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September 23, 2022
For more than 55 years, the Blue Valley community has worked together to provide extraordinary educational opportunities for students. This year, the district wants to highlight that sense of togetherness occurring in our classrooms, on the field, stage and beyond with the #BVTogether campaign.
The campaign will run throughout the year and highlight how our students, staff, families and community work together to create this incredible district we call Blue Valley. Check out the campaign launch where we invite you to share or “like” the posts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
From local businesses, community members and families to our extraordinary educators, support staff and administrators we are a better district when we work together. Read more about the #BVTogether campaign at www.bluevalleyk12.org/bvtogether and watch for more on our social media channels.
Blue Valley Schools and the Board of Education understand the importance and responsibility of future planning. In September, Blue Valley Schools started conducting a survey to learn how the community views potential facility projects, rates of taxation and perceived value. The first phase of the survey was conducted via phone to randomly selected participants. Now, patrons who may not have been called have an opportunity to provide input through an online survey.
All community members are encouraged to participate in a brief and confidential online survey available through Oct. 3. Thanks in advance for your valuable interest and insight!
Have you checked your mailboxes yet Blue Valley? The Fall 2022 edition of Blue Valley Today is waiting for you! Blue Valley Today aims to inform the community of all the amazing district happenings. Blue Valley is a special place with exceptional people.
In this edition, you will read a message from Superintendent Dr. Merrigan as she reflects on the amazing start to the 2022-23 school year. You will also read a story about Blue Valley's homegrown educators, the positive impact of Bond 2020 projects and more.
Want to view the online version instead? Visit Blue Valley School's publication page on the district website.
Being flexible and adjusting on the spot are important tools in Heather Hall’s classes. Hall, a science teacher at Blue Valley West, knows that if, during a mid-lesson check-in, a group of students say they aren’t grasping the content as expected, she needs to quickly pivot. Evaluations like these are just one form of assessment offered in Blue Valley.
Blue Valley assessments are divided into two buckets: formative and summative.
Formative assessments described as assessments for learning, provide teachers with information on how they can help a student grow. MAP testing, iReady, and Acadience fall into this category. Summative assessments, characterized as assessments of learning, occur after instruction takes place. State assessments and ACT testing fall into this category.
“I think assessments are the way, as teachers, we help to make sure we are doing our job,” Hall said. “I think we work really hard to design those assessments to be reflective of what I want to make sure kids know. My assessments aren’t going to be 50,000 vocab words because they can Google those. But we worked really hard to figure out what are the essential things we want every kid to walk out of here with.”
Read more in this Learning Connection story about how teachers use assessments to ensure instruction is meeting the needs of students.
115 Blue Valley students receive KSDE Seal of Biliteracy
Blue Valley students continue to achieve at high levels. The Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE) recognized 115 Blue Valley graduates representing 11 different languages with the Kansas Seal of Biliteracy. This achievement recognizes any student who has attained proficiency in English and one or more other world languages, based on 2021-2022 assessment results.
Learning a second language is not only a cognitive effort but one that values and fosters a global perspective. Every Seal of Biliteracy award represents the student's hard work and commitment and Blue Valley educators' leadership.
A part of Blue Valley’s mission is that all students develop the skills to navigate an ever-changing world and cultivate a solid foundation for personal academic excellence. The Seal of Biliteracy is intended to be a statement of accomplishment that recognizes a student’s readiness for career, college and engagement as a global citizen.