Weekly email: Feb 25th (Academic Flex Block edition)
Good afternoon everyone,
I hope that you are having a good week and enjoying the bursts of sunshine that are happily punctuating our days.
Thank you in advance for your patience in reading through this email. It outlines some of the ways that SA staff continues to work hard to accommodate all learners and all SEL and academic needs.
I am sending this out on Thursday so that I can try to respond to questions, tomorrow.
I will send out a streamlined, "Student friendly" version to grade levels later on tomorrow.
Have a restful afternoon
Best
Chris
Gentle steps back to normalcy
Additional Live Academic Supports & SEL
We are fully aware of the social and emotional and detrimental academic impact this extended period of time out of school continues to have on our learners. We are also very aware of the need to try and "get back to normal" as quickly and safely as possible. To this end, from March 1st, we will be running a slightly adjusted schedule, explicitly to do the following things:
- Allow a smooth transition to in-person learning, when circumstances allow
- Continue to address the Social and Emotional learning needs of all our learners
- Continue to maximize opportunities within the school day for all learners to have live academic supports with their core teachers, knowing that many grade levels face state mandated testing in the next 14 weeks
What will this look like?
Academic Flex Blocks - Students are expected to attend this class as it is an opportunity for live academic support from teachers. We have expanded opportunities for students to get live help and support from both core and asynchronous elective class teachers during this time, as well as during their regular classes.
How will I know where to go?
When we are back in person, this will be easy! Until then, on Friday,(tomorrow), students will receive an invite to a Google Classroom called Academic Flex. They should join this class and then log in to the live meet in this classroom at the appropriate time.
Grade 7
Tuesday & Friday: Academic Flex: 12:20-2.
Also, please note that the current asynchronous Phys Ed class on Monday and Thursday from 1-2pm will now be live! Coach P will be getting us all moving!
Grade 8
Monday & Thursday: Live Academic Flex: 12:20-2.
Grade 9
*Most students will have a Live Academic Flex class added to their daily schedule and will be expected to attend from 1-2pm, Mon, Tues, Thurs, Fri. Academic supports will be important as we move closer to MCAS testing. *Some students taking language classes/ skills during this time will have to utilize these additional academic supports on Wednesdays.
Grade 10
Live Academic Flex class added to their daily schedule and will be expected to attend from 12:20-1pm, Mon & Fri. Academic supports will be important as we move closer to MCAS testing. Students in skills will remain in skills during this time.
Live Public Speaking on Tuesday & Thursday from 1-2pm (Declamations are coming!!!!)
We understand that students might be unable to log on exactly on time if they are traveling back from school. Please let you teachers know and they will be flexible.
Wednesday Academic Supports for Grades 7-12
Wednesday has been reshuffled to enable us to continue to provide CREW and also live academic supports for all students.
As normal, students are expected to log in to CREW on Weds March 3rd at 8:30am. During this CREW session, CREW advisors will talk students through their slightly different Wednesday routines. A general summary of Wednesdays can be found below. There will be some variation according to individual student subject choices and additional supports for students on and IEP/ 504.
Wednesday Schedule
What do Students do?
- Students will be expected to log into CREW at 8:30
- At 9:00 am - Students will log into the Academic Flex Google classroom and attend a meet for their grade level - this is the same one that Grades 7,8,9,10 will have been using in the week. Students in Grade 11 and 12 will receive an invitation to join their Grade level Academic Flex Google classroom and attend a meet for their grade level.
- Each Flex Block meet will have at least 2 teachers present. This will enable one teacher to support students in the larger group, whilst the other teacher runs a small group or 1:1 support session.
- Teachers will rotate through the different classrooms at the different times of the morning. (Students who currently have a standing meeting with teachers, your teacher/s will let you know when your meet will take place from March 3rd.)
- Students are expected to be present for attendance in every block. Teachers will be live in every to support students as needed and to have 1:1 conversations in break out rooms with students who would like additional support. Parents, thank you in advance for your patience and support in helping students get to class on time and my apologies in advance for communication from me when I let you know they weren't successful in doing so!
- Students who may not need support in a particular class are expected to be logged in but may be working independently. (Think of this as a class in school where you might be working on tasks from a lesson or extension work. You would be expected to be present in the room but allowed to be working independently.)
- Students will be encouraged to take a screen and stretch break between classes, but should be back in their Academic Flex meet for the start of the next class.
- Teachers have been asked to continue to support learning away from the screen by setting specific non-screen based tasks that can be accomplished during Wednesday Flex block in particular.
- We have scheduled a class after lunch so that we can continue to transition to a more normal day and apply it, in-person, when circumstances allow.
Fully Remote students & 4 day a week student
If you have not already contacted the office, please let us know by March 1st if:
- You have been 100% remote and would like to attend in-person for two days a week
- If you are currently 100% remote and would like to stay 100% remote, or we don't hear from you, we will assume that you intend to stay fully remote through until the end of the April break.
- Students currently attending two days a week, are you interested in the possibility of attending in-person for four days a week.
This will help us with our back to school planning.
State Testing MCAS and AP
More information and a testing schedule will be shared next week.
Our Yearbook Order Offer ends this Friday, 2/26
Please check out this