Important Health and Safety Updates for September

Dear PS 101 Families:

As we continue to keep you informed regarding to the return to school, we urge you to check back often to the Return To School Webpage, as updates have been made to some pages, including Health and Safety.

Today the Chancellor released a letter containing Health and Safety Protocols for schools

Download here or read below:
Update for Families on Health and Safety Protocols – August 3 2020

Translations will be available shortly on the InfoHub.

Letter from the Chancellor:

August 3, 2020

Dear Families,

I hope you are safe and healthy, and finding some rest and relaxation this summer. As we are approaching the start of the 2020-21 school year, I want to share some important new information with you about health and safety protocols in your child’s school—and every school—for the upcoming year.

All schools are preparing for blended learning, during which students learn in-person in school buildings for part of the week, and continue learning remotely from home on the other days. However, any family can choose 100% remote learning for any reason. If your preference is 100% remote learning, we ask that you let us know by this Friday, August 7, so that schools have enough time to plan. Please visit schools.nyc.gov/returntoschool2020 to fill out a short web form, or call 311.

In this letter you will find:

Criteria to Open Schools and Keep them Open

What Happens if Someone Gets Sick: New Information on COVID-19 Testing and Tracing in Schools

Overall Health and Safety Protocols for Every School

Criteria to Open Schools and Keep them Open

While we continue to carefully monitor a constantly changing health landscape, one thing remains steadfast: our commitment to the health and safety of our students, teachers, and staff. This priority is the foundation of all of our policy moving into September.

On July 31, the Mayor and I announced that for school buildings to open in September and remain open, on a weekly average the city must see fewer than 3% of all COVID-19 tests come back positive. Additionally, if 3% or more of New Yorkers who are tested for COVID-19 are found to have the virus after we open, school buildings will close again, and 100% of learning will be remote for every student.

Since June, we’ve hovered around 1-2%, and are working closely with the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYC Health), NYC Test + Trace, and the Mayor’s Office to prepare for a coordinated school reopening. If staff and students aren’t healthy, they can’t teach and learn, and we are doing all we can to ensure that schools remain safe and healthy for learning.

What Happens if Someone Gets Sick: New Information on COVID-19 Testing and Tracing in Schools

In close collaboration with our expert colleagues at NYC Health, we have developed strict protocols that address prevention, precaution, and response to one or more of our students or employees having a confirmed case of COVID-19. It’s important to know that a “confirmed case” means that a parent or guardian, student, or staff member submits a positive test result from a healthcare provider or laboratory—like a City-run testing site, a private doctor, or an urgent care center—to the school.

Our protocols to keep school communities healthy include:

Prevention: Starting with the first day of the 2020-21 school year, if a student or staff member is feeling sick, they are required to stay home. Additionally, if their symptoms are consistent with COVID-19, they will be asked to get tested.

Feeling Sick in School: If a student begins experiencing symptoms in school, they will be isolated and monitored by a school staff member until they are picked up by their parent or guardian. Staff members who become symptomatic at school must notify administration and immediately leave the building.

Testing: All school staff members are asked to get tested for COVID-19 in the days leading up to the beginning of school, and will be prioritized for expedited results at the 34 City-run testing sites. All school staff are also asked to get tested monthly during the school year. This free testing is also available for families citywide.

Tracing: In the event of a confirmed COVID-19 case in a school, NYC Test + Trace and NYC Health will investigate to determine close contacts within the school. All students and teachers in the classroom with the confirmed case are assumed close contacts and will be instructed to self-quarantine for 14 days since their last exposure to that case. In older grades where students may travel between classes, this applies to all classes that the confirmed case was in.

If there’s more than one case in a school, and it’s not in the same classroom, learning will continue remotely and the school building will close for at least 24 hours while NYC Test + Trace and NYC Health investigate. Depending on the outcome of the investigation, affected classrooms or the whole building will remain closed for 14 days for quarantine.

Students will continue their learning remotely during any necessary quarantine periods.

Communication: Whether symptoms begin at home or in school, there will be a clear flow of information to facilitate fast action and prevent spread. If a COVID-19 case is confirmed, schools will communicate to all families and students at school.

Overall Health and Safety Protocols for Every School

Testing and tracing are part of several strict health protocols designed to keep our school communities healthy. Here are the key things that you and your family should know about NYC Department of Education (DOE) health and safety practices, policies, and protocols as we re-open our school buildings in September:

 At all times, students and staff must wear face coverings protecting their nose and mouth while at school or on their way to school. Exceptions will be made for children who can’t wear a face covering for medical reasons, and for younger children who aren’t developmentally able to wear a face covering.

 Students and staff must maintain six feet of physical distancing throughout the school day, anywhere on school grounds and to and from school.

 Schools will be cleaned throughout the day and disinfected each night, with special attention to high-touch areas.

 Face coverings, hand sanitizer, and cleaning supplies will be readily available in throughout every school.

 Every school will have a school-based team ready to respond in the event that there is a health concern in a school.

 Every school will have a designated isolation room for use in the event that a student becomes ill during the school day.

For more details on these and other policies, please visit schools.nyc.gov/returntoschool2020 and click “Health and Safety” for additional information and all the latest updates.

We are approaching reopening by centering health and safety and basing our policies on the expertise of health professionals—period.

I’ve been a public school parent, teacher, and principal, and I know what it feels like to want the best possible education for your child while ensuring the health and safety of your entire family. We have collectively learned a lot since March—both about the virus, and about our ability to react and respond to it in real time. That’s why we won’t settle for anything but the strictest and most rigorous processes for coming back to school.

We will send more information in the coming days and weeks. As always—thank you for being part of the DOE family.

Sincerely,

Richard A. Carranza

Chancellor

New York City Department of Education

 

Dates to keep in mind:

August 7th – Remote Learning Preference Survey Due. You only need to fill out the survery if your child will opt for 100% remote learning. Click here to submit your Survey

August 19th – Community Education Council District 21 Meeting -7:00 PM. Visit the CEC 21 Website for the links to the meeting: CEC 21

August 12th and August 27th Chancellor Info Sessions regarding school Reopening. Click here to register: Virtual Learning Info Session

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Do you have more than one child attending PS101 this September?

Dear PS 101 Families-

In order to start preparing for September, I am asking that all parents with more than one child at PS 101 fill out the survey below. This will help us start preparing for groups in September and can ensure your children attend PS 101 on the same days (if you are choosing to send them into school).
Please note this is for siblings only. We cannot take other requests.

Please use this link to let us know if you have more than one child at PS 101

Thank you,

GK

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DUE Aug.7: Very IMPORTANT Survey regarding September

Greetings PS 101 families-

As NYC prepares for what school looks like in the fall, on the assumption schools are open part time, meaning your child will be in school possibly 2 days a week, we need to know if:
1) You will choose to send your child to school and receive a combination of In-Person and Remote Learning at home
or
2) If you’d prefer to keep them home for 100% Remote Learning.
***Please note, if you decide to keep them home for 100% remote instruction, there will be other opportunities during the school year to change your preference and send them in part time.***

Please let us know immediately which of these two options you will choose by completing the Learning Preference Survey or call 718-935-2200 by August 7 so we can plan accordingly.

Direct link to survey:
https://www.nycenet.edu/surveys/learningpreference

Thank you,

GK

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DUE Aug.7: Very IMPORTANT Survey regarding September

Greetings PS 101 families-

As NYC prepares for what school looks like in the fall, on the assumption schools are open part time, meaning your child will be in school possibly 2 days a week, we need to know if:
1) You will choose to send your child to school and receive a combination of In-Person and Remote Learning at home
or
2) If you’d prefer to keep them home for 100% Remote Learning.
***Please note, if you decide to keep them home for 100% remote instruction, there will be other opportunities during the school year to change your preference and send them in part time.***

Please let us know immediately which of these two options you will choose by completing the Learning Preference Survey or call 718-935-2200 by August 7 so we can plan accordingly.

Direct link to survey:
https://www.nycenet.edu/surveys/learningpreference

Thank you,

GK

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PS 101 Summer Work (August 2020 Expectations)

Greetings PS 101 Families-

As we head into August, I am asking you to shift your child’s full focus onto iReady, both Math and ELA.

iReady is great because it will adjust automatically to your child’s level (assuming you do not help them, which will actually hurt their progress) and then build their skills slowly from there. Additionally, we get to see their progress and it will help us plan for September and the coming school year.

Your child should do a minimum of 3 hours a week (90 min in each subject), but my request and recommendation is a daily interaction of at least 30-45min in each subject at least 4 days a week.

I am asking you to put your full focus on iReady instruction for the remainder of the summer.
We will be tracking usage and results.

Thank you

G.Korrol
Principal

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Do you have more than one child attending PS101 this September?

Dear PS 101 Families-

In order to start preparing for September, I am asking that all parents with more than one child at PS 101 fill out the survey below. This will help us start preparing for groups in September and can ensure your children attend PS 101 on the same days (if you are choosing to send them into school).
Please note this is for siblings only. We cannot take other requests.

Please use this link to let us know if you have more than one child at PS 101

Thank you,

GK

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Audio of Principal/PTA mtg- July 28

Dear Parents,

Below is the audio recording of the meeting held with the PTA and Principal Korrol on the morning of July 28, 2020.

Below is the model of instruction we are planning for and that is referenced in the audio.
Please be advised this is a plan and may change.

If you have any questions, please listen to the audio then feel free to comment with your question.

GK

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Kindergarten/Pre-K Parents- Principal Korrol Mtg July 28

Dear K/PK Parents-

Many of you have contacted me about wanting to be in the meeting tomorrow to discuss September. As a parent, I know I would want to be as well, and therefore I have thought of a solution.

Thanks to a friend of mine letting me use his account, I will be broadcasting across two Zoom platforms at the same time.

The link below is only for parents with students entering PS 101 in September in Pre-K or Kindergarten.

This link will allow us a max capacity of 100 people- so if you have a DOE address, please use the other meeting link. In the event something changes and the link below doesn’t work, I will still provide either a recording or notes from out meeting that you can review.

Meeting time July 28 at 9am.

PK/Kindergarten Parents use:

Join Zoom Meeting:
Meeting ID: 842 0212 0291
Passcode: 439371
or dial in:
+19292056099

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Letter from the Chancellor- September 2020 Options

Please read this Letter from the Chancellor carefully:

Dear Families,

I hope you and your children are well and enjoying some time off this summer. September will be here before we know it, and I am writing to you today to keep you updated on the 2020–21 school year and make sure you know how to be part of the conversation. Throughout this summer, as we diligently work to clarify operations for the fall, I promise to be transparent about what we know—and what we don’t yet know.

Your Learning Options

First things first: New York City students will be learning five days a week, whether in person or at home. As previously announced, schools are planning for blended learning, in which students will be taught in school buildings for part of the week, and will continue learning remotely from home on the other days of the week. Any family can also choose all-remote learning, for any reason. We know that the majority of families want as much in-person instruction as is safely possible, and we will work to maximize it at every turn, consistent with health and safety requirements. However, if you intend to choose all-remote learning for your child and have not yet notified us, please let us know by August 7 so schools can plan accordingly. You can fill out a web form at schools.nyc.gov/returntoschool2020 or call 311.

To enable you to make a more informed choice, we have prepared some important comparisons about what you can expect from each mode of learning, which you can find at the end of this letter. Families who choose all-remote instruction will be able to opt back in to blended learning on a quarterly basis throughout the school year, beginning in November.

No matter whether you are at school in-person or you are learning remotely, you and your child are still enrolled in and part of your school community. Your child’s schedule and learning experience will be fully managed by your school. The vast majority of students who participate in fully remote learning will be taught by teachers from their school. While there may be some limited exceptions on a school-by-school basis, you should expect your child to be assigned teachers from their school when they receive their full schedule before the school year begins.

As our plans continue to come together, we must be nimble. We will make adjustments as public health conditions continue to evolve.

How to Learn More

Every week, we will be posting more information about school operations to schools.nyc.gov/returntoschool2020. Please bookmark this page and visit it frequently. On this page, you will find information on Physical Education, Arts Education, and more. We are asking for your patience and flexibility throughout this process as we work through a great deal of planning in collaboration with our teachers, principals, and school-based staff.

Your voice and feedback are essential as our work continues. We are creating many opportunities for you to discuss the year ahead with the DOE, and we hope you will get involved. We hosted our first citywide information session on July 16, and received many great suggestions from families across the City. Please join us for one of the upcoming info sessions Tuesday, July 28; Wednesday, August 12; and Thursday, August 27. You can visit schools.nyc.gov/returntoschool2020 to register and submit a question.

In addition, each school will host a parent meeting to discuss the proposed school schedule and to review planning for the year ahead, and we will be holding community and advocate round-table meetings, briefings with Community Education Council leaders and elected officials, and more.

While the world around us continues to change, our commitment to the health and safety of our students, teachers, staff, and families remains steadfast, and so does our focus on equity and excellence. We will deliver what your child needs to succeed academically, knowing the traumatic impact this crisis has had on New Yorkers of all ages. We will ensure your child feels welcome and supported in their school community, no matter what.

Thank you for continuing to share your comments and questions. I have said it before, but it’s no less true now: You are our most important partners and I am grateful for you today and every day. Please stay safe and healthy.

Sincerely,

Richard A. Carranza

Chancellor

New York City Department of Education Comparison of Remote and Blended Learning Experiences: School Year 2020-21

Fully Remote Learning Experience

Fully remote instruction at home

Blended Learning Experience

Combination of learning in-person at school buildings, and remote instruction at home

Students participate in a regular schedule of age-appropriate, standards-based remote learning from home every day.

Students will have live interaction with teachers every day.

Every class will include live instruction. The amount will vary by grade, depending on what is developmentally appropriate.

Students will use a DOE-approved online platform (such as iLearnNYC or Google Classroom), available in multiple languages, for lessons and submission of work.

Students will experience whole class, small group and/or individualized instruction in an online environment, as well as collaboration with classmates and teachers.

We will make every effort to ensure students consistently have the same instructors throughout the year.

There will be an emphasis on social-emotional learning across school communities to ensure the mental health and wellness of students and staff.

Students will be able to access video-recorded lessons, assignments, and tasks.

Teachers will regularly engage students and families to check student work, provide timely feedback, and adjust instruction as necessary, via remote learning platforms, calls, emails, video chats, etc.

Students and families will have access to one-on-one support to help with instructional activities.

Students go to school buildings for age-appropriate, standards-based, in-person instruction on some days; and continue their learning from home remotely on the other days of the week.

On in-person days, students will attend classes in their school building.

On in-person days, students will have the opportunity for whole class, small group, and individual work and collaboration with classmates and teachers.

Students will use a DOE-approved online platform (such as iLearnNYC or Google Classroom), available in multiple languages, for lessons and submission of work.

We will make every effort to ensure students will be taught by a consistent set of teachers in-person and remotely, who work together throughout the year to maintain continuity and maximize learning.

There will be an emphasis on social-emotional learning across school communities to ensure the mental health and wellness of students and staff.

Students will be able to access video-recorded lessons, assignments, and tasks.

Teachers will regularly engage students and families to check student work, provide timely feedback, and adjust instruction as necessary, in-person and via remote learning platforms, calls, emails, video chats, etc.

Students and families will have access to one-on-one support to help with instructional activities.
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