Even as this (most unusual) school year comes to a close, we are working hard to plan for a successful, healthy, and full school opening in September.
The schools may have closed and students are heading off to camp and vacation, but administrators, teachers, and staff are already prepping for a new year of learning for all students, Preschool through grade 12. We are basing our plans and efforts on the district's strategic plan, the Portrait of a Needham Graduate, and on our collective experiences teaching, learning, and leading during the pandemic over the last 15 months.
The District's Plan for the 2021-22 School Year outlines how we will provide a variety of summer learning opportunities for all students as well as implement interventions and programming to meet student needs in the fall. Some of these efforts will include:
• Deploying additional math intervention specialists at the elementary level to assist students and propel their learning.
• Providing additional math and literacy support at the middle schools to assist students and their growth.
• Reducing class size in targeted elementary classrooms to ensure good class sizes to support all students.
• Ensuring high school teachers use the initial weeks of school in the fall to assess and address areas of student need. In addition, there will be an expansion of the Personal Learning Center designed to support student learning with emphasis on executive function, coping, and study skills. The presentation shared with the School Committee about the plan to open schools can be found here: Presentation to the Needham School Committee about School Opening 2021
Supporting all students is a core belief and practice embedded in the district's equity and inclusion efforts and programming as identified in the Strategic Priorities for 2021-22. Some of our key action steps for the new school year include:
• Supporting personalized learning through technology access, project based learning, and empowering student voice.
• Expand use of an instructional framework that is data-driven and equity focused to match academic, social & emotional, and behavioral needs of students
• Aligning the social studies curriculum with the racial literacy curriculum.
• Expand interdisciplinary learning opportunities.
• Widen our mental health safety net for all students, especially as the pandemic ends and students return to school full time.
• Implement a restructured elementary schedule that will provide more consistent time with the classroom teacher.
• Focus on specific plans for school building renovations/construction for Pollard and the Mitchell Elementary School.
• Strengthen and diversify our educator workforce.
Even as we all make time for a much-needed summer break from COVID and the enormous pressures of the last year, rest assured that the School Committee, administrators, and staff are thinking about and gearing up for our students in the fall!