The 2019-2020 school year at Saxe Gotha Elementary School and across the state of SC and nation was far beyond normal. Before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the staff and administrators of Saxe Gotha Elementary strategically focused on building a welcoming and engaging environment for our students, parents, and community members. It was this foundational work that helped us to successfully maneuver the challenges that the pandemic presented to the Saxe Gotha school community. We are sincerely grateful to all our parents for their support and patience as we had to navigate through uncharted waters. As we communicated the plans and details for continued student learning away from the school building, parents listened and responded. Students received three separate learning packets for students to complete at home. Parents proved to be courageous in fulfilling their assumed role as the in-home “teacher.” We sincerely appreciated all the parent support we received. The packet pick-up and drop-off events went so smoothly. Teachers and staff did a stellar job of transitioning to online teaching, learning, and maintaining relationships with students and parents. We continually heard from parents about how phenomenal teachers were at staying connected with their children and how they appreciated all the hard work teachers were doing to provide Zoom lessons and fun, engaging learning activities. Teachers were also multi-tasking behind the scenes as they continued to be teacher, mom or dad, counselor, spouse, or caretaker. Our school counselors were instrumental in providing social emotional help for those struggling with all the effects of the coronavirus penetrating our community.
One major priority during the school year was the purchase and implementation of Bloomz, a secure and private online communication tool for parents, teachers and administrators. Communication is essential to engagement. Throughout the COVID-19 crisis, Bloomz became an anchor for many stakeholders in our school community.
During the year we also held several events and provided many opportunities for our families to engage with our school family. Our Little Stars program, which was held monthly, benefited parents and afforded their preschool aged children the opportunity to engage in learning activities even before they enroll at SGES. Another support system was the parents’ access to our Parent Resource Center operated by our school parent liaison. Our “Night of the Living Books” literacy event brought books to life for our students and their families. They saw teachers act out the book Room on the Broom, and then they participated in a literacy scavenger hunt in the building. Family Learning Events held throughout the year gave parents hands-on experiences with the reading and writing workshop model used in every classroom. Parents were able to gather ideas to assist their children at home. How timely these learning events were to prepare parents for their new “teaching” role during the pandemic lockdown! In addition, the End of Unit Celebrations gave entire grade levels a special time to showcase the students’ hard work completed by the end of a reading or writing unit. The helpful tips and handouts shared, including the writing checklists and special anchor charts, would prove to be another timely resource for parents to use when they were conducting school at home.
While there were many aspects of our most recent circumstances that were hard, the most difficult part of not being in school was not being able to see our students face to face. We truly missed them every day. The challenges we faced will prove to be strategic as we return in the fall under new operating guidelines. We will continue fostering a school environment that welcomes and engages all students and their families.
