Dear Winnetka Families,
Thank you again for all of your flexibility and support as we have rolled out remote learning plans over the past several weeks. As we have said from the beginning, we know every family situation is different, and we continue to encourage you to do the best you can do in the situation you are in. We are trying our best to model this as a school district. We know none of you expected to add home school teacher to your list of job titles.
This week marks the formal beginning of our Phase II Plan which has been informed by the input we received from parents, students, and staff. To this end, teachers will still be sending out daily emails with a link for remote learning attendance and any other pertinent daily information for the class. However, the Learning Menus will be sent on Sunday night this week and Monday night each week after that to allow parents time to prep materials if needed. In addition, teachers will provide opportunities for pre-scheduled class Google Hangout meetings. It is possible that one or some of these times do not work for your family. Please know that these are optional meetings to promote connection. A goal can be to participate in two meetings each week.
Our district has been receiving ongoing and evolving guidance from the local, state and federal levels about how to best support our students who are receiving special education or related services support. More information can be found on our district website and below in the District portion of this newsletter.
We are seeing an influx of emails to teachers about ideas for doing things differently and requests for different/additional instruction. Please recognize that your feedback is respected, but remote learning is not going to be able to provide the same experiences as normal, in-class sessions. Our teachers are building the program as we are launching it. Given the current context, we are unable to provide the same level of response to these types of inquiries. Your teachers are working extremely hard to adjust to these new circumstances. We will continue to explore ways of incorporating more facets of typical everyday learning into our remote learning plans. We will also seek to offer new experiences that provide opportunities for growth that capitalize on remote learning platforms.
Finally, the number of encouraging and positive emails have been so helpful to our staff and bolster their energy. Please keep those coming as they help motivate all of us to effectively manage this trying time. Your support is paramount and greatly appreciated.
Please stay well.
Sincerely,
Beth Carmody, Hubbard Woods
Julie Pfeffer, Crow Island
Joshua Swanner, Greeley
Here are a few helpful links if you want to start your own Zoom or Google Meet Hangouts!
A couple more links:
Message to Parents on Friday, April 3
Family Learning/Support Opportunities
Additionally, on Monday, April 6, from 2:30-3:30 p.m., there is a free webinar opportunity, "Parent & Family Tips for Helping Middle Schoolers at Home" with author Jack Berckemeyer. Presented by The Association for Middle Level Educators, the webinar will provide tips on how parents might enjoy this time at home with their young adolescents.
Register here
.
Special Education Services
The Department of Student Services would like to assure parents that special education staff members have focused their time on the development of flexible learning options for students with IEPs. We recognize the importance of continuing to provide special education services to our students who require this support to access the core curriculum. Now more than ever, schools need to be focused on the importance of providing an appropriate, accessible, accommodated educational program to all students in light of their current circumstances.
We would like to assure parents that their children's IEPs will be implemented in this new context as reasonably as possible. This includes, but is not limited to, related services within a student's IEP. Please note that the provision of special education support during remote learning will not be exactly the same as it would have been had schools remained open.
Students will receive some direct instruction and will also be completing activities independently with support from associates and special education staff. Students will have access to their case manager and any related service provider who has provided services as indicated on his or her IEP.
Case managers will check in with students and reach out to parents weekly. Most special education instruction will be asynchronous in nature. Some instruction may be synchronous (meaning live) for particular therapies, however, not all services can be provided in this fashion. If students are asked to participate in any specialized group therapy, parental consent will be required.
Please know that our goal is to help each of your children be successful as a remote learner with the support of their special education teacher and/or related services provider.
Device Loan Requests
With Remote Learning extended through April 30, we are leaving our
device loan request
open through April 9, 2020. If you do need a device for the remainder of Remote Learning, please complete the form and you will be contacted by our Technology Support Coordinator, Jenn Marshall, with pick up instructions. If you have any tech-related remote learning questions, please refer to the
Remote Learning Technology Support Page
.
