August 20, 2012
Well, tomorrow is THE
day. Summer has come to an
end. Before we get too far into
the swing of things, I wanted to give you an update on a few things.
Welcome Back Night – Thank you to those who attended our Welcome Back
Night last Thursday. We had a
great showing and it was nice to see so many smiling faces ready for the new
school year.
Standards Based Grading – As you may or may not know, the district adopted the
following guidelines regarding our grading philosophies:
- Entries in the grade book that count towards the final grade will be limited to course or grade level standards.
- Extra credit will not be given at any time.
- Students will be allowed multiple opportunities to demonstrate their understanding of classroom standards in various ways. Retakes and revisions will be allowed.
- Teachers will determine grade book entries by considering multiple points of data emphasizing the most recent data and provide evidence to support their determination.
- Students will be provided multiple opportunities to practice standards independently through homework and other class work. Practice assignments and activities will be consistent with classroom standards for the purpose of providing feedback. Practice assignments, including homework, will not be included as part of the final grade.
The guidelines will be
incorporated into all classrooms over the course of the year. Some teachers have already been using a
Standards Based Grading approach, and many more will be fully implementing the
guidelines from day 1 this year.
In any case, you should see a shift across the district to “grading what
matters.” You can count on
individual teachers communicating their grading procedures, as they have in the
past.
Attendance Procedures – Attached to this e-mail, you should find the policy approved
by the district. In essence, it
means that any student absence is considered an “unexcused” absence until you
provide documentation that proves otherwise. After a number of unexcused absences, interventions are
planned. The new procedures
required a shift in thinking on my part.
I’ve always viewed “excused” as “OK” and “unexcused” as “truant.” By being marked as “unexcused” we are
not saying that the reason is not legitimate. It just doesn’t fit the criteria. As a parent, I realize that my children will have a number
of “unexcused” absences in the coming year. It doesn’t mean he/she is skipping school, or truant.
Please remember to report
any student attendance issues to the office. If your child is leaving early for an appointment, we’ll see
that he/she is up there and waiting for you when you arrive.
Spartan Stadium – I’m sure most of you have driven by the ‘new’ Spartan Stadium. Hopefully many of you are planning on
attending Friday night’s opening game against Mount Vernon. There are a few new expectations that
you need to be aware of:
1. Family
Passes – only admitted on the home (South) gate.
2. Elementary
age students must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
3. Middle
school age students must sit with parents or in the ‘middle school section.’
4. Spectators
are expected to be in the stands – no loitering, running around, or leaning on
the fence.
Gym Floor –
We are nearing completion of a long overdue renovation of the SMS gym. Last spring new lights were donated and
installed. This summer we painted
and put in a new floor. It looks
like an entirely different (new) facility.
Air Conditioning – With the exception of the gym and hallways, SMS is now entirely air
conditioned. This is a huge step
in not only providing students with a more comfortable environment during the
school year, but also opens up possibilities for use of the facility during the
summer months in future years.
Communication – Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter (@MikeHerdliska) and my blog at http://mikeherdliska.blogspot.com/ for random updates on my thoughts and experiences at
Solon Middle School. Please feel
free to contact me at miherdliska@solon.k12.ia.us or phone 624-3401 ext. 1303 if you ever have any
questions.
Upcoming Events –
August 24 – Pep Rally @ Spartan Stadium – 2:40PM
August 30 – Magazine Sales Kick-Off
September 3 – Labor Day – No School
September 6 – 1PM Early Dismissal
September 6 – Fall Activity Pictures
Thank you – let’s make this
a GREAT year at SMS,
Mike
No comments:
Post a Comment