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School Zone
Chalk Board
Local Writer Teams To Benefit Alternative School
The public is invited to meet local author and former Duval County Public Schools teacher Deborah Hansen at Mattie V. Rutherford Alternative Middle School on Tuesday, February 12, 2008. Hansen will be reading from her book, "Broken Strings: Wisdom for Divorced and Separated Families" from 5:00 until 6:30 p.m., and a portion of the proceeds from the sale of the book will benefit the school.
The book is a collection of Hansen's personal experiences as a single parent, and is an offering to the families who are currently navigating through a divorce or separation, or those who have found that the effects are felt for many years.
"Thousands of children in our school system are from single parent families. These families are often subjected to endless lists of "Dos and Don'ts" with no real substance," Hansen says. "The only other alternatives are lengthy research studies that no single parent has time to read. Each chapter of my book is designed to be read in five minutes or less, and relates to a specific lesson I learned along the way."
Reviews of the book have been good.
From Dr. David Brooks, Ph.D.: "Excellent! This is a must read book for everyone who is going through a divorce or for those counseling divorcing couples. The strength of this work is the practical and easy to understand message. It goes well beyond the superficial by focusing on coping with real-life emotions and stresses, and offers strategies for surviving the difficult rollercoaster of divorce."
Mattie V. Rutherford is an alternative middle school for students throughout the Duval County Public School system, and is located at 1514 Hubbard St. The event will also feature live music and light refreshments.
DASOTA's Annual Writing Festival
Douglas Anderson is hosting its annual Writers' Festival at the Main Library on March 15, 2008. This all-day celebration of writing will include hands-on workshops and an evening reading by former Poet Laureate Billy Collins. We are hoping there might be students and teachers interested in joining us for this very rare opportunity.
Because of the generous support of our parents and community sponsors, we are pleased to announce that our costs have been reduced in order for more students to be able to attend. Student registration is $30 (includes lunch and attendance at the evening reading), and teachers who bring at least five students are admitted free.
For more information and registration forms, please check out their website at www.dawritersfest.com or contact Jackie Jones at jonesj5@dreamsbeginhere.org or at (904) 346-5620 extension 176.
Nominate Top Teachers for the All-USA Teacher Team
USA Today seeks up to 20 teachers, both individuals and instructional teams, to honor as representatives of all outstanding teachers. Members of the 11th annual All-USA Teacher Team will be announced in October 2008 and will be featured in USA Today.
Each teacher receives a trophy and a $2,500 cash award — $500 for the teacher and the remainder to the school for use as designated by the teacher.
Application Deadline: April 30, 2008.
The 2008 Entry Form for individual teachers is available here and the 2008 Entry Form for
instructional teams is available here. Read about the 2007 team and view the photo gallery of teachers posted at USA Today.
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