New Schedules Message from Mrs. Dwyer

This year has been full of changes and adjustments as we gather new information and learn more about this virus. One thing we have learned over these past few months is that cohorting will be key to reducing the spread of the virus in schools. This can be tricky for middle and high school students, as students have different schedules and graduation paths. To be able to have our students return to school in a safe manner, and completely cohorted, we had to look at a new way to do school.

We have been working on implementing a cohorted block schedule for grades 7-12. Each grade will be broken into groups, and those groups will travel together to their core subjects. Students in grades 7-11 will be in school from 8:00-10:40 am Monday through Thursday. They will travel to math, science, ELA, and Social Studies in their cohorted groups, with staggered transition times to avoid mixing groups in the hallways. At 10:40 am, students will be given a bagged lunch if they want one, and will then be bussed home. In the afternoons, starting at 12:00 pm, students will attend classes virtually, meeting with all the classes where they would have potentially had to mix cohorts. For example, your student may attend Language classes, band, chorus, Health, and others, virtually, as there is no way to avoid mixing of these groups within the building. This schedule is designed to keep students and staff safe, while limiting exposure, and also learning in-person, which we know is critical for many of our learners. 12th graders will attend classes virtually in the morning, and will enter the building at 12:00 pm for in-person learning in their core subjects. Fridays will be a remediation and small group instruction day, where students will learn virtually at home, if requested by their teacher.

Our high school full time virtual learners will receive their instruction on Fridays and will follow the Friday schedule as they have been doing. Our middle school full time virtual learners will receive their instruction between the hours of 3pm and 5pm, Monday through Thursday, as they have been doing.

Next week, 7th-12th grade students will be receiving a new schedule in the mail. 7th and 8th grade will start tentatively on February 1st. Students will enter the building no earlier than 7:45am. They will report directly to their new homeroom teacher. Grades 9-12 will follow their new schedule, virtually starting February 1st. The tentative return day for grades 9-12 is February 8th.

Upon arrival in the mornings, students will be able to grab a bagged breakfast, stop at their lockers, and report to their homeroom. Students will have limited locker use, as we are trying to avoid congregating in the hallways. Students will be able to stop at their locker upon arrival and before leaving the building.

At that bottom of the new schedule sent home, is a full virtual schedule. We will not follow this schedule unless all grades 7-12 go remote again due to large spread in our area. Please hold onto this new schedule so you are able to reference it, should we need to move to full virtual again.

Please visit our website to see a video explanation of this message. If you have any questions, please contact the school. We will be happy to assist you in any way that we can. Thank you for your understanding and flexibility. I am always amazed at the support and perseverance our students and families exhibit. Thank you and stay safe.