FAQ's
Frequently Asked Questions
What time does school begin and end?
School begins every morning at 8:15 for all students Kindergarten-8th grade. Every Monday, school ends at 1:15 for all students so that the staff has time to meet and plan. Tuesday-Friday school ends at 2:30 for all students. Kindergarten is a full day program. An extended day program every Tuesday through Thursday for one hour is offered to those students who are in need of intervention.
Is there a lunch program?
Currently OCS participates in the National Lunch Program through San Marino Unified School District. Students who qualify may receive free or reduced priced lunch. Students may purchase lunch for $4.00 per meal.
How many students are in each class?
Kindergarten -3rd grade classes have 20 students per class. There are 28 students per class in 4th-8th grades.
What is the teacher/student ratio?
There is one fully credentialed teacher in each class. There is also one paraprofessional teacher in each Kindergarten-3rd grade classroom.
What are the Middle School classes like?
Middle School students in 6th-8th grades have three teachers and an advisor. They have a Math/Science Teacher, a Language Arts/Social Studies Teacher, and a Visual Literacy Teacher.
Why are the classrooms multi-age settings and how does it work?
Odyssey's K-5th grade classes are multi-age settings of at least two grade spans, for example, K-1, 2-3, 4-5. These multi-age settings are a core part of our educational philosophy and allow for more individualized and small group instruction. See, About Odyssey.
Do you do testing?
As a public school, Odyssey is required to take the State Standardized tests every Spring. However, Odyssey teachers use a variety of other assessments to assess where students are on the learning spectrum. Testing, such as spelling tests and math tests, are rarely used and only in the upper grades. OCS teachers also use a variety of other assessments to assess where students are on the learning spectrum.
What is Odyssey's API Score?
How much Homework is there?
All students are expected to read or be read to every night for at least 20 minutes. Sometimes teachers in the lower grades will give packets with suggestions for things you can do together to help enrich your students learning, however this packet is NOT made up of worksheets. By 4th grade there is usually a weekly writing assignment, occasionally a math page and periodically a long term project. In Middle School there is more nightly homework as well as longer term projects to prepare them for the rigors of High School.
How does Odyssey handle discipline and conflict?
Odyssey employs a full time counselor to work with student discipline and conflict resolution. Younger students learn to use a four step process we call "The Peace Path" to resolve small student to student conflicts. Older students can use a peer mediation process to resolve problems. The counselor will step in to help mediate larger conflicts between students or groups of students. Middle School students have advisors to help mediate conflicts between students or even student teacher conflicts. Severe discipline issues are subject to the educational code.
What is Advisory?
Advisory is part of Odyssey's Emotional Well Being component. Middle School students in 6th -8th grades have small, homogeneous (all girls with a female advisor or all boys with a male advisor) advisory groups of 10 to 15 who meet a few times each week at the end of the school day. This is an opportunity for students to talk about any issues or conflicts they are having in their lives. Advisors also make sure students are keeping up with their homework assignments.
How can parents participate at Odyssey?
There are many opportunities for parents to participate at OCS. There are two positions, (a lower grade (K-3) and an upper grade (4-8)), who are elected by the parents to serve as parent representatives on the OCS Governing Board. This is an opportunity to represent parent's views on board related matters such as finance, policy and procedures. All parents may participate in the Odyssey Parent Participation Group (OPPG). The OPPG works to support the school in many ways including fund raising, room parents, producing the school newsletter, planning and /or assisting with school events and occasionally initiating new programs at the school. Parents are welcome to help in classrooms and chaperone on field trips. All parents are expected to participate in the Individualized Learning Plan (ILP) process.
What is the Individualized Learning Plan (ILP) process?
Parents, students and teachers meet as a team at the beginning of the school year to discuss current assessments, set three educational goals and assign responsibilities for achieving those goals. This team meets again in the spring to look at new assessments and discuss "how we're doing" in achieving our goals and how we should proceed. See, Individualized Learning Programs for more information on this subject.
What are Odyssey's demographics?
Where do students go to High School after graduating?
It varies year to year, but generally about 1/3 go to their local public schools, 1/3 go to other charter schools, and 1/3 go to private schools.
Do OCS graduates find it difficult to transition to High School?
What we hear most often is that our students miss the Odyssey community and the individualized attention that they get from staff who have known them for several years. We are told that our students interview well when applying to High Schools that require interviews.
Does Odyssey have an Art program?
Odyssey K-5th grade students receive on hour of art instruction every week. Odyssey Middle School students receive Visual literacy, media studies and art studio for one period every day. Art and creative thinking processes are integrated throughout the curriculum at all times.
Does Odyssey have a music program?
At this time, Odyssey K-3rd grade students receive 10 weeks of Orff music literacy. OCS 4 and 5th grade students receive 10 weeks of recorder, music literacy. Middle School students receive 10 weeks of Choral/voice.
Does Odyssey have PE?
Odyssey employs a full time PE teacher. The amount of PE each grade receives from the PE teachers varies, but generally k-3rd receives PE one time per week, 4th/5th grades receive PE instruction two times per week and middle school students receive PE instruction three times per week. However, teachers also engage in PE activities with their students throughout the week.
Does Odyssey have a Special Education Program?
Odyssey employs a full time Inclusion Specialist. Odyssey uses an Inclusion Model which is the least restrictive model.
