The COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic has altered the way students are educated across the country.
Gilmer Schools have not been in session since March 13. Students in grades 6-12 have completed assignments online using Chromebooks. Younger students have continued lessons at home with the use of assignment packets.
To keep students engaged over the summer, the school system has optional enrichment activities available to minimize regression. Chief academic officer Lottie Mitchell discussed the program at Monday’s board of education work session.
“We talked about offering summer enrichment,” she said. “We talked as directors, we talked with (superintendent) Dr. (Shanna) Downs, and if there was ever a year to have summer school, this is the year but how could we? We wanted to offer our students something. So what we’re doing, teachers are working right now making summer enrichment boards.”
If school resumes as scheduled for the 2020-2021 school year, students will have been out of the classroom for nearly five months.
“One reason we thought it was so important, is because over the summer you already have a ‘summer slide,’” Mitchell said. “That’s been talked about for years that if the children don’t do anything over the summer they lose a lot. Research says it doesn’t have to be a worksheet or (activities with) a paper and pencil. Just keeping them engaged and thinking helps prevent summer slide.
“We thought it was imperative that we offer — not require — but we offered opportunities for students and for parents who wanted some activities for their children.”
The summer enrichment choice boards will be posted on the district website. They will also be available at the five feeding locations of the Seamless Summer Meal Program. Each choice board contains multiple activities and a new one will be available each week throughout the summer.
Choice boards for students in K-5 will be organized by grade. At the middle school level, enrichment activities will be organized by subject. Students at Gilmer High can choose activities that will prepare them for courses they will take next school year.
Free books will be available at all schools over the summer for students or parents to pick up.
Additionally, a summer support program for students with special needs will be in place over a four-day span in June. Parents were notified of the program Monday via email, according to assistant superintendent for student services Kim Cagle.
“Each day will have up to 30 minutes that a student can have for support,” Cagle said. “It can be virtual or over the telephone kind of like how we’ve been doing everything since the closure. Parents were all notified and instructed to contact their assistant principal if they wish to register their child for summer support.
“We’ll be offering general reading, math, social skills or a language. It will be very short and to the point. It’s not a lesson, but they might read a book and go through some WH (who, what, when, where, why) questions to give the parent some resources they can use to continue instruction throughout the summer.”
Seamless Summer returns May 26
The Seamless Summer Meal Program will kick off Tuesday, May 26.
Free meals will be available from 11:15 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. at the Tower Road Trailer Park, Mulberry Apartments, First United Methodist Church and the Gilmer County Health Department. Beginning June 1, meals will also be available for pick up at the Boys and Girls Club located at the Gilmer Civic Center.
Lunch and breakfast will be delivered to the aforementioned sites Monday through Thursday. Because there are no meal deliveries on Friday, students can pickup two lunches and two breakfasts each Thursday.