• ELA
• Electives and LOTE
• Math
• Science and Technology
• Social Studies

Dear Students and Parents,

We hope this e-mail finds you and your family in the best of health. This guideline includes details of the grading practices Harmony will implement during at-home learning.

Harmony’s main focus during these historic times is on the continuance of the learning process for our students, not on the grading of assignments. Best formative practices are promoted to include timely feedback, multiple opportunities, and additional time to ensure mastery of the concepts. Our administrators, teachers, and specialists are well- prepared to provide support and direction more than ever during this phase of distance learning.

Below you can find the details of grading for Perks-Kindergarten, Grades 1-8, and high school.

Pre K – Kindergarten

PK and Kindergarten teachers will provide assignments in Google Classrooms. Just like regular school time, they will continue grading in Skyward on academic indicators based on student progress in distance learning. Progress reports will be provided every three weeks.

GRADES 1 – 8

Core Courses: Students will be assigned weekly assignments in core courses (Math, science, social studies, and language arts). Students are expected to return their assignments in various ways (Google Classroom, other integrated platforms, a picture taken). Math and ELA labs will be graded under the main course. Electives/Specials: Teachers will assign optional weekly experiences in electives, technology applications, PE, and Fine Arts courses. No submission is required in those classrooms.

Grading on Google Classroom: Progress Monitoring

○ Grades will not be assigned until April 13, 2020 so that students and families can adjust to the routines of distance learning.

○ Starting April 13, numerical grades will be assigned by teachers in Google Classroom gradebook.
○ We ask our teacher to provide multiple opportunities to complete assignments. Retest and flexible deadlines are promoted.

Skyward Gradebook: Official Grading

○ No numerical grades will be assigned in Skyward during distance learning time (4th Quarter). Students will receive one of the performance indicators (PI) below at the end of a week based on their progress on Google Classrooms.

■ E-Excellent
■ S-Satisfactory
■ N-Needs Improvement
■ I-Incomplete

○ Overall Quarter4 PI: Teachers will enter an overall PASS/FAIL/ or INCOMPLETE indicator for 4th quarter grade by the end of distance learning time. For electives and specials, teachers will enter X-Not Assessed indicator as Q4 grade.

Final Student Failure/Promotion Decisions: School Promotion Committee

● Student failure decisions will occur after the closure of distance learning. The school promotion committee should factor in both three-quarter performance and performance indicators during digital learning time.

*** High school guidelines apply to high school credit courses in middle school such as Algebra-1 & LOTE-I.

HIGH SCHOOLS

Core Courses: Students will be assigned weekly assignments in core courses (Math, science, social studies, language arts, and AP courses). Students are expected to return their assignments in various ways (Google Classroom, other integrated platforms, picture taken). Students will be taking weekly assessments. Electives/Specials/CTE: Teachers will assign weekly experiences in technology applications, PE, CTE, Fine Arts, and other electives. Students will submit their assignments. No weekly assessment is promoted in those classrooms.

AP Courses/ Dual Credit / On Ramps Courses: Weekly expectations may vary for AP/Dual credit courses based on approved syllabi by college board and local
community colleges. Local Credit Courses (Math Lab, ELA Lab, SAT/TSI Prep): Local campuses will decide on the level of support in those classrooms. Assignments will be optional and no submission is required. On the other hand, teachers may assign work from lab resources and grade it under the main class.

Grading on Google Classroom: Progress Monitoring

○ Grades will not be assigned until April 13, 2020 so that students and families can adjust to the routines of distance learning.
○ Starting April 13, numerical grades will be assigned by teachers in Google Classroom gradebook.
○ We ask our teacher to provide multiple opportunities to complete assignments. Retest and flexible deadlines are promoted.

Skyward Gradebook: Official Grading

○ No numerical grades will be assigned in Skyward during distance learning time (4th Quarter). Students will receive one of the performance indicators(PI) below at the end of a week based on their progress on Google Classrooms.

■ E-Excellent
■ S-Satisfactory
■ N-Needs Improvement
■ I-Incomplete

○ Overall Quarter4 PI: Teachers will enter an overall PASS/FAIL/ or INCOMPLETE indicator for 4th quarter grade by the end of distance learning time. For electives and specials, teachers will enter X-Not Assessed indicator as Q4 grade.

Final Credit Awarding: School Graduation Committee

● Credit awarding decisions will occur after the closure of distance learning. The committee should factor in both three quarter performance and performance indicators during digital learning time.

Progression Plan During Distance Learning Time
● A student who did not receive a half credit for fall semester (semester average less than 70) in a course may still receive a full credit by factoring in the performance in third quarter and distance learning time. If the average of the first three quarters is higher than 70 and receives an overall PASS indicator for the 4th quarter, the student should be awarded the full credit.
● If the average of the first three quarters is below 70, the student may still earn a full credit based on distance learning performance and the school committee decision.

GPA/Senior Class Ranking
● Credits earned from both regular courses and weighted courses (Honors, AP, Dual, PLTWY) in the spring semester (third quarter plus distance learning time) will not be counted towards GPA.
● Final senior class ranking for class of 2020 will be calculated based on GPA calculation at the end of Fall 2019 semester.

Credit Recovery Options
● Our campuses are encouraged to provide distance learning options for those students in June/July to receive their missing credits. Valedictorian, Salutatorian
● The GPA and Class Rank as of the end of the first semester in the 2019-2020 school year will be used to determine Valedictorian and Salutatorian honors.

* All these guidelines are subject to change based on most updated TEA guidelines.

Harmony Public Schools is encouraging our families to take a few moments to complete the 2020 U.S. Census online, by phone, or mail.

The 2020 Census is a count of everyone who lives in the United States and its territories. The 2020 Census questionnaire asks a few simple questions like the age, sex, and the number of people living in your home.  Individual responses are confidential and cannot be used against you by any court or government agency.

When it comes to schools, the 2020 Census will determine funding for special education, teacher training, technology, school lunch assistance, Head Start and after-school programs. The census will also help determine funding for other important programs for families, such as maternal and child health programs, and housing, heating and food assistance.

People should count all children who live in their homes, including newborns and others too young for school. That’s important because responses to the census help schools plan for the resources they will need when the new generation of children is ready for school.

To begin, click here or call one of the numbers below, or look for the Census form in your mail.

CENSUS BY PHONE:

• English: 844-330-2020
• Spanish: 844-468-2020
• Chinese (Mandarin): 844-391-2020
• Chinese (Cantonese): 844-398-2020
• Vietnamese: 844-461-2020
• Korean: 844-392-2020
• Russian: 844-417-2020
• Arabic: 844-416-2020
• Tagalog: 844-478-2020
• Polish: 844-479-2020
• French: 844-494-2020
• Haitian Creole: 844-477-2020
• Portuguese: 844-474-2020
• Japanese: 844-460-2020
• English (for Puerto Rico residents): 844-418-2020
• Spanish (for Puerto Rico residents): 844-426-2020
• TDD (Telephone Display Device): 844-467-2020

Dear Students/Parents,

DISTANCE LEARNING COMPREHENSIVE PLAN

SAMPLE DAILY SCHEDULE

Useful Links

The safety of our students and staff is our top priority at Harmony Public Schools. As new developments continue to unfold regarding the COVID-19 situation, we wanted to provide you an important update regarding the potential impact of the virus on our schools.

While there have been no cases of COVID-19 reported on our campuses or within our school family at this time, out of an abundance of caution we are announcing a temporary closure of all Harmony Public Schools campuses through Monday, April 6. All school activities, field trips, athletics events, and competitions have also been cancelled during this time.

At this time, we are anticipating classes will be able to resume for students on Tuesday, April 7. Staff will return for a work-day on Monday, April 6.

This decision was made after discussions with, and upon the recommendations of, local health officials.  We strongly believe it is the best decision for helping to keep our students, staff, and communities safe at this time.

During this closure, our Harmony team members will continue to work remotely to finalize the details of distance-learning plan to make sure students continue to receive educational services with minimal  interruption.You will receive regular updates how this plan will be implemented.

Additionally, all full-time, non-exempt and exempt employees will continue to be paid according to their normal rate and schedule.

We continue to urge families and team members to stay informed of current Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines related to the prevention of the spreading of viruses, including limiting out of town travel, “social distancing,” and self-quarantine for those who have recently traveled to impacted areas.

We recognize this is a rapidly evolving situation and will continue to aggressively monitor new developments and respond with appropriate actions based on the best interests of our Harmony families and the guidance of local health officials. Throughout this process, we will continue to communicate with you new information as soon as possible. We anticipate further updates no later than the week of March 23-27.

Thank you for your support during these unusual circumstances. With your continued collaboration, together we can provide a healthy learning environment for our students and staff.

As students return from spring break, we would like to ask the Harmony community for your renewed diligence in helping our schools maintain the best-practices for clean campuses established before break.

That of course includes the normal requests regarding washing hands, covering your mouth when coughing, and staying home when sick. However, we also need your help keeping viruses and germs contained by asking your student to immediately report to their campus health office if their experience any of the following symptoms while at school:

• Suspected fever: Student is flushed, student unusually pale, complaints of body aches/pains student is lethargic or unusually tired, student statements of having had a fever or taken medication at home to make them feel better.
• Respiratory symptoms: Dry cough with or without nasal drainage, difficulty breathing (visibly difficult breathing includes using abdominal muscles to breathe, inability to speak more than a couple of words at a time, flaring nostrils when breathing) or statements of feeling short of breath, chest or lung pain, wheezing or grunting with breathing.

Additionally, families should be aware that any student returning from a travel area on the CDC list of at-risk countries for COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) MUST see their medical provider before returning to campus. Students will have 48 hours to submit a clearance letter from their doctor before returning to campus. After this, student absences will not be excused. A student cannot return until they have clearance from their doctor or have finished quarantine if medically recommended.

With your continued support and collaboration, together we can provide a healthy learning environment for our students and staff.

Thank you.

P.S. … For more information about COVID-19 and our school system’s response, including additional resources for families, visit https://www.HarmonyTX.org/coronavirus.

Spring Break is almost here for our students and staff members across the state.  We sincerely hope everyone in our Harmony community has a fun and relaxing break before together we begin the final stretch toward the end of the school year.

We understand that many of you will be traveling this spring break. With concerns about the Coronavirus in the minds of many, we want to share a few tips from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) about staying healthy when traveling, as well as provide more info about a few Harmony policies related to returning to school after visiting certain risk-prone destinations.

Tips for Healthy Travel

In general, the same advice for fighting germs and bacteria  applies when traveling as it does when staying home:

• Wash hands frequently and/or use hand sanitizer;
• Do not touch eyes, nose or mouth;
• Cover mouth and nose when sneezing or coughing, use a paper tissue, throw it away and then wash hands;
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick;
• When greeting others, consider an alternative to hugs or handshakes, such as an elbow bump.

Additionally, here are a few additional tips related specifically to those traveling:

• Be aware of your surroundings (including people who are sick) and try to distance yourself as appropriate;
• Avoid areas that you feel might make your more likely to be exposed;
• Know how to get reliable local information about any possible changes to the situation;
• Avoid public transportation, if possible. Confined spaces such as buses, trains, subways, and airplanes may put you at a higher risk of infection;
• When eating animal-based products, make sure they are thoroughly cooked before eating.

Returning to School After Visiting Risk-Prone Areas

Due to CDC travel guidelines, students and families that have traveled to locations that are marked as a Coronavirus risk by the CDC must have a letter of clearance from their medical provider before returning to campus. Failure to provide a clearance letter will result in the student being dismissed home. Students will have 48 hours to provide proof of doctor’s clearance. Any additional absence will require further documentation from the parents or doctor. For a list of countries with COVID-19 travel advisories, visit https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/index.html.

Currently these countries include: 

• China
• Hong Kong
• Iran
• Italy
• Japan
• South Korea

Additionally, please be aware that families travelling to China’s Hubei province or mainland China may face a mandatory quarantine and be monitored by public health officials. Any health department guidelines should be followed by any affected families and absences will be waived upon return to school with provision of proof of quarantine. 

At Harmony Public Schools, we take the health and safety of our students and staff members seriously. Harmony is closely tracking all new developments regarding the Coronavirus and will continue to share timely, relevant updates, as needed.

If you have any questions or concerns, please refer to your campus health staff. 

We appreciate your help in supporting healthy and happy learning environments for our Harmony community. 

Dear Parents/Guardians and Students,

Last Saturday (2/29/2020), 11 of our students entered the Visual Arts Scholastic Event. It is with great pride that I announce that 8 of our 11 students received medals recognizing their abilities against other students in Houston Region 4 North in their respective divisions.

Division 1 – Rahime C. and Jeanne T.

Division 2 – Zukhruf K., Hanife I., and Anna N.

Division 4 – Fiona R., Fiza S., and Olivia H.

These students were recognized as the best in Region 4 North this year.

Congratulations to our students and all who have supported them!

This is a friendly reminder that there is NO SCHOOL on Friday, November 15th for the students. There will be District PD for the staff.