April 11, 2020

Dear Smyth Families,

We hope this finds you and your loved ones safe and healthy.  Although this is a time of uncertainty, we are committed to providing high-quality learning experiences for all of our students at John M. Smyth. Your partnership, feedback, and collaboration are critically important to support your child’s engagement in remote learning.  Please take a few moments to listen for information about our plan, expectations for your child, and the ongoing communications and assistance we will provide to keep students engaged, learning, and healthy while schools are closed.  Please also be patient with us as we update our website and continue to navigate this new learning.  

As reported by CPS, all schools are distributing technology devices to students who lack them at home during school closure.  Smyth will only be distributing Chromebooks to the following priority groups: Students in Temporary Living Situations, then Diverse Learners, and then general education students in benchmark grades 8th, 6th, and 3rd followed by students in grades 7th, 5th, and 2nd in the same order.  Students in 4th grade are not included in this priority, though you may still request one to demonstrate need for possible future distributions.  We can only guarantee one Chromebook per household.

Distribution will be Monday, April 13th through Wednesday, April 15th from 10:00am - 12:00pm.  Parents or guardians must fill out the online request form by Sunday, April 12, 2020 at 3:00pm.  You will then be sent a response by 6pm on Sunday.  Parents or guardians must come in person to pick up the Chromebook.  We will be practicing social distancing during distribution, so please be patient.  For full details, please go to smyth.cps.edu.

Last week, CPS rolled out new guidelines for schools to begin plans for remote learning, and to begin these new instructional days the week after spring break, on Monday April 13th. This means that while the school closure is in effect teachers will be adjusting classroom instruction to a new format, and students and parents will be able to engage with daily learning from your home starting Monday, April 13, 2020.

Remote Learning Plan

Each week, you will receive a weekly learning plan from your child’s teacher, which will list learning activities Monday-Friday. Weekly learning plans will be made available in the following ways:

•Emailed by classroom teachers

•Listed in the Remote Learning section of the school website

•Available for pick-up at the Main Office by appointment

o Packet #2 Monday, April 13, 2020

o Packet #3 Monday, April 27, 2020

CPS Meal Distribution:

Following Spring Break, John M. Smyth will remain a food distribution site from 9am - 1pm Monday - Friday at door #2.  Please come by Smyth or any school more convenient to your home for meal pick up.

Please continue to stay safe and healthy.  We wish all of our families a safe and happy Spring Break.

Yours in Wellness,

Principal Turner

Dear Smyth Families,

As you know, the city and state response to the COVID-19 outbreak has been ongoing and fluid, and to date, what we know is that the current school closure will be in place until at least April 30th. We understand that the school closure has posed a unique challenge to our families, and that our students, who are our priority, are experiencing an adjustment to their learning that is unprecedented.

Last week, CPS rolled out new guidelines for schools to begin plans for remote learning, and to begin these new instructional days the week after spring break, on Monday April 13th. This means that while the school closure is in place, teachers will be adjusting classroom instruction to a new format, and students and parents will be able to engage with daily learning from the comforts of your own home. Remote learning assignments and activities will only improve student grades. Our aim is to increase learning, not to negatively impact our students during school closures.

Here is what that remote learning will look like at Smyth:

Weekly Learning

Each week, you will receive a weekly learning plan from your child’s teacher, which will list learning activities Monday-Friday. Weekly learning plans will be made available in the following ways:

*Emailed by classroom teachers

*Listed in the Remote Learning section of the school homepage smyth.cps.edu

*Available for pick-up at Door #2 from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM, Mondays-Fridays

*Available for mailing- request via email or phone call

Office Hours

Smyth is available to you both digitally and by phone Monday through Friday. For any support or assistance you may need.

*Digital email hours are from 8:00-3:00 by emailing [email protected]

*Office phone hours are from 9:00-1:00 by dialing 773-534-7180

Staff Collaboration and IEP meetings

All classroom teachers, enrichment teachers and related services providers are willing and able to collaborate with families and offer additional resources beyond student’s core learning.  If you have questions or need assistance with speech, positioning, engaging in household activities, etc. do not hesitate to ask for help and suggestions.  Ms. Miller, our counselor, [email protected], is available should you need someone to talk to or need access to additional resources for our own livelihood. Finally, Ms. Barnett, case-manager, [email protected], and the team are able to host IEP meetings or answer any questions you may have regarding your child’s IEP.

Access to Devices & Internet

We understand that some families may not have access to devices and/or the internet, and that this creates a challenge for remote learning. To support our students, all classroom learning will be accessible in non-digital formats; however, we ask that parents be available to come to the Main Building regularly to pick up and drop off student work, or request for resources to be sent via mail. We will be calling home to connect with families for whom this may be a unique challenge and making alternate arrangements as possible.

Meal Pick Ups

Smyth will continue to be a meal distribution site for families from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM, Mondays through Fridays, after Spring Break.  Meal distribution will resume on Monday, April 13th.   We have a plentiful supply of meals, so please do make a trip out if you need to.  

During the district’s scheduled spring break, which begins Monday, April 6, families may pick up grab-and-go meals at 136 school sites across the city from Monday–Thursday, 9 a.m.–1 p.m. A detailed list of spring break meal sites is available here. Beginning the following week (Monday, April 13), the district will launch a consolidated meal plan under which 276 schools that were most frequented by families will continue to provide free meals, and schools that were less utilized by families will no longer serve as distribution sites.   You can also view those sites here.  As of this communication, Smyth will continue to be a food service distribution site.

Again, we know that this current time is an unprecedented season for our entire school community. We deeply miss our students, and school really doesn’t feel the same without kids in our classrooms. However, all Smyth staff members are committed to our students, and we will continue to do everything we can to give every Smyth student and family  access and opportunities for engagement and learning.

Please continue to stay safe and healthy. We wish all of our families a safe and happy Spring Break.

Yours in Wellness,

Principal Turner