March 24, 2020

 

Dear Lower School parents,


When I last saw you in person, I knew of the major life change I faced with the arrival of a new baby. However, none of us anticipated the changes in the world and our community that would unfold during my maternity leave. This unprecedented event in our lives is altering the way we do everything, including educating our children. I want to assure you that we as a Lower School family are up to that challenge. Lower School administration has been working with senior administration, the technology team, and our faculty to plan for a successful transition to remote learning. Your children's teachers have been busy working together to ensure they deliver creative, engaging, and educational lessons to your Lower School students via technology.


I will truly miss seeing the Lower School children, but I look forward to the creative ways I will connect with them during our time apart. The same goes for the rest of Lower School administration and teachers, who love their students dearly and will work for a successful experience for everyone. I thank you in advance for your optimism, patience, and flexibility. Your Lower School team will continuously adjust its approach to remote teaching as needed, while always keeping the best interest of our dear children as its top priority.


I share below some recommendations and insights on our transition to remote learning, which begins tomorrow:


Preparing for Remote Learning: Let the Adventure Begin!

 

• Explore http://family.pdtogether.org/ in full. It will highlight what you should expect from this experience. 
• The Student Services page contains contact information for all of its team members including Lower School Counselor Margot Brinley. There is a wealth of resources on this page to help you with your children's social emotional health during this time. While this is a confusing time for many of our children, the Student Services team is available to support them. Please read Talking to Kids About the Coronavirus for tips on helping your children cope with their uncertainty.
• Please see this optional Daily Schedule that may be helpful in structuring your child's weekdays. This schedule is purely optional as we understand that each household will have different needs and priorities throughout the day.
• Take a deep breath and remind yourselves that we are all in this together! We are here to help you navigate your days ahead and to offer grace to one another with our best-laid plans.
  
  Today: Tuesday, March 24th
• You will receive your lesson plans/activities for this week (Wednesday-Friday) by 4:00 p.m. from your classroom teachers.  
• At the top of each set of lesson plans, teachers will provide you with the materials needed to complete the assignments.
• As we would have done if school were in session, we will ease back into our curriculum and review key concepts taught prior to the break during the next week and a half.
• Contact your classroom teachers with any questions about the provided lesson plans. 
  
  Tomorrow: Wednesday, March 25th
• Remote learning begins!
• Be patient and flexible with yourselves and your children as we tackle this new challenge together.
  
  Thursday, March 26th
• You will receive a check-in email from your classroom teachers. Within this email, you will also receive Special Area lesson plans.
• For the first two weeks, World Language (WL) lessons will only be provided for 2nd-5th graders. Should remote learning continue past two weeks, WL lessons will be made available for TK-1st grade students.
  
  Friday, March 27th
• You will receive lesson plans for the week of March 30th - April 3rd from your classroom teacher. (We realize that more parent involvement may be necessary for Lower School students, so getting plans on Friday should help you plan for the week ahead. Note: this is different from Michael Magno's email that said plans would be emailed on Sunday).
  
  Monday, March 30th
• You will receive an email from me which will include a brief survey for Lower School parents. Remote Learning will be a work in progress and my goal is to collect constructive feedback about the first few days of the experience.
• Virtual Spirit Week begins! Please tag the Lower School Instagram Account (pdslowerschool) and Providence Day (#PDSChargers) when posting your pictures! Monday: Pajama Day, Tuesday: Mismatch Day, Wednesday: Spring Color Day, Thursday: Favorite Sports Team Day, and Friday: PD Spirit Day.
  
  In the Future
• All Lower School campus events and gatherings are cancelled (this includes the Class Placement event scheduled for this evening).
• In the event that remote learning continues after April 3rd, you should expect new concepts to be introduced by Lower School teachers. 
  
  Until we are together again, I look forward to collaborating with our dedicated faculty for an experience that is engaging and meaningful for all of our students. And last but not least, please share the following Mrs. Harper's Greeting Video with your Lower School students. I miss them all so much!
  
  
  Keep in close touch,
  Erin