The Raven's Call
Raven Homeschool
October 2018 Edition
Dear Raven Families,
Welcome to Raven's Call, your digital newsletter to keep you up to date on all things Raven. This monthly newsletter via SMORE will have an overview of highlights from each of our 6 Raven offices. Within this electronic version of our newsletter, you have easy-access to your local office news and resources by clicking on links within each section.
We are looking forward to another successful year and hope you will share pictures of your learning adventures with your local offices to be included throughout the year.
If you would like a printed copy, please contact your local office.
If you have questions, please contact Maegan mmascagno@yksd.com
- Raven Homeschool
Reminder: First Quarter Progress Reports and Work Samples are due October 31st!
From the Director's Desk:
Raven is all about Homeschooling!
Hope your year is off to a great start! Raven is so excited to be your school of choice for the 2018-2019 school year. Each office has been working to plan and prepare a variety of workshops, activities, and field trips to support your success. We hope to see you throughout the year! We are dedicated to our continued efforts to be the best homeschool program in the state. Our teachers and counselors are here to support your needs.
October 7-13 is Fire Prevention Week!
Counselor's Corner:
This year Raven is participating in the "The Big Virtual - College Admissions Fair" - Tuesday, October 2nd - 10am-6pm EST or 6AM to 2PM Alaska Standard Time
Dear Raven High School Students:
On October 2nd, eCareerFairs is hosting a national online college fair called The Big Virtual - College Admissions Fair. We expect several hundred colleges to attend and strongly recommend you participate in the event. Chances are your dream school will be present at the fair.
At the Virtual Fair you will interact with department heads of your favorite college using tools you’re familiar with such as live streaming, text, and video chat.
If you have a computer, using the Chrome browser is recommended. You can also use your mobile device's browser to register and participate at the fair. We also encourage that your parents sit alongside you to help in asking questions.
If you plan to attend, please register right away. There are some great event preparation steps that you'll be direct to once you register. Good luck in your college search!
You can learn the details and register for the event by visiting https://collegefair.thebigvirtual.com/Register
ATTENTION SENIORS!
If this is the fall of your senior year and you are applying to a University of Alaska Campus, it would pay dividends now to the take time and make an appointment with your local UA Financial Aid office and admissions office. IF you are applying, they will require that you fill out the FAFSA and have the results sent to them. This will insure they have everything they need in order to be able to offer you scholarships and other types of financial aid. This application will also determine if you are eligible for a PELL Grant This award can be up to $7,000 per year that you do not have to pay back. If you are applying for admission for Fall 2019, the window for filling out the FAFSA is 1 October and all UA campuses are currently accepting admissions applications.
Additionally, Ryan Tilbury (Fairbanks, Delta, Juneau) and Randi Shrider (Wasilla, Eagle River, Anchorage) are both well versed in the financial aid process and will be able to advise. Please email them at rtilbury@yksd.com and rshrider@yksd.com
Alaska Financial Aid Resources
University of Alaska Anchorage
https://www.uaa.alaska.edu/students/financial-aid/
FAFSA School Code: 011462
Contact: University of Alaska Anchorage
3211 Providence Drive
Anchorage, AK 99508
(907) 786-1800
UAA: MATSU Community College
http://matsu.alaska.edu/office/student-services/financial-aid-2/
FAFSA School Code: 011462
Contact: MATSU Community College
Phone: 907-745-9746
E-Mail: info@matsu.alaska.edu
Location: FSM 101
University of Alaska Fairbanks
FAFSA School Code: 011063
Contact: University of Alaska Fairbanks
107 Eielson Building
P.O. Box 756360
Fairbanks, AK 99775
Phone: 907-474-7256
Email: uaf-financialaid@alaska.edu
UAF: Community and Technical College
http://www.ctc.uaf.edu/student/
FAFSA School Code: 011063
Contact: University of Alaska Fairbanks
107 Eielson Building
P.O. Box 756360
Fairbanks, AK 99775
Phone: 907-474-7256
Email: uaf-financialaid@alaska.edu
University of Alaska Southeast Campuses
http://www.uas.alaska.edu/financial_aid/
FAFSA School Code: 011065
Financial Aid Office
(907) 796-6255 (Info)
Novatney Bldg Top Floor
11066 Auke Lake Way
Juneau, AK 99801
PLEASE CALL YOUR SCHOOL COUNSELOR WITH QUESTIONS!
Randi Shrider | Anchorage, Eagle River, Wasilla | rshrider@yksd.com | 907.622.6631
Ryan Tilbury | Delta, Fairbanks, Juneau | rtilbury@yksd.com | 907.374.9432
Please complete the below form and return to your teacher or counselor if you need a letter of recommendation.
Employability Skills Scavenger Hunt in Eagle River
Scavenger Hunt at the Dimond Center in Anchorage
Employability Skills Scavenger Hunt in Eagle River
Anchorage Office:
September Recap:
Have you seen our calendar? We have a lot going on in the office these days and we are loving every second of it! A lot of workshops/clubs kicked off in September so get involved if you aren’t already! We have FLL Legos, Elementary Spanish, Battle of the Books, Thursdays @ 3, and Geography Bee. Randi also hosted a few high school workshops this month. Students had science workshops with Mrs. Fancher and learned all about marine biology. We had two field trips… one to the Palmer Reindeer Farm and one to the Campbell Creek Science Center. Both were hits!
Reminder, if you need to meet with your advisory teacher it is best to call and schedule an appointment!
Upcoming Dates/Events/Deadlines:
October 3rd - PAC + SIA Meetings
October 4th - Thursdays @ 3 Series
October 5th - ARTiculate: Horse Studies
October 9th-11th - Science Workshops
October 11th - UAA Admissions Workshop & Financial Aid Workshop
October 18th - What’s a Resume Workshop
October 19th - School Portraits with Tasha Boin
October 22nd - Diagnostic ACT @ Sylvan (High school Students)
October 24th - Diagnostic SAT @ Sylvan (High school Students)
October 25th - STEM Workshop: Gaming
October 26th Field Trip: AK Wild Berry Products
October 31st - BOO!
October 31st - First Quarter Progress Reports & Work Samples Due
Staff Out of Office Dates:
Carmen: October 1st-3rd, 12th, 19th, 26th
Danae: October 8th, 15th-19th, 22nd, 29th
Terri: October 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd, 30th
Randi IN office: October 11th and 18th
For more details about our events and to RSVP, please click on our SMORE below!
A Special Note from Terri:
- Book Club is Back!! Join us on October 12th, 19th and 26th from 2:30-3:45 as we read and discuss The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick. If you are mechanically minded, love to draw, or have a side for invention, this is a great book for you! For information, or to sign up, contact Terri at tthurston@yksd.com.
- STEM - Coding II Take your Video Game Coding to a new level! Join us October 25th from 2:00-4:00! Sign up soon!
Parents being brave at the Reindeer Farm
Ryan at the Reindeer Farm
Lilly during our field trip to the Campbell Creek Science Center
Delta Office:
September Recap:
We learned about how people used to live, on our tour of Rika’s Roadhouse. Rika used her garden, barn and small kitchen to provide food to travelers from 1913 to 1947. Our students enjoyed feeding the chickens and throwing rocks into the Clearwater River.
Kevin Robotics and Inovation Creation Kids Station (I.C.K.S.) Lego teams are up and running. We have room in our ages 9-14 Kevin Robotics team. But let us know by October 1st, if you want to join.
October Activities:
We will continue to meet on Terrific Tuesdays for board games and snacks. Call the office for more information.
October 3rd - Raven wide Parent Advisory Committee meeting
October 10th - Navigating Brightways Training
October 10th - Inovation Creation Kids Station meeting: Lego Jr.
October 11th - Kevin Robotics meeting : Lego Robotics
October 8th or 9th - TBA Delta Fire Station tour
October 15th - LifeTouch school pictures
October 17th - Inovation Creation Kids Station meeting
October 18th - Kevin Robotics meeting
October 22nd - Setting up book fair
October 23rd-25th - BOOK FAIR!
October 26th - Break down book fair
October 30th - Second Senior meeting: All 2019 graduates are required to attend
October 30th - Owls play board games and enjoy snacks
For more details about our events and to RSVP, please click on our SMORE below!
Eagle River Office:
September Recap:
September was a whirlwind of fun activities, field trips and workshops! We started the month with our PAC meeting and there was a lot discussed during that meeting. Deb Fancher was here and hosted our first Science Workshop of the school year! During that workshop we learned all about Marine Science. We also had two fun scuba diving workshops that some older students were able to participate in. The weather held out for us when we went on our field trip to the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center. It was a beautiful day and we all learned a lot about the animals who live there, we ended the field trip with a close up presentation of Snickers the porcupine! Randi hosted an interactive Employability Skills workshop with some middle school students. Geography Club was all about Europe this month! Students shared what they learned about their selected topics with informative presentations and everyone got to enjoy a European potluck afterwards. We ended the month with a fun field trip to the Campbell Creek Science Center.
We are still looking for a few more students to join our Battle of the Books team! Please email Maegan, mmascagno@yksd.com, if your student is interested in signing up.
Don’t forget: first quarter progress reports & work samples are due October 31st!
October Activities:
October 2nd - Reading Reasons Workshop with Randi
October 3rd - PAC Meeting - Program Wide
October 4th - Scholastic Book Fair Set-Up Day
October 5th - Field Trip: Fire Station #11 Tour
October 8th-12th - Scholastic Book Fair
October 12th - Science Workshops: Carbon Dioxide
October 16th - FAFSA/Financial Aid Workshop with Randi
October 17th - Geography Club: Asia
October 19th - Field Trip: Alaska State Trooper Museum
October 19th - School Portraits in the Anchorage Office
October 23rd - Diagnostic SAT with Sylvan Learning Center
October 24th - ARTiculate: Pumpkin Art
October 25th - Diagnostic ACT with Sylvan Learning Center
October 25th - "I Know I Can" with Randi
October 31st - First Quarter Progress Reports & Work Samples Due
Battle of the Books meeting schedule starting October 1st:
K-2nd grade: Tuesdays at 9:30-10:30am
5th-6th grade: Mondays at 9-10am
7th-8th grade: Mondays at 10:30-11:30am
Staff Schedules:
Steve will be out of the office October 5th, 12th, 19th and 26th.
Randi will be out of the office October 1st, 12th, 15th, and October 26th-November 2nd.
Randi will be working in the Anchorage office on October 11th and 18th, and in the Wasilla office on October 17th and 24th.
Maegan will be out of the office October 5th.
For more details about our events and to RSVP, please click on our SMORE below!
ARTiculate: A Color of Our Own workshop
Geography Club presentations
Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center field trip
Fairbanks Office:
September Recap:
Art Classes:
This month saw the start of the fall semester art classes taught by YKSD Art Instructor, Rockwell B. Near. Rocky is a wildlife artist, who has spent much of his life in the bush. He recently returned to Alaska, after a long trip around the world, and two years of teaching Art at an international school in the highlands of Papua New Guinea. He has come to the YKSD to create an art program for the interior schools and Raven Homeschool students.
- Our High School and Middle School class meets every other Friday and has 12 talented artists in the making.
- Our Elementary aged class meets once a month and begins this week.
Poker Flat Research Range Field Trip:
Even after their season had closed, approximately 25 Raven Homeschool parents and students were granted a guided tour of the rocket launching facilities. Poker Flat is the largest land-based rocket research range in the world and the only high-latitude rocket range in the United States, they launch scientific sounding rockets, performs satellite tracking and is home to a growing fleet of unmanned aircraft.
ILP Scheduling:
We are still scheduling your 2018-2019 Individual Learning Plan (ILP) meetings with your Advisory Teacher. This meeting is your chance to discuss your child's class schedule, curriculum that you want to teach, computer purchases and any other questions or concerns you want answered. Please give us a call at 907-374-9401 to schedule today!
October Staff Schedules:
Natasha Anderson - in office M-F 8:00am – 4:30pm
Chuck Backe - out of office Mondays & October 30th
Jessica Desrochers - out of office October 22nd
Tami Rump - in office M-F 8:00am – 4:30pm
Ryan Tilbury - out of office October 12-16th & 26th
Cathy Walker - out of office Fridays
Follow our office on Facebook!
For more details about our events and to RSVP, please click on our SMORE below!
High School Art class
Making new friends during Art class
Poker Flat Research Range field trip
Juneau Office:
September in Review
September was a surprisingly warm, dry month which was great for several of our outdoor activities. Theresa and Joan had good participation at the Building Blocks of Reading Workshops to help parents with practical strategies for teaching their children to read. Our JrFLL teams continued to meet weekly to work on the Mission Moon challenge. Many families came in for School Photos, and it was great to see all the students looking so nice for their pictures. We finished off the month with a full week of high school students meeting with Ryan individually, a Senior Meeting, an Intro to High School Workshop, and our annual Fall Picnic. It was a great time for new and returning families to connect with each other and with Raven staff as we dive into the school year together.
October Important Dates
October 1st-31st - Healthy Futures Fall Challenge
October 2nd - Building Blocks of Reading Workshop Series
October 3rd - District-wide PAC Meeting & Student Activity
October 4th - JrFLL
October 9th - Building Blocks of Reading Workshop Series
October 10th - Elementary Spanish Club: Palabras de Moviemientos
October 11th - JrFLL
October 12th - Book Fair Set-up “Pancakes with Pixies”
October 15th-19th - Enchanted Forest Scholastic Book Fair: Let Your Imagination Grow!
October 18th - DIPAC Salmon Education Program - 3rd-5th Grades
October 18th - JrFLL
October 19th - DIPAC Salmon Education Program – K-2nd Grades
October 23rd - STEAM Activity for 3rd-6th Grades
October 24th - Police Station Tour
October 25th - JrFLL
October 26th - Box Tops Fall Submission Deadline
October 26th - Scholastic Book Club Oct Orders Due
October 29th - Chess Club
October 31st - Fall Costume and Craft Party
October 31st - October Healthy Futures Logs Due
October 31st - Quarter 1 Progress Reports Due
Staff Schedules:
Theresa Off – Oct. 1st, 8th, 15th, 18th, 22nd, 29th
Joan Off – Oct. 5th, 12th, 19th, 26th
For more details about our events and to RSVP, please click on our SMORE below!
PreK Backpacks
Building Blocks of Reading
PAC Meeting & Student Activity
Wasilla Office:
September Recap:
What a wonderful warm September we have enjoyed this year! Our first Culinary Cook-Off was a delicious success. We had a trio of military judges. Congratulations to our winner who baked a tasty chocolate chip-orange cookie! We are pleased to announce that we had three students become CPR & first aid certified! Students learned about dry ice and had a lot of fun with various experiments at this month's science workshop. Students also had a blast creating Raven paintings at a Paintastic party. This month's ARTiculate, Dinosaurs and Texture, was well attended and taught by our very own family liaison, Daphne! Check out the pictures of our September happenings below.
October Activities:
October 3rd - Area Wide PAC Meeting
October 5th - Field Trip to the cow farm and potatoes
October 8th - School Picture Day!! At My Favorite Preschool
October 10th - Culinary Cook-Off: Pumpkin Dessert
October 12th - Field Trip Farm Day
October 17th - Academic Counselor, Randi, in the office
October 19th - Field Trip Wasilla Fire Department
October 22nd - SAT Practice Test at Sylvan Learning Center
October 24th - Academic Counselor, Randi, in the office
October 24th - ACT Practice Test at Sylvan Learning Center
October 24th - Field Trip Hello Darlin' Hair Salon
October 31st - First Quarter Progress Reports & Work Samples Due!
RSVP for events mratzlaff@yksd.com as soon as possible to have a spot!
Science Workshops: $50
Tuesdays are K-6th 3:30-5:00
Thursdays are 7th-12th 4:00-5:30
October 2nd & 4th: Frog Dissection
October 9th & 11th: Introduction to Bees & Honey
October 16th: Slime (K-6th grade only)
October 18th: Heavy Metals (7th-12th grade only)
October 30th & November 1st: Beaver Dissection
November 13th & 15th: Explosions
November 27th & 29th: Electricity & Magnetism
December 4th & 6th: Balms, Beeswax, Bombs
*All workshops and field trips are open for Wasilla Office families first; if there is room, families from other offices may participate upon a confirmed RSVP.
October Staff Schedules:
Cynthia out of office dates: October 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd, and 29th
Joy out of office dates: October 5th, 12th, 19th, and 26th
Ruth out of office dates: October 11th, 12th, 19th, 26th, and 31st
For more details about our events and to RSVP, please click on our SMORE below!