Imlay City Schools

1. Imlay City Schools Year-Round Education (YRE) / Balanced Calendar Presentation Imlay City Schools Parent Informational Meeting Tuesday, March 18, 2014 6:30pm

2. Presentation Agenda / Elements 1 2 3 Year-Round Education / Balanced Calendar Why offer Year-Round Education (YRE)? What are the features of year-round school? What does a balanced calendar look like? What do I do next? What are the pros and cons? 4 5

3. Why offer a balanced calendar?

4. Why offer a Year-Round Education (YRE)? Research/Rationale Overview • Fights Summer Learning Loss – Continuous Learning • Provide Developmental Continuity for Young Students • Better Meet the Needs of Struggling Students • Provides Options for Gifted Learners and Extension • Structure and Stability for Students • Promote Healthy Learning Environments • Provide Choice and Flexibility to Families

5. Why offer a Year-Round Education (YRE)? Research/Rationale Overview • Fights Summer Learning Loss – Continuous Learning • Provide Developmental Continuity for Young Students • Better Meet the Needs of Struggling Students • Provides Options for Gifted Learners and Extension • Structure and Stability for Students • Promote Healthy Learning Environments • Provide Choice and Flexibility to Families

6. Why offer Year-Round Education (YRE)? Research supports year-round student growth. Over the traditional summer vacation students may stop growing or may lose skills. This is summer learning loss – or “summer slide.” Some students are more prone to summer learning loss than others, creating an ever-widening performance gap between students. While we can get all students to learn and progress, it is very difficult for educators to “close the gaps” between students.

8. Why offer Year-Round Education (YRE)? Research supports year-round student growth. A survey of 500 teachers released in 2013 from the National Summer Learning Association showed 66 percent of teachers said it takes three to four weeks to re-teach the previous year’s skills at the beginning of the next year while 24 percent said it takes five or more weeks. Robert Floden – director of the Education Policy Center at MSU “Research is clear that adding more time for high-quality instruction would be helpful for all kids. So summer school that provides high-quality instruction would add days and benefit.” Acknowledges summer learning loss Graphic – learning gaps

9. Why offer Year-Round Education (YRE)? Research supports year-round student growth. A balanced calendar, in combination with effective interventions can serve as an intervention strategy for struggling students. But the advantages of a balanced schedule are not limited to struggling students. They work for gifted and talented students as well. Intercession may provide enrichment/extension opportunities as well as opportunities remediation.

10. Year-Round School Results Rationale: Elementary Parent Perspectives I would be interested in my child attending a year-round school.

11. Features of Year-Round School

12. Year-Round Program Overview Features • Calendar • Balanced calendar • Same number of teacher days • Same number of student days • The vast majority of student days will overlap Traditional 181 Student Days 190 Teacher Days 181 Service Days Year - Round 181 Student Days 190 Teacher Days 155 “Common” Days

13. Year-Round Program Features INTERCESSION Intercession is a term used to describe the off-school periods in the year-round schedule. Intersessions can be used to bridge learning, prevent gaps, remediate deficiencies, or provide enrichment. Schools often run daycare and educational options during YRE intersessions.

14. Year-Round Program Features INTERCESSION Intercessions give schools the opportunity to extend learning blocks for students, one of the few variables to learning which can be controlled logistically. Intercession participation will be fee-based @ $10 per day. Students are not required to participate in intercession.

15. Year-Round Program Intercession – a fluid cycle of learning.

16. Year-Round Program Features • Curriculum • Same curriculum • Same assessments • Students will be in attendance during testing windows • Same materials • Same standards / benchmarks • Specials / enrichments included • Grade reporting will vary • Year will be divided into “quarters” • Progress reports and report cards will be issued at relative intervals • Standards-based report cards will be reflective of the calendars / quarters

17. Year-Round Program Features • Staffing • We will be staffed with Imlay City teachers in all year-round classrooms • Intercession teachers may rotate over time • Principals will remain the same, though some responsibilities will be shared atthe beginning of the year • Secretaries and aides will be Imlay City employees • Latchkey, bus drivers and food service will be staffed with Imlay City personnel

18. Year-Round Program Features • Logistics • Food service program and transportation are provided • Transportation will look the same from a service standpoint; may require some bus stop consolidation • Food service will look the same from a service standpoint; universal breakfast, free and reduced lunch, etc. • “Summer” schedule will require consolidating locations temporarily

19. Year-Round Program Features • Students • Enrollment is voluntary • We will need enough participants to sustain the offering • Classroom sizes will be “capped” • It is possible that not all interested students will be able to participate • Some students may be ineligible to participate in the pilot • An ideal pilot would feature at least one full classroom at each grade level

20. Considerations (Pros and Cons)

21. Considerations Pros and Cons – Based on what we know to date Pros CONS • Meets academic needs • Meets developmental needs • Provides opportunities for extended learning • Provides choice and flexibility for parents, students and staff • Promotes healthy learning environment • Possibility of increased accountability scores • Planning and data review windows are “built in” for teachers • Year one transition break – shorter summer this year • Planning and logistics are more complex • Daycare options for families • Program participation will need to be “capped” • Some students may not be able to participate

22. Moving Forward: What do I do now?

23. Moving Forward What do I do now?

24. Moving Forward Important Dates • March 18 – first parent meeting • March 19 – applications available • April 15 – follow-up parent meeting (optional) • May 1 – applications for participation due • May 7 – target date for mailing acceptance letters • June TBD – “back-to-school” information packets • July 15 – first day of school!

25. Calendars

26. Calendars Comparisons Traditional Year-Round (Balanced) • 181 Student Days • 190 Teacher Days • 9 Month Calendar • 181 Student Days • 190 Teacher Days • Spread over 12 Months • Intercessions Running both schedules • Approximately 155 days of a students’ year will “overlap” with the alternate schedule • Approximately 28 days will not

27. Calendars Sample Calendars – Refer to Handouts Sample traditional year calendar Sample year-round calendar Sample intercession Sample “overlap” calendar

28. Calendars

29. Questions