ONLINE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

Students are invited to a variety of sessions throughout the week. Each week begins with a Homeroom session on Monday mornings. During this time teachers and students get together for relationship and team building activities. Teachers review skills such as calendar, days of the week, months of the year, etc. They also discuss school events, and what is on the calendar in each of their courses that week. Homeroom time is required for all students to attend.

Students may also be invited to a session in the afternoon where they will participate in a screening, small group, or a 1:1. Screenings are time for the teacher to gather academic data on a variety of learning skills. Teachers track this academic data throughout the year to ensure students are proficient with skills by the end of the school year. Small group time is set aside for students to work on needed skills with his or her teacher alongside a few fellow students. 1:1’s are targeted time for a teacher and student to work on a specific skill. Not all students will have a screening, a small group, or a 1:1. These sessions are targeted based on grade level, skills, and needs. These screening, small group, and 1:1 sessions are required. If a student cannot attend, it’s important to communicate with the teacher prior to the lesson. Work from the unattended session is still expected to be completed.

Social snack time is led by our elementary Success Coach. Students are invited to spend some time in a live session listening to a story, taking part in a fun activity, and socializing. Great friendships and bonds are made during social snack time!

Every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday students will have a synchronous live session with their classmates and teacher. During this time students will learn key concepts from their courses. It is important that students attend live sessions, or review the recording the same day. Students are able to access all of their curriculum in their online portal, but Michigan Online School encourages students to attend the live sessions offered to enhance the online learning, support students’ skill work, and to build relationships.

On Fridays, teachers hold open office hours. This is a time for students to join a session and get help on any assignment, or ask questions about previous or upcoming content. Fun Friday or Show & Tell is a 30-minute session with teachers where students will engage academically through a fun event pre-planned by Michigan Online School teachers.

Outside of live sessions, students complete asynchronous work in courses. This means they log into each of their courses and complete the work assigned to them each day. If a student is struggling, he or she should reach out to a teacher and ask for help. Families get to choose what subjects they work on, and in what order each day as long as all assigned work is completed and attendance expectations are met. This is where the flexibility of an asynchronous school shines! Great learning does not solely exist within the walls of a classroom, behind the doors of an office, or in front of a computer screen. We encourage families to explore what greatness lies ahead of them on this unique path of learning!

Diagnostics
All students, K-5 will complete a Diagnostic test in i-Ready in the fall, winter, and spring. i-Ready is an online program for reading and mathematics that will help students’ teachers determine students’ needs, personalize learning, and monitor progress throughout the school year. i-Ready allows teachers to meet your students exactly where they are and provides data to increase students’ learning gains. i-Ready consists of two parts: Diagnostic Assessments and Personalized Instruction. The i-Ready diagnostic is an adaptive assessment that adjusts its questions to suit students’ needs. Each item a student sees is individualized based on answers to the previous questions. For example, a series of correct answers will result in slightly more difficult questions, while a series of incorrect answers will yield slightly easier questions. i-Ready Personalized Instruction provides students with lessons based on individual skill levels and needs, so students can learn at a pace that is just right. These lessons are fun and interactive to keep students engaged as they learn. Learn more about iReady here.

Screenings
Kindergarten and 1st grade students will have monthly screenings with teachers to assess progress in meeting grade level expectations. For example, a teacher may have a student sound out each letter of the alphabet, read sight words aloud, or name colors, shapes, and numbers.

State Testing
The state of Michigan requires all students in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades to participate in Michigan state testing. Once each year, all students in Michigan take a high-quality state summative assessment. All of Michigan’s state assessments measure student progress with Michigan’s content standards or other career-or college-readiness goals. The Michigan Student Test of Educational Progress (M-Step) is given online, but in a face-to- face setting.

→ Why Assess Students?
Student assessment is a hot topic of conversation, with lots of diverse opinions on how, when, how much, with what tests, and for what purpose we assess students. Here are a few important points to keep in mind:

♦ ♦ April 8, 2023-May 24, 2024

♦ ♦ State and federal laws require schools to assess student learning every year in specific grade levels and subjects.

♦ ♦ Annual assessments that are the same for all Michigan students give us information on how students are performing, and how well schools and districts are teaching students compared to those in other communities, states, and nations. This helps target supports and resources to students and schools that need them most. It also helps identify areas of success from which others can learn. This information and data are necessary with our goal to be a Top 10 education state.

♦ ♦ State standardized assessments do not measure everything important about a student, but they do measure how much a student knows in terms of our state’s content standards.

Students will be invited to a variety of virtual field trips throughout the school year. Michigan Online School aligns virtual field trips with learning topics .