Author: Matt Burnham

8/10/2020

Hello Korematsu Community,

I know we are all anxious about school starting on Monday August 17th. Please know that the first two weeks will be a soft opening. Much of what we do with students will be centered around getting to know each other remotely, learning how to maneuver in this digital learning environment, and developing community. Over the next few days teachers will be working with each other to develop lessons, organize google classrooms, and prepare for the first day of school. I’ll be sending out an orientation video on Friday that will have google class codes and other pertinent information. Here is a look at our distance learning schedule. As you can see students will be under the care and instruction of their teachers in 55 minute blocks three times a day This can be either synchronous or asynchronous. Homeroom class will be a live session daily at 10:00 AM for 25 minutes. During homeroom teachers will take attendance, check in with students, and provide some social emotional learning. Monday and Wednesday will be periods 1,2, and 3. Tuesday and Thursday will be periods 4/5, 6 and 7. Friday will be asynchronous learning as well as opportunities for student enrichment. We are beginning to develop our Friday opportunities, but this work will be ongoing. We will be seeking support from parents and community members for our Friday activities. So If you are interested in hosting a fun zoom enrichment class please reach out!

Materials – our main focus right now is ensuring all students have a working tablet. We are planning to hand out tablets to those students on Thursday and Friday. Textbooks will be distributed in the afternoons during the first two weeks of school. Nearly all of our core textbooks are on the tablets, but we do recognize students may want the hard copy as well.

Student Schedules – This week homeroom teachers will begin calling students/families to invite them to their homeroom classes. Our plan is to have schedules available through homeroom.

Class Changes – Aside from major schedule problems (ex. 2 math classes, only 4 classes) we will not be making changes until we know how many students will attend Korematsu. Students will be able to reach out to their counselor for support. This year due to district budgets cuts we cannot offer Independent Study PE. we do not have enough elective space. If space opens we may offer Ind. PE.

Key Dates –
8/12 – 8/13 Faculty Professional Development
8/13 – 8/14 Tablet distribution for students without a device
8/14 5:30 PM Orientation Video Posts with possible chat Q and A (More to come)
8/17 First Day of School
8/19 Virtual Back to School Night

We will continue to provide updates. It is important to let your student know that we are here to support them. Distance learning is hard for all of us and we will do our best to be adaptable, creative and flexible as we continue learning apart.

Please stay safe and well,

Matt Burnham

Time	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
8:15 – 10:00	Teacher Prep	Teacher Prep	Teacher Prep	Teacher Prep	8:15 – 9:35 Teacher Prep 9:35 – 10:00 Family Outreach
10:00 – 10:25	Homeroom	Homeroom	Homeroom	Homeroom	Homeroom
10:30 – 11:25	Period 1	Period 4/5	Period 1	Period 4/5	10:25 – 11:00 Family Outreach 11:00 – 12:30 Staff Professional Learning
11:35 – 12:25	Period 2	Period 6	Period 2	Period 6
12:35 – 1:05	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch
1:05 – 2:00	Period 3	Period 7	Period 3	Period 7	1:30 – 3:00 Staff Professional Learning
2:05 – 3:00	Office Hours	Office Hours	Office Hours	Office Hours
3:00 – 5:00	Clubs/After School	Clubs/After School	Clubs/After School	Clubs/After School	Clubs/After School

Dear Korematsu Community, 

As the new school year is fast approaching we are working to prepare the school for distance learning. A key learning from the Spring experience is that communication is essential. No surprise of course, but at times we struggled with contact information for some students and families. We need to be able to communicate with all families via email and phone. Please take some time to update your information using the link below. Many families have already updated the Annual School Forms and we thank you for that. Having email in particular will allow us to sign parents/guardians up for summary reports from google classroom. These reports will allow you to follow your child’s learning activities. 

Please take a few minutes to update annual school forms here:
https://www.wccusd.net/Page/11026

Thanks,

Matt Burnham

Instagram: official_korematsums

Twitter: @KorematsuMS

Hello Korematsu Community,

5/1/2020

We have another news segment for you all. We are getting more participation from students which is great. We want more! Please email me with submissions or suggestions (mburnham@wccusd.net).

In the coming weeks we will start to clarify some upcoming activities around the school. We are working with WCCUSD to come up with plans for textbook returns, locker clean outs, and yearbook distribution (if purchased). As this information becomes finalized we will incorporate it within the Weekly News. All of these activities will be done following the CDC and local Contra Costa Health Services guidelines.

Anyone planning to submit their baking project to the contest please do so by May 6th. I look forward to the projects.

Have a great weekend KMS community!

Mr. B

4/17/2020

Hello Korematsu Community, 

I hope you are safe, healthy and taking care of your families. We are wrapping up another week of distance learning.  For educators, this has been an entirely new challenge, and one we are constantly learning from. Since this week began, we have seen more and more students completing assignments on Google Classroom. While this number is increasing, we still need to see more teenagers logging on and getting active with their learning. These are difficult and complicated times, but we need to work together to ensure everyone has an opportunity to learn.

Students are expected to log into Google Classroom daily. Teachers are regularly posting assignments, commenting on completed work, and providing support as needed. While some may want more work, and others less, our teachers are working hard to meet expectations outlined in the agreement between the United Teachers of Richmond and WCCUSD. We, as learners ourselves, will continue to evolve as days go by. At Korematsu, we are always in a cycle of inquiry. Distance learning is no different. We are always developing as a school, and as a community.

Many teachers are offering live office hours. I want to encourage students to participate in these whenever possible. Students can find information posted on Google Classroom (how to log on to a meeting, when they start, etc.). We have also posted the hours at www.korematsumiddleschool.org. Please continue to check this website for more information as online learning moves forward. We are in the process of developing resources for students and families that are looking for additional learning opportunities. 

I want to encourage families and students with questions to reach out to teachers directly. They are available through email, and are there to support our students. You can also reach out to counselors, Ms. Ivey and of course, me, anytime. I’ve put together a first attempt at a weekly news segment that I am hoping provides some information, keeps us connected, and in the future is propelled by student voices. 

Please stay safe and keep supporting one another.

Sincerely,

Matt Burnham

English	Monday	Ms. Schantz 11-1:00	Ms. Pulley 11-1:00	Ms. Soto 10-12:00	Mr. Vedder: 9:00-12:00	Ms. Davis  11-1:00
Math	Tuesday	Mr. Lee (math7 – 10-12), (Geometry- 12-1 on Thursday)	Mr. Hameed (no virtual office hours; students comment/email to get questions answered)	Ms. Cachero M/W/F 11:00 – 11:30 T/Th. 2:30-3:30	Mr. Zechlin 9:30-10:30 & 2 – 3 Daily	Mr. Kunz 9:30 — 10:30
History	Wednesday	Mr. Lee, J (available by appointment),1-3	Ms. Schmidt 10-12:00	Mr. Uriostegue: 9-12:00	Mr. Fulumirani (email or appointment)
Science	Thursday	Mr. Kunz 9:30-10:30	Ms. Pavlich 10-1:30	Mr. Nelson 1:30-2:30	Ms. Wardle 9-12:00	Writer coaches with ELD students 10-12 pm, 1-3 pm
Electives	Friday	Ms. Alcocer 1-2:05	Mr. Pohl: 8:30-9:30 & 3-4 Daily	Carrico Friday 10:30-11 I will send zoom link each week in e-mail	Ms. Smith, J Mon-Fri 11:00-1:00 and as needed (no virtual office ours: student and parent questions via email and Google classroom)	Ms. Jenkins 9-10:00
Special Education		Ms. Krug Daily 1:00-2:00	Mr. Armen 2-3:00	Ms. Smith Daily 10-11:00	Ms. Woods Thurs 10-11:00	Mr. Wallacker- Daily 8AM- 2PM via email	Mr. Klingele  Daily 9-10:00 and as needed	Ms. Cummings 8-2:30	Mr. Pickrell Daily AllSkills10-11 Tutorial 1-2