TESTING TIME

Parents / Guardians,

Our KPREP (state testing) and Final Exams for High School will be taking place starting on April 29th and continue through May 14^th, 2013. It is vitally important that students are at school each day during the testing, are on time, and do not sign out during the test.

As you know, the state assessment components are extremely important events for our students each school year. These tests are important as they measure how well each individual child is progressing in addition to how our school is doing as a whole. The End of Course score will comprise 20% of the student’s course grade, which is a major change in student accountability. The end result of course is that each student is college and career ready. Each student will receive an individual score that will be placed in their permanent record and on their official transcript and the school will receive a score that indicates how we are improving and how we compare to other schools. It is vital that our students understand the importance of these tests as class scheduling for next year will be based on student need identified by state scores and other academic indicators including Discovery Education screeners. There are a number of things that you, the parent, can do at home to help your child excel on these tests. A few of these are:

• Have your student at school each day. Please schedule any appointments following the testing window.
• Have your student be on time. If a student arrives at school after the test has begun they must sit in the office until their class is finished with that section and then begin a make-up session.
• Do not sign your student out early. Students will not be permitted to sign out in the middle of a testing session as that particular test would be scored as a blank.
• See that your student gets plenty of rest. Please have your child go to bed early and get plenty of rest. A well-rested student performs more successfully on any academic event.
• See that your student dresses comfortably. Students should wear comfortable clothing so that he/she is not distracted by this. A jacket could be of use for some students.
• Have your student eat a good breakfast at home or school. Hungry students will not be able to concentrate as well.
• Encourage your child to do their best. Your child respects you and wants to please you. If he/she thinks this is important to you, more effort will be exhibited.

A number of incentives for students to do their best on the test will be offered just as they are all during the school year here at Buckhorn. The “Good Faith Effort” reward is based on students doing their best on the test. Students will be evaluated during the test for attendance, effort, behavior, completing all parts of the test, using prewriting/ organizers, etc. just like they have been all school year. Students who work hard will be eligible to participate in the Fun Friday Rewards.

Again, please support your student in Buckhorn’s state testing period as this indicator will affect their learning and preparations to be college and career ready.

If you have any questions or if we can be of any assistance please feel free to call us at 398-7176.

Sincerely,

Lisa Weist, Principal