Message from Principal Davis
Greetings Parents and Families,
I hope you all had an enjoyable weekend.
With the school year off to fast a paced start, if you are like me, you are caught in the conundrum of balancing home life and work life.
As a parent and principal of Browne, I felt it important to remind you not to forget the commitments you made to yourself over the summer months. We made promises to ourselves to find greater work- life balance, to spend more time focused our on mental and physical health, to drink more water, to walk daily or even spend more time reading for pleasure. I don't know your commitment, however, I am sure you committed to something. You can all fill in the blank.
I want to encourage you to remember your commitments to yourself. Why? There is no way that you can pour from an empty cup. Working from home, caring for your children and reviewing lessons at the end of the day is tedious work. It is emotionally draining and mentally taxing. As a result, we have to prioritize our mental, physical and spiritual health. Our children need us to be our best selves each day.
In addition to giving yourself more grace, please find time to decompress; go for a walk, watch your favorite TV show or go for a run. It is imperative that you find time to have fun and rejuvenate.
This school year will be like no other. Our race is not a sprint, rather a marathon that requires care for ourselves, connection to our families and a commitment to self-care. Remember, we are doing something that has never been done before- learning virtually. Although it has been difficulty, I am confident that together, we will successfully navigate this school year.
Sincerely,
Principal Davis
Browne's Week at a Glance (WAG)
Hispanic Heritage Month Begins- September 15th
September Calendar
Thought of the Week
“One flower never makes a spring. Imagine if we put that Chinese proverb into full force in our American Reality”
Browne Value of the Month
Teamwork
“We recognize that our greatest asset is our collective vision and ability to work collaboratively and authentically.”
Bomber Word of the Week
Soliloquy
Monday, September 21st, 2020
- Breakfast and Lunch @ Browne, Eastern, McKinley Tech and Wheatley EC (10am- 2pm)
Tuesday, September 22nd, 2020
- PBIS Celebration: ECE – 2nd
- THT Disseminated to Families
- Breakfast and Lunch @ Browne, Eastern, McKinley Tech and Wheatley EC (10am- 2pm)
Wednesday, September 23rd, 2020
- Browne Community Conversation 5pm.
- Breakfast and Lunch @ Eastern, McKinley Tech and Wheatley EC (10am- 2pm)
Thursday, September 24th, 2020
- PBIS Celebration: 3rd – 5th
- Breakfast and Lunch @ Eastern, McKinley Tech and Wheatley EC (10am- 2pm)
Friday September 25th, 2020
- Middle School Clubs
- Enrollment Update
- Breakfast and Lunch @ Eastern, McKinley Tech and Wheatley EC (10am- 2pm)
Saturday September 26th, 2020
- Produce Distribution 1pm- 2:45pm
Daily Attendance for Scholars
Parents, many of you have called to ask about daily attendance. I have two very important pieces of information to share. This year attendance is taken virtually. What this means is that all scholars must log-in to Canvas daily to be marked present. Scholars simply go to:
- dcps.instructure.com
- Enter their user name (student ID number + students.k12.dc.us)
1234567@students.k12.dc.us
- Enter their password (birthday):
Once students have logged in they will be marked present. Scholars can also go to their virtual classrooms from Canvas. Scholars must log-in Monday through Friday. Again, although students are not experiencing live instruction on Wednesday, they must log-in to Canvas to be marked present.
Browne Community Conversation
We are almost a week away from the start of school and I am sure many of you have questions. To this end, we have set up a few “Browne Community Conversations” for next week. It is my hope and dream to host at least two community conversations per month.
The purpose of these conversations are threefold:
1. Solicit feedback- We value you and want to hear your concerns and feedback.
2. Share information- We want to ensure that you are aware of the happenings and programming taking place at Browne EC.
3. Improve our services- We want to learn how we can better serve you and your families.
Our first round “Browne Community Conversations” will take place on Wednesday, August 26th, 2020. In an effort to accommodate the schedules of all parents, we have selected two times to meet: 9am and 6pm. We will cover the same information at both meetings. Given the diversity of technological access we have also decided to use the app zoom for our call. This way parents can call in using their phone or connect via their internet accessible device. The information for the call is listed below:
Topic: Browne Community Conversation
Time: Sep 23, 2020 05:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87115561073?pwd=K2JQVndjMG9sWlRBQTl1d2trR1poZz09
Meeting ID: 871 1556 1073
Passcode: 365207
If you are calling in by phone only:
- Dial 301-715-8592 #
- You will be added to the meeting.
Your Voice Matters- Vote 2020
We are in the home stretch toward Election Day on Tuesday, November 3rd! Whether you’re a first-time voter or ballot box regular, it’s important that every District resident make their voice heard this election. The key is to make a plan to vote—via mail or in person. Here are a few important reminders and resources to help you exercise your civic duty.
Important Dates in DC
- Oct. 13: Deadline to register to vote (except for same-day registration, available during early voting and on Election Day—instructions below)
- Oct. 27 – Nov. 2: Early voting
- Nov. 3: Election Day (mail-in ballots must be postmarked or dropped off at an approved location by this date)
Register to Vote / Check Voter Registration
District residents can check their voter registration online and register to vote online or by mail. The D.C. Board of Elections is also hosting several in-person registration events. Same-day registration is available during early voting and on Election Day, but you’ll need to bring proof of residency.
Consider Voting by Mail Safely, Securely, and Reliably
All active voters will receive a mail-in ballot at their registered address for the November election. You can confirm your registered address here. Once you’ve filled out your mail-in ballot, you can return it by mail using the enclosed prepaid envelope, but it must be postmarked by Election Day and arrive no later than Nov. 13. You can also drop off your ballot at one of dozens of drop box locations before 8pm on Election Day or at one of the vote centers during early voting or Election Day. Residents can also track the status of their mail-in ballots online. Mail-in ballots will start to arrive during the first week of October, but if you do not receive a ballot by October 21, officials say you should plan to vote in person.
Vote In Person
Voters can find convenient early vote and Election Day vote centers online, which will be open from 8:30am to 7:00pm during early voting and from 7:00am to 8:00pm on Election Day. Registered voters can vote at any of the vote centers during early voting and on Election Day.
Immunization Support for Parents and Scholars
Parents, do you need help with scheduling your child to receive her/ his required vaccinations. We are here to help. In partnership with our colleagues at Kelly Miller Middle School, our parents and community have access to the “Kids Mobile Medical Clinic.”
Every Tuesday from 10am- 2pm the mobile clinic will be parked at Kelly Miller Middle School to provide vaccination to all families in need. All parents have to do is call to schedule an appointment at 202-444-8888. The flier can be found here.
Enrollment
Parents, if you are receiving this newsletter and you have not yet enrolled your child, you still have time. Please know that we want all of our Browne scholars in class. If technology access is hindering your ability to enroll just come on up to Browne between the hours of 8:30- 2pm and we can help. We look froward to seeing you soon.
Saturday Produce Distribution
In partnership with the 1st Baptist Church of Highland Park, the Browne faculty and staff distributes high quality produce boxes to families every Saturday. Please come on out between the hours of 1:00pm and 2:45pm to receive a high quality produce box for your family. Please know, all produce will be distributed on a 1st come 1st serve basis. We look forward to seeing you this Saturday.
Questions from the Browne Community
1. What should my day look like with logging on and everything?
· This is a great question. Your scholar’s day should look like a regular school day. You scholar should wake up after a good night’s rest and eat breakfast. After eating breakfast your scholars should log into Canvas to ensure they are marked present for school. Open your chrome browser and go to:
www.dcps.instructure.com
· Enter your username: studentID number@students.dcps.dc.us
· Enter your password: 123456 (Birthday)
· Once logged in, your scholar can then go to Microsoft Teams for class.
2. Is the new way of virtual learning going to work for my child?
· This is another great question. In full transparency, you are the expert in this area. You know your scholar much better than I do. What I can say is that we are committed to ensuring that we (Browne EC) do all that we can to meet the needs of your scholar. If you find that your scholar needs additional support or more challenging materials, please let us know. We are committed to making the best of our virtual learning experience. All educator email address can be found on our school’s webpage at www.brownedc.org
a. How will I know if this virtual learning is working?
· Each week your child’s educator should be checking in with you. These check-ins should typically be happening on Wednesdays. Check-ins are an excellent opportunity for you to ask your child’s educator about their progress in class. For our middle school scholars, the parent portal is another way to see how your scholar is progressing.
b. I didn’t see my child do a lot of writing this week, is this going to change?
· This is definitely going to change. The first week of school is typically about building a healthy classroom culture. This week educators and scholars spent time getting to know one another, learning how to navigate the many platforms, getting reacquainted with friends and engaging in instruction. As the weeks progress, you will begin to see the workload and demands increase.
3. Does my child need to catch up given we ended the school year early?
· Every year students across the United States deal with the phenomena of “Summer Slide.” Summer slide is the idea that students lose or forget some of what they learned during the months out of school. This is particularly true for students in grades kindergarten through second because students in grades K-2 learn a lot more than students in middle school or high school
a. What do I need to do to catch up?
· I have 4 suggestions for all families whether you believe your scholar experienced summer slide or not.
1. Set aside 15- 20 minutes daily for reading.
2. Make time for Smart Play
a. Games and puzzles are a great way for kids to brush up on the basics while having fun at the same time. Whether it’s a game geared specifically toward teaching kids math skills, like this Mobi Math Tiles Game, or a learning activity that helps them brush up on vocabulary, like these Sight Word Learning Mats, there are plenty of ways to get children engaged and help them flex their brain power without turning it into a tutoring session.
3. Spend Time on Clever (www.clever.com)
a. Set aside time for your scholar to spend time learning on the clever platform. There are several learning applications and platforms that can help you scholars catch up on or review concepts taught during the previous school year. Depending on your child’s level of motivation and placement in the program, s/he will be pushed to complete work above their current grade level.
4. Use your imagination and play
a. Kids who use their imagination are also expanding their vocabularies and experimenting with new concepts. Even though it may not seem like they’re directly “learning” when they’re crafting their own superhero capes with a superhero starter kit or dreaming up complex chain reactions with educational LEGO sets, they’re still calling on familiar skills and developing new ones. You could even play "theater" and put on a show inspired by all of the great books your scholars is reading.