• January 18th – Bridge Academy: Portfolio Projects Due
• January 20th – All Classwork Due Today; No Extensions or Exceptions
• January 23rd – Day 1: Portfolio Presentations to Faculty; Absence Will Impact Project Grade
• January 24th – YMCA Class Alt. Exam Today Immediately Following Day’s Activities
• January 24th / 25th – Day 2: Portfolio Presentations to Faculty; Absence Will Impact Project Grade
• January 26th / 27th – Make Up Exams

MAINSTREAM COURSES

• January 18th – E-Block Creative Writing.: Graphic Novel Deadline Extended; Projects Due Today Without Penalty
• January 20th – Typed Reflections on Selected Works Due Today
• January 24th – Exam: In Class Portion of Mid-Term/Final Exam Today
• January 26th – Exam Make Up Day

Dear Parents and Guardians of Bridge Academy Students -

In an effort to mitigate any potential confusion or concern about your student’s pending progress report, I wanted to clarify some of the potential reasons that your son or daughter’s grade may not reflect the level of academic success you may have anticipated.

As progress reports arrive, it will likely come to your attention that your student may appear to be struggling in my class.  While this may be the case for several reasons ranging from missing assignments to multiple absences, the majority of students’ grades are, in actuality, reflective of their current grade for our semester-long Portfolio/Independent Reading Project.  For detailed information about this project, I encourage you to visit the ‘Bridge Academy Projects’ page on our course website: www.shsenglish.com.  In doing so, you may realize that this project will be a major component of both their semester- and overall-grades for the year.

Because of the progressive nature of this project, the grade your student has received is largely reflective of their progress to date, and should be consider only as a standing grade, of which, will ultimately be replaced with an updated grade (potentially higher or lower) upon resubmitting and presenting their final portfolio projects in January.

If you have specific questions about your student’s performance in my class, or require additional information about our portfolio project, I invite you to contact me via email at franksmith@salemk12.org.

Best regards.

- Frank Smith

It was great to meet many new folks throughout the course of the evening, as well as reconnect with several familiar faces, all of which share a belief in the power of strong teacher/parent relationships.

If you were unable to attend parent/teacher night, but are interested in discussing your student’s progress or performance, I invite you to contact me to arrange a more convenient time to meet.

I am available to meet by appointment on Red Days during either A or D blocks.

As this is my first year teaching in the district, my goal is to begin establishing a regular dialogue with all parents.

Since parent/teacher conferences will be held this Thursday (November 17th) from 6:30 – 8:30pm, I thought this might be a good opportunity to chat with folks who could not make it during any of the previous morning or afternoon conference sessions. Therefore, this general comment that was put on each student’s report card.

In the event you are able to make the event, I look forward to seeing you.  Otherwise, please don’t hesitate to contact me in the future with any questions or concerns you may have.

Best regards.
- Frank Smith

In an effort to maximize the impact of our Independent Reading Project, Ms. Welch (SHS Reading Enhancement Specialist) will begin individual diagnostic testing of all students involved in the Independent Reading Project starting next week.

Students should expect to spend approximately 15 minutes with Ms. Welch during their designated appointment times, during which, Ms. Welch will provide three brief assessments intended to identify individual strengths and needs in specific areas of reading proficiency.

We will then use this information to tailor the various elements of this project to meet your specific needs, while also pushing you to the next level of academic success.  Please don’t hesitate to let me know what questions you have.  – Mr. Smith

I have a few quick announcements that students and parents may be interested in.  Please read through the following info, as it may apply to you or your student:

Parents/Guardians - Morning parent/teacher conferences will be held on October 13th between 7:15am – 9:00am. I invite all parents to join me during this time for coffee and a chat about your student’s performance in my course.

Creative Writing Classes - Final/revised memoir style essay draftsare due this Thursday.  We will then begin working on mood/tone more closely as part of our fiction unit.

English 1/2 – Last call for all late summer reading project submissions is October 13th.

English 3/4 – Last call for all late summer reading project submissions is October 13th.

All Bridge Academy - Independent reading literary criticism essay projects will begin this Friday during portfolio time.  Seniors, this will be a major component of your senior thesis requirement.

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I hope you have all enjoyed your summer, and are ready to begin the new year with eager curiosity and enthusiasm.

Please take a moment to explore this website, paying particular attention to your specific course page.  Your course page contains important information about the year ahead including your course syllabus, assignment updates, and other helpful materials.

This website will not only be a critical element of your course, but is also a great point of reference for information and resources to maximize your personal academic success.

I look forward to the time we will share together in the months ahead.

- Mr. Smith