Grosskopf’s Core 1, Core 2, and Core 4:
All three of Ms. Grosskopf’s classes are using Google Classroom to post the daily agenda and as a place to turn in the daily assignments. We’re using the Google Slideshow like we have all year to post the daily agenda, including the lesson notes, video-lesson made by Ms. Grosskopf, and assignment for the day. We are continuing to use FAR as a communication tool for what is marked turned in, missing, and the proficiency level to formative assessments. Your student should continue to work on their Aleks pies. They should be doing at least 3-5 topics a day. When your student has a knowledge check, they should complete it within 24 hours, spending no more than 1-3 minutes per problem.
When your student turns an assignment in Google Classroom, Ms. Grosskopf looks at it carefully and if it needs revising, she will add a comment stating what needs to be done. It’s very important that your student reads the comments thoroughly, addresses the issue, makes corrections, and submits another version. If something is marked 0/1 or missing, that should be a red flag that the assignment is late or needs to be revised. If it has a 1/1 then that means everything is looking great! Once it’s marked 1/1, FAR is updated to show that assignment has been turned in. Your student should not be submitting anything into FAR, unless they are told to.
Thank you for your patience and support during this Virtual Learning journey. I’m so proud of our students and how they’ve adapted so quickly to this “new normal.” I think some of our students are finally getting the hang of the system, while others still need some support. Please don’t hesitate to reach out on WebEx for video chats, phone calls or messages. I miss you all terribly, and cannot wait to see your faces again in person soon!
Burton’s Core 1, Core 2, and Core 4:
All of Mr. Burton’s classes are having a WebEx meeting to start each day, Core 1 meets at 8:00, Core 2 meets at 9:00, and Core 4 meets at 1:00. If your student misses the meeting please have them reach out to me on WebEx, as I am on from 8:00-2:00 each school day. We are using Google Classroom (GC) as the home for all three classes to start each day. The daily tasks are listed in detail there, along with a copy of the daily slide (daily slideshow is still being used), along with any needed video or Google Doc. All tasks to be turned in should be turned in to Google Classroom!! We are still using For All Rubrics (FAR) to update work being turned in or not, so please check FAR regularly throughout each week, as I update it each day. ALEKS should be used regularly as well, expectations are that 10-15 topics a week are completed in order to complete their pie by June.
Finally, I would just like to say how impressed I am with the 6th graders and their parents for taking on such a drastic shift in paradigm for learning. I wish we could be together at Saratoga, but am blown away with how well almost all of them are doing with following our new regime of virtual learning, and advocating through WebEx when they don’t understand. Keep up the good work, I’m so proud of all of you!! :)
Hemphill’s Core 1, 2, and 4
Virtual Math 101 - Who would have guessed at the beginning of the year that we would be doing this?! Thankfully, many of the tools that we are using for virtual learning have already been in place throughout the school year for all three of my classes. These tools include the following: 1. Google Slides; 2. Google Classroom; 3. For All Rubrics; 4. ALEKS; 5. WebEx Teams (new)
Google Daily Slides: Students should already be in the habit of checking the Google Daily Slides for an agenda of what is to be completed for the day since that is what we did throughout the school year. Links for video lessons and for the daily tasks can be found here as well as on Google Classroom.
Google Classroom: This is a second spot where I am posting links for video lessons, daily tasks (same links as on the Google Daily Slides), portfolio pages, and Google Daily Slide Shows. This is also where students will submit their work when it is completed - submitting work here is new for students. When work is returned, students should read the comments for feedback. Sometimes they may need to resubmit corrections on their task. When an assignment is done correctly and is complete, students will earn a score of 1/1 on Google Classroom, and I will also mark it as finished in For All Rubrics (FAR).
For All Rubrics (FAR): This is the same tool that we were using throughout the school year where families can check to see what tasks have been turned in and what is still missing. Anything with a red checkmark means a task is missing. Students will need to log in under their account for parents/guardians to view this.
ALEKS: The expectation is still that students complete their ALEKS pie by June. There is a posted number of minimum topics that students should already have completed on the Google Daily Slides for each class. When your student has a knowledge check, they should complete it within 24 hours, spending no more than 1-3 minutes per problem. Ask your student to show you the minimum number of topics they should be at as well as their progress in ALEKS.
WebEx Teams: If students have questions, they can post a private message for me on WebEx. I am available from 9am - 11am and can reach out to set up a video chat to help students. I am happy to help, so students should continue to advocate for themselves. This is also the tool I use to host virtual Community Circles about 1-2 times each week. Please encourage your students to join us for Community Circles each week - it is wonderful seeing them and for them to have an opportunity to interact with one another :)
Thank you families for all of your support during this transition to virtual learning! I know it is an adjustment, but overall I have really been pleased with the level of engagement from students. I can’t wait to see them again!
Wray’s Core 1, Core 2, and Core 4:
When we went 100% Virtual a few weeks ago, most of the math tasks, expectations, and routines did not change. Students should be looking at the Daily Agenda Slideshow every day (this was the expectation before going virtual too). On the slides, it will give the tasks and expectations for the day. Lessons are provided on the slides as well, in the form of videos and other resources. Students should also check Google Classroom every day. On Google Classroom, announcements are posted with additional information or instructions that may not be on the slides. Assignments that must be submitted will also be posted on Google Classroom (but also linked on the slides). Prior to going virtual, students rarely submitted math assignments on Google Classroom (they would just get them checked during class), but it’s an easy step and most students should know how to do this. Students are still using Notability to download and complete assignments. This has been the case all year and students can upload their assignment as a PDF easily when they need to attach it to Google Classroom. It is important that students are checking for feedback on Google Classroom too; this is the only way that they know if they are doing the work correctly, making mistakes, or need to re-do something. We will continue to use For All Rubrics (F.A.R.) to track work completion and proficiency feedback. Students should check this periodically to see if they have anything missing (maybe that they forgot to submit). Then there is ALEKS, which is the perfect tool for virtual learning. Students should be working on Aleks regularly. Aleks is definitely not a new tool; In fact, students reflected on their Aleks progress earlier this week.
The last tool, which is new to our virtual learning, is WebEx. WebEx is simply an efficient way for Students to communicate. There is a WebEx Space for each class for students to ask questions or for a teacher to post a message to the whole class. Students can also one-on-one chat with a teacher or a peer through WebEx too. The voice and video chat feature is perfect for one-on-one conversations when students have questions or need help. WebEx also allows screen sharing so that the teacher can show how to do something or a student can work through a problem with the teacher. This tool has been working great! WebEx also allows the chance to do a Live Class Virtual meeting once in a while. These will be communicated ahead of time so that students know, but they are always optional, since we know that schedules are different for every student.
So, to summarize: Students should be using: 1) Daily Agenda Slideshow, 2) Google Classroom, 3) Aleks, 4) For All Rubrics, and 5) WebEx. (Note: Students working on Algebra 2 and Pre-Calculus are still using Blackboard too, but no other students are using Blackboard (BB9) at this time.)
All three of Ms. Grosskopf’s classes are using Google Classroom to post the daily agenda and as a place to turn in the daily assignments. We’re using the Google Slideshow like we have all year to post the daily agenda, including the lesson notes, video-lesson made by Ms. Grosskopf, and assignment for the day. We are continuing to use FAR as a communication tool for what is marked turned in, missing, and the proficiency level to formative assessments. Your student should continue to work on their Aleks pies. They should be doing at least 3-5 topics a day. When your student has a knowledge check, they should complete it within 24 hours, spending no more than 1-3 minutes per problem.
When your student turns an assignment in Google Classroom, Ms. Grosskopf looks at it carefully and if it needs revising, she will add a comment stating what needs to be done. It’s very important that your student reads the comments thoroughly, addresses the issue, makes corrections, and submits another version. If something is marked 0/1 or missing, that should be a red flag that the assignment is late or needs to be revised. If it has a 1/1 then that means everything is looking great! Once it’s marked 1/1, FAR is updated to show that assignment has been turned in. Your student should not be submitting anything into FAR, unless they are told to.
Thank you for your patience and support during this Virtual Learning journey. I’m so proud of our students and how they’ve adapted so quickly to this “new normal.” I think some of our students are finally getting the hang of the system, while others still need some support. Please don’t hesitate to reach out on WebEx for video chats, phone calls or messages. I miss you all terribly, and cannot wait to see your faces again in person soon!
Burton’s Core 1, Core 2, and Core 4:
All of Mr. Burton’s classes are having a WebEx meeting to start each day, Core 1 meets at 8:00, Core 2 meets at 9:00, and Core 4 meets at 1:00. If your student misses the meeting please have them reach out to me on WebEx, as I am on from 8:00-2:00 each school day. We are using Google Classroom (GC) as the home for all three classes to start each day. The daily tasks are listed in detail there, along with a copy of the daily slide (daily slideshow is still being used), along with any needed video or Google Doc. All tasks to be turned in should be turned in to Google Classroom!! We are still using For All Rubrics (FAR) to update work being turned in or not, so please check FAR regularly throughout each week, as I update it each day. ALEKS should be used regularly as well, expectations are that 10-15 topics a week are completed in order to complete their pie by June.
Finally, I would just like to say how impressed I am with the 6th graders and their parents for taking on such a drastic shift in paradigm for learning. I wish we could be together at Saratoga, but am blown away with how well almost all of them are doing with following our new regime of virtual learning, and advocating through WebEx when they don’t understand. Keep up the good work, I’m so proud of all of you!! :)
Hemphill’s Core 1, 2, and 4
Virtual Math 101 - Who would have guessed at the beginning of the year that we would be doing this?! Thankfully, many of the tools that we are using for virtual learning have already been in place throughout the school year for all three of my classes. These tools include the following: 1. Google Slides; 2. Google Classroom; 3. For All Rubrics; 4. ALEKS; 5. WebEx Teams (new)
Google Daily Slides: Students should already be in the habit of checking the Google Daily Slides for an agenda of what is to be completed for the day since that is what we did throughout the school year. Links for video lessons and for the daily tasks can be found here as well as on Google Classroom.
Google Classroom: This is a second spot where I am posting links for video lessons, daily tasks (same links as on the Google Daily Slides), portfolio pages, and Google Daily Slide Shows. This is also where students will submit their work when it is completed - submitting work here is new for students. When work is returned, students should read the comments for feedback. Sometimes they may need to resubmit corrections on their task. When an assignment is done correctly and is complete, students will earn a score of 1/1 on Google Classroom, and I will also mark it as finished in For All Rubrics (FAR).
For All Rubrics (FAR): This is the same tool that we were using throughout the school year where families can check to see what tasks have been turned in and what is still missing. Anything with a red checkmark means a task is missing. Students will need to log in under their account for parents/guardians to view this.
ALEKS: The expectation is still that students complete their ALEKS pie by June. There is a posted number of minimum topics that students should already have completed on the Google Daily Slides for each class. When your student has a knowledge check, they should complete it within 24 hours, spending no more than 1-3 minutes per problem. Ask your student to show you the minimum number of topics they should be at as well as their progress in ALEKS.
WebEx Teams: If students have questions, they can post a private message for me on WebEx. I am available from 9am - 11am and can reach out to set up a video chat to help students. I am happy to help, so students should continue to advocate for themselves. This is also the tool I use to host virtual Community Circles about 1-2 times each week. Please encourage your students to join us for Community Circles each week - it is wonderful seeing them and for them to have an opportunity to interact with one another :)
Thank you families for all of your support during this transition to virtual learning! I know it is an adjustment, but overall I have really been pleased with the level of engagement from students. I can’t wait to see them again!
Wray’s Core 1, Core 2, and Core 4:
When we went 100% Virtual a few weeks ago, most of the math tasks, expectations, and routines did not change. Students should be looking at the Daily Agenda Slideshow every day (this was the expectation before going virtual too). On the slides, it will give the tasks and expectations for the day. Lessons are provided on the slides as well, in the form of videos and other resources. Students should also check Google Classroom every day. On Google Classroom, announcements are posted with additional information or instructions that may not be on the slides. Assignments that must be submitted will also be posted on Google Classroom (but also linked on the slides). Prior to going virtual, students rarely submitted math assignments on Google Classroom (they would just get them checked during class), but it’s an easy step and most students should know how to do this. Students are still using Notability to download and complete assignments. This has been the case all year and students can upload their assignment as a PDF easily when they need to attach it to Google Classroom. It is important that students are checking for feedback on Google Classroom too; this is the only way that they know if they are doing the work correctly, making mistakes, or need to re-do something. We will continue to use For All Rubrics (F.A.R.) to track work completion and proficiency feedback. Students should check this periodically to see if they have anything missing (maybe that they forgot to submit). Then there is ALEKS, which is the perfect tool for virtual learning. Students should be working on Aleks regularly. Aleks is definitely not a new tool; In fact, students reflected on their Aleks progress earlier this week.
The last tool, which is new to our virtual learning, is WebEx. WebEx is simply an efficient way for Students to communicate. There is a WebEx Space for each class for students to ask questions or for a teacher to post a message to the whole class. Students can also one-on-one chat with a teacher or a peer through WebEx too. The voice and video chat feature is perfect for one-on-one conversations when students have questions or need help. WebEx also allows screen sharing so that the teacher can show how to do something or a student can work through a problem with the teacher. This tool has been working great! WebEx also allows the chance to do a Live Class Virtual meeting once in a while. These will be communicated ahead of time so that students know, but they are always optional, since we know that schedules are different for every student.
So, to summarize: Students should be using: 1) Daily Agenda Slideshow, 2) Google Classroom, 3) Aleks, 4) For All Rubrics, and 5) WebEx. (Note: Students working on Algebra 2 and Pre-Calculus are still using Blackboard too, but no other students are using Blackboard (BB9) at this time.)