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Even though school is not in session, Troy Elementary School students are learning from a distance.

On Monday and Wednesday, Take Home Packets were distributed to parents and Teresa Sims, principal, said the administration was pleased with participation. For those who were not able to pick up the Take Home Packets on those days, the packets will be available at TES on Monday, Wednesday and Friday during the Grab and Go Lunch time, from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m.

As part of the TES’ continuity plan, Sims said teachers will contact their students by phone weekly to offer needed assistance. 

“Teachers are also available through email, as well as a variety of platforms such as the teacher webpage, Remind, Class Dojo, and Facebook groups,” Sims said. “In addition to calling students weekly, teachers will create one video per week to post on their webpage or media platform.”

Music, art, library, counselors, and physical education teachers will also provide learning activities.

Among those teachers was Belinda Kitchens, the TES librarian, who posted a video this week naming the top 10 readers in each grade, based on AR points.

The highly competitive rankings are a big deal to the students, and Anna Gooden posted a response video on social media of her daughter, Emily, cheering “yes!” after learning she was the top reader in the first grade, with 60.7 points.

“I was actually doing something else and saw that she had posted the AR readers video,” Anna Gooden said. “I said, ‘alright guys, let’s watch it and see.’”

And to their delight, both Emily and her third-grade brother Eli were the top readers in their class.

“She’s still excited she won,” even though the recognition will not come at a schoolwide assembly this year, Gooden said. “We’ll still do something to celebrate.”

Sims said feedback from parents to the multi-platform approach has been positive.

“We’ve had wonderful feedback already from our teacher phone calls,” Sims said. “Those relationships, especially at this level, are so important. Hearing their own teacher’s voice is comforting and encourages students to continue learning. They want to please their teachers.”

In addition to learning packets and teacher communication, Troy Elementary School also provided a list of digital resources to assist with review and the practice of skills as well as enrichment activities.

“Students will be happy to know that Accelerated Reader is available online at this time,” Sims said.

Books can also be loaned to a device through the Overdrive Library Service or the Sora App and tests can be taken through Accelerated Reader. The information was sent on to students and is also available on the website.

“While nothing can replace a teacher in the classroom, our staff will go the extra mile to make the best of this situation by supporting our students and their families,” Sims said.

“I encourage our students to read daily, work through the packets and use other available resources to maintain their skills as we prepare for a great new school year.”