We created this to help establish a team type atmosphere amongst our groups.  It is done on 2 different days in our afternoon sessions. One day fairly early on in the session (Day 3 or so).  The second day around day 6 or 7.  This helps set the tone for our Team Competition for the session.

I want to declare to teachers the importance of homework:

Homework is the currency of learning. Just like other currencies, the value is not in the paper but in what it means, what it represents. In this case it represents learning.

Freshmen can benefit from so many pieces of information during their first month of high school. Getting a handle on lunch, the location of rooms, the nuances of schedules that are sometimes altered, the homework load, Homecoming, joining clubs, and digesting the details of high school. The list is a mountain of small details that will be mastered by most in the coming weeks.

We did a training yesterday for our Peer Tutors working in our online classrooms. This a pilot program for our Apex platform. Many students who fail classes and are moved to the Apex learning platform are in need of constant attention.

In two ways proximity is king. The first is just being present, around, near, or available. When teachers are near, students usually do better. The second is that solutions are found near the problem. In fact good solutions are only one step in the right direction from the problem.