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CLEARLAKE OAKS, Calif. – As computers have become smaller – netbooks, tablets, etc. – so have the people who can operate them.
The same holds true here in Lake County.
Residents hereabouts may be surprised – as this reporter was – to learn that computers have become teaching tools in the kindergarten classes of no less than four of the county's 11 elementary schools.
An impromptu survey turned up other county schools that may be on the verge of adopting the use of computers for kindergartners.
“It's under consideration for when we have the funds,” said Shelley Tan, principal at Cobb Mountain Elementary, one of the region's more progressive schools.
Part of the driver for advancing technology to younger students is to prepare them for the Common Core State Standards.
Beginning this spring, third through eighth grade students will be required to take the testing for the new standards online.
In a Lakeport Unified School District Board meeting last month, Superintendent Erin Hagberg urged her board to spend available funds on technology, for which the district has a tremendous need due to the new standards. She reported that the district doesn't yet have enough computers to allow for all of the students to test online.
If there is a pace setter for converting kids barely out of the high chair to high tech it may well be Carly Swatosh, kindergarten teacher at East Lake School – where she also was a student – in the Konocti Unified School District.
Swatosh has two iPads for her class – one paid for by Web site donors, the other – purchased on a trial basis – paid for by school district. The price of the iPads she uses is $500 each.
“My goal is to get two more,” she said.
“I think most kindergartens in the Konocti School District are using iPads in the classroom,” Swatosh added. “At Pomo (School) my friend has two and it's starting to get popular; that's for sure.”
What's accomplished with the use of an iPad as a learning tool, she said, is “the kids get excited for learning and they get letter and number recognition. They practice tracing letters and numbers on them.”
She added, “It's meant as a sort of worksheet. There are a lot of graphics, which makes students excited for learning.”
Konocti Unified School District seems to be out front of other county districts in adapting technology to lower grades.
Some of the students in Swatosh's class know how to operate a computer before they start school.
“We see an iPad as an additional learning tool,” said Konocti Unified Superintendent Donna Becnel. “We are very aggressive in getting technology into all of our classrooms.”
Expressed on a larger scale, computers do not take the place of vital, developmental play and hands-on learning, but adds to them, says Demand Media, a Web-based company.
Email John Lindblom at
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County Animal Care and Control has six more cats needing new homes this week.
The cats range in age from 6 months to 2 years, with black, calico and orange tabby markings.
In addition to spaying or neutering, cats that are adopted from Lake County Animal Care and Control are microchipped before being released to their new owner. License fees do not apply to residents of the cities of Lakeport or Clearlake.
If you're looking for a new companion, visit the shelter. There are many great pets there, hoping you'll choose them.
The following cats at the Lake County Animal Care and Control shelter have been cleared for adoption (other cats pictured on the animal control Web site that are not listed here are still “on hold”).
Domestic short hair mix
This female domestic short hair mix is 6 months old.
She has a short coat with tortie point markings, a kinked tail and weighs 2.8 pounds. Shelter staff did not report if she has been spayed.
Find her in cat room kennel No. 6a, ID No. 38899.
Domestic short hair mix
This female domestic short hair mix is 2 years old.
She has a short coat with tortie point markings and a kinked tail. Shelter staff did not report if she has been spayed.
She's in cat room kennel No. 6b, ID No. 38900.
Domestic short hair mix
This female domestic short hair mix is 2 years old.
She has a short calico coat and weighs 6.6 pounds. Shelter staff did not report if she has been spayed.
Find her in cat room kennel No. 18, ID No. 38898.
Orange tabby
This orange tabby is 9 months old.
The cat, of undetermined gender, has a short coat and is large in size.
The tabby is in cat room kennel No. 26a, ID No. 38917.
Tuxedo cat
This tuxedo cat of undetermined gender is 9 months old.
It has a curly coat and unique black and white markings.
You can find the cat in cat room kennel No. 26b, ID No. 38918.
Domestic short hair mix
This male domestic short hair mix is 6 months old.
He has an all-black coat and a docked tail. Shelter staff did not report if he has been altered.
He's in cat room kennel No. 49, ID No. 38909.
Adoptable cats also can be seen at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control/Adopt/Cats_and_Kittens.htm or at www.petfinder.com .
Please note: Cats listed at the shelter's Web page that are said to be “on hold” are not yet cleared for adoption.
To fill out an adoption application online visit http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control/Adopt/Dog___Cat_Adoption_Application.htm .
Lake County Animal Care and Control is located at 4949 Helbush in Lakeport, next to the Hill Road Correctional Facility.
Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday. The shelter is open from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and on Saturday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Visit the shelter online at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control.htm .
For more information call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – University of California, Berkeley, scientists will receive $4.9 million over the next five years to study the nearly 10,000 square kilometer Eel River watershed in Northern California and how its vegetation, geology and topography affect water flow all the way to the Pacific Ocean.
The river's watershed extends into several counties – Lake, Glenn, Humboldt, Mendocino and Trinity. In Lake, the Upper Eel River flows into Lake Pillsbury.
What the researchers uncover will help improve global climate models and modeling tools that can be used by state or regional decision makers to guide planning.
Their discoveries may eventually allow scientists to predict the impact of changing climate and land use on future droughts, floods and supplies of water for drinking and agriculture.
Funded by the National Science Foundation, the Eel River Observatory is one of four new Critical Zone Observatories that received grants late last year, bringing the total number of such observatories to 10.
All focus on the so-called “critical zone”: the thin veneer of Earth, from the bottom of the groundwater to the tree tops, that is critical to aquatic and terrestrial life as the source of fresh water and site of soil formation from rock.
The Eel River is increasingly under pressure because of illegal marijuana cultivation, winegrape growing and other uses that extract water from the river and threaten one of the state's largest Coho salmon runs.
In addition, warming waters in recent years have led to outbreaks of blue-green algae that produce enough toxins to kill dogs that drink the water. The river is currently stressed by the driest winter in decades.
“Whatever the agricultural use in the future, we will see increasing demands on a decreasing water resource,” said observatory director William Dietrich, UC Berkeley professor of earth and planetary science and an expert on the processes that shape landscapes.
Other UC Berkeley faculty members involved in the new project include professors Jill Banfield and Inez Fung of earth and planetary science and of environmental science, policy and management; professor Jim Bishop of earth and planetary science; assistant professor Stephanie Carlson and professor Mary Firestone of environmental science, policy and management; professor Mary Power of integrative biology; and assistant professor Sally Thompson of civil and environmental engineering.
“The critical zone provides most of the ecosystem services on which society depends, such as clean water, food, nutrients, soil and carbon storage,” said Roger Wakimoto, NSF assistant director for geosciences.
“Researchers at the new CZO sites will investigate the past evolution and present state of the critical zone to predict how Earth's surface will evolve in response to future human activity and to climate change,” said Wakimoto. “The results will provide the scientific basis for decision-making on how humans can best mitigate, adapt and respond to both slow and abrupt environmental changes.”
From Hydrowatch to Critical Zone Observatory
For more than 20 years, Dietrich and other UC Berkeley scientists, including river ecologist Mary Power and atmospheric scientist Inez Fung, have studied the Eel River watershed within the Angelo Coast Range Reserve, part of the University of California's Natural Reserve System.
A 2006-2010 project called Hydrowatch, funded by the W. M. Keck Foundation, allowed geologists, biologists, climate scientists, and chemists to place sensors over a small portion of the watershed to measure soil and rock moisture, water transport in trees and transpiration from leaves, in essence tracing the water and dissolved minerals and gases as they moved through the mixed hardwood-conifer ecosystem.
“The Keck Hydrowatch grant got us following the water, thinking about how topography affects the return of moisture to the atmosphere, and about the need to look inside hillslopes to understand atmospheric moisture, river flow and chemistry, ecosystems dynamics, and coastal ocean productivity,” Dietrich said. “This NSF funding will allow us to expand our research to the entire Eel River watershed, totaling nearly 10,000 square kilometers, and begin to look at the neighboring Russian River watershed.”
Dietrich refers to the water, energy, dissolved minerals and gases, sediments and organisms that move through landscapes as “currencies,” analogous to the money that flows through a country's economy.
The Eel River Observatory will focus on how the soil, forest and river “economy” interact with these currencies, including determining the flow maintained in rivers through drought, and the delivery of nutrients to the sea.
Of particular interest is the so-far unexplored landscape beneath the hillside surface and below the soil mantle.
“Until now, we have been focused on this hillside in the Angelo Reserve, finding out how hills determine the return of gases to the atmosphere through plants, the amount of water available to plants and how much water is released to the stream,” he said. “Now we will begin to look at how hillside dynamics influence what is delivered to the ocean, and how coastal productivity may be influenced by stream dynamics.”
Key questions include:
- How does the underlying rock affect how much water is stored underground for plant use, and how might that affect plants' susceptibility to seasonal drought and long-term climate change?
- How do underground microbes influence gases – oxygen, carbon dioxide, and hydrogen sulfide – and dissolved minerals available to plants through their roots?
- How does hillside storage of water affect the amount of water in the streams during California's dry summers?
- Is there a tipping point beyond which climate change and land use change will irreversibly alter the river and coastal ecosystem?
“With anticipated increases in climate extremes, especially extended drought, and accelerating societal demand for water, we will focus on filling the gaps in our knowledge that not only inhibit our ability to forecast the direction of future change in the watershed and its currencies, but even the magnitude of that change,” Dietrich said.
Robert Sanders writes for the UC Berkeley News Center.
NORTH COAST, Calif. – Eleven local nonprofit organizations in Mendocino and Lake counties received a portion of the $16,132 donated in the past year by Savings Bank of Mendocino County and its employees during their “Casual For A Cause – Denim Days” fundraising effort.
Of this amount, $1,351 was received by the Lake Family Resource Center.
The idea of “Casual For A Cause – Denim Days” began in January 2012 with a group of Savings Bank employees who wanted an additional way to make a difference in our communities during these difficult economic times.
Every Friday, employees have the opportunity to dress casual by wearing denim jeans to work while supporting a variety of local nonprofit organizations through voluntary donations.
Employees select a different local nonprofit organization as beneficiary of the proceeds on a monthly basis.
The 2013 beneficiaries were: Hospice of Ukiah, Redwood Children’s Services, Hopland American Legion Auxiliary Post 529, Project Sanctuary, Plowshares, Calpella Elementary School Hydration Station and Library, Lake Family Resource Center, Mendocino K-8 School Library, Ukiah Community Food Bank, Willits Educational Foundation and Laytonville Volunteer Fire Department.
“I’m pleased to announce that this program will continue in 2014 with the Boys and Girls Club of Ukiah as the January beneficiary,” said Katie Kight, AVP / marketing officer. “As the local community bank, Savings Bank is proud of our tradition of giving back to our communities and the community support and volunteer time that our employees provide.”
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Blue-eyed puppies and soulful labs are among the dogs available for adoption at Lake County Animal Care and Control this week.
The dogs range in age from 11 weeks to 4 years, and are mixes of Chihuahua, boxer, mastiff, American Bulldog, American Staffordshire Terrier and pit bull.
Dogs that are adopted from Lake County Animal Care and Control are either neutered or spayed, microchipped and, if old enough, given a rabies shot and county license before being released to their new owner. License fees do not apply to residents of the cities of Lakeport or Clearlake.
If you're looking for a new companion, visit the shelter. There are many great pets hoping you'll choose them.
In addition to the animals featured here, all adoptable animals in Lake County can be seen here: http://bit.ly/Z6xHMb .
The following dogs at the Lake County Animal Care and Control shelter have been cleared for adoption (additional dogs on the animal control Web site not listed are still “on hold”).
American Staffordshire Terrier mix pup
This female American Staffordshire Terrier mix puppy is 11 weeks old.
She weighs 10 pounds, has blue eyes and a short blue brindle coat with white markings, and she's been spayed.
Find her in kennel No. 2a, ID No. 38725.
American Staffordshire Terrier mix pup
This female American Staffordshire Terrier mix puppy is 11 weeks old.
She weighs 12 pounds, has blue eyes and a short red and white spotted coat, and she's been spayed.
She's in kennel No. 2b, ID No. 38720.
Pit bull terrier mix pup
This female pit bull terrier mix puppy is 15 weeks old.
She weighs 26 pounds, has a short brown coat and gold eyes, and has been spayed.
She can be found in kennel No. 3, ID No. 38768.
'Bella'
“Bella” is a 4-year-old female Chihuahua mix.
She has a short buff-colored coat and has been spayed.
She's in kennel No. 6b, ID No. 38877.
'Frost'
“Frost” is a 2-year-old Labrador Retriever mix.
He's got a short black coat with white markings, weighs 64 pounds and has not been neutered.
Find him in kennel No. 10, ID No. 38690.
'Happy Feet'
“Happy Feet” is a 1-year-old female pit bull terrier mix.
She has a short black and white coat, weighs 42 pounds and has not yet been spayed.
Shelter staff said she is a very sweet girl and is good with other dogs.
Find her in kennel No. 14, ID No. 38693.
Male brown brindle
This male dog of undetermined breed is 1 year old.
He has a short brown brindle and white coat, and has not yet been neutered.
He's in kennel No. 27, ID No. 38863.
'Joey'
“Joey” is a 3-year-old male mastiff-American Bulldog mix.
He has a short brown brindle and white coat, weighs almost 70 pounds and has been neutered.
Shelter staff said Joey is available for a low adoption fee.
He's very friendly and housebroken, gets along with female dogs but would need to be tested with other males.
Find Joey in kennel No. 29, ID No. 38803.
Pit bull terrier-boxer mix
This male pit bull terrier-boxer mix is 1 year old.
He has a short brown and white coat, weighs 52 pounds and has not yet been neutered.
He's in kennel No. 31a, ID No. ID: 38686.
To fill out an adoption application online visit http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control/Adopt/Dog___Cat_Adoption_Application.htm .
Lake County Animal Care and Control is located at 4949 Helbush in Lakeport, next to the Hill Road Correctional Facility.
Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday. The shelter is open from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and on Saturday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Visit the shelter online at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control.htm .
For more information call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – On Monday, Jan. 20, the Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit of the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire, will suspend all open burning within the state responsibility area in Sonoma, Lake, Napa and portions of Colusa, Solano and Yolo counties.
The suspension also includes the unincorporated areas of Napa County protected by Cal Fire.
The agency said that experience has shown that open burning suspensions effectively aid in preventing fire escapes and significantly reduces the risk and occurrence of large fires.
This is especially important as these counties are experiencing record breaking low cumulative rainfall, low humidity, dry fuel moisture levels and increased fire activity.
Agriculture, land management, fire training and other industrial type burning may proceed if a Cal Fire officials inspects the burn site and issues a Cal Fire LE-5 Permit to specifically exempt an open burn from this suspension.
Campfires are allowed in designated campgrounds or in established facilities on private property with landowner permission and jurisdictional authority.
Persons burning under a Cal Fire LE-5 Permit must also check with their regional air quality management district for additional regulations and requirements.
Lake County Air Quality Management can be reached at http://www.lcaqmd.net/ or 707-263-7000.
Cal Fire encourages the public to assist with the mission of preventing unwanted destructive fires in communities and throughout the state.
For more information about fire safety or prescribed fire and its benefits visit the Cal Fire Web site, www.fire.ca.gov , or call your local Cal Fire facility.