Week number one with students is over. If each day was like Monday, I would not have made it. The great news is this...on Monday, everyone stayed calm. The students were awesome, the parents were really supportive (and continue to be) and the staff wants to do things right! I consider week one, as hard as it was at times to be a MAJOR victory. Now we build from here. As we move forward, I will share some things that I am hearing to make remote learning even better for all of us. As always, share your thoughts, strategies and ideas with me on what you are doing at home or what you believe we can improve upon. [email protected]
- I hear that students are getting the hang of things. As I mentioned earlier, they have been patient and been going with the flow. We have been through a ton of training and sharing of ideas.
- We want the student to log in with their name on at the bottom of their Zoom screen so that teachers can get to know them by name better.
- Reminder that the TeacherEase schedule and the Remote Learning schedule are slightly different. This came up quite a bit this week. We should be good on this one but just in case, here is the link to the Remote Learning Schedule.
Schedule Creator LINKS:
Click here to see the enhanced remote learning schedule and docs to write in.
- If your student is having trouble with their technology, check this link out.
Family Technology Hub: the Family Technology Hub has resources and tutorials for families and students to reference. These resources and tutorials support remote learning and technology needs. Click on Family Technology Hub to contact our help desk. Look for Tech Issues?
Curriculum Night
Curriculum Night for all three grade levels will be on Thursday, September 10th. Details will be communicated in a future blog!
Substitute Teacher Plan
In the event that any of your child's teachers are absent, we have initiated a teaching partner system. Because our teachers plan instruction collaboratively as content-alike and specials teams, the teaching partner system will provide students the opportunity to learn grade-level material with students in another teacher's classroom in your child's home building or possibly from a teacher at the other middle school. We believe this provides the best possible scenario for our students. In the event that partner teachers are unavailable, back-up plans have been put into place. Teachers will post their absence in Schoology and provide directions for students regarding accessing appropriate Zoom sessions for synchronous learning. This will be in place beginning on Monday, August 31, 2020.
Attendance
Attendance per class period is required as we return to school this August. This is different from remote learning in the spring. Please contact the school office if your student will be absent from class at any time throughout the school day. Parents will be required to provide a reason for the absence. If your student is ill, symptoms will need to be provided to the school office. If your child will be absent for any portion of the day for any reason, please contact the office to let us know. Mrs. Kazuk is our contact for attendance [email protected] 847-353-8500.
Woodlawn Masks and Yard Signs
I have asked the PTO to keep the sales open for one more week. I bought a Woodlawn mask as a memento for this crazy time. Your student can tuck this away as a remembrance of living through a pandemic while they were in middle school. I also love it when I drive through a neighborhood and see Woodlawn signs on the lawn. I enjoy that Woodlawn presence in the community. You will need to go in through your membership toolkit account.
As always, visit the PTO Blog!
A Video From Our New School Resource Officer
Buffalo Grove School Resource Officer Greeting for Students (video: 30 sec.)
Buffalo Grove School Resource Officer Essig introduces himself and shares encouraging words for students starting this new school year.
MAP Testing
District 96 will be administering the NWEA MAP test remotely in September. Please be on the lookout for more information in my next Principal’s Message.
Clubs/Study Halls/Activities
We are excited to start our clubs, activities, and study halls. As the students and staff are acclimating to remote learning, we will be pushing back the start date of our clubs, activities, and study halls to September 8th.
Family Expectations in the Remote Learning Environment
Please see the Family Expectations in the Remote Learning Environment from the district.
REMEMBER TO MEET HEALTH FORM REQUIREMENTS
Health form requirements vary by grade level and for new/returning students. New to District 96 (all grade levels)? See MORE INFO regarding grade-level specific health form requirements.
All students entering Grade 6 must have their CERTIFICATE OF CHILD HEALTH EXAMINATION/IMMUNIZATION FORM (signed by the physician) on file in the school office by October 15, 2020.
Additional Grade 6 health form requirements include the DENTAL EXAMINATION FORM by May 15, 2021.
Materials Pick Up - Middle School
There is no date set up for materials pick up at this point. Once we decide on everything that we need and get all the materials in, we will set up a date and time for pickup. Thank you to everyone who has been asking.
Finally, our life experiences shape our behaviors. I was an expert at getting my friends in trouble at school. I had amazing timing and was able to play innocent as a buddy would get caught in a retaliatory action against me. I would then act as if I had no idea why my buddy would haul off and smack me as the teacher would send him out of the room or to (get this) the principal’s office. It was a gift. At 19 years old, I didn’t fear much. My college baseball coach was the exception. He was an intense, hard nosed competitor who I loved and at times, hated just moments apart. When we returned to school on January 7th, I was driving to school in a light rain/snow storm which didn’t bother me at all. On New Year’s Eve just a week before, it had snowed 7 inches of light powder. While I was in my morning classes, the wind kicked up and at the same time, a legitimate blizzard hit our school. Being an off campus student, I lived about 5 miles away from school, traveling on a very hilly, 2 laned highway. As the team realized that we were in the middle of a blizzard, I was voted, unanimously, to talk to our coach about the possibility of cancelling practice. After a 30 minute lecture on hard work, dedication and commitment, I walked into our locker room and told the boys that we had a great opportunity to practice and start our season off the right way. One of my teammates lived in a small town, 25 minutes away from school. I told him to follow me back to my apartment and I would give him clothes to wear for practice. He agreed to follow me and off we went. I immediately knew that this was weather I had never driven in before and my tiny, beater of a car was having trouble getting any kind of traction. Making our way to the main highway, I could barely see the car in front of me. As the weather intensified, the visibility was down to a couple of feet. Approaching the top of the steepest hill on the drive, I thought I saw brake lights flash in front of me. I wasn’t sure as I started descending down the hill. Again, I thought there was the flash of red from the brake lights in front of me. Now, as I am gaining speed heading down this hill and losing traction, I hit the brakes. Nothing. I am gaining even more speed and now I am just a couple of feet away from the car in front of myself, I go full out, two feet on the brake, trying to slow down. I am literally riding down this hill, two feet on the brakes, arms extended, doing everything I can to stop. As I approach the bottom of the hill, both the car in front of me and my car come to a full stop. I did it. I stopped within 2 inches of the car that had been hitting its brakes. As I looked in the rearview mirror, I saw my buddy flying, riding his brake as he smashed into me. BAM!! With my foot still on the brake, I rocked up and braced myself. As we exited our cars, I asked him if he was alright. Before he could answer, I was looking over his shoulder at 3 cars flying down this hill. “Get out of the road!” We both ran to the other side of the highway and started watching cars come down this hill. Three at a time…WHAM! WHAM! WHAM! It continued, more cars. WHAM! WHAM! WHAM! My buddy and I stood there, not believing our eyes. We started running up the hill to stop the cars but a giant 18 wheel truck had stopped at the top of the hill, ending the parade of runaway cars. 23 cars were involved in this pile up. Standing with the other drivers for over an hour, a State Trooper finally pulled up. Assessing the situation, he looked back and forth at the pile of wrecked cars. Shaking his head, he had a pained look on his face when he asked, “Who was the second car in this mess?” Before I could get any words out, my buddy was pointing a finger at me, gladly projecting the words, “HE WAS!” In that instant, I felt years of payback for all of those that I had wronged.
This is a 100% true story.
Have a great weekend!