Mentorship Reminder!

Hey junior and senior mentors -

This is a reminder for all of you to keep in touch with your mentees. You should be e-mailing your mentees once a week with advice and updates. Also, please check that you are copying me on all your conversations with your mentees!

Make sure your mentees are checking the SAGE blog for updates about once a week and keep them informed about meeting dates and topics. A lot of mentors are sending some great information about volunteer opportunities, how to find scholarships, useful study tips, advice specific to the teachers and classes of their mentees, and upcoming DV events. Some mentors also include SAT vocab or the SAT Question of the Day with their e-mails, which is great!

Another really important thing to talk to your mentees about, particularly right now, is scheduling. Freshman and sophomores might be struggling to figure out what classes they need and what to expect in these classes. Also, if your mentees are sophomores, now would be a great time to fill them in about AIMS. Let them know what to expect, how they can practice, and the benefits of doing well.

If you have any questions (or you forgot your mentee's e-mail address!) feel free to contact me at iridescentbubbles@hotmail.com.

Thanks!

Lauren Zack
Mentorship Coordinator

Register NOW for your AP Exams

If you are interested in taking one or more AP Exams, now is the time to register. The due date for AP Exam registration is Friday, 13 January 2009. The exams are $89.00 in price; tax credit payments are accepted. If you wish to take an exam that is not listed on the registration form or you need an alternate testing date, you will need to see Mr. White in order to confirm your request.

Mr. White

Angel Tree Update!

Attention all SAGErs,

The Angel Tree Deadline has been extended to Monday!!!

Pick up your tag today!

- Christine

Finals Approaching

SAGE,

You totally don’t want to think about it right now, but finals are just around the corner. That means you can add studying for them to your already vast to-do list. Here are some helpful hints on how to prepare for your exams and get everything else done.

Tip 1: Start early
Preparation for exams should begin earlier than the day before the test. You can’t cram an entire unit of information into an all-nighter. Get started at least a week before the exam. Space out studying in advance, so you're not overwhelmed at the last minute.

Tip 2: Organize
Begin by making yourself a calendar outlining a daily schedule of topics for review. Cover a small amount of material for each class each day. Every time you complete a topic, give yourself a mini review on what you've already learned.

Tip 3: Outline
Once you have decided what you need to study and how much time you need to spend studying, it is time to actually study. One of the best ways is to make succinct outlines. As you read over your textbook and class notes, write a brief summary for each topic. Highlight the areas in your outline that were most troublesome. When you have finished with all the material, you will have an outline you can review.

Tip 4: Make flashcards
Similar to outlining, making flashcards is a really helpful technique for studying. By writing down the information from your outline, you are already doing half the studying. Once the flashcards are complete, you will have a portable study packet to look over.

Tip 5: Get help
If you are having trouble memorizing something or a particular concept is just not sinking in, get help before it’s too late. Ask your teacher to go over a glitch you might be having. All your teachers are there to help you before school, and sometimes after school as well.

Tip 6: Sleep
You need at least seven hours of sleep a night to function. Tests are designed to make you think. If you are sleep-deprived, you won’t be able to remember any of the information you worked so hard to cram into your brain. When cramming the night before (you shouldn't, but this is a worst-case scenario) KNOW WHEN TO STOP. A good night's rest is THE MOST IMPORTANT THING YOU CAN DO FOR YOURSELF.

Tip 7:Stay calm
Do not panic at the exam! Even if at first glance the test is overwhelming, remember to breathe. If a question seems too hard, answer all the questions you know, then return to the ones you left blank. Remind yourself that you are prepared. Step into the test with confidence, because you're prepared.

Tip 8: Don’t rush
You have spent at least two weeks studying, so what’s another couple of minutes? Work through the exam slowly and read all the questions before answering them. If you are done before the time is up, look over your answers. Checking your work may be boring, but it can catch stupid mistakes that cost you easy points.

Tip 9: Relax post-exam
Don’t let panic overwhelm you. Even if you think you bombed the exam, worrying will not change your score. It may, however, affect your mindset for your next final. Zone out the last test and stay focused on the next one. Odds are, you didn’t do as badly as you think.

And last, try not to stress. Stay calm, and know that it'll all turn out alright in the end. Good luck!

-Victor
:)

Newspaper

Sage is creating a new newspaper called "The Forum"! If anyone is curious about current events or politics, the Forum has some great articles written by our students. Anyone is allowed to contribute to the Forum, and that includes faculty as well! The first newspaper comes out soon, so don't forget to pick up a copy!
-Ellen

P.S. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving weekend!=]

Community Service!!!

Hey everyone!

There are several ways you can help out your community! SAGE is currently hosting two great community service programs, the Angel Tree Drive and the Maricopa Book Drive. Make sure to check them out, because they are both amazing ways to give back to your community! Here is some info on both of them:

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Angel Tree Drive

Where: The tree is currently set up in the DV Guidance Center.

When: All tags are due December 11th, 2008. That's a Thursday, so don't be late!

Who: The names of the requesters are on the tags, and their ages range from newborn to 50+.

Purpose: The Angel Tree Drive is a touching way to make one less fortunate person's Christmas much better! Each tag on the tree has the name of a person and two gifts that they are requesting. Our task is to help grant their wishes by going out and buying both gifts that they are asking for.

How: Once you take a tag, you must sign up in the Guidance Department by giving your name, the name of the person that will be recieving your gifts, and the names of the two gifts you are donating. Afterwards, when you bring your unwrapped gifts in, you should attach the tag to the presents before placing them underneath the tree. Remember, leave them unwrapped!

About the SAGE Angel Tree Drive (From Mr. White):

The SAGE Angel Tree Drive is in conjunction with A New Leaf (formerly PREHAB of Arizona), an organization that serves the needs of families who are homeless and/or abused. For those of you not familiar with the program, every year the Desert Vista SAGE Club coordinates a school wide program to fulfill a two item wish list for hundreds of individuals who are homeless, either because of financial reasons or because they are seeking safety from an abusive home. As you may already know, hard financial times mean that rates of homelessness and domestic abuse increase; as a result, A New Leaf is experiencing an overwhelming number of needy families. Therefore, we are looking to assist 200 individuals, as opposed to our normal 150. If you feel as though you might be financially strapped this year, understand that many of the items individuals ask for are quite simple, such as diapers, a teething toy, a packet of toy cars, a doll, a pad of paper, etc. It is important that the needs of these individuals are served, so whether you are or are not able to give this year, please pass this information to friends and family.

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Maricopa Book Drive

Where: The boxes are located in the library, the Guidance Office, and the front office

When: Similar to the Angel Tree Drive, books are due on Thursday, December 11, 2008

Who: The receivers of these books will be the students of the Maricopa Unified School District, schools K-8.

How: This book drive is for anybody with dusty picture books stashed away at home! These books may no longer hold any importance to you, but they can help out a needy kid. Books can be dropped off at any of the three centers mentioned above. Please make sure they are age appropriate! Books can be newly purchased or used, and sign-up sheets will be placed next to each box if you wish to receive community service hours.

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More opportunities...

Another great community service opportunity to look out for is the Festival of Lights. 100+ volunteers are needed on November 29th, and it's a fun way to earn your community service hours!

The kick off party is on November 29th, 2008. There are four shifts that you can currently apply for:

Shift #1 - 10:30 am - 1:30 pm
Shift #2 - 1:30 pm - 4:30 pm
Shift #3 - 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm
Break Down - 7pm to 10pm

Activities include working at the game booths, selling tickets, manning an inflatable activity, working in concession booths, and much more!

Also, you can sign up to work at the Hayrides (Saturdays, December 13th and 20th) and the Light Removal (Saturday, January 10th, 2009)

For more information on signing up for the Festival of Lights, you can contact Alix Parker, president of Desert Vista's Key Club.

You can also apply directly at their home page:

http://www.folaz.org/volunteers.php

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I hope to see everybody participating in these great events! Remember, both the Maricopa Book Drive and the Angel Tree Drive come to a close on December 11th, 2008.

~Grace Ma, Community Service Officer

Mentorship Lunch

SAGE Club is having a Mentorship Lunch on Friday, December 5th. (This was previously planned for November 20th, but the date has been changed because POs take longer than I thought - sorry if there was any confusion!) Nearly all mentors have the same lunch period as their mentees, so this is a really great opporunity to get to know each other. (If you don't have the same lunch, I have already contacted you, so if you haven't gotten an e-mail from me about mismatched lunch periods, then you're fine.) The lunch will be in the Counseling Office, and there will be free pizza! Mentors should send an e-mail to their mentees to make sure they are coming. If you can come, please send me a quick e-mail at iridescentbubbles@hotmail.com and let me know, so I can make sure we'll have enough pizza for everyone.

Also, I would like to remind all mentors to email your mentees once a week and send a copy to me. If you're not sure what to talk about, here are some examples of really great topics that I've seen mentors discussing with their mentees:
- Community service opporunities (recent/upcoming examples: Festival of Lights, Feed My Starving Children, canned food drive, Relay for Life, Maricopa Book Drive, Angel Tree, DV library, Irownwood library)
- SAT / ACT tips (some mentors include SAT vocab or the SAT Question of the Day with every e-mail)
- Scholarship opportunities (fastweb.com, the school scholarship site, etc.)
- Information about DV clubs and activities
- General tips about school, stress, studying, and time management

Also, mentors should always be avaliable for tutoring their mentees and for answering any questions that their mentees have.

Again, don't forget to send me an e-mail if you plan to attend the mentorship lunch!

I'll see you there,

Lauren Zack
Mentorship Coordinator