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April 21, 2020 (v.2)

Good evening all-

I've spent the afternoon wondering why something that I've known if coming for a while is hitting me so hard. I suppose it's the reality of not seeing our students again, and worrying about how are they going to be prepared for next year, and how are they going to make it through this with out a mental health crisis. I guess it's the loss of hope that is hitting me. I am glad I am working through this with all of you. Tonight I ask that you remember that students are really struggling, they are not avoiding work because they think this is a vacation, they are adjusting to a new and confusing norm. They are scared and sad. The seniors are really hurting. 

Here are a few lines from an email Erin and I received this afternoon. It is long but the gist is many are feeling overwhelmed with the volume of work and not being able to ask questions when they have them. Please remember students should not have more than 3 hours of work per day, across all classes. And that they are overwhelmed, as are we. I think one staff member has said it at every faculty meeting we have had..."less is more".  Please respond to their emails in a timely manner, they want to hear from you and need your input.

Let's focus on the skills students need to be ready for next year and remember we will get get the students that are behind caught up when we are back together. I am truly grateful for all of you and know how hard it is to figure this out. I am hopeful some more guidance on how we approach the next 8+ weeks is forthcoming. But we can work together to figure this out!

"Hey Ms. St. Coeur and Ms. Lachapelle, .....I’ve had talks with lots of people over text and FaceTime over school work and the amount of online work we are receiving. I understand the teachers have requirements to meet but maybe the work can be a little more flexible. I’ve been spending hours doing my work which makes sense since it’s still school but some of it can be very hard and people in my classes and I are confused and have questions but it’s hard to get answers from teachers. I don’t think we should be assigned projects, or if we are then the teachers should be checking their emails more often. I have a few teachers I’ve sent emails to and I’ve either waited a week for a response which is too late by that point or they just don’t respond at all.

I know this is a hard situation for everyone especially the teachers, but one thing I’d recommend to try...is just checking emails more often.Some teachers just aren’t replying or take too long because the assignment will be past due by then. Also maybe when handing out assignments they could break it down....Us seniors will never attend school ever again at our high schools so I don’t understand why we’re getting more work now they we would if we were at school as seniors. Thanks for the understanding and I honestly really hope to try and make a change for the better of our school because I care about the rest of my classmates and think If were going to end school like this we can at least do it in the best way possible. 

This message was from a parent in an e-mail I was on about the Reality Fair. She hit the nail on the head. This is what we need to be helping students learn:

"Congrats to you and the Class of 2020!  Your class is leaning more unique life skills that will make you extremely resilient and able to tackle any future challenges! "

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