Raider Wrap

Portland High School Monthly Newsletter

Volume 6:  Issue 5

Friday, January 11, 2008

 

Semester/End of Course Assessments

Semester/End of Course Assessments for the first semester will be administered on January 15 (hours 1 and 2), January 16 (hours 3 and 4), and January 17 (hours 5 and 6).  Portland High School hours on these days will be 7:30-10:45 a.m.  Lunch will not be provided on any of the three assessment days. 

On each of these Semester/End of Course Assessment days, PHS students who ride the bus will need alternate transportation home at 10:45, or they may stay at school and catch the bus at 2:15 p.m.

 

Studying For Semester/End of Course Assessments

As we head towards Semester/End of Course Assessments, here are some tips from the Counseling Department on how to prepare for these upcoming events:

-Organize class notes/notebook if they have one so unit materials are together

-Have your student find out if the teacher is writing the exam from old tests or stressing the use of old tests.  If so, have your student get old tests in order and check that the correct answers are written in.  This will help since major concepts are on tests.

-Find out if your student has a review sheet to be filled out and check to see that it is done.

-If it is a terminology-filled test, help student create flash cards.

-Begin studying small amounts on a nightly basis.

-Remind your student to listen to what the teacher stresses to study for the exam.

-Use class time to seriously review when given the chance.

-For math classes, practice the step-by-step process to solve problems. Use example problems in the textbook.

 

Report Cards

First semester report cards will be mailed home to all students/parents on January 28, 2008.

 

Non-School Day

Friday, January 18, 2008 will be a non-attendance day for students in Portland Public Schools.  On the morning of that date, teachers and staff will be involved in professional development opportunities, while the afternoon of that date is set aside as a “Records Day”.

 

WinterFest 2008

Friday, February 15, will be celebrated as WinterFest 2008 at Portland High School, culminating a week-long series of activities.  WinterFest royalty will be presented at halftime of the basketball game versus Lakewood.

 

 

 

 

National Honor Society News

Attention, all PHS sophomores, juniors, and seniors with a cumulative GPA of 3.333 or higher: Letters will be going home in late February inviting  you to apply for membership in the Claudia Keusch Chapter of the National Honor Society. Invitation to apply does not automatically ensure acceptance; you must follow the instructions on the forms and meet all requirements. If you do not receive a letter by the end of February and you believe your GPA qualifies you for an invitation, see Mrs. Deb Clark by February 29. If you have any questions about the process of application or the NHS in general, feel free to ask any current member or call Mrs. Clark at 647-2981.

 

Michigan Merit Exam

The month of March will bring upon us the time to administer the Michigan Merit Examination (MME) to all members of the Junior class (Class of 2009). The first day (March 11) will be the administration of the ACT (plus Writing). ACT scores from this administration will be accepted at all colleges and universities as well as by the NCAA and military academies. The second day of MME testing (March 12) will consist of the ACT/WorkKeys test, plus the Michigan Mathematics component.  Day three of MME administration will be comprised of the Michigan Science and Social Studies components.  More on the logistics of these testing days will be forthcoming.  Additionally, we would like to remind students and parents that, by Portland Public Schools Policy:  “A student must participate in good faith in Michigan Merit Examination (MME) testing in order to participate in commencement exercises for his/her class”.

 

Consumer Electronics

As we roll out of the holiday period, with the myriad of gifts that we choose to give our children, we are seeing a large number of high-end/high-cost electronic devices in school.  Ipods, digital cameras, and cell phones are being brought to school by a large number of students.  If you choose to bring these items to school, please be aware that they are not to be utilized during class time.  Additionally, if you choose to bring such an expensive piece of equipment to school, you and you alone are responsible for its security.  Your best bet is to leave these items at home.  Additionally, we would like to remind parents and students about the Portland Public Schools Policy regarding cell phone usage at school:  “Portland High School students shall be permitted to possess cellular telephones and other electronic communication devices in their possession, but not in use, in school buildings and on school property during the instructional day, which also includes, but is not limited to:  lunch breaks, class changes or any other structured or non-structured activity that occurs during the normal school day.  While on school property during the instructional day, cellular phones and other electronic communication devices are to remain in the student’s locker.  Cellular phones and other electronic telecommunication devices may NOT be activated and must remain turned off while stored in said lockers”.