Carpe Diem remembers principal by fighting disease Yuma Sun

The Yuma Sun ran an article today commemorating my father. Read the article here
http://m.yumasun.com/news/carpe-76274-diem-sciarretta.html

Honoring a lifetime of service to education

Please join me in honoring my father, Roger Victor Sciarretta, for his lifetime of service to education.  Roger passed away peacefully on January 17, just eight days after being diagnosed with cancer.  The school in Yuma Arizona where he was founding principal (Carpe Diem Collegiate High School) is holding a fundraising drive in his name to fight cancer.  Click here for more information on memorial services and to donate.

Welcome to 2012 at AEACMS

I would like to welcome the AEA community back for 2012.  Our first week of classes in the new year went well.  As we pause to honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., I recommend that our students check out the MLK Day of Service initiative.  This commitment to service is in alignment with the AEA culture of Community and Service work.

Message to students December 12-16

As we look ahead to a restorative holiday break, I’ve recorded a message for students focused on selflessness  This podcast also contains an answer to last-week’s lateral thinking puzzle as well as a new challenge!

Message to students December 5-9

My recorded message to students for this week is entitled Two Frogs.  It includes recognition for a student who raised money for Camino Seguro.  I’ve also recorded a new lateral thinking puzzle.

Message to students November 14-18

Campus is very busy currently with parent/teacher/student conferences and everyone tying up loose ends before the week-long Thanksgiving break.  I hope folks can take a short break to listen to my podcast for this week entitled Happiness.  I’ve included student commendations for winning a trophy in the UCSD robotics competition, as well as a story and two lateral thinking puzzles.  I look forward to hearing student solutions in person on our campus as well as via email from our friends in other states and abroad.

Heike Paulsen and the AEACMS robotics team

Message to students November 7-11

We spend so much time peering into an uncertain future and trying to predict trends in order to best serve our students.  In this message entitled A look back in time…, I give some perspective on features of the U.S. one hundred years ago.  I’ve also included student commendations and two lateral thinking puzzles.  I welcome comments and potential puzzle solutions!

The challenges of re-designing report cards

Later this week all AEACMS parents will be able to log onto our Managebac system and view their child’s quarterly progress report online.  Our assessment and reporting processes are the result of several years of hard work by teachers and staff, and patience on the part of parents.  Our goal throughout has been to clearly communicate student progress compared to clear academic criteria rather than broad unclear grade categories.  Here is an interesting article I shared recently with our teachers.

Message to students October 24-28

Here is my weekly recorded message which is played for all AEACMS students in their homeroom class.  This week’s edition is called Butterflies and addresses the importance of struggle in the learning process as opposed to a quick-fix approach.  The recording includes a lateral thinking puzzle and a riddle contributed by one of our students.  Enjoy!

Message to students October 10-14

My weekly recorded message for students focuses on our ability to control our fate.  I’ve also included a fun lateral thinking puzzle provided by one of our middle schoolers.