April 13, 2020
Good Morning Discovery Families,
I hope this letter finds you and your family safe and well. At this point, Discovery Charter School is closed until April 30th due to Covid19. Updates on closure information and resources for families can be found on the DCS website: https://www.rochesterdiscovery.com/ and on our Discovery Facebook Page and Twitter accounts (@RocDiscoveryCS).
Since school is closed, it is very important to establish a regular routine while children are at home that includes time to complete academic work. To the extent possible, please establish a normal bedtime so that students are well rested and able to participate fully in each day’s new learning. It is very important that your child(ren) participate regularly in the online learning being provided by their teachers. Every morning, teachers have a live Zoom crew meeting with their students. This usually occurs between 9-10am based on the schedule shared by your child’s teacher. Please be sure that children have a quiet and supervised location in order to participate in online Zoom crew meetings and to complete their academic assignments. Although it is not necessary for students to be in uniform, please ensure that students are dressed appropriately for the Zoom learning environment.
Most teachers also have a Google Classroom or other online learning platform so that students can access their lessons and electronic assignments for math, English Language Arts (ELA), science and social studies. Some students also have a small group Zoom meeting with an intervention teacher, special educator, ENL teacher or other provider. Please ensure that your child attend those small group lessons as regularly scheduled.
Our “encores” teachers have also provided videos for physical education, visual arts and performing arts, so please support your children in their efforts to complete or engage in exercise or complete an art project. Additionally, our Socio-Emotional Learning Team members also have office hours throughout the afternoon for students to Zoom in for live chats on various topics. Many resources including Mindfulness videos can be found on the Discovery Youtube Channel or your classroom teachers’ respective Google Classroom.
We appreciate parent’s support while we all transition to distance learning. As we know that some of our youngest learners still need support with the technology and appreciate all of our families’ efforts in work completion, please make sure that all work submitted is completed by the child. If you are planning to help edit or revise your child’s work, please do so in a different color pen, or write the “adult writing” above or below your child’s written work.
Teachers are enthusiastic about engaging with your children remotely, support students’ questions about academics and provide feedback on work submitted. As we know that many families are juggling various responsibilities, we understand that some students will submit assignments and ask questions into the evening. In those cases, please know that teachers may be responding the following day during regular school hours.
We know that distance learning does not replace the time children are at school. Our youngest learners can practice counting and letter writing at home, and practice measuring while cooking with parents. To continue to help move your child forward, please read to them or have them read nightly for at least twenty minutes. Please be sure to check the daily message from school leadership on the DCS website or Discovery Facebook page each day and participate in challenges by submitting pictures of students engaging in the various activities.
Thank you for partnering with us to continue your child’s education during our extended school closure.
DCS Leadership Team