Dear Parents and Guardians,
We want to inform you about the upcoming weather situation and its potential impact on our school schedule.
Weather Forecast
The weather predictions for Wednesday indicate a strong chance of wintry precipitation. Temperatures are expected to fluctuate throughout the day, potentially resulting in a mix of snow and rain. The temperature is forecasted to rise until 4 PM and then drop below freezing for 36 to 48 hours.
Current Situation
This winter has already significantly affected our school calendar:
Due to weather this school year, Swain County students have missed 11 school days.
Seven of these days were due to snow and ice.
We have nearly exhausted our non-instructional workdays.
Contingency Plan
We currently have enough banked instructional hours to accommodate one additional missed day. After that, Swain County Schools will implement remote instruction days, similar to districts to our north.
Remote Learning Preparation
Our teachers are preparing work for students to complete at home in the event of a remote instruction day. This work will be available in two formats:
Take-home packets
Digital downloads for Chromebooks must be completed as assigned. Students who do not have internet access will be able to download work on their Chromebooks at school. Instruction for making work available without internet connectivity can be located at: How to Use Google Drive Files When Your Chromebook is Offline
Or follow these steps:
Steps to Enable Offline Access:
Enable Offline Sync for All Files:
Open Settings by selecting the time in the bottom right corner.
Click on the gear icon to open settings.
On the left, go to Advanced > Files and select Google Drive.
Find File Sync and check how much storage space your files will take up.
If you have enough storage, turn on File Sync to make all files available offline.
If you do not have enough storage, follow these steps:
Enable Offline Access for Specific Files:
Open the Files application.
Select Google Drive on the left panel.
Choose the file or folder you want to access offline.
Click “Available offline” at the top.
This method ensures that selected Google Drive files can be accessed without an internet connection on a Chromebook.
Remote Learning Expectations
Should we implement a remote learning day, please note the following:
Completion Deadline: All assigned work must be turned in to teachers within three days of returning to school.
Attendance: Students must complete work to be counted as present. Teachers will code attendance when the work is submitted.
Remote Learning Plan Overview
On Inclement Weather Remote Learning Days:
Students will have work packets or Google assignments to complete.
Online classroom assignments will be available in Google Classroom.
Completed work will count as attendance.
All work must be completed and submitted within 3 days of returning from the remote learning day.
Parents and students can request help using the teacher's email or class DOJO.
Due to the inconsistent connectivity in Swain County, we are cautious about expecting students to complete work on Chromebooks. Therefore, we are not expecting them to work online in Google Classrooms as they did during the pandemic.
We appreciate your understanding and cooperation as we navigate these weather-related challenges. Please stay tuned for further updates regarding school closures or remote learning implementation.
Thank you for your continued support.