MAY 2020

NEW VIRTUAL LEARNING UPDATES!

We have some important updates for virtual learning regarding the revised calendar as well as grading and assessment practices.  Last night, the School Committee voted to approve a couple of key changes that will help you plan for the rest of the academic year:

1. The revised District Calendar has been approved to align with guidance from the State.  Based upon the revised district calendar, we have updated our Green/White Calendar, found here.  You will notice that there are PD days on May 6^th, May 20^th and June 1^st.  So, students do not report to virtual instruction those days.  Also, May 15^th will be a Holiday.  If your child has an AP exam scheduled for May 15^th, this AP exam session will still take place that day.

2. The School Committee also voted to approve grading and assessment procedures.  The updated procedures can be found here.  In summary:
1. We will continue with our traditional, numerical grading practices.  Students will NOT have the option of Pass/Fail.
2. The Semester Weighting will remain the same at:  Q3: 40%, Q4: 40% and Major Course Assessment: 20%
3. The Q4 Weighting will change to as follows, this allows for less emphasis/weighting on major assessments/projects: 

• The following may count for 50% of the final grade:

• Homework (no more than 15%), quizzes, daily assignments, reviews, warm-ups, and similar short assessments.
• The following may count for 50% of the final grade:
• unit assessments, district assessments, performance tasks, major projects, research papers, and similar more substantive, summative assessments

4. Instead of the “typical semester exams”, each course will create an “Alternative MCA” which will be a summative assessment, performance task, and/or project-based assessment that captures the Essential Power Standards that have been taught over the course of the semester. 
5. We will be waiving the “Must Pass” expectation for all classes that are graduation requirements.  This means, as long as the student’s semester final average is 70 or above, the student is not required to pass the Alternative MCA to pass the course. 
6. For students who fail their Alternative MCA, but have a passing grade (70 or above) for the semester (prior to the exam), they will have the opportunity to do a retake. 

Here are some important end-of-year dates:

SENIORS:

• Last Instructional Day for Seniors: May 29^th
• Senior Summative Assessment Window:  May 26^th - 29^th
• Senior Assessment/Assignment Make-Ups: June 2^nd – June 3^rd
• Senior “Graduation”:  June 5^th

UNDERCLASSMEN:

• Underclassmen Summative Assessment Window:  June 10^th, 11^th, 12^th & 15^th
• Underclassmen Summative Assessment Make-Ups:  June 16^th & 17^th
• Last day of School:  6/17

We thank you for your continued support of virtual instruction.  

Stay healthy,

Mr. MacKenzie, Mr. Auth & Ms. Spas

CELEBRATING OUR SENIOR CLASS

Please know that we continue to work with our senior class council, senior class advisors and central office in planning for a way to celebrate and honor our senior class.  It is very important to us that we plan a celebration that honors our seniors while also ensuring their healthy and safety; we continue to look for guidance from the State in our decision-making.  Once a formal plan has been developed, we will make sure to communicate all specifics with you once that time comes.

Also, we are working on a plan for cap, gown, and yearbook distribution.  Once this plan has been finalized, we will share next steps.  Faculty are also in the process of nominating students for senior and underclassmen awards.  We have a plan for how senior awards will be shared and will send that out shortly.  For our underclassmen awards, we hope to be able to hold the award ceremony in-person this upcoming fall.

VIDEO MESSAGES TO SENIORS!

A few weeks ago, faculty and administrators shared words of encouragement to the senior class, check out their videos here: https://flipgrid.com/messagetochs2020

May 1st was Decision Day, a day that celebrates the post-secondary decisions that students make to pursue college, career or military.  In the following link, faculty and administrators share their former post-secondary decisions and offer words of advice; while seniors share their plans for their future, check out the videos here: https://flipgrid.com/decisiondayseniors

AP EXAM INFORMATION

AP Exams will take place online this year during the weeks of May 11th through the 22nd.  Most of the AP Exams will be 1 or 2 free-response questions and all of the exams will be open book and open notes.  Each exam will be approximately 45-minutes, however, students are expected to login 30-minutes prior to the exam.  If your child is taking an AP exam this year, you and your child are encouraged to view the following site: https://apcoronavirusupdates.collegeboard.org/ where all updated AP Exam information can be found.  To see which day a specific exam will take place, please see this link: https://apcoronavirusupdates.collegeboard.org/students/taking-ap-exams/ap-exam-schedule.  AP teachers will be reviewing the AP exam protocol and process with students next week and we will be working together for a smooth testing process. You are encouraged to view the following resources:

• AP Testing Guide for the online exams:  2020 AP Testing Guide.  This guide explains the exam day process, the steps students need to take before exam day, and details about the e-tickets students will need to participate.  

• Exam Day Checklist for students:  2020 AP Exam Day Checklist  Teachers should have their students complete this checklist for each exam they take and keep it next to them while testing.

• Exam Day Experience:  This new resource at https://apcoronavirusupdates.collegeboard.org/educators/taking-the-exams/exam-day-experience will help students get comfortable with how the 2020 online AP Exams will work, so they can do their best work on exam day. We know that educators also want to understand what online exams will be like.

• Student Video Lessons:  Please encourage students to access the AP YouTube channel to get review information to help prepare for the exam. All of the live courses are recorded so students can access them on demand. We have begun airing Master Classes hosted by well-known and/or celebrity guest instructors. Here is the link to the AP YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/advancedplacement

• Parent Webinar:  The parent webinar that was held last week is recorded and can be accessed here:  https://globalmeet.webcasts.com/viewer/event.jsp?ei=1302024&tp_key=73070ccd21 The focus of this webinar is on how parents can help their students prepare for this year’s exam and how colleges and universities consider AP in their admissions policies. The panelists provide generous examples from their role as AP parents as well as educators.

GOOD VIRTUAL HABITS

As we continue with virtual learning for the remainder of the academic year, it will be very important for students to get into the habit of checking their emails daily.  This helps to ensure communications aren't missed and is an important life skill for our students to develop.

From the Chariho FFA

The FFA is excited to announce that the Plant Sale Fundraiser will still be happening this year!  Instead of holding the plant sale at the school, the FFA is partnering with Our Kids Farm in Exeter.

How to support this fundraiser:

• Shop online at ourkidsfarm.com to choose from beautiful, quality hanging baskets, annuals, vegetables and herbs
• Place an order between May 6 - May 20
• In the checkout, arrange for a pickup time/ date and mention ‘CHARIHO FFA’ in the checkout notes to have your purchase applied to our fundraiser
• Pick up your order at 555 Gardner Road, Exeter, RI (just past Wawaloam Campground)

Just as in years past, the FFA would like to thank you for your continued support of our program!