COVID 10 3/31/20

District Updates

Today I do not have a big update. 

One fun fact is that they are taking thermometers from schools to deploy to other public buildings. 

I have a clarification from yesterday. Meal deliveries are currently being performed for students that have door to door transportation.

District Instructional Resources

The district has posted instructional resources that can be added to your instructional routines. These family facing resources can be found at this link and this link. They are different resource sets.

Something Fun

Jen let me know I was not the only one who was having a hard time remembering what day it was...here is a fun video for those of you out there who are like Jen and I. 

COVID 9 3/30/20

Updates from the District

Shifting Roles

• School nurses will be asked to step away from school nurse role and work with the Boston Public Health Commission
• Bus drivers and monitors have been picking up meals and delivering to students with disbilities
• School police officers will be providing security at health facilities

Chromebooks

Working on request for Chromebook repairs making sure that all families have devices before repairs. All devices coming in for repair needs to be quarantined for 48 hours. There is a link for repair here

Comcast and Verizon have relaxed the rules have people check it out first. Broadband is a better bet than hotspots. No ETA for hotspots. Schools should still be thinking about the first 15 students

Meal Sites

Meal site traffic is increasing. Total to date we have served about 53,000 meals. Today was our first day of doing targeted deliveries to students with disabilities. Target deliveries to homeless families
and families with disabilities. Next step is housing developments

Teaching and Learning

Evaluation process on pause until May 4th. I will be receiving more guidance on this. Secretaries need to continue to report time. Including bus monitors.

April vacation will still stand as will good Friday, No Assignments or meeting should be scheduled during this time.

District Google Classrooms will have special education and EL Resources that you will be able to pull into your Google Classroom

Family Facing Resources grade by grade multilingual grade-specific resources are available today. You can find those resources here.
There are now 2 Forms available for families of EL and Sped to click into to request support. They are also included on the page linked above.

Budget

I received this memo regarding the suspension of spending and procurement. This means that that the order that we put in before the building closed will not be fulfilled. This will have an impact on us moving forward. I am not sure what that impact will be. 

Update from Jodi

Meeting

On Wednesday we will talk about this more but I would like to set up weekly Zoom Meetings with grade-level teams to talk about expectations and what type of learning is happening for students. I would like to set up these meetings at a time that works for your team so please talk with your teaching partners to pick a day and time for these meetings.

Resource of the Day

Unite for Literacy

Unite for Literacy has many early readers available by theme. The books are available for students to read in English or Spanish and can be narrated in a wide variety of other languages by the computer. I am HIGHLY encouraging you to use these n your lessons with students. 

COVID8 3/26/20

Change of Course

When recording data on the tracker, Yesterday I said to respond yes to contact made even if you did not get a response. 

I am changing that to respond no but leave a note that you did try and on what date. 

The color-coding works better for a quick look if we do it this way. I want to track and follow up with families that no one has spoken to. 

Technology

 We now have the ability to schedule appointments for delivery for the parents that have not responded to the invitations sent out by OIIT this will be a huge help. The students highlighted in red on this spreadsheet are the students that have not responded to their invitations.

• I will reach out to our English speaking families but will need help with families requiring another language.  
• Could you please identify families that will need interpretation and what language they will need. 
• If you are interested in helping out with contacting families let me know. I will send you the link to make the appointment and talk you through the process. 

COVID 7 3/25/20-This one is a task

Students Waiting for Chromebooks

Here is a link to a list of students that have requested Chromebooks and are still waiting to schedule a delivery.
Can you please check your contact info by noon tomorrow.
If it is different enter it into the appropriate  LAPS section.
If you have the same info just enter same in the LAPS section

As a reminder, this is the info the District sent out regarding changing info in Aspen:

All change of address requests have to go through the Welcome Center as we have to prove residency for the new address.  You can call 617-635-9010 or schedule an appointment at https://booknow.appointment-plus.com/8517n4dg/ and speak to any of our registration specialists to change your address. 

We will worry about that later, for now, let's get the correct info in the hands of the delivery people. :) 

To fill out a form at a families request here is the link

COVID #6 3/24/20

Communication Log

I want to thank you all for completing the communication tracker and the amount of communication that you are having with families! Just today we have highlighted several families that we are concerned about and need additional support. We have been able to put plans in motion for some of them and others we will continue to follow-up with.       

It is important that we have information about technology, internet access, and food. I have a tracker where I can see how many and what families have signed up for a Chromebook and when their delivery is scheduled. We have had 22 families request Chromebooks. 

Spirit Week

One of the ideas that I am seeing online is the idea of a virtual spirit week. Keri has put together this idea for a Lee Academy Spirit Week.  (Thank you, Keri) Students could send pictures to any of us and we could share if we have permissions, on the school's social media sites and our learn at home website. It will be a fun way to lift everyone's spirits. 

Mouse Party

One thing that I learned being in the building yesterday is that the mice are taking over. We are laying multiple traps that will be gone by the time we are allowed in the building. I thought some of you might find this interesting. 

The building is closed. If there is an EMERGENCY, Bill is working a reduced schedule of Tuesday and Thursday mornings. 

Something Fun

As we all adjust to working from home and trying to parent at the same time. I thought we could all relate to this Jimmy Fallon Tonight Show Clip. Looking forward to seeing you and your families tomorrow. 

COVID # 5 March 23, 2020

Expectations

District View

Here are some answers to questions that the BTU and School Leaders had around expectations for this unprecedented time:

What was your idea behind “tracking content mastery”?

a. Our concerns around this are related to access for students with special needs

b. The notion of teaching new content

c. How can we be sure that students are completing any assessment without help?

d. How does this work with the statement “all learning is supplemental”?

BPS Answer: Monitoring and formatively assessing students against grade-level

standards and IEP goals should continue. Teachers may need support with

accessing IEP goals from their school’s COSE if they don't already have or know

them. Requests for such support should be made first to the school leader, who will

compile and forward it to the Central Office as appropriate.

What is the situation regarding grades, report cards, and special ed documentation- messaging seems

to be different in different places (elementary 2nd term report cards - distribution was scheduled for next

week)

BPS Answer: In accordance with DESE guidance, grades are not being recorded during this time. That said, teachers should enter grades for all student work through March 16th. Term closing dates, report card, and progress report production timelines are all currently paused.

(Jodi's Note: I am taking this to mean that we are NOT distributing report cards or progress reports at this time.)

Clarify the statement that video contact (student-teacher and teacher-admin) cannot be a

requirement

BPS Answer: School leaders will allow flexibility to any teacher requesting not to

participate visually through video formats for personal privacy reasons. Teachers

and other staff are still expected to join meetings, either through calling in or turning

off the video on their computer. Assistance with this can be made directly to the

school principal so IT arrangements can be made as appropriate.

How will early childhood teachers conduct distance-learning?

BPS Answer: Early childhood educators should maintain communication with

families and provide lessons and activities to do at home, whether electronically or

in other formats. Central Office staff have created materials for teachers to be used

in conjunction with family members and are updating them daily. These materials

will be on both the district google classroom and our Bpsearlylearning.org web site.

Special Education

IEP Meetings
What is your position regarding holding AR meetings?

BPS Answer: IEP meetings should be offered to parents in an online format, and

scheduled with required school participants as appropriate. If parents do not

consent to an online meeting, the meeting will need to be rescheduled for a time

when schools reopen.

What is your position regarding holding RE meetings?

BPS Answer: If a student’s testing is complete for Originals and Re-Evaluations,

the reports must be completed and uploaded to EdPlan. We will offer to hold the

meeting in the same manner as an Annual Review. For evaluations where testing

is not complete, and because testing cannot be accomplished without face-to-face

contact, testing will need to be postponed until schools reopen.

School Psychologists and Related Service Providers

Can we move to a consultation model as opposed to a service model?

Contact your students’ families weekly to check-in

BPS Answer: To the extent possible from remote or online locations, all staff is

expected to provide services consistent with the documented needs of each

student. To the extent that services cannot be provided remotely or online, staff

should provide consult to families via phone or through online communication

systems, at the families’ choice.

How will BPS handle privacy concerns for video meetings regarding FERPA?

BPS Answer: There are no FERPA concerns unless the staff is using the technology

in such a way that they are allowing others to hear them talk to the student about

protected health information or student educational data.

Are you aware that some BTU members are holding conferences right now? What is the

plan to cease if it’s already happening? There is confusion. They need guidelines

regarding protocols.

BPS Answer: Further direction will be provided as requested.

School View

We have entered unchartered space and are reconfiguring our ship while we are sailing it. I feel a little bit like a Star Trek captain we truly are "Going boldly where no man (or woman) has gone before.  I need your input on how to set our course. Please take a few minutes to fill out this form to share your thoughts and ideas. Be creative. I want this new world to work for all of us as much as possible. 

Family Communication

Family communication is essential during this time. Family overcommunication is annoying (at least that is what I am seeing on the internet). I was going to call every parent in a grade level each week starting with K0/K1 this week. I realized if they are talking to their child's teacher and maybe Sam this may be too much communication. I realized we needed more guardrails around who was reaching out when. THis is what I came up with on my own. You may all have better ideas.

• Classroom teachers should talk to every family once a week to check-in.  Leave notes in the tracker. The notes should be specific enough that the team can read them and determine if there is something that they could use their expertise to follow up on. 
• Non-classroom teachers will be responsible for reading the notes. If a parent concern falls into that person's expertise the non-classroom teacher will make contact and offer support. 
• For example, Eleanor recorded these notes for some students: loving reflex, worried about how to burn off energy - made some online suggestions Seth could contact the family and follow up with some physical activity suggestions. struggling with reading comp and juggling 3 kids This is a fun two-parter. Jen could reach out and offer some thoughts on scheduling and Sarah could reach out and offer some support around reading comprehension. 

In addition to families where the teacher's note indicates that a call is warranted. The following can occur:

• Sam can reach out to families that she has had frequent contact/concerns with. She does not have to reach out to every student.
• Jen can reach out and check in with students  that may not have been receiving counseling from her but have a CSR referral
• Kathryn, Paula, and Sarah will work out a plan to contact EL families with their classroom teachers
• Alyce will check in with our students on IEPs to answer any questions that their families may have.
• Everyone else if you were working informally with a student before we left school please add that student to your call list.
• The effectiveness of this plan is dependent on the teacher's note which does not have to be long just informative. 
• I have changed the tracker so it is just the whole school and Grade 3 page. Please filter on your grade level and classroom to see your students as you enter your contact with them. I tried to copy everyone's data from where they had entered it. Having multiple pages was confusing. I think setting up a filtered view will be more efficient. (I am sorry to those of you that were in the document that this may have freaked out. )
• RSPs and Jen do not have to log their sessions with students here. You can log those in the format that you use for reporting purposes already. This tracker is for consultation and contact not services

Logging our communication is critically important during this time.  This tracker is one of a few "must-do's" that I need to ask of you!

Google 

Google Classroom

Please continue to work to learn and use the Google Classroom platform with our students. 

• I am asking you to do this because I believe it may become a district expectation. 
• The district is working on launching 2 sets of Google classrooms at each grade level. One that is staff facing where you can go and easily pull resources into your own classroom. The other will be student-facing. Students will be invited to join and can access learning there. 
• I know how important curriculum autonomy is to us. We need to have resources and access to sites that the district will find equal to or better than what they have developed and that will be best measured in more apples to apple comparison. 

Google Translate

Check out this cool thing that Google Translate can do.  Watch this video.  I think you may have to have a Twitter account to watch. I have been playing all day in my office translating everything I can find!

Posting Read Alouds

Many people are better rule followers than I.  A vigilant friend who tries to keep me out of trouble shared this article regarding video sharing of readings.  I am going to ask that if you are making a video of a reading you say this book is being read with the permission of the following publishers:

Scholastic

Little,Brown

Harcourt Mifflin

Lee & Low

Candlewick Press

Simon and Schuster

HarperCollins

MacMillan

Do NOT use any books published by Lerner for this purpose. 

We will remove any recordings by June 30, 2020

I am trying to create a private Lee Academy YouTube page to post and link videos from. Unfortunately, YouTube is having some technical difficulties. I will keep you posted once this is completed. 

Honey-Do

School Check-in ~ Wednesday 3/25 at 11:00 am

Report Cards & Progress Reports ~ Friday 3/27  - EXTENDED DEADLINE

COVID #4 March 20, 2020

The New Normal

I think that we are entering into a new normal. While I know things are scary there is a lot of opportunity in this new place that we find ourselves in for collaboration and our own learning. Here are some things that we can continue during this time:

Meetings:

• CLT Meetings: Please work with your team, Sarah and Brian to continue these meetings. Find a time that works for you all. 
• Weekly Meetings: We will meet virtually every Wednesday at 11:00 a.m. For the most part, these will be huddle type meetings where people can ask questions and we can share information. 
• Professional Development: We have one more schoolwide PD scheduled. This was an important PD to finish up our learning for this year and set-up our learning for next year. We will do this PD virtually. Please stay tuned for a date. 

Teaching and Learning:

I had a virtual meeting today with the Academics Office. Andrea Zayas, Chief Academic Officer, has a plan. At this moment I am waiting to get the slides so that I can confirm that my notes are accurate. I will correct any inaccuracies on Monday as it is 3:07 and I still do not have the slide deck. 

• We discussed a week by week plan for how teaching and learning will evolve as our own practice and knowledge evolve. My new favorite word "consistency" was mentioned multiple times. 

Rose and Marc have been using Google Classroom and their skills in leveraging this virtual tool far surpass my own. Where they are now with their students and practice appears to be the way the district sees this evolving for our students. I am sharing an email exchange that we had today to highlight both the collaboration and practice that is occurring. Again in NO way is the expectation that we as a learning community are all at this point. It is more of a vision of where we are heading. 

Grade 3 Assignments

Me:

I like how you are building these out. The objective is so important. I agree that directing to the google classroom makes sense. I will also link to this document if kids for whatever reason cannot sign into classroom.  I am hoping 12:00 came faster today because of the craziness of adjusting. 

Are you going to be holding live classes with students? Please make sure that your families are aware that assignments will be posted daily. I am worried about consistency. If everyone else is updating once a week expecting third-grade families to sign on daily to see/access assignments is different.  I am curious why you made the decision to do one day at a time?

This could be an interesting discussion point moving forward as a school. 

Rose and Marc:

We were thinking of posting assignments daily because we were worried it would be too overwhelming to post all assignments (15 assignments per week) at the same time. They won't disappear at the end of the day, so if students are behind, they will still be there so that they can catch up. We made the decision based on Marc's experience of homeschooling his own children this week using computer-learning. He might be able to speak more to that experience.

The assignments here include a video of us teaching (or a different video that we found online), and then an activity for students to complete and turn in. We will then be able to provide feedback on that assignment. It isn't live teaching, but it is video recording of us teaching.

We may try to do a "live" morning meeting with zoom each day, but we are still figuring out those details. 

Rose has offered to be a resource as people are learning about Google Classroom and setting their classrooms up. I have not asked Marc yet. I am sure he will help too but he is also teaching his children. 

• The district is creating curated resources that they will put in a teacher/administrator facing google classroom so that you can pull resources into your own Google Classrooms. Everything in this toolkit will be framed with the lens of the racial equity toolkit. 
• There will also be a district website to supplement our school website. This will be family facing and students can enter on their on to have additional experiences to those we are providing. 
• They are working with BostonTV to create some early childhood programming

Resources for Teacher Learning Re: Virtual Learning

BPS Technology Offerings

Google Classroom Teacher Center

Work from Home Tips

Office Hours

I will be at Lee Academy from 9:00-12:00 every Wednesday throughout the duration of the closing. If parents (or you) need something from the building please come by or call so I can get it for you during this time. You still have daily access to the building. I needed to set up weekly office hours in case someone needs me. 

The Website

I have shortened the URL for our website it is now: https://bit.ly/LAPSLearn

LAPS Learn from Home Site

Honey-Do List

Record first contact with families into the tracker- March 25th

Family Communications

We are going to start tracking family communications using this tracker so that we are aware of who has spoken to what families each week. Each grade level has its own tab at the bottom of the spreadsheet where the students are filtered by your grade level. You will scroll right each week. At the end of each color-coded week, there is a place to take notes so that the full team is aware of concerns or things that are going well.  I have received the following directive:

If you have not already done so, work with your teams to be sure EVERY FAMILY has been contacted and that you can say with certainty that they have access to a site where they can get meals if they need them and that they have access to technology.

During our initial contact with families please ask families if:

• They are aware of food pick-up locations and able to access the locations
• Has technology to access instruction
• Has reliable internet
• Is connected to the online platform that you use to deliver instruction/assignments
• Has the initial learning resources we provided

Once you have these answers please record on the tracker. Please try to record contact for the first week by Wednesday, March 25th.  I have set this deadline with the assumption that you have contacted families already. 

Literacy Tips and Tricks- Request from Sarah

Literacy Tips and Tricks Page

The Literacy Tips and Tricks Page is live! 

Each week we will have a new read-aloud video (hopefully from guest readers!), a featured resource, a featured game/activity, and a featured tip. 

If you have any tips, games or resources that you would like to pass along, please do so by emailing me. The webpage will feature some each week, but I will also curate running lists that will be linked on the page.  And please offer any feedback that would improve the page!

If you would like to record a guest read aloud to be featured on the website, please fill out THIS FORM.  Directions for uploading your video are on the form (and may change as I become more tech-savvy).  I have created a YouTube channel where I will upload and store all of our videos.  Thank you!

Something Fun

I want to thank Marc for sharing this with me. I have watched it at least 5 times and laughed each time. I am thinking that those of you with school-age kids might be feeling the same way as this poor mom. 

Learning from Home is Super Awesome

COVID Update #3 March 19, 2020

Google Classrooms

If you are using Google Classroom with your students:

• Remember students can only access this using their BPS email. All students have BPS email this can be found in Aspen. They will need to know how to access email to accept invites to new classrooms
• Please add me as a co-teacher, The District has asked that I am aware of all assignments
• Please link your Google Classroom to the website. I have added the place for Marc's and Rose's so you can see where to do it. Consistency is important. If you need help linking your classroom to the webpage let me know. 

Other Online Platforms

If you are using other online platforms (ie Seesaw):

• Please add me as a co-teacher. The district would like me to be aware of all the assignments. 
• Please add a link to your platform as we are doing to Google Classroom. She the Grade 3 Page as to how to do this. 

Consistency is an important and key lever as we continue to manage this. 

The Webpage

I may seem a bit obsessive about this. I do NOT want to go to a central site controlled by academics to be the result of our closure. That is a possibility. I want to keep our site robust and healthy so that we can have the autonomy to have our own curriculum continue. I am seeing indications that we will have to earn this. Please continue to help me make this happen. You guys are amazing. 

Work Expectations

My conference call with the superintendent did not yield any new information. The expectations shared yesterday are baseline expectations. We can continue to operate as usual though virtually. There are meetings with all major unions today. I want to thank all of you for putting kids first ALWAYS. 

Special Education

Special shout out to Alyce: Thanks for keeping us so much in compliance. People want us to use this time to get into compliance. There is still no answer on kids whose testing was interrupted. I can expect written guidance today or tomorrow. We do need to hold a meeting for students whose testing has been completed and all unfinished IEPS must be completed by their deadline.  

ELs

No new information.

Equity and Technology

• The district is monitoring some data to look for equitable access. Yes, it is imperfect but you may find it interesting. At one point 17,000 students were online at the same time. This is about one-third of our student population.
• 19 Lee Academy families who did not receive Chomebooks from us signed up to request one. 
• I asked Mark to look into additional ways we can reach out to families. I have not heard back from him yet. 
• Here is a link to the form that families need to fill out. If you would like to reach out to families maybe you can assist them in filling out the form.  If you need help translating into Spanish Zoraida is available to help
• The current district plan is to deliver every laptop to a student's house. The technology department currently has about 100 volunteers to help with this task. 

Social Media

During today's call, we received a reminder that if you videotape or photograph students in a virtual classroom you cannot share those clips on social media. It is a violation of FERPA.

Access to the Building

Your key cards will not be deactivated. You will continue to have access to the building please let me know if you are going in. Bill works 6-3 each day. Please contact him before going in to be sure he is there and the alarm will not be turned on. 

COVID Update #2~ 3/17/20

Greetings!

Happy St. Patrick's Day! I actually forgot that this is "the" Boston Holiday. I am too busy mourning Tom Brady leaving the Patriots and trying to get more COVID information and plans.  To make up for my lack of green apparel I took a picture in front of my green wall. In case you are wondering what is going on at LAPS today,  here I am talking to a plastic fish because I miss the kids and all of you!

If you need to get into the building for any reason please call Bill at 857-202-8276. He will be in the building during the duration of the closure. I am here today and tomorrow maybe longer.

Honey-do List

3/20 Update Google Drive Folders by Noon

3/23 Report Cards and Progress Reports

Updates

Special Education Nugget

According to Jen Sweeney: All compliance dates are on hold as of yesterday. Essentially the clock is not ticking in compliance timelines for anything after 3/16/20.

Website

I hope to go live with our website on Friday. I know that each of you does a great job communicating with families but I want to duplicate that communication on our website. I also want to have one place for resources that we are sharing with families in case families lose them etc. 

• Please make sure that your grade level folder is updated every Friday by noon. 
• This update should include any communications that you have for all families, the week's assignments and directions for completing 

Request from Sarah

Literacy Tips and Tricks Page

Over the course of the school closure, I will be maintaining a "Literacy Tips and Tricks" page for parents to access. The idea is to have tips that will support families to be the best interim teachers they can at home (as much as we can) and to have ideas and activities that will supplement and complement (not duplicate) what you are planning at grade levels.   On it I will have links to some questions and prompts to support readers and writers (differentiated by grade level - thank you for the idea, Lividini) as well as some other resources for parents and families.  I'm asking for your input to decide what will be most helpful and to also gather ideas.  Here is what I am thinking (with asks in bold):

• "Low-tech" options and games that align with standards, but are also fun, manageable and allow families to be flexible.  Simple things like the game 20 Questions since that builds speaking and listening skills and also connects to language standards in the early grades when kids are learning to differentiate between asking and telling sentences.  If you have any "low-tech" games/ideas that link to literacy practice - send along and I will curate! 
• Posting either a YouTube or Vimeo channel of read-alouds.  I plan to record 2-3 read-alouds a week.  If other folks would like to record read-alouds for our students, let me know.  I will have the channel set up and running by the end of the week and we can just upload our videos there and we can highlight one or two a week directly on the page.
• That's all I've got so far, but the page will grow.  Please let me know what else you think would be helpful on a centralized home literacy page and I'll make it happen!

Math

I came across this resource for Investigations today. Is there a way that we can leverage it with our parents during the shutdown?

Technology Learning Opportunities

BPS Technology has been so helpful during these unprecedented times. They are offering several webinars to help plan for digital content. I did one on Sunday and found it very helpful! I think we may even be able to leverage something for our youngest learners. 

• Here is a link to their calendar of offerings and virtual office hours. 
• This is a link to the virtual learning homepage. There is some good info here as well. 

Tomorrow's Chat

Our chat tomorrow will be about what you need for the next few weeks and any questions that you have. Looking forward to seeing you. 

COVID update 1 3/16/20

Today's Covid Update

I am building out our website. It is looking good. Please remember to upload your documents for this week.

The following are questions that my colleague submitted to Dr. Cassellius and her response:

Where do parents pick up packets they were unable to receive at the school today?

Packets will be available at every school meal distribution site starting tomorrow

What are distribution locations for technology? Same as meals? Same hours?

We will communicate as soon as the Chromebooks arrive. They will most likely be the same hours and locations as the meals but we will communicate what this looks like soon

Should teachers be submitting grades/report cards for term 2 based on student learning this far?

I don't see why we would not have teachers do this. These will be due March 23rd. 

Will IEP meetings take place virtually/via phone or be rescheduled?

Special Ed will follow up. Tell your special education teachers to not sweat yet. We will communicate as soon as possible 

Staff are stating that they are not required to meet virtually or officially work during this time. We need a formal statement about this from the union, at least for the immediate future until a thorough plan is agreed on. When can we expect information about this?  (I am not worried about this at LAPS but thought you might like to know the answer)

We will have an official statement by Wednesday at 3 PM. We recognize that staff is still wondering what is expected of them during the coming weeks. Staff will receive more information from the district and their individual union by Wednesday at 3 PM.

Picking up Packets

I need to be in the building tomorrow and Wednesday. If any parents have not made arrangements to pick up their packets please let them know they can do so between 9:30 and 2:30 tomorrow. 

Thank you!

I appreciate each of you more than you will ever know!

March 13 2020

The Buzz in My Brain

I have decided this week that I hate the 24-hour news cycle. The hysteria that journalists are whipping us into is crazy. Let's take a deep breath and remember actual crises like the Puerto Rican Earthquakes and Hurricanes. How much attention did that get when an entire island was destroyed and almost every citizen was fighting for their lives. 

To put it in perspective here are some numbers. The infection rate is as of 1:00 pm today. There are 6.902 million people living in our state (2018). 130 people are directly impacted by this virus. Rounding up to 7,000,000 that leaves 6,999,870 of us not infected 
In Boston, the population is 685,904 (2017) that leaves 685,882 of us not infected

COVID-19

Here is what I know about COVID 19, Boston and BPS:

There are 22 cases of COVID in Boston. None of which are a case of community transmission. 

There are 108 Cases in Massachusetts in Western Mass there are cases of community transmission. 

Community transmission means that the source of the contamination is unknown or can not be definitively traced. Cases identified as community transition are more likely to spread. 

Close contact with an infected person is defined as standing within 6 feet of the person for 15 minutes or more. 

The mayor has publicly said that we will be in session on Monday and perhaps for part of next week. According to all sources he has consulted, scientists and medical professionals the safest place for our children is in school with limited contact from outsiders not in the child's immediate family. 

This situation changes hour by hour and I would recommend that you check your email this weekend for updates. I have received three different pieces of information since 1:00 (Which is something I generally discourage.)

The level of planning required to close our schools is much more complicated than a suburban district. We need to have a mindful plan that addresses the inequities that many of our students face. It is not that we value our students less that closure is taking longer. It is actually the opposite. 

If you want to do something to prepare for a possible closing, I would think about what type of work would be best sent home for your students. Would they do best with familiar online platforms, work packets that would last for approximately two weeks a combination of both? Some examples are provided as links in the document listed below. I have a feeling I will need to ask you for this in the near future. 

The district has issued this document to schools with steps that must be completed by Wednesday. 


I am asking each of you to fill out this chart so I have baseline data from which to start. 

Here are some documents that you may find useful in answering lingering questions:
 3. 13. 20 BPS General Fact Sheet 
All Leader Q&A - Update on COVID-19 for CO

March 6th.

The Buzz in My Brain

My husband's heart stopped this week. He did not have a blood pressure or a pulse. He was too unstable to be transported to a preferred hospital. They needed to use an AED on him. They put a camera into his heart.  I keep saying that to try to anesthetize myself to what has happened. He is on the road to recovery. We are calibrating to a new normal of cardiac care. I am trying not to be too much of a nag and keep my anxiety as tempered as possible. Everything that happened was a result of preparing for something that should have been routine. No one could have anticipated what happened. We have lived what feels like a lifetime in one week. 

I have kept the leadership team apprised of what has been happening. The reason I am sharing, probably oversharing, with all of you is because someone thanked me for modelling putting family first and trying to do self-care. It has not been easy being away from work. I think in many ways this is the first time that I have had a total team that I trusted. This is what allowed me to focus on what I need to focus on. Thank you all for being my team. I want each of you to always be sure to put your family first. Your loved ones are food for your soul so that you can do this critically important, incredibly difficult work. 

Thank you for all of your kind words and support this week. I can not express how much they have meant. Thank you to all of you that have absorbed part of what I do each day. I can't wait to get back into the fray with you. 

I will be out one more day, Monday, because I am having some diagnostic procedures done. I will be under anesthesia so I may be unreachable for a bit. Hopefully these will be truly routine procedures. :) 

On Tuesday I will be back and I can't wait!

COVID-19

I am copying Sam's email about the COVID-19 virus. The virus has become a media sensation in this 24 hour news cycle. It is important to remember that we are a low-risk community and to keep things in perspective. We work with little ones and we know about hand washing and coughing into our chicken wings. (Thanks Ana).

I know that there are many questions and concerns related to COVID-19 (Coronavirus) and I wanted to communicate clearly our school's prevention efforts.  Although we remain a low risk community, we are collaborating with BPS and Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC) to have a clear response plan in place in the event of a suspected exposure or confirmed case.  

At this point, the best way to prevent infection is to avoid being exposed to the virus that causes it. Stopping transmission of the virus through everyday practices is the best way to keep people healthy.  It is still influenza season and our prevention efforts are similar to what we have in place to combat seasonal flu.  

• Hand Hygiene: Washing your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds OR using alcohol-based hand rubs and gels. Minimize/avoid handshaking as a greeting (maybe substitute with a wave or rub elbows - everyone is aware of these recommendations so it shouldn't seem odd to do this and we can have a sense of humor about it)

• Avoiding touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands. 

• Avoiding close contact with people who are sick.  (Yes, our children may present to school with the symptoms of the common cold but this is distinctly different from flu-like symptoms that will present with associated symptoms such as fever, body aches, tiredness and headaches).  

• Staying home when you are sick.  Staff should model this behavior for our families.  If you are sick, please stay home. As per our infection control guidelines, all children with fevers over 100.4 will be asked to stay home or will be dismissed home.  As per CDC and BPHC guidelines, we will consider in school quarantine ONLY if a child presents with fever and respiratory symptoms AND has recently traveled to a level 3 country.  

• Covering your cough or sneeze and instructing our children to cough into their elbow.  If students cough into their hand, please ask them to wash/sanitize hands.  

• Cleaning and disinfecting frequently touched objects and surfaces.  We are collaborating with Bill and custodial staff to ensure high touch surfaces such as doorknobs and hand-rails are cleaned more frequently and with appropriate disinfectant.  Please let Bill know right away if a soap dispenser needs to be refilled.  

Remember, our children and families are watching our practices and taking our cues.  Panic and fear is detected quickly by children. Please see attached Talking Points for children.

This is a rapidly evolving situation and BPS will provide centralized communication as recommendations change. Please let us know if you have any questions.  

February 27th

Mr. Browne's Precept

"There is no shame in not knowing. the shame lies in not finding out." ~ Assyrian Proverb

Honey- Do List 

Preference Sheets Back to Jodi- March 13th 

Choose a time for read-aloud- March 6th 

Complete School Climate Survey- May 1st

 The Buzz in My Brain

I am really sorry that I missed our PD this week. I was looking forward to learning with you all.  The buzz in my brain this week has been about schema and how we are laying the velcro for our students to attach new learning to. This is a long-term game and the results of our efforts may not be seen for a while. The work we are doing on the revolutionary war is laying the foundation for US History in grade 11. What we are learning about Africa is the basis of a high school world civilization class. In CLT, one of our colleagues expressed what I was thinking when they said: "but we can't teach everything." This set my mind off wondering how can we capitalize on what our students know? What can we attach to the velcro the already have?  How can we systematically build knowledge K0-3? I started poking around on the internet to learn about brain plasticity and building background knowledge.  Here are a few things that I found and thought I would share.  The "Growing the Brain" video is very interesting. 
Growing the Brain
Building Background Knowledge
Background Knowledge Tips

Let me know what you are thinking. 

 Preference Sheets

Every year we send out teacher preference sheets to determine if people would like to explore teaching another grade level. Here is this year's preference sheet. Please say yes to make a copy of the sheet, complete, and return to me by March 13.

Climate Survey

Below is a message that I received from central office:

BPS has a long history of surveying students, teachers, and parents to better understand school climate and culture. The annual student, teacher, and parent climate surveys are launching soon:

• Student: March 2 – April 3
• Teacher: March 16 – May 1
• Family: March 16 – June 5

Participation is expected for all schools and results are included in the School Quality Framework, and are integral to gauging progress on the district's strategic plan. During the survey window, teachers will receive a direct link to the teacher survey via email, and families will be contacted centrally via email, phone messages, and text messages. 

However, schools with consistently high participation rates send individual messages to their community, create time for family survey completion at events, and follow up to ensure high participation. Early Completion Incentive: Schools with 30% family participation or 10+ points improvement from 18-19, by May 8th, will receive document cameras!

Given the age of our students, we will not be participating in the student survey however I would love to see the staff and parent survey numbers go up!

March Book of the Month

Our March Schoolwide book is "The Undefeated" by Kwame Alexander. The following is taken from the School Library Journal. 

It is a poignant and powerful ode to the resilience and strength of black life and history in America. Originally performed for ESPN's The Undefeated in 2016, the poem adopts a picture book format with a new title, accompanied by stunning oil paintings in Nelson's trademark photorealistic style. The evocative illustrations stand out against stark white backgrounds and vary in their composition. On some spreads, the focus is on a single expressive portrait; others feature collages of African American icons from various disciplines, or refer to significant historical moments. The art functions in perfect harmony with the poet's spare, striking verse to electrify the Black American experience, and to celebrate black athletes, writers, musicians, activists, and heroes. From the unspeakable trauma of American slavery and the transatlantic slave trade to the brave service of black troops during the Civil War, from the fierce and unwavering fight for civil rights to the Black Lives Matter movement, from Selma to Birmingham to Harlem, this book is both a soaring tribute to the enduring perseverance and achievements of the past and a stirring call to action to "the dreamers and the doers" of the present and the future. Back matter includes an afterword from the author as well as additional information about the historical figures and events featured in the book. 

We will be using a different book for K0/K1. "Get Up, Stand Up" by Bob Marley. The following is from Chronicle Books :
Bob Marley's music has inspired millions of listeners around the world with messages of peace, love, and truth. This third picture book adaptation of one of his beloved songs has a timely message for children: To counter injustice, lift others up with kindness and courage. As a young girl goes on with her day in school, she comes across several instances of teasing and intimidation. But with loving action and some help from her friends, she's able to make things right for herself and others. With exuberant pictures by John Jay Cabuay accompanying Marley's iconic lyrics, Get Up, Stand Up is a vibrant testament to the power we all have to make a difference.

I am hoping to have some guest readers do the reading. Please let me know a time that is good for you by Friday, March 6th.

February 7

Mr. Browne's Precept

"There is no shame in not knowing. the shame lies in not finding out." ~ Assyrian Proverb

Honey- Do List 

Select a time for me to read to your class in Feb.-January 31st

Apply for the interim assessment review team-Feb. 27th

 The Buzz in My Brain

I generally try to work on the Hive throughout the week so that I do not have the heavy lift on a Friday afternoon or forget to put some stuff in. I was feeling pretty depleted this morning. The budget and its impacts on people that I care deeply about and rely on every day, not knowing what the kids need to best help them, some family stuff and a low-grade cold have left me feeling like I am running on empty. At 10:00 this morning I honestly felt that I had nothing left to give anyone. 

Enter the children,  one of our puzzling friends was playing in my office. He told me that he was feeling elated. I asked him what does that mean? He replied that you are so happy you could cry. The same student was playing with T'Chala and Black Panther. He has not seen Black Panther yet. He renamed Black Panther 'Aggressive' and T'Chala 'Dr. King'.  Aggressive wanted to fight but Dr. King would always intervene and say thinks like "take 3 deep breaths like this" or "take a break". Through his play, this student was verbalizing the very strategies and concepts that we have taught him. 

I was walking in the downstairs hallway and walked into the aftermath of a fight. I intervened with the child closest to me and looked to the other child. One of you was already with him. I could focus on where I needed to be. 

One of our colleagues came by and asked for some tier 3 support for a student that was naked in the hallway. I held him as she redressed him. He then put his head on my shoulder and I borrowed a rocking chair in a quiet room and rocked him to sleep. I returned him to the class where he could rest with his friends. The trust that our students have in us is tremendous if they feel safe falling asleep in our arms. 

 I was not sure about sharing this moment of vulnerability with you because of the stereotype that leaders always need to be positive, never let them see the leaders sweat or I am a female leader and you will see this as a weakness.  I decided to share because I realized that how I felt was no different than how many of us feel on any given day. Being a true leader is acknowledging our humanity AND acknowledging that sometimes it is taking in the small moments that allow us to keep moving forward. There is always a way forward and a way to keep doing what is right! Find your small moment when things seem the bleakest. 

Budget Update

Despite the most valiant and best of efforts, the initial budget battle was lost. In order to balance our budget, three significant changes are currently in their initial stages.

1. We will lose the valuable services that Jen Mederios-Crabbe provides for our students for 3 days a week.
2. We will no longer be able to fund the amazing services that Alyce provides for us beyond the COSE position
3. There will be a significant cut in the principal's salary to make it more in line with the BPS principal salary. 

Jen and Alyce will continue to have full-time positions in BPS. Unfortunately, our budget cannot support these positions, in our community, at this time. 

The next steps are to work through the soft landing process. This will allow us to ask for additional funds to restore our lost positions. 

I have a call scheduled with the superintendent on Tuesday. 

Snacks for Students

We had a parent phone call this week because a student was given a Snickers bar as a reward. The student was allergic to peanuts. Clearly, I do not have a problem with food rewards. Please be mindful of providing students snacks with tree nuts. If you are unsure of a student's food restrictions check-in with Sam or me. We have a complete list. 

Homework

Thank you to those of you that stayed later on Thursday to talk about homework. K2 and Grade 1 are going to pilot a homework calendar with their friends during the month of March. They will provide updates at Huddle about how it is going. If any other grades want to pilot this please let me know. 

Intervention

From a faculty senate debrief, it was brought to my attention that the staff would like a more formalized process for intervention. Some of the questions/concerns raised were:

• There is a gap in second grade regarding intervention. 
• There is a lack of a structure for check-ins between the interventionist and the teacher
• The need to identify students who need intervention at the end of the year so that we can implement intervention immediately. 
• There is a lack of clarity around who is getting intervention and how they are identified. 
• Many of these seem like there is a need for better communication about what is actually happening.  
• We will have conversations as a community about this. As we prepare for this conversation here is a document that outlines the factors that our top-notch intervention team takes into consideration when assigning students to an intervention.   

Headspace

Last year as I was struggling with some things a friend gave me a copy of the book "The Four Agreements". I found the book to be very helpful. One of my meditation apps had this summary of the book and the agreements. I found it a really good read and thought I would share it.   

Requests from Mr. Bill

We are finding lots of food on the ground and in the stairwells. Things like orange peels, banana peels, half-eaten bagels etc. This food is a feast for our furry little friends with the hideous tails.  

• Please limit the amount of traveling around the building students are doing with food. 
• Continue to store any food in the classroom in glass or plastic covered containers. 

The smell in our yellow bathroom has been overwhelming lately. Bill reports that students are completely missing the toilet and peeing on the floor. He has asked if we could be a bit more vigilant about what our little friends are doing in the stalls. 

January 31 2020

Mr. Browne's Precept

"There is no shame in not knowing. the shame lies in not finding out." ~ Assyrian Proverb

Honey- Do List 

Names of students for possible retention to Jodi- January 17th

Complete form with Cell Phone #- January 24th

Select a time for me to read to your class in Feb.-January 31st

Fly on in

 Voluntary homework meeting on Thursday, February 6th 4-5

 The Buzz in My Brain

As I write this (before I join you at the Bowery), I have so many thoughts that I cannot settle on one to write about. How do we do things radically different to capture the interest of our kids? Does it have to be radical? How can we support their mental health needs better? How do we support families that are working so hard just to survive? What is the most important priority of our work? How do I support my work family as you do this hard work? How can these beautiful children have such kind behaviors and 30 second later have such mean ones? Damn, I never got to write that letter. I am so happy that he had a good day. I can't believe he lied to me. I am so happy David saw him. Thank God for this team. There was always someone there when I needed them. Why am I so tired? The brain is pretty buzzy at the moment. 

Budget Update

We remain in a holding pattern for the budget. 

National African American Read-In

The National African American Read-In is the nation’s first and oldest event dedicated to diversity in literature. It was established in 1990 by the Black Caucus of the National Council of Teachers of English to make literacy a significant part of Black History Month. This initiative has reached more than 6 million participants around the world. (NCTE Website)

I would like to propose that we have a Lee Academy African American Read-In on Friday, February 14th.  I know this is a quick turnaround but I literally just found out about this on Monday. 

There is a toolkit here. I am looking for some interested people to help plan what our day could look like. I am also trying to connect with the Frugal Bookstore in Nubian (Dudley) Square for some resources and perhaps to do a bookfair for our students and families. 

El Dia de Los Ninos, El Dia de Los Libros

This even we have a bit more lead-in for. El dia de Los Ninos, El dia de Los Libros is celebrated annually on April 30th.   April Children’s Day, Book Day are celebrations that unite communities. April book fiestas are held in libraries, schools, homes, parks, etc., often on or near April 30th. DIA is also used to mean Diversity In Action. This will be an opportunity for us to celebrate our Latinx students, families, and authors.

I would propose that we hold our own book fiesta on April 17th. Once again this effort has an organized planning effort. The planning booklet can be found here.

You may have noticed that each of these Fridays are a Friday before vacation. They will provide our students with an opportunity to celebrate literacy and have a great send-off for the vacation. 

Governing Board-Family Council

I am creating a meeting experiment. We are combining our Family Council and GoverningBoard meetings. Much of what we discuss in one venue is repeated at the other. I would also like the Governing Board with the expertise of our chair to think about ways to revitalize the family council. I am curious to see how it goes. 

January 27, 2020

Mr.Browne's Precept

"There is no shame in not knowing. the shame lies in not finding out." ~ Assyrian Proverb

Honey- Do List 

Names of students for possible retention to Jodi- January 17th

Complete form with Cell Phone #- January 24th

Huddle with CSR-January 28th

Select a time for me to read to your class-January 31st

 The Buzz in My Brain

The homework issue that I wrote about in last week's hive continues to nag at me with a persistent low buzz. I am still inviting your thoughts and perspectives on this. Thank you to those of you that took the time to email me. 
I would like to invite each of you to a voluntary meeting on Thursday, February 6th from 4-5 to discuss homework and how we could implement potential changes in a way that makes sense for our students and families. 

Budget Update

We remain in a holding pattern for the budget. Our next major milestone should have been Friday. I will update you as soon as I know anything. 

Homeless Liason

Samantha "Rockstar" Betti is our new homeless liaison replacing Michelle who used to serve in this role. Sam will be working closely with the central office team in charge of the Homeless Education Resource Network (HERN). Please let Sam know ASAP of any families that are currently homeless or facing homelessness. 

If you would like to learn more about the BPS HERN this is a link to their website.  

HERN has a toolkit for schools that Sam will be using in her expanded role. There are resources that you may want to review for if/when families approach you with concerns. 

Cell Phone Numbers

In order to improve our communication during a crisis, it is critical that we have a group cell phone chain. Please complete this form with your name and cellphone # by January 24th. Please share the form link with your colleagues who you know do not read the Hive. As of 8:33 on 1/24/20 we only had 13 responses. Thank you to those that responded. 

January 17, 2020

Dr. Jodi's Precept

"All, Here, and Now" ~ Martin Luther King Jr.

Honey- Do List 

Names of students for possible retention to Jodi- January 17th

Complete form with Cell Phone #- January 24th

Huddle with CSR-January 28th

Select a time for me to read to your class-January 31st

 The Buzz in My Brain

Spotify has an amazing playlist called "We Shall Overcome". I have been listening to it all week in the car during my commutes. I even suspended listening to my murder mystery podcast so I could dive into this. What makes the playlist so great is that the majority of the content is recordings of Dr. King's speeches both the famous ones and some of the less famous. It has been powerful to listen to. Unfortunately, much of the power comes from how applicable his words remain to our country today. I have found myself increasingly inspired as I listen and often relisten to these amazing speeches. I encourage those of you that have Spotify to give this playlist a listen. 

Budget Update

We are in a holding pattern for the budget. Our next major milestone will be on January 24th. 

Paper Consumption

Noreen suggested that we purchase some much cheaper manilla paper for projects. Is this something that you would be interested in?

Shelter in Place

I had no idea on Tuesday morning how timely our conversation would become. I want to commend each of you for the job that you and your students did sheltering in place. It was truly amazing. I was caught up in the incident and I did not realize how quiet the building was until I gave the all-clear and the building "woke up". 

My one takeaway is that we need to be clearer in our language when calling a shelter in place. By having people go to individual teachers there was confusion whether we were having a lockdown or a shelter in place because the message was muddled. Though infrequent, I anticipate that Shelter in Place will be the safety protocol that we have to use most frequently. When we shelter in place we stay where we are when the protocol is called. Shut our doors and keep our students out of the hallways. Until the all-clear is given. There is no need to have students be silent (quiet is good enough), or hidden. 

I want to thank everyone that was directly involved in the incident. your professionalism and dedication to the welfare of our students and families were noticed and appreciated. It was because of you that the incident went so smoothly. Your actions allowed me to support the sibling and the significant other in the manner that I believe they needed. 

I also want to thank everyone who checked on me to make sure that I was alright. I can't say that I want to do that every day but there is no other team I would rather be playing on than ours in that situation. Your support helped me to the finish line and lifted much of the stress and anxiety I was feeling. 

Cell Phone Numbers

In order to improve our communication during a crisis or just because we're the most awesome group of colleagues, I want to create a group chat for us. Please complete this form with your name and cellphone # by January 24th. Please share the form link with your colleagues who you know do not read the Hive. 

Homework

Why do we give our youngest learners homework? Research does not support the practice. Homework is often the worst part of a child's and family's day and for our learners may potentially hurt their curiosity and love of learning. Do we see benefits from the homework that we are assigning? 

I have been pondering these questions and wondering if a monthly activity sheet might be more engaging for children and stimulate conversations between our students and their families. Some examples of what I am talking about are below:
Example 1
Example 2
Example 3

I would like to hear your thoughts and opinions on this. I am trying to figure out how to best facilitate a community conversation about the issue. If you have any ideas feel free to share them!