BlueSky Online School

Today is a very important day in the United States. It's ELECTION DAY. 

Every year, the first Tuesday after the first Monday of November is the day that elections are held. It is our right and responsibility as Americans to get out and VOTE. 

This election year is especially important because it is a Presidential election. 

Are you 18?? Get out there and VOTE!! 

Go to google.com and click on the Vote doodle: 

Saint Mary's University: M.Ed. in Teaching and Learning

I love my book club, traveling, singing, watching sports, being active, and snuggling with my kids.

 

Having trouble remembering when your Group Pace Live Classes are? 

Want to see BlueSky Online School events on your personal calendar? 

It's easy!! 

It's easy to change the settings. Click HERE to see how! 

Happy Tuesday!! I'm excited to share another member of the BlueSky family, April Scharnberg. This is April's 4th school year at BlueSky! 

What is your role at BlueSky? 

I am .50 Student Services Advisor and .50 School Social Worker

What is your Education background?

I graduated from Fergus Falls high school, attended the local college for a year, and then finished my degree in Social Work at St. Cloud State University.

What is your favorite part of working from home?

I love being able to take a short break and go for a walk (or run) in the woods. Working from home gives me a chance to enjoy nature on a short break if I need to!

What is your favorite food?

I love food! My favorite food is Indian food. There is a great restaurant near us in St. Croix Falls called the Vegetarian. I love food from our culture and other cultures.

Do you have any pets?

I have a golden retriever named Aspen. She is beautiful, calm, and a bit lazy.

What are your hobbies?

I love to be outside. I live near Interstate State park (along the St. Croix river) and spend a lot of my free time camping, hiking, canoeing, kayaking, biking, backpacking, climbing, trail running, having campfires, snowshoeing, sledding...pretty much anything outdoors.

Do you have any fun or interesting tidbits to share?

Last year, I ran a 10K trail run (and placed 5th in my age category), attended the BlueSky graduation ceremony, and left for our 3,000 mile summer road trip all in one day. 

What do you like most about BlueSky Online?

I love how BlueSky staff takes time to help students. They are flexible and more than willing to go the extra mile to help students. I am so impressed with the sense of community and genuine care for students the BlueSky team possess.

BlueSky Online is excited to welcome Nicole Wibstad to the Student Services team this school year! Read on to learn a little more about her :)

What is your role at BlueSky? 

I am a Student Services Advisor at BlueSky. I also serve on the Student Activities Committee.

What is your Education background?

• B.A., Social Work, Winona State University 
• Masters of Education, Augsburg College (expected 2017)
• Minnesota Teaching License: 5-12 Social Studies
• Licensed Social Worker, Minnesota Board of Social Work
• Licensed School Social Worker, Minnesota Department of Education

I love hot yoga, lifting weights, reading, studying spiritual topics, being outdoors, hanging with my three sons, husband, family, and friends. If you have an uplifting book suggestion or positive quote that strikes you, send it my way! I'm always interested in new and motivating ideas.

Welcome back to another school year filled with Teacher Tuesdays!! This year, we will be highlighting more roles at BlueSky than just teachers. Like this post! It's about the BlueSky Online High School Principal. Enjoy :) 

What is your role at BlueSky? 

Assistant Director/Principal

Oh...so, he isn't a "teacher" per se...but he was! Check out his background! 

What is your Education background?

B.T., Social Studies Teacher, Minnesota State University, Mankato
B.S., Geography, Minnesota State University, Mankato
M.A., Educational Administration, Saint Mary's University of Minnesota, Minneapolis
Ed. S., Educational Administration, University of Saint Thomas, Minneapolis

What do you like most about working at BlueSky? I am proud to work for BlueSky because we always put students and families first. I like that we can work together to find creative ways to support all students. 

The Academic Snapshot

Here is a video to explain the Academic Snapshot that Parents will see when they login to the Parent Portal. 

This is the same Academic Snapshot that students see when they log in. 

Features of the Academic Snapshot: 

*Class List: The Academic Snapshot shows all of the courses you are enrolled in and separates them into "My Pace" and "Group Pace". 

*Grade: The Academic Snapshot shows both your "Grade" as it builds up from zero and your "Quality" of work grade that shows the grades on just the assignments you have completed so far. 

*Duration: You can see the dates that you are enrolled in your courses. Most of the time this will be the semester or entire school year, but some students choose to work on classes for shorter time periods. 

*Progress: The Academic Snapshot shows you the progress you have made (number on left) versus the total amount of work in a class (number on right). The bar gives a visual to how far you have come! 

*To Do: The "To Do" column shows you how many assignments you should complete this week in each one of your classes. No guessing or keeping track on your own, the Academic Snapshot does it for you! 

*Completed: The "Completed" column shows how many assignments you have done this week in each class. You can compare this to the "To Do" column to see if you still have assignments to complete!