Hi everyone,
I am writing to you today to give you an update on the upcoming weeks and the changes that will be happening. I know this is quite a long post (there are just so many updates!), but as things will be changing as of April 20th, please make sure to read all the way through. Thank you! New Learning Content and 2nd Grade Choice Board We have received our key Learning Targets from the school district that have clearly laid out the expectations of work for the remainder of the year. We will be working hard to make sure your students are progressing towards grade level standards, and ready to move onto 3rd grade in the fall. I will share more specifics about these learning targets for each week after we get started on the new Remote Learning Plan on April 20th, but in the meantime, here is a quick overview: Starting on April 20th we will be introducing new learning content in Reading, Writing, and Math. Social Studies and Science will also be covered but more as opportunities for enrichment. I am working together with the 2nd Grade Team, and we are planning and collaborating together, just as we would if we were at school. Each week we will be sending out a Choice Board with daily plans for students with activities and assignments aligned to meet grade level standards. The structure of the board will be similar to our regular school work day, but still has plenty of flexibility to meet the needs of your family. To help facilitate our new learning, we will continue to use SeeSaw. Here is an example of how things might look: I will put a video on SeeSaw explaining a new Math concept. Watching the video will be the first "assignment/activity" then, the Choice Board might say, complete one of the 3 Math Activities on SeeSaw. Completed assignments will either be uploading photos/videos/completion of activities using provided templates- students will get to choose which one they’d like to complete. We will do a similar set up for both Reading and Writing. I know many of you expressed a desire for non-digital learning in the form of packets or other printed materials, but at this time we have been told by the district not to send home/create packets for students. Our Choice Board will make sure to include options for “unplugged activities”, but ultimately we will be having to rely on digital learning as our primary form of instruction. If your student needs a device or an internet hotspot, those can still be checked out through the district. More information can be found here: https://www.issaquah.wednet.edu/family/supports/learning/laptops Communication As per the survey I sent out earlier this week and in coordination with the 2nd grade team, I will be sending out my weekly emails on Sunday afternoon as this was what as indicated as the majority preference for our class. Each Sunday I will send out an email explaining our main learning targets for the week (2nd Grade Choice Board), touch base, etc. so you will have an opportunity to see what the upcoming week will entail. The Choice Board will look fairly similar week to week, so hopefully once your student adjusts to the new routine this routine will stay the same through the end of the year. I will also be having “office hours” a few times a week where I will be available to video conference with you and/or your student to check-in or discuss any issues/needed supports/accommodations via Zoom. We will be keeping our weekly Zoom call (official time/day to be announced), so that students will have a chance to see their friends and classmates (and me 😊). SeeSaw If your student hasn’t had a chance to log into SeeSaw yet, I highly recommend they log in at least once before April 20th. This is where students will be able to access new learning and resources, as well as complete and submit activities. These activities and assignments will allow me to assess how students are progressing towards meeting grade level standards. SeeSaw is the learning platform our district is currently recommending for elementary students, and especially primary grades. I'm excited to use it more and more in the upcoming weeks! When we first began all of this, I had students logging to SeeSaw from home using a QR code in order to post to SeeSaw as this is what we had done in class and what they were familiar with. While this is a still a method that works for posting, as we shift to our new Remote Learning Plan, I now recommend that students log into SeeSaw through Clever. This will most likely be easier for most students anyway, as all of them have logged into Clever many times before. Instructions for logging into Clever can be found on my website as well as here. The reason for this change in logging in is that the QR code login method is largely used for shared devices (like the iPads we use in the classroom), so students can post but are unable to access and see their own portfolio. By logging in through SeeSaw, students will now be able to access their own portfolio, as well as be able to see comments from me and encouragement on their own. I will also be uploading the Choice Board and instructions for each day to SeeSaw, so your student will be able to independently look at the tasks for the day and know which assignments/activities they need to complete. SeeSaw has a great feature where I will be able to read aloud instructions for students, so I hope this will help students who might have difficulties reading directions so that they are able to complete tasks on SeeSaw independently. Instructional Time and Assessments Additionally, the district has given us a recommended 60 min block/per day for instruction...which equates to 20 min/subject (this can be in the form of videos or assigned activities). We recognize that your child is 7 and 8 years old so we want to ensure that they still get a chance to go outside and play, check out the Specialist pages (PE/Music/Library), have some time to just read stories, do some art, and continue to learn all of the amazing things that they have been learning. As I mentioned before, this is going to be a flexible learning environment. We also recognize that some of you have more children at home that are not in 2nd Grade so, again, we wanted to come up with a flexible way to deliver content that is still clear and direct. The last piece in all of this is assessments and report cards. We haven't received direction on this yet, so please do not worry about it...I will make sure to let you know about it as soon as I can! Right now, we will primarily be using SeeSaw to see how students are progressing towards standards (but not currently as a means to assign them a grade such as a 1, 2, 3, or 4). --- We 2nd Grade teachers have a pretty good idea in our heads about how we think this will/can work. However, because we have never taught this way before, we are anticipating we may have to alter some things along the way. All we ask is for grace and patience as we try our best to make things work and accommodate as many students and families as we can. Thank you so much for your continued patience as we continue to work things through. Next week is Spring Break. It seems a little silly that we are having a break when we have been at home for a month, but I hope you all get some time to unplug and recharge. I too will be taking this time to relax, enjoy the sunshine, work on some puzzles, tour all of the flowering trees in my neighborhood, and spend time with my family and friends (remotely of course). I will not be checking emails next week, you will hear from me again on April 19th with our Choice Board and learning plan for the week! 😊 As always, please let me know if you have questions about any of this, I am trying my best to accommodate and help as many people as I can. I understand that this is incredibly hard for everyone and I know that all of you are facing many challenges right now, but I know that we can find ways to work through this together. I am really looking forward to continuing to work with you as we get your child ready for the next chapter in their lives. Finally, please give your student a BIG hug from me. I was devastated to find out the news on Monday that we will not be returning to school at all. One of my first thoughts was "But I didn't get to give my students a hug goodbye!" So please, give them a hug from me. I'm so sad I won't get to see their smiling faces every day in class, but I'm grateful I'll still get to hear from them, see the incredible work their doing, and hear their amazing jokes. One of my favorites from our class Zoom call this week was Natalie's "Why should you knock first before opening the refrigerator?" "Because the salad might be dressing!" Thank you for all that you have been doing! Take care, stay healthy, and keep in touch! -Miss Sonneland
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June 2020
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