Summer Letter #1
Monday, July 6, 2020
Dear Families,
It has been less than two weeks and here we are - It's time to share! I have labeled this “Summer Letter #1†so you can keep track of the news as it comes in.
I am assuming that many of you read the Chalkbeat article that came out last week. Although it contains a lot of information, it describes only part of the story, which continues to unfold. But yes, the upshot is that families will be given the option to choose Remote Learning as opposed to coming to the school building for a few days a week.
We are starting our planning this week, and I have to say that we expect the plans will shift each day in both micro and macro ways as we get more information and explore potential problems and solutions.
The NYC DOE is emphasizing the following “Key Tenets†for planning:
- Promoting behaviors that reduce the spread of COVID19
- Maintaining healthy environments
- Maintaining healthy operations
- Preparing for when someone gets sick
Our first steps will be to:
- Determine the usable space in the school building and how many students we can accommodate on a daily basis. As of now there will be nine students and one adult in a “pod†and this pod will most likely be together all day.
- Create a schedule that includes synchronous* and asynchronous** teaching.
- Plan for safe arrivals and dismissals and reduced movement around the building.
*In synchronous learning, your child participates in lessons with their teacher and classmates during a scheduled time.
**In asynchronous learning, your child participates in lessons during a time they choose.
Our Job | Your Job |
To keep you informed | To keep up with emails and news |
To expect and do our best to deal with many changes throughout the process | To be patient and to trust us
|
To keep safety paramount | To expect our plans to be focused on safety |
To follow the guidance of the NYC DOE | To understand where we (the 75 Morton administration) do and do not have choices |
To think deeply about the social/emotional needs of our students | To let us know what social/emotional support your child and family needs
|
To create engaging curricula in all content areas (ELA, Math, Science, Social Studies) with clear expectations | To support your children to meet our expectations |
To do even better in the fall with all that we learned in the spring | To let us know (kindly and clearly) how we are doing |
To ask for help | To offer help |
To know we can do this with the 75 Morton community | To be an active and engaged member of the 75 Morton community |
And now we get to work!
With Respect,
Jacqui and Katie
