Dave Stenersen - Principal MAY 2015 Husky Voice enews Dear Parents, As we move into May, there are several important things happening or about to happen that impact our students, and in the process, you. Spring sports are underway, and our 8th graders are all registered for the high school. We have SBAC testing and student-led conferences coming up, and there is information below about both of these important events. Other end-of-the-year things like yearbooks and Silverwood for 8th graders also pop up, so I am including lots of this information in this month s newsletter. Northwood Students Fight Hunger - Twice The Northwood ASB sponsored our fifth annual two-week food drive earlier in March. Besides having a lot of fun, students at Northwood collected and donated over 4,000 food items to the Mead Food Bank. The combined 7th grade science classes raised over $2000 which was used to purchase food and materials to make over 10,000 packaged meals. The meals were all made assembly-line style by 7th grade students on April 2nd. Special thanks to the 7th grade Generation Alive Lead Team, a group of 12 seventh graders that were the driving force behind this incredible effort. NJHS Awards Presentation On Tuesday, April 16, Northwood Middle School celebrated our 33rd Annual National Junior Honor Society Awards Presentation. Started in 1982 with 27 students honored, this ceremony recognizes students that have maintained a 3.6 or higher GPA while at Northwood. This year there were 182 students honored for outstanding academic excellence in front of hundreds of their family members. Over the last five years, Northwood has seen 825 students receive this honor. Congratulations!! PAGE 1
MAY 2015 SBAC Testing at Northwood You have probably read or watched news about the SBAC testing taking place in much of our nation. You also may have heard your son or daughter talk about the up-coming SBA tests. We will begin testing the SBAC (Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium) on Monday, May 4th in all of our social studies classes. The SBA is a common assessment of reading, writing and math skills that is being given for the first time this spring as the assessment of the common core standards that now guide curriculums in 43 states. This is the first testing I have ever been part of that is bigger than our state assessments, which began as the WASL (Washington Assessment of Student Learning) and later became the MSP (Measure of Student Progress). The SBAC website shows 20 states as participating members, so my assumption is that these 20 states, including Washington, are giving the same SBAC tests. The SBA is given as on-line assessment, requiring schools to use limited computers as they manage who takes which assessment when. Different schools have developed different plans, based on number of computers and the way classes are set up. At Northwood, we have elected to give the four SBAC sections over consecutive weeks in classes by department. On Monday, May 4, all students in social studies classes will log on and begin the ELA (English Language Arts) section. The class periods will remain the same, so students can work on-line for about 40 minutes before they log-off. Once they log-off, that section of the SBA is finished for them (they can t go back) but they will continue that part of the assessment the next day in the same class. We have planned for three days (Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday) for this part of the SBA. Students that miss Monday will makeup the assessment on Thursday or Friday in the library. Students will take a different ELA assessment the following week, and that will occur in their English classes with a four-day testing schedule. The next two weeks will have math assessments being done in math classes. This testing schedule requires us to coordinate about 180 computers, a special log-on for each student, and strict testing guidelines. We have prepared hard to try to this process as well as we can, and we greatly appreciate your help and support. It is very important that students arrive on-time and ready to go on Monday morning. Students that miss Monday will spend Tuesday and Wednesday silently reading in class while they wait for their make-up testing in the library later in the week. Friday, June 12 - Last Day of School - Early dismissal 11:00 PAGE 2
MAY2015 SBAC Testing Q & A There has been a fair amount of questions and concerns around the SBAC. Yesterday, I received an e-mail from a parent asking questions that I thought were good questions to address in this newsletter. I asked and received permission to share those questions below. My answers are in italics: 1) Does this test carry any weight on the students future grades this or next year? No weight on grades at all. In the past, we have not gotten results from state testing back until August. We are being told that we will have results much sooner this year, but those results will not be used in grading students. 2) Does this test carry any weight on where / how the students will be placed during this or in the following school year? Results of the SBAC could be used as one of the pieces of data when students are placed in certain classes. It is important that students do their best work, so that the results are an accurate measure of their skill level, and their ability to apply those skills. 3) Are ALL STUDENTS REQUIRED to take this up coming test? Yes, unless they are opted out by their parents. 4) Is this test going to replace the MSP test? Yes. Last year many schools did a practice SBAC but received no results back. Northwood and Mountainside opted to take the final offering of the state s MSP because we did get results back. This year we still gave the state MSP test in science to our 8th graders. Next year, the SBA will be the only state assessment given. 5) Why is this SBAC exam being tested by the kids? The question implies that this huge undertaking is not yet perfected. I know that much of last year was spent with pilot tests given in thousands of schools, but I also know that something this big and different will not just magically work flawlessly. We have done and will do our best to have our students prepared. That s why we so appreciate our parents and their support as we do our best to allow students to demonstrate what they know and what they can do. 6) What is the ultimate purpose of this test? There are probably many answers to this question. I believe the purpose is to give the same common assessment to students around our country that will allow them to demonstrate their mastery of skills in reading, writing, listening and math, and their ability to apply those skills. This has been an intense and at times frustrating experience, as state targets change, but we have tried to adjust for them. Our students will be best served if they are able to demonstrate all that they know, and we help insure that this happens in a serious, appropriate environment. Thanks for your help in this matter. You re welcome, anonymous parent. Thanks for your great questions. The testing and student-led schedule is listed below. PAGE 3
MAY 2015 Keoni Aikau Memorial On April 12, Northwood lost one of our students. We were deeply saddened to learn that Keoni Aikau passed away during the week of Spring Break. Keoni was a happy and friendly student in our DLC. He had many friends, and loved basketball. Students and staff wanted to do something that would reflect who Keoni was. As result we have planned an event in his honor. On Wednesday, May 27 we will have our first annual Keoni Aikau Lightning Tournament during both lunches. Lightning is a basketball elimination game like Bump without the bump. During this tournament we will whittle down participants to a final 7th and 8th grade champion, and engrave their names on a special plaque. Every year, on the Wednesday after Memorial Day, we will continue to celebrate Keoni s life with this activity. We also plan on releasing a number of balloons in his honor as part of this day. His family and friends plan on being part of this event. Check our webpage after May 27th to see who this year s lightning champs are. Dave Barnes Honored at WSSAAA Conference Job Shadow - May 7 Thursday, May 7th will be Northwood s Job Shadow Day where 8th graders are encouraged to make arrangements to spend the day on the job with a person in a career that they are very interested in. Students write about the experience and present their information the next day. When communication is stressed, and there is a premium set on planning, this has proven to an outstanding experience for students. Our goal this year is to set the stage on May 7th for the best Job Shadow Day we ve ever had. Thanks for your support. Last Wednesday morning, Northwood s own Athletic Director was honored in front of nearly 300 athletic directors from around the state at the Washington State Secondary Schools Athletic Administration A s s o c i a t i o n S t a t e Convention, receiving the WSSAAA Athletic Director Outstanding Service Award. Mr. Barnes, who has been a teacher at Northwood since 1978, and our athletic director for the last five years has been deeply involved in athletics and helping to provide our students with an awesome middleschool sports experience. PAGE 4
MAY2015 Student Led Conferences And Book Fair Student-led conferences are scheduled on the afternoons (and early in the mornings) of from May 19 to May 22. On early-release days, students who order lunch will receive a sack lunch. Students will be released at 11:00. Students that stay for track or baseball practices will have a supervised lunch from 11:00 until practice begins at 11:30. Coaches will be letting their athletes know what time practices will be over each day, and what time students need to be picked up. Our library will be open for our Book Fair before and after school during this week. Scheduling Conferences - We have nearly 325 conferences set, but still have over that number to get scheduled. Students were given sign-up information to take home. Please follow the directions on that paper to schedule your conference. If your student did not bring that information home, you can go to Northwood s website and log on there. Their student ID number is needed. This number is the same as their lunch account number. If you don t have Internet access, you can schedule directly by calling our counseling center 465-7527. Plan on a half-hour conference that your student will be in charge of. Expect to see work samples, to hear selfevaluation and possibly some thoughtful and insightful information from your student about their progress at middle school, and what it has to do with their life and future plans. Sometimes parents come expecting a teacher to talk about the student, and they are disappointed when they discover that the student is doing this whole thing. That s the point. The advisor is there to help (sometimes prompt) but not to be the source of information. When this works well (most of the time) it can be a very positive experience for both parent and student. Over the last three years the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive about this experience. It helps if you know what to expect. Silverwood for 8th Graders For the last fifteen years we have reserved space at Silverwood for our eighth graders as the appropriate event to celebrate a positive stint at Northwood. Wednesday, June 10th is the day our 8th grade will go to Silverwood this year. In order to attend, students cannot receive 6 or more demerits during the 4th quarter. The cost, including transportation is $35. ($16 if the student has a Silverwood pass). This cost includes admission, lunch and transportation. The Silverwood trip has been a wonderful way to celebrate the transition from Northwood to Mead High School with friends and staff. PAGE 5
MAY 2015 Some Important Dates and Happenings May 4-6 May 11-14 May 18-22 May 26-28 SBA Testing schedule at Northwood SBA Testing in Social Studies Classes SBA Testing in English Classes SBA Testing in Math Classes SBA Testing in Math Classes Thursday, May 7 Job Shadow - 8th grade Student-led Conferences at Northwood (Book Fair in Library) Tuesday, May 19 Student-led Conferences - Dismissal 11:00 periods 1, 2, 3 Wednesday, May 20 Student-led Conferences - Dismissal 11:00 periods 4, 5, 6 Thursday, May 21 Student-led Conferences - Dismissal 11:00 periods 1, 2, 3 Friday, May 22 Student-led Conferences - Dismissal 11:00 periods 4, 5, 6 Monday, May 25 Tuesday, June 9 Wednesday, June 10 Thursday, June 11 Memorial Day Last Week of School Northwood Yearbook - distributed at lunch 8th Grade Silverwood Trip In-coming 6th graders visit Northwood 8:15-9:10 7th grade awards assembly 9:15-10:05 8th grade awards assembly 7:00 PM Talent Show Friday, June 12 Last Day of School - Early dismissal 11:00 Thanks for taking the time to read this material and to be a partner with us in the education of your son or daughter. Thanks for all your continued support. Dave Stenersen PAGE 6