Dear Trail Community,

The second marking period has begun, and we are poised for more student success in the classrooms, on the athletic fields and courts, and in extracurricular endeavors.  Lion pride is at its peak! It has been a great start to the academic year, so let’s keep it going!

As the probability of inclement weather increases and we move toward potential school cancellations, delays, and early dismissals, it is important to share information regarding my tentative plans.  This year I will implement a blend of traditional snow days with Flexible Instructional Days.

Over the past few years, while we educated our students through the pandemic, we were able to pivot to full virtual days for numerous reasons.  Although we can’t do that this year, we now have an option to use Flexible Instructional Days (FIDS) in limited numbers.  A Flexible Instructional Day is different than the virtual days we’ve utilized in the past.  Flexible Instructional Days don’t include live lessons where teachers interact with their students.  Students must check into their homeroom or first period class, then for the next few hours students will work on lessons provided by their teachers in Google Classrooms.  Students can work at their own pace, choose the classes/lessons in the order which accommodates them best, and will have access to teacher office hours communicated in advance.  Typically, the assignments provided during a Flexible Instructional Day can be completed by late morning.  Chromebooks or another device with internet access must be accessible from home.

This is a change, and with change comes some clumsiness and bumps in the road that need to be addressed.  Rest assured more information will be provided by the building principals prior to the first Flexible Instructional Day, and we will work out any unforeseen problems when they arise. The first few inclement weather days will result in traditional snow days, and I’ll let everyone know in advance when I plan to use the first Flexible Instructional Day.  Let’s hope for a mild winter!