Parent Newsletter
April 16th - 20th
Another Great Week Ahead
Check out the topics for this week's newsletter:
- A look at the week ahead
- 2018 - 2019 laptop distribution
- Parent Survey
- Grit, Growth Mindset and Perseverance
- TN Ready Testing
- Counselors Corner
Thanks for all that you do to support Jefferson Middle School!
Phil Cox, Principal
Chris Layton, Vice Principal
A Look at the Week Ahead
April 16-20
Monday 16 – B Day
Tuesday 17 – A Day
Atomic Eagles First Lego League to World Event 4/17-22
Girls Basketball Interest Meeting-JPAC 7 PM
Wednesday 18 – B Day
TNReady Testing-ELA – Subtest I
Football Interest Meeting-6 PM
Thursday 19 –A Day
TNReady Testing-Make-up for ELA – Subtest I
Track – William Blount HS 4:30
Girls Volleyball Interest Meeting-JPAC 7 PM
Friday 20 – B Day
Youth for Christ—7 AM
Parent Survey
We are working to improve conditions for learning in our schools. Students will learn more effectively in a safe, supportive, and welcoming environment. We would very much appreciate your help by completing the short survey attached. Your perceptions about your child’s school will help us identify what we are doing well, and what we need to do better.
If you have more than one child in this school, you may pick which one you want to think about when answering the questions. This survey is anonymous. No one will know which answers come from you, and it will not be possible to connect your answers to your child in any way.
The parent survey link for Jefferson Middle School can be found by clicking https://oakridgejeffersonmiddleparentsurvey.questionpro.com. Please complete the survey process by 3:00pm on Friday, April 20th.
2018 - 2019 Laptop Online Forms
User Agreements for 2018 - 2019 school year are now on Skyward
It's hard to believe, but it's that time of year again to start the 2018 - 2019 Technology User Agreement forms for the Access OR program. Each year parents are required to fill out the forms online through the Skyward portal. Below you will see a step by step video that helps guide you through the online process.
Rising 9th grade students (Current 8th grade students) Stylus sign up for ORHS
We are very excited to welcome the Class of 2022 to Oak Ridge High School next year!! As your family prepares for this transition, the high school invites everyone to fill out their online computer distribution form via the parent Skyward account. Moving to the high school, you will find an additional item regarding the stylus on your Technology User Agreement. We felt the importance of sharing how heavily this instrument is used at ORHS, particularly in the math and sciences. There will be an opportunity to check the permission box for your rising freshman to obtain a stylus when the computer is issued prior to the beginning of school. Our friends coming from Jefferson Middle School are largely accustomed to classroom sets being provided. Due to the large number of students who are issued their own stylus, we have very few sets available to teachers. Should you have any questions regarding this process, please do not hesitate to contact Mrs. Harvey charvey@ortn.edu Mrs. Witick nwitick@ortn.edu or Mrs. Thompson sathompson@ortn.edu
We look forward to welcoming our RISING FRESHMAN TO ORHS - EQUIPPED AND READY TO LEARN!
PREPARING YOUR TOOLS FOR STATE TESTING: STUDENT LAPTOPS
Students it’s that time of year again! State testing time is upon us and we want to make sure that you and your laptop are prepared. You definitely don’t want the added stress of a low battery during test time, nobody’s got time for that! So to help avoid any issues on testing day, be sure to prepare your laptop the night before. Below are a few helpful tips from your Technology Department to ensure a smooth testing experience.
1. Be sure to reboot your machine the night before or first thing in the morning before arriving for testing so that any pending updates are complete and your computer will be ready to go. As always, to reboot please select the Windows start button, then select restart instead of using the power button to shut your device down.
2. Charge your laptop the night before testing and arrive to testing with a 100% Battery Life.
3. Set your volume to the maximum before entering the testing environment.
The volume of your laptop can be controlled from the system tray speaker icon located at the bottom right of your screen.
Grit, Growth Mindset and Perseverance
As we approach state testing, for some students, there will be a level of anxiety and apprehension to perform. We want our students to understand that the key to state testing is to give their best effort. As they prepare for that best effort, it may require that they review, sometimes fail, and then review a concept or standard again. As we work to build and cultivate a culture of "Grit, Growth Mindset and Perseverance", we want to encourage students to always give their best effort. One reason, we speak often about "the Power of a 0" in regards to missing assignments is because we know that the 0 does not reflect the student's capabilities. We want students to challenge themselves in all facets of their education and most definitely when they face content, lessons, or challenges that they do not understand.
The Research behind Growth Mindset
Below you will find one of her most recent TedTalks where she lays out her beliefs and ideas about growth mindset. Dr. Dweck believes that many people simply keep a fixed mindset. Often in their education they are faced with the belief that they may not be smart enough to understand something. It is at this point, that we start to see a trend away from students who pursue a four year degree and beyond and from those who may not go beyond high school. Dr. Dweck believes that the difference in growth mindset vs. fixed mindset makes all the difference in the world for students.
Grit, Growth Mindset and Perseverance
The future for our students will value the students who can learn, unlearn, and relearn. As our students will endeavor into a future filled with technological advancements they will also inherit a world full of problems we, the adults, have yet solved or yet to conceive. Grit, Growth Mindset, and Perseverance are far more than catchy word phrases. These skills are the most valued in the current job market and are trending to continue to be valued in the future. So what? Who cares?
Well, we all care! As a part of your child's education, we want to work to help facilitate and provide students with all kinds of skills and knowledge to help them be college and career ready. The video above highlights Growth Mindset and in particular praise for students as they work to achieve goals. The video signifies the research between praise for success vs. success of the effort of the process. Our students are learning how to learn and is a part of that process there will be failure. We often promote with students that FAIL simply means a "First Attempt In Learning". The keys for students to truly promote Grit, Growth Mindset, and Perseverance can be found every day in a school setting. Check out the following scenarios below that help highlight every day Grit, Growth Mindset and Perseverance.
- Missing Assignments - This is not a reflection of what a student knows or does not know. In fact, it is the most harmful thing possible for a student's grade and progress. For many students, they are missing assignments that were in class assignments. The work was done in class and due to a variety of reasons they fail to submit their work.
Resolution - Create a system of organization, a system of goals to help support submission of school work and value the concept that your work is a submission that helps your teacher know if you know the material covered in class. Much like in the adult career world, there are expectations and as adults we have to follow through, that is a life skill and life expectation. We want to help students eliminate zeroes from their grades. This is a perfect opportunity to exhibit GRIT and upon return of the assignment, with feedback and a grade....you now have a moment for Growth. Simply not doing the assignment and placing blame on a variety of people and factors is not only unproductive, it is counter to the skills our students need to develop for their futures.
Try Again, even if it doesn't count!
In some cases, students have opportunities to make corrections, resubmit work, turn in work late. Students should ALWAYS take advantage of these opportunities because it allows them to develop Grit and Growth. When we were students we all probably remember "rough drafts" and then "final copies". For the classes, where teachers offer corrections, re-submission opportunities and chances to re-take students should see this as an opportunity to grow. Often students do not take advantage of these opportunities at all and sometimes they want to take advantage of these opportunities week after weeks after the original assignment.
Think of this for a moment, if your child takes a test in math and does poorly there could be a combination of reasons as to why the performance was not what the child wanted. However, if opportunities for correction, resubmission or retake exist this is where Grit and Growth can be developed.
When the child concedes the First Attempt In Learning was a FAIL then they can proceed to develop perseverance and Grit to reexamine how to approach corrections. A true academic struggle may occur, which is great. We want students to be challenged. This is where Grit is born and these are the skills your child's future career will expect. To simply dismiss the poor grade, forget about it and move along does not help you grow or get better. To care about the assignment as the nine weeks ends is not as much about growing and learning, but rather salvaging a grade. We want students to learn Grit, Growth and Perseverance and often the best opportunities come from the moments where we FAIL.
Coping with change: teaching adaptability will help kids grow
Andrew Martin, Professional Research Fellow, at the University of Sydney found that across a student’s lifetime, their world will change and change again. They’re likely to see industry reshaped, medical advancements, and huge changes to technology.
In their own life too, they will begin school, transition to further education or work, move out of home, begin or end relationships, maybe have children, and retire from work.
To navigate this ever-shifting world, young people will need to be adaptable. But is this something you can teach? And what kind of difference can being more adaptable make?
The times they are a changin’
Whereas much research and discussion has focused on young people’s resilience, very little has focused on their ability to adapt. Resilience refers to individuals’ capacity to deal with adversity, while adaptability refers to their capacity to respond to uncertainty, change, and novelty.
In Martin’s research that was published in the Journal of Educational Psychology, we looked at the adaptability of 969 high school students from nine Australian secondary schools. Adaptability was assessed through a series of questions in a survey. These questions revolved around uncertain or changing situations and asked students to rate how effective they were in responding to those situations.
He found there are three parts to adaptability: behavioral, cognitive, and emotional.
The behavioral part involves adjusting one’s actions or behavior in response to uncertainty and novelty, the cognitive involves adjusting one’s thinking and the emotional involves adjusting one’s positive and negative emotions.
He found that young people who are more adaptable were more likely to participate in class, enjoy school, be more satisfied with life, have higher self-esteem, and have a more concrete sense of meaning and purpose in life. In addition, we included a measure of resilience in the study and found that adaptability was a better predictor of these outcomes than resilience.
The effects of adaptability also went beyond any effects of personality and prior achievement – two factors also included in the study. Adaptability, therefore, emerged as a potent factor in academic and non-academic outcomes.
Teaching adaptability
The results of the study have implications across the school community – for teachers, school psychologists and for parents and caregivers – and for the advice we give students.
But how can we help students become more adaptable?
At school, students will often be faced with changing lessons, a different teacher, new work groups, new academic skills and tasks, fluid social group dynamics, new sporting or creative challenges – and so on.
One advantage of unpacking adaptability into its three components (behavioral, cognitive, emotional) is that advice and guidance can be developed in specific and concrete ways.
When it comes to students behavior for example, we can encourage students to seek out new or more information or take a different course of action when faced with a new situation. This can be as simple as asking a teacher for some good reading on a new topic or re-organizing their study timetable based on a test announced that day.
Even just something as simple as thinking about the opportunities a new situation might create or not assuming that change is a bad or undesirable thing can make a big difference.
Students can also be encouraged to learn to minimize disappointment and maximize enjoyment when circumstances change. Or indeed, keep a level head when in a winning position.
There might also be opportunities to explicitly draw students’ attention to some new tasks as they arise and guide them through the behaviors, thoughts and emotions essential to succeed on those tasks. For example, as students make the transition from one year group to another, or embark on a new subject, teachers may identify ways students can adjust their behaviors (such as increasing effort, asking for help), control their thinking (challenging pessimism, self-doubt), and manage their emotions (keeping fear or anxiety in check).
Like most skills, young people greatly benefit from clear and direct guidance from competent and caring adults.
Tomorrow’s opportunities
Change, uncertainty, variability, transition and novelty are a reality of life. The extent to which young people effectively respond to this reality will have a significant bearing on their life course – beyond the influence of other important factors such as resilience and personality.
Encouragingly, research and practice show that young people can successfully adjust their behavior, thought, and emotion – with some at-risk or underachieving youth perhaps requiring more intensive and sustained support to do this. Young people can be taught how to be more adaptable, and then in turn better embrace the opportunities of their ever-changing world.
What are Resilience and Adaptability Skills
How To Change The World (a work in progress) | Kid President
TN Ready Testing Dates
Spring 2018 TNReady Testing Schedule for Jefferson Middle School
The TNReady testing window is set for April 16th – March 4th. Jefferson Middle School will be testing the following subtests on the following days. Please make sure that your student is at school on time and with their laptops charged.
Wednesday, April 18th
ELA Subtest 1
Thursday, April 26th
ELA Subtest 2
ELA Subtest 3
Friday, April 27th
ELA Subtest 4
Math Subtest 1
Monday, April 30th
Math Subtest 2
Math Subtest 3
Tuesday, May 1st
Social Studies Subtest 1
Social Studies Subtest 2
Wednesday, May 2nd
Science Subtest 1
Science Subtest 2
If you should have any questions about the TNReady Test or the schedule, please contact Andy Magee in the Counseling Office.
Computers Charged and at School
This year will be the first time the both middle schools take their state assessments online with Questar application. Due to the test being online, it is imperative that your student/child brings their fully charged laptop to school every day there is a test. Please emphasize and stress the importance of charging their computer, and getting any issues or bugs fixed before the testing period gets here. Also, if the laptop has found its way to IT due to damage, please make any attempt at getting the insurance fee paid so your student/child can get that back into their possession.
Counselors Corner
Test Taking Tools and Tips
This week we are going to continue with suggesting some test taking tips and tools for the any tests, but keeping a special look at the state testing that is coming up in a week and a half. Please see the link below and share these with your students at home and in the classroom. There is also a link to describe some test-taking tools and tips for students living with ADHD. Finally, I have included a link to discuss tips and advice for taking exams online. If you or your student have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the Counseling Office.
https://gettingnerdywithmelandgerdy.com/top-ten-test-taking-tips-for-students/
https://www.additudemag.com/test-taking-strategies-adhd-student/