Dear Lower School Parents and Families,

Thank you for your ongoing support of Distance Learning. As each week passes, we get farther into this practice, and new situations arise. We want to take this time to communicate a few important reminders:
  • Please remind your child that s/he should not enter a Google Meet until the teacher is present. Teachers are striving to allow for a few minutes of social time at the beginning or end of their lessons.
Along these lines, there are some community norms we wish to pass along to all students. Please take a moment to discuss these expectations with your child at home.
  1. Mute your microphone when the teacher requests. Unmute when it is your turn to respond or answer, when you have a question, or when the teacher directs you to do so.
  2. Use the chat box feature only to have conversations with the teacher. This feature should not be used for side conversations or off-topic comments.
  3. Be present. Arrive on time, stay in front of the computer, and listen to one another.
  • Special area teachers now have links to their Google Meets on their portal pages. They will be available during regular school-wide office hours from 3:00-4:00 p.m. on Monday-Thursday. Please encourage your child to stop in if they have projects to share or questions about assignments.
  • Teachers of students in Grades 4-8 have always used the Assignments Feature on the portal. Assignments for all classes show up on the academic page under the attendance, as well as on your child's personal Calendar (Click My Children > Calendar). This is another way to see daily expectations for each child and may simplify checking daily requirements. Teachers of Early Childhood through Grade 3 are beginning to use this feature as well, so you will now notice that assignments for all subjects are listed together on the academic page and the calendar, and they are listed individually on each subject's page as well.  
Lastly, we want to invite the whole school to participate in a Mandala Nature Art Challenge. Older students and faculty have been busy creating and sharing many beautiful mandalas. Please continue sharing over the next week, and Mrs. Lyon will make a video with everyone's art to share it back!  All entries should be submitted to Mrs. Lyon by Saturday, April 11.  Please note that Mrs. Lyon's email is: tracylyon@harfordday.org You can watch the video challenge here:  HDS Mandala Nature Art Challenge  Examples and directions are at the end. We will dedicate the final mandala project to our beloved teacher and counselor, Senora Jennifer Donnelly.

As always, please reach out if you have any questions.  Stay well!

Sincerely,

Ashleigh Wilkes
Lower School Head
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