PRINCIPAL THOMAS' UPDATES

APRIL 9, 2020

  

* Week of April 9th through April 17th *

Dear PS 70 Families,

PS 70 is taking a project based learning approach the week of April 9-17, 2020, in which our students will be given the tools of autonomy to complete from a “Choice Board.”  We will be offering students meaningful opportunities for growth and engagement. As stated by Chancellor Carranza, “during this extended period of time, we will continue to engage in remote learning as we as a city practice social distancing so that everyone in our school communities can remain safe.”

Choice boards are graphic organizers that are composed of different amounts of squares. Each square is an activity. The activities help students learn or practice a skill/concept, while allowing them a choice. Choice Boards provide students with the power to choose “how” to learn a particular skill or concept. This freedom encourages them to be more responsible, accountable and independent in their learning. It also allows them to work on the activities at their own pace. The boards are useful for teachers as it enables them to identify and use student interests and preferences to stimulate active learning and student engagement.

Choice Board Activities will be posted on Google Classroom, Class Dojo, Remind, and our School Website. Although the students have the week to complete the activities, they should submit each activity as they are completed to their teacher. The final date to submit an assignment is the week of April 20, 2020.  

With sincere appreciation for this wonderful village we are all a part of, remember, “Mrs. Thomas loves you, believes in you, and there’s no limit to what you can do!” 

Stay safe and stay blessed!

Warm regards,

Izett Thomas 

Principal

APRIL 8, 2020

  

Dear PS 70 Families,

Through these past few weeks, our school community has proven that the strength and constancy of the school is not in the bricks and stone, but rather in our love of learning and of each other. The ways in which our staff, students, and parents have responded is a great source of pride and inspiration for me. 

Our school community is strengthened by opportunities to come together. I continue to miss the faces and voices of our students and virtual class meetings that helped us stay connected. Opportunities are always presented in the midst of challenges. With that said, I am pleased to announce that PS 70 is transitioning from Zoom to Google Meet, another video conferencing platform, for a higher security capacity. Both video conferencing services offer similar features. Our goal is to launch Google Meet by Tuesday, April 21st. 

I am grateful for your flexibility as parents to navigate this new platform. You do not need to download anything at this time. Just keep in mind that Google Meet is designed to work using the Chrome browser. You will need the Google Hangouts Meet app if using it on an iPad, iPhone or Android device. 

I look forward to staying in communication with you and your beautiful children. With sincere appreciation for this wonderful village we are all a part of, remember, “Mrs. Thomas loves you, believes in you, and there’s no limit to what you can do!” 

Stay safe and stay blessed!

Warm regards,

Izett Thomas 

Principal

APRIL 4, 2020

Dear PS 70 Families,

First and foremost, I hope that you and your loved ones are healthy and safe as we navigate this new “stay at home” reality together. As we embark on our third week of remote learning, I continue to miss the beautiful, smiling faces of our students here at PS 70. Although we are unable to gather in person, we remain strong! Virtual class meetings, daily Dojo or Remind messages, emails, and conference calls help us stay connected. Our team continues to reach out to speak with every family. 

I would like to thank you wholeheartedly for your patience, support, understanding, and helpful feedback during these unprecedented times. Your positive responses, and shared photos and videos, are affirming the truly amazing work our PS 70 Staff is doing to translate their teaching expertise into effective remote learning. Moreso, I appreciate YOU for doing your best to carve out space and time in your work and home life to support your children’s learning.

As you may have already heard, there will be no Spring Recess, originally scheduled for April 9th through the 17th. All schools will continue with remote learning. With this in mind, we will offer remote learning resources that focus on daily themes and enrichment activities for all students for April 9th through the 17th. Resources will include “theme” days and taking advantage of the “unparalleled educational and cultural resources right here in the city (e.g., museums, libraries, and cultural institutions).”  More information on these activities will be shared next week.

Remote learning may be more effective when students participate live with their teacher, but at this time, the DOE will no longer permit the use of Zoom. The DOE staff and service providers will cease using Zoom as discussed in more detail below:

  • The New York City Department of Education (DOE) understands the urgency around providing safe and secure virtual-meeting solutions to protect our students while delivering the best possible remote learning experience.
  • The DOE has received requests to credential Zoom for use by faculty, students, and service providers. In the course of its credentialing process, the DOE has received various reports documenting issues that impact the security and privacy of the Zoom platform. 
  • The DOE also continues to review and monitor developments with Zoom, which may be approved for use at a later date, when security and data privacy concerns are met.

Please note that Google Classroom, with the exception of video and voice conferencing, is also currently permitted for use.

We are working hard to get it right – the workload, the expectations for learning, and a balance of work time, down time, and family time. This means that w​hile we are moving students along with College and Career Readiness, we know that nothing fully replaces what is done in the classroom. Teachers present lessons in a way that allows students access throughout the day. For families, this means students can complete assignments when it is most convenient for them and their parents.  Flexibility along with compassion for everyone’s life situation is key for us. While we do need your help to provide encouragement and an environment conducive to learning in your home, we do not expect you to teach the course or curriculum. We are learning day by day as we receive feedback from students and parents. 

Over the last two weeks, parents and students have expressed appreciation for the creative ways teachers are engaging students through activities like virtual meetings, live lessons, and story “hours”. 

I am so very grateful to our teachers for creating positive remote learning environments with instruction and guidance that is appropriate to the age and grade of their students.  With that, we are especially grateful to parents. We know that balancing work, family, and school isn’t easy for anyone. 

With sincere appreciation for this wonderful village we are all a part of, remember, “Mrs. Thomas loves you, believes in you, and there’s no limit to what you can do!” 

Stay safe and stay blessed!

Warm regards,

Izett Thomas 

Principal

MARCH 22, 2020

Dear PS 70 Families,

It is astonishing how much can change in a week’s time. Two weeks ago, school was operating as usual. I saw many of our scholars at breakfast and during the school day. Today, however, we are in uncharted territory as the entire city prepares to transition to Remote Learning for at minimum, the next few weeks. As with any change, this new way of learning provides many opportunities for us to grow as individuals. For example, the teachers have been hard at work setting up their Google Classroom and Class Dojo, some of them for the first time! 

Our hopes are that by now, all scholars have joined their Google Classroom accounts. Beginning tomorrow, Monday, March 23rd, all scholars should be actively engaged in learning during normal school hours, 8:10 am through 2:30 pm, following directions communicated through Google Classroom. Teachers will take attendance daily and have planned activities, assignments and assessments for their classes. 

Please help your child/children find a good place to work from home. Consider working away from TV and cell phone distractions. Encourage them to organize their materials ahead of time and to charge their device daily. This is an opportunity for all students to take ownership of their learning by being active participants: posting questions, responding to comments, and bringing in outside sources of information to enrich their Google Classroom environment. 

We encourage students to self-pace their assignments. We are providing a schedule for all scholars on Google Classroom, Class Dojo and Remind. All assignments should be submitted upon completion.  Teachers will be flexible and allow students to submit assignments by 5:00 pm daily.

             

During this transition to Remote Learning, we want you to know that WE ARE HERE FOR YOU! Every member of our school team is available to support you through this transition. Even if we can’t see you in person, our Administrators, Parent Coordinator, Guidance Counselor, Coaches, IEP related service providers, and all other staff members are here to help. Please do not hesitate to reach out to us via email, Google Classroom, Remind, or Class Dojo with your questions. We will respond during normal school hours and within 24 hours. WE ARE ALL HERE FOR YOU!

  

Our Administrative Staff is HERE FOR YOU!

Our Parent Coordinator is HERE FOR YOU!

Our Guidance Counselor is HERE FOR YOU!

Our Coaches are HERE FOR YOU!

Our IEP TEAM is HERE FOR YOU!

Our entire Staff is HERE FOR YOU!

If you are in need of a home learning device please contact our Parent Coordinator or go to the link:  https://coronavirus.schools.nyc/RemoteLearningDevices

I think about our scholars and their smiling faces all the time and I miss them tremendously! Please reiterate to your children, “Mrs. Thomas loves you, believes in you, and there's no limit to what you can do!” I want you and your children to know that everyone at PS 70 is thinking of you!  We will continue to support you even though we won’t be seeing each other in person for some time. 

Stay happy, healthy and safe!

Izett Thomas

Principal