October 7, 2020
In This Issue
How to Give Effective Instructions
Teach kids how to listen and follow directions.
The first step to harmony is teaching your child to listen and follow directions.

Back to School Leader Kit
As a PTA leader, what supplies do you need in your Back-to-School Kit?  NMPTA has collected instructions, resources, documents, and ideas in one place for you!  Check out the "For PTA Leaders" section on our website.  Whether you are President, Treasurer, Membership Chair, or Reflections Chair - you will find tools and handbooks for all you do!  https://www.newmexicopta.org/compliance-requirements/
Password is everychild.
COVID-19 Relief Funding Grant Recipients Announced!
National PTA distributed $715K in COVID relief funds to over 150 local and District/Council/Region PTAs across the country. With generous support from TikTok, this emergency grant funding is intended to allow PTAs to help meet the most pressing needs of your school community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

CONGRATULATIONS to TWO New Mexico PTAs that received $5,000 each!!!
Happy Arts and Humanities Month!
 

October is National Arts and Humanities Month! And what better way to celebrate than by sharing your creations using #PTAReflections and #ShowYourArt. Register your participation today.
 
P.S. Did you know your Reflections program could help you earn a School of Excellence designation if you enroll by Oct. 15? It's true! Learn more.

New Mexico Letters About Literature Competition
Dear Teachers, Principals, Librarians, and other Colleagues:
 
We are very pleased to inform you that the New Mexico State Library will continue the New Mexico Letters About Literature competition this school year.  We have created a site for the state competition which should tell you everything you want to know about the contest - https://lettersaboutliterature.nmculture.org/. 
 
We cordially invite your students to participate in this reading and writing contest designed to promote reading and thoughtful writing by encouraging young readers to read a book and then write a letter to the author explaining how his or her work shaped their perspective on the world or themselves. This is the eighth year the New Mexico State Library has sponsored the competition.

Please see the attached entry form and the permission form for ages 13 and under as of November 1, 2020.
 
Please read the official rules and terms of participation, including how to submit entries carefully before your students begin reading and writing.  THERE ARE MANY CHANGES!
 
All entries must be submitted by January 11, 2021.

Please visit New Mexico Letters About Literature to learn more about the contest. If you have any questions, please feel free to reply to this email or call 505-476-9739 or 9717.

We look forward to working with you and truly hope you will participate in the New Mexico Letters About Literature contest.
 
Lori Smith Thornton
Public Services Bureau Chief
New Mexico State Library
Department of Cultural Affairs
1209 Camino Carlos Rey
Santa Fe, NM 87507
(505) 476-9717

Wait..Did We Ever Talk About This?
Has this ever happened to you?

You wake your son in the morning and find him sound asleep with his phone in his hand.

Or you glance at your daughter's phone and notice she received 20 text messages during 3rd period alone!

Or you wake up in the middle of the night and find your son still playing video games at 3:00 a.m.!

"What are you thinking!?" you ask.
"Surely you know that there are times and places to play or use your phone!"
"We've talked about this!"
"Didn't we talk about this?"

(Wait.... Did we ever talk about this?)

I have realized on multiple occasions that the expectations I had for my kids about tech use had never really been discussed with my kids. Somehow I just thought they "knew". How did I miss that? I wonder how many of my rules are unspoken?

Every family has unique values and priorities so only your family can determine your media rules. But it all starts with talking. What online activities require permission? What things must be completed before screen time? How do we interact with others online?

It's understandable that there might be some holes in your family media plan.

We're hoping to help you fill those holes. At whiteribbonweek.org, we've created a series of conversation guides to help families talk about media rules and expectations in a way that is natural and comfortable.

In the first of the Power UP series, "Power to Choose" you'll find a "media color wheel" to help your family clearly define the who, what, when, and where of your family's media use. Your kids can help establish the rules and even fill in the pieces of the "pie" on your wheel. But more important than the words you write will be the fact that your family has talked about it.



I asked a friend how she was surviving all this Covid confusion. "I am really enjoying my kids," she said. "I'm calmer. I really feel like we have gotten closer." But then added, "But I'm at a loss how to manage all the media! It has taken over our lives."

Maybe you've felt the same way. Estimates indicate that children are spending almost 3 times as many hours in front of a screen as they did before the quarantine. With so much of our kids' education going online, and every child having access to a device, now is the time to talk.

The good news is that talking together is the number one most effective thing you can do to keep your kids safe.

We hope this free resource makes it easier for you and fun for your kids.

Warmly,

Deanna Lambson
Reopening School-Disinfectants

Behavioral Health Services Are Available To All New Mexicans


















Behavioral Health Services Are Available To All New Mexicans



Engaging opportunities to access behavioral healthcare within your community

COVID-19 creates stressful times. It's normal to feel sad, overwhelmed, anxious and worried about the COVID virus. Everyone reacts differently, and feelings may come and go. We are here to help you cope emotionally with free and confidential mental health support. We understand that individuals with mental health or substance use concerns have unique challenges when it comes to coping with COVID-19.

We understand that many of you have questions about behavioral health services, that you may have concerns on how the pandemic has impacted your ability to see a doctor or therapist, and that you may have uncertainties on how can you begin or continue treatment.

Behavioral Health Services Are Available To all New Mexicans
We want to remind you to take care of your mental, behavioral, and emotional health during these times. Behavioral health services are available to anyone in New Mexico, no matter what their financial ability is to pay. If you or someone you know is experiencing overwhelming depression, anxiety, or grief, reach out to talk to someone free and confidentially.


The New Mexico Crisis and Access Line is available anytime, anywhere at 1-855-NMCRISIS (662-7474) for immediate in the moment mental health support.

The New Mexico Healthcare Worker and First Responder Support Line is available for essential workers to talk about their mental health concerns at 1-855-507-5509 .

If you or someone you know has been diagnosed, is awaiting test results, or has been impacted by COVID-19 (Coronavirus) call LLTI at 505-954-1057 to coordinate free online telebehavioral health support and treatment services.


The New Mexico Behavioral Health Services Division (BHSD) of the Human Services Department (HSD) is working hard to ensure you can seek and receive treatment, while striving to ensure that your services are uninterrupted during this public health emergency.

BHSD offers the New Mexico Crisis and Access Line as a place that is here to hear you and find resources in the moment you need support. Call if you need to talk.
 
Physical address: 
1730 University Blvd SE
Albuquerque, NM 87106

Mailing address:  PO Box 14706  Albuquerque, NM 87191

Office Number: 505-881-0712
Disclosure: This email contains sponsored content from third parties.

New Mexico PTA does not endorse any commercial entity, product or service.

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