Parents,
The past two weeks we have started to have more absences for varying reasons. I would like to let you know how you and your child should proceed during these times. The mix of distance learners and at school students has had a positive impact on students who are absent. The infrastructure has already been set up to allow them to stay on track. (At least compared with past years.) Further, your kids know what their expectations are on 'distance learning days.' They should be getting used to working from home. Take note: 1) We have a daily morning Google Meeting at 8:50 during normal school days. This meeting changes to 10 am on distance learning days. I highly encourage your child to attend if they are able. Further, I normally make my math open to Google Meet, and at the end of any in school day I open Google Meet at 3:45 so that anyone at home can ask questions that they encountered on that day. 2) Parents can see the daily schedule and assignments at: http://mrglime6.weebly.com/daily-assignment Also, links to many of the websites we use are found on the home page of my class website. 3) Students see the same daily schedule and assignments on Google Classroom. 4) I have set up "exchange folders" in the foyer by the office for distance learners and students who may quarantine for at least a week (I put paper work into these folders on Mondays so that kids have the materials they will need for the week). This is the one area that will be a challenge if your child is absent for just a day or two. Logistically on my end, I think it would be better for them to wait to get the paper materials when they come back to school. If you know that your child will be gone for a week or more, let me know and I will create an exchange folder for them also. Your child knows exactly what they should do each day. We have made it a routine this year. They see me talking to the distance learners and incorporating the distance learners into the classroom each day. If they are at home and able/willing to do schoolwork, they should shift gears and consider themselves distance learners for the day. Remember, your child can access their Google Classroom and tools from any computer. They just need to type in their email and password. (I would encourage you to have that written down somewhere at home in case they forget or start making typing errors while logging in.) If you haven't yet, please consider signing up for Bloomz.com (I prefer the app on my phone). Class code: NBKWZC Thanks, John
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Hi parents,
Our parent teacher conferences this week will be held on Zoom (unless you contacted me to let me know that you are coming in person.) This is a first for me and there is a reasonable chance that I could mess it up. I am a bit put off by the idea that we are still under the 10 minute meeting window this year (I have a new parent entering the Zoom conference every 10 minutes.) I am guessing that some of us will have connection problems. I would like you to enter the meeting sooner than your scheduled time. You will enter something called the 'waiting room.' I will let you in as soon as I remove the previous parent. The only potential good news with this system is that when I fall behind- it seems almost inevitable- you will be sitting in the comfort of your own home this year rather than in the hallway of a school! I am trying to view the glass as half full. I think the main focus of our meetings from my end is to make sure you and your child are comfortable with the in school and out of school nature of the school year so far. I can provide feedback on what I am seeing in class, and I can offer advice, but I would like to leave each meeting having met you and feeling like we are on the same page. These meetings fall of the theme of this year, which seems to be "too much to do in too little time." If we need more than 10 minutes, we will need to stop our meeting and schedule another meeting for another day. I am happy to do this. I like to talk as long as necessary to make sure we are both comfortable going forward. That can't always be accomplished in a 10 minute span. Wednesday: Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87823340023 Meeting ID: 878 2334 0023 Passcode: room33 Thursday: Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86924640220 Meeting ID: 869 2464 0220 Passcode: room33 If you have any questions or concerns about how this process will work, just let me know. Thank you, John Parents,
During a normal year we have a back to school event where I have the opportunity to share with you my expectations and goals for the year. I would like to share some of those with you now. Using personal computers at home: Granite School District works with Google. Your child's email is actually a Google account. They can get on any computer (even a Mac? Let me know if that is not true) and login to Google. When they login, they will have access to Google Classroom, Gmail, Google Slides, Google Drive, Google Docs, etc. These apps and websites are the tools that Granite School District would like the kids to become comfortable using. They do not need their Chromebook from school to access their Google account. *Students who are absent and on vacation can still check into Google Classroom daily to see their assignments and expectations. This allows them to do whatever work they are able so that they won't fall as far behind. **Your child's email address and password. This should be written in their daily planner. Their password should also be written in their daily planner. If it is not, please have them do it next week and show you. Then check at home to see if it works. Schoolwork vs. homework: School is for learning; home is for practicing. That should be our mantra. If your child comes home saying that they need you to teach them how to do something, then we have a problem. If this becomes a pattern, let me know as soon as soon as possible. I would never ask you to do my job for me. This is something we can fix. Fwiw, I don't assign homework per se (well, very rarely), I assign classwork. If students are unable to finish their classwork during the school day, then that work becomes 'homework.' *If homework is taking more than 1 hour to complete, please contact me. I really encourage that your child does not do more than 1 hour of homework each night- this includes reading and math facts. If you want them to do more than 1 hour, that is up to you. For myself, if they do an hour of work, but still are not done- please just write me a quick note telling me they worked for an hour. That is good enough for me! My goal is for them to build good habits, not make them suffer at home. Hopefully, they are getting most of their work done at school so that this isn't a problem. Habits/Daily routine: Your child should read at least 20 minutes a day- 100 minutes per week. The more this reading can be done out loud, the better (they can read to a sibling, to you, or themselves.) If they read to you, discuss what they are reading occasionally. Your child needs to know their multiplication/division facts up to 12 x 12. They don't have to learn it all in one week however. My advice is to have them practice one or two numbers each week that they struggle with. (For example, one week they work on their 7's, the next week their 8's.) We take a multiplication test almost every week in class. The results from that test shows the kids their 'weaknesses.' These are the numbers they need to practice. How do you know if they are caught up with their schoolwork? This is a challenge in this environment, and it is a frustration that I share with you. Because Granite School District has switched over to Proficiency Based Learning, there is no longer a way for you to see missing assignments on Gradebook. In fact, you won't even be able to see the assignments that I have given in their Gradebook. As they earn proficiency in different subjects and standards you will be able to see that- however, I don't put in new proficiency scores on a daily basis so that doesn't really allow you to see how they are doing each week (and to check if they are caught up with their work.) *What you can do is have your child login to Google Classroom and go to the "Classwork" section. Every day I am creating a document that has a list of what they need to do for that day. At home you can look at each day's work and check with your child to see if they have completed each of those items. You can check this daily, or on Fridays to see if they have any work that still needs to be finished that they didn't get to. Questions? Confusions? Problems? Please let me know. Regards, John |
Parents:This is the place where I will post updates as I make decisions, problem solve, and learn how to adjust to a new paradigm of teaching. Archives
August 2022
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