6. ES Parent Coffee - Tuesday, March 3: The following week, I will be holding an Elementary Parent Coffee to talk about the Elementary School and events upcoming. I'll also touch on the MAP tests and outline some changes to next year's report card - there will be coffee!
7. Grade 3 Geology Beach Visit: Here are some photos from the Gr 3 visit to Mosque Beach as part of their Geology Science unit:
8. Grade 4 Puppet Visit: Ms. Idir arranged for all the Grade 4 students to attend a puppeteering workshop at the French Institute recently. The children took away a lot, and many of their models were used as part of an exhibit:
9. Upcoming Assemblies: Please note the two upcoming assemblies next week:
- Thursday, February 26: 1T assembly for Pre-K - Gr 2 students
- Friday, February 27: 4C Assembly for Gr 3-5 students
10. Field Day - a heads-up: Please add to calendars that the Pre-K - Gr 5 students will be having Field Day on Friday, March 20. This is the last day before Spring Break, and as always it gives us a great fun way to end the term!
11. MAP Testing Ongoing: The Gr 2-5 students are in the midst of their second battery of MAP tests. As before, there are three online tests in Reading, Language Usage and Math. If you click HERE you will go to a Parent Toolkit, published by NWEA, who facilitate the tests. I have more information for new parents below:
ISD uses the MAP Test as our standardized test. The MAP Test is Measures of Academic Progress™ and is created by the Northwest Evaluation Association. These tests determine your child’s instructional level and measure academic growth throughout the school year, and from year to year in the areas of math, reading and language.
In addition to using our own assessments and report cards, ISD, like most schools, uses a standardized test to compare how our students are doing as compared to a larger pool of students. The MAP test is especially useful to ISD as we receive the results within a week after the tests are complete. Once we receive the test results, each parent will receive a test report.
Students in Grades 2-5 will be taking the first round of these MAP tests starting Wednesday, February 18. Students take these tests in three sessions, each lasting about an hour.
MAP tests are unique in that they are adaptive tests your child takes on a computer. That means that the test becomes more difficult the more questions your child answered correctly. When your child incorrectly answered a question, the test became easier. Therefore, your child takes a test specifically created for his or her learning level. We also receive very detailed reports on each student and each class, and this information is used for teachers to better tailor instruction to the needs of each child and each class, based on the reported areas of strength and weakness.
Please know that there is no need for your child to study in advance of these tests. Also, the tests are in the morning, which is when we usually do the in-class math, reading or writing sessions, so it is a little more authentic to your child.
12. Soiree Literraire: ...and finally, this is from the PTO. The annual dinner event is on the way!
Upcoming Events:
