YAC at Work for Hope and Life during the Holidays

Santa Sammy by YAC
Social Media Coordinator
Hannah Hameed'19

Hope for the Holidays: Infant Crisis Services

Casady Volunteers

Katherine Schoeffler, junior

Fourth Graders

This year's drive for infant items will kick off Dec. 1 and continue through Dec. 12 in Lower Division and Dec. 13 in Primary Division. Please help us spread holiday cheer to children in need. 









Donations are welcome from anyone in the Casady Community and can be dropped off in the mornings during carpool to be placed under the Christmas trees by the front offices at the Lower Division and Primary Division and at the Gaylord Student Center in the Upper Division:

• Diapers
• New or gently used toys
• Baby bottles, sippy cups
• Gently used children’s clothing (sizes preemie-4T)
• Blankets
• Winter coats
• Monetary donation

Katherine S, who heads up Casady's drive to support ICS, has been a member of the Teen Board and has volunteered at ICS in the summers since she was 13. In 2015, she led the drive in the Primary and Lower Divisions, and last year the Upper Division joined the drive. Katherine is assisted by the fourth grade class, the entire Lower Division and the Primary Division. The fourth graders started the project a few years ago.

The Upper Division YAC will be collecting donations the week of December 11th-15th  to help the 4th graders make a difference in the lives of infants and toddlers in need in Oklahoma.

Babies in Oklahoma live in poverty, putting them at a moderate to high risk for developmental delay.  Early childhood nutrition is an integral part of our community’s health and future. When our babies and toddlers are able to get the food they need to grow big and strong, we all win.  

Infant Crisis Services provides life-sustaining formula, food and diapers to babies and toddlers in times of crisis…Because no baby should go hungry.

Please contact, YAC Vice-President, Katherine at katherineschoeffler@casady.org or any of the fourth graders for more details.

Blood Drive to Benefit Oklahoma Blood Institute

YAC Blood Drive 2017 Project Chairs
Claire Richardson, junior
Christopher Goodall, senior
Ellison Guzzy, junior

Dear Families,

On Wednesday, Dec. 13, the Casady Upper Division YAC (Youth Active in the Community) is hosting our annual Blood Drive! While we encourage each other who are 16 and older to donate, this drive is not limited to just students. You are invited to DONATE, too.

We learned several things from the Oklahoma Blood Institute:

• The Oklahoma Blood Institute is the sole provider of blood in Oklahoma.
• They need 1200 units of blood each day to meet the demand.
• Each unit donated benefits 3 people - from infants to geriatrics.
• There is no artificial substitute for blood; it must come from us.

We know that we have several Casady families whose lives have been changed for the better because of the gift of blood. We hope that you will be able to join us on Wednesday, Dec. 13 in the Casady Wing, from 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

The Sign-up Sheet to reserve your spot and Blood Institute Permissions Slips are available at the UD Administration Office.

• Bring completed permission slip and a picture ID to the Wing.
• Eat a good breakfast and hydrate before you donate!
• The gift of life is the perfect gift to give!

Gratefully,
Malavika Rajaram, sophomore
YAC Secretary

Please Note: Parents and those over 16 may sign up to donate blood, but walk-ins are welcome. Requirements include those 16 or 17 must weigh at least 125 lbs, and those over 18 must weigh at least 110 lbs. Permission slips for all students and ID's for all donors are required. Please join the Casady Community for a successful blood drive to support the Oklahoma Blood Institute.

Advent 2017

By Professor Carol on Nov 30, 2017 01:10 pm This coming Sundaymarks the beginning of Advent. Despite what the numbers on the commercial Advent calendars say, the duration of Advent is not always 24 days. It changes from year to year. Last year in 2016, Advent stretched its longest: 28 days. In fact, the Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend was the First Sunday in Advent (that took some mental readjustment!). But in 2017, Advent begins as late as it possibly can, which means that the fourth Sunday of Advent will overlap this year with Christmas Eve! This coming Sunday also marks the beginning of our seventh annual Advent Calendar. I have been gratified by your enthusiastic responses to the calendar. For us, too, it has become an important tradition. As you might expect, our calendar will begin with an introduction to the Advent candles and wreath. Next, we’ll talk about the reasoning behind the colors of the season, both that Advent “purple” and other, perhaps unexpected, seasonal colors. Then, on December the 5th, expect an entry about a really sweet event from the Advent period: St. Nicholas Eve (get your shoes and socks ready). Along the way to Christmas Eve, you will find posts about glorious music (featuring J. S. Bach this year), art, poetry, saints, toy soldiers, and even a few words from G. K. Chesterton. Most of all, we hope that this calendar is helpful as you anticipate the arrival of Christmas. Anticipation can be a wondrous thing. It’s also a bit of an endangered species. With 24/7 access to nearly everything these days, instant gratification is the watchword of our era. A simple click allows us to find out almost any information. Another click takes us to YouTube where we can view virtually anything (for better or worse), including the cities we’re about to visit, right down to the hotel rooms, restaurants, or a curb view of the street. Useful in many ways, all of this instant information does affect the joy of anticipation. Meanwhile special things once highly anticipated, such as a costly long-distance phone call, have become mundane to the point that, recently, I watched a neighbor set his phone down while talking to his sister in London. Why? So that he could walk across the street and ask a neighbor a question. London! That is our world. As we enter more deeply into Advent’s observance, it brings another gift we may find valuable. Those four weeks before Christmas do not have to be a race to the finish line—a race we’re certain to lose if we measure ourselves by society’s standard. The list of things we feel pressured to tick off before December 25 can be adjusted too. Yes, there are essential things we must do, such as our volunteer projects or sending packages to our military guys and gals. And certain irreplaceable events will stay on the calendar in my family, namely the annual service of Lessons and Carols and a first Nutcracker for our Texas granddaughter. But the rest? Beginning on December 25, we have twelve long days to enjoy Christmas. And by anticipating it through Advent, we intensify the opening moments, that precious time we call Christmas Eve (known in some languages by the lovely appellation “Holy Eve”). Think off the freedom (and fun) when we schedule Christmas parties on Dec. 28th, or even January 4th! Your friends might need to get used to the idea, but they will like it, especially if your tree and decorations are still in place. Plus, I’ve never yet seen a child turn down a gift on the Sixth Day of Christmas, December 30. Celebrating Advent is a devotion that distinguishes a Christian experience of Christmas from the one designed by the secular world. May this calendar be one of the blessings of the Advent season for you and your family. The post Advent 2017 appeared first on Professor Carol. Read in browser »   Friday Performance Pick – 151 By Hank Reynolds on Nov 24, 2017 02:00 pm Fanny Mendelssohn, String Quartet (2nd Movement) A couple of months ago, I featured a work by Clara Wieck Schumann, wife of the famous composer Robert Schumann. Today I’m turning to the sister of Felix Mendelssohn, Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel (1805-1847). Like Clara, Fanny’s musical aptitude was recognized early. Fanny was not quite four years older than Felix. Both were taught composition by Carl Zelter. Historians credit Zelter and Felix Mendelssohn for sparking a revival of the music of J.S. Bach. Zelter wrote to his friend Johann von Goethe about the extraordinary talent of both Mendelssohn children, offering particular praise of Fanny. At age 13, Fanny performed all 24 Preludes and Fugues in Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier to celebrate her father’s birthday. Unlike Clara, who was well known as a performer, Fanny performances and compositions were heard primarily in private gatherings at home. People at the time did not consider composition to be a suitable vocation for women. Fanny nevertheless wrote numerous works and published a few of her “Songs Without Words” under Felix’s name. At least one commentator has pointed out that Fanny, whose compositions were not subject to public scrutiny, was able to be more daring in her writing. I won’t attempt to rate composers according to boldness, but I certainly find her string quartet to be vivid and interesting. I debated which of the four movements to feature. But while I was listening to the 2nd movement, my 4-year-old granddaughter came into my office to say she really liked that music. So, the decision was made. Patti (whom you may know from Professor Carol’s posts) has endorsed the second movement. If you enjoy it as much as she does, you may want to hear the first, third, and fourth movements as well. The post Friday Performance Pick – 151 appeared first on Professor Carol. Read in browser »   Recent Articles: Gratitude in Porcelain Friday Performance Pick – 150 Three Blind Mice Friday Performance Pick – 149 Celebrating Veterans and St Martin Professor Carol's 2018 Advent Calendar begins on December 3. The Advent Calendar goes free to everyone on Professor Carol's email list.  Join the Mailing List. http://us2.forward-to-friend.com/forward?u=be7a367862291afc0246aaec7&id=c2d9e26e83&e=fc6b6e467a A collection of favorite essays from prior years. Order Here!

Copyright © 2017 Professor Carol, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you signed up as a Friend of Professor Carol or purchased her curriculum. Our mailing address is: Professor Carol 6024 Toledo St. Plano, Texas 75094

Casady's Blood Drive 2017 PP HERE

Wednesday, December 13, 
7:30 am -12:30 pm @ Woolsey Wing

Claire Richardson'19, Christopher Goodall'18, and Ellison Guzzy'19 Blood Drive 2017 Chairs

Sign up and permissions at the main office 

16 year olds MUST bring a signed permission slip and a photo ID to donate

Happy Thanksgiving

http://ahappythanksgiving.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Happy-Thanksgiving-Quotes.jpg 

From 

https://us14.campaign-archive.com/?u=a8079f1782122a9da1dec00db&id=bba69fa778&e=794bad348f%22

Today, psychologists studying gratitude note that being grateful means much more than just saying thank you. Not only is the experience and expression of gratitude broader than thanking others but it requires children to use a set of complex socio-emotional skills. For example, researchers at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Greensboro argue that gratitude in children involves perspective taking and emotional knowledge, skills that children begin to develop more quickly around ages three to five.

In the Raising Grateful Children project at UNC Chapel Hill, we’ve explored gratitude experiences with families as their children have grown from kindergarteners to young teens. Based on the scientific literature and our conversations with parents, we’ve come to think about gratitude as an experience that has four parts:

• What we NOTICE in our lives for which we can be grateful
• How we THINK about why we have been given those things
• How we FEEL about the things we have been given
• What we DO to express appreciation in turn

Older children and adults are more likely to spontaneously engage in all four parts of gratitude, but younger children may only engage in some of these parts, only when prompted. Children may show more gratitude as they gain cognitive skills, collect practice with those skills, and begin to connect the NOTICE-THINK-FEEL parts of experiencing gratitude with the DO part of expressing gratitude.

This model emphasizes that gratitude is about how we receive things in the world as well as how we give to others. Indeed, when it comes to children, our team expects that helping them learn to deeply receive things in their lives will help engender genuine experiences of gratitude. These experiences, in turn, may motivate the appreciative behaviors that parents want to see in their children.

How kids learn to give thanks

Questions that foster gratitude

These findings suggest that there are opportunities for fostering gratitude in children. Finding ways to help children more deeply notice what they have received is an important place to start. But helping them make sense of those gifts, through their thoughts and feelings, may be key to experiences of gratitude more specifically. 

Here are some examples of NOTICE-THINK-FEEL-DO questions parents may ask children about their gratitude experiences.

NOTICE: What have you been given or what do you already have in your life for which you are grateful? Are there gifts behind the material gifts for which you are grateful, like someone thinking about you or caring about you enough to give you the gift?

THINK: Why do you think you received this gift? Do you think you owe the giver something in return? Do you think you earned the gift because of something you did yourself? Do you think the gift was something the giver had to give you? If you answered no to these questions, then you may be more likely to be grateful.

FEEL: Does it make you feel happy to get this gift? What does that feel like inside? What about the gift makes you feel happy? These questions help the child connect their positive feeling to the gifts that they receive in their lives.

DO: Is there a way you want to show how you feel about this gift? Does the feeling you have about this gift make you want to share that feeling by giving something to someone else? Prompting children after experiences of gratitude in order to motivate acts of gratitude, whether they be acts of appreciation or paying it forward, may help children connect their experiences and actions in the world.

We think that these types of questions may help children to more deeply receive gifts from others or notice what they already have in the world. In turn, we think that deeply receiving may motivate acts of gratitude toward others. And that will give parents reasons to feel proud of children who not only say thank you unprompted but, more importantly, mean it.

A NEW LEASH ON LIFE AND HALO DOGS @ CASADY

Chumlee from New Leash on Life
http://newleashinc.org/
Chumlee can be contacted through its handler

Great time with ChumLee

Special thanks to Terri Smih(tlks330@cox.net) for
connecting Casady YAC to HALO dogs and their handlers

HALO DOG ABBY

HALO DOG CHARLEY

Happy Thanksgiving from Greater Good Science Center

Welcome to the Season of Gratitude

Four Ways to Find Authentic Gratefulness this Thanksgiving By Kira Newman What would a no-pressure Thanksgiving look like, one that tries to encourage everyone—even the inarticulate, the shy, the grumpy, and the alienated—to safely express their thanks? What “grateful motions” might feel less forced and more genuine? Here are some suggestions.

Read More

How gratitude changes you ... and your brain   How—and why—to write a gratitude letter

What happens in our brains and bodies when we feel grateful?   How gratitude can transform your workplace

Learn More about Gratitude