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Provo City School District

Lakeview Elementary School

Lakeview Q & A about Back to School Plan

Hi Lakeview Families!

It’s Principal Barker here. I wanted to touch base and answer some questions that I have received about the back to school plan and what Lakeview has in place for safety measures. I hope this will help you make your decision about this school year and also put your mind at ease as we go into this unusual year.

First, if you haven’t done the enrollment survey yet, please complete it ASAP at this link. The deadline is August 9th. I want to share more about what the options on the survey mean. If you realize that you have completed the survey incorrectly or if you have changed your mind, just retake the survey and we’ll use your most recent entry.

Options for School Year 2020 as listed on the district survey

Option #1 – In School / Home Study

Choosing this option on the survey means having your student assigned to a classroom teacher at Lakeview, with the flexibility to (1) participate in-person at the school building and/or (2) study online through Canvas with the same teacher/class when you want home study. Students will be designated two weekdays they can study in-person according to their last name (either Monday/Wednesday or Tuesday/Thursday). Students who choose to come in-person will still have work to complete online in Canvas for the other three weekdays. Students who choose to do home study for all five weekdays will complete all work online through their assigned teacher’s Canvas page and attend scheduled Zoom sessions with their teacher and class. This option allows for students to still be part of Lakeview with the flexibility to study from home if a student is not ready to come back to the building or when there are possible COVID exposures that require quarantine. As our state and district phases change and COVID cases decrease, the home study option may not be available and students will then be required to be back in school in person. If your child is in DLI and you choose this option they will have one in-person day of instruction in English on one in-person day of instruction in Portuguese each week.

Option #2 – eSchool

This option means signing your child up to do school through eSchool. eSchool is an online program, which is connected to Provo City School District but not connected to Lakeview. Students would not have a Lakeview teacher assigned to them, but would work with district teachers overseeing specific grade levels. The platform eSchool currently uses is K12. If you are a DLI student and are interested in this program, we can reserve your spot in the DLI program for this year, but you will not receive any Portuguese instruction while you are enrolled with eSchool.

Option #3 – eSchool with only Portuguese at Lakeview

This option allows students to come to school just one day a week only for the Portuguese portion of the DLI program. For the other four days, the student will be enrolled in eSchool. It has less connection overall to Lakeview but still allows them to get their Portuguese lessons in person once a week. This option requires enrollment at both Lakeview and eSchool. We anticipate very few choosing this option but it is available. If this is the option your family chooses, you will need to contact Student Services at the district office to dual enroll in both eSchool and Lakeview Elementary.

Here are some other frequently asked questions that I have received:

Q. Do we have to wear a mask?

A. Yes. Our governor has mandated wearing masks in schools. This means that all students, teachers, aides, administrators, secretaries, and anyone entering the school need to wear a mask. Students will be able to take their mask off during lunchtime while they eat and also when they are outside at recess. The district is giving every student a mask and a breakable lanyard to clip the mask to when students are at lunch or recess. As parents, you can help prepare your children for wearing masks by practicing at home. Have them wear it while they play their favorite video game or watch their favorite movie. Please be positive and excited about going back to school and wearing a mask and your children will follow your example and tone you set. Remind them that this is just temporary and allows us to be back together in school during this time.

Q. Will there be recess?

A. Yes, the lower grades (K-2) will have scheduled recesses in the morning and all grades will have a lunch recess before lunch. We have scheduled our recesses so there are fewer students on the playground at the same time. There will be lots of room to spread out and play. We will have to limit some games/activities during recess to start the year. To start, we won’t be using the slides and big playground equipment. However, as routines become established and phases change, we will update what we can do outside. Students do not need to wear masks when at recess and can leave them clipped to their lanyards.

Q. How will breakfast and lunch work?

A. Breakfast and lunch will be served like normal, but will be sack lunches and grab and go. We have scheduled our lunchtimes so there is only one grade level in the cafeteria at a time. We’ve spread out the tables through the cafeteria and gym area so there is a lot of room. During lunch, students can take off their masks to eat, but they will need to put it back on if they get up to walk somewhere. Every class will have an assigned spot in the cafeteria to sit. This will help us with contact tracing. Throughout the building, we will have flow patterns including one way in and out of the cafeteria that will be clearly marked with arrows.

Because we will only have half of the students here at a time, the cafeteria will not be as crowded.

Q. How will specialty classes work?

A. While we are on the early-out A/B schedule during Phase 1, all of our specialties will be online. Specialty teachers are creating Canvas classrooms in which students can interact and complete activities. Specialty teachers will also visit each classroom on a rotating basis to tell them about the activities available online. As our phases change, we will be able to go back to in-person specialty classes. We are still working on how we will do library book check-out and will update you as soon as we have a plan. We want you to be able to check out books to read! We are also still working on a plan for choir, band, and orchestra and will update you when that plan is finalized.

Q. What will before and after school drop off and pick up look like?

A. Before School: This is very IMPORTANT! First, we ask that parents wait until 8:10 am to drop off their children. Since only half of the students will be coming each day, we anticipate the drop off will go much quicker. We will not have a morning room available anymore. To manage a high volume of students in the hallway, all students will now need to go to the back playground before school to line up with their class. Students will wait in a designated area until their teacher comes to pick them up and bring them into the school. We will have supervision outside from 8:00 to 8:30 am. We will not be allowing students to come into the building without their teacher before 8:20 am. If your student eats breakfast, they may enter the cafeteria through the east outside door between 7:50 and 8:10 am. After they eat, they will need to go back outside.

After School: To reduce congestion in the hallways, grade levels will be dismissed one class at a time. Teachers will walk their class to the nearest door. After they are dismissed, students will need to proceed to their pick up spot or begin walking/riding home. Students should not linger in the back playground area. If they are meeting a sibling, that should happen quickly. Please be on time to pick up your children after school. They won’t be able to wait in the office. We strongly encourage walking to and from school where possible. The less congestion we have in front of the school, the better off we will all be.

Pick-up and Drop-Off: The lanes for pick up and drop off will be the same this year. We will send the map out as we get closer to the start of school.

Q. What about Kindergarten?

A. Kindergarten students will also be assigned to an A day or B day schedule. They will come two days a week for half of the day. The AM group will come from 8:20 – 10:20 am and the PM group will come from 11:20 – 1:20 pm.

Q. How will the classroom look?

A. The classroom may look a little different than you remember last year. Students will each be assigned their own desk and sit in a way that they have an empty spot in between them and their classmates. The district has also purchased see-through “offices” or dividers that go on desks and tables to use in the classroom. This gives students their own personal space, but also lets them see everything and talk with their friends and teacher.

Q. What will learning look like during the A/B schedule?

A. While we are on the A/B schedule, school will look a little different than everyone is used to. Children will come to school two days a week on their assigned days. The day will be shortened. School will start at 8:20 and end at 1:20 pm each day. On weekdays that they are home, they will be completing assignments from class, watching videos, reading, practicing math, and doing online programs. They will not have more than three hours of work a day during their online home days. This year students will be using Canvas for their online classroom learning platform. Our teachers have been working hard to set up their classes to teach in person and online and will tell you more about it when we start the school year.

Q. How will the DLI (dual language immersion) program work?

A. We have received lots of questions about how Portuguese immersion will work online and in-person. Because of the unique and challenging nature of this year, our goal for Portuguese immersion in Phase 1 will be maintenance of the language. Our focus will be on math and language arts in English due to the limited amount of instructional time we have. We have already spoken with Portuguese teachers at Lakeview and directed them to not give students online assignments that require parents to support Portuguese at home. Teachers will provide opportunities for Portuguese enrichment online (such as Elefante Letrado), but these assignments will be optional and not required.

Q. Will we have computers to use at home?

A. Yes! This is exciting! Our district has purchased enough Chromebooks for every student to have their own computer to use. They may take the computer home each night and bring it back to school each day as needed. It will be important to take extra special care of it, so it can last them all year long and beyond. Students need to be sure that it is fully charged when they bring it to school each day since we don’t have enough plugs in our classrooms for everyone to plug in at the same time. When students come to school on the first day of school, their teacher will be checking out their computer to them. Please talk to your children about taking good care of it and following the rules about being safe and appropriate online, even when they are at home.

Q. Can I request to have my child attend on a specific day, either A or B?

A. To follow health and state department guidelines and to keep our numbers even for each day, we will need students to attend on their assigned days. For now, we cannot accommodate specific requests about days to attend. The district is in the process of finalizing the division of A day and B day students.

Q. What about school supplies?

A. It is very important that children have their own personal school supplies this year, since we cannot share supplies. Candy Jackson, our secretary, has been purchasing LOTS of extra supplies so each student has their own. In general, parents do not need to send any supplies as the school will take care of it.

Q. How will you keep things clean and sanitized?

A. Our custodian has hired extra helpers to be at school during the day to help wipe down high-touch surfaces throughout the day. Teachers will also have extra cleaning supplies in their classrooms. Students may be asked to help with cleaning their own desk and chair. All of our cleaning supplies have been vetted and approved as safe for us to use. We will have hand sanitizer in each classroom and at entrances and exits. After students leave the building each day, our custodial staff will do a thorough cleaning of the building. Our custodial staff has worked very hard all summer to get the building ready.

Q. Will we be able to use the drinking fountains?

A. While we are in Phase 1, and possibly through the year, we have closed our drinking fountains. The district will be installing a touchless water bottle filler. The district has also purchased a water bottle for every student to be used throughout the day. Every week the students will take the water bottles home to clean and then bring them back the following week.

Q. What if I forgot everything I learned last year?

A. Don’t worry! We know it’s been a long time since you’ve been in the school building. The good thing is teachers are experts at helping kids learn what they need to be successful! We will be sure to review things you learned last year, find out where you are, and then help you all year long to learn everything you need to know. We are just so excited to be back doing what we love.

I’m sure there are more questions that I haven’t addressed. Let us know and we will do our best to help you. We are here to support you and your family! Keep watching your emails, our social media, and school website for more information and we look forward to seeing you soon, either at school or online!

Sincerely, Mike Barker, Principal

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