It was so great seeing so many familiar faces through the car window last Friday and Monday. We even got to see some of the kiddos, which was fantastic!! We are waiting to see when the school will be open again for pick up/drop off. Once the stay home order is cancelled, we will start up again with abbreviated office hours, as we were doing before.

I want to thank all of you for two big items. First, so many of you wanted to share your blessings (because you are still working and are healthy) so you brought/mailed in gift cards for those in our community who are struggling. It was so kind and thoughtful. I have started getting those out to families and should be done in the next few days. To that end, if you are a family who has lost one or more sources of income and need assistance, please contact me so that I can make sure to get some assistance to you from our extremely generous community. This is what makes us such a special community!

Second, thank you for taking the time to complete the surveys for your child's teacher(s). They were VERY informative. I have collated and disseminated all of the data and shared it with the teachers. We then discussed the results and how we may want to adjust things going forward. The topics were focused on the curriculum delivery method (online vs print), platform (Seesaw, Google Classroom, Zoom), work load, and frequency of online classes. We know that we cannot please everyone. That has always been the case with homework, when you have one parent complaining about too much while another parent is complaining about too little...in the exact same class. I want you to know our focus, however. We are making sure that we are providing education to our students that is focused on mastery of the essential learning targets for the current instructional year, while preparing them for the start of their next year. So, the surveys can be very valuable...if we get enough responses. Here is one way we look at them. If a survey has 18 respondents and shows 14 in the "right amount" column, while 2 are "too much" and 2 are "too little", then we feel like it is going well...not perfect, but well.

We know that families are in so many situations right now. Some are experiencing health or financial problems. Some are trying to work outside the home and help their children. Some are trying to work from home while still helping children with classwork and meetings. And some are under the stress of no longer being employed. This past week, we have heard from parents who have children who are stressed out and anxious about not being at the school or seeing their friends and they feel lost and not sure how to help their child. Kids who were once happy go lucky are full of anxiety and no longer wanting to do what they used to. This is stressful on the whole family. We understand. The single most important thing is that your child makes it through all of this in a healthy state...physically and mentally. We are providing work that we feel is important, but nothing is more important than their health. So, if you are struggling with their moods, the work load, or anything else, please just touch base with your child's teacher. They (we) are all happy to work with you. We can solve any of this together, so don't hesitate to let us know. And, to those who already have been in contact, thank you for trusting us to help. Above all, the teachers, staff, and I just want the kids to be happy, healthy, and growing! Again, thank you for your patience, your hard work, and your communication. Thank you to the teachers, as well, since they have been working SO HARD to roll out this new style of learning. It has not been easy, but it is worth the struggle.

Our online auction dates have been set...save the date. The silent auction will be held May 27th - 29th and the live auction will be on May 30th from 5 - 8 pm. Don't forget to let your families from all over the country (and the world) know, so that they can bid!!

Have a blessed week and don't forget to get out and get some fresh air. It is beautiful in the sunshine...in between the rain.

Blessings,

Katie Dempsey

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/KWB6NW7

Thank you for taking the time to complete this.

PK/K (25 surveys/57 students):

• Workload: Just about right = 15, Too much = 5, Too little = 5
• Communication: Great = 12, Good = 7, OK = 6, Needs Improvement = 0
• Curriculum Delivery: Online = 5, Paper = 3, Mix of Paper and Online = 17

1st/2nd (43 surveys for both English and Spanish):

• Workload: Just about right = 29, Too much = 9, Too little = 5
• Communication: Great = 24, Good = 12, OK = 5, Needs Improvement = 2
• Curriculum Delivery: Online = 21, Paper = 4, Mix of Paper and Online = 15

3rd/4th (26 surveys for both English and Spanish):

• Workload: Just about right = 18, Too much = 8, Too little = 0
• Communication: Great = 11, Good = 9, OK = 5, Needs Improvement = 1
• Zoom classes held: More often = 1, Less often = 5, OK/About right = 20

5th - 8th (50 surveys for all 3 teachers):

• Workload: Just about right = 38, Too much = 7, Too little = 5
• Communication: Great = 16, Good = 14, OK = 10, Needs Improvement = 4
• Zoom classes held: More often = 9, Less often = 7, OK/About right = 34

• Type of Business (I.E. Tax, Landscape, Bakery, etc.)
• Website Address for Business
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• Contact Phone Number
• Family Name
• Grade Level of Students at HRBA (If you wish)