Homeschool Edition
Never Stop Exploring
By Guest Blogger on September 4th, 2015
This is the fifth post in a series by the Cooney family about their world travels, made possible by the flexible learning offered at FLVS.
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain
In Margret Mitchell’s novel, “Gone with the Wind,” Gerald O’Hara states that, “Land is the only thing in the world worth working for, worth fighting for, worth dying for, because it’s the only thing that lasts.” While I agree that the preservation of natural places is one of the most important goals, Mitchell’s character is only partly right, in that there are other things in life worth the effort as well. There are non-material events and knowledge, which are incommensurable. Continue reading
Start Strong with FLVS: Video Tutorials to Help You Master Online Courses
By Guest Blogger on August 28th, 2015
There’s only one person in charge of your academic success…and that’s you!
If you or your student is taking a Florida Virtual School course for the first time this year, the FLVS Quick Start video series is a great place to learn about course basics and topics like academic integrity and where to find important information that will help you become a successful Florida Virtual School student.
Learn the basics of taking an online course with Florida Virtual School through our New Student Orientation. These videos for middle and high school students walk you through our Student Dashboard, navigational tools, school options, and more.
You should know that your instructors will be using proctored exams, online comparisons, and discussion-based assessments to verify the work is yours. To stay on top of your course schedule – be sure to print your pace charts, submit your work on time, and track your progress in your online gradebook. Don’t forget to read your teacher’s comments too! The personalized feedback you receive will help improve your work and give you encouragement to keep going. If you have questions along the way, know that your instructors want you to do well and are here to help. That’s why they’re available via phone, email, text, or IM. You can find your instructor’s contact information inside your student dashboard.
Which brings us to your dashboards. When you’re ready to login, go to flvs.net and click login to access your student dashboard. Once you select a course, you will be taken to what’s known as your course dashboard, where you can find your teacher contacts, course information, grades, messages, pace charts, and more. Spend some time with your dashboards. Almost everything you’ll need is right there!
Even help is just one click away. If you have questions about your course – call, email, text, or IM your instructor.
Thank you for choosing to become an FLVS student. We are really glad you are here!
Students Need Champions
By Guest Blogger on August 26th, 2015
August 26th is “Women’s Equality Day,” so what better time than today to reflect back on the women who have made a difference in this world.
For me, a very special woman comes to mind. She was a teacher from Texas who changed so many lives and affected so many other teachers and students. Her name was Rita Pierson. And though I never met her, listening to her talk about teaching and learning provided me with the foundation I try to base my work on every day.
Mrs. Pierson gave a Ted Talk back in May 2013 that now has almost 5 million views. In her talk she shared some of the best advice I’ve ever heard about teaching. Here are just some of the beautiful words Rita shared with us and just a few reasons why she is a woman I admire greatly.
Joining Mars MAVEN Ambassador Program
By Florida Virtual School on August 22nd, 2015
Have you ever just watched the last five minutes of a movie and tried to piece the rest of it together, backwards?
Crazy idea, right? It’s one that Mars scientists are doing on the MAVEN mission.
MAVEN stands for Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN and the goal is to try and figure out what happened to Mars’ atmosphere millions of years ago.
Scientists know Mars at one time resembled Earth, with an atmosphere and flowing water. With MAVEN, they will attempt to work backwards and find out how the atmosphere and dynamo was lost.
I was lucky enough to be accepted into the MAVEN Ambassador Class of 2015 and I attended a week-long workshop with 29 other teachers to find out more about this cool mission. Continue reading
FLVS Offering Free Driver Education Permit Exam
By Guest Blogger on August 17th, 2015
This article was written and published by a Florida Virtual School student for the FLVS student newspaper, News in a Click.
Florida Virtual School students will now be able to take the Florida learner’s license exam for free online after completing the Driver Education/Traffic Safety course!
FLVS has partnered with DriversEd.com to grant students a waiver for one free permit exam, worth $24.95, along with 50 practice exams.
Additionally, the course, which is also free, fulfills the state’s Traffic Laws and Substance Abuse Education four-hour course requirement, awards high school students a half credit elective, provides possibility for insurance discounts, and offers “behind the wheel training” for Orange and Polk county residents. Continue reading
Meet FLVS Student Kayla
By Guest Blogger on August 14th, 2015
Kayla loved school.
She loved her teachers.
She loved her friends.
However, she really struggled with staying focused and was morally disappointed by the various distractions at her public school. She wanted to do more, see more, accomplish more – and she did.
Kayla researched Florida Virtual School, made phone calls, and spoke with her Dad and I about doing FLVS from home for her junior year of high school. Continue reading
Back-to-School Traditions
By Guest Blogger on August 12th, 2015
For a few weeks now, Target and Walmart have had their back-to-school aisles fully stocked with shiny new markers, notebooks, and binders.
All the tools to help students transition back to school without a hitch are on sale – and tax-free through August 16th! Walking down these aisles reminds me of the back-to-school traditions I used to have with my parents and sisters growing up.
My mom always took us shopping for our back-to-school clothes and of course filled our brand new backpacks with all the supplies and pens and paper they could hold. My dad would take us to school on the first day, but not before having an early morning breakfast at IHOP for some delicious back-to-school pancakes. Continue reading
5 Ways to Stay Safe While Traveling the World
By Guest Blogger on August 5th, 2015
This is the fourth post in a series by the Cooney family about their world travels, made possible by the flexible learning offered at FLVS.
Travel Safety Awareness Month is the perfect time to address one of the questions we were often asked before leaving on an around-the-world trek.
“Aren’t you afraid to travel to other countries with your family?”
As we all know, there is risk in nearly everything we do. Whether taking a shower, driving to work, walking across the street, shopping at the grocery store, going to the movie theater, or skydiving, there is inherent risk in everything we do. If you don’t think so, just count the number of attorney ads on TV, radio, and social media. Even after our trek, the question of safety continues to be asked when I give talks about our adventure.
FLVS Brain Challenge: Only One Week Left!
By Florida Virtual School on July 24th, 2015
Today we’re recognizing @horses5ful1 of Instagram for her piano practice of “Let it Go” from Disney’s Frozen.
There’s only one week left to show what you’ve learned this summer for the #FLVSbrainchallenge!
All you need to do is share a video of you learning something new on Vine, Instagram, or YouTube (or all three!) and you could win four tickets to Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
Check out our board of ideas below! Continue reading
FLVS Student Studies Sea Turtle Hatchlings
By Guest Blogger on July 22nd, 2015
It’s 11:00 pm and the moon is shining brightly in the nighttime sky over the south Florida coastline.
A large sea turtle races against time as she climbs the beach’s slopes to find the perfect nesting site. After an hour, she finds it and begins to dig a deep nest and lay her eggs. In the end, only one sea turtle out of a thousand hatchlings will survive to adulthood.
Loggerhead sea turtles are an endangered species threatened by predators, pollution, poaching, and habitat degradation. Last year, I decided to look at sea turtle hatches because of their importance in the marine life cycle. A factor that negatively affects the sea turtle’s nesting habitat is beach erosion. Continue reading