Metro Nashville Public Schools is spending the final days before the start of the school year preparing families for its all-virtual learning environment. The transition will take some getting used to. So the district is taking it easy on academics during the first few weeks of classes.
The goal is to make sure families aren’t caught by surprise. This means teachers will be checking in on families to make sure that they have all the resources they need, before diving into platforms like Schoology and the Florida Virtual School. School leaders spent the past week engaging parents in a series of online, back-to-school informational sessions.
Parents will also receive assistance developing at-home learning schedules. They’ll be able to access specific services for exceptional education and English language learners, too.
“We’re easing into the school year and getting all the supports that we need to make sure our kids are set up for success when we start really intense academic learning,” said David Williams, the executive officer for teaching and learning at Metro Schools, during an online parent meeting.
Online and offline learning opportunities will still be available at the start of the semester, but the priority for the majority of August will still be addressing students’ social and emotional learning needs.
“These are things that will be pushed out either from the school level, and or the district level,” said Williams. “We are taking a whole child approach.”
In addition, the district’s other first week engagement plans include:
- 1:1 adult to student check-ins
- virtual home visits
- student wellness checks
- district-wide morning meetings
- online school events
Meanwhile, Metro Schools is also planning to jump start its school-based food distribution program on the first day of classes. School leaders distributed more than 550,000 food boxes since the COVID-19 spring school closures, and are preparing for another semester of grab-and-go meal services.
“For some students, their meals at school are the only meals they will eat during the day, so we are greatly expanding our efforts to provide a nutritious, balanced diet for all students throughout Metro Schools,” said Superintendent Adrienne Battle. “Our nutrition services and transportation teams will all be working when school resumes on August 4 to meet the needs of our students and remove any barriers to access.”
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