Think of the Headquarters as a center of operations, a gathering place, a space for the command and control of both humans and non-humans. From your specially created HQ, you have lots of key information and resources made available to you on a single webpage. As one of his GRADE 7 science students, Dr. Merritt suspects you will spend plenty of time this year making good use of your grade’s HQ.
"Science: it’s like magic, but real!"
Dr. Merritt uses a standards-based, revision-driven, 10-point grading scale when assessing student work.
The numbers, letters, and word descriptors he associates with this grading system are provided below.
10 pts = Done/Exceeds = (A)
9.2 pts = Done/Meets = (A-)
8.5 pts = Done/Nearly meets = (B)
7.5 pts = Done/Approaches = (C)
6.5 pts = Done/Below = (D)
0 pts = Not Done/Well Below = (F)
As published in the MS Student Handbook, TASIS uses 5-level scale for communicating student effort.
5 = Outstanding
4 = Very good
3 = Good
2 = Needs improvement
1 = Does not meet expectations
The TASIS MS established a policy in 2025/26 requiring all MS teachers to issue students Effort Marks every two weeks.
To calculate a student’s overall science grade, Dr. M weights his assignments as outlined below:
Preparatory Assessments (0%, but yet visible in Veracross)
This consists of the regular class activity called Practice Questions (PQs) most frequently completed with Exam.net.
Homework (20%)
This includes a variety of different assignment types assigned for completion outside of school. One type of weekly Homework assignment is known as the Keyword of the Week (or KWoW).
Classwork (20%)
This includes a variety of different assignment types–e.g., Investigations (INVs), Response Activities (RAs), Science Notebook, Science Journal, etc.–assigned and completed during class.
Summative Assessments (60%)
This consists of the class activities commonly referred to as Tests, Quizzes, Projects, Science Essays, and Formal Lab Reports.
MONDAY
—
TUESDAY
Homework collection day
WEDNESDAY
—
THURSDAY
Homework collection day
FRIDAY
No science lesson
MONDAY
—
TUESDAY
No science lesson
WEDNESDAY
Homework collection day
THURSDAY
—
FRIDAY
Homework collection day
FALL SEMESTER
18 weeks
Start of semester – 7 Sep
Interim grades – 28 Sept
Midterm grades – 16 Nov
End of semester – 29 Jan
SPRING SEMESTER
17 weeks
Start of semester – 1 Feb
Interim grades – 19 Feb
Midterm grades – 12 Apr
End of semester – 9 Jun
NO SCHOOL DAYS
7 days
Friday, 16 Oct
Monday, 19 Oct
Friday, 6 Nov
Friday, 27 Nov
Friday, 12 Feb
Monday, 1 Mar
Monday, 15 Mar
MAJOR HOLIDAYS
2 breaks
Winter Holiday (Dec 19-Jan 10)
Spring Holiday (Mar 20-Apr 4)
MS SWISS EXPERIENCE
2 trips
Fall (Nov 2-5)
Winter (Feb 8-11)