Progress Monitoring Assessment Dates

The Progress Monitoring Assessment dates for this school year are as follows:

PMA 1: Sept. 4-Oct. 13

PMA 2: Nov. 6-Dec. 1

PMA 3: Jan. 8-Feb. 9

PMA 4: Mar. 5-Apr. 6

You will see a text box in the sidebar that also gives you those dates. That box will remain there throughout the school year for your convenience.

Things to remember:

1. PMA will take a student approximately 30 minutes per subject.
2. When a student logs into Stride, the program automatically takes the student into PMA until PMA is completed. 
3. If a student has completed PMA and you have scheduled a quiz with Quiz Builder or StrideXchange, the student will automatically be given the quiz.
4. If the student has completed PMA and any scheduled quizzes, the student receives the regular Adaptive Engine quizzes.
5. PMA happens only at school. When the student goes home, he or she gets the regular questions from the Stride Adaptive Engine. (That being said, on your Quiz Builder or StrideXchange quizzes, you have the option on any of them to allow the quiz to be taken at home. For example, you might schedule a quiz as a formative assessment prior to a "big test" and let the students take it at home

Don't wait until the last minute

The start date for PMA is something you should put on your calendar. You would want to avoid scheduling a quiz at that. The students would not see your quiz. They would have PMA instead.

Best practice is to schedule your own a narrow date range at the beginning of the PMA period and have everyone complete PMA then. You are then able to let students know how they did and use the data to let you know what to re-teach. You'll also be able to schedule Quiz Builder quizzes.

The ending date for PMA should be irrelevant. If you are using the program the way it's intended, students will be done with PMA far before ending date. 

If you find yourself pushed to have students complete PMA by the end of the PMA period, realize PMA is all they are getting. They are missing out on the most important part of the program, the Stride Adaptive Engine. 

Alabama is Mentioned in the Huffington Post

When you read the title of this post, you're probably thinking: "This could be a good thing...or this could be a bad thing."

We've all seen too many articles where something happening in our state has been publicized in a way that has made us look less than stellar.

Especially if it's in something like the Huffington Post.

Today is different. It's a positive, and what the article is talking about is Stride.

Enjoy this article (scroll about three-quarters of the way down the page):

Public Schools Actually Embrace Innovation - Five Examples of States, Districts Making Tech Work

"Summer Stride" Open to All Alabama Students

Calhoun County Schools benefit from Stride all year long. This summer, all Alabama students, regardless of school, can enjoy Stride.

This article explains more and allows students to sign up for free.

Feel free to spread the news to parents whose children attend schools that are not already using Stride.

Today, a National Public Radio spot highlighted the program. You can download that clip here.

Might This Be the Next Programmer for Stride Academy?

Most 12-year-olds love playing videogames. Thomas Suarez taught himself how to create them. After developing iPhone apps like "Bustin Jeiber," a whack-a-mole game, he is now using his skills to help other kids become developers.

 

This video is 4 1/2 minutes in length. It's a great example of at least two things:

1. Students are capable of creative thinking far beyond their years, and when they are interested in something, the results can be amazing.
2. Students at this age can get up before audiences and present themselves confidently and in a way which captivates their audiences. When students see adults present, it's one thing. When they can see someone near their own age, it's another.

To view this talk at its original location, go to this link.

PMA 4 Ends April 7

The final Progress Monitoring Assessment ends April 7.

As with previous PMA periods, you can run reports both at the school and the classroom level.

Running the PMA Report at the School Level:

1. Use the school administrative login to access Stride Academy.
2. Click the "Reports" tab.
3. Click the blue "Generate Real-Time Reports" button.
4. Click "View Reports."
5. From the list of reports which appears, click "School PMA Report."
6. The defaults on the next screen should be OK as is.
7. Click the red "Apply" button.

Running the PMA Report at the Classroom Level:

1. Use your KCC code and password to access Stride Academy.
2. Click the "Reports" tab.
3. Click the blue "Generate Real-Time Reports" button.
4. Click "View Reports."
5. From the list of reports which appears, click "Class PMA Report."
6. The defaults on the next screen should be OK as is.
7. Click the red "Apply" button.

The resulting graph will look much the same as the school graph displayed above. Clicking through the remaining pages will reveal data on each student.

Stride Newsletter for March

Laissez les bons temps rouler!  South Alabama schools know how to make the good times roll—even while they're learning! Many schools in the southern part of the state enjoy a Mardi Gras holiday, and we were honored to see our Stride super-users participating in Mardi Gras themed contests during this time. Without further adieu, allow me to introduce this year's Mardi Gras Royalty and Krewe!

Elizabeth Fonde Elementary, Mobile The top three students at Fonde Elementary, earning the most skill badges during the school-wide Stride Mardi Gras Contest, are pictured above: ♦  Megan Nguyen, 62 skill badges ♦  Melody Johnson, 41 skill badges ♦  Daniel Lopez, 34 skill badges These fourth graders were appointed as Stride Mardi Gras Royalty, awarded 500 coins to their Stride accounts, treated to a lunch of their choice, and given a Stickbot Studio Pro Set! Congratulations!

Collins-Rhodes Elementary, Eight Mile Collins-Rhodes Elementary has crowned their Stride Mardi Gras Queen, Ki'Nish Steele!  Ki'Nish, a second grader, earned the most skill badges (42 total) during the school-wide Mardi Gras Madness Contest. Well done, Ki'Nish!

McIntosh Elementary School, McIntosh McIntosh Elementary honored their Mardi Gras King, Queen and Court from the Krewe of the Timberwolves! We are so proud of these McIntosh students for demonstrating outstanding work in Stride during the carnival season!

Ella Grant Elementary, Prichard Ella Grant Elementary awarded new bicycles to their top students who competed in the school-wide Mardi Gras Break Contest, Feb. 24-Mar.5. Pictured from left to right are: ♦  King Jamar Campbell♦  Queen Miracle King♦  Princess/Runner Up Ramona Jones Nice job! We know you worked hard to earn these awesome prizes!

George Hall Elementary, Mobile Pictured above are exemplary Stride students from George Hall Elementary, who soared to the top of the rankings in their school-wide Stride Mardi Gras contest. Congratulations on a job well done!

Dr. Robert W. Gilliard Elementary, Mobile Pictured above are Mardi Gras royalty representing Gilliard Elementary with the top Star Points earned in Stride during the contest period: ♦  Derrick Payne, Ms. Morrison's Fourth Grade: 116,958 Star Points  ♦  Laterrance Milton, Ms. Finch's Fifth Grade: 47,350 Star Points  ♦  Coreion Williams, Ms. Stacy's Third Grade: 13,723 Star Points

O'Rourke Elementary, Mobile Check out O'Rourke Elementary's top Stride users in their Mardi Gras attire! From left to right, the winners are: ♦ Madison Eagleson-Hardin, Third Grade ♦ Zee Abdulla, Fourth Grade Congratulations, and way to get into the spirit of Mardi Gras!

Thank you to all Alabama educators for continuing to support your students in using Stride! We love to hear your success stories, contest highlights, and feedback on our program. Share your thoughts with me at the contact info below: Amy Frith, editor Stride Alabama e-News Email: afrith@LTSed.com Phone: 866.552.9192, ext. 1011

Enter to Win Our "College and Career Ready" Dream Board Contest!

"College and Career Ready"—how often do you use or hear these words as an educator? Have you ever paused to ask what "College and Career Ready" means to your students? For students, those words should incite visions of their future: the college or university they hope to attend, the Fortune 500 company they want to work for, or perhaps the military branch in which they'd like to serve.

Let's Get Creative! Stride™ is launching a nationwide contest that asks students to put their college and career dreams into pictures. Students will create their own "dream boards" on poster board to illustrate their future goals. Click here for details on designing a dream board! Testing season is upon us, and we know this is a challenging time for students and teachers. Let's help students find perspective for why they continue to work hard in school and prepare for their tests—with the end goal of becoming College and Career Ready!

Contest Deadline is April 7, 2017!

How Can Your School Win? Share contest details with teachers and parents. Use this handy, printable take-home sheet. The national deadline for the contest is one month away: April 7, 2017. Set a deadline for your students to submit their dream board posters to you prior to this date. When all dream boards have been completed, find a central location in your school to take a picture(s) of your boards. You could choose to display them in a hallway, foyer or cafeteria; or have students hold them up in a group picture.  Submit pictures of your dream boards, along with a list of participating students, to afrith@LTSed.com no later than 5 p.m. CST on Friday, April 7, 2017. The winner will be announced the following week. The school with the best participation and most creativity will win national recognition, a beautiful plaque to display on your campus, student certificates for every participant, and other goodies from Stride and LTS Education Systems! If you plan to participate, please RSVP at the link below so we can stay in touch as your school's dream board campaign begins to take shape!

Count me in! I plan to participate.

Share Your Dreams! Don't forget to share your school's dream boards on social media! Use hashtags: #CollegeAndCareerReady #WeAreTheFuture #DreamBoard #Stride