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Hello Forest Edge Families!
Thanks again for your patience this week. FCPS leadership has offered some solutions to schools so that we can avoid having students log in to Blackboard each day for live lessons, while still maintaining the security features and teacher controls that we needed from the BB Collaborate Ultra tool and Google Meets.
Moving forward, students at Forest Edge will be using new Blackboard Collaborate links sent to their FCPS Gmail accounts or google meet links in their googleclassrooms. These links are secure and identify each student to the teacher. This new set-up makes these personalized links accessible without logging in to Blackboard. Three schools in FCPS piloted this approach last week and were able to maintain synchronous learning (live lessons, easy access for students) when the rest of the district struggled. This new process will start for some classes Monday. Your child’s teacher will send you an email today with detailed directions.
I ask that you disregard the previous process that we gave you for accessing links to teacher lessons (sessions). Those links no longer work. You do not need to log into Blackboard. Follow this new procedure emailed today instead.
For Blackboard Collaborate: Grades K-5
All students’ unique links have been emailed to students’ FCPS Gmail accounts. They can log in to those accounts through the FCPS G Suite page. The username and password used for logging in is the same login that is used to access the FCPS Blackboard page – your child’s 7-digit ID number and password. I encourage you to review the steps outlined in this 2-minute video for help in finding and using this new link. The same, student-specific link will be used for all classroom instruction and teacher office hours moving forward. If your child does not yet have the email with the link, it may simply be delayed.
Most of our older students are aware of their FCPS Gmail accounts (student#@fcpsschools.net). They have used Google Classroom and have accessed their accounts. I’m sure that many of our younger students (and parents) are not aware of their Gmail accounts. Be assured that your child has one, and you can get to it following the steps above.
Please check your child’s FCPS Gmail. Use the link to get to our scheduled lessons on time. Your child may enter the session early, but s/he will not be able to use any of the features (camera, mic, comments) until the teacher enters the session.
How to access student specific links:
- Students should check their Google fcpsschools.net account later today or tomorrow. They are looking for BBCU Invitee (Blackboard Collaborate Ultra) email(s) which contains a link to their class/classes.
- Here is a link to a video on how to help students access their email account
- The email will look similar to this image:
BBCU Link.jpg
- We encourage you to talk to your child about the importance of not sharing their personalized links with others.
- Here is another video link that will help your child organize or “star” the email for easy access in the future.
For Specials & 6th Grade:
For the time being, specials classes (PE, art, music, etc.) will continue to be posting pre-recorded lessons in Google Classroom that your teacher will provides in the Weekly Lesson Templates, which are emailed weekly.
Students can access Google Meet through their teacher’s Google Classroom. Students can access Google Classroom in three ways.
- Use the Chrome browser and go to classroom.google.com and login using your @fcpsschools.net account
Google Classroom.jpg
- If you are already logged in to G Suite, go to the menu at the top right of your screen and select the Classroom icon. You may need to scroll down to locate the Classroom icon.
- If your teacher has added a link to Google Classroom to their Blackboard course, you can also go to Google Classroom through your teacher’s course.
Joining a Meet Session
Once logged into your teacher’s Google Classroom, there are two ways to join a Meet Session
- Click the link in the Course Banner
Google Meet 1.jpg
- Go to the Classwork tab and click the Meet icon.
Google Meet 2.jpg
Thanks again for your patience during these false starts. Your disappointment and your children’s disappointment were warranted, and it was shared by our teachers. I hope that the worst is behind us and we can fully implement our distance learning plan.
Sincerely,
Ms. Zuber & Mrs. Fisher
Families,
I want to recognize some habits we’ve fallen into lately and commit to making things better. In the last two weeks, you have been inundated with emails from our staff. As technological problems were disrupting synchronous learning plans across the district, lots of communications were coming from FCPS. Often, this led to me or my staff following up with our own messages. Our intention was to bring clarity to what would be happening the next day. We know the messages added up!
You should know that most group emails from our teachers were sent at my direction. When we are in “normal” school, our approach to parent newsletters has typically been short, to-the-point, and not overly repetitive. The staff and I want to return to that approach.
Next week, we’ll have consistent synchronous learning, and we’ll return to our normal communication routines. I’ll be sending a parent newsletter (like this one) once per week. Teachers will no longer email their daily schedule. This is their approach moving forward:
- A email on Friday or Monday that lays out the schedule for the week and provides guidance for the week’s assignments with the Weekly Lesson Plan Templates attached to the email.
- Teachers will send reminders to students/parents who may have missed online instruction with links to the recording(s), in the event parents want to go back and view the instruction at a later time.
- Individual parent emails and phone calls for office hours to support students.
We could forgo these communications completely and instruct you to get this info daily on Blackboard. Instead, we hope you see these emails as saving you from logging into that site.
Of course, teachers may contact you individually for issues directly related to your child. Our school days are always better when we can get kids in front of their teachers.
Sincerely,
Ms. Zuber & Mrs. Fisher
Here is a new resource from the Department of Family Services to help parents in these trying times – a Parent Support Line. We know this is a challenging time for all of us and we want you to know YOU ARE NOT ALONE. That is why we created a new support system to help you with any of
your parenting needs. We are in this together! See this Flyer for more information:
New Parent Support Line FxCo DFS April 2020.pdf
These are challenging times for everyone right now. We want to let you know that your wellness team is still here to support your children. Your school counselors, Chelsea Nagel and Shantell Russ, will be holding regular office hours (see schedule below) to meet with your children virtually. This is similar to having a lunch bunch so students can feel free to eat their lunches with us virtually. Your child can access the office hours through Blackboard under the Blackboard Collaborate link.
All of our team members will be available to continue supporting your children through individual check-ins (with your permission). We have also put together a list of resources to support you and your students during this period of distance learning.
Just because we are social distancing does not mean we have to go through this alone. Please reach out to any of us if you have questions or concerns about your children.
Chelsea Nagel, School Counselor (Gamble, 2nd, 4th, and 6th Grade)
cenagel@fcps.edu 703-925-8039
Office Hours:
Mondays: 11:30-12:30 for Kindergarten
Tuesdays: 12:00-1:00 for 2nd Grade
Wednesdays: 12:00-1:00 for 4th Grade
Thursdays: 12:00-1:00 for 6th Grade
Shantell Russ, School Counselor (DiPalma, Manfredi, 1st, 3rd, and 5th Grades)
smruss@fcps.edu 703-925-8027
Office Hours:
Mondays: 11:00-12:00 for Manfredi & DiPalma (K)
Tuesdays: 11:00 - 12:00 for 1st Grade
Wednesdays: 12:00 – 1:00 for 3rd Grade
Thursdays: 12:00- 1:00 for 5th Grade
Emily Milas, School Psychologist
emmilas@fcps.edu 703-925-8033
Sabina Farag, School Social Worker
Sfarag1@fcps.edu 703-925-8034
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