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Health & Fitness

Daily Class Schedule Changes in Store This Year at Hudson High School

We'll tell you why we went to all of the trouble to lengthen the school day and change the class schedule at Hudson High School.

Did you know that all Hudson High School students can arrive one hour late every Thursday this year?

You might wonder why students would start late every week, and I can explain.  Teachers will be busy working in teams to learn from each other and from research on best practices in teaching and learning. Teachers are professionals who need to be able to study their craft on a regular basis. This is already happening at the most effective high schools all over the country and even here in the elementary and middle schools. 

What if my kids shows up early?

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If students do arrive early (7-8:15 a.m.) on Thursdays, there will be supervised activities and access to HHS Media Center resources. Intramurals and other activities will be run in the gyms. Breakfast and study times before school will be lengthened. The Library Media Center will be accessible to students from 7:15- 8:15 a.m. every Thursday. 

We also made a change in the schedule to add advisories and academic support for students. Between second and third periods there is a 25-minute time where freshmen will go to Ninth Grade Advisory, run by staff and student mentors. The rest of the students will have choices about what academic resources to access and must be in attendance in a supervised location. Support will be provided in every content area by teachers who are not yet serving as freshman advisors. A few common examples of this include peer tutoring, math tutoring and advanced placement U.S. history, reading and writing workshops. These will all now be provided during this Academic Office Hour time frame four days a week (everyday but Thursdays).

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Why the change?

The changes to our daily schedule were made to address some areas in need of improvement. We have four initiatives as part of High School Learning for the Future. These include advisories, transitions, project-based learning, and small learning communities (academies). This year, we are focusing on freshman transition and project-based learning, while we also plan for the implementation of freshman academies in the year 2012-13.  Students need frequent opportunities to connect with adults and other student leaders, and the advisory time will provide this. In addition, students need opportunities to craft their own goals and action plans, as well as to pursue individual learning interests. Project-based learning and the academy approach will support this. 

More information will be shared with you on our plans for High School Learning for the Future (HSLF) on a regular basis throughout the year. If you are interested in more information or in a dialogue about our plans, please plan to attend the grade-level parent meetings early in the year and/or the Principal Advisory Council (PAC) meetings on Mondays each month. I would love to meet you and answer any questions you have.

First day of school

Please note that our first day of school is a Thursday. The first period begins an hour late (at 8:30 a.m.) so students may arrive as late as 8:20 a.m., if they have a way to school other than the bus. The buses, however, will run at their regularly scheduled time. Our supervised activities will be available for early arrivals beginning on day one. 

We are looking forward to a tremendous year with the students and we welcome you to our many fall activities!

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