Curriculum & Instruction
Gov. Inslee and Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal announced that all schools will remain closed for the rest of the 2019-20 school year in order to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Questions for Tacoma Schools? info@tacoma.k12.wa.us
What is Distance Learning?
Weekly learning assignments
- Weekly learning activities that use printed packets and some digital materials.
- Assigned by the classroom teacher and submitted by students to the classroom teacher.
- Teachers may provide feedback to students based on the work submitted and use the student work to inform the learning activities for the following week.
Potential student-to-student collaboration
- Potential student-to-student collaboration and communication to support student learning of priority standards and concepts when the teacher determines it’s the right fit for the learning.
- This might involve the use of various applications such as Teams, FlipGrid, Word, PowerPoint, Sway, Stream, and other teaching tools.
Communication via phone, email, and Teams
- Teacher communication with students and families through phone, email, and Microsoft Teams.
- Teacher virtual office hour options for students through Teams.
- Teachers can also call students to work through learning concepts, and feedback together.
Not a replacement for physical school
Distance learning does not replace the normal daily learning experience our students have when physically participating in class face-to-face.
Not an online school and digital-only
Tacoma Public Schools distance learning is not an online school. And it does not mean only digital learning.
Not being on a computer all-day
Distance-learning does not mean students will be on a computer an entire school day to complete 6.5 hours' worth of learning.
What does this mean for students and families?
Students should
- Complete learning activities assigned by your teacher(s).
- Reach out to your teacher(s) if you need support or have questions.
- Engage with the communications your teacher sends you and your family – either through your school email and/or Microsoft Teams.
Families should
- Check email on the schedule communicated by your principal.
- Consider providing a small workspace or location where students consistently engage in learning activities.
- Establish a routine and a physical space to help students mentally engage and focus on learning.
What kind of learning activities can I expect?
Learning activities teachers assign may be based on the printed learning packets or other teacher designed tasks and can include additional digital or non-digital activities. These learning activities are intended to support students in engaging with the Priority Standards, and refining their skills based on feedback from the teacher. This also can include independent learning tasks such as reading independently each day or engaging in i-Ready lessons in math and reading at K-8 and Success Maker for math at 6-8 for students who have electronic access.
Beyond the content areas below, there are ideas at the front of each printed packet to support families partnering and learning together. These can also be found in the digital version of the printable packets online. We have included Whole Child lessons as they are an important resource to support the Social Emotional Learning (SEL) of our students and families.
Preschool
Optional engaging learning activities for short bursts of time in the following areas:
- English Language Arts
- Math
- Science
- Health
- Physical Education
- Social Emotional Learning (SEL)/ Whole Child
Grades K-5
1 – 2 hours of learning activities per week on essential standards for each content area:
- English Language Arts
- Math
- Science
- Social Studies
- Music
- Physical Education
- Social Emotional Learning (SEL)/ Whole Child
Grades 6-12
2 – 3 hours of learning activities a week on essential standards per content area:
- English Language Arts
- Math
- Science
- Social Studies
- Music, Physical Education, World Languages, & Visual Arts depending on which course(s) a student is enrolled
- Social Emotional Learning (SEL)/ Whole Child
If your child receives special education and/or English Language Learner (ELL) services, you can anticipate additional communications and support.