Alpharetta High School

The Radiant Raiders will be hosting a birthday social for all members of the staff whose birthdays were from this past to July to this coming December. This event will be held during both lunches on Wednesday, November 30th, 2016. There will be cake for all of the birthday boys and girls!

November 30 - Birthday social

December 1 - FREE Yoga for staff

December 5 or 6 - Faculty Meeting

December 5 – Winter Chorus Concert

December 8 – Anchor Time Ends

December 8 – Recovery Deadline

December 8 – Winter Orchestra Concert

December 9 - PTSA Dessert Buffet for staff

December 12 – 16 – Georgia Milestones EOC

December 12 – Winter Band Concert

December 13 - School Governance Meeting

December 16 – Fire drill – end of day 3:45

December 20, 21, 22 – Final Exams for first semester (Early Release days)

December 20 - AHS Holiday Party

December 22 – Last day of First Semester

Portal page is not available yet so you will find the following items attached to this week's newsletter email:

· Charitable Fund PowerPoint presentation

· Contribution directions (step by step)

· Difference View (to help illustrate the difference in giving options)

· Fulton Gives logo

As a reminder, please be sure to direct all email communication to CharitableFund@fultonschools.org.

Thank you so much for your patience and willingness to serve! The world is a better place because of you! J

Students in face-to-face Economics this semester are taking their EOC on Tuesday, December 13th. Students taking Economics online are taking their EOC on Wednesday, December 14th. Students will be missing ½ of their classes that day to take the EOC. We will have no bells both of these days due to testing.

Raiders!

Final exams will be here before we know it and some of our students already know they will miss some or all exams. Students who will be absent on final exam days due to absences will be coming to you soon with PINK Pre-Approved Absence forms that should be signed by an administrator first.

If you sign one of these forms, please note the student’s name and then submit that student’s make-up exam (in addition to other students who are absent from your exam) to Carolyn Vezeau in 1220 by 2:00 on December 22nd. I have attached the cover sheet that should be attached to the front of each exam folder. Extra forms and folders are available with Carolyn.

No students can exempt finals fall semester.

As students complete their make-up exams, we will place them in your mailbox. Make up exams will take place on January 5th and January 6th in the Media Center.

If students or parents ask you directly about taking exams early, please tell them it is against policy and direct them to the AHS website or you may copy and paste the information below.

Here is the information about make-up exams that is now on our website:

Students who will be absent during Final Exams must obtain a PINK Pre-Approved Absence Form from the Attendance Office and attach a written request signed by the student’s parent/legal guardian to take make-up exams. The form along with the written request must be submitted for approval to the Attendance Office no later than 4:00 pm, Friday, December 16th, 2016.

Final Exam Make-up days will be January 5th and 6th in the Media Center from 9 am – 3:30 pm. Any student who is unable to make-up exams during these sessions will need to make arrangements directly with Ms. Decaminada, ASAP. Teachers will not be administering any make-up exams and no final exams may be taken early.

If a student is absent on the final exam days due to an illness, a doctor’s note must be provided upon his or her return in order to obtain permission to make up exams. If a student is absent from a final exam, the teacher will calculate the final grade counting the exam as a zero. Upon make-up of the exam, the teacher will re-calculate the grade and submit a revised grade. Incompletes will not be given.

Please let Whitney know if you have any questions!

We have completed first semester IG sessions. Thank you to those who planned and facilitated and thank you to all who participated. Now it is time to look ahead to next semester. Because so many folks are away from the building on the Fulton County PD days, we have decided to hold AHS University sessions (shorter, specific PD sessions hosted by AHS teachers) on the county days for those of us who are here. We will host IG sessions on the AHS PD days.

The survey below asks for ideas for AHS University sessions - What do you want to learn about?

It also asks what you want to do next semester with your IG group. There are new IG groups to consider; some groups will begin fresh and host the same sessions for new people; other groups will continue for those who want to keep learning about the topic. You must complete the survey so we know where to place you for next semester.

https://goo.gl/forms/mKRGcWsZ9egJRDRp1

Flor Castillo 4

Jason Dasinger 4

Elizabeth Whitehurst 4

Rebecca Rhodes 7

Judy Brookshire 11

Asha Jassani 12

Michelle Waliaga 16

Pam Kelly 17

Deanna Velazquez 22

Ashley Passaglia 23

Addie Cooper 27

Meredith Drummond 27

Tracy Misner 27

https://goo.gl/forms/8awqY0RU5xTKMoA12

See poll question below:

“People who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.”- Rob Siltanen

The following information pertains to teachers interested in either helping with an enrichment section during Anchor Time for this coming spring. Below is a quick summary of what Enrichment Classes are and the guidelines for proposing a class. Please email Frank Fortunato with any other questions you might have!

Overview

The goal of Anchor Time Enrichment is to provide students with learning experiences that they might not otherwise have access to during their regular schedules and are not currently offered as clubs or extracurricular offerings. Enrichment classes fall into the following categories: “Hands-on” (learning how to do something), “Kinesthetic” (getting up and doing something), “Intellectual” (learning about something), “Artistic” (creating/performing something), or “Academic” (being supported in something).

Guidelines

• Enrichment classes will be open for ANY interested and eligible (e.g. non-RTI) students to sign up and participate.

• Because all enrichments will be open to any students who wish to participate, keep in mind when drafting your proposal that there may be “novices” who do not have much (or any) familiarity with what you may be proposing.

• ANY teacher interested in teaching a section of Enrichment may submit a proposal. Enrichment proposals will be reviewed and approved by Frank Fortunato, Laurie Veillon, and Derek Wright as we work out our needs for the Spring Anchor Time.

• All proposals must include the following information:

  • Teacher

  • Title of Enrichment Class (make it catchy!)

• A brief description of the enrichment that details what students will know, understand, and/or do as part of the enrichment and explains how the enrichment promotes either “Hands-on” experiences (learning how to do something), “Kinesthetic” experiences (getting up and doing something), “Intellectual” experiences (learning about something), or “Artistic” experiences (creating/performing something). To support our PBIS branding, please also try to use language that would help show alignment with and promotion of one (or more) of the R.I.C.H. Raider attributes.

• Students will have the opportunity to sign up for Enrichment sections (date TBD). More information will be given about the sign-up process once the final list of Spring Enrichments has been approved, but our goal is to allow students to begin signing up before the winter break.

• Enrichment proposals are due by Monday, 11/14. See below for some examples.

Proposal Example 1:

Name of Enrichment Class: Hooked on Crochet

Teacher Name: Flavia Villarinho

Class Proposal: Apart from being fun and relaxing (offering students an alternative method of combating boredom and relieving stress), learning how to crochet and how to follow a crochet pattern or instructions can improve a student’s fine motor coordination, reading skills, math skills, comprehension, critical thinking, and problem-solving. In addition, learning to crochet can teach valuable life lessons, such as:

• Responsibility (Students have to keep up with their supplies)
• Ability to focus and follow through (Learning how to crochet is a step-by-step process)
• Persistence (Projects take time and patience to complete)
• Positive social behaviors and teamwork (The classroom environment caring and collaborative – students are able to chat about their day as they help each other learn and perfect new stitches)
• Expressing creativity (projects are only limited by a student’s imagination)

Proposal Example 2:

Name of Enrichment Class: Check, Matie!

Teacher: Dotty Davis

Class Proposal: In this enrichment course, Raiders will be exposed to the world of playing CHESS. Benefits of playing chess: Playing chess teaches planning and foresight and helps develop problem solving skills, foster self-confidence, increase creativity, improve memory and concentration, and enhance decision making skills. It’s a great way to exercise your brain (both the left and right sides) and is a game you can play for the rest of your life! Chess is a “sport for the mind.”

Expectations:

• Play: Students will learn the rules (novice) and/or develop/research strategies (advanced); we will do tactical and positional exercises, appropriate for various level of play; students will have the option of practicing and playing face-to-face or online against comparable competitors; students also have the opportunity to prepare for chess tournaments outside of school (we will enter teams if we have enough participants)

• Research and Reflection: Students will set their own goals for what they want to get out the program; they will keep statistics on wins and losses and have the opportunity to obtain a USCF rating; students will also research past and current national and grand masters to determine ways to improve play.

We want to create a community filled with more balanced lives. The School Governance Council proposed a solution, and the Instructional Leadership Team agreed; thus, we have declared two nights a semester during the 2016-17 school year as "Balance Days."

February 15th

March 15th

The nights above are Wednesday nights the week of the 17th (to celebrate the class of 2017), and on these nights there will not be any homework assigned, no assessments will occur the next day, and no AHS meetings will be scheduled.

The idea is that Raiders will go home right after school and work to create balance in their lives. Staff members and students alike will take a night off. Club sponsors and coaches and directors may hold meetings and practices and games as needed. We feel students release stress through these extracurricular activities.

Please plan to enjoy yourself and work your assessments around these dates this year.