Today is Monday, March 23, 2020

KINDNESS CHALLENGE: When talking, texting or emailing, start your conversation by asking how that person is doing. Connect and be there for others!

ASSIGNMENTS FOR THE WEEK:

For this week, please complete the following by logging into iLearn (remember that you’ll need to scroll down to find Week Two):

1) As previously assigned, IXL skills for this card marking will be checked beginning on Tuesday, March 24th. If you are not done with your IXL skills, check the list of skills and complete any you are missing. YOU WILL NOT HAVE TO TURN IN YOUR RECORD SHEET. Given the remote learning situation, I will go into IXL to check and score everyone’s progress.

2) Being cooped up for an extended period of time can be difficult. Read this article for some suggestions on how to pass the time.

3) So how are you passing your time? Click to enter the forum and tell us how you’re spending your days. You can also read through the comments from other students to see if there’s an idea or two in there you might try this week!

As always, please email me if you have questions or find yourself confused with any of the assignments.

We may be cooped up but at least the sun is out and reminding us that spring (and warmer weather) is on the way! I hope you’ll have the chance to go for a walk [just be sure to keep your distance from any other neighbors], get some exercise, and enjoy the fresh air.

One thing this past week has shown me is how much I value the time I get to spend with my family, friends, neighbors and all of you! I appreciate all of you. Perhaps you’ve had the same realization I did so I’d like to give you a challenge each day to extend kindness in one way or another! I’ll include it at the start of each daily blog post like this; here’s your challenge for today:

KINDNESS CHALLENGE: Offer to help someone at home with a chore or with a school assignment WITHOUT being asked. {Don’t stop with just one! How many times can you help today? And don’t forget you can repeat this challenge on other days as well!}

Equally important, don’t forget to be kind to yourself as well. Dealing with this crisis can cause anxiety, fear, and stress for kids and adults alike. So, how are you feeling? Remember that there are a lot of people who care for you. If you’re finding it hard to handle the situation, please reach out to the trusted adults in your home or your extended family. Even though we are not face-to-face, I am still here for you via email if you need me. Our school counselors, psychologists, and social workers are also still here for you as well: Parents can call 313-827-8500 or email dss@dearbornschools.org if assistance is needed.

As a district, the Dearborn Public Schools is not just committed to the academic welfare of students, we are equally committed to their social-emotional welfare in order to feel safe and be able to learn. 
Please continue to refer to the district website for up-to-date information regarding school news, including updates regarding the social emotional hotline: http://dearbornschools.org

Stay safe and be well!

Perhaps you’ve read the Governor’s memo or Stout’s blog or the memo from TCD and are a bit confused. Please read the following from Mrs. Faraj:

Hi everyone, this is long but read it so you are informed and not listening or believing rumors. Yesterday, TCD read a memo from the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) and decided to post that none of your virtual learning counts. I saw the TCD post and I waited to hear more information from the government because they have to make the final call. That said, later on that evening, the Governor then issued another statement saying that just because MDE put that in a memo, it does not mean that your virtual learning: assignments, readings, videos, etc doesn’t count. She further explained that each school district would have to consider what resources they have available to students. And as a district, Dearborn has a lot of resources to make this happen. This all means that right now, no one knows what’s going to happen but that we are moving towards online learning. That said, I highly suggest that you continue doing your assignments online. You are doing a great job and keeping up for the most part, your teachers are doing an amazing job supporting you during this uncertain time, and your parents have been reaching out to teachers and administrators trying to ensure you stay on top of your work. Learning, whether it is in the classroom or online, is meant to enrich your mind and enable your success later in life. Yes, sometimes you receive grades, however those grades will not guarantee your success or give your learning more value, your hard work and your efforts will.Mr. Oke shared this yesterday on the school blog. https://stout.dearbornschools.org/a-message-from-the-principal-regarding-student-work-during-the-school-closure/ We hope you are being safe and you and your families are healthy during this time. Take care of yourselves and hopefully we see you soon.  

Today is Friday, March 20, 2020

Whew! Congratulations! We’ve made it through the first week! I don’t know about you but this has been quite an adjustment. I hope you’re all doing well. Please continue to email with your questions and confusions so we can continue to work together.

Some of you have had difficulty logging into Open eBooks. Thanks to our wonderful media specialist, Mrs. Hankins, we have another source for FREE, digital copies of books from the elementary level through high school.

To access the books, you’ll need to go to JLG Digital Books: https://jlg.ipublishcentral.com

Once you’re there, you’ll log in based upon the level of books you’re interested in:

Elementary
Username: JLGELM
Password: JLGFREE
Middle School
Username: JLGMID
Password: JLGFREE
High School
Username: JLGHI
Password: JLGFREE

You may log on and off for different levels, if you’d like. Please give this a try and let me know how it works for you.

As always, please stay safe and be well!

If you picked up a Chromebook today, or will pick one up tomorrow morning, and you have difficulty logging on, try these tips from the district’s tech department:

1. Turn off the Chromebook (holding the power button is okay)
2. Turn the Chromebook back on.
3. Connect to your home WiFi.
4. You should see a screen that says “Sign in to your Chromebook”. Leave the Chromebook on this screen for 5-10 minutes.
5. Restart the Chromebook again.

If you’re still having difficulty, you can reach the district help line at 313-827-3006 or via email at communications@dearbornschools.org.

Today is Thursday, March 19, 2020

I bet many of you have already completed the online learning prepared by your teachers. Perhaps you’re looking for something more…

Michigan Virtual, which provides online learning courses to students on a regular basis, is offering 70 different courses for FREE for grades 6-12. You can use this link to view the classes, check out the syllabus, and join a class (or classes) if you’d like.

If you do start a class, email me. I’d love to know what piqued your interest! Stay safe and be well!

If students are in need of a Chromebook to complete the online assignments, parents may come to Stout for a few hours Thursday afternoon and another few hours on Friday morning for a “drive-thru” style distribution.

Please see the latest post on Stout’s webpage for more information.

Today is Wednesday, March 18, 2020

Working and learning from home is quite a change of pace. How are you handling all of it? Some health and organizational experts recommend that you create a daily schedule for yourself, just like you follow a schedule at school.

Somethings to consider when creating your schedule are (1) sharing the computer with siblings and parents, (2) planning out all of the assignments for all of your classes, (3) making time to move and exercise, (4) eating healthy meals [trying to limit unhealthy snacking], (5) adding in some time for you to be alone to read, rest or meditate, and (6) making the most of this time and enjoying moments with your family.

One way to carve out time for family members is to help younger siblings with some of their work, such as reading. You can find several sites online that offer books to read and/or videos of books being read aloud. One of my favorite sites to get digital copies of books for free is Open eBooks. You will need to add the app to a smartphone or tablet; there is not an online option but, once on the app, you can login through Clever with your district email and password. You can select books for yourself, your elementary siblings or even high school siblings.

Another option is to listen to stories being read aloud. Log into Storyline Online and snuggle up with your family members. You’ll hear various actors are sharing some of their favorite books.

How are you passing your time? If you’ve found some great ways, please consider emailing me so that I can share it with everyone!

Take care, stay safe, and be well!

Today is Tuesday, March 17, 2020

I hope everyone has had a chance to log into iLearn to review this week’s assignments. I realize that many families are sharing a computer between several students and parents who are now all working from home. Knowing that, the article annotations are not due until 3/22 and IXL is not due until 3/24 (just as it has been all card marking). As you work, if you have any questions or are confused on how to complete the work, please continue to email me.

Everyday, there is more and more information coming out about the Coronavirus or Covid-19. There are a lot of terms being used in these discussions. I came across a new article that helps to explain some of them, such as “flattening the curve” and why so many places are closing. If you’d like to read more about the topic, you might enjoy this article from Newsela.

Please stay safe and be well! Hopefully we’ll be back in class right after spring break.

Thanks to our wonderful food service department, a plan has been put into place to allow families to go to designated schools to pick up a bag with breakfast + lunch for each student in the family. STOUT IS NOT A PICK UP LOCATION. Grab and go bags are available at Fordson, Edsel Ford, Dearborn High, McCollough-Unis, Salina Intermediate, and Woodworth.

Bags will be available beginning tomorrow from 10am – 12pm. Please read the bulletin from Dearborn Schools for specific information.

BREAKFAST + LUNCH INFORMATIONAL BULLETIN