WIVA LC Newsletter November

Hello WIVA Families,

We're closing out Quarter 1 at school, and the holiday season will soon arrive! This is a great time of year to connect with your student and reflect on their academic progress, growth and goals.

Start a Launch Pad check-in with your student. Find a daily or weekly time to sit together at your student's laptop and ask them to login to their Launch Pad and check each course for grades, missing work, and teacher feedback. This can be an opportunity to celebrate successes, address struggles, and set goals for progress.

Encourage your student to attend all required live class sessions. Our live classes are the best place for your student to learn, practice, get feedback and ask questions. WIVA teachers create engaging lessons and supportive classrooms - be sure your student is in the room!

Connect with WIVA HS staff for added support. Reach out to your student's homeroom teacher with general school questions, course teachers with class-specific inquiries, or school counselor with credit or graduation questions. And as always, reach out to Ms. Twanow and Mr. VanEffen at any time - we are grateful for your partnership in supporting your student's learning and success!

Casey Twanow, WIVA High School Principal

Matt VanEffen, WIVA High School Associate Principal

Read our latest blog post to learn how flexible online learning at WIVA helps students skip the dark winter commute and stay focused on their diploma.

Watch for course announcements, teacher emails, and school texts the week before each Late Due Date to support students who having missing or overdue work that is impacting their grades.

How the Bootcamps Work

• 2–4 weeks of live sessions during November and December.

• Most live sessions start the week of 11/9 - Encourage students to sign up early! Students need to be signed up by 11/20 to participate in this semester's bootcamps (all live sessions will be available for playback for students joining later)

• Registered students will see all course materials, live classes, and session recordings in Canvas (beginning in November) and will remain available through January for students who need to work asynchronously. The students will be crossed enrolled into the NCoE course for the duration of the bootcamp.

• Most certifications are offered at no cost to students or schools during this pilot. The following bootcamps would require schools to provide GMetrix Access, Testing Voucher, and proctor student exams for Certiport exams.

• Design for Delight Innovator - This is the only bootcamp without a no cost option.

• Personal Finance - (Students can take the YouScience version of this exam with no costs to schools)

• Business Communication - (Students can take the YouScience version of this exam with no costs to schools)

• Bootcamps will run based on student enrollment and staffing, and some may have limited space.

Resources

• ​​​SY26-27 Fall Certification Bootcamp Guide.pdf​​​​ - Highlights all 10 bootcamp offerings with program details, registration information, and links to individual certification information including what they will learn, the benefits of earning the credential and participation information.

• Student Registration Link and QR Code – Included on the flyers so students can sign up directly.

Looking for ways to get involved and connect with other WIVA High School students? Clubs and organizations are now open for sign-up! Students can explore a variety of opportunities to connect with peers, pursue their interests, build leadership skills, and be part of the WIVA HS community. Check out the club and organization information link below to learn more about what’s available, then use the sign-up button to join the clubs that interest you. We encourage all students to find a way to get involved this school year!

As an important part of our communication each school year, we ask that families have reviewed and discussed WIVA's Student and Learning Coach Handbook.

Please click the Handbook link to review and discuss important sections with your student(s), then click the required Form link to complete your acknowledgement.

📗Handbook Link

📝Acknowledgement Form Link

• Complete a new copy of the form for each student in your family.

• You will need your student’s ID number - Here's how to find it: Find Your Student ID Number

⭐ Family Troubleshooting Guide

⭐ Canvas Support Videos Playlist

⭐ How to Support as a LC

⭐ K12 Student FAQs

Join our High School Administrators on the 4th Friday of each month at 11:30am to discuss key topics, platforms, and opportunities for you and your WIVA student. We always wrap up with time for your questions. If you are unable to attend, don't worry! We always post the recordings here.

Monthly Focus:

September: Starting the School Year Strong: Fri 9/18 Recording

October: Gradebook to Graduation - Gradebook to Graduation: Fri 10/23 Recording

November: Personalized Learning Plans: Fri 11/20, 11:30am

December: STAR Testing

January: Phone and Internet Safety with HS Independence

Need help from your school counselor? They’re here to support your student throughout their high school journey! Use the counselor directory below to find the counselor assigned to your student based on their last name. Whether you have questions about academics, graduation planning, post-secondary options, or personal support, please reach out to your student’s counselor—they’re happy to help!

Phone Number: 866-512-2273

Hours of Operation: 6 AM - 12 AM ET, 7 days a week

Want to monitor your student's progress on your phone? There's an app for that! The Canvas Mobile app will let you view your students' grades. We do recommend logging into a browser regularly to check on student grades at least weekly. Click for directions to Login: Canvas Mobile App

If your student will be absent for a partial day, you can let the teacher know and then make sure to view recordings or complete missing work when your student returns. If your student will be out an entire day call the attendance line or email to let them know. When students are absent 3 or more consecutive days a doctor note is required. If you are planning a vacation, please complete the pre-planned absence form linked below.

Attendance Line: 608-838-9482 ext 0

Or Email: Wiattendance@wivcs.org

Attendance Guide

Pre-Planned Absence Form

Limited English Proficient Parents
Notification of Language Assistance Services: Any parent who is limited in speaking, writing, or reading English may request the school to provide access to services such as interpreters and/or translated documents. To request services please email Miriam Mueller-Owens at mmowens@wivcs.org. Prompt access to the appropriate services and/or translator will be coordinated.

Asistencia de idioma: Cualquier padre que se limita al hablar, escribir o leer Inglés podrá solicitar a la escuela para proporcionar acceso a servicios tales como intérprete y / o documentos traducidos. Para solicitar los servicios envíe un correo electrónico o llamar al Coordinador de ELL. Se coordinará el pronto acceso a los servicios apropiados y / o al traductor.

Click the link below to learn about student engagement activities, fun competitions, and great resources provided by K12 Stride.

• K12 Robotics Competition - registration deadline: November 6
• K12 Game On Competition - registration deadline: November 30
• Minecraft Challenge - Build the Ultimate Fall Festival - registration deadline: November 30
• Writing Competition - registration deadline: January 8
• Virtual Field Trips
• November 3 at 11 AM (CT)
• Live from a Polar Bear Tundra Buggy
• November 4 at 1 PM (CT)​
• Scales, Tails & Reptile Tales​
• November 10 at 12 PM (CT)​
• Discover Little Blue Penguins​
• November 18 at 2:30 PM (CT) ​
• Otter O'Clock at Clearwater Marine Aquarium
• November 19 at 3 PM (CT)
• Australia's Flying Foxes

Academic Integrity Policy

Grades at WIVA reflect a student’s own mastery of content and skills. Our Academic Integrity Policy (in the handbook) ensures that grades reflect a student's own learning and understanding.

With AI tools now common, however, WIVA educators want to help students learn when and how to use them responsibly. Teachers will outline expectations using our AI categories:

• 🔴 Red – AI use not allowed (*ALL computer-scored elements, and many teacher-graded elements are in the red category)

• 🟡 Yellow – AI use partially allowed with citation or approval

• 🟢 Green – AI use allowed for practice or exploration

These expectations are covered in orientation, homeroom, and courses.

High School Assistant Principal, mvaneffen@k12.com

Quote of the Month: “The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.” — Walt Disney

What is Mr. VanEffen reading: Core Practices for Project-Based Learning

Explains key teaching strategies that help teachers create meaningful and engaging projects for students. The book focuses on helping students work together, solve problems, ask questions, and create high-quality work while learning important academic skills. It gives OUR teachers practical ideas for making project-based learning organized, manageable, and successful in your student's classroom!

High School Principal, ctwanow@wivcs.org

Quote of the Month: “Every individual matters. Every individual has a role to play. Every individual makes a difference.” ~Dr. Jane Goodall

What is Ms. Twanow reading? Partita, by Barbara Kingsolver

I just ordered this to my local bookshop and can't wait to start! A "partita" is a musical piece with variations in a shared key. This novel follows a piano teacher on a Tennessee farm through varied experiences in her past and present. Kingsolver is my favorite author; I love how she weaves science, nature, and social justice into her fiction. She won the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for her last novel, Demon Copperhead, which is a devastating and beautiful epic about Appalachian life.