Good Afternoon EMMS Community,

 

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving break and were able to disconnect and recharge with your family. It is hard to believe, but we are almost halfway through the 2nd quarter. If you have not done so already, please take some time to log into Canvas with your child to review their grades and assignments. It is vital that you remain an integral partner in ensuring your child’s academic success. I want to take a moment to highlight three areas to consider for ensuring greater levels of virtual schooling success.

 

If you had to guess, what percentage of students do you think turn on their cameras during instruction? We are finding that better than half of our students choose to keep the camera off in some or all of their classes. More interestingly, the majority of parents we spoke to during parent-teacher conferences assumed that their child had their cameras on during instruction and were shocked to find out otherwise! While we understand that turning one’s camera on is optional, we do know that the data suggests it is important for the learning process in the virtual setting. Have you ever spoken to a group of people in-person or virtually? If you have, you know that reading the room and picking up on social cues is an important component to engaging our audience. When cameras are off, it is hard for teachers to gauge engagement and determine if you have to change something in your delivery or give the group a break. I challenge you, if the opportunity is available given your circumstances, to stealthily find the answer to that question. You may be shocked at what you find out.

 

Beyond turning the camera on, it is also imperative to ensure that your child is engaging in the learning activities their teacher has designed for them. Regardless of whether they have their camera on or not, interacting with questions, polls, discussion boards, and other interactive activities or assessments may be the only way teachers can assess their engagement and mastery of the subject during synchronous instruction.

 

If a parent asked me what the best way for the school to support my child is, I would unequivocally say, attending the synchronous support sessions! You are essentially getting free tutoring. When has a child ever had that consistent of an opportunity to meet with a teacher almost one-on-one and receive that level of support? So many of the virtual teaching challenges can be mitigated or solved by cutting out all of the technology and clicks and just connecting with their teacher directly. I urge you to take advantage of those invaluable sessions. Take advantage of them!

 

Please continue to support your child’s schooling by providing them with a conducive environment for learning as best as you can, remaining involved in their school by asking questions and checking Canvas, and communicating with teachers whenever you need assistance. We are here to help! Thank you for your partnership

 

Principal, EMMS

Dear 8th Grade Students and Parents,

 

We are entering an exciting time of the school year when we begin the process of registering for high school. For many of you this is a new experience, and for those of you who have done this with older children, some things have changed. Between now and January 15th, when your high school registration is due, you will receive a lot of information that will help guide you through the process. Below is a PowerPoint with links and information needed to register for the 2021-2022 school year. 

 

High School Registration PowerPoint 

 

Here we go!

 

Rachel Schwaab, Counselor for Last Names A-G: rachel_schwaab@hcpss.org

Shanté Owens, Counselor for Last Names H-O: shante_owens-young@hcpss.org

Grace Burnett, Counselor for Last Names P-Z: grace_burnett@hcpss.org