Special Called Board of Education Meeting

Sept. 22, 2020

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Discussion about instructional models

and schedules

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OVERVIEWPlan B - PK-12

On Tuesday, Sept. 1, the Union County Board of Education voted to add another day of in-person instruction to the Plan B model, beginning Sept. 29.

Since that time, principals and staff have worked on plans to implement this decision, adhering to the requirements set forth for Plan B by the state of North Carolina.

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OVERVIEWPlan A - K-5

On Thursday, Sept. 17, Governor Cooper announced that North Carolina public school districts will be permitted to choose Plan A (full in-person learning) for elementary school students in kindergarten through 5th grade beginning Oct. 5.

Plan A does not require schools to reduce the number of children in the classrooms. Students in grades 6-12 still must operate only under Plan B, which is partially in-person and partially remote, Plan C, which is all remote, or Plan D, which is virtual. 4

OVERVIEWPlan A – K-5

Plan A will still require that all students, teachers, and staff wear face coverings, maintain minimal social distancing, and be screened for COVID-19 symptoms.

Parents of K-5 students in Plan A districts will still retain the option of virtual learning as opposed to returning to the classroom.

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Guidance from Lighting Our Way Forward:North Carolina's Guidebook for Reopening Schools

PLAN AMinimal social distancing, all

students in school

UCPS students and teachers will participate in a face-to-face environment.

PLAN BBlended instruction with

moderate social distancing

Schools will operate with 6-feet social distancing in classrooms and other areas of the building. Students and teachers will participate in a hybrid model of in-person and online instruction.

Students will be divided into groups that will rotate M-Th for in-person instruction at school. All students will be in remote learning environments on Friday.

When students are not in school for instruction, they will work in a remote learning environment.

PLAN CRemote learning, school

buildings are closed

UCPS students and teachers will transition to a remote learning model. This model will consist of live teaching and learning and on-demand video resources for instruction and assessments.

Numeric and letter grades will be assigned and recorded for the 2020-2021 school year.

PLAN DVirtual Academy

UCPS families that prefer not to return to in-person instruction can opt to enroll in a virtual academy option offered through their assigned school. This full-time virtual learning option will be available for students in grades K-12.

Students will have access to live and on-demand instruction, but the teacher of record may not be assigned to the student’s school.

Students who enroll in this option must commit for a specified period of time.

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Plan B: Schedule and Student Assignment

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Plan B : Schedule and Student Assignment• UCPS currently follows a four-day weekly rotation model for

grades PK-12 (students are divided into four cohorts and attend in-person instruction one day/week).

• UCPS is prepared for students in grades PK-12 to transition to two days of in-person instruction beginning Sept. 29.

• Under the Plan B expansion model, the new cohort rotation for attending school will be Monday/Tuesday or Wednesday/Thursday.

• All students will work in a remote learning setting on Friday.• When creating schedules, schools will work with families to

keep siblings and members of the same household together for in-person instruction days.

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• Plan B requires that schools limit the number of students within a classroom to the extent necessary to ensure that 6 feet distance is maintained.

• UCPS will continue daily symptom and temperature screenings/checks for all students and any person who enter a school building.

• Social distancing protocols will be required for anyone who enters school buildings.

• All students (K-12) must wear face coverings in school and on school buses. All staff and adult visitors must wear face coverings in school buildings and offices.

• UCPS will continue to provide face coverings for students, teachers, and staff.

Plan B: Health and Safety

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Sample Plan B Schedule

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

At School Cohorts 1 & 2

Cohorts 1 & 2

Cohorts 3 & 4

Cohorts 3 & 4

Remote Learning for all Students

Teacher Planning

Office Hours

Remote Learning

Cohorts 3 & 4

Cohorts 3 & 4

Cohorts 1 & 2

Cohorts 1 & 2

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Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

At School

Cohorts 1 & 2

Cohorts 1 & 2

Cohorts 3 & 4

Cohorts 3 & 4

Remote Learning for all Students

Teacher Planning

Office Hours

Remote Learning

Cohorts 3 & 4

Cohorts 3 & 4

Cohorts 1 & 2

Cohorts 1 & 2

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

At School

Cohorts 1 & 2

Cohorts 1 & 2

Cohorts 3 & 4

Cohorts 3 & 4

Remote Learning

for all

Students

Teacher

Planning

Office Hours

Remote

Learning

Cohorts 3 & 4

Cohorts 3 & 4

Cohorts 1 & 2

Cohorts 1 & 2

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

At School Cohorts 1 & 2

Cohorts 1 & 2

Cohorts 3 & 4

Cohorts 3 & 4

Remote Learning

for all Students

Teacher

Planning

Office Hours

Remote

Learning

Cohorts 3 & 4

Cohorts 3 & 4

Cohorts 1 & 2

Cohorts 1 & 2

Plan A: Schedule and Student Assignment

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Plan A: Schedule and Student Assignment

• UCPS is recommending that PK-5 students move to two days of in-person instruction on Sept. 29 and return to school for in-person instruction beginning Oct. 26 (first day of the second quarter).

• Beginning Oct. 26, PK-5 students would attend school Monday –Thursday and work remotely on Friday.

• This transition would allow schools to become better acquainted with conducting the health/safety checks for larger groups of students over several weeks.

• The Oct. 26 start date would also give families who wish to choose a virtual option more time to make their decision.

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Plan A: Health and Safety

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Plan A: Health and Safety• Plan A does not require schools to reduce the usual number

of students in the classroom.

• Plan A does not require social distancing on school buses.

• UCPS will continue daily symptom and temperature screenings/checks for all students and any person who enter a school building.

• Social distancing protocols will be required for anyone who enters school buildings. UCPS will continue to limit visitors to schools buildings under Plan A.

• All K-5 students must wear face coverings in school and on school buses. All staff must wear face coverings in school buildings and offices.

• UCPS will continue to provide face coverings for students, teachers, and staff.

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Plan D: Schedule and Student Assignment

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Plan D: Schedule and Student Assignment• Parents of students in grades K-5 who do not wish for their students

to return to in -person instruction may opt to enroll in the Virtual Academy.

• If your child is currently enrolled in Plan B and opted for five days of remote learning, and you wish to continue in a virtual environment, you will need to apply for Plan D.

• PK students who opted into five days of remote learning should contact their school to continue with this model.

• The virtual academy option will be made available through the student’s assigned school.

• The academy will be staffed by UCPS teachers; however, students may not be assigned a teacher from their current school.

• Students in the Virtual Academy will have access to live and on-demand instruction.

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Plan D: Schedule and Student Assignment• Most instructional schedules are aligned with the school’s

daily schedule; however, daily schedules may vary depending on the grade level of the student and the assigned teacher.

• Teachers will interact with students daily and students are expected to be in attendance and participate in lessons/activities.

• K-1 students in need of a device for the virtual academy will be able to obtain one from their assigned school.

• Due to teacher assignments and scheduling, moving forward, K-5 students who select the virtual academy must commit to this option for the remainder of the 2020-2021 school year.

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Who should apply through Scribbles?• Students in grades K-5 currently enrolled in Plan B who would like to

transition to Plan D (Virtual Academy) for the remainder of the school year.

• Students in grades 2-5 currently enrolled in Plan D (Virtual Academy) and plan to commit to this model for the remainder of the school year.

• Students in grades K-1 currently on Plan B with five days of remote learning, who wish to remain in a virtual environment.

• Current Dual Language Immersion (DLI) students in elementary who would like to transition to Plan D (Virtual Academy) for the remainder of the school year.

Application period is Sept. 25 – Oct. 4• To access Scribbles, visit UCPS homepage and click on I Want To

section.

• Link to Scribbles https://ucpsncc.scriborder.com/18

https://ucpsncc.scriborder.com/

Dual Language Immersion Virtual Academy

Mandarin Immersion

• No change in instructional model

• Exploring adding a Mandarin teacher to serve as an additional remote resource for Plan D students

Spanish Immersion

• Centralized online DLI Academy• Instructional model is 50/50

• Spanish: Language Arts and Math

• English: Language Arts, Science, and Social Studies

• English and Spanish teachers are staffed at the district level

Sample Plan D Schedule for Third GradeTime Subject

7:40 a.m. – 8:20 a.m.Writing

(Live Instruction, Independent Practice, and Small Group)

8:20 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. Morning Meeting

9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.Reading

(Live Instruction, Independent Practice, and Small Group)

10:30 – 11:15 a.m.Science/Social Studies

(Live Instruction, Independent Practice, and Small Group)

11:15 a.m. – 11:45 a.m. Lunch

11:45 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.Math

(Live Instruction, Independent Practice, and Small Group)

1:00 p.m.– 1:30 p.m. Word Study(Live Instruction) 20

Summary Recommendation

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PLAN AMinimal social distancing, all

students in school

• UCPS is recommending that PK-5 students move to two days of in-person instruction on Sept. 29 and return to school for in-person instruction beginning Oct. 26 (first day of the second quarter).

PLAN BBlended instruction with

moderate social distancing

• UCPS is prepared for students in grades PK-12 to transition to two days of in-person instruction beginning Sept. 29.

• Under the Plan B expansion model, the new cohort rotation for attending school will be Monday/Tuesday or Wednesday/Thursday.

• All students will work in a remote learning setting on Friday.

PLAN CRemote learning, school

buildings are closed

• Will continue to be implemented as needed.

PLAN DVirtual Academy

• No change for grades 6-12 at this time.

• All K-5 families who wish to transition to or remain in a full-time virtual environment should apply via Scribbles (Sept. 25 –Oct. 4)

Recommended Timeline Sept. 1 BOE approves 2 days of in-person instruction for PK-12

Sept. 22 BOE reviews in-person expansion options

Sept. 23 Communication to parents about approved options

Sept. 25 – Oct. 4 Virtual Academy application period via Scribbles

Sept. 29 PK-12 students begin 2 days of in-person instruction

Oct. 26 All PK-5 students begin in-person instruction Monday -Thursday and work remotely on Friday

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Next Steps• Finalize plan and align with guidance from the Governor's office, the NC

Department of Public Instruction and the NC Department of Health and Human Services Department.

• Execute student schedules, transportation assignments, etc.

• Continue to deploy technology resources to those that are in need.

• Prepare buildings and offices for expansion of in-person instruction.

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Special Called Board of Education Meeting Discussion about instructional models and schedulesSlide Number 3Slide Number 4Slide Number 5Guidance from Lighting Our Way Forward:�North Carolina's Guidebook for Reopening SchoolsPlan B: Schedule and Student AssignmentSlide Number 8Plan B: Health and SafetySample Plan B SchedulePlan A: Schedule and Student AssignmentSlide Number 12Plan A: Health and SafetySlide Number 14Plan D: Schedule and Student AssignmentSlide Number 16Slide Number 17Slide Number 18Dual Language Immersion �Virtual AcademySample Plan D Schedule for Third GradeSummary Recommendation Recommended TimelineNext Steps