Over the course of the summer, we worked tirelessly to prepare for reopening. I am grateful to my COVID-19 Task Force for assisting me with the myriad details related to the health and safety of our staff and students. This task force consists of parents, teachers, administrators, and board members. It truly takes a village to open a school in this challenging environment!

Power of the Pack!

To keep our Huskies as safe as possible, we are asking that there are no locker decorations this year. The "less is more" theory will be our norm until COVID is no longer a threat. In addition, first through eighth grade students should bring only their personal supplies on the first day of school. Y5 and kindergarten supplies can all be brought on the first day of school, as we are allowing parents to be in the building that day with a staggered start. If your student is an in-person student their homeroom teacher will communicate when to send "other " supplies.

Many of you have been asking for supply lists for your Husky Virtual Academy students. You will hear from our virtual teachers, Mrs. Fairbanks and Mrs. Horton, soon. They just received their class lists yesterday. Thank you for being patient.

We are so excited to see our Huskies in 10 days! For the health and safety of our student body and staff, it is critical for all our families to follow Michigan’s guidelines regarding COVID-19 as we head into the 20/21 school year. We have all seen the media accounts of schools that have opened and then closed due to students coming to school with symptoms. We do not want that to happen at Holly Academy!

As we have shared over the past month, masks are only required for elementary students in common areas. However, we are strongly recommending that our Y5- 5th grade students wear masks in the classroom. The ultimate decision still remains with families.

The expectation for our families is that you symptom check your child each morning prior to school. If any of the following symptoms are present, your Husky cannot attend school until they are symptom free for 48 hours. Primary care physicians should be contacted if symptoms are present for more than one day.

Fever (over 100.4F or 38C)

New shortness of breath

New cough

Chills

Muscle aches

New runny nose, nasal congestion, or sore throat

New loss of sense of smell or sense of taste

New headache

New diarrhea

New rash

Sometimes the best laid plans just do not work out. Originally, I had announced that we would be utilizing Odysseyware/SPARK for our Y5 - 2nd grade virtual and blended students. However, as teachers began the task of entering coursework, it quickly became evident that it was going to be incredibly cumbersome for students. Therefore the following changes were made:

1. Students will utilize Google Classroom to access videos of the day’s lessons and assignments.

2. Math lessons will be uploaded to Google Classroom for K-2, but the actual math work will be done through Big Ideas. Grade level specific information will be coming out in your Open House packet.

3. Teachers in Y5 - 2nd grade will be creating learning resources* to mirror what is done in school. This ensures our youngest Huskies are not missing a beat!

4. The learning resources will be provided to you electronically, or you may pick up at school in paper form.

*Learning resources consist of the work students would be doing in person. This work is NOT like the packet work from the spring. It is created by Holly Academy teachers and aligns to our in person lessons.

If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Potteiger at potteigj@hollyacademy.org

The 20-21 school year will look a little different in terms of drop off and dismissal. We drop off and dismiss this entire population in a 25 minute window using family cars carrying several students at a time. This is all coordinated without incident twice a day.

We are asking all families to follow the guidelines for morning drop off:

• Y5, Kindergarten and 1st grade students will enter the building though the main canopied entrance (M1). Parents may park in the parking lot and walk their students to the door. As a reminder, Parents are not allowed to enter the building after the first day of Y5 and Kindergarten. Please do not drop off students along the sidewalk.
• 2nd and 3rd grade students will enter the building through the west doors (M13) in the front of the building.
• 4th and 5th grade students will enter the building through the east doors (M12) in the front of the building.
• Middle school students may be dropped off at the middle school or in the front drop off lanes.

The following list is a brief overview of Holly Academy's dismissal procedures.

• The lane closest to the building will be designated for Y5/K families only.
• Please turn off your cell phone.
• Please stay in your lane.
• Staff will direct you to move forward or exit the parking lot.
• Be sure your sign (student last name, grade, and teacher) is clearly displayed.
• Turn on your right blinker when your car is loaded.
• Students may not exit vehicles once they have loaded.

• Mrs. Horton will be the HVA teacher for the following grade levels:

• Kindergarten

• 3rd

• 5th

• 6th

• 8th

• Mrs. Fairbanks is the HVA teacher for the following grade levels:

• Young 5’s

• 1st

• 2nd

• 4th

• 7th

• Mrs. Horton and Mrs. Fairbanks will be running reading groups, meeting in grade level groups via Zoom, and communicating with your student on their progress.

• Students will receive their login information on Monday, August 31 in their meeting with their online teacher.

• Your child’s grade level teacher or content area teacher will be the one assigning your student’s work and grading it in Odysseyware and on Big Ideas in grades 3 - 8.

• Math teachers will be posting math lessons in Google Classroom in all grade levels.

• Due to the backorder on chromebooks, students are allowed to bring their own devices this year. Students may bring laptops, Chromebooks, or tablets.

• If schools are closed by the state, all students will be virtual and your student’s assigned teacher(s) will be their virtual teacher.