Dr. Lisa Chen, Principal, Louisa County Middle School, Mineral, VA

Thursday, January 8, 2015

LCMS Principal Update January 6-9, 2015

Dear LCMS Bobcat Family and Friends:

Welcome to 2015! My staff and I are excited to see our students again and for teaching and learning to occur.

On Tuesday afternoon, I had another great opportunity to see our students play basketball. Congratulations to Coaches Nick Schreck and Alex Waleski and the LCMS Basketball team on their tough defeat against the Prospect team 59 to 47. Our student athletes played a difficult game with poise and grace. Coach Sarah Martin and the LCMS Cheer team produced another spectacular performance on sharing with us that Bobcat spirit!

This Thursday, students will be involved in grade-level spelling bees to move toward the next spelling round!
  
As always, please feel free to contact me at chenlc@lcps.k12.va.us if you have questions, concerns, or any feedback that you would like to share.

The following are some important updates and announcements.

Announcements

Thank you to Morning Announcers – Logan Self and Ashley Shifflett
Thank you to Logan Self and Ashley Shifflett for their assistance at the start of 2015! You helped to deliver important information to all students and staff. On January 12, we will have two new guest speakers, Melissa Sluss and Michael Sluss. We look forward to these announcements!
A Big Thanks to Louisa Community Chorus
The Louisa Community Chorus has provided our chorus department with $500.00 to spend specifically for purchasing music. Thank you for your generosity and for thinking about our students!

Snow and Snow days at LCMS
Should school be closed due to inclement weather, you will receive an all call from the district. The A/B rotation for electives will remain the same regardless if school is closed due to snow. Thus, if school is closed on an A day, then when students return the next day, it will be a B day for electives. The A/B assignment on the calendar does not change.

PowerSchool Access – Parent Portal
In order for teachers to input comments and grades, the grade portion of PowerSchool will be temporarily turned off from Friday, December 19 to Tuesday, January 13. Reports cards for Marking Period 2 will be sent home to parents via students on Tuesday, January 13. For questions regarding grades on PowerSchool, please contact Joel Rupert at rupertjd@lcps.k12.va.us

Louisa County School District Recognized for Superior Student Writing Achievement
(Yardley, PA – December 10, 2014) Vantage Learning, creator of the award-winning instructional writing tool MY Access!, is pleased to announce that students within the Louisa County School District performed higher than the 19.5% national average for student writing improvement in the 2013–2014 school year. 
Students demonstrated superior writing improvement using MY Access!. The program helped students organize, develop, and write their essays. The immediate, personalized feedback that students received helped them to improve their writing and achieve better scores. MY Access! has also been instrumental in helping these students prepare for high-stakes exams that require writing at an advanced level.

The following school within the district achieved extraordinary student writing improvement: Louisa County Middle School. "We're seeing exceptional writing achievements from these students," reported Laurie Edwards, vice president of Vantage Learning. "We're excited to help put them on the path to college and career readiness. The students, as well as their parents and teachers, should be very proud!"

This program was used for students from Fall 2008 to Spring 2013 for seventh grade students. In 2013-2014, the MyAccess program was used in the eighth grade curriculum, while Grade 7 teachers piloted the program Write to Learn, in their classes. After a successful pilot, MyAccess was purchased this year for all students at Louisa County Middle School. Presently, Grade 7 and Grade 8 students have access to this program, and Grade 6 students will start this program in April 2015.

Congratulations to Katherine Duke, the Department Chair of English, and to the LCMS English department for their hard work in teaching our students how to write effectively. This coupled with our work in ACE Block should propel our students to an even higher level when it comes to critical thinking skills!

ACE Math and Reading
This upcoming semester, all students will be involved in additional reading comprehension and math skills activities. Strategies in reading comprehension will be taught by students' English teachers in their English classes.

Beginning Monday, January 19, all students will be involved in ACE Math during ACE Block or Period 6. Math teachers in Grades 6, 7, and 8 have developed review activities based on analyzing student data that are differentiated by each grade level. Students who need additional supports will be provided with direct instruction by their specific math teachers during ACE Block, while those students who do not need direct instruction by their math teachers will be involved in a series of review activities designed by their math teachers. All teachers will be involved in ACE Math. This is a school wide initiative.

When students have completed their activities, students have the opportunity to complete their homework, read, or go to the library to partake in research activities.

I am particularly proud of all of my teachers, who see the importance and value of ensuring that all students can read, write, and do math at high levels. Teachers are working collectively and collaboratively to ensure that all students have multiple opportunities to excel in these areas! This is a work in progress, and my staff and I appreciate the support of our parents and students. In time, the efforts of our hard work and our high expectations for all students will help to propel all students to the next level and beyond.

Middle Years – Testing Taking Strategies
This addition of Middle Years provides parents with test taking strategies for their child. Please click here for more information: "Middle Years January 2015."

Student Schedule for Monday, January 12 to Friday, January 23
On Monday, January 12 (A): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 1 (This is a "A" day for electives. Students go to Period 1, Period 2, Period 3, Period 4, Period 5, and then for the last period of the day, students return back to their Period 1 class.)

On Monday, January 12:                    (A): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 1
On Tuesday, January 13:                    (B): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 2
On Wednesday, January 14:               (A): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 3
On Thursday, January 15:                   (B): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 4
On Friday, January 16:                       (A): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 5
On Monday, January 19:                    Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day – No School
On Tuesday, January 20:                    (B): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 4
On Wednesday, January 21:               (A): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 4
On Thursday, January 22:                   (B): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 4
On Friday, January 23:                       (A): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 4

Updates

MathCounts Field trip – Saturday, February 14
On Saturday, February 14, Kristina Dragland and sixth, seventh, and eight grade students in MathCounts will travel to Blue Ridge Community College in Weyers Cave, Virginia to compete in the MathCounts competition. The day's event will begin at 9:00 a.m. and end at 3:00 p.m. Thus far, eleven schools have registered. Should there be inclement weather, the makeup date for this competition will be Saturday, February 21. Our students have been busy preparing for this contest, and we wish our students much success due to their efforts and hard work!

Important Change of Dates
There are two parts to the Writing benchmark tests for Grade 8 students.
·         On Tuesday, February 24, all Grade 8 students will take the Writing Multiple Choice benchmark tests.
·         On Thursday, February 26, all Grade 8 students will take the Writing Prompt benchmark tests.

On Friday, March 6, a number of our Grade 7 students will participate in a state assessment for band, and thus, we have altered the benchmark testing schedule to accommodate these students.
·         On Wednesday, March 4, all Grade 7 students will take the English benchmark tests.
·         On Thursday, March 5, all Grade 7 students will take the Math benchmark tests.
·         On Friday, March 6, all Grade 6 students will take the English benchmark tests.
·         On Monday, March 9, all Grade 6 students will take the Math benchmark tests.

Grade 7 Students to Eureka! – Monday, April 27
Our Grade 7 math team has planned an enrichment field trip for our Grade 7 students on Monday, April 27. Students will travel to the Martin King Performing Arts Center in Charlottesville, Virginia to see the play, Eureka! This play discusses how Sara, a typical teenager, has been struggling with math. On the eve of her big test, she is visited by Albert Einstein, Blaise Pascal, Lady Ada Lovelace, and Pythagoras. Together, they show Sara how math relates to the real world. They explore the Pythagorean Theorem, number theory, order of operations, probability, prime numbers, the Fibonacci sequence, the origins of the calculator and computer, Pascal's triangle, pre-calculus, and more. Students will leave LCMS at 8:30 a.m. and return around 1:45 p.m. to have lunch at school. We look forward to what our students will see and learn from this trip. A big thanks to our Grade 7 math team (Kristina Coates, Kristina Dragland, Katie Jones, Joanne Kennedy, Alexis Lewis, Garth LoBello, and April Swain) for planning this event!

University of Virginia – 2015 Summer Enrichment Program
The Curry School of Education will be hosting a summer enrichment program for students in Grades 4-10 for gifted and high-ability students. This camp is a 12 day residential experience. Students live on-grounds at University of Virginia and attend classes at a nearby private school. If interested, please see the on-line application at curry.virginia.edu/sep Applications are due on Sunday, February 15, and need-based financial aid is available.

 Important Upcoming Dates Added information and dates are marked in purple.

Tuesday, January 13: Report cards for Marking Period 2 are sent home with students.

Tuesday, January 13: LCMS Parent Advisory Meeting at 6:30 p.m. in the LCMS Main Office Conference Room with Dr. Chen 

Tuesday, January 13: PTA meeting at 7:00 p.m. in LCMS Main Office Conference Room
Friday, January 16: LCMS Dance 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Monday, January 19: Martin Luther King Jr. Day No School for students and staff
Tuesday, January 20: Classes resume for students LCMS doors open at 7:40 a.m.
Monday, February 9: Interim reports for Marking Period 3 are sent home with students.

Saturday, February 14: MathCounts field trip @ Blue Ridge Community College in Weyers Cave, Virginia

Monday, February 16: Staff Development Day No school for students
Tuesday, February 17: School resumes for students. LCMS doors open at 7:40 a.m.
Wednesday, February 11: LCMS Science Fair Awards @ LCMS Forum at 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, February 21: Battle of the Books Competition for LCMS Students @ Cedar Lee Middle School
Tuesday, February 24: Grade 8 students take the English Writing Multiple Choice benchmark tests.

Wednesday, February 25: Picture Day for students
Thursday, February 26: Grade 8 students take the English Writing Prompt benchmark tests.
Wednesday, March 4: Grade 7 students take the English benchmark tests.
Thursday, March 5: Grade 7 students take the Math benchmark tests.

Friday, March 6: Grade 7 and Grade 8 Concert Band will participate in the Virginia Band & Orchestra Directors Association (VBODA) State Concert Band Assessment @ Fluvanna High School

Friday, March 6: Grade 6 students take the English benchmark tests.
Monday, March 9: Grade 6 students take the Math benchmark tests.
Tuesday, March 10: Grade 8 students take the English benchmark tests.
Wednesday, March 11: Grades 6, 7, and 8 students take the Science benchmark tests.
Thursday, March 12: Grades 6, 7, and 8 students take the Social Studies benchmark tests.

Saturday, April 25: Battle of the Books Competition for LCMS Students @ Culpeper Middle School

Monday, April 27: Grade 7 Students to Eureka! @ Martin King Performing Arts Center in Charlottesville, Virginia

Tuesday, May 19 – All A Banquet at LCMS Cafeteria at 6:00 p.m.

Thank you for taking the time to read these updates. As I will say to my students each day, "This is important. You belong here. Effort makes a difference."

With warm regards,

Lisa C. Chen