Dear Rising Tide Families,

Since we were not able to hold our traditional Morning Meetings today, we are touching base with you via email instead. Last Friday, Rising Tide, in coalition with other local schools, decided to close our doors through March 27 in an effort to help curb the spread of the new coronavirus. Yesterday evening, Governor Baker called for all Massachusetts schools to remain closed for three weeks. As a result, Rising Tide will now be closed through April 6. Despite the extension of our school closure, graduation for seniors will still be on June 5, and the last day of school for all other students will remain June 25. Our school leaders are working to determine how the extended closure will impact our academic and extracurricular calendar, and we will continue to communicate with you about our plans as the situation develops. 

We are sure that everyone feels a little excited about the increased freedom that comes from a three-week school closure. We also imagine that everyone feels anxious about the coronavirus pandemic, the prospect of spending three weeks without established structures and supports, and the uncertain impact that the closure will have on our academic and personal lives. Given the range of emotions that we all are experiencing, it is important that we work hard to take care of ourselves and others. With this in mind, we would like to offer the following recommendations. 

Stay Healthy
Please continue to practice good hygiene. Wash your hands regularly, use hand sanitizer when you do not have access to soap and water, and cough and sneeze into your elbow. In addition to these healthy habits, please practice social distancing, which is the most effective way to slow the spread of the coronavirus and protect vulnerable members of our population. This means that you should avoid all nonessential, in-person interaction with others. Please note the following guidance from the Department of Public Health in Massachusetts: 

“During this period, it is critical that students and their families, as well as school staff, stay home as much as possible. If you leave your home, it is essential to strictly follow social distancing guidelines by avoiding crowds, canceling social gatherings, and maintaining a safe separation of at least 6 feet from others. Restricting access to school buildings will have little impact on public health if these best practices are not followed in good faith.” 

While you should avoid heavily populated public spaces, remember that sun, fresh air, and exercise are good for you, so seize the opportunity to get out and explore our beautiful natural surroundings.

Stay Connected to Others
In order to stop the spread of the coronavirus, we need to eliminate all nonessential gatherings. At the same time, human connection is important for our health and wellbeing, so try to touch base regularly with peers, family, and co-workers through phone, social media, and good old-fashioned letters. Check in to see how others in your life are doing during this challenging time, and share with others your own feelings so that they can support you. If you feel like you need additional social-emotional support, please reach out via email to Ms. Malaguti or Ms. Butler. 

Stay Connected to Learning
We all benefit from the structure and the learning opportunities that the traditional school day provides. Therefore, while we are sure that many of you will enjoy the relative freedom of the next few weeks, we encourage you to incorporate structure and learning into each and every day. Currently, your teachers are working to provide you with activities to practice skills already introduced and to explore in greater depth topics that you have studied previously. Teachers will post to Google Classroom these optional academic resources for each of your classes by 3:00 p.m. tomorrow. Once these learning opportunities are available, teachers will log on to Google Classroom on designated days to answer any questions that students have posted. Learning Specialists also will be available via Google Classroom to answer questions and provide additional support. During the next two weeks, the designated days for teacher check-ins are Monday through Wednesday of this week, and Tuesday through Friday of next week.

Along with following the guidance of your teachers, it is worth pursuing any additional interests that you may have. Given this unexpected gift of free time, ask yourself, what is something that I have always wanted to learn? For example, you could try out a challenging new book or film, work on learning a language or an instrument, or teach yourself to write computer code. You may be amazed at what you can accomplish in a few short weeks. As you explore the world from the comfort of your home, we invite you to utilize the library resources on our school website. We also encourage you to journal daily to develop important writing skills and to document what it is like to be a young person living through this historic moment. We guarantee that you will be grateful, later in your life, to have a written account of your experiences.

While students are encouraged to stay in contact with learning, no assignments are required at this point. As the situation develops, we may change our academic expectations. Please stay tuned for further updates throughout the coming weeks.

We hope that you all are keeping busy and staying healthy, and we will continue to be in touch. 

Yours sincerely,
Mr. Post and Mr. Simons