Welcome Back Everyone!
VSH ERR High School - Mrs. Miller
Here's to a great virtual year!
I am happy to be sharing our new news letter tool Smore. This will allow me to send regular updates and share important information with you.
Now for a little about me...
I started teaching this class at VSH last January. I moved to Idaho in early 2019 from Bozeman, MT. I have lived all over the United States and I have taught in five different states off and on over the past 30 years (I'm not really that old!)
I LOVE Boise and I LOVE teaching at Virtual School House!
I have three kids that are all grown up. Two boys who live in Montana and a daughter who lives in New Orleans. I love to walk or ride my bike on the Greenbelt, hike, paddle board, snowshoe, travel, the mountains, and being in nature any chance I get.
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This year we are so fortunate to be working with Mrs. Phenis as our para educator! She is amazing and many of you know and love her. Mrs. Phenis is entering her 24th year working for West Ada School District. She worked for 22 years in an elementary computer lab until she moved to VSH last fall.
Mrs. Phenis has a grown son David who lives in Ohio. She loves school breaks so that she can go see him. She also loves to hike, run, work out at the YMCA, and do arts and crafts.
We are so lucky to have her again as a co-teacher.
We are both so excited for this year and we cant wait to learn more about each of you!
Mrs. Miller playing in the snow
Mrs. Miller and her three kids
Mrs. Phenis and her son David
Some important dates to note...
Upcoming important dates:
- Wednesday August 25 - TEAMS Classes posted
- Thursday August 26 - First day of classes
- Monday Sept 6 - No School Labor Day
- Wednesday Sept 22 5:30-6:30 - Virtual Parent Teacher Open House
VHS ERR Procedures
Here is a link for tech help :)
VSH Parent University (smore.com)
Most students will have all of their classes on TEAMS for the first quarter.
Wednesday there will be a Life Skills pass/fail course. Participation is mandatory because this is a very interactive class. PLEASE EMAIL ME IF YOU NEED TO BE EXCUSED.
Fridays are required (or open) class session times for students who:
1) have not completed their homework
2) students who's skills were not mastered in their homework lessons and for,
3) progress monitoring.
Lesson completion is the same as attendance when you're at an online school, and students not engaging in their classes is the primary cause of failure. STUDENTS WHO HAVE NOT COMPLETED THEIR WEEKLY HOMEWORK SHOWING MASTERY OF THE SKILLS WILL BE REQUIRED TO GO TO CLASS ON FRIDAYS. There are opportunities each day for students to access office hours or study halls for help with classwork/homework.
I have no way to contact your student if they are not online. I will use email to communicate with both students and parents so please ask your student to check their email. The goal is to increase student's independence so I prefer to address issues with students first.
There will also be many times throughout the day (study halls and office hours) where students can access me or Mrs. Phenis.
Classroom Etiquette:
Just like in a 'brick and mortar' classroom, the virtual space has specific rules and expectations. During live TEAMS meetings, only appropriate questions or responses will be tolerated. Be respectful of each other and the virtual space.
SPAMMING OF EMOJIS OR GIFS WILL NOT BE TOLERATED IN LIVE SESSIONS!
During the live session, you may be asked to turn on your microphones and/or cameras. Please plan accordingly to make sure that you are ready for the school session: wear appropriate clothing, be in a place with a wall behind you or use a blurred background, no distracting noises...etc. Expect to keep your camera on as we get to know each other and please keep your mic muted.
Respect this virtual space. Respect each other (me included). Respect yourself
Email: miller.dana@westada.org
Website: westada.org/vsh
Phone: (208) 350-4010
Twitter: @smorepages