Dear Parents,
In recent days we have been reviewing feedback from students, teachers and parents about Virtual School and as a result we have made some adjustments to our schedule and expectations starting next week on Tuesday March 24th.
We have adjusted the schedule and will extend the ‘lesson time’ from 40 minutes to 60 minutes with a 15 minute break in between Blocks 1 and 2 and in between Blocks 3 and 4. We will set aside an hour for lunch each day, and on Thursday or Friday all advisory groups will be able to do a virtual check-in as well.
High School Virtual School Schedule (effective Tuesday, March 24th – Day 5)
(8.15am – 9.00am students available for meetings if needed)
9.00am – 10.00am Block 1
10.15am – 11.15am Block 2
11.15am – 12.15pm Lunch break – Advisory on Thursday or Friday @11.20am
12.15pm – 1.15pm Block 3
1.30pm – 2.30pm Block 4
(2.30-3.15 students available for meetings if needed)
Interactions and connections:
As our virtual school situation looks likely to continue for a number of weeks more we realise that it becomes more and more important for our students to ‘see and hear’ their teacher and their classmates every day. Virtual school (particularly if you are under some form of quarantine) can be isolating and therefore difficult to connect with your peers and teachers, so we will ensure that there is a virtual check in and discussion at the start of every lesson with your teacher.
We will shift to using Zoom as a video conferencing tool for our classes as this has proven to be a more effective tool than Google meet. Teachers will open their class lessons with some form of a Zoom meeting and instruction which will include the taking of attendance (students being present for learning). Learning resources will continue to be shared via Powerschool Learning or google classroom. Ask your child to show you where their online resources are!
Next Week
Monday March 23rd is a Virtual school FREE day in order to allow teachers to spend some time planning the next few weeks online and get some practice in using Zoom and other new online collaborative tools to help make that virtual experience a better one for everyone.
On Tuesday March 24th, (a day 5) we will start with the new schedule as listed above. There are also updated student expectations listed below for your children to follow. Please review these expectations with your high schooler, taking particular note of being online and present at the start of each lesson and being dressed appropriately.
STUDENT EXPECTATIONS: Students need to
- be in a comfortable and conducive environment for study, have access to their laptops and internet connectivity at least during the times above. Ideally this would be a desk/table set up for work in a suitable room. Students should not be in bed.
- be dressed appropriately for their learning (i.e not in their pajamas).
- check in at the start of each lesson with their teachers via Zoom, google meet or other ‘face to face’ platforms as required by their teachers. Students should not be using an ‘avatar’ during the face to face check in time.
- be ready to participate and ready to access online materials and resources
- be online and available during their regularly scheduled classes* based on the adjusted ‘Virtual School Schedule’.
*If a student is in a different time zone that does not allow them to engage in synchronous learning, then they would need to set aside time within the next 24 hours to be online and complete any work set that falls in the given schedule.
- remember that attendance will be taken at the start of each lesson and that the usual rules regarding attendance apply during this period. (no more than 7 absences a semester).
- contact the teacher directly if they are ill or not able to attend the lesson on that day.
- regularly check the school platform (powerschool learning or google classroom) for their resources and instructions.
- follow teacher instructions regarding the uploading of assessments, assignments work, etc.
- If your family relocates to a different time zone during virtual school, your parents must contact the HS Principal and counselor.
We look forward to the week ahead and to an enhanced virtual school experience for our students and teachers.
Please do reach out to teachers, counselors and any members of the HS Admin team if you have any questions about these changes.
Have a great Friday and a great weekend.
Justin Alexander
High School Principal