New reading program; fall season wrapping up
It is hard to believe that on Tuesday of this week it was near 80 degrees outside and today, Friday, there is SNOW on the ground!!! We all so love our Wisconsin weather. The school year has quickly shifted from new to ongoing and we just crested the halfway point of our first term. It has been a fast six weeks but I believe we are all doing some great things.
One new thing for us this year in our MS and HS English departments is our pilot of the American Reading Company program. This program has really taken off since the beginning of the year. In class, students are provided a short lesson where the teacher models the learning target and demonstrates to students what needs to be practiced. Students are then released to work in small groups and/ or individually for a reading lab and a writing lab experience.
During the lab time, the teacher is able to conference one-on-one with students and also have small group conferences as needed. There is a classroom book that the teacher leads class with, but also each student is selecting books to read, at their level, on their own.
There is an expectation that all students read five hours a week outside of class. This framework allows the teacher much more time to circulate around the room and work with students during class. Students are assessed on their understanding of specific learning targets which are used to then build the assessments. The learning targets are like the individual slices of an orange and as you put them all together you create the whole orange, or the summative assessment.
We also have our own instructional coach from the American Reading Company that works with our teachers in the classroom at least once per month. Our teachers are really enjoying the experience with our students and it is great to stop in the rooms and see every student reading and working hard to enhance their skills.
As parents, you may see something that looks a bit different in your child’s gradebook. All of the assessments are categorized as “formative” and “summative.” Using sports as an analogy, think of formative as the practice and summative as the game. Teachers will work with students on the practice in order to become proficient enough to make it to the game. Just like in sports, we know that mistakes and errors will happen but there will always be opportunities to practice more and continue to improve.
If you have any questions on our new program feel free to reach out to our English teachers and/or myself. We would be happy to share more about it. As you know, we have been unable to fill our choir position. We have currently decided to move our HS and MS choir students into more of an academic support time. Many HS students have chosen to be with other teachers during this period to either help those teachers out or work on other school projects. Our MS students have been put on a rotation with academic support and PE. This allows them to get a little more PE time and assistance with other school work as well. We will continue to search for a certified candidate for this position.
Congratulations to our Homecoming King, Roby Beranek, and Queen, Alyssia Zvolena. All of our students and staff did an excellent job with our Homecoming celebration throughout the week. We had an awesome turn out for the Dig Pink night at the volleyball game on Thursday, which raised nearly $2,000 for breast cancer awareness. The week was then capped off with a big win by the football team and a great dance on Saturday night. Thanks to Mr. Schiller and the student council for all the work they put in to make our Homecoming a success!
All of our fall sports seasons are nearing the end of their regular seasons and many are prepping for tournament action. We thank all of the coaches and athletes for the time they put in to make our programs as successful as they are. We know that the winter sports seasons will be starting soon as our MS boys basketball season will get kicked off next week. We would like to see as many student athletes as possible involved with our programs.
Just a reminder that our mid-term grades have been posted and we encourage parents to check Infinite Campus to continue to monitor and keep track of how your child is doing. We know that communication among teachers, students and parents is a key aspect to success. We will continue to look for ways to assist and reach out to families as we continue through the school year.
Parent teacher conferences will be coming on the night of Oct. 27. We encourage parents to stop in at school and meet with your child’s teachers. We are also available by phone or video conference. If you would like to request a conference you can always call the school office and we can get it scheduled.
It has been a great start to the school year. We continue to be impressed with all the great things the students are doing in school, athletics and our extra-curricular clubs and organizations. Please reach out if you have any questions or concerns as we continue to enjoy our experience this school year.
Take care everyone!! Go Greyhounds!!!
Loyal Middle and High School Principal Doug Dieckman
