Country School Director

The attached pdf file has the expectations for blog enteries. 

Click on this link to get the document:  Blog Expectations

This summer I wanted my kids to keep up on writing. So I set up a blog for each of them. The blog gives them a place to post their writing so other people can read and make comments about it. For an example, you can visit the sites at:
http://nickh1.edublogs.org/
http://oliviah1.edublogs.org/

I have a theory that the Kings Valley Charter School has been successful in increasing reading abilities because the teachers have been able to get the kids to read at home everyday. I am experimenting with my own kids to see if writing will get easier for them if they do it on a regular basis. The blog has served the purpose of giving the kids some incentive to write because of the novelty of using the computer and the comments from relatives. Our relatives have been very supportive in writing comments.

For my kids there has been a need to support them in working the blog websites. The website is not that intuitive for adults either. I have to be within shouting distance to respond one or two times per blog entry. I recommend checking out the website first so you can answer the questions.

I am able to set up to 100 blogs under my subscription. I can set the blogs up but parents would have to do the figuring out and support for the student. If there was a post that you did not like, you could email me and I would be able to delete it. However, I would not be able to read 100 blogs (probably we wont get that many).

If you want to do this:
Send me an email and I will set up the account.
I will send you back the password etc for the account.

Parents,

Your teachers and board members are reading this book. Consider reading this book to gain an understanding of what the teachers and board members are thinking about. I have a few copies for loan. You can also buy the book from our website books store.

This book is about getting students to do excellent school work. The first step is to create a culture of excellence with in a school. The author describes the methods and approaches to create this ethic. The rest of the book is about supporting and maintaining that culture.

Ron Berger is a teacher who works as a carpenter during the summers, and how he transfers that experience to his students is the background for the concept of an “Ethic of Excellence.” He sets his criteria for students’ work based on his customers’ expectations of his work as a carpenter. He strives to be a craftsman in his work as a carpenter and to transfer that ethic to the students. “I want a classroom full of craftsmen. I want students whose work is strong and accurate and beautiful. Students who are proud of what they do, proud of how they respect both themselves and others.” Read more…Ethic of Excellence Review

Please read the summary of this report. If you love data, read the rest of the report. I would love to get feedback and thoughts from you all.

Link to report: 2006-2007 KVCS reading progress report

The Kings Valley Charter School ended the school year with 71% of students reading at grade level. However, 41% of those students are more then one grade level ahead of their current grade level. The split reflects the students that KVCS can serve well with individualized programs: very strong students and students having difficulties.
93% of our students showed improvement in reading assessments this year. Our students that don’t show growth are very high achieving students (3 or 4 grade levels above their grade level). The majority of these have reached the top of our assessment tool (at the 12th grade reading level). We continue to believe our reading instruction and remediation programs are strong.
Years of attendance at KVCS are a significant factor in grade level performance. 23 of the 27 (85%) students below grade level have attended KVCS for two years or less.
Students with special education needs are a significant factor in grade level performance. 20% (19 of 95) of our students have an IEP. 13 of these students have significant difficulty with reading (2 or more grade levels behind). IEP goals do not indicate the majority of these students will reach grade level in the 2007-2008 school year.

KVCS is adding high school grades. We will start with grade 9 beginning September 2008.