This Week's Meeting Schedule

Monday 11/16
Office Day

Tuesday
Plymouth
David - 8:30
Jezreel - 10:00
David - 3:30

Wednesday
Ione
Grace - 11:00
Jasmine & Roxy - 12:30

Thursday
Camino
Alex M. - 11:00
Placerville Library
Yarrow - 2:10
Teran - 3:20

Friday
CT - Small Group Meeting

Upcoming

• Daylight saving time ends: Sunday, November 1
• Sly Park Science Camp: Monday, November 2 - Friday, November 16
• Overnight science camp for 5th & 6th graders only. Student enrollment by contacting Nancy Peterson at napeterson@viedu.org.
• Veteran's Day (Holiday): Wednesday, November 11
• LP3 Ends: Friday, November 13
• Thanksgiving Week Break: Monday, November 23 - Friday, November 27

• Scholastic Book Fair: Monday, December 7 - Friday, December 11
• LP 4 Ends: Friday, December 11
• Optional School Pictures: Thursday, December 10
• Spelling Bee: Friday, December 11, 9-1 p.m.
• Christ Community Church, Manzanita Avenue, Carmichael. Grades 1-8 will do a grade level preliminary spelling bee. The top three winners of grades 3-8 will progress to a final round. The winner of the final round is eligible to participate in the Central Valley Spelling Bee.
• Winter Break: Monday December 21 - Friday, January 1

This Week's Meeting Schedule

Monday 11/2
Office Day

Tuesday
Ione
Gage - 11:00
Haley, Riley, Madeline, & Paige- 12:30

Wednesday
Jackson - Grace Church
Jaye - 11:30
Ana & Baruch - 12:30
Emily - 2:30
Tristan - 3:30

Thursday
Pine Grove
Emma N. - 11:00
William - 12:15
Joy & Tobias- 1:30
Pioneer Library
Wyatt - 3:30

Friday
Office Day

Student Budget Transfer Season

Copied from The Wire...

We want to let Home School Academy families know that budget transfers will be accepted during the month of November (either by email, fax or mail) and they will be processed by early December, so that families may have funds in place for Spring semester ordering. Please email the Budget Transfer Form to rc@viedu.org, or fax them to 916-971-5379 or mail them to the attention of the Resource Center at our main offices at 5030 El Camino Avenue, Carmichael, CA 95608.

The purpose of budget transfers is to allow families to have the ability to move budget dollars between student(s) accounts within the same family, should a certain student have a need for a greater amount of educational resources or services. Transaction ranges are limited to:

• Individual student account deduction, limited to $100-$250 (no more than $250 from a single student).
• Individual student account increase, capped at $500 (no more that $500 can be added to a single student).

If you have any questions on any of these items please submit them through our Help Form.

Thank you,

The Resource Center team

Sacramento Children's Museum Homeschool Days

Did you know about this? I didn't, but I know a family who went recently and LOVED it!

It is worth checking out :) And the museum is a Visions vendor so you can get a voucher for the cost of admission!

From their website:

DETAILS  During Homeschool Days, students will have exclusive access to all of the Museum's hands-on exhibits, and two different classes per age group will be offered. Classes are appropriate for Grades Preschool-6 and may include science, art, music, cultural, and/or literacy classes.

DATES/TIMES  The program will be offered the second Monday of each month from 1:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m. On-site registration and check-in begins at 12:30 p.m. Upcoming 2015 Homeschool Days are Nov. 9 and Dec. 14.

COST  Admission is $5 per person, which includes all classes and Museum play. Members and children under 1 are free. The Museum is a vendor with Horizons Charter Schools, Visions in Education, South Sutter Charter School, and Pacific Charter Institute and its entities.

CLASSES  Registration is required to take classes. To register, click HERE to sign up online, e-mail sherry@sackids.org, or call 916-638-7225 ext. 104. Classes are split by age group. However, if you would like your child to attend a class time outside of their age group or would like all of your children to attend the same class, you are more than welcome to sign them up for your preferred class time. Each class will be tailored to meet the needs of that age group. Please note: Registration is NOT required if you are coming for Museum play only.

This Week's Meeting Schedule

Monday 10/26
Professional Development

Tuesday
Ione
Khloe & Sadie - 11:00
Tyler & Lexi - 1:00

Wednesday
Ione
Leila - 11:00
Zora - 12:30
Lillian - 1:35
Jaye - 3:00 (Clark's Corner)

Thursday
Pioneer Library
Xanett - 12:00
Joey - 1:10
Wyatt - 2:20
Emma E.- 3:30

Friday
Office Day

Where The Wild Fractions Are: The Power Of A Bedtime (Math) Story

I heard this story on NPR's All Things Considered last week...

"Parents who are uneasy about their own math skills often worry about how best to teach the subject to their kids.

Well ... there's an app for that. Tons of them, in fact. And a study published today in the journal Science suggests that at least one of them works pretty well for elementary school children and math-anxious parents.

A team from the University of Chicago used a demographically diverse group of first-graders and their parents — nearly 600 in all — across a wide swath of Chicago. One group got to use an iPad app called Bedtime Math, built by a nonprofit with the same name. (The app is also available for Android, but we're told most used the iPad version) The no-frills app uses stories and sound effects to present kids with math problems that they can solve with their parents."

See the rest of the story here.

Harvest Festival - This Friday

Friday, October 23, 2015 - 11:00 am - 2:00 pm

Sunrise Community Church, 8321 Greenback Lane; Fair Oaks, CA 95628

Bring the family and enjoy Visions annual Harvest Festival. 

Enjoy games and activities including Bean Bag Toss, Fishing Booth, Face Painting, Cake Walk, Crafts and more.  This is a no fee event.                          

Food and snacks will be provided.

(Turkey and vegetarian hot dogs, chips, popcorn and water.)

Register through the flyer.

This Week's Meeting Schedule

Monday 10/19
Office Day

Tuesday
Plymouth
David - 8:30
Jezreel - 10:00
Ione
Grace - 11:30
Alex & Luke - 1:00

Wednesday
Ione
Lily - 1:00
Jasmine & Roxy - 2:30

Thursday
Camino
Alex M. - 11:00
Placerville Library
Yarrow - 2:10
Teran - 3:20

Friday
Harvest Festival - Sacramento

Upcoming

• LP2 Ends: Friday 10/16
• Harvest Festival: FLYER: Friday 10/23.

• Daylight saving time ends: Sunday, November 1
• Sly Park Science Camp: Monday, November 2 - Friday, November 16
• Overnight science camp for 5th & 6th graders only. Student enrollment by contacting Nancy Peterson at napeterson@viedu.org.
• Veteran's Day (Holiday): Wednesday, November 11
• LP3 Ends: Friday, November 13
• Thanksgiving Week Break: Monday, November 23 - Friday, November 27

• Scholastic Book Fair: Monday, December 7 - Friday, December 11
• LP 4 Ends: Friday, December 11
• Optional School Pictures: Thursday, December 10
• Spelling Bee: Friday, December 11, 9-1 p.m.
• Christ Community Church, Manzanita Avenue, Carmichael. Grades 1-8 will do a grade level preliminary spelling bee. The top three winners of grades 3-8 will progress to a final round. The winner of the final round is eligible to participate in the Central Valley Spelling Bee.
• Winter Break: Monday December 21 - Friday, January 1

Keyboarding Skills

Looking for some cool resources to teach your students keyboarding skills?

Being able to quickly maneuver around the keyboard is a valuable skill. Not only are our standardized tests being administered on the computer, but kids are using academic programs on the computer more and more these days.

Here are some well reviewed paid programs:
Typing Instructor for Kids Platinum 5

Disney: Mickey's Typing Adventure for Windows and Mac

Keyboarding Without Tears

Spongebob typing

Here are some free programs (beware of ads):
BBC Dance Mat Typing
http://www.bbc.co.uk/guides/z3c6tfr
learninggamesforkids.org
http://www.learninggamesforkids.com/keyboarding_games.html
Typershark
http://www.shockwave.com/gamelanding/typershark.jsp
e-learningforkids.org
http://www.e-learningforkids.org/computer-skills/lesson/keyboarding-skills/
Typing master games
http://www.typingmaster.com/games/typing-games.asp

This Week's Meeting Schedule

This is one of the rare LPs that we have four actual school weeks. Therefore, there are no regularly scheduled meetings this week. I will be busy working from home getting all of your work samples ready to submit to the school. I will be available by text, phone, or email to answer any questions you may have.

Monday 10/12
Jackson
Emily - 12:30
CT Meeting @ 1:30

Tuesday
Office Day

Wednesday
Office Day

Thursday
Office Day
Somerset
Available for make-up meetings at Crossroads Cafe, 6032 Grizzly Flat Rd, Somerset, CA 95684
Gage - 11:00?
Lily - 12:00?

Friday
Office Day

Studies Weekly Update

I heard at our staff meeting today that Studies Weekly was inundated with a HUGE increase in orders this year, something like a 10 fold increase. That is why we have experienced such an issue with orders and shipping.

If you still don't have your Studies Weekly order, or your order came and it was incorrect, please use the "Help with Orders" button on your Launchpad Order screen to notify the resource center so they can check on your order for you.

Meanwhile, you can view all of the Studies Weekly newspapers online. You don't need a registration # or email to do so. Just go to Studies Weekly and register as a teacher.
https://www.studiesweekly.com/online/

CAASPP Results Coming

The California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) results will be mailed out to families next week.

The CAASPP report will include the Smarter Balanced results for grades 3-8 and grade 11. In addition, for students in grades 5, 8, and 10 the reports will have the Science California Standards Test (CST) results.

Remember...

• This is only one of multiple measures of how your student is doing
• The results should be viewed as a conversation starter or “a tool” to help identify where your student is performing well, and where he or she might need a little bit extra support
• These results cannot be compared with the old Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) system scores because it is measured on a different scale and the test varies greatly from the old STAR tests
• With all new systems, it is understood that it takes three to five years to become familiar with new standards and learning strategies for scores to reflect a complete transition

Below are some links to help you understand the CAASPP reports, and you can always email, text or call me with any questions you may have.

Understanding CAASPP reports links:

• CAASPP Individual Score Reports Home Page
• Sample Score Report
• Grades 3-5 Parent Guide
• Grades 6-8 Parent Guide
• Grade 11 Parent Guide
• Understanding Your Child’s Score Report Video

Are you curious as to how Visions students scored overall? How California students scored overall?
(Downloaded from the California Department of Education website on 10/2/15) 
Visions in Education CAASPP report 2015
State of California CAASPP report 2015

This Week's Meeting Schedule

Monday 10/2
CT Meeting

Tuesday
Ione
Gage - 11:00
Haley, Riley, Madeline, & Paige- 12:30

Wednesday
Jackson - Grace Church
Wyatt - 11:30
Ana & Baruch - 12:30
Emily - 2:30
Tristan - 3:30

Thursday
Pine Grove
William - 11:00
Emma N. - 12:15
Joy & Tobias- 1:30
Lily - 3:30

Friday
Office Day
Pine Grove
IEP at 10:00

Still Waiting on Curriculum?

A number of families are still waiting on their curriculum. Some items on backorder, and the Studies Weekly has had some difficulties shipping this year.

If you are still waiting on curriculum, you can do a few things.

1) Wait another week or so to see if it arrives and use your list of grade level standards to create learning activities.
2) If it was a TextbookX order, I can check the backorder list for you. Just email me what books you are waiting on, and I can check the estimated time of shipping.
3) If you order was through another vendor, and it has been over 3 weeks since your order was processed (check on Launchpad), you can use the "help with orders" button on your Launchpad Order page to contact the resource center. They can check the status of your order.

Also, if you don't have access to an online component of your curriculum, one that was supposed to be included in your order, use the "help with orders" button to request the access info from the resource center. 

Let me know if you still have problems!

Jurassic Quest Coming to Monterey

Thanks to Bianca Sigala for sharing this info!

Coming to Monterey October 23-25.

http://jurassicquest.com

This Week's Meeting Schedule

Monday 9/28
Office Day
Somerset
Yarrow - 11:00

Tuesday
Ione
Khloe & Sadie - 11:00
Tyler & Lexi - 1:00

Wednesday
Ione
Leila - 11:00
Zora - 12:30
Lillian - 1:35
Jaye - 3:00 (Clark's Corner)

Thursday
Pioneer Library
Xanett - 12:00
Joey - 1:10
Wyatt - 2:20
Emma E.- 3:30

Friday
Office Day
Google Hangouts
William - 1:00 ?

Quick Links From The Wire

(Links will only work if you are signed in to Launchpad)
K-8
Sutter's Fort Environmental Program
Science Camp for 5th and 6th grades

High School
ASVAB Career Exploration Program
Pumpkin Ball
PSAT
Sierra College Parent Information Nights
Sierra College Career and Tech Ed Exploration Day
Foster Youth Training Program

Meeting Scheduling

Do meetings seem closer together than last year? I heard this question a lot this LP, so I thought I would share with you how our meetings are planned.

We are required to meet once each learning period. Learning Periods can have from 15 to 20 school days, and some of them have holidays smack in the middle.

I have used the Learning Period calendar to set up three weekly "groups". (I can't schedule four, because some of the learning periods don't have four weeks :) Your meetings will fall into the first, second, or third meeting-week group of the learning periods. These groups are represented on the calendar below in orange, green and yellow.

There are no regularly scheduled meetings on Mondays and Fridays. Mondays are when Visions schedules our professional development meetings and our CT meetings. In addition, many holidays fall on Mondays. Fridays are my day to do paperwork.

Since standardized testing has not been scheduled this year, we may need to be flexible in April or May.

I'm hoping to be able to note all of your meeting dates on your semester plan by the end of our LP2 meeting.

Let me know if you have any questions!