Welcome back Sea Kings,

 

As we conclude our last hours of spring break, I want to extend a message of gratitude to our families and PVIS staff. The past three weeks have certainly been trying at times, but I am incredibly impressed by our community's efforts to work together on behalf of our students. The status of school closure will continue to be revisited and assessed-as the health and safety of our families remains paramount, please visit District website for accurate information. 

 

Our teachers have been working very hard to update their Edlio pages, found here with current work assignments for students.  Please be sure to check your email and be sure your student is checking their school email** to ensure you have all communication and information from our teaching staff.  

 

As you know, at PVIS we strive to BE BEST!  That is just what we are doing from afar in order to serve our most important assets- your children! The next few weeks will be challenging. There will be mistakes, problems, and concerns along the way. However, there will be more successes, happiness, hope, laughter, fun, and purpose!

 

We would like to thank everyone for your kindness and support, especially our health care professionals, grocery store employees, first responders and all other essential personnel.

 

**Student email can be accessed through the PVPUSD PORTAL  and clicking on the Outlook App   

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Although none of us have experienced a pandemic before, the PVIS family of students, parents, educators, county/ community leaders, and all other stakeholders have quickly risen to the occasion! Please know we remain committed to our students’ health and well-being, as well as their families and our entire staff.

We understand many of you are still working and have more than one child at home to help, financial concerns, health issues, and more.  We are here to patiently support our students, and you throughout this challenging time. Our goal is not to add more stress over school work via distance learning.  We are doing our best to provide schoolwork to keep our students' minds moving forward, and you have control to adjust as needed for your child/children. 

Please do not hesitate to contact me, if you need help. We also ask for your patience and understanding as we navigate this new territory. Our entire District, at every level, is working long hours from home while dealing with our new, but temporary, normal. 

We invite you to utilize the resources our District is offering to promote mental health & wellness below.

 

Parent Mental Health Resources and Events:

Click Below for More Info..

 

 

 

    

Schedule an Appointment to Virtually Connect With School Counselor

Click this link to request an appointment to virtually connect with your school counselor or student support specialist. These requests are monitored by the school site team during regular school hours (8 am-3 pm) Monday-Friday. The requested support personnel will be in touch with you within the requested time (during regular school hours).  

 

 

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A message from PVPUSD..

 

PVPUSD Parents and Students:

Thank you for your support as we continue to practice social distancing in our state’s Stay At Home order. Remote learning requires students and families to transition learning in several ways. Students are being asked to use time wisely, be organized, be self-directed, and be willing to use new modes of communication and learning. These are big changes in a short time, and all are appreciated in the willing to put in the needed time to make this “new normal” successful. As students are asked to read more independently and carefully, they are also increasingly asked to participate in online activities. PVPUSD would like to be clear in our communication about remote learning.

As we continue to provide remote learning experiences for our students, we want to remind our PVPUSD family about the Online Usage Agreement completed at the beginning of the school year. This “compact” provides an overview of our expectations for both students and parents, an especially important reminder in this new normal. Please take a moment to review.

Link to PVPUSD Online Use Agreement:

PVPUSD Online Use Agreement

In addition to this agreement, we would like to take a moment to set some clear parameters about our new, virtual classroom experiences as remote learning takes place. Teachers will also share their specific expectations for individual activities and any norms that are expected of children as lessons begin. It is important to remember that even while remote, these new “classrooms” in your own home should have similar expectations as those within school walls. 

Remote Learning or Online Classroom Expectations: 

1.    Students will treat virtual meetings as a classroom setting. Students will be ready and prepared to learn once logged in. 

2.    Students should bring all necessary materials to their virtual classroom 

3.    Please login on time and focus on the lesson presented. Online learning has more distractions than classroom learning and will occur in shorter lengths of time. 

4.    Students should create a learning environment at home with a table or desk, computer, and available space to work. Any textbooks/notebooks should remain available and open to reference or write upon. 

5.    Students should consider using headphones or work in a quiet room to reduce distraction and background noise while working in a virtual classroom.  

6.    Students should learn to mute the microphone and only speak when they have been called on (or unmuted) by the teacher. Teachers will be able to hear from each student this way. 

7.    Other devices or recordings should not be used while in the virtual classroom. This is to protect everyone's privacy. 

8.    Do not share our virtual classroom links or passwords with others outside our class. Again, this is to protect everyone’s privacy. 

9.    Be patient and courteous! Remember, this is new for ALL of us. Let’s have fun learning together! 

 

IMPORTANT CONSIDERATIONS FOR STUDENTS IN ONLINE MEETINGS: 

1.    All school rules also apply online. Make sure you follow school guidelines, especially regarding cyberbullying and non-discriminatory behaviors and comments while working digitally. 

2.    Be respectful of school hours.  Trying to call or virtually meet with your teacher or other students outside of your assigned class meeting time, is inappropriate. 

3.    When you join a meeting, mute your microphone to reduce distracting noise for others. 

4.    Wear school appropriate clothes when visible on video.  

5.    Practice good social skills online. Greet people as the meeting begins and say thank you/goodbye when the meeting ends, or send a quick greeting in the chat box. Be as polite and respectful towards others as you would in a face to face meeting.  

6.    Your teacher might assign a moderator, time keeper, and/or note taker for online meetings. This can help record important content and build notes for future review.  

7.    Use the chat box appropriately during the meeting. This can be used to ask questions or clarifications, which may be especially important for your teacher to see. The chat box should be used for academic purposes only; be considerate with what you post, but always ask questions if you have them.  

8.    In meetings with many people, digitally raise your hand to be called on by the moderator or your teacher before speaking. This can be done in Zoom by clicking on the “participants” box, which will then open up a list of everyone in the meeting. Find your name and hover to the right, you will see the hand icon there. 

9.    Be mindful of the surrounding environment. Don’t include items in the background that are not appropriate to be seen by others during school. Your background can be distracting to others, have a clean, uninteresting background to ensure everyone can remain focused on the meeting.  You can also blur or use a virtual background. 

10. Consider the angle of your camera when you are on video. Avoid “up the nose” angles or other unflattering camera positions. Be considerate of the light in your surrounding so you do not appear too dark or too bright.  

11. Enabling your camera in an online meeting - Your teacher will provide guidance on using your camera or not when in an online meeting.  

12. If you have computer headphones, earbuds, or airpods, it is a good idea to use them during online meetings, this will help you hear better and be less distracted by things that might be going on around you. 

13. Join online meetings from inside your home. Being outside during an online meeting can cause wind and background noise from your device’s microphone and make it hard for others to hear you.  

14. Don’t have several programs running while you are in an online meeting. Close all unnecessary applications during your meeting to best utilize your computer’s power. Additionally, closing other programs and tabs will eliminate the temptation to multitask, and keep you focused on the meeting at hand. 

15. Avoid moving your head too much or “talking with your hands.” Too much movement can cause the video to pixelate and degrade. 

16. Keep an open line of communication with your teachers about online learning. If you have suggestions for ways to improve the online meetings or online learning experiences, please send a private message to your teacher through email. Teachers appreciate knowing how to best support students.  

Thank you for your continued support and dedication to all our PVPUSD students, staff, and families during this time. Do not hesitate to reach out to staff for support or clarification, as we are all critical members of this remote learning transition. While your child’s teacher is still your primary contact, all of PVPUSD staff stand ready to support you and your family.

Sincerely, 

PVPUSD Staff and Teachers 

 

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Thank you to Ms. Schofield and our Leadership students for keeping our school sprit alive even through distance. They continue to meet and plan for activities that connect us. Our upcoming spirit days are as follows:

Tuesday is “athletic jersey day”

Thursday is “dress like a teacher day”.

Looking forward to seeing all of our students and teachers participate to show our Sea King Pride!

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Once again, thank you families and PVIS staff for working together to support our students. We will continue provide the best education and opportunities to connect with one another regardless of the physical distance between us.

Please do not hesitate to contact me directly for any reason.

Sincerely,

Micah J. Farrell

Proud Principal of Palos Verdes Intermediate School