it is this quality that amazes me when I consider the near perfection of her character.  It is such a blessing to have Brianna in our class for all of us – we are reminded by her what the ideal nature of our self is.  The world must be headed for better tomorrows with young people like Brianna leading the future.  I can’t wait to see how she chooses to use both the gifts of her mind and those of her enlightened soul.

 Pricilla is a sweet, bright, intellectually curious young lady.  Pricilla loves being challenged at the highest levels of learning and being given an opportunity to perform at that level.  She is always pleasant, easy going, and a real calming presence to be around.  Pricilla is as comfortable talking about any subject with adults as she is kids her own age.  She is respected by her peers not only for her academic success and intelligence but also, and possibly even more important, her tenacity and willingness to work at everything regardless of her strengths or weaknesses.  Pricilla has been a real shining star of our daily PE program this year, giving every one of dozens of physical challenges all of her effort, and subsequently she has become one of the most enduring runners in the class.  Pricilla is a bright, hard-worker who is destined for success.

Jerick is awesome!  He is one of the hardest working, knowledge seeking, talented, enjoyable people I know.  Jerick is always looking for ways to extend the learning we do in class: looking up additional information on the internet, practicing skills and skill-based games to be the best he can be, exploring ideas and even running extra laps by choice in PE just to improve that area of himself.  Jerick is known as the High Score Guy in our content connected online games, but interestingly it is not important for Jerick to beat others at games but simply to be the very best he can be.  He is always his own toughest competitor.  He knows he can always do something better, so he never rests in trying to achieve that.  Jerick is also a very talented musician who is a founding member of our Palmer Way Rock Star Program, playing drums to add to his already established talent in guitar and piano.  All of that in 4^th grade!  Jerick almost always has a big smile on his face, reminding us that a serious approach to being your best can also always be a lot of fun.  It is a real gift to spend time with Jerick every day.

Raphaella is an all-around Good Citizen.  She participates in class, meets and exceeds all academic expectations and challenges placed upon her, opts for as much additional work as is available, and makes a point to be successful in everything she works on.  Raphaella is a member of our advanced algebra group, and she has been instrumental in our Standards Shots creations and production.  Raphaella is always pleasant, never allowing herself to a part of anything but pleasant relationships with others, treating friends and acquaintances alike.  Raphaella is bright, but her success comes mostly from her determination to be successful and give all she has to everything she does.  Her future is sure to be golden.

Jaime is flat out awesome.  He is always cooperative with adults and students alike, he has a thirst for knowledge and learning, and he is a polite, respectful young man.  Jaime is a perfect example of a bright student who is clearly so successful because of his manners, his excellent behavior, and his positive attitude towards school and learning.  Jaime is a ‘People’s Choice’ kind of Good Citizen not only chosen by me, but really by the universal appeal he holds with his peers.  Jaime is in our advanced algebra group as well as our chess interest group.  He is a great example to others that it is cool to be successful, because he excels at both.

Hana is a phenom.  From second grade when she was recruited for our Pericles Project it has been clear that she was a wonder to be reckoned with.  Hana started this year carrying over her success from last year’s What You Need to Know and Hana With Advice shows by writing, starring in, and helping to produce our class films, the Standards Shots.  The enthusiasm we see on these videos is the enthusiasm Hana brings to each day in school, to each task to be explored.  Hana is a top student not only because of her natural intelligence, but because every day that she comes to school she comes with the purpose of being successful and making the most of every minute.  Hana is a member of The Six, one of Palmer Way’s Rock Star bands, as well as our advanced algebra group and our dance interest group.  Hana is destined for greatness.

Kaylani is an uncommon wonder.  She is an extremely high-achieving, widely interested, thoughtful, involved, mature young lady universally admired by her peers.  In addition to her outstanding academic success in all areas, Kaylani is also a veteran of the old days of PalmerWay TV, carrying her experience to this year in our productions of science and figurative language videos.  She is also an electric guitar player and co-songwriter for the Palmer Way rock band PWR6.  Kaylani is one of the most active participants of our online forums on clarkenkids.com, always pushing the boundaries of academic development to suit her insatiable thirst for knowledge.  Kaylani is a gift to me as a teacher, to our class, to our school, indeed to the world.  She is a Good Citizen, and Scholar for that matter, every minute of every day.

Miguel may look like a RockStar and indeed even actually is a RockStar, but more importantly he is a Rock Star of a student and a Rock Star of a young man.  Beyond his academic achievement and growth that comes to him because of his good habits, Miguel is a really great guy, setting an example for his peers of how to really be cool instead of just acting cool.  Miguel is kind to others, thoughtful, engaged in learning, excited about the opportunities provided for him, and serious about making the most of them.  Others respect him as a young man that can mix play and learn with anyone and be equally as participatory.  If Miguel represents the future of Rock and Roll, let’s hope that Rock and Roll really is here to stay! 

Shane is a phenomenal example of a young man.  Every day he is simultaneously nice to everyone, hard-working, academically successful, mature, fun to be around, as dedicated to sports as he is his studies, and always one of the coolest guys around.  Shane is a great storyteller who is interested in the details of things.  He comes to school not only prepared to learn, but eager to enjoy whatever might be on his plate for that new day.  He is always doing what he needs to be successful.  Beyond his academics and sports this year, Shane has taken a particular interest in advancing his chess game and to exploring all the possibilities that the class website offers him.  Shane is a multitalented, broadly interested young man who sets an excellent example not only for the students in our class, but indeed all of us who come in contact with him.  He shows us what our best could look like.  Shane Burris is a Good Citizen every day of every month of the year.

Andrea is new this year to Palmer Way.  Although she started after the first week of school, Andrea lost no time in modeling what an exceptional student looks like.  Andrea is an incredibly pleasant young lady and as such she has made friends easily with her classmates.  She is a voracious reader, and a big fan of our classroom internet connections to our content.  Although a newcomer to the United States just three years ago, Andrea is already working comfortably at and above grade level.  This illustrates what kind of progress is possible with the right attitude towards reading and school.  Underlying all of her success however is her polite, respectful, relaxed attitude.  Andrea is a great addition to Palmer Way and we are lucky to have her.