Hello Room 19 Families,
I hope you had a nice weekend!
Just like last week, our school assembly will be emailed to families in the morning. Please watch it with your child, and then have him/her join our zoom call at 9:15.
We are working our way through getting to know the different platforms and apps that we will use throughout the year. As far as I know, everyone has been able to access Lexia, ST Math, Schoology, and Seesaw. If that is not the case, please email me. You can also visit my website for updates and for the parent ITD number: http://www.mrspolay.com/2020-technology-information.html.
This week, I would like to try to have everyone begin using Learning A-Z (also known as Raz-Kids or Kids A-Z) and Epic books. Reading leveled books is crucial in first grade. Please download the apps. See this page for help: http://www.mrspolay.com/2020-technology-information.html.
This week, your child will be assigned 15 minutes of Lexia 3 times a week, and 15 minutes of Amplify Reading 2 times a week. If possible, set a timer for your child. Students do best with shorter, consistent sessions. The programs adapt to mistakes made and will reteach concepts, so please don't offer your child assistance. Both Lexia and Amplify Reading are accessible through Schoology. I will show the class tomorrow how to access the apps in Schoology.
In her Sunday night school update, Dr. Collier mentioned a few things that I would like to address and elaborate on:
1) Students are expected to log into Schoology to find assignments daily. Some students have not logged into Schoology since the first week of school. Please review how to do this with your child, as it is expected that he/she can do this independently. Once shown a few times, this is typically possible with first graders. As a reminder, once in my course, you have to click the weekly folder and then find the daily assignment folder.
2) Move your child to independence: I agree wholeheartedly with Dr. Collier. In general, there is no need to sit right next to your child the whole day and help him/her with everything. Please make sure your child knows where to find materials before class starts. Once class starts, if your child has questions, encourage him/her to ask me.
3) Remaining on mute and showing respect for others: Please remind students that they must keep themselves on mute unless I ask them to unmute. While it is true that we miss out on the social cues that come from being in the room together, I believe we can encourage a sense of community and togetherness on zoom if we all work together towards this shared goal. Please try to find a quiet place for your child to do the zoom calls; It is difficult to try to connect with and teach students while they are having conversations with those around them. This means your child should be looking at the person speaking and listening to classmates. One way to put it is "keep your brain and body in the group," instead of engaging in play and conversations with parents, younger siblings, and caretakers. This is sometimes difficult at home, but quite possible in a quieter setting, one where the expectation is that students don't talk to those in their house, but instead try to give their full attention to their class. Please help me with this! You might say, "I can't talk to you right now because you are in class." Thank you so much for your support with this important matter. 💜
If you weren't able to pick up materials last week, please do so between 8-12 tomorrow.
As a reminder, my office hours are by appointment between the hours of 1:40 - 2:15 Tuesday through Friday. I will reply to emails usually within 24 hours unless it is a weekend. 😀
Thank you for all that you do at home!
Have a great night,
Christina Polay
I hope you had a nice weekend!
Just like last week, our school assembly will be emailed to families in the morning. Please watch it with your child, and then have him/her join our zoom call at 9:15.
We are working our way through getting to know the different platforms and apps that we will use throughout the year. As far as I know, everyone has been able to access Lexia, ST Math, Schoology, and Seesaw. If that is not the case, please email me. You can also visit my website for updates and for the parent ITD number: http://www.mrspolay.com/2020-technology-information.html.
This week, I would like to try to have everyone begin using Learning A-Z (also known as Raz-Kids or Kids A-Z) and Epic books. Reading leveled books is crucial in first grade. Please download the apps. See this page for help: http://www.mrspolay.com/2020-technology-information.html.
This week, your child will be assigned 15 minutes of Lexia 3 times a week, and 15 minutes of Amplify Reading 2 times a week. If possible, set a timer for your child. Students do best with shorter, consistent sessions. The programs adapt to mistakes made and will reteach concepts, so please don't offer your child assistance. Both Lexia and Amplify Reading are accessible through Schoology. I will show the class tomorrow how to access the apps in Schoology.
In her Sunday night school update, Dr. Collier mentioned a few things that I would like to address and elaborate on:
1) Students are expected to log into Schoology to find assignments daily. Some students have not logged into Schoology since the first week of school. Please review how to do this with your child, as it is expected that he/she can do this independently. Once shown a few times, this is typically possible with first graders. As a reminder, once in my course, you have to click the weekly folder and then find the daily assignment folder.
2) Move your child to independence: I agree wholeheartedly with Dr. Collier. In general, there is no need to sit right next to your child the whole day and help him/her with everything. Please make sure your child knows where to find materials before class starts. Once class starts, if your child has questions, encourage him/her to ask me.
3) Remaining on mute and showing respect for others: Please remind students that they must keep themselves on mute unless I ask them to unmute. While it is true that we miss out on the social cues that come from being in the room together, I believe we can encourage a sense of community and togetherness on zoom if we all work together towards this shared goal. Please try to find a quiet place for your child to do the zoom calls; It is difficult to try to connect with and teach students while they are having conversations with those around them. This means your child should be looking at the person speaking and listening to classmates. One way to put it is "keep your brain and body in the group," instead of engaging in play and conversations with parents, younger siblings, and caretakers. This is sometimes difficult at home, but quite possible in a quieter setting, one where the expectation is that students don't talk to those in their house, but instead try to give their full attention to their class. Please help me with this! You might say, "I can't talk to you right now because you are in class." Thank you so much for your support with this important matter. 💜
If you weren't able to pick up materials last week, please do so between 8-12 tomorrow.
As a reminder, my office hours are by appointment between the hours of 1:40 - 2:15 Tuesday through Friday. I will reply to emails usually within 24 hours unless it is a weekend. 😀
Thank you for all that you do at home!
Have a great night,
Christina Polay
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