/1/ Non-Profit Org. U.S. POSTAGE l-l/4 PAID . .:11:•1;:•::11,~11,,,i,m, Permit No. 2639 oaJdand, Call.f. \ Vol. II, No. 3 Nov. - Dec. 1966 Publication of ESEA Oakland Unified School District Oakland, Cal iforni~. Parent Participation Is Valued In Oakland's Preschool Program Parents are important people and valued participants in Oak­ Mrs. Creswell showed Mrs. land's Preschool Program. Brown just what she could do Financed under California a friend from the school. As to help at the center, They· Assembly Bill 1331, the pro­ thE! children arrived she @VEl played one of the children's gram attempts . to involve o.s1, r ':" them a cheery ~'Good Morning" games Mrs. C res we 11 had ents as , well as- the children. and helped them get ready for brought along and discussed To do this arid 'to provide the day . They, t.oo, could help other activities of the children. the links between the preschools convey to Mama that she was a She also made arrangements and the community, the program school friend. t.o return at a time Tommy has two attendance aides and' a About 9:15, tearful and with­ would be home so that he could school- community worker. drawn, Mrs. B,rown's young son, play with Mother and the "visit- These two women are called Tommy, pushed the door open ing friend." · · · attendance aides because they and blurted out, "My Mama ' Meanwhile, Mrs. Marian take their clues for visiting by. NEW SHIPMENT of library books for Havenscourt junior high can't come, She sent me Striplin, attendance aide and homes from the attendance re­ myself.'' Mrs. Creswell helped "visiting friend" at Lazear and school receives inspection from Vi~.principal Dorothy M. Hindmarsh, · cords in the classrooms, When Principal, Norman Shapiro,. and Vice-principal, Verdese Carter. Tommy get settled in the class­ Lockwood, is busy recruiting a child is absent for long per­ room and soon had him involved new students for the centers iods of time with no word from in a P!zzle. the home, attendance aides visit ...,___ .,,,W,_}@q ·=·/:=»~ .,.JI ~ Introducing_Havenscourt the home. "We like to think of these women as 'visiting friends' be­ cause they visit the homes of Jr. Hi.'s New Head Staff preschool families hoping to communicate t.o the parents The . principal and two vice-principals at Havenscourt junior our sincerest concerns and de­ high school had a lot in common with tfiefr incoming seventh­ sire for their involvement in graders this fall: the school was brand-new to them, the program," says Mrs. Regina Principal Norman Shapiro, · Coffey, teacher on special as­ Vice-Principal Verdes e R, Carter, also, believes that signment for preschool-school Carter, and Vice - Principal students have to have opportu- ccmmunity activities. Dorothy M. Hindmarsh came to nities to be successful in cer- "We not only want the eligible· Havenscourt this fall, anxious tain areas, "Improve children's preschool child in these cen­ to serve and find friends in the reading performance and their ters, we also want the partici­ student body and community,of overall behavior improves, pation of the parents. Just help­ Oakland's largest junior high When failures are reversed, ing a child • with a puzzle or school. they learn they can be success- playing games with the class, Shapiro came to Havenscourt ful and stop rebelling in other and observing the teacher pro­ from Mcchesney junior high ways." vide a parent with ways of con­ school, where he had served Another of Carter's beliefs tinuing at home the learning as principal for one year. With is that students are the best experiences begun in the class­ him came his friend and team- public relations people a school room." mate, Verdese Carter, who had can have, "Establish good rap- Mrs. Artie Creswell, atten­ served as vice-principal under port with youngsters and they'll dance aide assigned to Cole, Shapiro at Mcchesney. Mis s pass it on to the parents," Lafayette and Durant Preschool Hindmarsh had previous 1 y Carter would like to see a centers, arrives at the center served as vice-principal for buddy system established be- about 8:25 each morning. She two years at Claremont junior tween 9th and 7th graders, was especially early this Tues­ high school. sometime in the futu re. He day morning because she wanted Shapiro says he finds Havens- says that it need not neces- to be on hand to greet Mrs, court quite a challenge. "There sarily be limited to the best Brown, a parent whom she had are so many worthwhile pro- students. He feels thatinvolving visited during· the previous jects waiting to be tackled. Our the 9th graders with 7th graders week. Mrs, Brown had had dif-· P.T.A. is coming to life once who need help will help the 9th ficulty getting a babysitter so more. Our School Community graders to feel more like they ,she could visit the pre-school ,~~ Advisory Committet! is being are really contributing to the center, and Mrs. Creswell had organized. And we want to get school. arranged with another parent our students involved in some In transferring to Havens- an "exchange ·of babysitting." PRESCHOOLER ANNETTE DONAWAY, 4, demonstrates a newly. of the planning of the school . court from Claremont junior While waiting to greet Mrs. learned skill for her mother, Mrs. Eliz_abeth Donaway (c,:enter) activities." high, Miss Hindmarsh found . Brown, Mrs. Creswell greeted whiie Mrs, Edna James, school-community worker, observes, Getting to know the community she had progressed to a school other parents who brought . ' i ·-~-~ ' and its leaders is another of with an enrollment twice as their children to school. In . Mrs. Creswell checked with just.opening. Theperson_al ~ch Shapiro's aims • "This past large. _ . later contacts in the home these the teacher to discover any of inviting parents to come and summer," he says, "Mr.Carter (Continued page 4) parents would recognize her as other attendance problems: pa- register their children in the and I went out ringing doorbells rent participation or children's program had proved extremely and introducing ourselves to attendance. She found there successful. In some c1rcum- the merchants in the area. We were several calls 'to make. stances children are enrolled met some very fine people that As she prepared t.o leave the at home by the attendance aide way. Everyday we meet a few Co nfere ncia De Educacion Alta center she thought, "There's and plans are made for fu~re more community residents Aproximadamente 30 estudian­ juventud Mexico-Americana en something mpre to Mrs. visits at the preschool site • through our work.'' tes Mexico-Americanos ode de­ la universidad, la conferencia . Brown's non-participation than Mrs. Edna James- sch o o 1 Asked for his philosophy scendencia espafiola de las es­ dara la bienvenida a estudiantes babysitting." There had been a community worker' involves about his school work, Shapiro cuelas p(ibllcas de Oakland par­ de los condados de Santa Clara, series of excuses prior to this: herself with the PareJt Leaders replies that he firmly believes ticipadn en una conferencia Alameda, Contra Costa, Napa, T~9thache, headache, and other Group, composed of one parent "Given proper motivation our en "direccicSn y educacil'in" al­ Solano y Sacramento. Se es­ nunor excuses. representative from each pre- students can learn, We want ta en la universidad de Cali­ pera que asistan aproximada­ At Mrs, Brown's house, Mrs. school class. They help plan to bring about a healthy attitude fornia, Berkeley, el s:1bado 3, mente 350 estudiantes. Creswell heard the same ex- , parent projects and pass on toward schools ... give them de diciembre, de las 9:00 a,m. Seg(in el Dr, Octavio Ro­ cuse of a headache. Then Mrs. ideas and information of benefit many opportunities for suc­ a las 3:30 p,m. Arreglos pa­ mano, consejero de la facul­ asked, "Why do they need me to the other preschool parents. cesses, Too many have experi­ ra los estudiantes para que tad a Quinto Sol y Profesor over there? I don't know what This group met on November enced failure in the past.'' asistan a la conferencia se Asistente en Residencia, el pro­ to do.'' 10th to help evaluate a film Verdese Carter has been with estrui haciendo por medio de pl'isito principal de la conferen­ Mrs. Creswell recognized in for use in the Adult Education Oakland Public Schools since la oficin!L de Relaciones Huma- cia serf el de distribuir in­ Mrs. Brown a feeling of inade- Classes. the mid-1950's as a teacher nas, formacil'in de educacil'in alta quacy that mai.,y of the parents The· Preschool Adult Educa- and administrator. Back in1952 Presentado por la organi­ para los estudiantes Mexico­ seemed to share. Mrs. Brown, lion Classes are designed to Carter played defensive end and zacil'in de la juventud Mexico­ Americanos que est~n interesa. ~ike. o~er par_ents! was reflect- help the parents better under- offensive tackle with . the Los Americana del condado de San­ dos en continuar su educacion mg this feelmg m ways that stand the" educational needs of .A.ngeles Rams, One look at him ta Clara y fomentado por Quin­ en la universidad. seemed only t.o show a. lack t . ) would confirm that. to Sol, la organizaci6n de la · (Continua pagino 2) of interest. \Continued page 4 . / Page 2 NEW DIRECTIONS Nov.-Dec. 1966 Lowell Begins First Literary Magazine· For Junior High, Choos·es Name, Staff Because Mi_chael Avery, suggested bf students and tea­ Sharing in the daily work of eighth grader at Lowell Junior chers, English classes involved evaluating student c re at iv e high school, wrote poetry as a · in the study of mythology ad­ writing is a 20 member Edi­ hobby and because his English vanced such names as Olympus, torial Board , drawn from sev­ teacher, Mrs, Mariana Ellis, Apollo, The Golden Fleece and enth, eighth, and ninth graders.