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Dear Vesper
Families:
As you may have heard, starting this fall, Vesper Elementary
School may open as a project-based charter school.
Yes, you guessed it, if our charter is approved by the Wisconsin
Rapids Public School Board, and by the state of Wisconsin, we
will open in the fall as a learning community designed around
school, classroom, and individual projects. Reading and math
instruction will be traditional, while instruction in science
and social studies will be integrated with technology and the
arts and delivered in a more hands-on approach called
project-based learning. Vesper’s learners will be active and
engaged as teachers/students work to create projects centered on
our curriculum.
During the remaining days of this school year and over summer,
school staff will receive training and begin planning great
educational projects for the next school year. These projects
will take our learners out into the community, on-line, and in
some cases, bring professionals into our school as guest
resident teachers.
| What stays the same? |
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Students in
the Vesper school boundaries will continue to be bussed to
school.
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Students/Families will continue to receive all the same
services through WRPS as in the past.
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Teachers
continue to work under the same WRPS contract.
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We will
continue to focus on the Responsive Classroom, where
academic learning is as important as social learning. The
most familiar piece of this to you may be our CARES
(Cooperation, Assertion, Responsibility, Empathy, and Self
Control).
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Reading and
Writing will continue to be taught as they are now at
Vesper Elementary School. We will, however, be adding new
resources for reading to support our project based themes.
Both reading and writing will also be integrated into our
projects, giving students the opportunity to apply their
reading and writing skills with specific purpose.
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| What will change? |
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Vesper
Elementary Charter School will involve students in
projects that will reflect and build upon the current
technology in today’s world; focus on the interest of
learners; and integrate content area studies. In short,
community projects and scientific field study
opportunities will be the center piece of learning at our
school.
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Vesper
Elementary Charter School will focus on a more traditional
approach to teaching the math curriculum. We are currently
exploring possibilities of developing a stronger
relationship with Renaissance Learning to meet this more
traditional approach. Please know that our students will
be doing a great deal of problem solving through projects.
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We want to
build stronger relations with our community. Our hope is
to build on our current after school enrichments and have
more of our community members share their time and
talents….helping to raise the children of our village.
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A governing
council will be formed at the school level to help provide
oversight and decision making related to the charter
agreement created between Wisconsin Rapids Public Schools
and Vesper Elementary Charter School. The council will be
made up of the following individuals: principal, three
parents, two community members at large, one teacher, and
one sixth grade representative. If you are interested in
serving on this council, please speak with Mr. Whitmore at
Vesper Elementary School.
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We want to
begin recruiting students that will benefit educationally
from our new charter school. Our dream is to create such a
unique, successful school, that students will come from
other areas of our community to attend.
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Want to learn more
and/or share your thoughts? We are providing two more
opportunities to have conversations about our future. These
opportunities will be held in the gymnasium at Vesper School on
the following dates:
March 10 - Muffins for Moms/Grandmas at 8:30 AM
March 12 - Doughnuts for Dads/Grandpas at 8:30 AM
Please know that this is a very important time in the history of
our school. WE ALL must work together to design and carry out
the vision we have established…“Preparing kids academically and
socially for an ever changing world”. Knowing that this can only
be done by us working together, please ask yourself what you can
do to help Vesper School move in this new direction. Only when
we work together; will we harness the time, talent, and energy
to make a difference in our village.....building the best kids
in the world.
Looking forward to the journey.
Your School Principal,
Mr. Terry Whitmore
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