Good evening families! After weeks of planning and coordination with our local Panhandle Health District, along with required measures from the Governor’s Reopening Stages, yesterday evening our LJSD Board of Trustees approved the School Visitation Plan for the week of June 1-5, 2020. Throughout the planning process, our Trustees have been very supportive of creating a way for all students to have a chance to close out the school year in person.

Although normal school is not reopening, we have created an optional opportunity for students that we feel is as close to a win-win as possible within required state guidelines. While this isn’t the ideal scenario for how we had planned to close out our school year, we are thankful for the opportunity to provide in-person closure for our students and staff. Our entire student body will be divided into five near-equal size groups, according to last name. Each group (approximately ⅕ of our student body) will be assigned to one day during the week of Monday, June 1 through Friday, June 5, 2020 to “visit” the school and gather personal belongings, participate in modified end of year activities, return technology and other checked out items, and most importantly, create a space for a sense of closure with their classroom teacher(s). The modified school visitation schedule is listed below. Attendance is completely optional, students are not required to stay for the full allotted time and families may choose to pick up and drop off for a shorter time on the designated day. The visitation plan includes a reduced schedule and the schools will only be open for 3 – 3½ hours each day. School Visitation Hours Buses will be available to transport students to and from school on their normal routes. Morning routes will be at the normal pick up time and afternoon routes will be on a 3-hour early drop off time.

Our Grab & Go meals will continue to be available at our four normal locations (Athol Elementary, Hauser Fire Station, Timberlake High, and Lakeland Junior High), but sack lunches will also be available for elementary students during this school visitation week. Disinfecting protocol, precautionary health measures, and additional information can be found HERE. Certainly feel free to call your school or the District Office with any questions. Thank you for your continued support and compassion, Dr. Meyer, Superintendent

- - Day 1: Monday, June 1 = Last Names A – C
  - Day 2: Tuesday, June 2 = Last Names D – G
  - Day 3: Wednesday, June 3 = Last Names H – L
  - Day 4: Thursday, June 4 = Last Names M – R
  - Day 5: Friday, June 5 = Last Names S – Z

Graduation Information

Coming soon …. more information from your high school principal regarding graduation plans for our seniors. Honoring the 2020 seniors is our top priority!

Grab & Go Meals Update

Our Nutrition Services Team is providing Grab & Go Meals for free to any child in our community seven days a week. They have done an outstanding job of providing this outstanding service! Last Friday, the team handed out 3096 meals to children at our four locations. Please help us in thanking the Nutrition Services Team for their hard work and dedication to making sure our local children have meals every day.

Social Emotional Health

Hello Lakeland Families! I’ve spoken to people within our Lakeland community every day this week and I am noticing that we seem to be at the point in this crisis where most people are experiencing more stress than usual. The positive part is that I’m hearing people express how they’re feeling and naming their emotions. I’ve mentioned Dr. Marc Brackett in previous outreaches. He reminds us that identifying how we are feeling, recognizing how our body and mind feel, and naming our emotions is good practice for our mental health. Below are some resources for you and your family as you continue to work and learn from home. The first is a very quick video with simple suggestions for dealing with stress within our homes. The following list contains ample resources for more activities to support your children’s emotional learning during this time. Wishing you well, Patty Morrison – Director of Federal Programs

PBS: PBS Kids Daily – Sign up for a daily newsletter with activities and tips you can use to help kids play and learn at home

Jennifer Miller: Confident Parents Confident Kids blog – Jennifer Miller’s blog is all about how family members can support social and emotional development at home, and recent posts provide a range of quality resources and ideas for supporting SEL during school closures

Scholastic: Learn at Home: Free Resources for School Closures – 20 days of active learning activities and projects, with different plans for students in grades PreK to 9

Great Schools: School Closure Learning Guide During Coronavirus – Includes free worksheets, book lists, parenting cue cards for tough moments, and a roundup of online education resources

xSEL Labs: SEL In An Unplanned Home School Setting – Ideas for setting expectations, teaching SEL competencies in context, motivating, and staying connected with social support networks

AIR: Building Positive Conditions for Learning at Home: Strategies and Resources for Families and Caregivers – Four basic elements for parents on creating a supportive learning space at home, with concrete strategies in both English and Spanish