Dear TMSA and QCSS Families,
We are thrilled to be preparing for the 2020-2021 school year. As we all anticipate, this year will look very different for us. We want to assure you that the quality of TMSA Public Charter Schools, however, will not be different for our students. In fact, this year, we will learn how to be more intuitive, more communicative, more productive, and we will rise above all expectations.
As we prepare for the upcoming school year, teachers are already quite busy, preparing packets and supplies for your families, ensuring that all of our families have the proper technology and internet services, and finding ways to ensure that the connection to the families is just as valuable as it has always been. We are proud of our qualified educators and for their dedication to ensuring that this school year is the best that we can make it to be for your children.
In the upcoming days, you will receive correspondence from your individual schools about daily schedules, orientations, extracurricular activities, supply pick-ups, and more. If you have needs for your child to successfully start the school year, such as a device to use, but did not fill out the Follow-Up Survey, please reach your child’s school as soon as possible.
At this time, the survey data is clear that our families prefer a modified schedule that will consist of live instruction meetings between 9 AM and 2 PM, with some homework assignments for the afternoon. Each content area/class period will include 20-30 minute live meetings that will take place on Zoom, and there will be collaborative, interactive learning opportunities during this time as well. Classes will include time for social emotional learning, and extracurricular activities will launch virtually in the first quarter. Throughout this time, you may also participate in virtual or socially-distanced home visits, as well as other parent engagement events that we plan to host virtually. Our school administrators are working hard to create the best schedules so that the students receive all of the support they need in the upcoming year. Please remember that school will begin on a regular schedule starting Tuesday, August 11th.
This year, we are also excited to be integrating Schoology as our new Learning Management System. This system will allow a one-stop place for you to view the progress of all of your scholars. Here, you will be able to see due dates, grades, class announcements, and more. This communication tool is going to help us all manage distance learning, and it will help families stay informed and up-to-date with all class information. You can click here to view a brief overview video. This tool will also be reviewed at orientation. We know how important it is to stay in touch with daily activities, and this is sure to help us do that! We have learned quite a bit about remote learning from last year’s experience and are taking actions to improve the achievement level of our students. Beginning right away, we will start using MAP testing to monitor the effectiveness of our virtual learning environment. Teachers will use other formative assessments to monitor student growth, and interventions will be put in place if that growth is not at a satisfactory level.
It is without a doubt that we all wish we were starting this school year as we always do, greeting our families and meeting each other in our children’s classrooms. We all look forward to the time when this will resume. In the meantime, we continue to prioritize student and staff safety, and we thank you for your continued support to ensure this continued success.
TMSA Public Charter Schools are ready to kick off the 2020-2021 school year with optimism, teamwork, and ingenuity. We look forward to sharing this continued journey with you.
Sincerely,
Ben Karaduman
Superintendent