WPS Newsletter

We are excited to share that we are administering new assessments to students this year that will help you and your child’s teacher understand how they are progressing in their learning throughout the school year. The North Dakota Academic Progression of Learning and Understanding of Students or ND A-PLUS (ND A+) is a new, connected system of assessments that includes state-provided interim assessments. Interim assessments are short, untimed assessments that take approximately 30 minutes to complete. ND A+ Interim Assessments are administered in the fall, the winter, and the spring in both reading and math. Students will take ND A+ Interim Assessments online, and our teachers will receive the results immediately. Students and teachers will review the information, set goals, and then communicate the results home to parents/guardians. This test will replace the use of NWEA in our district.

ND A+ Interim Assessments will provide a measure of how well your student is performing in reading and math. In addition, for grades 3-8, ND A+ Interim Assessments will provide Lexile scores for reading and Quantile scores for math. A link will be included in your child’s report where you can access resources on things you can do at home to support them.

The ND A+ Interim Assessments reports will also contain information to support conversations with your child’s teacher about their learning. Because ND A+ is also a growth measure, teachers can discuss with families how much students have improved from fall to winter and winter to spring.

These conversations may include questions you have, such as the following examples:

1. My child made significant progress in math but not as much in reading. What can I do at home to support his or her reading?

1. My child seems to be doing really well in both subject areas. What are some enrichment activities to keep him or her engaged in learning?

1. My child seems to be struggling with Measurement and Data. Is there any support the school can provide specifically for Measurement and Data?

We know that tests can cause some students anxiety. ND A+ Interim Assessments are designed for students to show what they know and can do at three checkpoints during a school year. Encourage your child to try their best so that you and their teacher can track their progress and support them in any areas where they may need help. Again, the tests are meant to be a check-in throughout the year to assist the classroom teacher and student to monitor their learning progression and make adjustments as needed.

It’s also important to remember that ND A+ Interim Assessments are just one group of assessments. Teachers also monitor grades and use other information from the classroom to know how to best address your child’s needs. If you have any questions, please reach out to your child’s teacher.

Here are a few updates on recent events and what to expect coming up! As always, please reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns.

Secondary School

College Application Month went very well and I am excited to do even more next year! The Seniors planning on attending college could use their free application, students had a blast at College Lingo Bingo, and over 70% of the 5-12 students participated in our first college fair!

I will continue to meet with all high schoolers to best prepare them for their future. Many students have asked for individual career preparation meetings after discussing 4-year plans, colleges, careers, etc., during their counselor lessons. These meetings will happen as students request, but each student will have a formal meeting with me when class signups happen each year! They can request a meeting with me at any point, so encourage students to ask if any questions come up.

The Juniors will take the ASVAB on November 20th! Please make sure Junior students are in school on this day. If you have something scheduled that cannot be moved contact me ASAP!

Both Wilton CTE programs (Career Development & Agriculture) are collaborating to take students to the Minot Career Expo! All Sophomores, as well as the Juniors & Seniors who signed up, are attending. In future years, it will only be the Sophomores. We are excited to offer this opportunity to students!

We will have another “Mining into Careers” event. This month’s feature will be construction! Please reach out if you have any recommendations or contacts to assist me in planning one of these events.

This month’s fair will be the military career fair! There will be various branches of the military at the school. The students will have the opportunity to chat with them as they are wanting!

Elementary School

Elementary counselor lessons have continued. As conflicts arise, teachers have been incredible about collaborating with me to best help students! This can be through check-ins, individual counseling sessions, supplemental classroom lessons, and group work.

November is Kindness Month! There are various events planned by the PTO during Kindness Week such as dress-up days and announcements! There will also be a drawing contest where students have the opportunity to submit a picture they create to a Kindness Wall. From here, there will be a vote on the best picture and then that picture will be enlarged and hung in the school for the whole year until next year’s contest!

November 8-No School-Staff PD Day

November 11-No School-Veterans Day

November 28 & 29-No School-Thanksgiving Break

Greetings from the library! You may or may not have noticed there are a lot of days off of school in November. While most students & staff will look forward to the days off, I am going to encourage you to continue learning on those days off. For us staff, that will be easy. We have an in-service all day on Nov. 8. This is a day of learning focused on topics applicable to educators.

November 11 is Veteran’s Day. This year our local post is celebrating with a potluck. The school’s band and choir will be providing music. Watch for fliers with more information. Go visit with a veteran and learn something new there!

Of course, who can forget America’s favorite day to celebrate turkey? Thanksgiving Break is Nov. 28 & 29 this year. I hope you all know the basic story of Thanksgiving, but maybe research that if you don’t know it. Also, do other countries have their own version of Thanksgiving? When and how do they celebrate? How does your family celebrate? Teach your children the history of your family’s celebration!

At my Librarian’s conference last month, one of the sessions I attended promoted a new website from the State of North Dakota. It is called Smart with my Money and has many ways of learning how to be smart with your money. Its audience is for anyone high school age and older, as it covers all topics from getting and creating a good credit history to retirement ideas. Check it out here: https://smartwithmymoney.nd.gov/

These are just my simple suggestions for learning on the days “off” of school. Demmelearning.com lists 50 ways to be a lifelong learner and the benefits of doing so. Here are the top 10 ways:

1. Order books on topics you are interested in and make time to read.

2. Plan day-trips and take tours.

3. Visit a local museum.

4. Take a nature hike.

5. Allow spontaneity.

6. Budget for education and hobbies.

7. Surround yourself with other lifelong learners.

8. Listen to music from a variety of genres.

9. Read all kinds of poetry.

10. Try new foods.

Capps, A. (2023, July 19). 50 ways to practice lifelong learning at home. Demme Learning. https://demmelearning.com/blog/lifelong-learning/