At Home Learning

Letter To Parents_Students (3_25_20)

 

Parents and Students,

 

The plans are for Benjamin ISD to begin “At Home Learning” on Monday, March 30.

Obviously, we are all in unprecedented times as we deal with the situation we are in with

COVID-19. As we begin our alternative educational process, we ask that you, as parents

and students, assist us by ensuring that education continues in the most effective and

efficient way possible.

 

This will be a challenging time for teachers, parents, and students. It will take all of us

working together to make certain that education is taking place and that students are

continuing to learn. As you probably are aware of, the STAAR has been suspended for

the remainder of this school year. However, I want to emphasize that we continue to

have extremely high expectations for our students, and we want to ensure that the TEKS

are covered as thoroughly as possible.

 

As we begin the instructional continuity process, you will see that we will utilize a

combination of paper packets and online learning. Some teachers will implement online

learning, while others will use only paper packets. Still others may use a combination of

the two. It will be imperative that students check their email regularly, if they have an

account, for the online learning process. If they do not have an account, they may need

to establish one, or maybe the teacher can email the information to the parent. For the

paper packets, pick-ups and deliveries will occur weekly, beginning Friday, March 27.

For this first week, only delivery of lessons will take place. Beginning the following

Friday, which is April 3, this will involve turning in of the current week’s assignments as

you pick up work for the following week. Several of you indicated that you would be

able to pick up packets at the school. For those that indicated that, we would ask that

parents or students pick up packets and drop off completed assignments at the school

on Fridays between 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. If you indicated that you would not be able to pick

up packets at the school, we will be delivering those packets. If you reside in Rochester,

O’Brien, Knox City, or Munday, delivery and pick-up of work will occur at the normal bus

stops in those communities according to the following schedule. As you will note, the

window to pick up is not very long, but in order for us to get to all locations in a timely

manner, we must adhere strictly to this schedule. If you do not make it to the stop

within this time frame, you will be required to come to the school to pick up your packet

and deliver the previous week’s work on the following Monday. If you have a conflict

that cannot be remedied, please let us know.

Rochester 2:15 - 2:30 p.m.

O’Brien 2:35 - 2:50 p.m.

Knox City 3:00 - 3:30 p.m.

Munday 3:00 - 3:30 p.m.

 

This instructional continuity process is new and may have kinks that must be worked

through. It will be a time of modifying and adjusting, probably for all involved. However,

it is a process that can be successful during this time. Again, we ask for your support

and to make sure that students are spending time as needed on their lessons, whether

via paper packets or online, or both. Teachers may send optional lessons home to

allow students who want any extension activities the opportunity to have them. There

are some resources available that may be shared with you that allow families to

interact, thus extending learning activities. I think it is fair and reasonable to expect a

child to spend up to four hours per day working on assignments for school. In order for

students to stay alert and focus on their assignments, I would suggest breaking that

time into intervals of no more than one and half hours at a time.

 

Meals are also being provided by the school districts within the county. Students who

reside within the boundaries of the Munday CISD may pick up meals at the Munday

Elementary School according to the following schedule:

Breakfast: 8:00 - 9:00 a.m.

Lunch: 11:30 a.m - 12:30 p.m.

 

Students who reside within the boundaries of the Knox City-O’Brien CISD may pick up

meals in front of the cafeteria according to the following schedule:

Breakfast: 8:00 - 9:00 a.m.

Lunch: 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

 

We have a few families that live within the Benjamin ISD boundaries that requested

meals. We will begin serving those meals on Monday, March 30. Due to the low

numbers that requested meals in Benjamin, we will bundle breakfast/lunch and those

meals will be available for pick-up between 9:30-10:30 a.m. each weekday.

 

The district, along with state and county officials, continue to emphasize the importance

of using this time as a time of social distancing. Health and government officials

recommend maintaining a distance of 6 feet from other people.

 

H ere are some things that parents and students can do to reduce the risk of

contracting diseases like COVID-19:

 

1. Avoid close contact with people who are sick.

2. Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.

3. Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.

4. Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.

5. Stay home when you are sick, except to get medical care.

6. Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.

 

Again, we appreciate your support as we begin this new endeavor. Please do not

hesitate to call the school if you have any questions. Our current office hours are

9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Letter To Parents_Students (3_25_20)

Sincerely,

Gordon Thomas

Interim Superintendent

Benjamin ISD