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New Families: Eight Steps for Getting Started in K-9

WELCOME!  

You're signed up with HCOS. You've talked with a Regional Administrator, and your child has been accepted. Here are the next steps.

The purpose of this page is to help new to HCOS families get started in their school year. Hopefully, following this step by step guide will make the start of the new year as smooth as possible for you.

Step 1. Connect with your Support Teacher

Your Support Teacher is your primary connection to the school. They are responsible for collaborating with you in planning your year. They support, encourage and empower you in your home education journey. Your Support Teacher will help you choose and order curriculum for the year. They will, also help you with weekly input and guidance and help answer all your questions. Your Support Teacher will collect work samples throughout the year and will provide formative assessment (feedback). Your Support Teacher will write report cards for your children and play a large role in your child's educational journey as they work to support you.

Regular communication with your Teacher

It is very important that you work out a system for communicating regularly with your Support Teacher. The most used options include email, phone calls, texting, and reporting programs such as SeeSeeSaw. Saw.The Ifmore your Teacher doesn'tknows knowabout whatthe you'rework doing,your it'schildren reallyare harddoing forand themthe areas you need help with, the better they are able to support you. Good, regular communication and relationship building is what makes the Enrolled Program work best.

Step 2. Get into Encom

Encom is our school database. It is where we house student applications, documents, Student Learning Plans (SLPs), report cards, Proof of Work, your curriculum spending account, and more. It's also where you choose any online courses. You will have received your Encom username and password in your "Welcome to HCOS" email (that is an important email to hang onto).

Here is the link to the Encom How To page.

Step 3. Work together with your support teacher to create Student Learning Plans (SLPs) for each of your children.

The Student Learning Plans (SLPs) are very important documents. It is the firstmain document that reflects the Ministryeducation plan for the year for each of Educationyour lookschildren atenrolled whenand theyis are checkingspecific to seeeach ifstudent. we are following the government guidelines. Collaborating to write the SLP is usually your first contact with the support teacher. It's important to remember that the SLP is a living document, meaning that it can be revisited and revised during the school year. Parents are required to sign off on the SLP once it has been completed.

Here is the link to the SLP How To page.

Step 4. Order your resources and sign up for courses

How do you purchase curriculum?  Your Support Teacher can help to guide you through this process.

Vendor Purchases

The HCOS website has a list of vendors who accept HCOS PO#s. After reviewing the resource choices with your Teacher, you can order those from one of the approved vendors.

Here is the link to the Vendors and Ordering page.

Non-Vendor Purchases

New guidelines have changed how HCOS can process the purchasing of resources from companies that that do not not accept HCOS PO#s. For more information information please see hereour Curriculum Purchasing Procedures. . For a list of vendors which do accept HCOS PO#s please please go hereto our Resource Vendor Directory. 

For more information, visit Purchasing Process for Parents.

Computer / Tablet Leases

Computers, tablets and iPads can be leased through our computer lease program: informationComputer andOn formsLoan Agreement. Please note that you must obtain your Support Teacher's approval in order for the lease request to be processed.

Online courses

If your student is taking any online courses, you can choose courses in Encom and here is the stepCourse bySelection step processInstructions. After you do this once, you will need to have your HR Support Teacher do any other online course sign up for your students. 

Note: Although thisthe refersCourse Selection Instructions refer to High School courses, the process is the same for Grade five to nine online courses.

Step 5. Check out the Learning Commons

The Learning Commons is our library. WithThis ais little bit of work,where you can find alla variety of the resources neededthat forcan add to your schoolinghome withouteducation spendingwith aminimal dimeto ofno curriculum funds.costs. You can sign out physical books, virtual bookseBooks, and audio books. We also have unit kits for Science and Social Studies. HCOS subsidizespays for many subscriptions, which both enhance and reinforce learning in all subject areas.  To find out more information on specific subject-relatedour subscriptions, clickhead to the HCOS hereSubscriptions. STEMpart (Science,of Technology,the EngineeringLearning andCommons Math) resources can also be signed out including various robotics and coding kits. site.

Your "Welcome to HCOS" email will also contain your login information for our Learning Commons. 

Related links:

Step 6. Subscribe to your region's Learning Groups e-alerts 

We have many Learning Group activities around the province. Everything from writing workshops, torobotics, robotics,drama, field trips, to drama,one today fielda tripsweek campus programs happens in Learning Groups. It is important to subscribe to Learning Groups for your region so that you will receive notifications of upcoming events. 

Most events can be paid for using curriculumyour accountchild's resource budget funds.

Step 7. Set a daily schedule

You will find the greatest success if you have a set schedule and location to do your school work.

When scheduling for the year,

  • look at the total number of weeks (usually 30-36) and then divide your lessons so that you will complete the curriculumresource on time. Do this for all of the courses. Online courses have a built in scheduler to help.help Beand be sure to factor in holidays.

Schedule your week.

Start
  • This withlargely depends on the age and ability of a weeklystudent. schedule.A Whichvery daysgeneral willguideline you teach each subject? English, Math, Physical Education and Bible should happen every day. Science and Social studies shouldwould be taughtthirty threeminutes timesof aseated week. Art, Second Language, ADST and Career can be taught twice a week. Leave room to have some fun. You might try, "Field trip Fridays", "Project Wednesdays", or "Choose your own adventure afternoon". 

     Have a set startingwork time per grade for the day'score studies.academic subjects. For example, a grade 5 student would spend three hours each day working on Math, Language Arts, Social Studies, Science, and Second Language resources. The other four subjects (Christian Studies, PE and Health, Career Education, and ADST) would be completed largely through activity based learning.

  • This helpsgeneral guideline needs to keepbe everyoneconsidered onas track.just Youthat, a very general approach as each student will findhave thata somelearning daysplan godesigned longerto meet their individual needs and othersabilities. 
  • Parents are encouraged to review this with their Support Teacher and Online Course Teacher as they will be shorter.able Thisto flexibilityoffer is one of the great strengthsinsights and blessingssuggestions ofon homehow educating.best Yourto averageorganize schoola daywork will likely be about four hours long. Of course, this will vary by child.day. 

Step 8. Note the important dates 

For specific information about deadlines and due dates please go to our SOPHIE page: Important Dates.

It's useful to have these dates on hand so that deadlines aren't a surprise. 

You CAN do this!!  You're ALREADY doing this. You've been teaching your child(ren) since the day you came home from the hospital. This is just taking another step. Your Support Teacher,Teacher and our school are all committed to your success, and most importantly, Jesus is walking with us every step of the way. 

If there are other items that you would see as being useful that we should add to this page, please contact your Support Teacher or Regional Administrator. 

 

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