Last minute information before the break begins

Hello Fabulous Families,

I wanted to take a moment to wish you all a wonderful holiday season and may you take these days to spend precious time with your loved ones and make wonderful memories that will last a lifetime!

It has been a true blessing for me to meet each and every one of you and your children and I look forward to what the next part of our school year brings for us all.

I know many of you are planning to continue working through the break, but do try and take some time to just relax! You all deserve it, for all of your hard work so far this year.

If you need to get a hold of me, I will be working on and off for the rest of this week, so you may be able to reach me for any last minute questions. Otherwise, technically I will have everything shut down and on vacation mode as of 4:30pm today, Wednesday the 19th. :)

Take care and I will see you all next year!!!

Sincerely,

Christie Louis 6-8 Teacher 2360 Shasta Way Unit A Simi Valley, CA 93065 ph 209-872-6367 clouis@caliva.org cavaschristielouis.blogspot.com

 

 

Study Island Powerpoints - supplemental help

Good evening Cava Families!

 

As you are aware, per my email last week, I am going to provide you with some powerpoint presentations (as they are available) via Study Island.  Although there were no Blue Ribbons assigned this week, it is a great time to go in and get caught up and topics that have not been completed and mastered.  As the teacher, I have access to supplemental powerpoint presentations that I would like to share with you to assist your student in help if needed.  These powerpoints are to go hand in hand with the blue ribbon topics.  Not all topics provide a presentation, however, if available, I will send your way.  I have attached the presentations that I have access to.  I have put them by grade level into a zip file so that they will send via email. 

That being said, I have listed the Blue Ribbons that have been assigned the week we return from Christmas break.  Please note that you are more than welcome to work on these Blue Ribbons over the break, however, it is not required and therefore, attendance cannot be taken.

 

6^th Grade  (Circles Zip file – attached)

Math – 3a (circles), 3c (angles)

Language – 2f (follow instructions), 2n (drawing conclusions)

 

7^th Grade (Rate Problems zip file – attached)

Math – 2i (elements of geometric figures), 3i (rate problems)

Language – 4k (Fragments & Run ons), 4l (Phrases & Clauses)

 

8^th Grade (Pythagorean Theorem zip file – attached)

Math – 6b (quadratic formula)

Language – 2h (logic), 2i (writing flow)

History – 4e (early American politics) , 4f (early republic)

Science – 9a (experimental design)

 

I also wanted to remind you that we are getting very close to the end of Quarter 2 which means that report cards will be provided at the end of the semester.  That being said, it is important that you are aware of the requirements listed on the Middle School Grading Scale.  Below you will see the ideal portions of the grading scale and what all is required in order to earn an A or B. 

 

 

 

Finally, I have provided some snapshots of our classroom blog as that is also a place where you can find all attachments that have been sent via email. 

 

Please visit www.cavaschristielouis.blogspot.com.  Scroll all the way to the bottom and you will see the following (a link for “important resources”):

 

 

When you click on the link, it should take you to the following in which you will click on “important resources”:

 

If everything works smoothly J, you will be brought to all of the attachments.

I hope this information helps.  Have a great vacation!

Christie Louis 6-8 Teacher 2360 Shasta Way Unit A Simi Valley, CA 93065 ph 209-872-6367 clouis@caliva.org cavaschristielouis.blogspot.com

 

 

Working over Winter Break?

 

Do you plan to work on curriculum over the winter holiday?  Then please read…

If your student is behind in any courses or would like to get ahead in courses, the winter break is a great time to do lessons. 

However, keep in mind two important goals in CAVA:

 

1) CAVA is a mastery-based curriculum.  We want our students to strive for understanding, mastery, and retention.

2) Developing good study skills and study habits will help students be life-long learners, beyond their CAVA education.  We want our students to strive toward building solid study skills and study habits that they can take with them into any learning experience.  Many middle school students are still learning how to persevere through a difficult lesson, how to stay motivated to complete an entire day’s worth of lessons each and every school day, and how to be more independent in their studies.  Be cautious of having students “cram” several weeks worth of curriculum into two weeks time.

With those goals in mind, we want to be cautious of having students complete too much coursework over the winter break if they have been behind in their courses.   On a typical school week, we expect students to strive to make 2 ½ to 3% progress in each of their courses.  Because mastery of curriculum is important, if a student does complete more than this over the winter break, I’ll need to verify his/her mastery of the content covered.  If your student completes more than 7% progress in a course over the winter break, please plan to have your student verify his/her mastery with me.  Your student should plan to submit work completed in the course (offline work, worksheets, math problems/work shown, essays/short answers, etc.).  I may also want to have a conference with your student (by phone or in Blackboard) where we can have a discussion about the curriculum learned.

Thank you!

 

Christie Louis 6-8 Teacher 2360 Shasta Way Unit A Simi Valley, CA 93065 ph 209-872-6367 clouis@caliva.org cavaschristielouis.blogspot.com

 

 

Important Items before break

 

Greetings CAVA Families!

 

Happy Wednesday to you all! Here are a few important reminders for you to take care of today and, if you choose, over the Winter Break.

Winter Break starts Thursday, December 20^th to Friday, January 4^th.

School resumes on Monday, January 7^th.

 

     

Attendance: Attendance Report

Thank you for having attendance updated yesterday and to continue to do so today. To check if your student is missing any attendance days, log on the OLS, then click on the “Attendance” tab.  In the upper left-hand corner of the screen, you will see “Days of Missing Attendance”.  If the number shows anything other than “0”, please click on the “Enter attendance now” link.  You can then click on “View” next to “Missing Days” toward the right.  Next, use the calendar to go to the days that are missing.  You can then manually enter the minutes in each subject.

 

 

• Please do NOT log attendance on weekends or school holidays.     Students can work on weekends or holidays but cannot “attend” school (as mandated by state laws). If they work on nonschool days, such as over winter break, please add the hours spent on schoolwork to the next school day’s attendance log.

 

 

 

 

 

 

OLS Progress:

Students should complete 2 ½ -3% of each course weekly. If you started the school year with us on or around 8/16, you should be at 45% progress by the end of the day Wednesday, December 19th. To determine your progress if you did not start on the first day of school, multiply .03 times number of weeks in school.

If you are behind in core subjects (math, LA, Science, history) please consider working over winter break.  There is an AVERAGE expectation of progress of 2 ½ -3% in the core subject areas. As always, I encourage you to go to the student account and view progress.  Here you can look at the alerts, shown with an exclamation, or you can view the snapshot.  Both of these are helpful to ensure you are on track. Keep in mind Math and Language Arts (all components) are the core curriculum and should be considered when choosing which course to work on over break. Please log only completed lessons NOT attendance over winter break. Reread attendance policy above.

 

Remember: Since mastery and building good study habits are key, students who complete more than 7% progress within a course over the winter break should plan to submit work to demonstrate their mastery following the winter break (worksheets, offline work, essays/short answers, math problems/work shown, etc.)  Please see Monday’s Weekly Newsletter for more information.

 

 

 

     

Quarter 2 Work Samples/Additional Assignments: Please be sure that all work samples and any outstanding additional assignments (see assignment sheet for due dates) are turned in by January 17^th.  Remember, I have scheduled in-person appointments so that you can turn in ALL of these required assignments at one time.  Please confirm your meeting time by email or phone.  If you are mailing them to me due to not being able to make an appointment, please mail them to 2104 Gaslight Dr. Modesto, Ca 95355.

 

Semester 2 Spring ISMAs: Please be sure that you have signed your Semester 2 Spring ISMA before the winter break.  These were all sent out last night (12/18).  The link was sent to your email.  If you are unable to find this, please check your junk mail.

 

Study Island:

Students have a great opportunity to catch up on their blue ribbons on Study Island over the break.  Study Island provides a fantastic way for students to review and practice grade level concepts.  As a reminder, Middle School students are assigned blue ribbon topics on their Semester 1 assignment sheet and are required to earn those blue ribbons in order to earn A’s and B’s on their Semester 1 report card.

 

 

 

P.E. Logs Quarter 2-Update Today

Please be sure you have gone to Cavaparent.org and updated your P.E. logs for the Quarter 2 period. Log onto www.cavaparent.org> Select “Physical Education” – “Logs” >Choose Quarter 2>Click “Add New”>Select the two week period>

 

 

10/23-11/2  Weeks 1 & 2, 9/days- 180min (3 hours)

11/5-11/16  Weeks 3 & 4, 9/days- 180min (3 hours)

11/26-12/7   Weeks 5 & 6, 10/days- 200min(3.5 hours)

12/10-12/19 Weeks 7 & 8, 8/days- 160min (3 hours)

1/7- 1/17      Weeks 9 & 10, 9/days- 180min (3 hours)

 

 

 

 

 

Again I thank you for all your time and efforts!  I appreciate all of those that have completed all of the above and are caught up on a daily basis. KUDOS to those with perfect attendance and who have been making great progress!  

 

Happy Holidays!  See you in 2013!!

Christie Louis 6-8 Teacher 2360 Shasta Way Unit A Simi Valley, CA 93065 ph 209-872-6367 clouis@caliva.org cavaschristielouis.blogspot.com

 

 

updated schedule for in-person meetings

Good evening!

I’ve gone ahead and updated the schedule for our in person meetings.  I have also added more dates as we are getting very close to the end of quarter 2 and work samples and additional required assignments must be turned in on time.  Additionally, please ensure that PE minutes are updated as well.

 

If I had not heard back from you as to when you could meet, I went ahead and placed you in a time slot/location that was closest to your residence.  Please confirm with me that those dates/times are ok. In person power conferences are required and therefore if you can verify the times/dates, that would be great.

 

Thank you so much! 

 

Christie Louis 6-8 Teacher 2360 Shasta Way Unit A Simi Valley, CA 93065 ph 209-872-6367 clouis@caliva.org cavaschristielouis.blogspot.com

 

 

Student Government Votes are in!

Good Morning Middle School Students,

The votes are in!  

Student Government will have a special meeting tomorrow, Wednesday, December 19th at 11am to announce its officers for the 2012-13 SY. I hope you will be able to join us.

Student Government Blackboard room:

https://sas.elluminate.com/m.jnlp?sid=559&password=M.4E22AE8B137A51E80F2CE959F6E00E


Thank you,

Tabatha Vega  tvega@caliva.org
Catherine Hazen  chazen@caliva.org
Student Government Teacher Advisors

Christie Louis 6-8 Teacher 2360 Shasta Way Unit A Simi Valley, CA 93065 ph 209-872-6367 clouis@caliva.org cavaschristielouis.blogspot.com

 

 

Attendance Report - TODAY

December 18: Attendance Report to the State

 

VERY IMPORTANT:

 

CAVA will be recording attendance TODAY, Tuesday, December 18 for reporting purposes to the state.

 

Please have attendance submitted by 2pm.

 

 

Any days (including, December 18th) that are not logged by 2pm may show as absences on the report card. 

Students who began on the first day of school, August 16, should have 80 days of attendance by the end of the day.

 

Remember: Only log attendance for school days, no weekend days or holidays.

 

 

Here is a suggestion for today’s attendance:

 

Look at your child’s schedule for today.  Mark your attendance for today, right now, based on the lessons you plan to complete today.  This way you can be sure that you have attendance logged and won’t forget before 2pm!  If you discover at the end of the day that your attendance was different than what you marked, please feel free to contact me and I can make any changes for you. 

 

If you need any help with attendance, please ask!  J

Christie Louis 6-8 Teacher 2360 Shasta Way Unit A Simi Valley, CA 93065 ph 209-872-6367 clouis@caliva.org cavaschristielouis.blogspot.com

 

 

Weekly Newsletter - Week of December 17th

Hello Wonderful CAVA Families,

 

I hope your family had a great weekend!  Attached you will find the CAVA Weekly Road Map for the week of December 17^th.  It is very important that you read through this newsletter as it contains important information, updates, required tasks, student recognition, progress information, helpful how-to documents, etc.  If your schedule is free and you live nearby any of the upcoming outings, please don’t hesitate to take advantage of the outings in your area!

 

Please find the newsletter attached as a .pdf titled CAVA Weekly Road Map 12.17.2012.  After opening the newsletter, I recommend saving it to your computer in a “Newsletter” folder so you can easily access the information, should you need to find it again.  This folder will be a wonderful resource throughout the year! 

 

Please let me know if you have any questions.  Enjoy!

 

Thank you,

Christie Louis 6-8 Teacher 2360 Shasta Way Unit A Simi Valley, CA 93065 ph 209-872-6367 clouis@caliva.org cavaschristielouis.blogspot.com