Parsons ES Partyline
April 5, 2020
Admin is here to support you...we are sending this email to parents about keeping Friday open for planning! Sheri and Yolanda will share more information during your Tuesday grade level meetings.
Dear Parents,
I hope you all had a restful, happy Spring Break. Now that we have had two weeks of Digital Learning, we would like to share some plans as we continue with DLD after Spring Break. Teachers will provide new content to students Monday - Thursday each week. On Friday each week, teachers will use the day to provide feedback to students and to plan for the following week's instruction -"Feedback Friday". Our awesome teachers have been working at a fast-and-furious pace and learning a great deal over the last few weeks. Teachers may choose to hold sessions with various groups/individuals as needed on Fridays. They also need time to share best practices with each other. They also need time to find the 'just right' amount of work for the majority of our students. For students and parents, Fridays will become a day to review the work that has been completed over the week and catch up. We expect this will benefit our students greatly! One of the best things for students to do on Fridays, after reviewing any work, is to read a great book and practice math skills already learned. And...as always, getting some fresh air and running, playing, exercising is always a great option!
As of today (Sunday), the district's plan is for us to continue doing DLD. The county has created lessons (for each content area), so I would really like for y'all to use those whenever possible to decrease the amount of time y'all are having to locate, create, and innovate on your own! Hopefully, knowing that we have Friday as a day for students to catch up will provide you with some time to collaborate about what to include as paper packets for the following week.
The custodial team will be at school on Monday. We are working to deep-clean all rooms in the building (including the Gym). We will place a notice on the door that the room has been sanitized. We cannot have more than 10 staff members in the building at a time so you must schedule a time if you need to come by the school. If you need to go into a room after it has been sanitized, please notify Gabby and Laura. The room will need to be re-cleaned. We will focus initially on "hard materials" like desks, chairs, cabinets, sinks, faucets, door knobs, etc.
Yolanda and Sheri have shared with you that grading is "on the horizon". We will begin to have discussions about how to enter some grades into the grade book for work that has been completed and submitted. DO NOT STRESS about this!! We will think about how to do this and we will have a plan. For now...just keep helping students and providing feedback to their questions!
Please continue to share your concerns and questions about curriculum and instruction with Sheri, Yolanda, and me. We will do our best to provide answers.
In addition, Laura's cell number is 678-231-5307. If you need anything, please don't hesitate to text or call!
We will be checking out Chromebooks to some students this week!
DLD Sample Lessons and Overview Video
Here is the link to the DLD Sample Lessons and Overview Video. If you have not seen it yet, I think it would be super useful. I realize a lot of information is coming at you, so hopefully it is timely when I share meaningful resources I find. This is located in ECOMM on the left side of the home page.
https://safari.gwinnett.k12.ga.us/?g=ae5da1c0-69ff-11ea-a319-ecf4bbd89ac8
I don't always agree with politicians...but this from Superintendent Woods is QUITE true!!
Much, much love to you all!!
An open Letter from Superintendent Woods: School buildings are closed, but the hearts of educators remain open.
Governor Brian Kemp announced that all K-12 public schools would remain closed for in-person instruction for the rest of this school year. This is a hard reality, and a real loss – for teachers who miss their students, students who miss their teachers, and for our graduating seniors.
It is also the wisest decision, given what we know about COVID-19 and how it is affecting our state. I fully support the Governor’s decision. I deeply appreciate his deliberate decision-making during these uncertain times, as well as the partnership he’s had with me, the Georgia Department of Education, and Superintendents across the state during this unprecedented crisis.
Though schools are closed, the hearts of educators remain open. In this dark moment, public education is truly shining bright. Millions of meals have been prepared and delivered, millions of lessons have been taught virtually, millions of phone calls, texts, and Facetimes have occurred, millions of extra hours have been put in, and millions of small gestures of dedication, passion, sacrifice, compassion, and love continue to add up to show the best of who we are as Georgians.
Even though the classroom doors are closed, opportunities for school meals, distance learning, and other essential functions will remain open to students across the state for the rest of this school year.
The COVID-19 crisis has taught us that a “hero” goes beyond those we’ve typically thought of and recognized – those serving in the military, law enforcement, or our first responders. People now understand that doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals are heroes, too. We truly thank them!
But there are other unsung heroes in our state: the food service and nutrition staff who prepare meals for students, the bus drivers who deliver those meals, the teachers and paraprofessionals who are learning new ways to engage and educate their students, the nurses, counselors, and school psychologists who provide critical supports and therapy for children, the custodians who sanitize and disinfect our buildings, and our school leaders who make high-stakes decisions during events our society never could have fathomed. We owe you our deepest gratitude -- all of you are heroes!
Like all other heroes, you continue to go above and beyond to support students, dealing with intense stress and strain, through long hours – balanced with the demands of your own families and children, and often wearing the new, common uniform of masks and gloves.
More than ever, Georgians are realizing that their public schools are more than a place and teachers do so much more than teach– their value and worth cannot be measured by high-stakes tests, accountability, school grades, academic standards, or traditional teacher and leader evaluation tools; they are critical cornerstones of our society. We, at the Georgia Department of Education, have worked in earnest to remove these barriers so educators can focus on what’s truly important.
Together, we will get through the current COVID-19 challenge as we continue to focus on what’s important – the safety and well-being of our students and staff. As this school year ends, another year will begin, and we will emerge stronger and more committed than ever to the education of our students.
Stay safe and healthy,
Richard Woods
State School Superintendent
- Michelle has such a servant heart. Each day, she goes to Jackson ES to assist with delivering meals to students in the RIDGE Cluster. This was a concern for many of us, and I am very appreciative of Michelle, the district's SNP staff, and the county for providing these much-needed meals!! After Spring Break, students will also be able to get breakfast!!
- Sheri, Michelle, Kara (Principal at Jackson), Office Wynn, and I dressed in our best Hawaiian attire the Friday before Spring Break as we delivered lunches. It was so much fun and the weather was beautiful!
- Sharon and Trisha have created an amazing virtual Media Center for our students. It is worthy of being shared!
- As mentioned above, our amazing Custodial Team will be working to sanitize the entire school. This will be a monumental task, and certainly one they are prepared for. Did I already share that we received the Custodial Inspection that qualifies us for the Annual Award, AGAIN??? Way to go, Gabby, Felicia, Jack and Juan!!
- Thank you to Ricky for your endless efforts to ensure our staff has all their technology device needs taken care of. He is also playing a key role in preparing the Chromebooks for our kiddos who have either not had access to a device or who have limited access.
- THANK YOU to all our Parsons Peeps for providing INNOVATIVE and CREATIVE ways to engage our students. Y'all have discovered some very effective ways to bring together students and families in this "new way of learning"!! You are all Heroes!
- A special shout out to our Technology Instructor Guru, Stacey, for always being on call. We could not do this without you!
- Thank you to everyone who came out for the Parsons Ride for the PRIDE! Fun was had by all.
3/5 ~ Mary Wren
3/5 ~ Nicole Nowell
3/7 ~ Priya Shah
3/11 ~ Emily Smith
3/16 ~ Eun Gi Joung
3/20 ~ Kathy Medved
3/20 ~ Denae Wiley
3/20 ~ Vera Zulfic
3/26 ~ Latanya Hurst
3/28 ~ Deliluz Roubert
3/29 ~ Yolanda Harris
4/9 Trisha Ripley
4/9 Nikole Rogers
4/12 Lisa Bradley
4/13 Gabby Borgovan
4/15 Hannah Park
4/17 Michaela Austin
4/20 Lisa Isom-Jones
4/23 Molly Smith
4/27 Cheryl Bonds