Swift Flyer: March 21, 2014

The Next Two Weeks...

Phew, we wrapped up portfolios and have begun conferences. Our Swift House theater festival is now at full throttle, and yet, that is only part of the big picture...

*Monday, March 24th~ All students should be off-script. There should be many young folks working hard to be sure they have their lines memorized this weekend.

* Monday, March 24th, 6:30-8:30 pm in the Al Myers Theater~ Stan Davies Anti-Bullying Presentation for parents. See the School Bell for more information.

*Tuesday, March 25th~ Stan Davies presentations for students during the school day.

*Wednesday, March 26th~ 7th and 8th Grade Spring Concert. There will be two performances during the day. Swift House students who are not part of the concert will see the concert at 1:15.

*Thursday, March 27th~ Costumes due for Theater Festival. We will be sending out lists for students about what they need to have. We aim to gather as much of our costuming needs here at school but will need students to supply basic clothing needs.

*Friday, March 28th~ Notecards due for students attending the NYC trip.

*Thursday, April 3rd, 6:30 p.m.~ Swift House Theater Festival!

In Support of Standards-Based Reporting and PLPs

Nexus, the Swift House reporting system, is a 100% standards-based assessment. This system evaluates students against specific criteria instead of averaging grades. Recently Ms. Parks shared an article with WCS faculty titled, It's Time to Stop Averaging Grades. This brief article supports what we have been doing all along: teasing out specific standards instead of lumping various assessments and skills into one number.

At the same time, the Vermont State Legislature passed a law mandating Personal Learning Plans for all students. Read Governor Shumlin's announcement here. Again, we have been doing this all along with students personal goals in their portfolios and on greensheets. It is exciting to see national and state-wide support for the systems we have in place in Swift House!

Kudos for the Engineering Challenge

Our first WCS Engineering Challenge at WCS was an exciting and positive day. All WSC 7th and 8th graders participated throughout the day. They took the risk to get on stage with their products, for better or for worse. We were very proud of the students who continued to test their machines despite malfunctions. This is all part of the process. Special recognition is due, however, for the Swift House 2nd Place Winner of the Indoor Slingshot Competition: Teegan Ross, Zach Schaw and Zach Roy!