This week has been very quiet at our house with STAR Testing going on and the wrap up of the Spring Soccer season. We hope you are having a great week! Enjoy the featured article below for STAR Testing Tips for Parents and Students.

There is still time to enter the Mom of The Year Contest! We'll share some of them with you next week. Keep them coming! Kids (and Dads) can nominate their Mom and tell us in 100 words or less why she is the #1 Mom. One winner will be selected by random drawing to receive a 55-minute full body massage from Elements Therapeutic Massage in Mira Loma.

Click here to submit your nomination today! Contest ends May 30th!

Please tell them you saw it on CVParent.com!

Have a blessed weekend!

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Use the  PARENT PLANNER to click on events and resources you are interested in and click PRINT MY PLANNER to print or email your list.

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STAR Testing for most Riverside County & San Bernardino County schools is underway. Let's make sure our students are ready to take the test and do their best! See below for some helpful tips. 

Tips for STAR Testing for Parents

1. See that your child gets his/her regular amount of sleep before the tests and is well-rested so he/she can be alert and attentive.
2. Encourage your child do his/her best on the tests without creating anxiety for them and wish them good luck before he/she leaves for school.
3. Make sure your child attends school during testing days and arrives on time. Please try to avoid scheduling any outside appointments (doctor or dental) on test dates.
4. Make sure your child eats his/her a healthy breakfast on the day of the tests. Hunger can detract from a good test performance.
5. Encourage your child to listen carefully to all test-taking directions given by the teacher and to ask questions about any directions that are unclear. Spanish speaking students are allowed to have the directions on the California Standards Tests translated and read to them in Spanish.
6. If your child wears an assistive device, such as a hearing aid and/or glasses, be sure he/she remembers to bring and wear them during all test sessions.
7. Tell your child that you think the test is important and that you expect him/her to do his/her best. If your child knows the testing is important to you and the school, it will become more important to them.
8. Inform your child that the test will be used to evaluate how well the school and the school district are educating its students to help them understand why the test is important to all of us.
9. If your child comes home feeling disappointed after taking one of the tests, reassure him/her that there will be plenty of opportunities to improve and succeed.
10. Tell your child the test will have some easy questions and some difficult questions and that he/she may not be able to answer all of them correctly. Let your child know that this is OK and that he/she should do their best.

Tips for STAR Testing for Students

1. Get plenty of rest the night before the tests and eat a healthy breakfast each day.
2. Listen to and read all test instructions carefully.
3. If you have a question or do not understand something, raise your hand and ask for assistance. Your teacher is not allowed to give you the answer but he/she can clarify the directions or a question.
4. Read all test questions carefully.
5. Answer the easiest questions first. It gives your brain a chance to warm up. It is OK to skip a hard question and come back to it later. (Make sure you also skip the same question on your answer document)
6. It makes no difference who finishes first or last. Use all testing time available to you to answer questions and check your responses.
7. Don't change an answer unless you have a good reason to do so. Your first choice is usually correct.
8. Be aware of key words such as "all," "now,", "always," "never," "only," "exactly," and "no."
9. If you find yourself getting nervous or anxious, take a deep breath and count to ten. Then take shorter deep breaths in between questions or sections of the test counting to three only. This exercise is fast and simple and it really works!!
10. Do your best!!

The Orange Ribbon Campaign during the month of May is designed to inform the public about Supervised Visitation which serves the needs of the children in our community. Supervised visitation is far more complex than just babysitting parents who are visiting with their children. Each family brings unique issues with them. Each family is be managed with dignity and compassion during their time of conflict. A Supervised Visitation Monitor is diligently prepared to insure the safety of all participants while providing a healthy environment for non-custodial parents to connect with their children.

"The most rewarding aspect of my career comes when I see a family rise above the conflict and begin to work together for the benefit of the children." Karen Hukill, Executive Director of Parental Dynamics in Corona, California. Parental Dynamics has been providing children with safe, conflict-free child access services in Los Angeles, Orange and Riverside Counties for ten years.

PARENTAL DYNAMICS
Karen D. Hukill, Executive Director
Special Emphasis: Divorce, Child Custody & Domestic Violence
(951) 943-7072
www.parental-dynamics.com