Dear Chapin Families,

For the past two weeks, Chapin faculty and administrators have been working diligently to put together the best possible program for our students as we move through this unprecedented situation. I am inspired by all of the work that has been done. On Wednesday, March, 25, we will begin online/distance learning. I’m writing to provide some general information, items specific to Lower and Upper School, and a few definitions.

Administrators and faculty truly have been working tirelessly to provide a rich educational experience while holding tight to our sense of community and the desire for us to stay connected. Teachers understand it is impossible to completely replicate the classroom environment online, but they are determined to fulfill Chapin's mission and philosophy and create an experience for students that helps them to continue to grow and learn. 

I am exceedingly grateful to Chapin's faculty for their unwavering effort to be ready once Spring Break ends. Their work ethic, along with the dedication and time they have committed to putting the online/distance learning program together, is beyond incredible. On Wednesday, we are all about to embark on this next chapter as a community, a Chapin community. It's who we are.

May you and your family stay healthy and well.

-Barbara

 

General Information for the Entire Community

• Chapin will follow the school closing guidelines set by the Governor of New Jersey. That means Chapin will not reopen on April 6 as we had hoped. Currently, all schools are closed indefinitely. We will keep you informed when we have more information from the state.
• We have established an online learning support team. The members of the team are Mark Lederer, Jeff Barnosky, Pauline DiMiauta, Shana Lindsey, and Gilberto Olvera. If you or your child need help or have questions about the platforms being used, please contact our online learning support team at onlinelearningsupport@chapinschool.org. One of the members of the team will address your question.
• Online Learning Information for Chapin School contains the information for our online learning experience.
• A survey will be sent to you on Friday in order for us to gather feedback about you and your child’s first-week online learning experience. Your participation will help us continue to refine our work.

 

Parent/Student To-Do List to Be Completed by Tuesday, March 24, 2020

Grades 3-8

• Make sure you and your child can log into MyChapin. If you need a refresher on how to access this, please check below.
  • Lower School
  • Upper School
• Make sure your child can get into the Google Classrooms their teachers have set up by using the Google Classroom app on their iPads.
• Have your child log into the Microsoft Teams app on their iPad. This should already be deployed to their iPads. Download and install Microsoft Teams on any device you or your child might use over the duration of the distance and online learning. This app is what Chapin will use to have video calls, meetings, and classes. Directions for downloading and installing the app as well as signing in are below.
  • Microsoft Teams

 

 Grades Explorers-2

• Your child will need your help in accessing their online learning tools and information. 
• Make sure you can log into MyChapin. If you need a refresher on how to access this please check below.
  • Lower School  
• Download and install Microsoft Teams on any device you or your child might use over the duration of the distance and online learning. This app is what Chapin will use to have video calls, meetings, and classes. Directions for downloading and installing the app as well as signing in are below.
  • Microsoft Teams

If you have difficulty with any of these steps please email onlinelearningsupport@chapinschool.org explaining what issues you are having and someone will get back to you to schedule a time to help you.

 

Terms and Definitions

• Synchronous/Online Learning takes place in real time through Microsoft Teams.The teacher leads the students in live virtual lessons.
• Asynchronous/Distance Learning is the classroom experience without real time interactions via the Learning Management System (My Chapin) and Google Classroom. Students access materials on their own.

Covid-19 Resources

COVID-19 Information and Situation Updates

CDC Travel Advisories

Information about the Covid-19 from the CDC

 Talking Covid-19 with Kids

World Health Organization COVID-19 Resources

NJ Department of Health COVID-19 Information

PA Department of Health COVID-19 Information

 ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

• NJ Department of Health

• World Health Organization (WHO) Information About Covid-19

• US Centers For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Situation Summary

• Global Cases

• Frequently Asked Questions and Answers (Covid-19)

 

 

Our community’s connection is the foundation of Chapin. I am learning, both as a parent and educator, that through this challenging time we must put our fundamental need for human connection, fun, laughter, and care first. In support of community connection, I will be posting videos for read-alouds, daily video lunch bunches, and sharing articles and resources to help support families through this difficult challenge of living “all parts of life” at home. Although we are separated by distance, we are connected by our shared commitment to our relationships and supporting the learning of our students.

Our goal in these next weeks is to, first and foremost, maintain a feeling of connection between our students and teachers. This relationship is the foundation for learning both in and out of the classroom. Our second goal is to provide meaningful learning activities focused on Language Arts, Math, and Co-Curriculars for students to do with a blend of adult guidance and independence. This will in no way be a replacement for the learning that happens in the classroom amidst classmates and caring, expert educators. Our plan will be one that we adapt and evolve as we all understand how we are navigating online learning from afar and what our human, family, and learning needs are. We will send a survey after the first three days to guide our next steps. Below you will find our plan for this Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.

You can expect:

• We will follow our six-day schedule starting Wed-A Day, Thursday- B Day, Friday-C Day. 

• Your child will have learning plans daily in LA and Math for the first three days. Teachers will be available for an MSTeams call during your student’s scheduled LA and Math periods. Just “chat” or video call with a question or just say hi!

  • Students will have four LA and Math learning plans weekly.

• Two individualized video calls a week. These will be scheduled by your LA and Math teacher directly with you for personal student instruction.

• One scheduled Homeroom Community times for connection and conversation with the class on Friday. This is scheduled by your HR teacher. Students access via MSTeams.

• One activity in Music, Art, PE, Library, and Mandarin/ Spanish per week.

• Learning activities in Science (Grades 3 and 4).

• Reading Support with Mrs. Dill.

• The activities for the students will remain developmentally-appropriate and will be differentiated depending on the student and age. 

In preparation for our first day of learning, please practice using MSTeams to call me, Pauline DiMaiuta, or Jeff Barnosky to ensure that you and your child can communicate. This practice call will be used to troubleshoot and try our the MSTeams screen functions BEFORE your video calls with teachers. Please see the directions below. For now, please be well, healthy wishes, and much care to you and your family.

Microsoft Teams

• This is where you will be able to view classes or live interactions with teachers. 

 Here is a tutorial to use it as needed.

Here’s a refresher on My Chapin, which will be the starting place for most of our interaction.

• My Chapin

• Here’s a tutorial for Lower School Parents using My Chapin. 

Some teachers may also use Google Classrooms. There will be links on My Chapin to Google Classrooms. 

For Grades 3 and 4 ONLY:

Google Classroom

Parents’ Guide to Google Classroom
 

 

Letter from Mr. Olvera (March 23rd) 

Classes - What to Expect:

• We will maintain our six-day rotation for organizational purposes.

• Online learning begins on Wednesday, March 25 (A day).

• Every class on your child's schedule will meet "live" on the first day!

  • Teachers will schedule synchronous learning on two days (minimum) of each of the rotations. Attendance will be taken at each of these classes.

  • (What are synchronous and asynchronous learning?) 

• Synchronous learning will take place via Microsoft Teams (similar to Zoom Video Conferencing or Google Hangouts).  

• Synchronous learning will be scheduled at least three days in advance and posted as an assignment in MyChapin so it shows up in the students' (and therefore parent) calendars.

• Content will be shared by teachers on each of the days in which the classes meet. Core academic classes, for example, will share content five out of the six days in our rotation. Teachers will use a combination of My Chapin, Google Classroom and Microsoft Teams to distribute lessons, content, assignments, and other materials. 

• Teachers will be available to answer questions during scheduled classes either via Microsoft Teams (video) or email. For example, your child's math teacher will be near their computer during period four, if that is when math is scheduled that day, in case a student has a question about math content. 

• Co-curricular (visual and performing arts, PE, technology, etc.) teachers will create synchronous and asynchronous lessons.

• All teachers will also be available to answer questions during STAR and FLEX periods (B,D,E,F days) as well as C6: Discovery Classes will turn into a de facto STAR period for teacher consultation. 

• Sample Schedule (5th or 6th Grade Student):

  • Period 1 - access materials for art class

  • Period 2 - "Live" math class using Microsoft Teams

  • Period 3 - access materials for Social Studies class, ask a question of your teacher, who will be available

  • Period 4 - Lunch for fifth and sixth grade - take a break!

  • Period 5 - "Live" English class using Microsoft Teams

  • Period 6 - access materials for Science class

  • Period 7 - STAR period. Work on homework, ask questions to teachers available via Microsoft Teams

• Synchronous learning will take place via Microsoft Teams (similar to Zoom Video Conferencing or Google Hangouts).  

  • Synchronous learning will be scheduled at least three days in advance and posted as an assignment in MyChapin so it shows up in the students' (and therefore parent) calendars.

 

Microsoft Teams

This is where you will be able to view classes or live interactions with teachers.  Here is a tutorial to use it as needed.

 

Click here to access: My Chapin

• Here’s a tutorial for Upper School Parents using My Chapin.

  • All assignments will be posted on My Chapin as usual.

  • Live classes will be posted on My Chapin as assignments. See below for information about Microsoft Teams, our live video platform. 

Teachers will use a combination of My Chapin, Google Classroom and Microsoft Teams to distribute lessons, content, assignments,

Google Classroom

• Parents’ Guide to Google Classroom

  • Google Classroom will be a place where many teachers will distribute assignments, quizzes, moderate discussions, and other materials. 

  • An email will be sent to you to join as a “guardian”. Please accept and set up the level of notifications you would like to receive. 

 

SUGGESTIONS FOR PARENTS 

Setting Up at Home

As we start our distance learning plan, we wanted to share some of these guidelines. Some may or may not be possible in every home, but they will offer some structure to the extent you would like to incorporate them.

• Designate a “work space” with the resources students need (iPad or laptop, books, and other school supplies). Make sure the work space, while not in a high-traffic area, can be monitored by an adult for productivity.

• Consider providing headphones or earbuds with a microphone for synchronous online work. It will reduce background noise for the other attendees and amplify the student’s voice. 

• If necessary, set up a schedule for when your children will have access to wifi (may be necessary in households where there are many users). All synchronous learning will be scheduled at least three days in advance and will show up in students’ calendars. 

• Ask your children to create a schedule for independent work and share it with you.

• Remind your children to keep their devices charged and/or to plug into a power source, especially during synchronous sessions.

• Remember that these changes can be challenging for children. Encourage them to take breaks and work on their most challenging subjects when they're most fresh, remain calm and reassuring, and be available to talk if necessary. 

• Remind your children to move, too—exercise helps mental well-being and focus. Coach Campbell and Coach Franc will help with this as well!

• Encourage your children to have independent reading books on hand that they enjoy. While much of distance learning needs to happen online, it is important to find a healthy screen-time balance.

• Ask your children to walk you through their class pages on MyChapin and/or Google Classroom.

As always, we are here to help. Please use the following email addresses for support:

OnlineLearningSupport@chapinschool.org for all technology related questions

Gil Olvera (golvera@chapisnchool.org) for general questions, your suggestions, and support

Maura Coughlin, School Counselor (mcoughlin@chapinschool.org) for student support questions

Karen Hepburn (khepburn@chapinschool.org) set up meetings with G. Olvera or other faculty members, general Upper School questions.

 

How Do I Attend a Synchronous (Live) Class at Chapin?

The following are some “Dos and Don’ts” for attending classes online at Chapin. We (the teachers) have been using MS Teams to communicate and have le arned quite a bit about how this will look, but we know we’ll have to make adjustments as we go along!

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Do: Wear appropriate clothing. It can be tempting to wear pajamas but dress as if you're in your physical classroom (ok - dress down day attire!). You never know if you're going to have to get up suddenly or if your camera might fall. So, wear appropriate clothing for your video calls.

Do: Use the “blur background” function on MSTeams! It will blur out any distracting background behind you so your teacher and classmates can see you better!

Do: When you're talking, look into the camera instead of looking at yourself talking on the computer screen. It will help others on the call feel like you're 100 percent engaged and present.

Don’t: Position your camera too low or too high. Weird camera angles can be very distracting during video conference calls. Make sure your camera is eye level and on the monitor you plan to use for the conference. In my many conferences this week, I have seen my fair share of nostrils and ceiling fans! Try placing your iPad or laptop on a pile of books.

Try to fit your face so that your eyes sit about ⅔ of the way up the screen. 

Do: Use the bathroom when you need to! Use the “chat” section to drop a note to your teacher that you’ll be right back. No need to ask for permission!

Do: Use the chat to “raise your hand” if you can’t find that perfect time to speak up. With a full class, you might discover it’s hard to start talking (as the teachers did!) so use the chat to write something like, “I have a question” or “Me! Me!” and your teacher will call on you!

Do: Make sure your room is well lit (side lighting is the best). Few things are worse than having a class while feeling like you're talking to someone in a dungeon. Use natural light from windows or simply turn on the overhead light in the room to brighten up the conference. If using a window for lighting, do not have it behind you or you will become “back lit” and people will not be able to see your face. 

Don’t: Check or read emails or peruse articles while on the video call with your class. Remember that we are still “in school” so your phone should not be near you during your call. This also includes doing additional work beyond the call. It’s easy for other participants to tell if you aren't fully focused and present during the MS Teams call.

Do: Keep in mind that you aren’t the only one “in class.” Try to be mindful of your classmates as they try to contribute.