14 August 2020
Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s):
Our Return-to-School Intention Survey closed last Friday. Thank you to the hundreds of families who replied. Your responses aid us in finalizing our return-to-school plans and class lists. Out of the approximately 650 students enrolled in our schools, 151 students, across all grade levels, PK-8, will be participating in the fully remote e-learning instructional model. Out of these 151 students, approximately 90 of them are TBD students and approximately 60 of them are CDW students. If your child is one of these 151 students, you should have received an e-mail from me last evening confirming your self-selection of the fully remote e-learning instructional model.
As we prepare to return to school, I encourage you to begin working with your child(ren) on wearing a mask. If you so choose, you might want to begin with an explanation of its purpose and then try to practice with your child(ren) on wearing the mask for periods of time, beginning with short intervals. As mentioned in the Re-Opening Video Presentation, the District will be providing five (5) washable cloth masks to all students and staff. Our students and staff may choose to wear their own masks instead of those issued by the District; however, it has been shared by those in the medical field that masks with vents are not advisable. We recognize that this imposed mask-requirement is not going to be easy for any of us, especially for our students, so we will help in any way possible by staying attuned to students’ needs and allowing for individual breaks when needed.
Additionally, as we think about returning to school, I encourage you to be aware of the travel advisory list if you choose to vacation with your family. For the health and safety of all of our students and staff, we are relying on you to be honest with us and to inform us if you will be returning from a vacation place that requires quarantine when the school year begins. Please contact the school’s office and the school nurse to let us know. We must work together to maintain a healthy school environment -- our collaboration remains so important!
We hope that you continue to find the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) helpful. We will update these FAQs as new information becomes available.
Our wellness professionals are here to support you and your child(ren) with the return to school for in-person learning or with your choice of continuing with fully remote e-learning. Through OT Connections: Want to Talk? Want to Read? Want to Check In?, we are continuing to offer a three-part support system intended to give you opportunities to connect with our trained health and wellness professionals. Within this edition of OT Connections, you will see the date, times, and registration links for our August virtual check-in sessions.
As I repeatedly mention, our Re-Opening Plan is awaiting review by the County Department of Education and final approval by the State Department of Education. Any imposed directive(s) by these Departments of Education or any directive from the Governor’s Office could change our Plan at any time. These weekly communications will keep you updated of our status.
Enjoy the weekend. Stay well.
Respectfully,
Danielle M. Da Giau, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools
Old Tappan Public School District