Rising Tide News

Thoughts from School Leaders:

Now that we are several weeks into the school year, it is likely that homework has become a significant topic for families at home. A recent article in the Boston Globe, "Finished with your homework?" written by Beth Teitell, highlights that the completion of homework can be a challenge for many students and their families across the Commonwealth.   

At Rising Tide, we view independent work, or homework, as essential to the learning process for students. Through practice, reflection, analysis, and synthesis of material, students are able to develop skills, deepen understanding, and gain content knowledge. Research has shown that there is a relationship between the time spent on homework and academic achievement for secondary school students, and that the perceived quality of assignments and the quality of student effort also contribute to academic achievement; however, we recognize that homework time can become stressful at home.   

We would like to offer some suggestions for decreasing the stress related to homework. As much as possible, parents' involvement in homework should be kept to a minimum. Our faculty talks about helping students to navigate and make sense of the world. We encourage parents to help children navigate the task of completing homework.

1. Parents can help children set-up an organized place to complete homework, free from distractions such as phones, television, and video games.
2. Parents can help children establish a schedule or routine, and discuss ways to overcome schedule challenges such as sports games or music lessons.
3. Parents can ask students to work to identify the purpose of an assignment, an identification which can help students invest greater effort.
4. If a child is struggling with an assignment, a parent can ask the child to explain parts of an assignment that are more challenging to them, or encourage a child to ask a specific question (rather than simply stating "I don't get it"). Parents can also suggest that children look to available resources, such as class notes, a dictionary, or a textbook.
5. Parents should try to maintain an emotional distance from the process of homework completion. It can be stressful if a child is not completing work, but rather than getting stuck in a conflict about completing the work, a parent can work with the child to help understand an underlying reason why the child is getting frustrated or not getting started on an assignment.

Upcoming Events and Important Dates:

Monday-Wednesday, September 24-26: 5th and 8th grade students will be taking the TerraNova standardized test. Families should make every effort to avoid unnecessary absences during this time. Students should be sure to get plenty of sleep the night before the test, arrive on time each of these days and eat a healthy breakfast each morning.

Friday, September 28: We are excited that the first upper school social event for the year will be a Boat Dance, a harbor cruise aboard the Pilgrim Belle. Tickets are very limited and are being sold this week at the upper school.  Students may bring a guest, as long as the Rising Tide student and his or her parent or guardian complete, sign and submit a form by this Thursday. 

Tuesday, October 2: We will be holding a combined first meeting of the Rising Tide Family Resource Group, a parent discussion group, and the Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC), a parent advisory group that focuses on issues pertaining to children with special needs, on Tuesday, October 2nd at 6:30 pm at the middle school. All parents are welcome, and strongly encouraged to attend. The meeting will focus on the challenges of transitions for students and their families. After an overview of the functions of the Family Resource Group and SEPAC, we will break into smaller groups to discuss transitions to middle school, high school and beyond. Parents and guardians will join in discussion with school leaders, our school counselor, college counselor, and school nurse practitioner.    Monday-Wednesday, October 15-17: Rising Tide will host a team of evaluators from the MA Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) for the school's 15th year Renewal Site Visit. Every five years, each charter school goes through a rigorous process for renewal of the school's charter. Our school will be assessed by this team in three areas: Faithfulness to the Charter; Academic Program Success; Organizational Viability. For several months, we have been preparing for this visit. We will need a few parents to participate in portions of this visit. Please call Katie Chase at extension 201 if you are interested in possibly helping out with the visit.

Announcements: 

Word Part of the Week: dict meaning say.  Please ask your middle school child for more information about the word part of the week.

Middle School Band: Experienced 5th grade players who were not able to attend Blue Band rehearsal on Thursday due to Expo scheduling will have the opportunity to meet each Wednesday morning at 7:15 for the first term, beginning this Wednesday, September 26. Students should enter the building through the front office and go directly to the multipurpose room. Also, there will be an instrument demo for 5th and 6th graders interested in beginning instrument lessons this Friday after morning meeting.

Junior Classical League (JCL): The first meeting of the JCL will be Friday, October 5th until 4:30 at the middle school. JCL is open to Latin students, grades 7-10. Students can ask their Latin teachers for more information.

Soccer: Both the girls' and boys' teams will have two games this week: Tuesday at Cape Cod Tech and Wednesday at Pembroke.

Italy Fundraiser: 8th grade students who are going on the Italy trip this February will have the opportunity to participate in the Innisbrook fundraiser beginning this Wednesday. Students can see Mrs. Papillo for more information.

Box Tops: Families can support our school by sending in Box Tops or visiting www.btfe.com to earn free eBoxTops. Rising Tide Charter Public School's ID number is 320261. Thanks for your support.

Lunch: The menu for next week is attached and is available through the link below. Please turn in this menu form to your child's advisor by Wednesday, September 26 if you are planning to purchase lunch for any day next week. 

http://www.risingtide.org/lunch/lunch09212012.pdf