September 4th

Swift Campout

Thank you, chaperones, for making this campout possible! Thank you to all parents for supporting this annual team-building event.  Students worked well together, making new friendships and developing old ones.  The thunderstorms held off, though the humidity did find us.  Swimming and water games kept us cool and the campfire was still welcome despite the warm temps.

For more photos of the campout, see our team photo sharing site here.  The password remains flyforever.  There will be more photos added soon from other Swift facilitators.  If you have great ones to share, please send them in to Amy Skapof at askapof@cssu.org.

Watching skits...

Balloon toss

Catching balloons

The "Lap Sit"

Lap sit continues

Campfire

Williston Schools Annual Fund 2015 

Our campout was entirely funded by the Williston Schools Annual Fund.  This fund supports other team field trips as well as educational grants.  If you have not contributed already, please make your donation online by clicking here.  For more information or to print a donation form, visit the FAP website here.

From the School Bell: 
Why do we do an Annual Fund?

• Equal funding for all students in each grade level; Every student per grade is allocated the same amount of money to be used toward field-trips and house activities 
• Significantly cuts down on the fundraisers families would be expected to participate in each year 
• Community Events that are fun and beneficial for families 
• 100% of money collected goes to FAP Tax deductible donation

Google Classroom

Please ask your son or daughter to show you their "Google Classroom."  Swift Facilitators use this platform to post ALL assignments.  Students work on and turn in many assignments through this platform as well.  If an assignment is turned in on paper, students will select "Mark as Done" in Google Classroom.  If you are ever wondering about what your son or daughter is working on in school, this is the place to go!

Students can access Google Classroom from any computer with internet access. They simply go to G-mail and log-in using their CSSU-provided username and their password (firstnamelastname@cssu.org). Once they're logged into G-Mail they can access the Classroom using the "Apps" associated with their account. Students log into their school G-Mail using their CSSU account.

 The screen shot below shows the home page for an individual user. Upcoming assignments are listed on this front page. Using the icon in the upper left hand corner, students can also see all of their assignments in a list, both "To Do" and "Completed." Students can view, complete and turn in their assignments using this one interface. Teachers add comments, scores or rubrics and then "Return" ownership to the students. All of this happens through use of Google Docs.

We expect that students will log-in and share their Google Classroom work with parents. This is a great way to see what they are working on and get a sense of how this platform works. Currently there is no separate parent log-in however students know that this a tool to be shared with those involved in their learning!

WCS Picture Day

Wednesday, September 16th

Students were given the photo forms in their mailboxes on Friday.  Swift House students will have their photos taken between 1:10 and 1:40 that day, outside in the courtyard again.  We were excited about the great new look of the school photos from our local photographer!  As always, there will be a picture make-up day at a later date.

WCS Spelling Team Qualifying Test

Thursday, September 10th @ 12:35, make up Friday, 9/11 @ 12:35
Eat lunch in the Enrichment room day of test 

It's time for those super spellers to begin memorizing the list of 500 words from the Vermont Principals' Association (VPA)! Lists are in a bin outside the Enrichment room door and labeled 5th/6th or 7th/8th. Anyone interested in participating should pick up a list of words, and show up for the qualifying test time. If you have a son or daughter who is unsure please have them stop by and speak with Julie Rogers, Enrichment teacher and Spelling Team leader.  To see the spelling lists on line head to the VPA website and scroll down to the "Study Words" for the appropriate age group.

Spark Academy (from School Bell)

We are excited to offer your child an opportunity to participate in the Thursday Spark Academy, an after-school applied learning program for students in grades 5-8. Sessions will run for 5 weeks from 3:00 p.m - 4:30 p.m. with our first session starting September 10th and ending October 8th. These small group classes will be facilitated by school faculty and staff. The after-school bus will provide transportation home for our students.

Students will have the opportunity to participate in a variety of activities that can be found on the link below. In order to take full advantage of this learning opportunity, students will need to make a commitment to attend all five Thursdays. The dates of the session are: September 10th, 17th, 24th, October 1st and 8th. Students will be placed on a first come first serve basis. If a student has an unexcused absence from a class, we will ask that he/she no longer attend the session, as there are other students who want to participate. Sign-up form

Intergen Reading Program / A Monthly Book Group (from School Bell)

What is it? FAP teams up with the Dorothy Alling Memorial Library to sponsor a fun book group that brings together WCS middle school students, seniors from our community and parent volunteers. Each book group will read and discuss 6 books over the course of the school year. When? The program will kick-off in October with a “Get Acquainted” luncheon. The book groups will then meet during school hours once a month to discuss books in a relaxed and fun setting. If your 5th-8th grade child is interested in being considered for this program, please register by Friday, September 11th using this online link.