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COE – Elementary School

Letter from Principal

March 31, 2020

Dear Parents and Guardians: 

I hope this finds you well and in good health during this unexpected and unprecedented time. Governor Wolf announced yesterday afternoon that schools are now closed indefinitely. We miss our students terribly and wish, more than anything, that we were back in our classrooms. Monday started the first day of distance learning at The Scranton School for Deaf and Hard of Hearing. All of you should have received information from the classroom teacher about weekly expectations and logging into Google Classrooms. The lessons and activities provided will allow for us to continue to provide education, including the learning of essential skills based on the Pennsylvania learning standards. These activities should be spaced throughout the day and are not intended to take more than 1.5 to 2 hours, collectively. Please encourage your children to practice healthy habits throughout the day, such as: frequent breaks, healthy eating, exercise/ move around in between assignments, get outside, etc.

Our teachers have been hard at work developing activities for the students. You can expect that there will be a few live classes on Zoom or Google Meet each week as well as videos, resources and ideas for you to do together at home. In addition, the teacher will connect with you individually to address the unique learning needs of your child. Each teacher will have office hours daily during which time you can contact them through email, text, phone calls or video conferencing. Please keep in mind that this is new for all of us – we truly appreciate your patience as we navigate these uncharted waters together. We are truly excited to reconnect this week, we have missed you all!

Thank you for your continued support. Please stay safe and healthy!

Thank you,

Mr. Dean Pettinato​
Principal
The Scranton School for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children 
dpettinato@thescrantonschool.org

Mr. Kevin McDonough
Director
The Scranton School for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children
kmcdonough@thescrantonschool.org

Guidelines

  • Instruction
    • Daily, teachers will issue 2-3 core academic activities/assignments (i.e., English/Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies).
    • Daily, 1-2 activities/assignments will be issued to address Special courses (e.g., Digital Literacy/Library, PE).
    • Instruction will be provided through a combination of asynchronous and synchronous methods
    • Each issued activity/assignment should take no more than 20 minutes to complete.
    • Collectively, all activities/assignments should take approximately 1.5-2 hours to complete each day.
    • Beginning on March 30th, teachers will develop enrichment and review activities/assignments that allow parents/guardians and students to become comfortable with the distance learning format.
      • Beginning the week of April 6th, teachers will begin developing planned instructional activities/assignments that are aligned with the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s standards. However, if it is determined that parents/guardians and students require more time to adjust to the distance learning model and online components, then activities/assignments assigned during the week of April 6th-13th may also be enrichment/review.
    • Some assignments will be submitted electronically. Some assignments/activities will be collected once school reopens. Some assignments/activities will be “collected” via the parents/guardian or student sending a picture or video. Some assignments/activities will be “collected” during conversations between the teacher(s), parents/guardians, and students.
    • Activities/assignments assigned between March 30th and April 6th will not be graded. Beginning April 6th, all activities/assignments assigned will be graded. However, if it is determined that parents/guardians and students require more time to adjust to the distance learning model and online components, then activities/assignments assigned during the week of April 6th-13th may also not be graded.
    • Regular attendance is vital to each child’s educational success. Daily student attendance will be monitored and recorded. The Programs of WPSD will continue to follow the requirements of the Pennsylvania Compulsory Attendance Law and the Pennsylvania Truancy Law.
  • Technology
    • Students in grades 3 and 4 are provided with a Chromebook to access and complete activities/assignments from home.
    • Alternate methods, such as printed packets of activities/assignments, will be provided to students in grades K-2, students who do not have access to internet services at home, and/or students for whom completing activities/assignments using a Chromebook is deemed inappropriate.
  • Online Platform
    • Activities/assignments will be provided to students primarily using Google Classroom. Printed materials may still need to be mailed to a student’s home.
    • Communication with parents/guardians and students will occur using telephone calls, emails, text messages, and video conferencing technology, such as Google Meet and Zoom.
  • Office Hours
    • Mondays-Thursdays: Teachers will provide at least two daily hours of office hours.
    • During this time, parents/guardians and students can contact the teacher using telephone calls, emails, text messages, and video conferencing technology, such as Google Meet and Zoom, to ask questions and to receive support to complete activities/assignments.
    • Fridays: Teachers will spend the day reaching out to parents/guardians and students to offer more individualized support.
  • Student Support
    • Related Service (e.g., Occupational Therapy, Orientation and Mobility, Physical Therapy, Speech/Language Therapy) will provide activities and resources for students to use during the week.
    • School counselors will be available for parents/guardians and students to contact with concerns.
      • Communication with parents/guardians and students will occur using telephone calls, emails, text messages, online platforms, such as Google Classroom, and video conferencing technology, such as Google Meet and Zoom.
      • Contact information:   Jackie Bailey jbailey@thescrantonschool.org
    • Teachers will be provided with information about how to respond if a student were to make a comment or display behavior of concern.
    • Administrators will continue to monitor and respond to any tips reported through the Safe2Say Something program.
    • Printed and electronic information will be shared with parents/guardians in their primary language. In addition, live telephone call interpreting is available to support communication between parents/guardians and the school.
    • The Programs of WPSD will ensure that, to the greatest extent possible, each student be provided the special education and related services identified in his/her Individualized Education Program (IEP) plan.