Continue to Bee Safe!

Greetings Students, Parents and Community Members!
As promised, I’m including my bi-weekly Blands’ Buzz in the BeeMail now so you can get the information you need from us, once a week, on Wednesdays.  I know the past week and a half has been tough! It’s probably been more of a struggle then we all thought. I want to take a second to thank you for your support in our school, teachers and students. While you are the primary teacher now, please know that our staff are working tirelessly to get better at virtual teaching and learning. They are available to answer your emails and texts from 9am-12pm and 1pm-3pm daily. If you have not done so yet, please take a minute to fill out our virtual learning survey HERE to help give us a sense of how things are going.

We know you are trying to balance your own work with your child’s and we do not want you to stress. If you are a 3rd-5th grade household that has technology needs, we need this done by 5pm TODAY so we can distribute Chromebooks tomorrow morning (Thursday 3/26) from 9am-12 pm. Those of you that want to just provide feedback have more time to complete the survey. If you indicate “yes” for technology (3rd-5th only), we will reach out for pick up times that will involve safe social distancing. Please remember that we have limited Chromebooks to distribute and it will be on a priority basis. Your feedback will also be shared with our teachers in order to help accommodate and adjust teaching and learning as needed. Please remember that state assessments have been suspended, there will be no retention for missed or incomplete assignments and that we are here to help make home life easier, not harder. 

I am also very aware that our students’ social emotional state is critical at this time. Don’t be afraid to take a break from work, step away from the computer or do some art, music, physical education or French. Our Counselor of the Year, Ms. Whitakeris available to talk to any students that may need some emotional support. We have set up a Google line for you to reach out to her at 404-369-3679 or email at Tjackson@apsk12.org should you want to set up an appointment.  

As a team, we are also always looking at ways we can support our community. While APS has several food distribution sites across clusters in APS, the North Atlanta cluster does not have a designated school site for food distribution. If you are interested in providing food, snacks, cleaning supplies or gift cards to families in need, we will have a drop-off area in our lower Main Campus lot Thursdaymorning from 8am-12pm. There will not be a staff member available to assist so please practice safe social distancing. We appreciate your support! Also, if you are not in a high risk group, or feel comfortable volunteering your time, you can sign up to support APS food distribution through our partner GOODR HERE.

Lastly, as we move into our extended learning times, please know that teachers will be giving grades for completed work. Kindergarten through 2nd grade will be primarily participation grades and 3rd-5th will be more instructional. Teachers will not be giving zeros to students for not completing work (students will need to make it up when we return). They will communicate what will be graded at the beginning of the week. Students and parents SHOULD NOT be stressed about grades during this time. It is simply APS policy to continue this since we may not be making up this missed time.  

I want to make sure that next week is a great last week before Spring Break. Our Spirit Squad has come up with some great theme days for our students.

• Monday – Super Hero day (in honor of hospital workers, first responders, grocery employees, and all other essential personnel)
• Tuesday – Crazy hair/school colors day (in honor of our hair stylists & the schools we miss)
• Wednesday – Dress like an older person day (in honor of the generation that is most at risk)
• Thursday – Jersey day (in honor of our favorite sports teams that aren’t able to play right now)
• Friday – Pajama day (because pajamas are the best part of homeschooling). Friday will also just be a RAD (Read All Day). More info on this to come! Don’t forget to post your pictures on Facebook and Twitter as well.

Remember to be sure you are accessing our Learning Hub where you can find all our Specials materials HERE and that you start your day by watching our morning announcements each day HERE, we like to feature special guests!

Until next time, stay patient and positive!
j