Precautions We Are Already Taking:
We implemented enhanced infection control plans in school this week. These measures are intended to minimize the potential for exposure to COVID-19 and other circulating viruses. The measures include mandatory hand washing as students arrive each morning, discouraging students from touching each other or their faces as much as possible, encouraging students to frequently wash their hands throughout the day, and daily disinfecting wipe-downs of desks, keyboards, doorknobs, and other high-touch and shared items. We have also assigned each student a Chromebook for their individual use during the day to minimize shared high-touch surfaces.
Communicate With Us About Illnesses:
If your child has respiratory, flu-like symptoms or a fever, please keep them home.
It is critical that you call school (Newgrange and/or Laurel) to inform us of the nature of a child's illness
, so that we can track the occurrence of respiratory illness. Please do not keep a child home without explanation.
Please email or call Alison Greenberg, our Assistant, at 609 566-6000 Ext. 210 (
agreenberg@laurelschoolprinceton.org
), between the hours of 9:30am and 11:00am to report this or any related concern about COVID-19.
Plans for Possible Home-Based Distance Learning:
Our administration continues to plan for continued instruction should our school be closed for an extended length of time. We are developing strategies to provide age-appropriate remote lessons, carefully considering both accessibility and available tools for staying connected.
Teachers are assembling educationally sound packets of work and other supplemental materials to be sent home with students this weekend. We will strive to ensure that our lessons will be congruent with our mission of providing multisensory instruction in all subject areas. These lessons will be sent home this weekend and should be kept at home, in case they are needed for review and extended learning. Some classes may be taught in real-time through Google-based video conferencing, using each child’s Gmail login. Other lessons may be taught through recorded sessions or given as individualized assigned online work.
Our teachers will be planning a comprehensive schedule of lessons to ensure that learning continues as best as possible under changing circumstances. We expect that students will complete all assignments to the best of their abilities. Be mindful that this work is taking the place of your child’s work in the classroom. We view this instruction as a full school day, and we thank you for your support in this effort.
Please Note: Parents will be required to sign off daily on the work their children complete at home, as per state rules and regulations. There will be signature sheets sent home for this purpose.
Online Access:
Our distance learning plans depend on each student having internet access at home.
Please inform Alison Greenberg ASAP if your child does not have internet access at home.
Should we need to close schools for an extended period, students will need to use their assigned Chromebooks to log in from home. To ensure each student will have the access they need, we will be sending the Chromebooks home with each student this Friday, so that they can test out their access from home.
During this “test run,” students will need to make sure they have all necessary login information, can connect their devices to the internet, access Gmail, Google Classroom and Google Hangouts, i-Ready, Learning Ally, and other applications that they use in the classroom. Be sure that they are able to charge their devices. You will receive your child’s login and password information from their homeroom teachers, along with instructions explaining how to test their access. Please have your child login from home this weekend, on their Chromebook, to identify any possible glitches and communicate any issues to homeroom teachers.
Note:
All Chromebooks need to be returned to school on Tuesday, March 17. All Chromebooks are expected to be returned in the same condition as they were assigned for home instruction. **
Parents assume all responsibility for the condition in which these computers are returned.
What Type of Instruction Will Take Place:
While the state indicates that districts must provide at least 10 hours of instruction for students who have special needs, during a homebound situation, we intend to provide more than the minimum. Lessons will be provided in Wilson-Orton Gillingham, Language Arts and Math. We also will be providing Science, Social Studies, Physical Education, Health, Music and Art through projects and other assignments in order to continue our mission of providing a well rounded program for our students.
Ancillary Services / Related Services:
We are working on how we can coordinate related services and will communicate that plan as soon as we have it developed.
*****Communications for both Newgrange and Laurel Schools:
Should you have any questions, please feel free to call our Assistant, Alison Greenberg from 9:30am-11:00am at 609-566-6000 Ext. 210. She will be available at that time to answer any questions or take note of any concerns that you feel need to be addressed. We will also put out any larger communications through our regular messaging channels.
