Governor Burgum just announced schools will continue distance learning until the end of the school year. 15 more days in Tioga! Thank you, everyone, for your help and support! Keep sailing!
Hello THS students, parents, teachers, and families! Can you believe it is Friday, May 1st? TGIF, but May already? Wow! It has been 48 days since we have been in the building together for a day of school. For many of you, this has been great! For others, like me, this has been very difficult. My main hope is that everyone is staying healthy and the way the numbers look, Tioga has been very good. Hopeful it continues and thoughtful of those that have been directly impacted by COVID 19.
I feel like I need to share some thoughts on distance education with you all. I have looked at it from the viewpoint of administration, a parent, and more closely this week as a teacher. As a building principal, my role has greatly changed, yet stayed the same. I have tried to continue to be here to support our students in learning and our teachers in teaching. I have tried to give reminders and suggestions for students of what they could and should be doing to continue their learning. I have tried to help with logistical issues as much as possible. For our teachers, I have stressed "relentless communication" and "flexibility". Some feel like there has been too much communication, specifically emails. Many others feel like there has not been enough communication, to which I agree. This separation has me recognizing exactly how much communication, both verbal and non-verbal, there is on a daily basis when school is in session, in a physical building. I believe that is the part that most of us are missing out on most right now. Being a principal of a distant school with no one there is HARD.
Being a parent in a distance education setting for many is HARD. Not all are facing the same challenges with trying to help their child(ren) at home. Having two children schooling at my own home is challenging. We are fortunate that we have a strong connection with the school and some experience with it. Many parents do not have that. This is all new, and wasn't a request. For parents who are able to be still working (or now maybe returning to work), this is an extra challenge of trying to oversee education after returning home from work. For some parents, this has been a great experience. Lots of extra, special, time spent with children.
For many teachers who didn't "sign up" for distance education, this is HARD. Sure, some have really embraced this opportunity and are doing well with it. Many have children of their own, same as other parents, but they present many different challenges too. For most teachers, the amount of time taken to prepare lessons, correct assignments, contact students and parents, and other tasks has greatly increased. There are some benefits as well but I think overall the challenges these teachers have worked hard to overcome has been stressful. Google classroom has been a great tool to use, but not our normal lifeline like it has quickly become.
The one viewpoint I have not had, is as a student. In talking with students though, it appears we have students all over the map. Some are thriving while others are struggling to keep their head above water. This is HARD. Grades still matter. Hard work still pays off. Many things have been unfortunately missing this spring, but having the availability of earning an essential education is still present. I am going to challenge you all as high school students to have a laser focus for these next couple weeks of May. Many of you have gotten quite behind with your work. It is very important that we finish this experience strong. People care about you! We want you to be successful, short term and long term.
As we prepare to hear the governor speak this afternoon, we anticipate he will be addressing K-12 education today. Not knowing what will come of that, we must be prepared to continue to work. Continue to seek help and guidance. Continue to embrace change and challenge. For some, it may be a fresh start. For others it may be a new challenge. Seek an opportunity to improve yourselves for you! Even though for many this is HARD, if we keep working together, we can make this work.
Keep Sailing!
Mr. Odegaard
The THS Elective Geography Class recently did a Google Earth project. They created a virtual trip to Europe, where they make stops at three countries of their choice. They all did great. But these four deserve a shout out for going the extra mile, and adding extra fun.
SENIORS - this a reminder to turn in your questionnaire for the Senior Radio Spot Light. Please get it done ASAP and sent off.
Starting on Friday, we will provide meals for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday! Our federal government has allowed us to provide weekend meals! That is great news! Walkers and bike riders are going to have quite a bit to haul home. Another big THANKS to our cooks! You make a difference in our lives!
Attention K-12 Tioga Pirates, we are feeling lonely not being able to see your faces. So, we are going to have a Pirate Pride Parade on Thursday, April 30th starting at 1pm so we can see your smiles. We cannot throw candy, like a normal parade, but the smiles we will share and see on your face will be fantastic. We will make signs up and I'm sure some will decorate their vehicles. If you want to make a poster, we would love to see it. Also, dress up in your Tioga Pirate clothes. The Tioga Police department has created a Map that we will follow to go around town (map attached). TPD will also be in the Pirate Pride Parade along with the Tioga Fire Department.
We do need you to practice social distancing. Do not congregate and have a big group, keep it to your immediate family and keep at least 6 feet apart. Please look at map and see what the nearest street to your house is. We are starting at the old car dealership by Kum N Go.
We look forward to seeing your smiling faces.
#weallrow #piratestrong #keepsailing
Another reminder about free breakfast and lunch that our fabulous cooks are preparing at the elementary! These are free for all children from age 1 to 18 and can be picked up from Central from 11:30-12:30. It doesn't matter what your income is--they are free to everyone in that that age group in the district-even kids that don't go to school in Tioga. Just call 701 664 2333 and we'll let Tonya know. All we ask is that you come everyday, or if you can't, please call. If you decide you don't want to participate after signing up, just let us know. Please participate!
Scholarship Opportunity:
Bank of North Dakota announced that its College SAVE 529 plan is sponsoring the EVERFI National Financial Bee, taking place April 20-30, 2020. Students in grades 7th-12th may participate. Check out more information here: https://bit.ly/2KFvqts
7-12 Graders
I miss the ENTIRE THS Student Body. I miss running into you in the hallway, mornings in the gym, and the random stops into my room. I set up a weekly meet time for anyone who wants to stop into my “room”. Check your piratek12.org for the information. K.Schaffer
These kids though.....Geography HangTime #PirateStrong #StillSailing
Some Geography Shenanigans from yesterday’s HangTime #PirateStrong #StillSailing
Hello all! Mr. Odegaard here. I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the beautiful weather. We are used to dealing with what we get with weather - and I have been impressed with how most of you have played the hand dealt with distance education. We will continue to do the best we can and provide opportunity. The Pirates will keep sailing one assignment, one class, one day at a time.
I have been asked to join Jim Prather on The Talk of the Town on KTGO to talk a little about where we are at with distance education and the current status of the school tomorrow morning at 7:30 am. We appreciate the support KTGO-1090 has provided to area schools and communities this past year! I would not normally invite you to listen in via our social media outlets, however we are going to talk about an upcoming Sr. Spotlight segment and other current challenges we are facing. Jim suggested we post it here. Glad to provide a little publicity for KTGO as they continue to support our students!
Today is also Administrative Professionals Day. I would like to say "Thank You" to Jayme and Steph! Ladies, you are very appreciated for the job you do organizing and keeping us running smoothly! As one of our staff members put it, "She could organize an ant farm and make it look easy." Thank you ladies and have a special day.
As always, if there are any questions or if I can help in any way, please contact me at the High School or by email at Brodie.Odegaard@k12.nd.us.
REMINDER
Dual WSC credit registration today at 12:00. THS link for the zoom meet was emailed to you via your piratek12 account.
Any juniors or seniors interest in attending BSC’s Virtual Program Day, please contact me and I will provide you with the link for registration.
If you are picking up lunches IN A VEHICLE (doesn't include walking or biking), please wait in your car and the cooks will walk out and give you your meals.
Again, it's not too late to sign up for lunch and breakfast! Call 701-664-2333 for more information.
A few tips as we continue with C-19: helping children continue to learn. We are here for the students and you as parents. Please email, call or text to let us know how we can help.
Attention Juniors and Seniors that ordered rings from Jostens:
The ring plant has been closed due to COVID-19. They hope to have the rings sent out to those that have paid by mid-May.
Contact Mrs. Klabo with any questions.
ATTENTION ALL STUDENTS and Parents!
While we understand things have drastically changed with our school year, it is important to note that school is still in session and learning is still taking place. Grades still matter. Tioga Public Schools is not taking the challenge lightly and we expect the same of our students. We have truly encouraged all faculty members to operate with a “grace” mentality, understanding the challenges many of you are facing and not wanting to add to any frustration. Hopefully your educational experience is still challenging you to learn and apply new knowledge, yet not consuming your time and mentality.
For high school students, we are NOT in a pass/fail mode. We are still taking grades and no changes have taken place with our grading procedures. We will still be issuing letter grade percentages. You can still fail courses and credit recovery options would then come in to play. Student’s future success was vital in making this determination. We do not want any students to be punished academically by this distance learning experience, however engagement and accountability remain vital. Your courses are still credit bearing courses. You must continue to earn credits as required for graduation. Future educational and scholarship opportunities are dependent on maintaining an equitable grade system. Most of our courses are Full Year courses and your Quarter 4 grades will carry their normal weight in final grades. Depending on your learning experience, instructors have been encouraged to enter a minimum of two grades per week on PowerSchool. Parents can still access PowerSchool to follow student performance. That being said, it is our hope that instructors HAVE changed their normal expectations and operations. This is a great opportunity to remove some of the barriers classroom education inherently faces and open the doors for teachers to teach “how and what” they may have always wanted to. Hopefully they have been able to narrow the focus to fewer, more critical standards and are finding ways to keep FUN in fundamental education. If you feel you are needing more, contact your teachers as differentiated instruction is very available in distance settings. Students, please accept your parents/guardians and their support. If they would like access to your Google Classroom or other materials to help you, share any required login information with them. It’s really the same as that daily connection with your classroom teachers.
Elementary students will still be graded on a rubric scoring system, same as before. Rubrics Grading Scale: 4 – Exceeds Standard 3 – Meets Standard 2 – Approaches Standard 1 – Below Standard. We know our 4th quarter scores will not show a true reflection score of what they know, but we feel we can still get the standards out to students and give them a score for their 4th quarter efforts. We understand that they may be getting help at home or less help at home, but this will help us to reflect on what we need to readdress next fall with our students. Continue to communicate with the classroom teacher if your child is struggling and we can adjust instruction to help your child during this time of distance learning.
Parents/guardians, we thank you for all the support you have given to students and teachers alike! This has been difficult on some families, and embraced by others. If there is anything we can do to help, please contact the school.
Call for Yearbook Pictures
Grades 7-12
With the last quarter of school taking place by way of distance learning, and our spring sports canceled, we are short on pictures for this years publication. We would love it if you could send pictures of your online learning, and COVID-19 living to be featured in the 2020 Yearbook. It will help us fill the pages left blank because of this pandemic. Please email your pictures to kschaffer@piratek12.org with the subject line of: Yearbook Photos. Thank you in advance for your help. We look forward to seeing your pictures.
- THS 2020 Yearbook Staff
Congratulations to the FBLA members that placed at the 2020 FBLA SLC! The National Leadership Conference will hopefully be at the end of June in Salt Lake City. I'm very proud of all the additional members that competed this year. Your hard work doesn't go unnoticed. -Mrs. Klabo
