Below are detailed outlines of the distance learning plans for each of our divisions. As their names suggest, these are fundamentally learning plans and, as such, student experience, inquiry and connection are at the center of their design. In this respect, they are driven by the same values and beliefs that guide learning every day at LREI.

We have designed them as much as possible to draw on the tools and resources that we use when we are learning together at Sixth Avenue, Charlton Street, Thompson Street, and throughout the city and the wider world.

Under these unique circumstances that require learning to take place remotely, we will leverage additional technologies to support learning and maintain community connections. That said, our distance learning plans are not about technology; they are about learning and maintaining a strong mission-aligned connection with you and your children.

They are also wonderful examples of what learning design that is grounded in progressive practice looks like. They reflect thoughtful planning and a deep understanding of the developmental needs of learners; they are prototypes that we will continue to evolve as we engage in this new learning together. Each day that we run lrei@home, faculty, administration and staff will meet to debrief and discuss what worked well and what can be made better. Your feedback on what you are learning as you work with us will also be important for us to hear. And we welcome it.

If you haven’t looked at them for a while, this is also a good moment to reconnect with our core values that are well-articulated on the lrei.org website:

We believe that the deepest and most profound learning happens when we are able to move just outside of our comfort zone knowing that we are supported by a caring community of co-learners. In these, most interesting times, a key goal in designing our distance learning plans has been to draw on the supports and systems that make this kind of learning possible. We also hope this structure will serve to lessen the discomfort and potential for disconnection created by the present circumstances that require us to learn together via lrei@home.

With deep respect and gratitude for what each of you bring to the LREI experience,

The Faculty, Staff, and Administration at LREI

'20-'21 FAQ - Family Edition

To: LREI Families

From: Phil Kassen, Director

Re: FAQ Follow up to My 5/6/20 Community Conversation

Date: May 12, 2020

Hello.  Many of you joined me for a Community Conversation ten days or so ago.  For those who missed this event, this link will take you to a recording.  Below you will find a summary of my general comments  and answers to frequently asked questions. 

Updates

  • I continue to be proud of the work the students and teachers are doing together in their LREI@home classes.  We are grateful for everyone’s hard work and resilience.
  • The teachers and principals are planning, remaking, and/or creating end-of-year events.  You will hear about these from your child’s teachers/principal.  All will be listed on the LREI@home calendar on the LREI Connect Resource Page.  
  • Plans are underway for fourth grade and eighth grade moving up ceremonies.  Stay tuned.  
  • We have all sorts of plans for end-of-year events for our twelfth graders. We are so sad for the impact that not being together has had on their senior year.  The students have been involved in some of these plans and other plans will be a surprise. Shh!
  • Mark your calendars for the 2020 College Panel, a time for lower and middle school families to hear about LREI’s college guidance process from members of the senior class and from Carey Socol, Co-Director of College Guidance. This conversation will not focus on the more specific questions that tend to be on the minds of high school families. Thursday, May 21, 10 a.m.  Link on the LREI@home calendar on the LREI Connect Resource page.
  • Field Day will be held on Friday, May 22. A group of students and teachers are busy planning this event and we look forward to your child’s participation.  There are no classes on this day and Field Day will end in the late morning, before the extended Memorial Day Weekend. Schedules and links will be sent home shortly and all will be posted on the LREI@home calendar on the LREI Connect Resource page.

Looking Ahead

  • Our planning for the fall is well underway. While it is hard to predict what the State, the City, and/or prudence will require, we are planning for a number of contingencies.  We are eager and ready to welcome students back into the school buildings while at the same time we are prepared to teach remotely through LREI@home should that become necessary. When we are “live” in-person in the buildings, school will be organized in ways that facilitate more physical distance between students/adults.  This may require changes to customs that are very much a part of who we are.  
  • There will likely be additional health/hygiene practices.  
  • Depending on the policies and recommendations from governmental agencies, schedules might need to limit the number of students/adults in the building at any given time.  Some activities might be restricted. Procedures might be changed. For instance, certain adult oriented events might move online or be altered.  We are evaluating all that we do each day and will be prepared. 
  • The three divisions may well have different schedules and procedures in order to make school safe and to provide a successful and age-appropriate learning experience. 
  • We are planning for the possibility that at some point, for some period of time, we might be required to go back into “shelter in place” and to teach through LREI@home.

Frequently Asked Questions

 

  • Will the school year start earlier?  During the summer?

 

      • We are not planning on starting earlier in the summer. 

 

  • How are the school’s spaces being used?

 

      • We are examining the use of all spaces, especially our larger spaces, to see if these spaces can help provide opportunities for physical distancing.

 

  • Will families be able to choose to go to school online even if school is open in-person?

 

      • As I said during our conversation, this is among the more complex challenges we are currently discussing. We are evaluating it both from a technological and pedagogical standpoint. I will report back on this later in our planning process.

 

  • Will LREI screen students’ health regularly?

 

      • We will comply with all local, state, and federal requirements. We will take all steps recommended by our advisors. We will strengthen our efforts directed at educating families about keeping sick children home.  
      • There was a question during the conversation about vaccines. We will follow state law and require all mandated vaccines.  

 

  • Two thoughts here.  1) If there is a vaccine that is not mandated by the state it may be difficult for a school to legally require it. 2) If your child is at an age when there are required vaccines, please make sure to make appointments to address this prior to returning to school in the fall.   
  • If the school’s schedule changes what about working parents? 

 

      • This question is very much a part of our planning process and is one reason that the different divisions may have different solutions to the challenges we face in the fall.  

 

  • One of the last questions was about Governor Cuomo’s comments about NY State working with the Gates Foundation to reimagine education and our opinion on this.  

 

    • As I said last week, I find it hard to imagine any full time online education for children that is consistently more effective than an in-person education.  That said, I work to keep an open mind and I look forward to the results of the investigation done by the intelligent and knowledgeable people involved. 

As we plan for the fall, what will guide our work?

  • LREI’s Mission Statement and Diversity Statement
  • Connections and consistency between departments and divisions – the whole must be greater than the sum of its parts.  
  • This is an opportunity to learn, to grow, to become our best collective self and to continue to demonstrate that progressive education, and an abiding belief in justice, will make for the most effective and long-lasting educational experience.     

Thank you for your participation and attention.  As always, if you have questions do not hesitate to be in touch with me or with whomever you are most comfortable speaking.  

Peace and health,

Phil

Lower School Plan

LS Library @Home: As we move online, we wanted to highlight how the library will support teachers, classes, and students. Jesse and Stacy will be holding their regular classes in concert with classroom teachers. We know we will be reading aloud (thank goodness for home libraries), but our curricula may have to shift depending on what we have at hand. Some of the most important work we do, however, is the one-on-one interactions with students around their reading lives. In order not to overwhelm the younger students with loads of zoom time or passive screen time, we have come up with the following:

  • Schedule a “Reading Check-in with Stacy or Jesse” during one of your classes, where students can take turns sharing what’s happening in the book they are currently reading. This can be a particular theme of a morning meeting, or we can work with teachers to create some times to do this.

  • Stacy can join your class for research. Email me to schedule. Any research we want kids to do can go through a libguide. This way students will not be free googling with various levels of adult supervision. The guides can be customized to be as simple as you like to accommodate shorter class periods and more streamlined projects. 

  • Schedule some booktalks. Recommending books (readers advisory) is a forte of the librarians at LREI. While the students may not be able to get the desired book right away, they can be creating a master “Want to Read” list.

  • Office hours. We feel like some of our “library kids” will end up missing interaction. Stacy will be available on Wednesdays for an hour (time tbd based on everyone’s zoom schedules) for kids to drop in and talk books say hi, etc. 

Middle School Plan

MS Library @Home: Welcome Back, Middle School! I’m excited to “see” you in our Zoom version of the library! Here’s what library will look like during our remote learning:
  • I will be available via email from 11-12 and 1:45-2:30 each day during Independent Reading/IWP to help you with book recommendations or research. I can help you check out an e-book from the NYC public library systems or help you use our Libguides and  databases, just ask! If you would rather Zoom with me during that time, send me an email and we will schedule a meeting.
  • Have a bunch of books at home you haven’t read yet? You can also “Show Jen Your Shelf” –take a picture of any unread books on your shelf, and send it to me for a recommendation.
  • Want to hear a new book over lunch or listen while doodling? I will hold an all-MS readaloud Tuesdays and Thursdays starting next week (April 7) during lunch/recess from 12:30-1 for anyone who wants to Zoom in. It’s a surprise, but it will be a book that hasn’t come out yet!
I’m looking forward to emailing and Zooming with you. Have a great first day, and I’ll see you online, JenHS
High School Plan

HS Library @Home:As we move into this crazy online adventure, I wanted to highlight how the library can support teachers, classes, and students. If you would like me to join a class or lead a research lesson during a flex day, please send me an email and I’ll be there. If you need access to an online resource, whether a specific item or a general category of sources, ask! We have a fairly generous online library presence already (for research and for leisure reading) and I’m working to strengthen it.  I’ll also be available for Zoom meetings with you all to work out a lesson or to share resources, please email to arrange a time.  The library (in the form of a drop in Zoom chat with me) will be open to students and faculty alike daily from 9:30-10 and 12:40-1:10 next week and other times by appointment. I’m also hoping to host library programming starting in week 2 of LREI@Home and will update as soon as I know if that will be possible. As always, please reach out if you need me or library support or materials!
Afterschool Plan

Dear Afterschool Families,

During LREI@Home, all programs, classes, and lessons in which your child is enrolled, will be conducted online during their regularly scheduled days and times. 

UPDATED (4/2/2020): After using Google Hangouts for a couple days, we have decided to move all Afterschool@Home Programs over to Zoom. Based on our own experience, and feedback from teachers and families, we think this is the best option.
 
Please follow this link: 
https://lrei.myschoolapp.com/app/parent#resourceboarddetail/14679 then click on the yellow button to find the Schedule and Zoom IDs for all Afterschool @Home Programs. 
 
*Please note: All Zoom links will be posted by 2pm on 4/2/2020.
 
If you have trouble accessing any Afterschool@Home Programs, please contact Isaiah Blake, our Associate Registrar, at iblake@lrei.org.

If you have a general programming question, please reach out to Cari Kosins, Director of Afterschool and Summers, at ckosins@lrei.org or Clara Campos, Associate Director of Afterschool and Summers, at ccampos@lrei.org.

If you have a question for the Program Director of your student’s Core Afterschool group, you may email the following:

Reds (4s and Kindergarten):
Clara Campos – ccampos@lrei.org
Oranges (1st and 2nd Graders):
Denzel Johnson – djohnson@lrei.org
Blues (3rd Grade – MS):
James Miner – jminer@lrei.org
Thank you for your input and flexibility!
 
Sincerely,
Cari and Clara

Logging in:

    1. Click the Zoom Meeting link for your child’s class
    2. They’ll be admitted to the class from the class waitingroom.

A few notes:

  1. Please plan to click the link only at the allotted time so you don’t interrupt another class or lesson in session. Nice for students to have logged on in time for the “welcome” and instructions.
  2. Teachers will likely adapt and change how they structure their programming based on their experiences. There will be a learning curve at first, for teachers and students, so we ask for your support in getting students set up in the online meeting space for the first couple days.
  3. Core Afterschool will have about an hour of programmed activities, games, and projects beginning at “dismissal” [Reds – 2:45, Oranges and Blues – 3:00]. For the rest of the time until 6pm AS Teachers will be available for “Office hours” – for check ins and homework help.
Updates on Our Technology Infrastructure for LREI@Home
(update 4/6/2020)

Security & Privacy Issues

ZOOM:

LREI decided to use Zoom for video conferencing services, after looking at many different options. We decided that was the platform that would best serve the learning goals of the LREI community and would allow for the best user experience.
 
In the past few weeks, there have been some legitimate security concerns with Zoom, many were raised by technologists and reported in major news outlets. LREI is aware of these issues, and the LREI Tech Director has been reviewing and discussing these issues, as they arise, with the school’s Leadership, as well as with Tech Directors from other Independent schools.
 
The concerns regarding Zoom revolve around the following contexts: harassment, security, and user privacy.
 

Zoombombing, or the practice of having unwanted participants crash Zoom meetings and who can behave in a disruptive if not inappropriate fashion, is an issue that threatens the integrity of a safe and welcoming classroom space. Zoom has responded by making sweeping changes to the default settings of accounts, which mitigates this problem. These settings include enabling a waiting room by default, as well as requiring each meeting to have a password.

There have also been concerns about the software itself, with reports that hackers have exposed flaws in the software that allows malicious actors to exploit hardware settings on the users computer. Zoom has been addressing this issue, by providing timely software patches that have shut down these vulnerabilities.

Other concerns have focused on Zoom’s user privacy and what it does with the trove of data that is made available through the use of its platform. This includes video, chats, and users personal information. Zoom has responded to these concerns with clear privacy policies that are very upfront about the type of data they do collect as well as the data they don’t collect. Zoom does not monitor and they do not collect video footage from meetings, and Zoom claims that their educational accounts are compliant with federal standards, by meeting the requirements of COPPA and FERPA. You can read more about Zoom’s privacy policy here and additional response in these posts:

A useful summary of these issues can be found here.
 
LREI is committed to using the best tools available to support our institutional objectives. We take student privacy seriously and expect as much from the vendors we choose to handle the school’s data and provide services on behalf of our community. Zoom has had some issues, but they are responsive to users’ concerns and have demonstrated their commitment to schools and their students. If we feel at any point that this service does not meet the standards of security and privacy that we expect for our institution, we will look to other providers that do meet that need.
 

SeeSaw:

There have been a few questions about privacy issues related to the SeeSaw app. As currently configured, content uploaded to SeeSaw is viewable only by the class teachers and the student/family who has uploaded the content. We may at some point make content viewable between students to support collaboration and deeper learning. That said, no LREI SeeSaw content is viewable outside of the LREI SeeSaw community. You can review the SeeSaw privacy policy here: https://web.seesaw.me/privacy
 
 
=======================================================

LREI@Home

LREI will provide educational programming for students in the event that we do not have access to the school buildings and cannot carry out our program in person. This will include a combination of existing tools and services already in place and used in LREI’s regular academic program, as well as some additional services and resources that will be available to the students while at home. Some of these services may include video conferencing, so teachers and students can interact in real time, providing instruction remotely as well as facilitate classroom discussions.

Students and their families will need to have a working computer at home with Internet access. Students in grades 4-12 will have school provided devices and the school will work with families in other grades to arrange for a device, if needed. The school will also work with families that do not have Internet connectivity, to arrange for a mobile hotspot, subject to availability.

The nature of student learning from home during a school closure varies greatly by grade and division and all 3 divisions are currently working on plans that utilize a mix of tech tools, web services, and content that best fits the needs of their students.

Schoolwide Academic Tools

  • LREI Connect LREI Connect is the school’s nickname for the Learning Management System web-based services used by LREI. Teachers post assignments, announcements, and other class resources to their class pages and students can submit work directly to the class using LREI Connect. This resource is available anytime, anywhere, accessible from any web browser.

  • Google Classroom Some of our teachers manage their classes using Google Classroom together with Google Drive. This is the space where students work on their assignments and collaborate with their peers. Teachers also use this space to post class resources, provide comments and other feedback to their students. This resource is available anytime, anywhere, accessible from any web browser.

  • Zoom  is a Video conferencing service, so teachers and students can interact in real time, providing instruction remotely as well as facilitate classroom discussions. This requires the user to install a piece of software on their computers to access all features. There is also a chrome app that will support many, but not all features. This resource is available anytime, anywhere, if the software is installed on the user’s computer.

  • Google Meet A video conferencing service built into the Google ecosystem. Similar to Zoom, but with a lighter feature set. This resource is available anytime, anywhere, accessible from any web browser.

  • blog.lrei.org Classroom blogs.

    Hardware and Internet Access (Faculty)

    • Laptop loaners can be made available as needed

    • We can order spare Verizon JetPacks for those who don’t have broadband available. Subject to availability.

    Hardware and Internet Access (Students)

    • iPads, Laptop loaners or Chromebooks can be made available as needed

    • We can order spare Verizon JetPacks for those who don’t have broadband available. Subject to availability.

Lower School

LS Students (Fours-3rd grade) are not assigned any school computers or any other devices. Students will need to be assisted by their parents for any potential off-site school work. LS Teachers will be communicating to the parents with daily learning playlists and other plans or assignments for their students. Some teachers will post videos and other content using SeeSaw. Parents may be asked to submit student work via SeeSaw. Students will also complete math work using the DreamBox app. 4th grade students are assigned Google Drive accounts. Teachers are able to post assignments on LREI Connect and the 4th graders can work on these and submit them. Teachers may also choose to use Google Classroom for this purpose. LS Faculty uses Zoom for video conferencing.

Middle School

All MS Students have a Chromebook assigned to them for use at school. MS Teachers are posting assignments and announcement to the Class Pages in LREI Connect.

All MS students have Google Drive accounts. MS Faculty uses Zoom for video conferencing.

High School

All HS Students have a MacBook assigned to them for use at school and at home. HS Teachers are posting assignments and announcement to the Class Pages in LREI Connect.

All HS students have Google Drive accounts. HS Faculty uses Zoom for video conferencing.