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Ongoing Learning - week of April 13-17

Hi Room 5 and 6 students and families,

Thank you again for your patience and understanding as we spent last week contacting families and preparing learning tasks for students. At this stage we have been in contact either by email or phone with almost all of our room 5 and 6 families. If you are one of the families who has not been in contact with either Ms. Stride or myself, please check for the email I sent out last Sunday, April 5. If you can respond to that email, answering the questions relating to access to internet and technology at home, we would appreciate it.

Grade 3/4 teachers have prepared an ongoing learning package that will be available on the Taradale School website tomorrow morning. Your family will receive an email via School Messenger with a link to the weeks learning tasks. I will also post a link on our blog to the ongoing learning package tomorrow morning.

Before beginning the learning tasks it is important for students and families to read through the information provided. Here are a few things to keep in mind:


  • At this stage this in not 'online learning' - it is ongoing learning intended to engage students in reading, writing, and math. 
  • At this stage there are no 'classes'. Online meet-ups will be organized to begin at a later date. Teachers will be working towards this this week.
  • The government of Alberta has mandated that schools provide approximately five hours of targeted learning each week. The ongoing learning package is organized by day, but also has additional learning tasks that students are free to engage in.
  • We encourage students to work through these learning tasks at their own pace. 
  • As always, I encourage all students to find time to read everyone day. In the ongoing learning package we have provided links to free online books.
  • We have provided you with a sample daily schedule. This is a suggestion, and you are not obligated to follow this plan. This is a very stressful time for everyone, and we know that every family is different. Please do what works for you and your family.

If you have questions about the ongoing learning package, feel free to email me (both room 5 and 6 families). This week we are suggesting that students engage in the work, but not worry about submitting completed work to their teachers. This will come in subsequent weeks. 

We will be in contact throughout the week, advising students and families of progress we are making as we work towards setting up Google Classrooms and Google Meets. We are frequently being provided with new information, and things are changing quickly. We are doing our best to respond to this changing landscape, while providing students with engaging tasks and support. 

Thank you again for your patience and understanding. I will be in touch via this blog again tomorrow morning.

Mr. Duncan



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