We have summarized some of the common parent questions about what to expect this year in "COVID times." While of course we are subject to any new orders from government and health officials, here are some FAQs based on what we know at this time. We hope it will answer many of your questions.

Q. Is school open for in person instruction?

• TK-5th grade is open in person for regular school, 5 full days/week.
• Some families in TK-5th grade have chosen to remain on distance learning with a dedicated distance learning specialist teacher. 

Q. How are we keeping students, families and staff safe at school?

This is not an exhaustive list, but here are some key safety guidelines:

• Face Coverings - REQUIRED FOR EVERYONE ON CAMPUS 
• Class Family Groups - A static group of no more than 16 students with one teacher. The children in each group will learn, eat, play and have specialist classes together but may not physically mingle with others on campus. 
• Outdoor Learning Spaces - COVID-19 is much less likely to spread outdoors. We have added additional sheltered outdoor learning spaces with clear partitions between students and new portable classrooms that are heated/cooled and can be open-air on nice days. 
• Visitor Restrictions - Health officials currently recommend that parents use rolling drop off and do not get out of their vehicles at school. 
• Physical Distancing - Enforced through Interactive Modeling and gentle reminders.
• Scheduled Hand Washing (and of course as needed)
• Temperature & Symptom Screening - Anyone coming on campus will be screened for a fever or symptoms. 
• Sick Policy - Anyone coming on campus must be symptom free (fever, diarrhea, cough, sore throat, shortness of breath, runny nose) for 24 hours without medication. Out of an abundance of caution, staff/students will need to go home immediately and get a test to rule our COVID-19 if symptoms occur at school. 
• COVID-19 Testing - All families and students must get tested before returning to school and to follow all public health guidelines. Elementary students and staff must get tested weekly (using our free on-site saliva swab test or an outside testing program of their choice).
• "The COVID Times" - We share a weekly community update every Friday with updates to the guidelines and restrictions. All families and staff must follow these in order to attend school in person. 

Q. Are all the special area classes (Spanish, Music, Art, PE, Science/Social Studies, Animal & Nature Studies, Tech-Lab) still happening? 

Yes. Specialist classes are happening, but students may not go to the Art Studio, Computer Lab, etc. This is to avoid having multiple Class Family Groups cycle through a shared learning space. Most specialist classes are being taught outdoors. We have also expanded 1:1 devices for every student in grades 1-5 so each student has a dedicated device (laptop, Chromebook, iPad, depending on grade). Some special area classes may be taught through Zoom - into the classrooms.

Q. What about after school classes like Mandarin, Team Sports, Robotics, Art, Drama, Cooking, Speech & Debate, etc.?

These classes are temporarily on hold. Because the current guidelines and best practices suggest keeping students in static groups and not mixing, after school classes are temporarily suspended until we are able to mix or combine groups. We plan to bring these classes back as soon as it's safe. 

Q. I saw that when WHPS reopened in June, campus is now open 8am-5pm. Will you go back to 7am-6pm in the fall?

We know families rely on us for childcare, and we will do everything we can to get back to 7-6 as soon as possible. The reduced hours are primarily because of the strict cohorting requirements (we can't mix students from different Class Family Groups). We will resume normal hours when the cohorting requirement is lifted.     

Q. If we ever need to switch to distance learning in the future, what is the schedule?

If there is ever a class closure/quarantine due to COVID-19 exposure, the daily schedule  includes LIVE daily instruction throughout the morning in SEL, Math, Reading & Writing. In the afternoon, specialist classes are also taught live: Spanish, Music, PE, Technology, Art, Animal & Nature Studies.

Here is an example of the elementary distance learning schedule (all BLUE classes are taught live).

If you have never been to graduation at WHPS, you are missing out. I have not seen an elementary school experience quite like it. We feel very strongly that every student's voice matters and that they have something important to say that we all need to hear. If we don’t give students that opportunity now (in elementary school), how can we expect them to speak out as they get older? As we reminded our graduates last night, the older they get, the more serious the consequences can be if they don’t speak up when something doesn’t seem right. 

It's impossible not to think about the world these young people are going into and the current local and global events we are all facing together. What I do know about this outstanding group of students is that they fill us with hope for a brighter future. These students: Are passionate in many different areas, they know that their voice matters, they are goal oriented, and they speak up for other people when something isn’t right. We love and admire these graduates, and we are honored to have been an integral part of their development

Meet the Graduates

If you have ever wondered what a WHPS student is all about, I encourage you to check out this year's speeches. 

The Drone

We hosted this year's event semi-virtually.  We were all live in the school parking lot, but due to physical distancing requirements, students each gave their speeches on the big video screen (see speeches above). For non-touch diploma delivery, we flew each student their diploma on a drone. Check out one of the diplomas taking off, en route to a graduate.

This has been a heavy-hearted and difficult time in our city and across the country. We stand in solidarity with peaceful protesters and the fight for equality, and we unequivocally denounce the senseless killing of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and many others as a result of the persistent structural racism against African Americans in our country. It is a gut-wrenching but important time to be talking with children about racism (anti-racism), bias and advocacy.

Some tips for talking to children about the recent events:

• First and foremost, a rule of thumb for parents and teachers when discussing any mature topic, whether it has to do with racism, school safety or puberty, is to follow the child’s lead.

• Don’t avoid talking to your child about what happened. If you avoid the topic, your child may find the event even more threatening or think it is simply too horrible to speak about (and even if it is, we NEED to talk about it in order to confront it).

• Invite your child to tell you how s/he feels, but avoid leading questions, such as “Are you worried about ______________?”

• Answer the questions they’re asking honestly but reassuringly, but don’t delve deeper into the topic than they take it. Give children the facts they need to know now, but avoid discussing your fears or anxiety.

• Correct any inaccurate information: If your child has misconceptions or inaccurate information, correct them in a simple age-appropriate way.

• Reinforcing safety is important with very young children.

• Stay calm and use “emotional self-control” when talking about this topic. The emotions you express will influence your child’s feelings.

• Focus on ways your child/family can take positive social action.

Below are just a few resources parents may find helpful. Let us be clear, we are not sharing these links and resources to point out how much we have already done, but rather to acknowledge the amount of work that likely won’t be finished in our own lifetime. We are committed to advancing anti-bias education and working with our community to address inequities that have persisted in our country for far too long.

• Sesame Street/CNN Town Hall: Standing Up to Racism (June 6 - available without cable)

• Peaceful Youth Protest (June 6 @ 10 AM, Encino Fire Station #83): With some of our students and families!

• Talking Race With Young Children (20 minute NPR podcast - take a listen!)

• Talking to Kids About Race (collection of resources)

• Teaching Kids to Talk About Taboo Topics (WHPS Blog)

• Remembering Person-First Language (WHPS Blog)

• Project 1619: We have been adapting our social studies curriculum to better tell the story of Black Americans in a developmentally appropriate way.

• Anti-Bias Education in Preschool

Intrinsic Motivation
When Rewards Can be a Bad Thing

Experiences from age 0-8 influence how kids will think for the rest of their life. No one wants to raise an adult who will always think: “What’s in it for me?” when confronted with a task or responsibility. But you might be surprised to know that some commonly used discipline and “positive reinforcement” strategies can actually contribute to this kind of mindset. 

Here are a few suggestions that can help ensure we are building up intrinsic motivation and not a “What’s in it for me?” mindset in our children. 

Avoid Rewards, Incentives & Bribes
One strategy to keep in mind is to avoid giving children a reward for doing something that is a basic expectation: going to school, separating without tears in the morning, putting dishes in the sink, getting a good grade, doing homework, reading, etc. These kinds of rewards often influence a child’s behavior in the short term but don’t promote intrinsic motivation. 

Rather than giving rewards, we strive to give children words to tell them exactly what behavior is working and why. 

• You put your toys back in their spots so they won't get broken or lost. 
• You put your book back in the right bin so we can find it next time. 
• You put your blanket in your nap bag so it will be there when you need it tomorrow.
• I saw you get out your homework and get started so you will have time to play later. 

Emphasize how they might feel over your own approval. 

• You worked really hard on the art project. 
  • Instead of: I am so proud of you.
  • Try: I bet you feel proud.
• You remembered to put your dishes in the sink without being asked today. 
  • Instead of: I love that you did that. 
  • Try: That’s really responsible. 

Please & Thank You
While important aspects of politeness, the words "please" and "thank you" suggest that an action was optional. Responsive Classroom reminds teachers to avoid thanking children when they do something that is a basic expectation: Lining up quietly, putting our supplies away, cleaning up the lunch tables. Just like the prior examples, the ideal response reinforces the behavior that is working and why. 

• Instead of: Thank you for pushing in your chairs.
• We might say:
  • You remembered to push in chairs so no one will trip.
  • Let’s go back and try that, remembering to push in chairs so no one will trip.

Similarly, at home, you can try "noticing" and remarking about the desired behavior without the "please" or "thank you," if the behavior is an expectation, as opposed to a personal favor. 

That's not to say you can never say "please" or "thank you."  They still very much have a place in the lexicon, but they can be used more appropriately if the child does you a favor or a gesture of kindness. For example, "Thank you for grabbing me a tissue when I sneezed" or "thank you for holding the door".

Finally: I noticed you read through the entire article and learned a bit more on how to help build intrinsic motivation.