Rockford Virtual Newsletter

Rockford Virtual News

Director - Jennifer Thompson

Trimester 3 is up and running! Students should be cruising along in their classes, spending at least an hour per day per class on course content!

March 26: Early Release Day. Students dismissed at 12:18 PM
March 27: MME Testing begins for juniors. WorkKeys tests at RHS.
April 3-13: Spring Break!
April 16: SAT for juniors and PSAT for sophomores. Freshmen and seniors work remotely.
April 23: M-STEP tests at RHS for Juniors. Early Release Day. Students dismissed at 12:18 PM
May 7: Early Release Day. Students dismissed at 12:18 PM
May 23-26 Memorial Day Weekend - no school
June 5: Half day - Last day to complete work for Tri 3.

The 6 Attributes of an online learner

One of the 6 attributes of successful online learners is good time management. In an effort to support student learning and time management, staff will be unlocking content one unit at a time. The unit test will end the unit. Late work will not be accepted after the unit is complete and any remaining incomplete work in that unit will receive a zero. Many classes are at this point and finishing up the first unit. Please check in with your student to make sure they have completed all the work for the first unit.

Another attribute of successful online learners is independent study habits. Students are always expected to spend at least one hour per class on every school day. This time should be spent studying the material and completing assignments. To help students be accountable for this learning, tests and exams will be taken in person at Rockford High School. Students will take tests in the Testing Center, room 136, with Mrs. Rodts. Information on how this will work will be posted in Schoology for students. Please check in with your student about scheduling their in-person tests. If they have questions about the process they should reach out to their teachers!

Effective communication is another attribute. Students should be regularly communicating with their teachers and attending their Google Meets. Check Schoology for times and meeting codes. Meeting codes will be the teacher's last name beginning with a capital, followed by virtual. For example, Mrs. Thompson's code would be: Thompsonvirtual. All communication with teachers outside of Google Meet should be in Schoology. Teachers will be checking Schoology regularly. All assignments should be submitted through Apex messaging. That is where teachers will check for work submitted. Following this process will speed up response time by streamlining your requests and work.

Self-motivation is important for successful online learning. In signing up for classes this trimester, students were encouraged to think about why they wanted to take a virtual course and how a virtual course would help them get to graduation and their post-secondary goals. Students, use your vision for the future to motivate you now! Let's learn, grow, and get to graduation! The staff of Rockford Virtual is here to help you get there.

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Who else is able to provide support?

Mrs. Kelly Fischer, Rockford Virtual Coordinator, Mrs. Ann MacDhubhain, Social Worker, and Mrs. Jenny Thompson, Director, will support students and families.

WHere will announcements and other important information be located?

Students sign-in to Schoology to view Group Updates. The 9-12 Virtual Schoology Group will include orientation details as they are finalized and will be an essential tool for communicating with virtual students during the trimester. Teachers are posting important announcements daily! Please check in with your student to make sure they are keeping up and checking for messages daily!

How can parents support their students at home?

Rockford Virtual students at all grades will benefit from an adult in the home to monitor progress, support a daily routine and provide extrinsic motivation. Apex Learning sends a weekly "coaching report" to parents via e-mail. Please look at the "Grade to Date" as the best measure of your student's progress.

Monitor weekly coaching reports from Apex Learning.
Contact school staff with concerns about your student.

RV Team

A caring group of educators dedicated to meeting students where they are and helping students grow and succeed!

Email: jthompson@rockfordschools.org
Website: www.rockfordschools.org
Location: 350 North Main Street, Rockford, MI, USA
Phone: 616-863-6324

MME Testing

Spring brings warmer weather and the Michigan Merit Exam!

While the jury is out on the warmer weather, this last week of March, the Michigan Merit Exam will begin! All juniors are required to take the Michigan Merit Exam. The Michigan Merit Exam is a series of 3 tests. These tests include the WorkKeys tests, the SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test) and the M-Step tests.

The WorkKeys tests will be administered on Thursday, March 27. Juniors will need to be ON TIME at Rockford High School to begin testing right away. The WorkKeys tests are a series of 3 tests: Workplace Documents (reading), Applied Mathemathics, and Graphic Literacy (reading and interpreting charts and graphs). Rockford requires students to pass the WorkKeys tests with a minimum score of 4. This is a diploma competency test. Students who don't score a 4 or above, will need to retake any tests below 4 prior to graduating.

The SAT will be given to juniors at RHS on Wednesday, April 16, the week we return from Spring Break. Sophomores will take the PSAT on April 16, also at RHS.

The M-Step tests, science and social studies, will be given on Wednesday, April 23, at RHS. This is an early release day.

Early Release Days

March 26
April 23
May 7

Students will eat lunch at school and dismissal will be at 12:17 pm on those days. Please plan ahead for transportation changes.

What if I fall behind in my classes?

Rockford Virtual staff will be checking in regularly with students and parents. A continuum of support will be implemented including goal setting, session logs, and required attendance sessions, to ensure student success.

What does academic integrity look like in virtual?

Rockford Public Schools expects the very best from our students. Conducting oneself with integrity is important in all aspects of life, and the classroom is no exception. Rockford Public Schools will not allow or accept cheating or plagiarism. Academic Integrity is of the utmost importance in the virtual setting, as the student’s work is the only window into student learning.

Academic Integrity is the way you conduct yourself as a student. This includes your behavior in class as well as the quality and the originality of the work you submit.
Plagiarism is the act of trying to pass someone else's work off as your own.

How do I know I am acting with academic integrity?

Do your best to do all your work and submit it on time.
Only submit work that you, yourself have completed.
Don't hand your work to your peers.
Use the golden rule in all virtual and in-person communication.

What counts as plagiarism or cheating?

Copying and pasting anything into your assignments without citing it.
Turning in something someone else (like another student or AI) has written.
Pasting text from a source into a "rewording" or "paraphrasing" website and submitting that as your work.
Anything presented as yours that you did not complete yourself. Students are never permitted to submit an assignment which is all or in part, the work of someone else, including internet sources.
Students are never permitted to get answers from others for graded work.

Artificial Intelligence and AI

AI is useful, can save time, can be used as a tool for creativity, and is being used more and more. Why can’t I use it in school?

Remember the definition of plagiarism? AIs are basically word calculators. They cannot come up with new ideas, only rearrange existing ones. So, anything an AI gives you likely contains plagiarized material.
Experts use AI to make the menial or repetitive parts of their jobs easier and faster. High school is where you are gaining the skills and knowledge necessary for you to decide what you want to be an expert in.

Who will be my teachers?

Mrs. Stephanie Campbell - Sociology

Mrs. Becky Caterino - Math, business, and electives

Ms. Deb Edwards - Speech and electives

Mr. Jacob Grasley- Science, co-op, and electives

Mr. Lance Johnson - Social Studies, PE, and electives

Mrs. Stephanie Linsley - Health

Ms. Anne Liskey - Chemistry

Ms. Jen Lutz - College and Career Preparation

Mrs. Amira Ponne - Spanish

Ms. Sarah Powell- Music

Ms. Leeann Randall Anderson - English and electives

Mr. Steve Story - English

Mrs. Krysta Woycehoski - Art and Multicultural Studies

Be sure to review their Syllabi for information specific for each classroom! To reach teachers via email, most RPS email addresses are the first initial followed by the full last name @rockfordschools.org. For your convenience, teacher emails are linked in this document.