Counseling Office Weekly Update
April 6th-10th, 2020
Parkway North Counseling Office
Email: mzitza@parkwayschools.net
Website: https://www.parkwayschools.net/domain/926
Location: 12860 Fee Fee Road, St. Louis, MO, USA
Paul Arthur
Jamesell Kee
Chandra Brown
Lindsay Kerlin
Stephanie Bluestein
Caitlin Tritch
Just a reminder that we are available for you!
All school counselors, the social worker, and the care coordinator will be checking their emails throughout the day and will be available for virtual or phone counseling appointments between 9:00-10:00 am and 1:00-2:00 pm. Students who would like to make an appointment can do so by sending an email to their counselor.
IMPORTANT UPDATES
Here is the most recent update from Dr. Marty:
In order to protect the health and safety of our families and employees, we are temporarily suspending daily meal pickup and Chromebook distribution.
Food for our children is one of our primary concerns right now. We also have an obligation to ensure we are not putting our students, families and employees at risk. As cases of COVID-19 increase in St. Louis County, you may have seen reports of employees in other school districts who have reported cases of coronavirus and potential exposure of others, specifically employees who work on the front lines of meal distribution in the region.
We regret having to make this difficult decision but know it’s the right thing to do at this time. The temporary suspension of meal services began yesterday (Monday, April 6). In order to help our families, we provided four meals per student at meal pickup yesterday. Chromebook pickup will be available this week on Wednesday, April 8 and then will be temporarily suspended. Technology support through our Help Desk will continue for our families and staff on Monday-Friday from 7 am - 7 pm.
Right now, we are working to put additional safety plans and precautions in place to protect our community and employees, including protective equipment. As soon as we have an update on when we might resume services, we will share it with you.
In the meantime, we want to provide resources for access to meals in our community. Please share with anyone you know who may be in need.
St. Louis County Library and Operation Food Search will provide drive-thru food pick-up for children from 10 am - Noon at nine branches across the St. Louis area. Participating branches will provide two shelf-stable breakfasts and two lunches Monday, Wednesday and Friday, while supplies last. Meals will be available free of charge for children ages 18 and under. You can also call the Operation Food Search Hunger Hotline at 314-726-5355. Click here for more information.
Thank you for your understanding and patience as we work through this situation to provide ongoing support to our communities.
Dr. Marty
Superintendent
Grading Update
Update from Dr. Marty:
Grading and Expectations
Our goals remain the same:
- Keep students connected to learning experiences.
- Provide some normalcy for students through engagement in learning activities and relationships with their teachers.
Given the challenges associated with learning from home, we will minimize the impact of grades during this closure and focus on essential learning and growth for our students.
Middle and High School: Students can continue to improve the grades they had prior to Spring Break. Work done during eLearning will be limited to a small percentage of the semester grade.
For more detailed information about grading and reporting, see our eLearning for Students webpage.
Four-Day Schedule
This national crisis has made it abundantly clear that we are not operating under normal circumstances or schedules. Whether it is eLearning, entire families working from home, or substantially different routines, this is all new for everyone. We recognize the challenges our families and staff are facing as many are balancing school with their own careers, childcare, basic needs, stress and potential financial concerns. Our schedules and lives are unusual and this is not a time to add unnecessary stress for our families and staff. Our goal continues to be providing positive support for students and giving them opportunities to engage, learn and grow.
In order to address many of the challenges you shared, we will move eLearning for students to a four-day schedule starting the week of April 13. Students will participate in eLearning on Monday-Thursday and Friday will be a teacher workday.
Our plan for a four-day schedule allows for the following:
- Focus on quality learning Monday-Thursday with Friday as a day for students and families to catch up, relax and spend time with family or outdoors.
- Teachers will use Fridays for continued professional growth to support your students in an online environment. They will have opportunities to learn more about Schoology, how to streamline platforms, ways to interact live with students and general best practices for online learning.
- Fridays will also be used for teachers to communicate with individual students and families that may have more unique challenges or concerns, as needed.
12th Grade Updates
Plans are under way for class meeting/chat session. Stay tuned for that. Administration is looking into ways to celebrate your class. If you have ideas for this please email me.
11th Grade Updates
Tuesdays: 2pm - 2:30pm
Thursdays: 10 am - 10:30 am
10th Grade Update
Week 3 of E-learning Sophomores:
4/6/2020
Happy Healthy Monday Sophomores,
I pushed out a Google Survey for you all to use if you feel like you need to talk or you need support with E-Learning. Parents, I pushed out a similar email to you all as well to "check-in".
As mentioned last week, I am willing to meet with you all virtually either via the phone or Google Hangout. I am here to support you all, just let me know how. I am hopeful that you all have been able to create you a routine which includes rest, socializing, academics, exercising and diet. I know that these times are different and ever changing. Just remember we are here for you and we understand, we are figuring this out together.
Please see another example of an organizer to help with your time management and task completion created by Dr. Page.
Google Spreadsheet - Digital Planner
Continue to be the greatests versions of yourselves this week!
Ms. Brown
Resource Reminder
Parkway Website: https://www.parkwayschools.net/Page/10020
Meal Request: https://www.parkwayschools.net/domain/2421
Technology request or assistance: https://www.parkwayschools.net/domain/2420
9th Grade Updates
Week 3 of E-Learning Updates
If needed, I am available to provide additional support by meeting with you all virtually either via the phone or Google Hangout. I hope that you all have established a daily routine and are making time to take care of your physical, mental, and social/emotional health. Check out the Mental Health Tips section of this newsletter for a virtual connection challenge!
I have included the link for the check-in form that I shared last week. It is not mandatory, but feel free to fill it out and let me know how you are doing. It is a short questionnaire, so if you have the time to fill it out, I would love to hear from you :) I have also included a link below for parents to check-in with me as well.
I know that these circumstances are unusual and unpredictable. Please remember that all of us here at North High are here for you and we will figure out how to navigate these uncertain times together. Please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns you may have. Keep up the good work and have a great week! :)
Student Check-In Form:
Parent Check-In Form:
College Counseling Updates
College Q&A
Mrs. Bluestein needs suggestions!
I miss spending my days at North High every day and interacting with students and staff. I am trying to stay busy, but I could use some suggestions!
Let me know what you are up to, suggest some tv shows, movies, books, etc.
Juniors: Virtual College Exploration
MOACAC and StriveScan are partnering to offer high school juniors four full days of virtual presentations.
VIRTUAL COLLEGE EXPLORATION WEEK
Monday, April 20 - Thursday, April 23, 2020
Free for students. Space is limited.
300+ colleges from 44 states and 10 countries
96 sessions over 4 days
Day and evening options
Panel presentations on a range of topics for juniors and underclassmen
Free and open to students nationwide
Transcript Request/Release
Along with this form, please submit a formal request in writing to Stephanie Bluestein at sbluestein@parkwayschools.net. In this request, please state the reason why you are requesting a transcript and where it needs to be sent.
*If you are requesting a transcript for college admissions, this must be requested via Naviance.
Care Coordinator Updates
Using Mindfulness to Cope: Part II
1. Triangle Breathing - click on the YouTube video. Inhale when the triangle expands and exhale when the triangle contracts.
2. 5 Senses Grounding Technique - see the worksheet attached!
3. 5 Finger Breathing - see the attached link. Trace your fingers and inhale when you trace up and exhale when you trace down.
Let me know if you tried these and what you think!
Mental Health Tips
Connection Challenge
We know that practicing Social Distancing has made it more difficult to connect with friends, families, teachers, and other important people in your lives. It is important to find ways to stay connected during these times, even if only virtually. We challenge you to choose a few ideas from the list below each week to complete. Feel free to share with us how you are staying connected!
Write about something you are grateful for and post a picture on social media (or just write it in your journal!)
Write a physical letter to a friend from school and mail it to them.
Facetime or Google Chat with a friend you haven’t talked to in over a week
Write a note to an “essential worker” you know - this could be a firefighter, police officer, doctor, nurse, healthcare provider, grocery store clerk, etc. Put it in the mail or take a walk and deliver it (maintaining distance, of course)
Call a cousin, aunt, uncle, or family friend
Facetime a grandparent or family member, or teach them how to use zoom or google meet. They would love to see you!
Ask someone else in your home how they are feeling that day. Listen to their answer.
Call a friend or family member and tell them a funny (clean) joke.
Draw a picture for someone in your life - either mail it to them or facetime them to show them what you drew.
Journal about this: “Who has had the biggest impact on the person you’ve become?” If possible, call or write to this person to tell them about what you wrote.
Ask a friend - what’s a weird fashion trend you followed when you were younger? Show pictures if you can find them!
Write down a quality that you appreciate about someone else you live with… then tell them!
Go on a walk and take a picture of something you think is interesting. Share it with someone in your life
Write about a disappointment you are currently experiencing. Share that with someone. Ask them to share a disappointment with you.
Think of three things you love about yourself. Write them down. Tell a friend and ask them to do the same. Talk about what you love about yourselves!
Video chat with a group of friends and play charades or pictionary with them
Send an email to your favorite teacher to check in and see how they are doing
Arrive at a friend’s sidewalk or driveway and serenade them! Or, just wave and say hi. You can also write a positive message for them on their driveway with chalk.
Order someone a thoughtful gift and have it sent to them (if it is within your financial means).
Host a virtual movie night and discuss it afterwards.
Record yourself reading a children’s book or telling a story and send it someone who has kids.
Resources that are available to you via the Parkway School District or outside agencies.
If you have an emergency (including a mental health emergency) outside of those hours please call one of the following resources for help:
National Suicide Prevention Hotline: 1-800-273-8255
Behavioral Health Response Crisis Line: 1-800-811-4760
Behavioral Health Response Crisis Line: 1-800-811-4760
Youth Connection Helpline: (314) 819-8802
Saint Louis Crisis Nursery: 314-768-3201
Salvation Army: 211 (mortgage, utility bills, clothing, medication bills, etc.)
Parkway Website: https://www.parkwayschools.net/Page/10020
Food information
Food information for Parkway Families: https://www.parkwayschools.net/domain/2421
If you are in need of food, there are options and forms on our parkway website, accessible by the link above.
Technology Information: https://www.parkwayschools.net/domain/2420
Grief Resources: