Purpose of Focus Week
Focus Week is a longstanding traditional at International School to provide students with unique learning experiences. Students will have the opportunity to have access to quality work and experiences, develop strong relationships with adults and cultivate relationships with students outside of their usual social group in a stimulating environment outside of the regular curriculum and classroom.
Each Focus Week activity must provide instruction in work skills and career education in one or more of the following areas: industrial arts, home and family life, business and office education, agricultural education, health occupations education, vocational education, trade and industrial education, and technical education. Students will also earn their one required credit of “Occupational Education” after the successful completion of four Focus Weeks during grades 9-12. At the end of Focus Week, students should be able to describe in detail at least one career and the path necessary to follow in order to pursue participation in that career.
What Will Focus Week Look Like this Year?
Focus Week will have many similarities to last year—with some enhancement. We are excited to be returning to five full days of activities that will take place between 8:15 and 3:15 each day. The activities will take place both on-campus and off-campus, depending on the Focus Week activity. A return this year are some overnight experiences and trips, but most of these involved pre-commitments from families. For Focus Weeks that are on-campus, we will be incorporating a Career Day experience in the middle of the week.
Timeline
- Students will receive their digital flyer in Community on February 8 in Teams that will provide information on the choices students have this year. This digital flyer will be available on the school website after Community on Wednesday.
- Families should review and discuss options with their student(s) from February 8 – 13.
- The form to sign up will open Monday, February 13 at 8:00 AM to allow time for family discussion.
- Students will submit their top four choices by February 15. Students who have not signed up will be asked to do so in Community on 2/15. Focus Week assignments are NOT made on a first-come basis, so there is no advantage of being first.
- Students and families will be notified for their Focus Week in mid-March.
- Students will have their first meeting in their Focus Week group during Community on May 3.
- Students will have their second Focus Week meeting to go over logistics during Community on May 10.
- Focus Week will be May 22 – 26. No regular classes will meet during this week.
Focus Week Selection
Students will receive a link in their student email to a Microsoft Forms registration. This will be used for making selections. The form will not be open until 8:00 AM on Monday, February 13 in order to provide time for family conversations. When completing the form, students will select an option that will provide an automatic email summary of their selections to their BSD email account. Families should ask their student to view the email summary to see their selections.
Financial Considerations for Focus Week
For the past couple of years, we have worked hard to reduce the cost of Focus Week by using parent drivers, public transportation, and reduced food expenditures. While students are not required to pay for Focus Week, we do depend upon parent support to cover the costs of these unique learning experiences. Please donate to help cover the cost of providing these enrichment opportunities. The suggested donation will be $30-$60, depending on the activity. However, any amount is appreciated in order to make Focus Week successful! Donations will go into a restricted account and any excess will be used for future Focus Week activities.