End of Winter Term & Start of Immersion

Friday, 26 February 2010

Greetings Upper School Parents:

Having patiently survived the weather interruptions from last week, let the adjustments to Immersion begin! This e.mail serves as official notification that the comments, work habit/effort marks, and grades illustrating your daughter or son’s Winter Trimester assessments are now available via the on-line portal My Backpack, the link to which is at the bottom right-hand corner of the front page of the newly redesigned MVSchool website. These term marks represent course work that began back in November and concluded for most late last week. It is aptly fitting that students (and faculty members) are rewarded with the delightful “shifting of mental gears” associated with the upper school Immersion program, the pinnacle of experiential learning at MVS.

Please take a moment to review the comments, effort marks, and grades with your daughter or son, celebrating successes and developing strategies for future improvements. As always, should you have a question relating to a specific comment, grade, or course (including these initial stages of Immersion 2010), please contact that teacher, via voice or e.mail, to discuss the matter further. Clearly, since most faculty members are away from campus facilitating Immersion activities, some return contacts might take longer than in normal circumstances.

Of important note, ranking among the most exciting upper school events, please mark your calendar for Immersion Open House, which will occur on Wednesday, 14 April, beginning at 7:00PM in the Lane Gymnasium. This celebratory event is designed for the entire MVS community to witness first-hand the energy, experiences, learning, and accomplishments from all of the 2010 Immersion offerings, including group projects and individual studies. A listing of the group Immersion programs and webpages is available from the upper school homepage of MVSchool website.

As way of reminder, please remember to purchase books for your child necessary for the start of the Spring Trimester, including required English electives for grades 10-12. Please visit the MBS Direct website to order the appropriate texts, the link to which is also on the bottom right-hand corner of the main page of the MVSchool website.

That’s all (quite a bit, actually!) for now from here in the Upper School. Thank you, as always for entrusting your son or daughter with us here at MVS. If I do not see you sooner, best wishes towards a safe and relaxing Spring Break.

With sincere regards,

Sam Wagner

Head of Upper School