Steller Secondary School

Little by little does the trick. Aesop

As I work with students, some of whom are overwhelmed by a task before them, I am reminded of this quotation. Procrastination, deadlines, projects, the end of the quarter are all contributing factors to students feeling overwhelmed from time to time. Taking an assignment, breaking it down into workable pieces, and prioritizing what must be done often helps a student refocus and see an assignment or assignments as manageable. This is a skill that applies to schoolwork, but also to the many tasks that each of us must accomplish each and every day.

Little by little does the trick also applies to our upcoming standardized tests. By taking each day of testing individually and dealing with each test question separately, students can maintain focus and not become uneasy about testing. In this newsletter, you will find information about the upcoming Standards Based Assessments (SBA’s) and the High School Graduation Qualifying Exam (HSGQE). All of our students in grades 7—10 will be participating in one of these assessments on April 1st (reading), 2nd (writing) and 3re (math). In addition, the students in grades 8 and 10 will be taking the SBA’s for science on April 4th. It is important that our students participate in these assessments and we gain valuable information about our student’s academic needs in specific areas from these tests.

March will go by quickly for all of us with Spring Break from March 10th through 14th. The last All Community Meeting of the year will take place on Wednesday, March 26th. The focus of this meeting is the development of a Steller Mission Statement. The mission statement is a required part of the process for renewing our accreditation. The voices of our students, parents, and staff are a vital part of this process and we hope for a large turnout from all three of these constituency groups.

We will be having our Steller Auction on Friday March 28th. Please plan to join us for this community event. It is Steller’s major fundraiser for the year and supports travel scholarships for our students, technology, and yearbook. This year, there will again be exciting auction items accompanied by the opportunity to visit with others in the Steller Community. The theme for this year’s auction is Hawaii, so pull out those Hawaiian shirts and join us on the 28th of March.

I hope all of you have a wonderful Spring Break and return energized and ready for the last quarter of the school year.

Karin

Join us for this annual fundraising event
on Friday, March 28th at 5:30 pm.
This year’s theme is
Aloha in Paradise.
How can you help?

• Mark your calendar and plan on attending!
• Spread the word! The more the merrier!
• Bring your favorite appetizer ready-to-eat, ready to share.
• Help your student’s advisory group put together their basket.
• Contact Ingrid Parrish <iparrish@attglobal.net> to volunteer.

Come one and all and bring a friend. The more the merrier! Fabulous bargains, the famous Advisory Group Baskets and so much more will be ready and waiting to receive your bid.

On April 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, Steller will focus on testing students’ proficiency in Reading, Writing, and Mathematics. This year we will also test the science proficiency for grades 8 and 10. We will use two tests: the Alaska Standards-Based Assessments (SBAs) and the Alaska High School Graduation Qualifying Exam (HSGQE). The SBAs will be given to grades 7 through 9, and the HSGQE will be given to our sophomores. Juniors and Seniors who have not previously passed all three subsets of the HSGQE would also test.

The SBAs measure individual student performance as well as determine whether individual schools meet the criteria under the No Child Left Behind Act.

The Alaska HSGQE (High School Graduation Qualifying Exam) is a proficiency-based test that measures the “minimum competencies of essential skills.” To receive a diploma at graduation, students must pass all three subsets of the HSGQE (reading, writing, and mathematics). Testing begins in 10th grade. If a student fails to pass all the subsets during their sophomore year, they will be given the chance to retake the portions they failed.

Sophomores take a combined SBA/HSGQE for Reading, Writing, and Math. The Science test that sophomores take is not a part of the HSGQE and passing it is not required for graduation. It is part of the SBA which is a federal requirement.

Neither the SBAs nor the HSGQE are timed tests. Testing times begin at 8:30 a.m. on each of the testing days and are expected to take about three hours.
Students who are making progress but have not completed the session within that time will be given as much time as they need to finish within the same testing day.

Parents are asked to help by having their students rested and ready for testing on testing days. Eating a nutritious breakfast is important. Please have your student to school on time and avoid scheduling appointments which may conflict with the testing on April 1, 2, and 3 (and April 4th for 8th and 10th graders).

We will receive test results for 10th-11th graders on May 27th, and the results will be mailed to parents/guardians as soon as possible.

Cell phones, ipods and other electronics are not allowed in the testing rooms. Please consider leaving them at home that day. Instead, bring magazines or books to fill the time in-between tests when you finish early. You may bring a snack and bottled water or juice.

Testing is a month away and the District is training Principals and Test Administrators. Final test schedules will not be finalized until after Spring Break, so please listen for robot calls and check the Parents’ Website for updated information.

Thank you!! We appreciate the families who have provided some wonderful snacks and luncheon foods for our Steller students this month.

Our thanks goes to the following students and their parents:

Emily B., Arvin T., Nora C., Bob H., Michael R., Sydney S., Cedars G., Taran H., Chloe & Sylvie B., and Evan R.

These are only the people whose names were on the goodies. We’ve had several folks just drop off donations without identification. We’d like to thank you all too for your generosity – the students here appreciate having some handy food available in the office. We’ve had anywhere from 5 or 6 lunch requests all the way up to 18 per day.

I also want to say how much I’ve enjoyed working with the students, staff, and parents here at Steller. I’ll be leaving after spring break and another nurse will take my place before Wendy returns from maternity leave. It’s been a wonderful experience for me, and I’ll have some good memories to take with me. Rosie, my therapy dog, will miss all the warm hugs and treats as well.

Jaymie Felton, your RN sub

March 28th is the big day/evening and we want to decorate the gym for the auction. The theme is—you guessed it!—Hawaiian paradise. Do you have surfboards getting dusty in your garages, lei’s hanging from your coat racks, Hawaii themed posters and billboards up in your office? We need them all - (temporarily of course). The Steller gym will be transformed (with your help) into a beautiful oasis of warmth. If you have any beach-themed items such as, sarongs, themed shirts, even music and such like……please let Shannon or Nina know and we will arrange to borrow them from you. You can always reach us via email, (herda_Shannon@asdk12.org; bonito-romine_nina@asdk12.org) or, of course, leave a message with Julie or Danyiele (742-4950) in the office.
Mahalo (Thank you)

The Steller Community will be coming together for a fun evening of fund-raising. Many have been working very hard to make the Auction a success. Please be part of the effort by bringing a plate of your favorite appetizer/finger food to Steller on Friday, March 28th. There’s nothing quite like good food to encourage socializing and competitive bidding!

The evening commences at 5:30 pm, but please feel free to drop off your appetizer throughout the day at a time convenient to you. That will be especially easy since March 28th is a state mandated in-service.

Thanks in advance for your support for the most important fund-raising of the year!

The staff would like to extend a warm “thank you” to all the parents and students who volunteered their time at this year’s Open House. The Open House is an annual event hosted by Steller for perspective families. This year, in response to parent and student input, the Open House format underwent a change, and we are happy to report that is was a change for the better! (more…)

CONGRATULATIONS to Steller’s Battle of the Books team. Lorryn W. and Arthur B. represented Steller at the District-wide Junior High Battle of the Books at Romig Middle School.  They tied for 4th out of 16, and they battled against teams of 3 people.  Great reading!  You, too, can be part of a competitive reading team.  The titles for the 08-09 Battle of the Books will be out soon.  Watch for the posting in the library.

Do you have books you want to donate?  The list of titles below is a selection of books that are are too worn to remain on the shelves.  If you have a good copy or are willing to purchase one (preferably hardback) at TitleWave or another bookstore, the library would benefit greatly.

Just So Stories    -   Kipling, Rudyard
Kim   -    Kipling, Rudyard
The Arm of the Starfish    -   L’Engle, Madeleine
Dragons in the Waters    -   L’Engle, Madeleine
The Farthest Shore    -   L’Engle, Madeleine
Meet the Austins    -   L’Engle, Madeleine
The Moon by Night    -   L’Engle, Madeleine
A Swiftly Tilting Planet    -   L’Engle, Madeleine
The Tombs of Atuan   -    LeGuin, Ursula K
A Wind in the Door    -   LeGuin, Ursula K
The Wizard of Earthsea    -   LeGuin, Ursula K
The Potlach Family     -    Llampman, Evelyn S.
Highliners    -   McCloskey, William B.
Eldest    -   Paolini
Atlas Shrugged    -   Rand, Ayn
The Fountainhead    -   Rand, Ayn
From the Earth to the Moon    -   Verne, Jules
A Journey to the Center of the Earth    -    Verne, Jules
The Prince and the Pauper    -    Twain, Mark
Tom Sawyer        -    Twain, Mark
Heidi    -    Spyri, Joanna
Dracula    -    Stoker, Bram

Career Resources
Spring SAT tests will be given soon. Juniors should schedule SAT tests for the spring, so you can re-test in the fall if you desire. Register online at www.collegeboard.com

Financial planning for college (more…)

The King Career Center will be holding their open house Wednesday, March 19 from 5 to 8 pm. Click here to download their flyer with more information.

Don’t forget the Open House! If you have friends who have sixth graders (or friends who are eighth graders), encourage them to attend our Open House on Tuesday, Feb. 12th at 7 pm. We have a great school so share our best qualities with potential students. Remember the Spring Lottery deadline is Thursday, March 20 at 3 pm.

Thanks to all you parents who have contributed to our “food band” in the nurse’s office.  It seems like more and more students rely on grabbing a snack to tide them over during the day, and our supplies have dwindled severely.

Special thanks go to the Hefferman family for the case of “Cup-O-Noodles” brought in this week.  Steller students really appreciate your generous contribution.  Paper cups and bowls would be useful too since we have a small amount of instant oatmeal Top-Ramen and hot chocolate, but nothing to put them in.

In spite of recent contributions, we are running low on our lunch goodies.  We could also use some forks and spoons. Still, we are on the downward slope of enduring bitterly cold weather, and the students will be foraging outside the building soon.

Steller Student Volunteers Shine Through the Day and Night!

Part of the Steller Secondary School philosophy states that “the balance between freedom and responsibility will result in active community members,” and active Steller students have been, helping numerous community service organizations with energy and enthusiasm. (more…)

“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.”– Benjamin Franklin

After the completion of Intensives each semester, I am always amazed by the enthusiasm and energy that abounds at Steller during Intensives. The opportunity to be immersed in a topic for two weeks is an experience that is enjoyed by staff and students alike. The diversity of course offerings is always quite a topic for discussion among students, staff, and parents. I receive requests for intensives focused on academics, outdoor sports, and art, as well as requests for infusing particular curricular ideas into courses. All of those requests become part of the discussion for intensive offerings.

In addition to the variety of course offerings, intensives are an opportunity for students of all grades and abilities to work and learn together. As one of the unique aspects of our school, intensives contribute to the sense of community that makes our school special. During intensives, you will see middle school students working cooperatively with high school students. Both age groups will be actively engaged and learning. That is both exciting and rewarding.

As a staff, we will be planning for the Spring Intensives all too soon. If you have a particular interest, talent, or idea that you would like to share, please let your student’s advisor know.
Thanks to all of the parents that volunteered time and energy during our Winter Intensives.
Karin