August 18, 2020, Student's First Day VIRTUAL LEARNING

Back to School Pep Rallies via Zoom (password: echs)

9:00 AM - 9th Grade Pep Rally (zoom link, meeting id: 872 7830 1750, password: echs)

10:30 AM - 10th Grade Pep Rally (zoom link, meeting id: 881 7284 7085, password: echs)

12:00 PM - 11th Grade Pep Rally (zoom link, meeting id: 828 4806 8877, password: echs)

1:30 PM - 12th Grade Pep Rally (zoom link, meeting id: 885 3366 8381, password: echs)

*Note that class attendance will be excused only if a student participates in the online pep rally.

August 24, 2020, College Classes Begin VIRTUAL LEARNING (check D2L for log-in info)

September 7, 2020, No School - Labor Day

ECHS will be beginning classes for all ECHS students on Tuesday, August 18, 2020. All classes will be virtual. We will send more information about access to classes as the date draws closer.

Beginning September 8th, ECHS will attend classes in the same setting (virtual or in-person) as all CCSD schools. The Board is expected to make that determination by the third week in August, and we will communicate information as we have it.

The 2020-21 ECHS Academic Calendar can be found here.

As you know, we have four (4) periods per day, and each period is about 90-minutes long. While 30 minutes of each class period will be used for a zoom meeting the remainder of the time each period, will be used for students to work on pre-assigned asynchronous work and partner assignments that will occupy your student for approximately 60 min.

On Fridays, students should be working on asynchronous work. Additionally, they may have virtual testing requirements for the state or small group meetings as determined by the teacher.

Please refer to your child's schedule and then use this chart to get the specific times of your child's class meeting and zoom links, meeting ids, and passwords.

Please note that dual credit college classes do not begin until August 24, and so your student may not have class during the period that his/her college class(es) meet until August 24, 2020. Our Academic Lab team will be working with your student this week to ensure he/she can access D2L and is ready for their college classes to begin next week.

NOTE: It is a schoolwide expectation that your camera is ON and your face is FULLY VISIBLE while attending virtual classes or meeting with teachers. For more school-wide expectations, please see our Student Handbook (linked below) and our ROAR Matrix, which outlines just some of our expectations for academic behavior.

If the work or class is described as ASYNCHRONOUS it means that you should work on your own, and at your own pace, but always meet specific deadlines.

Please see this matrix complete with the synchronous class meeting times and zoom links, meeting IDs, and passwords. Please be on the lookout for this important email.

NOTE: It is a schoolwide expectation that your camera is ON and your face is FULLY VISIBLE while attending virtual classes or meeting with teachers. For more school-wide expectations, please see our Student Handbook (linked below) and our ROAR Matrix, which outlines just some of our expectations for academic behavior.

Each day, teachers will continue to record attendance.

When students are working remotely or completing at home, participation in the live classroom sessions should be utilized for attendance. The teacher needs to be able to SEE the student on the screen in order for the student to be counted present. In certain circumstances (ex. at-home learning days), assignment completion by established teacher deadlines can be used to validate attendance.

The district will make appropriate accommodations for students who may be required to quarantine or self-isolate as a result of COVID-19 by offering remote instruction. As long as quarantined students are able to participate and complete assignments, they will be counted as present.

You will need to complete the ECHS Dual Enrollment Commitment Form. If we do not have this form on file by 2:00pm on Friday, August 21st, you will be dropped from your college courses. Once dropped, your spot is forfeited and re-enrollment can not be guaranteed.

Unless otherwise noted on your schedule, all Dual Enrollment classes are synchronous, meaning you must be logged in and present during the scheduled class time. If you have an asynchronous class, you are expected to work on your course independently.

Students will experience:

• 30-minute synchronous (all students together) class meeting each period each day at the start of the period. Students are expected to be visible on their screen during this time.

• Daily 10-15 min synchronous wrap-up of each class at the end of the period.

• They will complete asynchronous (each student independently) work each week in each class to include:

• Viewing of four 10-minute video segments

• A minimum of two partner assignments (ie. activities, discussions, written responses)

• Daily WICOR assignment

• 1-college-level academic writing activity

• weekly teambuilding and social-emotional activities.

• One small group or individual video conference with a teacher every two weeks.

• Students will not necessarily attend classes on Fridays we will use Fridays to:

• Schedule synchronous small groups with students who demonstrated academic struggle during the past week.

• Schedule synchronous small groups with students who demonstrate academic struggle.

• Allow students time to complete asynchronous assignments.

Please note that we will monitor our academic model closely and make adjustments as needed to ensure that we are maximizing student success.

• Dual Credit Overview
• What is Dual Credit?
• Impact on high school records
• Tuition cost and tuition assistance
• How to apply
• How to register
• Online Course Delivery at TTC
• General education classes
• Lab science classes
• Tutoring Services
• Writing Center
• Math Help
• Learning Resource Center/Library Resources
• Counseling Services/Services for Students with Disabilities
• LOTS OF Q&A!

PLEASE NOTE THAT ECHS PAYS ALL TUITION AND PROVIDES BOOKS FOR DUAL CREDIT CLASSES. PLEASE READ THE ECHS DUAL CREDIT ENROLLMENT COMMITMENT FOR MORE DETAILED INFORMATION ABOUT THE DUAL CREDIT OPPORTUNITY OFFERED AT ECHS.

Are you taking a Math class at TTC this semester? Join the TTC Math Help group on Facebook for FREE access to a tutor.

If you have questions that are easily answered by any ECHS employee, please call our Main Office at 843-720-5701 and we will be glad to assist.

Rising 9th-grade students, we will need you to submit a photo here. Please submit your photo by completing this form before September 1, 2020.

BUSES

For the purpose of busses, ECHS is considered a CCSD Magnet School. Student addresses are provided to First Student by ECHS. Students board the bus at a centralized meeting point as determined by Durham School Services. CCSD policy establishes that a stop must be within 5 miles of the student’s home address. It is the family’s responsibility to get the students to and from the stop, and we’ll do the rest. We expect bus routes to be published at this link in late July. If you do not see a stop within five miles of your home address, please complete the form at this link.

Pro Tip: Students may ride any ECHS-designated bus to and from school.

If you have any bus-related complaints throughout the year, please use this link to log your complaint. This is the way that CCSD tracks bus issues and shares them with Durham. I have found that when we use this form, there is generally a swift response.

Allconnect College Contest:

Allconnect® announces the Ultimate College Bundle Contest. Every college student can use a new laptop or money for books, right? For a chance to become one of three winners, college students are invited to submit an essay on where their field of study would be without the internet.

A team of judges from Allconnect.com will select the top three entrants based on the creativity demonstrated in the essay and the quality of the writing (including grammar, spelling, structure, flow and other features).

See link to complete the application:

DUE on the 1st day of school to your AVID teacher

Step 1: Students should read at least two Lexile-level appropriate books this summer. For one of the two books, students should make notes for each chapter which include all of the following elements:

• List and define unfamiliar words

• Explain literary elements https://literarydevices.net/, http://literary-devices.com

• Determine the main or most important ideas

• Describe connections to the text (text to text, text to self, text to world)

• Form inferences (I wonder why...I wonder how…)

• Make predictions

• Write personal reactions

• Identify lingering questions/thoughts

• The assignment must be neat in appearance (written or typed)

Step 2: At the end of each chapter, students should use this checklist to annotate notes (above).

This assignment must be your original work and written in your own words. Students will be graded on the quality and depth of their annotations for one of the two books read.

The assignment rubric can be found at this link.

Students may select any Lexile-appropriate books. If you are having trouble thinking of the right books for you, you can select one from our suggested list:

Rising 9th Grade Students

Rising 10th Grade Students

Rising 11th Grade Students

Rising 12th Grade Students

A Family Support Line has been established to provide a resource for students or parents that need additional support during this extended schools closure. This hotline is to assist families in connecting to resources which could be school counselors, parent advocates, DMH services, social workers, etc.

CCSD employees from the Departments of Alternative Programs, Counseling Services, and Intervention & Psychological Services will answer calls Monday – Friday from 9:00 am – 6:00 pm. The Family Support Hotline number is 843-937-7907.