Superintendent's Message
Marc J. Smith - Dennis-Yarmouth Regional Schools
Solar Eclipse
Hello Dolphin Community,
On Monday, April 8th much of the United States will experience a Solar Eclipse. For us in Massachusetts, it will begin around 2 pm and last for about 2 and ½ hours. This is a great astronomical event and will present some great learning opportunities for our students. Given the timing, some of our students will be present in school when it starts, some will have just been dismissed, and others will soon be dismissed. As such it is important that, as a community, we share in educating students on the wonder and risks associated with a solar eclipse. For those students in school, some staff may have learning experiences planned tied to the eclipse. Finally, please know that planned after school activities will run as scheduled, so it is important to review this information with your child if they attend an outdoor after school activity as well.
Families, over the next few days, please review the following safety tips with your children to ensure that they can enjoy the eclipse safely.
Do not look directly at the eclipse.
If you choose to watch the partial phases of the solar eclipse directly with your eyes, which happens before and after totality, you must look through safe solar viewing glasses (“eclipse glasses”) or a safe handheld solar viewer at all times. You can also use an indirect viewing method, such as a pinhole projector. See NASA website here for more details
There is a standard for safe solar glasses, that standard can be found here on the AAS site
- This short video may be helpful for you and your family to review
All the best,
Marc J. Smith, Ed. D.
Superintendent