Keeping Siblings Together:
For families that choose the Hybrid Learning Model, we will ensure that siblings are in the same cohort. In other words, the siblings in a family would all attend school on the same days.
Special Education Services and Multi-Language Learning Support:
Children who receive these services will receive support from specialist staff.
Small Class Size:
Because of Covid-19 safety requirements, class sizes will be kept small during in-person days. Depending on classroom configuration, most classes will have between 8 and 15 students on in-person learning days. This smaller group size will allow for more targeted instruction and individualized attention.
Prioritizing Outdoor Time:
We need to ensure that your child makes academic progress, especially after these recent difficult months. But we will also do what we can to build considerable outdoor time into their schedule on their in-school days.
Health and Safety Requirements:
As we shared in our last update, there will be important new health and safety requirements in place for children who come to school. We will need everyone’s support to make this work: we all play an important part -- staff, children, and families -- to keep our school environment safe until the government authorities determine that it is safe to return to normal. Some of these requirements will include:
- Social distancing: ensuring that physical distance is maintained between people.
- Batching: keeping children in smaller groups (typically 8 to 15) and limiting their contact with other children.
- Arrival and Dismissal: with your help, we will maintain social distancing during arrival and dismissal, and ensure that children are wearing masks. Arrival and dismissal procedures will be very clear for everyone, and arrival and dismissal will take longer than in prior years.
- Masks: Students and staff wearing masks at most times of the day.
- Visitors: Restrictions on outside visitors, including parents and guardians, to minimize exposure.
- Screening & Monitoring:
- No-contact temperature checks for all staff, students, and visitors.
- Required reporting of children’s health symptoms by families, and if a child has certain symptoms, a commitment by families to keep that child at home or pick that child up when needed.
- Staff members and children will be actively monitored for symptoms, and in some cases will need to be isolated for a period of time or sent home.
- Meals: Enhanced food handling procedures, with meals served in classrooms.
- Sharing: Restrictions on sharing items.
- Hygiene: Reinforced handwashing.
We know that this sounds like a lot, and it is! These health and safety measures are required by our State government, and are necessary to reduce risk. All public schools in New York (and in most of the United States) will be implementing similar measures.
The Remote Days Experience:
On days when children are not in our school building, they will engage in a variety of learning experiences.
- Hebrew instruction and some specials (such as music and art) will be delivered live by Zoom by our teachers on remote learning days.
- There will be live check-ins with teachers.
- Students will have access to recorded lessons, engaging on-line programs, and independent work projects.
- Some special education and multi-language learner support services will be provided on remote learning days.
- Every student will have a Chromebook, and we will work with families to ensure that every household has Internet access.
We have learned a great deal from our experience delivering a remote program in the Spring, and your child will have a full day of school activities whether in the building or at home.
School-Age Child Care on Remote Learning Days:
We know that for some families there may be a need for child care on the remote learning days when a child is not in school. As noted above, the City may be creating a large number of free school-age child care slots. We will share any information about that program with all families.
In addition, we are working to create partnerships with local organizations such as the JCH and Kings Bay Y to provide additional child care slots for our students. We will provide additional information about these partnerships as we work to finalize them. These programs will charge a fee, but we are also working very hard to raise money to provide scholarships to cover some of the costs for families with significant financial need. We will also do our best to ensure that children in partnered child care programs are able to follow the same remote learning schedule as their Hybrid Learning Model peers who are at home.
We do not know if we will be able to connect every family that wants it with a school-age child care program, but will do our best to help meet this need.
Option 2: Fully Remote Learning Model
For families who choose to keep their child at home for the first marking quarter, we will ensure that your child has an engaging and meaningful learning experience.
- Children will receive significant amounts of live Zoom instruction in core subjects, including English, Math, and Hebrew.
- There will be live check-ins with teachers for both children and their parents or guardians.
- Students will have access to recorded lessons, engaging on-line programs, and independent work projects.
- Teachers will closely monitor student progress and provide feedback.
- Special education and multi-language learner support services will be provided.
- Every student will have a Chromebook, and we will work with families to ensure that every household has Internet access.
- Students whose families choose the Fully Remote Learning model will be paired with a Hybrid Model cohort. They will join their classmates on the days that the Hybrid Model students are participating in remote instruction. It is important to us that your child continue to feel a part of their class's community. On the two days that their classmates will be in school, your child will be provided with alternative programming.
We have learned a great deal from our experience delivering a remote program in the Spring, and your child will have a full day of school activities each day.
THANK YOU, AND STAY TUNED FOR FURTHER UPDATES!