English 3 Vacation ClubWHAT DOES VACATION CLUB PROVIDE FOR

INSTRUCTORS?

We all need the opportunity to disconnect, recharge our batteries and regroup in order to

return from our vacation, refreshed and with the mindset to provide even better service for our

students.Instructors receive:

● Time off without worry, with our families, to travel and without having to return to an inbox full of assignments (or worse yet, having to bring our

laptop on vacation with us).

● Peace of mind, that work will be graded and students cared for by trusted and experienced

FLVS teachers.

Coverage ● Keep in mind that the Vacation Club is an informal group. Consult Human Resources and/or V-Time for your own number of vacation and sick days and official procedure for requesting time off.

● Teachers can join in July (start of coverage year) or January.

● Up to 21 days can be taken between June 1 – May 31 for those who join in June. For those joining in December, 12 days can be taken from December 1 – May 31 in order to allow teachers time to cover for those who have previously covered for them.

● Check the coordinator’s calendar on the wiki to see if the days you want are available. Add a comment to the wiki with the dates you need coverage. Please do not put them in the calendar. You are responsible for verifying your coverage days once they are posted on the calendar.

.

Please be aware, Vacation Club will NOT be available for coverage on the following dates :  

Any FLVS Holiday, Thanksgiving Weekend, Christmas Week & New Years Week

HOW TO REQUEST COVERAGE

Check the calendar on the wiki for availability: http://e3vacationclub.pbworks.com/FrontPage Create an account -click here:  my.pbwiki.com/ or log in

Type your name and dates in the Add A Comment area BELOW the calendar (do not add to the calendar)

You are responsible for checking back to see if the dates are entered accurately in the calendar

HOW TO PREPARE YOUR COURSE FOR VACATION

1)Send an e-mail to students and parents (example follows). Email covering teachers as a reminder.

2) Post the coverage schedule on the course announcement page (example follows).

3) Grade assessments. Leave one day’s submissions. (For example, if your first day of vacation will be a Monday, the sub will be grading Sunday’s work. You should not have any submissions from before Sunday).

4)Answer e-mail until 8 PM the night before vacation. The sub will only answer e-mail from after 8PM.

SUBSTITUTE RESPONSIBILITES

1) Answering e-mail in Educator (up to 8 PM)

2)Grading student work (from the previous day). Grade work from EVERY English 3 shell. Check the “Other Courses” tab to see if there are multiple shells.

3) Answering phone calls (8 AM-8PM)

SUBSTITUTE PROCEDURE1) Get ahead in your own course before your day of coverage. Teachers rarely have time to grade their own work on a day of vacation coverage.

2) Log on in the morning to check e-mail. All e-mail from 8PM the previous night until 8PM the day of coverage is your responsibility. ● When answering e-mail in Educator, click “send and delete” (unless it is an e-mail only the vacationing teacher can answer/needs to see). Upon return, the vacationing teacher can check her outbox for your responses. ● DO reset exams as long as the student gives a reason.

3) Grade all work from the previous day. If you are assigned to cover Monday, for example, you will grade all Sunday submissions. ● Remember to use the student's name, give positive comments, clear and appropriate correction, and include your name.● Some teachers have more than one shell; be sure to check all. You can check for other English 2 shells by clicking on the “Other Courses” tab.● Be sure to check the Discussion area. Click on the postings so they are marked “read”.

SUBSTITUTE PROCEDURE cont.

****Do not grade segment exams. Please leave those for the assigned instructor to grade.

4) Take phone calls during the day. ● Subs are NOT doing oral components,

monthly calls, or welcome calls, so there are very few phone calls. You just need to be available for general assistance.

● Do not give out passwords since oral components must be completed first.

5) TAG At 8 PM, send a “Tag, you’re it!” e-mail to the next teacher on call. This is a friendly reminder of her coverage for the next day.

HONOR YOUR COLLEAGUES

Being a member of our vacation club is a privilege. We are all professionals and we provide a service for each other with reciprocity. I, (Carole), am happy to serve as the coordinator of our club. Let’s honor each other by observing these guidelines:

1) Mark your calendar right away when you receive the coverage schedule. Forgetting your day of coverage is a disservice to your colleagues. If you forget a day of coverage, you will be “charged” a vacation day of your own.

2) Follow the “Golden Rule”-Do onto others as you would have them do onto you. -- Make that your "vacation club" mantra.

3) Take care of the vacationing teacher’s course first and foremost on the day you are covering. Make it your number one priority.

4) If you are unable to cover a scheduled day, you can "swap" days with another teacher. Please notify the coordinator and the vacationing teacher.

SAMPLE E-MAIL

Students (and parents):

The following instructors will be available to you during my vacation days: Insert schedule.

This schedule will also be posted on the course announcement page. These instructors will be grading your work, answering your e-mail questions, and taking calls if necessary.

E-mail questions as you usually do (inside the course) and THEY will answer it. My other e-mail addresses will not be accessible to them.

Do NOT call these teachers for oral components, monthly calls, or welcome calls. We will complete them and give passwords for exams when I return. Call or e-mail me today if you have any questions. :)

RESOURCES (download in Sidebar)

SAMPLE ANNOUNCEMENT PAGE MESSAGE

The following instructors will be available to you during my vacation days:

Insert schedule

They will be grading your work, answering your e-mail questions, and taking calls if necessary. E-mail questions as you usually do (inside the course) and THEY will answer it. My other e-mail addresses will not be accessible to them. Do NOT call these teachers for oral components, monthly calls, or welcome calls. We will complete them and give passwords when I return.

is out of the office from .

The following WONDERFUL instructors will be taking calls,

answering emails, and grading for me.

Please feel free to call anytime for assistance!

Email questions as usual to: (your .learn.flvs.net address)

Remember, keep up with your work and reach out if you need help!

I miss you all already!!!

Date, Name

Phone #

Tag, you’re it! (You are next in line for vacation club coverage).When you are finished with your coverage day, ask yourself the questions below to be sure you have fulfilled all responsibilities.•Did I grade assignments and answer e-mail first, BEFORE I did so in my own course?•Did I grade ALL assignments in BOTH shells?•Did I grade the assignments from the day BEFORE my coverage day? (ex: if Friday is your day, did you grade all of Thursday’s submissions?)•Did I answer all e-mail from 8PM the night BEFORE my day of coverage to 8PM the day OF my coverage? (ex: If Friday is your day, did you answer all e-mail from 8PM Thursday night to 8PM Friday night?)•Did I answer ALL e-mail, even if the answer was simply “Mrs. ---- will answer your e-mail when she returns to her desk”?•Did I give positive and thorough feedback, and did I add my name to all feedback?•Did I return any phone messages I may have received today?•Did I send this “tag” to notify the next teacher that it’s her turn?

TAG, YOU’RE IT!…Just a friendly reminder that you are next in the schedule to cover for vacation club