August 19th, 2020

As students and staff await opening day 2020, we know many of you have questions about what this coming school year will be like. We will do our best to provide updates when information becomes available. Please check the WRDSB website and WRDSB return to school for posted updates from the Waterloo Region District School Board. Southwood Administration is currently working to implement a site-based plan and develop cohorts for the upcoming quadmester.

Please note that most staff won’t be returning to school until late August/early September. Until then, Guidance Counsellors and Teachers may not be checking emails/voicemail regularly, so please note that there may be a delay in our response time. Guidance counsellors also currently don’t have access to our scheduling system and must wait until we are back in the building to address student timetables, etc.

When we return, Guidance will be focussed on fixing scheduling conflicts, completing new student registrations and assisting with preparations for a safe startup. That said, we know many of you have emailed with questions or concerns about September. There is a great deal of uncertainty about specific details for the fall. We are working on answers and students will be informed via Google Classroom and/or the school website when we have updates. This is uncharted territory for all of us, so please be patient as we prepare for startup. Your support is greatly appreciated!
NOTE – THERE IS CURRENTLY NO SCHOOL ACCESS PRIOR TO OPENING DAY!

Here are a few key points to address some of the frequently asked questions SSS staff/guidance have received in recent weeks:

TIMETABLES & STUDENT COHORTS
Student timetables are not yet complete and may need to be reworked in some cases due to the quadmester model and responses to the recent student attendance survey. Unfortunately, this means student schedules will not be available until closer to opening day. Some students may also receive incomplete timetables at that time due to conflicts and/or late cancelled courses. Guidance staff will work as quickly as possible to resolve these issues.

Our hope is to communicate with families the student’s timetable and cohort so they are aware in order to prepare before the first day of school. We recognize and appreciate that students will need to know what cohort they are assigned to and their first quadmester classes before the first day of school (as only that cohort will attend). Specific information about opening day and first week procedures will be coming in the next few weeks.

Please be aware that current information in MyWay is not complete or accurate. Information in MyWay may not be up-to-date and likely won’t reflect your actual schedule for September. Students are advised to not check MyWay until after the resumption of classes.

STUDENT RETURN TO SCHOOL SURVEY
If you missed the deadline to declare intentions for in-person or online attendance in the fall, please complete the form as soon as possible. The final deadline for completion of the survey is this FRIDAY, AUGUST 21st 2020. You can find the survey here. The deadline has been extended. Please note that completing this form is mandatory for each child attending a WRDSB school.

Our office staff/VP will be reaching out to families who did not complete this survey to help ensure we have accurate information for startup and can organize our classes accordingly. Families can also contact David Linnerth, Southwood’s Vice Principal, for assistance with the survey/info – please include the full name of the student in your email to help with the process. Dave can be reached by email at david_linnerth@wrdsb.ca

If you have already completed this form and would like to change your response, please complete the form again. Your more recently submitted form will be used to confirm your child(ren)’s spot in the selected learning method.

COURSE CHANGES
All course change requests submitted online between March break and the end of last semester are still on hold and will be processed in the order received. Once we have finalized timetables, organized cohort groups and fixed any conflicts/issues, we hope to accommodate these requests where possible, but this may take some time.

No further course change requests are being accepted at this time. Guidance will be working closely with SSS admin to determine how to move forward with any late requests for changes after startup. These requests will almost certainly be limited by our quadmester schedule and cohort groups.

DISTANCE LEARNING STUDENTS
The WRDSB is still working on the process to register students for Distance Learning classes this fall. We are also waiting on details about how to handle any changes in plans (moving from online to in-person, or vice versa). Distance Learning will be different than it was during the school closure. The Ministry of Education has laid out specific synchronous and asynchronous learning expectations. More information will follow about the Distance Learning Model and which courses will be offered. Please note that Southwood students may not be matched with Southwood teachers and courses for Distance Learning.

BLENDED MODEL: SCHOOL SETUP & DAILY/COHORT SCHEDULE
SSS will look quite different than what you’ve been used to, but it’s all in the name of safety! There will be clear policies in place for entering/exiting the school and movement around the building (one-way halls, staggered bell times, arrows/signage). More details will be released closer to opening day. Classes have been reorganized to follow cohort sizing, including removal of furniture (approx. 15 students per group).

SCHOOL SCHEDULE
If you haven’t yet checked out the model WRDSB secondary schedule, please click here to review the proposed model. We should have a more Southwood specific timetable to share in the coming days or weeks.

LOCKERS
Students will not have access to lockers during the first months of school. We ask that students bring minimal belongings with them. Recommended are basic school supplies, layering clothing to allow for differences in temperature, and of course, chromebooks and chargers as well as snacks, lunch and a water bottle.

EXTRA-CURRICULARS
The WRDSB is working closely with Regional Health to determine plans for extra-curriculars. We will share further details when we know more. Look out for ways Southwood will encourage “virtual” connections and participation. See below for ways to get information and updates!

There will certainly be more info to come as we get closer to opening day!
As mentioned, we’ll do our very best to communicate with you via:

Southwood Secondary School website
Guidance Google Classroom (per grade)
Southwood Leadership Instagram
Southwood Secondary School Instagram
Southwood Twitter
WRDSB Twitter

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