Glasgow Community Gazette - April 12

Glasgow Community:

Our staff is excited about our official Distance Learning launch tomorrow, Monday, April 13. I have heard from so many teachers who have shared how much they have missed their students, and we know that many of our students have missed going to school. We are working hard to develop a system to support over 1900 students’ diverse needs and look forward to our roll-out. We also know that schools that have implemented distance learning longer than we have in FCPS made many changes to their approach as they learned what worked and what did not, and so we anticipate learning and growing as well.

I’d like to thank you--over 100 families--for attending our virtual Parent Coffee on Friday. I hope we were able to answer some of your questions; I also appreciate the feedback that you shared. You will find the link to our Parent Coffee session below and we will work to schedule another one in the near future.

Additionally, below you will find information about how students will access Distance Learning, an FAQ section, and other information, these are follow up answers from the many questions asked during the Parent Coffee. As you and your students navigate this week, our hope is that things will also become more clear. 

Finally, I hope you and your family are well. As always, please reach out if you have any questions.

Katie Madigan, Acting Principal

Contact Information:
Twitter: @ktmadigan
Email: kemadigan@fcps.edu
Website: http://www.fcps.edu/GlasgowMS/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GlasgowMS.FCPS/

Distance Learning

Distance Learning will begin throughout FCPS on April 14th--our site will go live on April 13. Glasgow students and families will be able to access asynchronous lessons in all content areas through Blackboard and the student schedule that was emailed to your student on their fcpsschools.net (Google) email. Here is link to the FCPS Distance Learning website that will provide you detailed information provided from FPCS. 

Distance Learning at Glasgow - To access distance learning at Glasgow, logon to Blackboard (FCPS 24/7) and look for the Glasgow MS Distance Learning Portal.  Once at the portal, you can access course homepages for each course in which your student is enrolled. Once on the course homepage, students can access their learning grids, links to synchronous sessions and contact information for each teacher. Asynchronous learning will occur each day using the teacher provided lessons on the grids or the paper packets. Synchronous learning opportunities will happen on Wednesdays and Fridays, each synchronous session can be up to 45 minutes long. Here is a reminder of the weekly schedule for your student:

Parent Coffee

We had a great turnout at the parent coffee this past week.  Here is the link to the recording of the virtual coffee.  

The FAQs below are answers to many of the questions asked during the Parent Coffee. Reach out if you still have unanswered questions.

The next virtual parent coffee will be on April 21 at 7:00pm. Here is the link for the virtual parent coffee. 

FAQs

Who can I contact for technical support? If you need technical support please contact Bob Nordling rcnordling@fcps.edu or Eric Gonzalez egonzalez@fcps.edu. 

Will summer school be an option? Currently there are no changes to summer school registration processes or to the availability of courses in addition to what was already planned. For more information, please visit the FCPS Summer Learning site: https://www.fcps.edu/academics/summer-learning.

How will course placement decisions for next year be made since students will not take the SOLs, particularly for math courses? We will continue to follow guidance from FCPS Instructional Services regarding placement decisions. This approach also applies to students who may be eligible to take Algebra 1 Honors in 7th grade. The FCPS Math department will eventually provide guidance regarding placement criteria and we will communicate the updated criteria to families. 

My student did not receive their schedule in their email--who do I contact? Your student should have received an email in their @fcpsschools.net (Google) email account this weekend. If they did not - please contact your child’s administrator or counselor. Another option - is on Monday, April 13, your child can login to Blackboard and find your students course homepages and grids. 

Why is Glasgow using Blackboard and Google Classroom? Blackboard is the main portal to our distance learning as is all distance learning in FCPS.  However, much of the work is housed in Google. This is an interface that both students and teachers are very familiar with and provides multiple capabilities for learning and feedback.

Can Glasgow provide more synchronous learning opportunities? Glasgow is following the guidance from FCPS around synchronous learning opportunities, balancing both the need for normalcy, extended screen time and families’ schedules.  

Can my child still turn in work for 3rd Quarter, and if so, how? Students can only turn in work that was assigned before March 13.  There are no opportunities to engage in new work for 3rd quarter. If a student needs to turn in work, please email the teacher to discuss how to do this.  One option might be taking a picture and sending this picture to the teacher.

When can we access the building for items my child left?  As of right now FCPS is limiting access to students and families to the building. Once we have further guidance, we may have opportunities for item pick-up later in the year.

How will you take attendance? We are waiting for guidance from FCPS on how to take and record attendance.

Will FCPS extend the school year next year like other districts are? There is no guidance about this possibility at this time.

Can you host more virtual Parent Coffees to update us? We will plan on hosting another virtual parent coffee at an upcoming date.  Stay tuned for more details.

How are you differentiating for English Learners? What about students being served with Special Education or Advanced Academics services? Our teachers are working hard to make sure that all of our students’ needs are being met with the appropriate scaffolds and extensions. The guidance from FCPS suggests that each lesson in the core subjects, English, Math, Science and Social Studies and World Languages takes 30 minutes or less per day for a total of 2.5 hours of work for students each day. Our ESOL, SPED, and AAP teachers are working with teams to provide lessons that are appropriate for learners at every level. 

How are you reaching out to families who may not speak English?Reaching all of our families is very important to us. We are making every effort to reach out to all of our families using our Parent Liaisons, Spanish and Arabic speaking teachers, e-notify, WhatsApp, and more. 

More information to come on how to access synchronous learning opportunities in the mid-week Gazette. 

Grading Update

3rd Quarter Grading Update - The School Board was briefed that no student work assigned after March 13 will be graded, at the recommendation of VDOE; however, work assigned prior to March 13 will still be accepted up until April 24 in order to be applied in the calculation of students’ third quarter grades. Additionally, it is the intention of FCPS to use maximum flexibility in assessing and evaluating student learning for the remainder of the school year. 

4th Quarter Grading Update - Middle school and high school students will be assigned a “no mark” for the fourth quarter, with assignments submitted being allowed to positively influence the student’s overall grade for the year based on mastery of learning concepts, in accordance with FCPS grading policy. Only final grades will be shown on transcripts; a “no mark” will not show on a student’s final transcript. 

Volunteer Opportunities

Get Involved, Run for the PTA Board - The PTA is looking for interested parties to serve on the board, there are a number of opportunities available. Some positions are easily performed remotely. Please email the PTA if interested: glasgowms.pta@gmail.com. 

Food Donation - Fortunately our feeder neighborhoods have several pre-existing food truck delivery programs through Food For Others. If you are interested in donating food, we recommend that families donate using information from the website: https://www.foodforothers.org/

POSTPONED - Volunteer at the Book Fair: April 13 thru April 20 - Stay tuned for more information about an online Book Fair.

Important Dates

April 13 - Distance Learning Rollout

April 15 & 17 - Synchronous Sessions

April 21 - Parent Coffee - 7:00pm

April 13 - Distance Learning Roll-out - The asynchronous approach to our distance learning will go live on April 13. Login to Blackboard to get your student ready for a whole weeks worth of learning or have your student check their fcpsschools.net email for a hyperlinked schedule.

April 15 & 17 - Synchronous Sessions - Following your students regular class schedule and the distance learning schedule provided above. Students can engage in synchronous learning on Wednesday and Friday this week. Our teachers are looking forward to re-connecting with them online.

April 21 - Virtual Parent Coffee - Mark your calendars, the next parent coffee will be on Tuesday, April 21 at 7:00pm. Here is the link for the virtual parent coffee. Remember to mute your mics as you enter if you are calling on a phone.

Important Information 

K-8 Learning Packets and Opt Out - Learning packets have been mailed home this week to all students in K-8 in FCPS. Learning packets are not required but are another resource that students and families can use to enhance their learning at home. The packets are meant to provide access to learning for all students, regardless of home technology access. The packets are available electronically in Blackboard FCPS 24/7 Learning so if a parent would like to print the packets at home, they may use the opt out link to stop receiving the printed instructional packets in the mail. They will need their student’s ID number and their e-mail address to access the opt out system. Please note, it may take up to 1 week to process the request to opt out.

Library Books and Resources - Please enjoy your school library books at home. No books are overdue and they can be returned when school buildings re-open in summer or fall. Please check out our audiobooks and eBooks available on MackinVIA.  See this video that will help you access MackinVIA: https://screencast-o-matic.com/watch/cqQ3rBt9wQ Students can also check out books from MyON. Here is a video that shows you how to access that resource: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITgJzPWMIBc&t=2s Feel free to email, Tara Sanz, Glasgow MS librarian and avid reader of middle grade & YA fiction, if you need any recommendations or help with accessing online library resources. tmsanz@fcps.edu Happy reading!

Student Services - Counselors Available - If you have concerns regarding your child’s socioemotional health or mental wellbeing, please contact your child’s counselor for support. Counselors are available to check in with your child through email or the voice-dial feature on Google Meets. Unless your child has been opted out of counseling services, counselors may be reaching out to your child if they have requested an appointment or if staff members have noticed concerns that may prompt a check in. As always, counselors will stay in communication with parents whenever necessary. 

Counselors are currently working on additional plans of support for students, parents, and staff during the COVID-19 closures. We will make guidance documents available in an upcoming Gazette. . 

• A – C: Akon Otoyo - ajotoyo@fcps.edu
• D – J: Curtiss Barnes - crbarnes@fcps.edu
• K – Ph: Cynthia Pareja - cspareja@fcps.edu
• Pi - Z: Greg Frantz - gdfrantz@fcps.edu
• ESOL Level 1 &2: Irania Escalante - ivescalante@fcps.edu  
• TEAM 7&8: Jenn Pallotto (lead) - jkpallotto@fcps.edu

2020-2021 Course Registration for Glasgow Students - Academic advising has concluded for all rising 6th, 7th, and 8th graders. You can view the courses that your child has selected through StudentVue and ParentVue selecting the “course request” tab.  Please note that all course request changes for Glasgow students are due by April 17, 2020. Finalizing requests by this date allows us to invest in staffing and resources based on students’ needs and interests. We will be finalizing schedules and placements throughout the late Spring and summer months.

Laptop Distribution for Students - After distributing over 500 laptops, we have closed our distribution for now. We are continuing to record families’ contact information who reach out for technology needs and are developing a plan to distribute again in the near future. Due to limited supply, please reach out only if your family does not have any access to a computer or laptop at home.

Yearbooks Still on Sale! - Parents are encouraged to purchase a yearbook today! The cost is $30. You can purchase your yearbook on-line at https://www.balfour.com/virginia/alexandria/glasgow-middle-school. If you have any questions, please contact Mr. Perella at maperella@fcps.edu. Please note, yearbooks will be distributed to students at Glasgow during the last week of school. We will update you on how yearbooks will be distributed with the closure of school as we get closer to the distribution date.

Food Services Meal Distribution Sites - FCPS will continue to provide grab and go breakfasts and lunches at no cost for students at multiple sites to students, with breakfast from 8:00-10:30am and lunch from 10:30am to 2:00pm. School-age students are welcome to come to any of the nearest sites listed below to pick up a lunch during that time period. Other sites are also available on the FCPS homepage. All meals are available at no cost to children 18 years and under. Adult lunches are available for purchase for $2.

• Annandale Terrace, 7604 Herald St., Annandale
• Braddock Elementary,  7825 Heritage Dr., Annandale
• Bailey’s Elementary School, 6111 Knollwood Dr., Falls Church
• Crestwood ES, 6010 Hanover Ave., Springfield
• Glen Forest ES, 5829 Glen Forest Dr., Falls Church
• Parklawn ES, 4116 Braddock Road, Alexandria
• Bailey’s Community Center, 10-10:30 a.m., 5920 Summers Ln, Falls Church

Article of the Week

In addition to keeping you updated on important information related to Glasgow Middle School, the Gazette will also provide information about what parents can do at home to help their student improve academically and help parents build the social and emotional skills that students need to be successful.

Our own Glasgow School Counselors have created a guide for parents as to how you can continue to support your child at home to ensure their socio-emotional health and wellness: How to Support Your Child During COVID-19 Closures