Wow....what a great start to the year! Homecoming week was so much fun and our students have really embraced all of the traditions and activities that make high school high school. I hope they come home as full of energy and excitement as they are when they arrive here each morning!

As the weather shifts to fall, we approach championship season in our fall activities, playoffs are starting and championships are about to be battled for! Exciting times at SPHS!

For the last six school years, the SPHS Faculty has been looking at how and why we grade. We've examined our own practice and the relevant research. We've talked to our peers in neighboring schools and around the state. All of that work indicated that we should rethink the way we grade.

For the last four years, we have had some teachers using a new system of grading to find out the best ways to move forward. And now we are in the first year of a full school transition to Grading for Learning or Standards Based Grading. "Grading for Learning" comes from the title of a book by Ken O'Connor, one of the world's foremost experts on grading and grading reform. According to Dr. O'Connor and others "the primary purpose of grading ...should be to communicate with students and parents about their achievement of learning goals." The reality is that an A, B, or C in English 9 doesn't communicate very clearly what a student knows and is able to do. But a 1, 2, 3, or 4 on the standard for "Close reading and Analysis" inside the class English 10 can.

This year and next year students at SPHS will have a mix of traditional grades and standards-based grades. We are making this transition slowly on purpose because our pilot teams in 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 discovered that their learning in one class lead to huge improvements for their other classes when the transitioned those to the new system. By the fall of 2025, every class at SPHS will use Grading for Learning as our grading system.

Our teachers are learning new things and applying that learning as the year goes on. Of course as we all know, learning can be messy. But it's the only way we can make that change...learning by doing!

Below, I have included some Frequently Asked Questions and their answers. Please review them. If you have more questions, please reach out to me and I will do my best to get you an answer in a timely manner. Thanks for reading all of this so far.

Better Communication Leads to Greater Student Achievement

Report cards are, by definition, tools used to communicate student performance. The point and percentage systems of traditional report cards are familiar to many of us. It is what we are comfortable with. But simple points struggle to reflect the complex thinking and learning that happens in classrooms. Grading for Learning (or Standards-Based Reporting) ‘breaks down’ a student’s grade into specific skills, communicating specific levels of achievement in each area. With Grading for Learning, factors that would be misleading are not included in the academic performance levels. Students and parents can see which skills students have mastered and which ones they need more work on.

Why are we moving to Grading for Learning?

The answer is simple: better communication and a focus on learning skills instead of “collecting points.” By changing the way we communicate a student’s progress, we are able to provide better, more meaningful communication to parents and students. It is a much better way to communicate progress. Many educational researchers consider Grading for Learning much more fair to students and best educational practice.

What about letter grades and GPA? Are we moving to a 0-4 system?

Students will receive letter grades for courses as they always have, and a GPA will be calculated based on those grades. The letter grade will be based on the proficiency level a student demonstrates in each of the priority standards identified for the course. The proficiency levels (No Evidence, Emerging, Developing, Proficient, and Mastery) will be determined based on the rubrics that correspond to a given standard.

Isn’t basing grades on standards and rubrics really subjective?

All grading has an element of subjectivity, but reporting progress on standards is less so because there is clear criteria, divided into distinct levels. A system where a student’s grade is based on an average of points earned has the illusion of objectivity, but the reality is that the value of the points earned by students in such a system is totally subjective and often inconsistent from one teacher to another. In a Grading for Learning system, a student’s work is measured against specific and clear criteria. Communicating progress on clear expectations is a better, and much less subjective, way to communicate academic progress to parents and students.

What do these proficiency levels mean for students and parents?

To determine a student’s proficiency within each standard, the teachers are creating clearly articulated rubrics to go along with each standard. Each rubric has five levels of proficiency. These levels represent what a student’s learning progression would look like.

• In the no evidence level, the student has not submitted any evidence relevant to the skill or concept. (Usually this means they haven’t submitted the assignment at all.)

• In the emerging level, the student has a minimal understanding of the skill or concept.

• In the developing level, the student has basic knowledge but has not yet mastered the concept or skill to the targeted level.

• In the proficient level, the student has demonstrated the targeted level of skills or processes without making significant errors.

• In the mastery level, the student has demonstrated an advanced understanding of the content and mastery of targeted skills.

How does my student earn ‘Advanced?’

Every student will have the opportunity to demonstrate advanced proficiency. Advanced is usually challenging and our teachers scaffold instruction so students can get there.

What was ‘wrong’ with the old system?

There are many similarities, but with Grading for Learning, progress is reported with more detail. Single grades hide strengths and weaknesses. Single grades have many different factors making it difficult to know what needs attention and what has been mastered. Providing feedback based on standards ‘breaks down’ a grade into component parts with clearly defined criteria. By providing parents and students with the standards that make up or feed into a letter grade, we are essentially "making visible" what had once been hidden behind a point or percentage system.

How long have standards been around?

The state of Wisconsin adopted academic standards almost 30 years ago. Since then we have had ‘standards-based instruction’ and assessments (big and small) tied to communicate progress toward achievement. Teachers have been required to teach to the standards for decades.

How will this benefit students?

This will assure that students within a grade level are assessed on the same expectations. This will also allow teachers to better communicate individual student progress. A Standards Based Grade reporting system shares much more information about the skills and knowledge a student has learned with more detail than a single number. Parents can see their child's specific skill development. Students will have a clearer understanding of learning targets/goals, which has been shown to raise student achievement.

Your district currently accesses Federal Carl D. Perkins funding to help support its career & technical education (CTE) programs: Agriculture, Tech Ed, Business Ed, Family and Consumer Sciences. In applying for this funding, your district is participating in a Regional Comprehensive Local Needs Assessment, facilitated by CESA 5. As part of the needs assessment, parents and guardians are encouraged to provide feedback on your local CTE programs.

This brief, 4 to 5 question survey (based on responses) will ask if your student(s) have taken a CTE course, why or why not, and the relevancy of some basic components of the programs. Please only respond to this survey if you have a student enrolled in high school.

Your feedback is appreciated and will help shape regional strategies to support local CTE programs moving forward.

Thank you.

Here is a link to the survey.

Class of 2024 Parents, please use this QR code to add your students name to the diploma list.

Coaches meeting- Oct 23th @ 6:30 pm , see details ENGLISH SPANISH

Online Registration will open Oct 16th-

Winter registration will close 8am Nov 1st in Skyward.

Late registrants will need to contact the athletic office to activate your family access account.

Registration instructions ENGLISH SPANISH

If you have questions, please contact the activities office at : julia.lamberty@saukprairieschools.org

Our student parking lot, by the main entrance, can be quite congested before and after school.

If you are dropping your students off in the morning, or picking them up in the afternoon, please use the designated area by the Aquatics facility. (And thanks to the many parents who are already doing this.)

If we can all use this space, we will ease the congestion and reduce the likelihood of accidents in the student parking lot by quite a bit.

Please refer to the drone photo below for the most efficient way to use the drop off location.

When: Wednesday, November 1st - During Homeroom

What: The BASC-3 Bess is a brief, screening tool that identifies students who

are at risk for social-emotional behavior (SEB) problems. We believe this survey

is valuable because BASC-3 can be used to identify students who are at risk for

social, academic, and emotional behaviors. This information will be used to

support students. Please reference the letter below for more information:

BASC 3 BESS Parent Consent - SPHS

BASC 3 BESS Consentimiento de los padres - SPHS

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) has typically been available on October 1. Due to changes to the FAFSA this year, FAFSA will not be available to students until December. The exact date has not yet been released.

The changes to the FAFSA form for the 2024–25 aid year include expanded eligibility for federal student aid and a more streamlined application process.

More information regarding FAFSA changes and timelines can be found at this link

The following campuses will charge an application fee for every application submitted: UW-Eau Claire ($25), UW-La Crosse ($25), and UW-Madison ($70).

For the other campuses, students may submit up to three applications for free to either the main campus or branch campus. After that, students will be charged $25 per application.

Note: UW-Stevens Point and UW-Whitewater allow students to apply to both their main campuses and branch campuses. Doing so will incur the same fee as applying to any single campus within that university.

If you or a family member are looking for help with mental health or substance use, Care Solace can help you quickly find treatment options matched to your needs regardless of the circumstance. Care Solace is a complimentary and confidential service provided to students, staff, and their families by Sauk Prairie School District. Care Solace’s team is available 24/7/365 and can support you in any language.

If you would like to use Care Solace to help you find a provider:

• Call 888-515-0595 available 24/7/365
• Visit www.caresolace.com/saukpr and either search on your own OR click “Book Appointment” for assistance by video chat, email, or phone.

Optional Disclaimer:

Information on individual treatment providers was gathered by Care Solace based on criteria such as geographic proximity, whether the provider accepts the authorized user’s insurance, and whether the provider is accepting new patients. The school district does not recommend, endorse, promote, or refer to any of the individual treatment providers.

Attending school is important and directly linked to student success in and out of the classroom Our goal is for every student to have a 95% attendance rate Parents should use the skyward app or Skyward Family Access to monitor student attendance and academic performance.

If your student is going to be absent please call 608-644-2801 (24 hour line) by 9:00 a.m. on the day your student is absent to report the absence and the reason for the absence. We would like to remind parents that state law leaves the decision about whether an absence is excused or not with the school's attendance officer. Being specific in your reporting provides the necessary information for that decision to be made well.

If your student is ill you may be asked some specific questions to gather more information for school-wide illness tracking. If we do not receive a contact regarding the absence you will receive an automated contact asking for you to contact us.

You can also submit absences:

- via the skyward app or parent portal

- email hsattendance@saukprairieschools.org

Senior Picture Deadline
Class of 2024 Senior Portraits are due December 4th, 2023 in order to be used in the yearbook. Any students who do not have a senior picture submitted by the deadline will have their Sauk Prairie School ID picture used for their senior yearbook picture.

Submission Instructions
To submit senior pictures, complete the form attached to the announcements. Photos should be a high resolution digital image in the file format of JPG, TIFF, or PNG. Please do not send screenshots of senior pictures - they cannot be used.

SENIOR PHOTO SUBMISSION FORM

If you have any questions regarding senior photos, please reach out to ryan.gahm@saukprairieschools.org.

The 2023-2024 Sauk Prairie High School yearbook is for sale right now! You can order your student's yearbook using this link: Sauk Prairie High School Yearbook Website

All tickets will be digital tickets and purchased online in advance or at the door via point of sale with a credit or debit card.

• K- grade 8: $3 with paying adult or coach

• Grade 9 - Adult: $5

• Under 5: free with paying adult

PUNCH CARDS ARE AVAILABLE IN THE ATHLETIC OFFICE FOR PURCHASE DURING OFFICE HOURS FOR SAUK PRAIRIE RESIDENTS. CASH SALES WILL NOT BE AVAILABLE AT THE GATES.

Oct. 11th - HS ONLY Early Release - 2:37 PM for Weekly Collaborative Time

Oct. 13th - End of Midterm 1

Oct. 16-20th - Parent Teacher Conferences

Oct. 18th - PLC Day - District Early Release 1:50 pm HS

Oct. 25th - HS ONLY Early Release - 2:37 PM for Weekly Collaborative Time

Oct. 26th - No School

Oct. 27th - No School

Nov. 1st - HS ONLY Early Release - 2:37 PM for Weekly Collaborative Time

Nov. 8th - HS ONLY Early Release - 2:37 PM for Weekly Collaborative Time

Nov. 15th - PLC Day - District Early Release 1:50 pm HS

Nov. 22nd - No School

Nov. 23rd - No School - Thanksgiving

Nov. 24th - No School

Nov. 29th - HS ONLY Early Release - 2:37 PM for Weekly Collaborative Time

Nov. 30th - Last Day of Trimester 1

Dec. 1st - No School - Teacher Work Day

Website: https://high.saukprairieschools.org/
Location: 105 9th Street, Prairie du Sac, WI, USA
Phone: (608) 643-5900