Connecting
Waters Charter School
By Sherri Nelson
We are happy to
announce that we will be providing you with a means of systematically
testing your students throughout the year. This will be a great help
in preparing your students for the STAR test each year! Many of our
wonderful ESs and a parent participated in the development of our school wide
assessments!
These tests will be
available for your students next fall. Hopefully, this will make testing
next spring feel like a breeze! These assessments will be designed to validate
you as you move through the year. They will also help you to know if there
are other teaching techniques that could benefit your
student.
During our planning
meeting we answered the following questions about assessment:
Why have an assessment
system?
It
validates parent choice
We can
know when to give interventions
Test out
of grade level and see progress
More
frequent feedback
NCLB
requires all subgroups meet their targets
Possible
negative consequences toward charter renewal
Choose
proper curriculum for our students to plan for each school
year
To make
sure we are meeting the needs of our students
Know how
students are doing
Help
remove test anxiety
The group
understood that there are several ways to assess our students: portfolios,
demonstrations, observations, and more.
However, the state considers the STAR to be the determining factor as to
the success of our charter school.
Since this is the case, it would be wise for us to provide an assessment
system that will prepare our students for the STAR. The STAR/ CST are based on mastery of
the California State Standards.
Therefore, our assessment will be standards based. We read, discussed and concluded that it
would be very difficult to teach every California standard in each subject by
STAR testing. We decided to base
our benchmark assessment system on the ‘essential’ standards.
What should we
assess?
After
discussion and consideration the group chose to assess Math and Language Arts
for our pilot year starting next fall.
We will add Social Science and Science in 2005/2006. We will add Visual and Performing Arts
and Foreign Language in 2006/2007.
How often should we
assess?
We will
test 4 times a year which is about every 8 weeks. Our assessments will take place in the
2004/2005 school year: Sept.
20-24; Nov. 15-19; Jan. 24-28th; March 14-18. All assessments will be completed prior
to the STAR testing and before the end of the school year. This will help parents also to decide if
other curriculum would be a better choice for their student in the following
school year.
How good is good
enough?
We
decided that we would classify the students into two categories, proficient and
non
proficient. 80-100% is proficient
and 0-79% is non proficient.
How many items should we
include?
Studies
show that 5 or more questions per standard would show whether a student has
mastered
a given
standard. We will have 6 questions
on each standard.
Who will have the opportunity to
test?
For the
2004/2005 school year we will test grades 2-11 in math and language
arts.
In
2005/2006 we will add grades k & 1 for math and language
arts.
In
2006/2007 we will test 12th grade students in math, language arts,
and science.
Coming
Soon!
On our
website you will soon be able to view the standards to be tested during each
test cycle so that you can plan your year.
We will also have the standards written in kid friendly language for
everyone to understand!
We also
plan to have a workshop to help parents assess their curriculum and how
completely it covers the standards that the children need to know. This workshop is tentatively set for
June 17th. Call our
office to find out more about this workshop!
By Loie Varner
The second annual CWCS Open House was held April 20, 2004. The open house was held in the Waterford High School multi-purpose room. It was a great success, with approximately 125 people in attendance. The open house had a little something special for everyone who attended.
For those who were new to the school or were thinking about joining there was time to talk with the CWCS director, as well as, see a video providing information about our school. It was a good time for newcomers to meet some of our ESs and learn more about our contract program classes.
Currently enrolled families as well as those new to the school were treated to exceptional student displays that included art work, written work, sewing projects, and much more. If that was not enough to make every one proud to be a part of CWCS, there were a number of outstanding performances by our students. Performances included students playing the piano, guitar, violin, and cello. One of the piano students even performed a piece that he had written himself.
Spencer Gregg, a CWCS ES, gave a short speech on why our school works for so many students. He encouraged all those in attendance to see CWCS as a quality choice in education for all students grades K-12.
It was a good time to pick up catalogs from many of our vendors, see the list of prospective fall classes available at the learning centers, and meet many of the contract program instructors and talk with them about upcoming classes.
Congratulations to all those who won door prizes. Prizes included calculators, clay, pastels, pen sets, a complete sing spell read and write set, and much more. Thank you to Office Depot, Pearson Education, and Lakeshore Learning for supplying the door prizes.
All of us at CWCS would like to thank those who helped make this open house such a special event. To those of you who missed the open house, start planning now to attend next year. You won’t want to miss it again!
3 Yearbooks
Received 4 Prospective Parent
Orientation Ceres/Modesto
Learning Center 6:30
p.m. 7 Parent council Election
Ballot Due 11-12 CAHSEE
Make-ups (10th Grade
Only) 11 Parent Council
Meeting 18 8th Grade
Graduation at Gym in
Waterford 20 Senior Graduation at
HS Gym in
Waterford 20 Last Day of
School 21 Annual School
Picnic*
CWCS
May Events
*END
OF SCHOOL PICNIC
Friday, May
21
Donnelly Park, Turlock*
11:00 am to 3:30 pm
??????????????
HOW DO I SIGN UP FOR THIS PICNIC ?????????????
RSVP ASAP 2
Julie H. or the CWCS Waterford office at 209-874-9463
Information required:
1. Family
Name
2. Number of adults coming
3. Number of children
coming
4. Ice Cream Topping donation
5. Summer Contest
participants & their ages
Donnelly Park is located on
Fulkerth/Hawkeye, between Golden State &
Geer in Turlock. The main
entrance is on Donnelly Park Drive. We will be near
the big wooden
playground.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
SEE YOU THEN !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
by Becky
Rasmussen
Now that STAR testing is finished, how do you feel your students measured up?
Did they feel well prepared? Were there questions on the test covering material that they had never seen? Hopefully they all breezed right through the tests, but if not, CWCS has a wonderful tool for you to consider using next year – Edusoft (http://www.edusoft.com/).
My son is taking Algebra 1 using a program that we have used for years with great success. However, when reviewing for the STAR test this year, I found that many of the California State Standards were not covered in his program. I quickly picked up another well known program, hoping to fill in the gaps. I was surprised to find that it also was lacking in many areas. That is when I turned to Edusoft. I was able to locate the standards that were not covered in the math program and print out problems covering just those standards. I was also able to print practice problems, standard by standard, thereby reviewing the entire Algebra 1 course using Edusoft.
How can Edusoft help you to prepare for next year? If you have a favorite curriculum that you plan to continue using, check the table of contents against the state standards to see that all of the standards are covered (many publishers have web sites with this information). If you find that your program is lacking in some areas, you do not need to abandon the program, especially if it is one that has worked well for you. You can use Edusoft to see what additional material needs to be added to the coursework, and then use it to print out tests for that work. Your ES will be able to help you with this.
Let’s plan now for a successful testing experience next year. By using this invaluable tool that CWCS has made available, we can make sure our students have studied all of the material in the standards. Our students will be better prepared for testing, which should result in a positive testing experience. And finally we, as parents, will feel confident that we have done our best to prepare our children for their testing experience.
A
fun idea from a parent – go to http://www.bookadventure.com/ to find
quizzes and prizes for reading books!!
Book Adventure is a FREE reading motivation program for children in grades K-8. Children create their own book lists from over 6,000 recommended titles, take multiple choice quizzes on the books they've read offline, and earn points and prizes for their literary successes. (msilva@connectingwaters.org)
IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR
CURRENTLY ENROLLED 6th GRADE STUDENT’S WHO WILL BE ENTERING THE
7TH GRADE IN THE FALL WITH OUR SCHOOL
As of July 1, 1999 a new state law requires all children entering 7th grade to receive:
1. A series of three Hepatitis B immunizations
2. A second combined measles vaccine (MMR)
3. A Tetanus-diphtheria (T-d) booster is also recommended
It takes a minimum of 4 months to complete the series of three Hepatitis B shots. If your Student has already completed the Hepatitis B series and received a second MMR, please mail/fax a copy of those records to the Placerville office as soon as possible.
REQUIREMENT
FOR 1ST GRADERS
Child Health and Disability
Prevention Program (CHDP) is a preventative health program serving California’s
children and youth. CHDP makes early health care available to eligible children,
not only children with obvious health problems, but also to children who seem
well. The CHDP
program works with the Department of Education in administering and monitoring
this requirement and assists low-income children to meet the requirement by
providing them with state-paid health assessments.
CHDP School
Requirements:
By law, all children
entering the first grade are required to have either
a certificate of a CHDP
health examination or a waiver on file at the school in which they enroll.
School health examinations must be completed within 18 months prior to or 90
days after 1st grade entry unless the parent or guardian signs a
waiver stating they do not want, or they are unable to obtain an examination for
their child.
If you have questions
regarding the CHDP requirements please call
Cary Sharp in Student
Records at 800-979-4436.
Immunization
Update
Chickenpox
(varicella) vaccine is required by California law for
kindergarten
entry, effective July 1, 2001. The
chickenpox shot is
given
on or after the first birthday.
DTaP
(diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus), Polio, Hepatitis B and
MMR
(measles,
mumps, rubella) immunizations are also required for school
entry.
You
must show proof of immunization, such as the yellow
California
Immunization
Record, to register your child. Check with your doctor
or
clinic about the shots needed for school.
7th Grade Immunization
Requirements
There
are now 7th grade immunization requirements. Students
entering
7th
grade in both public and private schools now need
additional
shots.
They need 3 hepatitis B immunizations* and a second
measles
(or
MMR) shot. A Td booster is recommended as well. The school
will
ask to
see your child's Immunization Record as proof of
immunization.
It
takes a minimum of 4 months to complete the series of three hepatitis
B
shots.
In order for your child to enroll for the 7th grade he/she
must
have started the series. Please take a moment to review your
childs
immunization
record and plan ahead.
* A
2-shot series of hepatitis B vaccine for 11-15 year olds can
meet
the
requirements depending on the vaccine your doctor provides.
Check
with
your school.
The law
allows permanent or temporary medical exemptions. If
exempted
for
medical reasons, a doctor's written statement is required.
If
immunizations
are contrary to the religious or personal beliefs of
the
parent, a personal beliefs waiver needs to be signed. (On
the
back of
the California School Immunization Record is a personal
beliefs
waiver to be signed by the parent. Make sure the student's
name,
address, and birthdate are written on the front of the form
and
that
the signature is in the personal beliefs box on the back.)
For
further information, contact your physician, school nurse
or
local
health department. This information was provided by the
California
Department of Health Services, Immunization Branch, 2151
Berkeley
Way, Berkeley, CA 94704.
Attention:
It’s hard to believe that the end of the
school year is drawing to an end.
We now have the course descriptions completed on the web for the a-g
elective courses. Connecting Waters
has Earth Science, Life Science, Physical Science and Economics as their g
category of elective courses. The
a-g requirements need to be completed for subject requirement consideration into
a UC school. The students must take
15 units of high school courses to fulfill the subject requirement, and at least
seven of the 15 units must be taken in the last two years of high school. (A
unit is equal to an academic year, or two semesters of study.) A student who does not meet the Subject
and Scholarship requirements may be able to qualify for admission to the
University by examination alone.
Please keep in mind that this is only the minimum subject requirements
given. Anything above and beyond
the minimum always helps to enhance the student’s
prospects.
“A-G” Subject
Requirements
“a” History/Social Science-2 years
required.
“b” English-4 years
required.
“c” Mathematics-3 years required, 4 years
recommended.
“d” Laboratory Science-2 years required, 3
years recommended.
“e” Language Other Than English-2 years
required, 3 recommended.
“f” Visual And Performing Arts (VPA)-1 year
required.
“g” College Preparatory Electives-1 year
required.
Guidance
~ ASSESSMENT NEWS
~
Thank you very
much to all who participated in STAR testing!
It really is a necessary
component of keeping our school operational and we appreciate your
support.
CAHSEE Make up testing is being administered on May 11th and
12th 9:30am-apx 1:30:
May 11(the English Language Arts portion)
May 12(
the Math portion)
ONLY those tenth grade students who did not take a
CAHSEE test in February
are allowed to take the test in May.
Students who
took the test in February and did not pass will have the
opportunity to
attempt it again next year.
We are still waiting on the student scores from
the publisher and will mail
them to the parents as soon as we receive
them.
There are a number of students who still need to take their
Physical Fitness
test, details on how we will accomplish this will be
forthcoming.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR POSITIVE EFFORTS IN
SUPPORTING CONNECTING WATERS!
Ceres/Modesto
Learning Center News May 2004
Curriculum
Spotlight
Do
you need an effective learning tool for memorizing multiplication, division,
addition, and subtraction facts? The CMLC offers a computer program called,
“QuickFacts – Basic Math Facts,” that is available to use in our computer
center. Quickfacts quizzes students with flash cards that provide auditory and
visual feedback, capture mistakes, and displays progress charts. The program is
able to set goals, review mistakes, and print missed problems. By using
Quickfacts, your students will improve their speed and accuracy, practice
independently, and increase test scores.
Prospective
Fall Classes
We have some new and exciting prospective fall classes at the Ceres/Modesto Learning Center. If you see a class that interests you, please talk with your ES about signing you up in the fall. If you have a class that you would love to see offered at the center, please call the center and let us know! Some of our fall classes may include:
- Better Writing
- High School Writing
- Readers Theater
- Puppets
- Hands On Science
- Health and Exercise
- Arts and Crafts
- Learning to Draw
- Advanced Drawing
- Watercolor Painting
- Creative Scrap booking
- Basic Sewing Skills
- Math in the Kitchen
- Basic Math Skills
- Pre Algebra
- Algebra 1
- Guitar
- Piano
- Violin
- Voice
- Tutoring
Materials
Are your closets overwhelmed with text books that you are finished using? If you have CWCS materials that your students will no longer be using next year, please return them to the CMLC and we can restock them for another family to use. If you stop by the center before the end of the year, be sure and check the shelves for new material coming in before you ask your ES to place an order for your curriculum for next year. Our goal is to continually recycle materials so you have plenty of fantastic learning options from which to choose! The CMLC also offers many catalogs from Connecting Waters vendors that will help you in ordering any materials you do not find at the center.
Parent
Orientation
For all parents interested in enrolling a student in CWCS next year, we are offering a parent orientation May 4th at 6:30 pm at the center. This is a great opportunity to ask questions and find out more about our school! Call 209-541-1531 for more information or directions.
Funding
Thank you to those of you who support our center! If you found that you ended up with extra funding in your account this year, it is not too late to donate your excess funding to the CWCS learning center. Contact your ES about filling out a Program Expense Agreement. We are also now accepting Program Expense Agreements for the 2005 school year.
Manteca
Learning Center News
Cathy Moretto, Site Program
Coordinator
Kim Davis & Kathrin Gardea, Site Clerks
Closed
Mondays
Tuesday- Thursday 9-4
Friday 10-3:30
209-239-7306
New
at the Center Due to the generosity of the Lake family, we now have a
complete set of Encyclopedia Brittanica as well as a set of Children’s
Brittanica. Both sets are available for use as reference books at the Learning
Center. They will not be allowed to be taken from the Learning
Center.
Materials Return As you close the school year, please look
through your textbooks and materials, and see what you have that won’t be used
again by your family. Let your ES know what you have and, if they don’t need
them for another of their students, please consider turning the materials in at
the Manteca or Ceres/Modesto Learning Centers. We get many new families
throughout the year who need books immediately or don’t have the enough
instructional funding available to order all they need right away. Your
teacher’s editions, textbooks, hands-on materials and unused workbooks will help
with this need. After clearing them through your ES, drop materials off during
any of our open hours. On the same
subject, please remember to return materials checked out during the year to the
Manteca Learning Center. Remember to write them as returned in the checkout log
at the front desk. As you go to order for next year, check out the materials at
the Learning Center to see if we have what you need. All materials are free of
charge for check out and use by Connecting Waters students.
Learning
Center Support Thank you to those who have so generously supported the
Learning Centers this school year. As you meet with your ES to sign student
agreements for the fall, please remember to sign new agreements for the center
of your choice as well. Full support is only $110 per year for K-8 students and
$155 per year for 9-12 grade students.
Connecting Waters Charter
School
Parent
Orientation
If you have submitted an application for enrollment with
Connecting Waters or are thinking about it, this orientation meeting is for you!
Information regarding our school will be presented with plenty of time devoted
to questions and answers.
There are two dates and locations to choose
from:
April 27, 2004 at 6:30pm
Manteca Learning Center
955 W. Center St., Ste. 9
Manteca, CA 95337
209-239-7306
May 4, 2004 at 6:30pm
Modesto/Ceres Learning Center
Ceres, CA 95307
209-541-1531
Whether
in a classroom or at home, participating in community activities or exploring
learning through community activities, Connecting Waters Charter School offers a
wide range of learning opportunities and programs designed to help your child
learn to his or her highest potential.