What is an OSI?
At 21st Century we embrace the community as a classroom, and we do so by taking our students out of the school building frequently throughout the year. You can think of an OSI as having class but it takes place outside of the classroom. Or you could think of it as a highly educational field trip where students must demonstrate their learning while on the trip and again when they get back to the classroom. At least 10 times a school year in elementary and 18 times in middle school, students are instructed outside of the school building but within their community. We call this “Out of School Instruction” or OSI.
- These trips are an important and vital part of the curriculum.
- As we view the community as a classroom, our students do a LOT of walking.
- Academic and behavioral standards are set before students leave campus.
- Students utilize the information gained directly in the classroom.
- This provides a bridge from the concrete to the abstract that middle grades students need.
- This integrates all subject areas as they are found in the “real” world.
Transportation
Costs
Money should never be a reason a student does not go on an OSI. The school will collect a $20 OSI fee every quarter to cover the associated costs for an OSI (transportation, venue reservations, speaker fees, etc.). This fee will be collected by your students’ homeroom teacher each quarter, and can be paid all at once or in the quarterly installments.
Permission Slips
We typically send home permission slips at least one week before an OSI. Please read the permission slips carefully. Special instructions are noted in the permission slip (what to bring, where we will be, etc.). We ask that they be signed and returned as soon as possible, but no later than the day before the OSI.
Chaperones
There are a few OSIs each year that require us to have chaperones. Parents are welcome to volunteer for these OSIs, BUT you must be on our approved background checklist at least one week prior to the OSI to be allowed to go. Also, we need our chaperones to be fully focused helping watch our students, so we ask that only the chaperone attends the trip, meaning other siblings and children are not permitted to attend the OSI. Chaperones guidelines and instructions will be given at each OSI.
Behavior
A student is expected to follow all rules and requests made of them on an OSI. If a student does not follow the rules then we will call home and ask for a parent to pick up the child at the OSI location. If no parent can be reached, the school will pick up the student and return them to school grounds. Any behavioral issues on OSIs are deemed as a serious infractions, as they are also a safety issues. If a student is sent home from an OSI, they will not be permitted to attend the next scheduled OSI, and will need to remain home and complete an alternate assignment for that day.
