Friday Open Thread
One Community meeting on Saturday, Director Carr, from 8:30-10 am at Bethany Community Church.
It is Neighbor Appreciation Day in Seattle this Saturday the 8th. Nearly all the Seattle fire stations will be open so it's a good time to take the kids to meet your local firefighters.
Superhero ladies re-imagined by artist Celeste Pille. I like this.
Speaking of heroes, GI Joe, the very first action figure, turns 50 this year. That's okay, Joe, we're all getting older.
The Siemens, We Can Change the World Challenge, is still on until March 4th. The Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge is the premier national environmental sustainability competition for grades K-12 students. Through project-based learning, students learn about science and conservation while creating solutions that impact their planet. Beginning August 13, 2013 through March 4, 2014, teams from across the country will be challenged to create sustainable, reproducible environmental improvements in their local communities.
What's on your mind?
It is Neighbor Appreciation Day in Seattle this Saturday the 8th. Nearly all the Seattle fire stations will be open so it's a good time to take the kids to meet your local firefighters.
Superhero ladies re-imagined by artist Celeste Pille. I like this.
Speaking of heroes, GI Joe, the very first action figure, turns 50 this year. That's okay, Joe, we're all getting older.
The Siemens, We Can Change the World Challenge, is still on until March 4th. The Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge is the premier national environmental sustainability competition for grades K-12 students. Through project-based learning, students learn about science and conservation while creating solutions that impact their planet. Beginning August 13, 2013 through March 4, 2014, teams from across the country will be challenged to create sustainable, reproducible environmental improvements in their local communities.
What's on your mind?
Comments
Details and pictures of cards here: http://midbeaconhill.blogspot.com/2014/02/valentines-day-cards-by-maple-students.html
Thanks for supporting SE kids!
http://stairwaywalks2014.brownpapertickets.com/
There are forms to fill out for the music program and the PTSA mailing list. We are planning our charter membership meeting in early April so keep checking the website for more information.
LH
Sorry for the random question. I don't even know whom to address the question to at JSCEE. I anyone could suggest whom to call, that'd be great, too.
Thanks.
SPS mom
There is a summer program at the UW I think she would love. They require MSP scores to apply. This would be for the summer after next. You have to score well on the MSP.
Otherwise, I wouldn't care if she missed it.
SPS mom
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/Family-of-teen-shot-by-friend-Our-hearts-are-broken-244339431.html
How many more innocent will be killed by a family member/friend until they change the gun laws / owners responsibility???
Time
If you can't schedule another time to take the MSP, scores from a talent search work too. The Center for Talented Youth at Johns Hopkins has a test (SCAT) you can take at a local testing center.
http://www.truth-out.org/opinion/item/21690-this-school-is-not-a-pipe
This comic accompanies a two-year long Truthout supported series illustrating the education reform debate from an alternative perspective, both ideologically and visually.
-schoolWatcher
So parents, be sure to plan ahead. I'm sure there are others, but these are a few scenarios under which testing might be worth it, even if you feel it usually isn't.
- Planning to enter APP or Spectrum within two years. It might make things easier to just take MAP tests now, since they use qualifying MAP scores in one year to determine who to invite for AL testing the next fall. Sure, you can apply for testing in the absence of that invitation letter, but personally I find it helpful to get that letter as a reminder that it's time. Too easy to forget to register otherwise.
- Transitioning to middle school within next 2 years. Hamilton, for example, is using a combination of 5th grade math MAP scores and 4th grade math MSP. I'm not sure what they do if you're missing one or both scores in the matrix.
- Planning to enroll in a non-SPS program for gifted learners. Eligibility criteria for some classes at UW's Robinson Center, for example, can be met by showing qualifying MSP scores or proof of qualification for advanced learning services. Or if you're planning to apply to Bellevue's Gifted High School program (which offers more advanced classes than SPS and accepts out-of-district students on a space-available basis), MAP and MSP scores can be used to qualify for further eligibility testing.
--Planning to apply for private school. This isn't really a formal requirement, but if you're planning to apply for private schools it might be a nice idea to take the MAP and MSP tests as offered, so that your kid's current/future teachers have those extra data points for use in completing their recommendations. Particularly if your child is advanced, it's easy for a teacher to not really see the extent of their abilities, since they usually don't cover material at an appropriate level in class. A high score can help get a teacher's attention (which can be helpful in your negotiations around the current year, too).
In most cases there are other ways to meet the requirements or obtain a placement or make your kid's needs known, but they're going to involve additional work on your part, and probably additional--but different--testing for your kid. So unfortunately, the MAP and MSP are sometimes the easy way out.
HIMSmom
https://www.nonprofitquarterly.org/policysocial-context/23652-pushing-back-against-education-reform.html
Pushing Back Against “Education Reform”
-katydid
Just curious...what neighborhood? Not that it really makes a difference, since it is happening all over, but just wondering.
- North-end Mom
And there's where the district cleverly has you by the throat. Most of these tests are not made for what the district uses them for. There are other ways to determine eligibility for programs BUT this way, they keep you in the corral.
I submit that you could even say the district is wrong on this method legally.
I thought the private schools had their own test - some of my friends had their kids take it when they applied.
Gen Ed Mom
-?
HIMSmom
Not to mention the dramatic costs of transporation as it relates to the McKenny-Vento Act - an excellent concept but the reality has become much more expensive than I think anyone anticpated.
Northgate has 80+FRL and I've heard about 60% of those are homeless.
Seems like a lot for one school to handle. Does anyone know if extra resources (other than Title 1 funds) are allocated for a situation like this?