Monday Morning Update
Options Program - April 6, 2020
COMPASS & OPTIONS SCHOOL NEWS
ASSESSMENTS ~ Take a break from the school routine next week and complete your PFT activities! Compass is on spring break April 13-17. Use your time to get active!
AVID ~ Scholars collaborating is an essential and fun part of the learning process. Although there are dozens of web tools available to support scholar collaboration, finding one that fits your needs can be a challenge for even the most tech-savvy among us. Consequently, over the next two weeks, we will be exploring some of the more popular collaboration web tools and pairing them with AVID Instructional Strategies.
Scholars, Learning Coaches, and staff are invited to join this week’s AVID Academic Support Sessions using this link, where we will be reviewing two collaboration tools, Padlet and Miro. AVID for Secondary (6-12), today, Monday, April 6, at 1 pm and AVID Elementary (K-5) is this Wednesday, April 8, at 1 pm.
BLOG ~ Check out our CEO & Superintendent J.J.’s blog on being a beacon of light as at-home learners; we can all work to come together to support family, friends, neighbors, and our community.
CCS IN THE NEWS ~ CCS is featured in a Today Show online article on life skills for teenagers, where one of our Educational Facilitators, Holly Dong, shares some perspective!
ENERGY BUS RALLY ~ Join us next Saturday, April 18, at 9 am as we participate in The Energy Bus’ Virtual Rally for Elementary Scholars!
ENERGY BUS TIP OF THE WEEK ~ Compliment at least three people you don't know. Also, don’t forget to check out this week’s Make a Difference Monday Message from the Energy Bus!
OPTIONS HANDBOOK HIGHLIGHT ~ Multi-Tiered System of Support ~ A Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) is a systematic multi-tiered model that targets behavioral, social, emotional, and academic support for scholars. MTSS establishes a process for providing increasing levels of instructional time and intensity whereby the needs of all learners are identified, supported early and effectively.
MTSS provides high-quality standards-based core instruction and the use of data to identify scholars for appropriate acceleration and intervention. The MTSS model advances academic and behavioral achievement through frequent progress monitoring, ongoing data collection, and analyses as well as providing immediate, evidence-based intervention.
In order to best support our scholars and ensure they are achieving academically and socially/emotionally, scholars receive support from different Tiers throughout the framework.
The three components within the CCS MTSS framework are: Assessments (Internal benchmark assessments, CAASPP State Testing); High-Quality, Evidence-Based Instruction (Tier 1 - Core Instruction -- universal interventions, Tier 2 - Supplemental Instruction -- targeted group interventions, Tier 3 - Intensive Instruction -- intensive individual interventions); and Data-Based Decision Making (Leadership meets regularly to assure outcomes are achieved).
Academic support sessions, social-emotional learning, and behavioral groupings are offered on a regular basis by Compass Charter Schools.
PBS SOCAL WRITER’S CONTEST ~ Have a passion for writing? CCS is sponsoring the 2020 Writer’s Contest hosted by PBS SoCal. Scholars in grades K-3 are invited to enter an original poem or story for a chance to have it published online!
RE-ENROLLMENT ~ Our 2020-21 re-enrollment window is open! If you have not done so already, please be sure to complete our re-enrollment process through Reg Online (link is in your inbox from enrollment@compasscharters.org), which asks if your scholar(s) will be returning to continue their educational journey with us next year (and we do hope you are!)!
VENDOR NEWS
Many of our Service Providers have gone to virtual services; please check with your EF for further guidance.
COUNSELING NEWS
FEATURED COUNSELING SERVICES LESSONS ~ Recharge Your Battery! A Guide to Social Isolation - tomorrow, Tuesday, April 7, from noon-1 pm in the Counseling Learning Lab. COVID-19 has flipped our lives upside down and stopped us in our tracks. It’s easy for us to focus on the negative impacts of social isolation that this pandemic has forced upon us, but could this also create a new space for personal growth? Join the Counseling Services Department as we discuss how to embrace our social isolation by harnessing this time to reconnect with ourselves and our families, recalibrate our goals, and recharge our batteries!
COLLEGE ADMISSION AND FINANCIAL AID UPDATES ~ The FAFSA Form remains open until June 30. Any student or family who has not yet completed a FAFSA may still do so. For those who have completed a FAFSA and whose financial circumstances have changed considerably, we encourage you to reach out to your institution’s financial aid office. Financial aid administrators are afforded a degree of professional judgment under the law for state and federal aid, as well as for institutional aid. They can work with students and families whose incomes have been negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. For other questions related to the COVID-19 outbreak and federal financial aid, visit here.
NACAC ~ Has launched a tool to provide information and insight into how the COVID-19 crisis has impacted the college admission process. Click here to access the College Admission Status Update and search for prospective schools.
The College Essay Guy has compiled useful information for seniors as they prepare to attend college in the fall. Click on the links below to learn more about deciding on a college and navigating your financial aid offer.
How to Decide Where to Attend - Note that many schools have moved their decision date to June 1; here’s a list of those schools.
SCHOLARSHIP SPOTLIGHT ~ CAREER IN EDUCATION ~ Region 18 of the Association of California School Administrators and the San Diego County School Boards Association award ten $1,000 scholarships to eligible high school seniors who are intending to pursue a career in education. The application deadline has been extended to Thursday, April 30. View the scholarship application for more details.
SCHOLARSHIP SPOTLIGHT ~ SAN DIEGO COUNTY CAREER IN HEALTHCARE ~ Through Health Care Communicators (HCC) of San Diego, high school seniors in San Diego County who plan to enter the healthcare field after college can apply to win a $2,000 scholarship courtesy of AMN Healthcare. The application deadline is Tuesday, June 30. Visit the HCC website for more information.
Enjoy a detailed list of Spring 2020 helpful college and career planning resources for middle and high school scholars.
SPECIAL EDUCATION NEWS
FEATURED ARTICLES ~ In this article, find 28 quick ideas for easy indoor activities for your scholars. Each activity should buy you 10 to 15 minutes (per the article)! Enjoy!
FEATURED ARTICLE ~ ADHD Symptoms in Teens: Your Guide to Warning Signs & Treatments for Adolescents: Adolescence can bring about mood swings and hormonal changes, and sometimes new and unnerving ADHD symptoms in teens. These additional challenges require patience, understanding, and pinpointed strategies. Here, learn how changing biology impacts executive functions, emotions, and decision-making skills and how you can protect your teen against the greatest risks to their health.
FEATURED WEBINARS ~ Please review these webinars built upon the current state of affairs with the COVID-19 virus to incorporate into scholar learning during this crisis. Many include physical activities, as well.
ENGAGEMENT NEWS
VIRTUAL EVENT SPOTLIGHT ~ Become a real-life creator for Disney in our three-part series at our virtual scholar workshops this week! Imagineering in a Box is designed to pull back the curtain to show you how artists, designers, and engineers work together to create theme parks. Go behind the scenes with Disney Imagineers and complete project-based exercises to design a theme park of your very own. Scholars will learn the ins and outs of creating a themed land from their imagination, designing attractions, and bringing characters to life just as the real artists do. Virtual Scholar Workshops for this series will be Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday this week at 1 pm. Details are all available on our ParentSquare Calendar!
ACTIVITY BOOK & SAN DIEGO COUNTY FAIR ~ Scholars can download and print out this workbook filled with puzzles, coloring activities, and more. By completing the Reading Certificate in the workbook, scholars 12 and under will receive free admission to the San Diego County Fair. Even if you don’t live near San Diego and wouldn’t want to redeem the free admission - the book is a great opportunity for an at-home activity for scholars 12 and under!
CLUB SPOTLIGHT ~ The Science Fair Club serves to provide scholars a guided place to design, collaborate, and work towards an end of the year virtual science fair. Is your scholar competitive? Is your scholar curious? Is your scholar creative? Does your scholar like winning awards? If this sounds like your scholar, we recommend that your scholar gets involved in this year’s science fair club! To learn more about this club or any of our other scholar clubs, please visit the Parents & Scholars section of our CCS website.
FIELD TRIPS & EVENTS
Upcoming Virtual Engagement Events ~
*In response to COVID-19, we continue to add exciting virtual engagement opportunities until we can resume our in-person field trips.
*Please view the details at the links below and fill out the virtual event registration for each event that your scholar(s) would like to attend
Tuesday, April 7 – Virtual Scholar Workshop - Disney Series Part 1: Creating Worlds
Wednesday, April 8 – Virtual Scholar Workshop - Disney Series Part 2: Designing Attractions
Thursday, April 9 – Virtual Scholar Workshop - Disney Series Part 3: Bringing Characters to Life
Tuesday, April 21 - Virtual Scholar Workshop - Virtual Scavenger Hunt
Wednesday, April 22 – Virtual Scholar Workshop - At-Home Earth Day!
Thursday, April 23 – Virtual Scholar Workshop - Winchester Mystery House Virtual Tour
Compass Charter Schools
- Kristy Smith, Director of Options Learning, at ksmith@compasscharters.org
- Karle Roberts, Options Regional Coordinator at kroberts@compasscharters.org
- Laura Harvey, Options Regional Coordinator at lharvey@compasscharters.org
- Michelle Vreeman, Options Regional Coordinator at mvreeman@compasscharters.org
- Sharlie Walker, Options Regional Coordinator at swalker@compasscharters.org
- Ruth Chavez-Rivera, Options Regional Coordinator at rchavezrivera@compasscharters.org
Email: info@compasscharters.org
Website: www.compasscharters.org
Location: 850 Hampshire Road, Suite P, Thousand Oaks, CA, United States
Phone: 855-937-4227
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CompassCS/
Twitter: @CompassCS