CCS Digital Academy Weekly Updates
Log on, Lock in, Engage!
Message for Students and Families
I hope that everyone has had a very productive week! As promised, we continue to make adjustments to improve the learning experience for students and families. We are half way through the semester. We will soon send communication about the next steps registering for second semester with CCSDA, or transitioning to hybrid learning. Have a great week!
"Ideas are easy. Implementation is hard.”
Conferences
SAVE THE DATES!!!
Conferences with mentors will be held
November 10th from 3-7pm and November 12th from 3-6:30pm
Registration link to come
Daily Attendance
Checking-In
DO NOT forget to "CHECK IN" to the Parent/Student Portal to document your child’s attendance daily. CCS Digital Academy, as apart of Columbus City Schools, recognizes Ohio Law HB410. Many CCSDA families will receive a HB 410 Parent Notification letter due to attendance reflected in Infinite Campus. If you know you or your child has missed "check-ins", please complete the Attendance Correction Form linked below. We have also provided a link to the training video for how to check in attendance.
Please note, students will NOT be able to "check-in" on dates scheduled as "days off" for students. While the student may not be able to check-in, students are permitted to work any day of the week. If you have any questions regarding student attendance, please contact the CCSDA office, or your child's mentor.
3GRG Update
2020 Grade 3 Fall English Language Arts (ELA) Test Reminder
All Grade 3 CCS Students will be taking their Grade 3 English Language Assessment (ELA) Assessment during the first week of November.
Digital Academy Grade 3 students will take this assessment at their school of primary enrollment. This assessment can not be taken remotely. It consists of two parts and each part is 90 minutes in length.
The primary enrolled schools will be contacting you to confirm that date and time of your child’s assessment. Grade 3 students need to bring their district issued device with them to take their assessment. Please make sure it is fully charged the night before their assessment.
Students will be assigned to a designated cohort during the following days:
· Cohort A: November 2nd (Monday) & November 4th (Wednesday)
· Cohort B: November 5th(Thursday) & November 6th (Friday)
· Students with Complex Needs will be able to test each of the following days: November 2, 4, 5 and 6th
The District will provide transportation on your designated cohort date. So please expect a phone call soon to confirm testing information for your student. If you have any additional questions – please feel free to contact Principal Angel.
iReady BOY Diagnostic Assessment
The iReady assessment is still available for any student who has NOT completed the Beginning of the Year (BOY) test. The iReady diagnostic assessment provides additional benchmark data that measures growth. The results of the diagnostic test generates prescribed learning pathways for students in the iReady learning platform. iReady learning pathways are used as additional intervention for students as well as enrichment opportunities.
Mentors and Teachers
We hope you are working in a partnership with your mentors and teachers. If you need assistance identifying your mentor and/ or teacher, please contact your grade level administrator. A list of mentors can also be located on the CCSDA website. Students should have received Google Class invites from mentors and teachers. The Google Classroom houses important information including course assistance and mentor/teacher office hours. Elementary students are welcomed to join your teacher's synchronous learning sessions. Synchronous learning sessions are NOT required.
- Please note, we are in the process of reassigning mentors for a couple schools. Families affected by the change will be contacted individually. If you have any questions, please contact the Digital Academy office with any questions or concerns.
Edgenuity Updates
Our team has made modifications at every level K-5. Over the next week, you will notice changes in the number of assignments and modules, the percentage of completed assignments, and pacing. The new pacing allows for the last week of the semester to be used as a make-up week for all unfinished work.
Please remember the Digital Academy is a self-paced program; students work at their own pace. The pacing outlined in the learning platform is a recommendation. The only requirement is that all assigned work is completed by the end of semester.
Please remember that students will only receive a satisfactory or unsatisfactory for their first quarter work because it is a self-paced program. The final mastery based grade will be given at the end of the semester.
If you need an extra workbook, workbooks are available at the Columbus Downtown High School. Our office has coverage Monday through Friday from 7:30 am until 3:30 pm. You can call 614-365-5485 if you need to arrange for a more convenient time to pick up workbooks.
The Edgenuity platform allows students to work at their own pace. The end of first quarter is October 27, 2020; semester one modules are not due until January 15, 2021.
Please note that your student can complete the Health and Physical Education, however it is NOT REQUIRED, nor are the courses graded.
Edgenuity Parent Help Center for grades K-5
The new Parent Help Center includes videos, in Spanish and English, to introduce parents/guardians to the Buzz LMS and Genius SIS, along with PDFs of common questions and general information about helping students be successful with virtual learning: https://help.edgenuityinstructionalservices.com/hc/en-us/categories/360004572034
When Technical issues arise, parents/guardians can submit a ticket through the Help Center to receive assistance. These tickets will go directly to the Instructional Services Operations team: https://help.edgenuityinstructionalservices.com/hc/en-us/requests/new
Edgenuity staff will continue to add resources as they are built, including more documents with translation into the Spanish language.
Studies Weekly
Studies Weekly has been added and will be graded. It has replaced the Edgenuity Social Studies curriculum. Studies Weekly can be signed in to by logging into Clever.
We have created a pacing guide to help guide the completion of Studies Weekly articles. The pacing guide starts at week 9, and continues to the end of the semester. Please click the link below to view the pacing guide.
APEX UPDATES
- The mastery setting in Apex, which allowed multiple attempts on quizzes, will NOT be reinstated. Students will still have the opportunity to increase all quiz scores less than 60% by submitting a request for quizzes to be reset. Requests can be sent to mentors, teachers, or to "test unlockers." (See information below regarding test unlockers) Students should take their time when taking quizzes and tests.
- You can have tests unlocked from 3:30-7pm Monday through Thursday and Saturdays from 10-2pm. There will be a Google Form made available on the CCSDA website and the mentors' Google Classroom. Students must send their test unlock requests using their CCS email accounts. Students should keep their accounts open while taking tests in case the teacher needs to reach out for clarification.
- We are currently auditing the middle school Career Connections course. The 6th grade course has been updated, and a pacing guide will soon be provided. We are still working on eliminating assignments for 7th grade. Please stay tuned for updates.
- Coach accounts have been added to student accounts. You should begin receiving Coach Reports every Sunday. The Coach "Getting Started Guide" is posted on the CCSDA website for instructions. Feel free to email mentors, or the grade level CCSDA administrator if you are not receiving a coach’s report. *Coaches’ reports are under review; we realize the reports are misleading. Since there are no “due dates” for Apex assignments, the reports do not reflect assignments students have yet to complete. We are working with the vendor to create a more accurate Coaches’ reports.
- Apex released an UPDATE to the numbering protocol for some of their courses. If you are looking at your pacing guides, you may see that the numbers assigned to units are different. The names remained the same. For example, in Integrated Science Unit 1 was Nature of Science, Unit 2 was Measurement and then it jumped to Unit 14 Genetics. Now the students will see Unit 1 Nature of Science, Unit 2 Measurement and Unit 3 Genetics. Hopefully, this will be easier for students as they will go in chronological order. Students’ scores are all there but under a new Quiz number that coincides with the correct unit number.
- Some Apex course pacing guides are posted in the mentors' and teachers' Google Classrooms. Pacing guides assist students with “staying on track”. Students can work at their own pace, but they must complete the entire course (X section) by the end of first semester. First semester ends January 15th, 2021. Please make note as you plan fothe holiday season. Half of all activities should be completed by the end of the first quarter, October 27, 2020. Please contact your mentor and/or teacher with any questions.
MORE APEX UPDATES
- REMINDER: Students must complete ALL assignments before requesting unit tests to be unlocked. Requests can be made to their mentors during the day, or their teachers in the evening.
Student Spotlight
ANNA PATTON: DOLLS FOR A CAUSE
Anna Patton, a sixth-grade student at Columbus Digital Academy, was in first grade when her aunt was diagnosed with cancer. When her aunt was losing her hair due to chemotherapy, Anna wanted to show love and support for aunt. Anna cut her own waist length hair and donated 20 inches to Wigs for Kids (for children with cancer) in honor of her aunt.
Anna told her mother that she wanted to donate “American Girl” dolls to children in the cancer wards of hospitals. Together, they researched ways to raise money to purchase the dolls. Anna started collecting aluminum cans to sell for money to fund the purchase of dolls. Her mother said their porch is always filled with cans donated by neighbors.
Yearly, in November, Anna purchases the dolls and takes them to the social worker at the hospital who delivers them to the children.
Anna accepts and appreciates donations of funds and of aluminum cans so that she can continue to bring happiness to the children. For information or to help Anna buy dolls, please visit her Facebook account at Anna’s Dolls for a Cause.
Traditional School Calendar
REMINDER
The CCS Digital Academy follows the Columus City School's traditional school calendar. Teachers nor mentors are available on days schools are not in session.
Sports
Contact Information
Leslie Williams Grade K-1
Judy Johnson Grades 2-3
Leslie Charlemagne Grades 4-5
Barbie Feuer Grades 6-8
Email: ccsdigtialacademy@columbus.k12.oh.us
Website: ccs.oh/digitalacademy
Phone: (614)365-5485