Hello IA Families,
Though we are safe and sound here at Innovations. We are encouraging parents to pick up their children early as the flood waters are rising at the river and we fear that traffic conditions will only worsen after 3:30 as the storm picks up. Additionally there are very few children at school today. Please come to get your child early.
If you are in the Extended Care program and cannot pick up your child by 3:30pm please call Donna at the front desk, 619-501-6327.
Additionally, tomorrow we are closing school as it does not look like the already flooded areas will get any better until after the weekend. All school activities will resume on Monday.
Thank you,
Danielle
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Rain or Shine?
We are due for a lot of rain tomorrow and Friday. Though we know that this area is prone to flooding we are not canceling school just yet. We have heard conflicting reports that the morning may be dry making it possible to commute to school. That said, if conditions get worse over night we will do another phone blast at 6am tomorrow morning to cancel school (and all school related activities) and we will also put it on our website. Assuming that we have school tomorrow, please be prepared in the event that we need to shut down early which would mean an early pick up.
Remember to drive with your lights on, slowly, and cautiously. It will be wild out there! Be safe.
Remember to drive with your lights on, slowly, and cautiously. It will be wild out there! Be safe.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Free Workshops in San Diego
We'll be doing some training with Dr. Katz later this month. We really love what his business does and also love that they give free talks! They focus on learning disabilities and child psychology.
http://learningdevelopmentservices.com/
http://learningdevelopmentservices.com/
Friday, January 1, 2010
Happy New Year!
Enjoy a couple pics from year end
An 8th grader reading to a Kinder student
Our chorus kids getting ready to liven up the Barnes and Nobles!
An 8th grader reading to a Kinder student
Our chorus kids getting ready to liven up the Barnes and Nobles!Thursday, December 31, 2009
Why we don't use textbooks
This article from Edutopia is a great read for those interested in knowing more about why we don't use textbooks as a mainstay of our curriculum.
http://www.edutopia.org/muddle-machine#
Happy reading.
http://www.edutopia.org/muddle-machine#
Happy reading.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
New Year ReCap
Happy New Year from Innovations Academy!
It’s been an amazing journey together in 2009, and thanks to your involvement, commitment, and support, our community is growing every month with new students and families. In January we’ll be welcoming even more new community members. Thank you for spreading the news that you and your child love your school.
Accomplishments of 2009:
1. Student & Family Satisfaction is at an all time high as noted by our low transfer rate (any transfers are predominantly because of relocation), regular feedback that we receive from families about the changes that our community has made in their individual lives, and continued enrollment throughout the year.
2. Securing a facility for the 2009/10 school year on short notice.
3. Enrolling 35 new students and families since September (which is phenomenal considering that enrolling new students during the school year rarely happens. Families love our program and are looking for something different).
4. Getting media coverage through our School Choice Fun Fair to bring the charter community and families together (we’re looking to do another one in March).
5. Finding and implementing programs that embody our school’s philosophy such as Responsive Classroom Techniques and a structure to encourage inquiry based Project Based Learning.
Plans for 2010
As we look forward to 2010 we have 3 main goals: get our classes tech saturated, solidify our M.A.P.S program, and reach full enrollment with a healthy waiting list.
For 2010 we’re increasing our technology component. We have found a vendor who offers extremely good laptop prices that we may be able to offer to our families. We’re looking at acquiring 100 laptops predominantly to be placed in the 4th – 8th grade classrooms. Bringing in this technology will enable these classrooms to get high tech and bring Project Based Learning to a new level.
For our M.A.P.S (Media, the Arts, PE, and Science) program we are excited to have the Junior Achievement Program (teaching hands on fiscal responsibility and entrepreneurship) and Edudance (teaching ballroom dance to our middle schoolers) join us. We are very excited to collaborate with these organizations as well as others to bring sustainable programming every year as well as to make our program standout.
Enrollment is also starting for the 2010/11 school year. Please tell your friends now so that they do not miss out on our program next year.
Your Support
As the year closes you can help support our 2010 plans by making a tax deductible donation to Innovations Academy today through our website at http://innovationsacademy.org/donate.php or you can send us a check to our school address (123 Camino de la Reina, Suite 100 East, San Diego, CA).
We ask that you please consider making a tax deductible donation (though we do not yet have our non-profit status we have a determination letter from our lawyers stating that any donations made today will retroactively be covered when our non-profit status is finalized) as you consider your year end fiscal planning. Please remember that many employers give matching donations.
We’re currently looking to raise the following:
1. $7,000 for Laptop computers (this grants us 100 laptops with a lifetime warranty)
2. $10,000 for our MAPS program from now until the end of school.
When making a donation you can clarify where you would like your contributions to go in the check register or through the Paypal message box. If you’d like to make a donation towards general operations you may do so as well.
We understand that 2009 was a tough year financially for many, and we also appreciate contributions of time through volunteerism, donated materials, outreach by encouraging your friends to enroll, and connecting us with businesses or partnerships that can support us in the future.
Thank you for making 2009 a successful and fulfilling year,
Innovations Academy Staff
It’s been an amazing journey together in 2009, and thanks to your involvement, commitment, and support, our community is growing every month with new students and families. In January we’ll be welcoming even more new community members. Thank you for spreading the news that you and your child love your school.
Accomplishments of 2009:
1. Student & Family Satisfaction is at an all time high as noted by our low transfer rate (any transfers are predominantly because of relocation), regular feedback that we receive from families about the changes that our community has made in their individual lives, and continued enrollment throughout the year.
2. Securing a facility for the 2009/10 school year on short notice.
3. Enrolling 35 new students and families since September (which is phenomenal considering that enrolling new students during the school year rarely happens. Families love our program and are looking for something different).
4. Getting media coverage through our School Choice Fun Fair to bring the charter community and families together (we’re looking to do another one in March).
5. Finding and implementing programs that embody our school’s philosophy such as Responsive Classroom Techniques and a structure to encourage inquiry based Project Based Learning.
Plans for 2010
As we look forward to 2010 we have 3 main goals: get our classes tech saturated, solidify our M.A.P.S program, and reach full enrollment with a healthy waiting list.
For 2010 we’re increasing our technology component. We have found a vendor who offers extremely good laptop prices that we may be able to offer to our families. We’re looking at acquiring 100 laptops predominantly to be placed in the 4th – 8th grade classrooms. Bringing in this technology will enable these classrooms to get high tech and bring Project Based Learning to a new level.
For our M.A.P.S (Media, the Arts, PE, and Science) program we are excited to have the Junior Achievement Program (teaching hands on fiscal responsibility and entrepreneurship) and Edudance (teaching ballroom dance to our middle schoolers) join us. We are very excited to collaborate with these organizations as well as others to bring sustainable programming every year as well as to make our program standout.
Enrollment is also starting for the 2010/11 school year. Please tell your friends now so that they do not miss out on our program next year.
Your Support
As the year closes you can help support our 2010 plans by making a tax deductible donation to Innovations Academy today through our website at http://innovationsacademy.org/donate.php or you can send us a check to our school address (123 Camino de la Reina, Suite 100 East, San Diego, CA).
We ask that you please consider making a tax deductible donation (though we do not yet have our non-profit status we have a determination letter from our lawyers stating that any donations made today will retroactively be covered when our non-profit status is finalized) as you consider your year end fiscal planning. Please remember that many employers give matching donations.
We’re currently looking to raise the following:
1. $7,000 for Laptop computers (this grants us 100 laptops with a lifetime warranty)
2. $10,000 for our MAPS program from now until the end of school.
When making a donation you can clarify where you would like your contributions to go in the check register or through the Paypal message box. If you’d like to make a donation towards general operations you may do so as well.
We understand that 2009 was a tough year financially for many, and we also appreciate contributions of time through volunteerism, donated materials, outreach by encouraging your friends to enroll, and connecting us with businesses or partnerships that can support us in the future.
Thank you for making 2009 a successful and fulfilling year,
Innovations Academy Staff
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Hedge Funds Supporting Charter Schools
Here's an interesting article on how Hedge Funds are supporting Charter Schools.
http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/07/hedge-funds-scholarly-investments/
Enjoy,
Danielle
http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/07/hedge-funds-scholarly-investments/
Enjoy,
Danielle
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