Two weeks to go!

Hard though it may be to believe, two weeks from tonight you'll have finished your first day of school! If you missed the mid-summer mailing, here's what you need to know...

Dear Students and Parents,  

   Hard though it may be to fathom, our summer break is halfway over!  Here at Nora things have been very busy with admissions interviews, painting, and moving furniture. Marcia has been busy with admissions and registrar work, and Mara has ably guided the building renovations. Hopefully your summer has been busy as well. 

   I know of one student who has been busy... congratulations to senior Carina Hernandez, the first member of the Class of 2013 to finish her senior year community service project. After spending a week at the Columbia Lighthouse for the Blind camp, Carina's senior year became a great deal less stressful! I hope that other seniors are following up on our advice to complete your 32 hours of community service during the summer.

  There is a great deal of information in this mid-summer email, so please read it carefully.

Summer Work.  The Annual Summer Brainwork can be found at http://www.nora-school.org/students/summer-work/. There are three parts to the summer work: a reading response, a writing assignment, and a math packet. I'm eagerly looking forward to my first day book group, although hardly anyone ever picks my books!

Enrollment Forms. All students need to have the enrollment forms back to the office by August 27. Returning students do not need to worry about the Immunization Form, but all other forms need to be updated. New students need to submit the Immunization Form as well as the other enrollment forms, which can be found here. For those needing to review the Student, Family, and Community Handbook, you can find it here.

Medication Administration Form. The State of Maryland says that we cannot dispense any medicine, even Tylenol, without a doctor's order. If there is a need to take any medication during the school day, even over the counter medication for headaches and cramps, we must have this form signed by a doctor. The form can be downloaded here.

Juniors. For the Junior Retreat in October at the Sheridan Mountain Campus, you will need the Medication Administration Form for ANY medication you take, even those you take in the evening. It would be good to get this taken care of during the summer to avoid a last minute rush.

Computers. Next school year we will be a BYOD (bring your own device) school, where students will need to have a laptop or netbook computer with them in class. Here are a few guidelines as you look at this:

  -If you brought a laptop to school last year, use the same one.

  -Do not buy an expensive netbook or laptop. It is only needed for internet access and basic word processing, spreadsheets, and presentations, and it may take some abuse in the backpack.

  -PC or Mac is fine, but PC's are cheaper and are easier for us to troubleshoot.

  -Netbooks are small laptops which have better battery life, likely negating the need to drag a charger around all day. Try one first to see if the keyboard is comfortable.

  -Trey, Norman, and I have all used tablets (Android and iPad) over the past few months, and have found them unsuitable for creating work. We strongly urge you not to use a tablet (try typing a 5 page paper on one and you'll see what I mean).

  -You do not need to buy an office suite. Download the free Libre Office, which is compatible with MS Office, or use Google Docs, which is free with a free Gmail account. We also like the free app Evernote, which provides a way to capture notes, thoughts, and ideas and share them between your computer, smartphone, and other devices.

  -Graphic design software (Photoshop, etc.) is only used in class, where the software is already installed, so there's no need to purchase the software unless you're really into graphic design. If that's the case, get in touch with me for educational discounts. If you wish to have photo imaging software on your computer, Picassa is a good free alternative for editing and sharing.

  -Netbooks and laptops can be purchased almost anywhere: Office Depot, Staples, MicroCenter, and Best Buy are local options. It's worth trying out the keyboard to see how if feels, particularly for Netbooks.

  -If purchasing a netbook or laptop is a hardship then we can lease an old school laptop for the year. Please get in touch with me or Mara if you are interested. Note that the care of the leased laptop is the student's responsibility.

First Day. The tentative first day schedule is attached. This is an orientation day where the new students get to meet each other, everyone gets to meet their new teachers, and the first academic assignments of the year are turned in (the Summer Brainwork).

First Week. The August and September calendars are attached, and the full year calendar can be downloaded here. The All-School Hike along the Billy Goat Trail, along with the photo contest, is a fun way to end the week. Further details on Back To School night will follow once it's a bit closer, but we always begin with a pot luck feast that I'm sure you'll enjoy.

School Supplies. We will give all students a Nora assignment book on the first day of school. Students should bring a divided binder with paper and dividers on the first day, along with pens, pencils, and an inexpensive calculator. 

Electronics. Please put your name on everything, especially calculators, phones, iPods, and laptops. A reminder that phones and iPods should be off during class time unless a teacher explicitly asks that it be on. Laptops should be used only when appropriate for class.

Sports. Soccer practice will begin right after Labor Day on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Once the game schedule is set we'll let you know. There are no tryouts... everyone makes the team and everyone gets playing time. We'd like every student to participate in one sport (soccer, basketball, volleyball, or softball) each year.

Please call or email if you have questions about any of this information. Six weeks to go... I'd better get the darkroom cleaned up!

Sincerely,

Dave