The Bison Bulletin
OVCA Middle School Newsletter ~ November 5, 2020
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NOVEMBER MINDSET OF THE MONTH:
"Attitude of Gratitude"
From the Principal's Desk
We have had an incredible week with parent-teacher conferences. Thank you for taking the time to speak with teachers and partner with us on the path to success for your student! I know I have enjoyed having conversations with parents throughout the week, and am looking forward to the weeks ahead.
As we move into the month of November, we have some exciting things happening: the week of November 16th, we will be having our very first "Power-Up Bootcamp" week! Admin and teachers have done some digging into the data on our students to find weak areas of understanding and are planning a super fun week of instruction that week. Classes may look a bit different, and there will be hands-on, engaging and interactive activities happening as we boost our confidence before our Middle of Year testing the first week of December! We are excited to see how far your children have come with learning since the beginning of the year. It has been a challenging year for everyone in education, and OVCA is no different. I applaud the resilience and positive attitudes of your children as they forge forward. I am convinced that 2020 is creating some incredibly resilient kids. Between viruses, technical challenges, and ice storms, we Oklahomans will be more resilient than ever!
We do have several new families that have joined and will be joining us these next few weeks! To you, I say WELCOME TO THE FAMILY! We are so glad you are here, and I am honored to be your principal this year. This newsletter is to help you stay informed of the happenings at the Middle School.
Please reach out to teachers, staff, or administration if you need help or have questions or concerns. We love serving you!
Sincerely,
Erin Goodridge
OVCA Middle School Principal
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Important Upcoming Dates
November 6: Family Game Night--BINGO, 6-7pm, see below for registration
November 8: 11/2 New Start Students begin regular classes
November 12: Community Connection Classes, 12pm
November 16-19: POWER-UP BOOTCAMP WEEK!
November 16: 11/16 New Start Students begin Orientation week
November 17: Family Game Night--SCATTERGORIES, 6-7pm
November 20: Community Connection Classes, 12pm
November 23: 11/16 new Start Students begin regular classes
November 25-27: Thanksgiving Vacation, NO SCHOOL
November 30-Dec 4: MID-YEAR REQUIRED NWEA MAP GROWTH ASSESSMENTS (math/reading)
December 4: Family Game Night--BINGO, 6-7pm
December 16: Last Day of 1st Semester (2nd quarter ends)
December 17-January 5: Winter Break, NO SCHOOL
January 6: First Day Back, "Welcome Back to School" Orientation week
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ALL FAMILIES MUST COMPLETE SURVEY BELOW
WEBCAM PERMISSION FORM
OVCA is focused on providing a safe virtual learning environment. With this in mind, we ask that a legal guardian complete the below survey for each student enrolled with OVCA. The media release form includes two sections: Photograph, Testimonial and Interview Release, and Face to Face Platform (webcam) Usage School-Guardian-Student Compact. You will be given the choice to accept or decline each opportunity.
Together we can help students reach their full potential through personalized learning this year! Thank you for taking the time to complete this form.
If you want your student to be able to use their webcam when we are in the whole group setting, be sure to fill out the permission form below!
Exact Path Information
**Make sure your student is working on their PATHWAY ONLY, and not on individual assignments**
MINDPLAY INFORMATION
MindPlay is a supplemental reading program that is adaptive to your student’s level and covers the six main components of literacy: phonemic awareness, phonics, comprehension, fluency, vocabulary, and grammar for meaning. For now, it is a course that has been given to all students and the course is optional at this time unless your teacher has specifically reached out with information. You may view this video that provides an overview of MindPlay.
If you are interested in having your student use it, please reach out to Rebecca Pittman at rpittman@okvirtual.org .
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RESOURCES FOR STUDENTS & FAMILIES
FREE TUTORING THROUGH OVCA!
We are excited to announce our school’s new Tutoring Initiative! OVCA will offer personalized academic tutoring based on your child’s needs with an emphasis in the subjects of English Language Arts (Reading/Writing) and Mathematics.
At this time, our new tutoring program will be completely virtual through an online service called TutorMe. Through this program, your child will be able to access a tutor at any time of the day to work on any subject. While the emphasis will be in math and reading, tutors for all subjects are available. The tutor will work with your child’s curriculum to help them improve their grades and gain confidence. The focus of tutoring is to equip your child with different methods of learning so they can have life-long skills in how to best solve problems for assignments, homework and projects.
Tutoring Sign-Up Link
Please contact Allison McCartney, our OVCA Tutoring Manager for more information.
WHAT DO WE DO IF THE OMHS IS DOWN OR LAGGING?
- Take a deep breath and don't panic. It will be okay, and it won't last forever! If you're having trouble, most likely our staff is too, especially if the K12 software is lagging. We keep everyone up to date on social media with any known issues, and will keep the lines of communication open. Students are not penalized for software disruptions when the entire system is down.
- Find some hands-on, offline activities to accomplish! Many teachers have different suggested sites for their courses that students can go in and work. Offline activities are a fun break from a day in front of the computer!
- Your teachers will reach out with instructions via email if it is an extended outage, so always be checking your LC email for information, as this is the primary method of communication.
- Take a "snow" day if it's all just too overwhelming. You know we don't have those in virtual-land anyway, so take a break and catch up when you are fresh. Your teachers understand and if it's happened to you, it's happened to them! It will be okay, and you'll be back online eventually.
Most of all, remember to give yourself grace. Virtual learning isn't for the faint of heart. It's hard work! And sometimes, technology fails us. If and when that happens, you have a plan in place.
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K12 NATIONAL NEWS
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The Oklahoma Virtual Charter Academy does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, or age in its programs and activities and provides equal access educational programs and activities. As required by Title IX, the Oklahoma Virtual Charter Academy does not discriminate on the basis of gender, in its educational programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the Title IX non-discrimination matters:
- Angie Foust, Title IX Coordinator, afoust@okvirtual.org, (405) 259-9478 ext 2069, 1160 S Douglas, Midwest City, OK 73130
- Additionally, you may contact the Office of Civil Rights by calling 1-800-421-3481.