If ever there was a silver lining to "pandemic" teaching and learning, it is the increase in comfort and skill among our teachers in integrating instructional technology in meaningful ways into their professional practice. Google Classroom and other Google productivity tools like Docs and Slides are now utilized district-wide. Some teachers have experimented with other useful tools to great effect.
4th Grade Kindness Wall
Take, for example, the "4th Grade Kindness Wall" below which was created with a digital tool called Padlet. Think of Padlet as a digital bulletin board where users can add notes with text or multimedia to collaborate. Kudos to Mrs. Petosa for helping her students spread kindness as a character trait!
2nd Grade Gratitude
Making connections with students while teaching remotely has been both challenging and rewarding. Using her iPhone and the iMovie app, Mrs. Mannion captured her students' gratitude and joy as she and Mrs. Mullen delivered holiday cheer to their students' homes. Mrs. Mannion said she felt like a movie star--the students were starstruck seeing their teachers "in-person" for the first time!
District Updates
Food Services Meals for the week of December 28-January 1 (5 days)
Delivered on December 23, 2020
All orders must be made from the Remote Learners Bundles menu. Here is a link to our Food Service Department in case you have any questions regarding school meals, or you can email your questions to wgfoodservice@westgenesee.org.
Remote Materials Pick-Up for Grades K-4
Remote students should plan to pick up their next set of materials on Tuesday, January 5th, from 3:00 - 4:00 at your "home" building. These materials should get your child through the end of March.
Reminder About Remote Learning Expectations
Now that ALL WGCSD students are learning remotely, at least temporarily, principals have shared some basic expectations for success:
Be on time and prepared for class by having your class materials on-hand and any asynchronous assignments complete
Dress for success--wear school appropriate attire
Minimize distractions like cell phones, pets, and background noise
All of us at Team Remote wish you and your loved ones a safe and happy holiday and a healthy new year!
Hello, Team Remote Families! This week's blog has some updates from around the district as well as more tips for "Learning with Chromebooks." Be sure to check your "home" building's Principal blog for more information.
District Updates
Strategic Planning: Calls for Commentary
Every year the District's Strategic Planning Team comes together to review progress make toward improvement and make recommendations for continued growth. One of the key pieces is feedback from our community, staff, and students. Lisa Craig and Steve Dunham, the Strategic Planning Facilitators, would appreciate you taking a few minutes to fill out this form as your unique viewpoint and perspective regarding the District's next steps will be a huge help to the team. Here is the link. Thank you for your participation!
Elementary School
December 12th: Elementary report cards are available online. We will not be mailing hard copies of report cards home. Report cards will be available to view via the Parent Portal on Schooltool this Saturday at noon. Click here to access the viewing instructions. Here is a short video that also explains how to access the report cards online. If you need a hard copy of your child's report card mailed to your home, please contact your "home" building.
December 24th - January 3rd: Schools are closed for holiday recess.
January 4th: School Reopens
January 5th: Remote Student Supply Pick Up--for all K-4 students at your child's "home" building, 3:00 - 4:00
January 18th: School closed in observance of Martin Luther King holiday
Middle School Yearbooks
CMS
Click here to place your order! Yearbooks are currently $25, but the price will increase to $30 on February 1st. Please email Mrs. Canterino at mcanterino@westgenesee.org if you have any questions.
WGMS
Click here to place your order for your 2020-2021 WGMS Yearbook! Yearbooks are currently $25, but the price will increase to $30 on January 1st. Order your Yearbook now through January 29th to be entered to win a $50 Visa Gift Card.
Middle School - High School
December 18th: End of 15 weeks
December 21st: Monday/Tuesday cohort--synchronous classes on Monday only and asynchronous on Tuesday
December 22nd: Thursday/Friday cohort--synchronous classes on Tuesday and asynchronous on Monday
December 23rd: asynchronous/office hours for all students
December 24th - January 3rd: Holiday Recess
December 28th: 15 week progress report will be available for viewing in SchoolTool (directions are posted in SchoolTool for your convenience)
January 4th: School Reopens
January 18th: School closed in observance of Martin Luther King holiday
January 29th: Grades close for 2nd marking period
Learning With Chromebooks: Google Drive--Finding Your Files
If your Google Drive is anything like mine, it can be overwhelming to locate files. Think of "My Drive" as the place where all of your files and folders are located. To help access content easily, you can add a "star" to a file or folder--think of a star as a bookmark. You can also search Google Drive and filter your search based on a variety of criteria. In the video tutorials below, you will learn how to
Hello, Team Remote Families! This week's blog diverges from my traditional communique about the goings-on for Team Remote to include some resources for families that pertain to students' digital well-being from a trusted source--Common Sense Media.
Common Sense Media
When I was a kid, I remember sitting in front of the TV with my family watching '70s classics like the Muppet Show, Sonny and Cher, and the Gong Show. Flash forward to today and family time in front of the TV is so much different! My own kids couldn't care less about what is on cable TV--they have access to all the media they can handle on their phones, diving down the rabbit hole on TikTok and YouTube for hours on end.
Even before the pandemic, today's young people have been immersed in the world of digital media for better or worse. One of the resources I rely on to assess the impact of digital technology on students is Common Sense Media, a non-profit organization that provides education and advocacy to families to promote safe technology and media for children.
It is the mission of Common Sense Research to provide parents, educators, health organizations, and policymakers with reliable, independent data on children's use of media and technology and the impact it has on their physical, emotional, social, and intellectual development.
Their Research Program was recently updated to include some data-driven insights into families' and educators' experiences with media and technology. Although this information isn't necessarily related to WG's Remote Learning modality, I thought you might find it insightful to review some of their most recent research. One thing I learned--some of the most commonly mentioned
personalities teens say they trust for
news on social media or YouTube include PewDiePie and Beyonce rather than their local news media!
Click here for more of Common Sense Media's research articles. Note: You may be asked to create a free basic account on Common Sense's website to review the full reports. You might also be interested in Common Sense's "Parents Need to Know" pages with helpful information about digital applications that are popular with young people like Fortnite, Snapchat, TikTok and more.
Hello, Team Remote Families, and Happy Thanksgiving! I think I can speak for all of the Team Remote faculty in letting you know how grateful we are to have your support to help make remote learning a success for our students. Thank you to all of the parents, grandparents, caregivers, students, and teachers for the hard work and sacrifices you are making to further our students' education. Nothing about this is easy, but together, we are making the best of it.
This week's blog includes information about Elementary report cards and another tip for "Learning With Chromebooks."
Elementary Report Cards
Please note that we are no longer mailing out report cards to all families. Report cards will be available via SchoolTool beginning Saturday, December 14. Click here to access the viewing instructions. Here is a short video that also explains how to access the report cards online. If you need to update your email or phone number on SchoolTool, please click this link. If you need a hard copy of your child's report card mailed to your home, please contact your "home" building.
East Hill: 315-487-4648
Onondaga Road: 315-487-4653
Split Rock: 315-487-4656
Stonehedge Blue: 315-487-4633
Stonehedge Gold: 315-487-4631
WGMS (5th grade): 315-487-4615
Learning With Chromebooks: Customize Your Google Drive
Google Drive allows users to customize their preferences when it comes to viewing folders and files that are stored on the web. In the video tutorials below, learn how to customize your Drive to maximize your productivity.
Two Minute Drill: Google Drive--Grid View vs. List View
Learn how to toggle between Grid View and List View to preview your files and folders in Google Drive.
Two Minute Drill: Google Drive--Change Folder Color
Learn how to change the color of a folder in Google Drive.
Hello, Team Remote Families! This week's blog includes information about Remote Elementary Fine Arts, important dates from around the district, and another tip for "Learning With Chromebooks."
Remote Fine Arts
The Fine Arts department has assembled general music kits for all elementary students! Families of remote students in grades K-4 can pick up their music kits on 11/23 from 12:00 - 3:00 at your "home" building. Teachers are in the process of putting together more asynchronous lessons for K-4 students to pursue independently. Be on the lookout for more choice boards and virtual lessons with new activities for both music and art after the new year.
Important Dates
November 18
Remote Material Pick Up for WGHS
The next remote material pick-up day will be November 18. There will be two time frames. The first will be from 9:00-11:00 a.m. and the second will be from 12:30-3:00 p.m. Items can be picked up on the atrium side of the school. Please use the Applebees entrance from West Genesee Street. Future pick-up days will be as follows:
December 16
January 13
February 10
Future pick-up days will be scheduled beyond February as needed.
Remote Materials Pick up for CMS
Remote teachers have directly contacted families who may need to pick up learning materials (i.e. families who may not have a printer at home). Pick up for those families will be on 11/18 from 8:00 - 3:00 at the CMS lobby. Please note that this materials pick up is NOT for all 7-8 remote students, but solely for families who have been contacted by their child's teacher.
If you will be coming to CMS to pick up materials on 11/18, please consider ordering a book or two from our library! Mrs. Bush has made it easy for you to browse and shop and all book orders will be ready for pick up in the main entrance.
November 23
K-4 Parent Teacher Conferences (Half-Day for K-4 students)
Remote students in grades 2-4 can pick up their literacy supplies for the next couple of units as well as music kits between noon and 3:00 p.m. at your "home" building
WGHS - CMS - WGMS Schedule
Monday/Tuesday cohort: synchronous classes on Monday only and asynchronous on Tuesday
November 24
K-4 Parent Teacher Conferences Cont'd. (Half-Day for K-4 students)
WGHS - CMS - WGMS Schedule
Thursday/Friday cohort: synchronous classes on Tuesday and asynchronous on Monday
November 25 - 27
Thanksgiving Break--No School
Learning With Chromebooks: Google Drive for Storage and Productivity in the Cloud
At the dawn of the 21st century, I was teaching social studies at WGHS. Like many teachers (this may be unique to the profession), I had a system for saving documents and files that I might potentially use in my day-to-day teaching: When I found something from a colleague or on the Internet that was useful, I would be sure to email it to myself! That way, I could continue to work on my curriculum from home. As a matter of convenience, I decided to try saving instructional materials on a flash drive. I can still recall my excitement when I scored an 8G flash drive from Staples for just $50.
Fast forward to today where Google Drive provides anyone who is part of our "@westgenesee.org" domain INFINITE storage for free! I no longer have to email myself or buy extra hardware to access my files. I can simply upload them to Google Drive, log in to my "@westgenesee.org" account, and access my files on my phone, my work computer, my Chromebook, or any device that is connected to the Internet.
But wait...there's more. Google Drive isn't just useful for storing files. It also includes a productivity suite to create files for free. There is no need to install expensive software like Microsoft Office. Google has an answer for each of Microsoft's productivity platforms. Google Docs is comparable to Microsoft Word for basic word processing. Google Sheets is comparable to Excel for creating spreadsheets and sorting data. And Google Slides is similar to PowerPoint for creating presentations.
Check out the video tutorials below to learn how to upload files and folders to store them on Google Drive as well as how to create Docs, Sheets, Slides, and more.
Two Minute Drill: Google Drive--Upload Files and Folders
Two Minute Drill: Google Drive--Create Google Docs, Sheets, Slides and More
Hello, Team Remote Families! This week's blog includes information about SchoolTool/Report Cards for families of students in grades 5-12, information about school yearbook "candids", and some important dates. There is also another installment of the "Learning With Chromebooks" series.
SchoolTool and Report Cards
Report cards will be available in SchoolTool for students and families in grades 6-12 on Friday, November 13th. If you do not yet have a SchoolTool account as a parent/guardian, please complete this form to request an account. The form also has directions for how to reset your password if you already have an account but forgot it. Please click this link to learn how to access your child's report card information.
School Yearbooks
We would like to provide our remote students the opportunity to be represented in each building's annual yearbook. Feel free to email your "home" building's yearbook coordinator to share some candid photos of your children learning from home.
East Hill
Dave Smith: easthillbook@gmail.com
Onondaga Road
Kristy Willis: kwillis@marcellusschools.org
Split Rock
Carolyn Champlin: carolyn.champlin@gmail.com
Stonehedge Blue and Gold
Loryn Petrik: lorynpetrik@gmail.com
WGMS
Lindsay Hiserodt: lhiserodt@westgenesee.org
Angela Keida: akeida@westgenesee.org
Alternatively, parents/guardians can download the ImageShare App on their phone. Click here for directions on how to do it.
CMS
Monica Canterino: mcanterino@westgenesee.org
Dale Keida: dkeida@westgenesee.org
Alternatively, parents/guardians can download the ImageShare App on their phone. Click here for directions on how to do it.
WGHS
Martha Hennessey: mhennessey@westgenesee.org
High School students, be sure to follow announcements made by Student Council for additional opportunities to stay involved in school activities and the yearbook!
Important Dates
November 11th
Veterans Day (no school)
November 23rd
Elementary Remote Supply Pick Up: Pickup of supplies for grades 2, 3, and 4 is on Monday, 11/23 from 12:00 - 3:00 at your "home" building.
November 23rd and 24th
Elementary (Grades K-4): Parent-Teacher Conferences (1/2 day for students)
Secondary (Grades 5-12 at WGMS - CMS - WGHS)
As we approach the holidays with different breaks in the school calendar, we want to maximize the synchronous opportunities for our students whether they are in-person or fully remote. If we follow the existing calendar as it is, there would be long periods of time around Thanksgiving and December holiday breaks where one group of students would not have direct synchronous contact with their teachers for twelve or more days. With that said, we are going to adjust our schedule for the following dates:
Monday, November 23rd
Monday/Tuesday cohort: synchronous classes on Monday only and asynchronous on Tuesday
Tuesday, November24th
Thursday/Friday cohort: synchronous classes on Tuesday and asynchronous on Monday
Monday, December 21st
Monday/Tuesday cohort: synchronous classes on Monday only and asynchronous on Tuesday
Tuesday, December 22nd
Thursday/Friday cohort: synchronous classes on Tuesday and asynchronous on Monday
Learning With Chromebooks
Back when I was in middle school, computers were a bit of a novelty. At home, I had replaced my Atari 2600 with a Commodore 64. At school, we learned some basic word processing but not much beyond that. By the time I was a senior in high school (WG '88), I took a keyboarding class and learned how to type properly with my fingers gently balanced over "home row" on a Smith-Corona typewriter. In college, a kid down the hall charged $2/page to type papers on his Apple IIc Plus, but even in the early '90s, the Internet was not widely available to the masses. Things started to change in the mid-'90s as home computing became more affordable. During the early part of my teaching career, big desktop computers filled up one or two computer labs that teachers would reserve in advance for a special lesson that required students to use Microsoft Office ("Be sure to SAVE YOUR WORK!") or complete a "webquest." It wasn't until 2007 when the first rendition of the iPhone was released and the iTunes helped to make the concept of "the cloud" a household term.
Today, of course, things are much different. To many of us adults, it feels like the students should be experts in using technology since they have been born in an era in which cell phones are like pacifiers. Although many young people may be good at making TikTok videos or Snapping their friends, students aren't necessarily experts at using technology to be productive in school. Of course, one of the first steps in being productive is getting organized.
In the spirit of helping students learn how to be better organized in a digital space, I have created a series of short instructional videos to help students learn how to get the most out of Google Drive, Google's cloud-based storage and productivity platform. Over the next several weeks I will be sharing a series of "Two Minute Drills"--short instructional videos--to help students master working in "the cloud." Please share these videos with your children to help them learn the basics of leveraging Google Drive for learning.
Hello Team Remote Families! Please see below for some brief news and notes from around the district. See the links on the right side of the blog for more information from each of the principals and other district leaders. Also, today's blog post shares the next installment of tips and tricks to help students get the most out of their Chromebooks.
Elementary School
November 11th: Veterans Day (no school)
November 23rd - 24th: Parent-Teacher Conferences--This year's conferences, of course, will be a little different from those of previous years as they will be conducted virtually rather than in-person. Please be on the lookout for a communique from your child's teacher for scheduling information. Also, please note that the 23rd and 24th will be half-days for students in grades K-4.
November 23: "Pick Up Day" for remote families with students in grades 2-4. Families can pick up learning materials from your child's "home" building from 12:00 - 3:00 PM.
Library for Remote Students: Visit the West Genesee Remote Elementary Library and watch Mrs. Chambala’s video instructions for finding books and checking them out from your "home" building's library.
Middle School & High School
November 6th: End of the 1st Quarter Marking Period
November 11th: Veterans Day (no school)
November 13th: 1st Quarter Report Cards Available
Learning With Chromebooks: Accessibility Features
Today's blog post continues our series of tips to help students get the most out of their Chromebooks.
Similar to other electronic devices, Chromebooks have accessibility features that are designed to help people with disabilities use technology more easily. Nonetheless, all students can benefit from assistive technology.
Turn on Chromebook accessibility features
You can make your Chromebook easier to use by turning on accessibility features that work best for your needs.
Step 1: Find accessibility features
At the bottom right, select the time. Or press Alt + Shift + s. Select Settings . At the bottom, select Advanced. In the "Accessibility" section, select Manage accessibility features. Optional: To have quick access to accessibility features, turn on Always show accessibility options in the system menu.
Step 2: Turn on a feature
Choose the accessibility features you'd like to use (click the links to learn more from Google's support site):
Audio: Play all sounds together through all speakers or play sound on startup.
In addition to the Chromebook's built-in accessibility features, there are several Chrome Extensions that can support all learners. In the video below, learn how students can use Read & Write for Google Chrome to leverage its text-to-speech capabilities.
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