Intermediate News April 11
Update For Intermediate Families From Principal Gene Hoskins
Information On This Week's Intermediate School Improvement Team Meeting and NYS Assessments
We are looking forward to a great week in the Intermediate School! Below is some information on events and activities for our school in the coming weeks.
Intermediate School Improvement Team Meeting on Wednesday, April 14:
This Wednesday, April 14 we will have our monthly Intermediate School Improvement Team (ISIT) virtual meeting at 4:00 PM. Our monthly ISIT meeting is an opportunity for shared decision-making for all stakeholders (parents, students, staff members, and community members). Our ISIT meetings are virtual meetings accessed through laptops, phones, or other digital devices using Google meet as the platform. Below is the link you can use to join this virtual meeting on Wednesday at 4:00 PM:
https://meet.google.com/bwq-rsvb-wfq?authuser=0
The agenda for our meeting this week will include the following items:
- Recap/debrief on Intermediate's Spartan Day celebrated on March 19
- Update on plans for summer learning (review and enrichment) during this July
- Update on Intermediate School's MTSS Tiers 1, 2, and 3
- Discussion/Planning for national Staff Appreciation Week
Again, we want our ISIT meetings to have involvement from all stakeholder groups. We hope you will be able to join us for our virtual Improvement Team meeting this Wednesday!
Reminder of Changes to Grades 3-8 NYS Assessments in ELA and Math:
This year the NYS assessments in ELA and Math are returning, but with some significant changes for this year in response to the ongoing impact of COVID on education. This year NYS has reduced the test significantly, using only the Day 1 multiple choice format for state accountability measures. The number of multiple choice questions is also being reduced as they remove the field test questions normally included on Day 1. The writing portion of the assessment (normally Day 2) will be provided to school districts to be used at their discretion and only for internal review.
Why do we want students to participate in the assessments?
There are several important reasons why we feel it is important that all students participate in these reduced, 1-day assessments:
- Student performance of the assessments will have no negative impact on their grades nor the school in any away.
- These multiple-choice assessments are aligned to the grade-level learning standards in ELA and math. They are an important pieces of data on how your child is doing in meeting these standards relative to other students throughout NYS in their same grade. Teachers use the information from these assessments to help determine what gaps your child may have, and what gaps our instructional program as a whole has. By identifying these gaps, teachers can then adjust their instruction and curriculum to better meet the needs of all of our students.
- Taking the assessments help prepare your child for the important assessments they will face throughout his or her education. Big tests are a part of going to school. They always have been, and they will be a part of your child's future in education through his or her eventual graduation from high school. While the NYS assessments in grades 3-8 do not impact your child's grades or ability to pass a class, as he or she moves into high school courses, these state assessments (NYS Regents exams) must be passed in order to earn the credit for that class. It is my firm belief that one of the best things we can do to prepare students for the high stakes tests in high school is to expose them to taking the NYS ELA and math assessments in grades 3-8. Students need practice in experiencing big tests when younger so that they are not overwhelmed by high-stakes assessments in high school.
What will we need to do for 100% virtual students?
The one-day tests are secure NYS tests, which means they cannot be given anywhere but in school. Parents of our virtual students who want them to take the ELA and math assessments will need to let the school know so that we can make arrangements for their child to take the assessment in school with the rest of our students.
When are these assessments?
The grades 3-8 Math and ELA assessments will be given on the following dates:
ELA Assessment:
- Intermediate School: April 20th
- Junior High School: April 21st (purple cohort) and April 22nd gold (gold cohort)
- Elementary School: April 23rd
Math Assessment:
- Intermediate School: May 4th
- Junior High School: May 5th (purple cohort) and May 6th (gold cohort)
- Elementary School: May 7th
Sincerely,
Gene Hoskins
Sodus Intermediate Principal
Sodus Intermediate School - Principal Gene Hoskins
All digital newsletters for Sodus Intermediate School are posted in the left margin of the Intermediate School page of the Sodus website. The link to the Intermediate school page is listed below.
Traducción al español a través de Google:
Todos los boletines digitales de la Escuela Intermedia Sodus se publican en el margen izquierdo de la página de la Escuela Intermedia del sitio web de Sodus. El enlace a la página de la escuela intermedia se encuentra a continuación.
Email: ehoskins@soduscsd.org
Website: https://www.soduscsd.org/Page/476
Location: 54 Mill Street, Sodus, NY, USA
Phone: (315) 483-5206
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SodusCSD/
Home & School Connection Newsletter from School Counselor Michelle Bucenec - Click the link below:
21st Century Afterschool Program Update from Grant Director Val Fanning
- Homework Support
- Senior Paper Support
- Math Lab
- Virtual Enrichment
- Summer Opportunities
Intermediate School Homework Club through the 21st Century Afterschool Program
Help with homework is available to Intermediate School students through the 21st Century Afterschool program! Intermediate School Homework Club meets Mondays & Wednesday at 3:30 pm. To enroll your child, please email Ms. Foisy at sfoisy@soduscsd.org.