GCA Weekly Update
7/26/24
Hello Spartans,
Annual Update - Do it now while you are watching the Olympics - Essential!
Click here to log in to the Infinite Campus parent portal.
Get onto Infinite Campus Parent Portal. From here, take care of the following items.
Complete your annual update - Ensure all your information is current and correct.
Under Health Services, mark if your child is allowed to take Tylenol or ibuprofen.
If you need your child to have medication administered at school or self-carry medication, download this form, fill it out, and bring it into the office (any student carrying any medication on campus without the form can be suspended from GCA).
Immunizations—If you are new to GCA, you must bring immunization records to the Health Office by August 17th.
Please pay the following fees at this time.
All class fees for both semesters (HS only)
Activity fee so we can continue providing memorable activities for our students (All students).
PSAT Test - For all 8th, 9th, and 11th grade students.
Device Protection Plan—Only if you did not purchase or use it last year. It will pay for itself.
Yearbook - $90. The cost will increase to $100 at the end of September. We will only order the number of yearbooks pre-ordered—no yearbook purchases after March (optional).
Parking Pass—If you are a junior or senior, you need a parking pass. Download this form, complete it, and bring it to the office. To receive your parking tag, you must have the completed form, money, or a receipt showing payment online.
Pictures on Thursday
Wear your uniform with the GCA logo on Thursday, August 1st, for your school picture. Pictures will be taken in PE for 7 - 9 grade, Creative Writing for 10th, Seminar for 11th, and Research for 12th.
GCA Learning Cycle
Most students have seen this by now. Our learning and grading process has improved. The learning cycle is designed to focus and practice retrieving information from the brain to create a pathway to something learned or stored. Once the brain path is created, we will give a summative assessment to grade how well the student retrieves and applies the knowledge. During the process, there will be several opportunities to practice and display what has been learned. Formative assessments will be able to be improved. The summative assessment will be a final score for the unit. This learning cycle is important to prepare students to monitor their learning as they get ready for college success. There will be two categories in the grade book:
Formative assessments (between 20% and 30%)—These will be assessed after students have had a chance to read, practice problems, practice writing, etc. These assessments can be improved.
Summative assessments (between 70-80% (sometimes a 10% final exam category will be pulled out of this category)) - These are unit tests, projects, and knowledge assessments. These will be the final grades for the unit.
All grades will represent knowledge and understanding. There will be no more completion grades or extra credit. Two grades will be entered in the grade book per week to monitor progress. To perform well, it is important to utilize the practice and formative phases of the learning cycle.
High School Students Need this to Record Service Hours
If you are new to GCA this year and are interested in starting your service hours for graduation. Here are some of the things you will need to do.
Install InnerView as an App (0:20) - Here is the link to install the app on your phone. You can also use your computer/Chromebook to enter activities. Go to innerview.org, sign up with your school email, and choose Gilbert Classical Academy.
Joining Groups (1:21) - When you join a group, start with your school (Gilbert Classical Academy), then select ‘Class of 2028.’
Add Activities (3:01)—When adding activities, follow the directions on the video. For GCA, please add the contact information for the activity leader so they can verify hours. No leader, no credit.
Service learning hours must be earned through a non-profit organization. For example, you may tutor
a GCA student or volunteer with The Red Cross. However, you may not babysit or tutor your neighbor for free because it is not done through an organization. If you need clarification on whether the organization is non-profit, ask.
You may also volunteer through religious organizations such as churches or temples, but the service
must be secular and reach out to the community beyond the religious organization. Teaching religion or distributing religious materials will not count towards the requirement. Activities such as food drives or building houses do count. Please make sure to log only these activities.
Categories
Non-educational—Students must earn at least 50 (out of 80) hours in non-educational settings (e.g., animal shelters, food banks, hospitals, libraries, museums, food banks, zoos, etc.). Students can earn all 80 hours for graduation in this category.
Educational - If students only earn 50 non-educational hours, they need at least 30 hours (out of 80) of community service involving GCA, GPS district schools, or any other institute of education.
Eighty hours are required for graduation, and awards are given for more volunteering hours. If a student has at least 50 non-educational hours, the number of hours earned in each category is unlimited. Go help people.
GCA Good Things
Stephanie Hein had the opportunity to participate in the Keys Research Internship at the University of Arizona this summer. She did research that connected hearing loss to increased anxiety and fear. She presented her findings to about 100 college professors and interns. See her poster for her research and findings. It is amazing!
Mr. Watson was recognized as being part of the Impact Corps award ceremony at the ASU-Helios Decision Center Award ceremony. He is between Dr. Dawn Foley, our School Liaison, and Dr. Joseph O’Reilly, the director. He was recognized for the success our students are having in College Physics classes in our state schools. Congratulations Mr. Watson.
GCA Alum making big noise around the world. Natalie Krieger graduated in 2017. With her research group at Harvey Mudd she was part of a patent regarding iron alloys, which was published in April of this year. A lot of the research was done in 2020, and the patent was submitted in 2021. Here are a couple of articles relating to this tremendous accomplishment!
Informational Article: https://magazine.hmc.edu/summer-2020/alloy-allies/
Provisional Filing Article at Harvey Mudd: https://www.hmc.edu/about/2020/05/28/bassman-and-students-file-provisional-patent-on-alloy-family/ The article states they could not go to Australia in 2020, but I do know that at some point during the process she did have the opportunity to do research in Australia, while she was still a student at Harvey Mudd.
Actual Patent Info (for those who are curious): https://patents.justia.com/patent/20240133004#history
Bus Schedule
Here is the updated 2024-25 GCA Bus Schedule
Badges
If you have your badge from last year, please bring it and wear it for the first week and a half of school. All students will have new badges on picture day, August 3rd. New students will have temporary badges until that time. All students will need a badge to ride the bus starting the second week of school.
Gates
The north side gate will be open from 6:30 to 6:45 for A-hour students to report to class. Both the front (east side near the flagpole) for bus drop-off (no parent drop-off in the front) and the rear (west side gate for parent drop-off) will be open at 7 am. If you arrive early, wait near the entrance for the 7 am opening. If you are going to be tardy, come to the front office for a late pass. Please arrive at school by 7:15 so you are not late.
Here is our new 2024-25 Bell Schedule.
Chromebooks!
We have a Device Protection Program for Chromebooks, which is $25; the deadline to purchase it is August 25th. Here is information regarding the 2024-25 Device Protection Plan
You can pay for the program on Infinite Campus (Parent Portal). Go to the menu => click "more" => select "Make a payment in In Touch" => Select your student name => Select "Items at Student's school" => One of the items should be Device Protection Plan.
Chromebooks for new students will be distributed at the end of orientation on July 18th. If you miss orientation, you can arrange to get it during Spartan Day or before school. Your Annual Update must be completed before getting your Chromebook.
Parent Drop-off and Pickup
Like last year, parents will drop off students in the back, on the west side of the school. Please use the link above to see the map.
Open house/curriculum night on August 6th from 6 to 7:30 pm.
This evening consists of attending each of your student’s classes for 10 minutes. You will be able to meet the teachers and receive the course syllabus and curriculum information (bring your child’s schedule with you). The first period starts at 6:00 PM sharp; please be on time. Due to space restrictions, parents are encouraged to leave their students at home to finish their homework. But again, bring your child’s schedule with you. Parking will be available on the west baseball/softball fields.
Up-to-date School Map
Here is the up-to-date new school map with the new teachers' names.
New Counselor and Coordinator to GCA
We are proud to welcome Lizeth Bain as our new GCA Guidance Counselor. Mrs. Bain brings us a wealth of knowledge and great experience. She is excited to begin working with our students.
Kieran Parker is our new College Coordinator. He too comes to us with great experiences from Gilbert High School. If you have college and scholarship questions, please contact him. He is ready to help.
Enjoy opening ceremonies,
Dan Hood Ed.D.
Principal
Gilbert Classical Academy