Hamilton Headlines News and notes from Hamilton Middle

May 14, 2020

Vol. 1, Issue 35

Distance Learning Survey Says... Two weeks ago, a survey was placed in this publication asking for your feedback on our foray into distance learning. A total of 36 anonymous participants answered open ended questions that sought to get a sense of what is working well, what we s hould be doing less, and what things we should be doing more. The following broad trends emerged in the data: Amount of work: Oddly enough, an equal number of respondents felt the amount of work their child was experiencing was just right (10), too little (10), and too much (10). It's hard to make adjustments to the amount of work when it seems that we may be hitting the curve exactly in the middle. That said, last week many teachers were asking students in their Zoom sessions about the amount of work being posted and making appropriate adjustments. Zoom use: There were three comments about the level of use of Zoom (live settings with the teacher) being just right, and five who said there could be less. However, the largest response related to any topic in the entire survey were the 16 respondents saying there should be more Zoom including things like more full-class Zooms for social purposes, small group check-ins, and live Zoom lessons. While the information about more opportunities for Zoom connections and small group support has been shared with teachers, at this time the district is not fully supportive of live instruction to full classes at the secondary level. If online learning were to continue into the fall, this stance may change. Availability and Organization: A total of six people were impressed with the level of teacher availability in this new virtual world. In addition, nine respondents had positive comments about the overall organization of distance learning, referencing things like the schedule and use of Google Classroom. Due Dates/Missing Assignments: A total of 10 respondents mentioned wanting more information with regard to due dates and missing assignments. In response to this feedback, our Hamilton Instructional Coach put together a ScreenCastify presentation that was shared with all teachers. The presentation covered several topics including how to set due dates for assignments, adjusting communication settings so students do not receive so many emails, etc. In addition, several responders expressed some frustration about not knowing that their child was missing any assignments until a bit too far down the road. In response, teachers have been encouraged to contact parents when students begin to establish a pattern of missing work, and perhaps opening up smaller group or individual check-ins with students on Zoom during office hours. (In addition, if you have not done so already, I recommend that you install Infinite Campus (IC) on your SmartPhone to help you monitor your child's school work. See below for information on installing IC.) There were also several individual suggestions in the survey results that over time will hopefully allow us to grow in our knowledge and skills around providing a quality distance learning experience for our students. Thank you for your feedback!

Installing Infinite Campus on Your Phone Infinite Campus (IC) is the electronic database used by teachers to record student grades and attendance. The database also contains information about your child's past assessments, schedule, fees paid and due, and more. Once the IC app is installed on a SmartPhone, the user can change the settings to allow notifications as pop-up messages on the phone. When configured in this manner, parents can see assignment grades immediately after being entered by the teacher into IC. If an assignment is not turned in, the notification will be that the assignment has been marked as missing. The same type of notification will arrive to your phone for attendance where you can see immediately if your child has been marked absent or tardy. To download the IC app to your phone, see the below link.

Instructions for Downloadingthe Infinite Campus App

Quick Links Online Learning Info for Hamilton Hamilton Library Resources Hamilton PTO Request a Chromebook Replacement or Tech Support Hamilton Business Connect

Additional Nutrition Resource in a Time of Pandemic If your income has changed due to our recent circumstances, please apply at the MMSD Food & Nutrition Website for free and reduced benefits at this link . Income eligibility guidelines are on the website.

COVID-19 Resources and Information Use the links in this section to access a variety of resources and information pertaining to the COVID-19 pandemic. The link directly below offers a compendium of most anything that you might want to know about COVID-19 including links to resources to address issues that include financial, emotional, logistical, and childcare challenges. Resources have been collected from news articles, local Facebook groups, grassroots organizations, etc. This document is not an MMSD creation. Grocery Assistance Madison Resources Hamilton COVID-19 Info MMSD COVID-19 Info The below last link is to a survey provided by Madison General Defense Committee and is a way to request support for basic needs. Again, not an MMSD link. MGDC Resource Request

Photo Finish It's a Throwback Thursday....

Hamilton Middle Website

‌