Questions and Answers for Parents During COVID-19
Regarding 19-20 School year, Governor Inslee announced that the Stay Home and Stay Healthy directive has been
extended through the end of the 19-20 school year. This means that the earliest school would resume would be the fall
of next year. Preparations for how the end of the year will look are already underway. This uncertainty creates emotions
and challenges as we deliberate the end of the 2020 school year. I hope that the following answers help in your overall
family planning during this time of COVID-19.
In anticipation of this change, know that our faculty and staff will continue to create and deliver detailed plans to
continue our services throughout this time. There are numerous resources for families on www.mycatholicschool.org as
they navigate the time students spend at home learning remotely and for their free time. Schools will continue to post
information and resources to each schools’ website as well.
Easter Vacation – Spring Break
Spring break is a time to rejuvenate rest and recharge for many families and staff. Many of our schools will take a break
in the next two weeks. The Archdiocese is honoring all scheduled spring breaks. Upon your return from Spring Break,
teachers will be ready with more Continuous Learning lessons, educational resources and opportunities for families. The
Archdiocese will take a break Good Friday, April 10 through Tuesday, April 15, 2020.
Continuous Remote Learning
We are beyond proud of the work that our faculty and staff continue to do during this time to support our students and
families. We can’t thank our families and communities enough for all you are doing to support each other. We are
grateful for the continued support and partnership during this difficult time. Schools continue to have online learning
opportunities. Please ensure that you do what YOU need to do to stay healthy, and please reach out if you need support
or help.
Faith Formation
Currently, Faith Formation Ministry is putting together two online Confirmation retreat options for young people who
missed their retreat. One option will permit them to attend presentations live and engage in small group discussions
with other youth. The second option will be prerecorded videos with downloadable schedule options and activities they
can do with their families. More information will be sent out during Easter Week. Confirmation coordinators will help
coordinate with parishes scheduled to celebrate their Confirmation Masses. Many of these dates are being pushed out
into July and August. Updates about First Eucharist will also be coming out after Easter week.
Childcare
If you are accessing childcare, please check with your childcare site for their schedule over the next couple of months.
Childcare availability is predicated on healthy childcare staffing.
Supporting our seniors
Our class of 2020 seniors are a top learning priority. We want to ensure our seniors meet graduation requirements. Our
goal is to graduate every single senior in the class of 2020. Each of our Catholic high schools is working diligently with all students to ensure that they get to that finish line. High schools are reaching out to students and helping guide them in the completion of their classes. It is important that our seniors stay the course, complete assignments, and earn class
credits to graduate on time. We encourage seniors to contact their teachers and schools to ensure they remain on track
for graduation. In addition, we are meeting and looking at ways to celebrate our seniors through creative ideas for
Proms, Baccalaureate Masses, and graduation ceremonies.
Social Emotional Support
Our daily lives have changed in many ways over the last 6 weeks and will continue to evolve as we approach the end of
the school year. We want to offer you, your family and students’ resources to help navigate being homebound.
Pastoral Care during the Corona virus (and the Self Care infographic is embedded in this)
https://mycatholicschool.org/2020/03/31/pastoral-care-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/
Coronavirus Mental Health Resources – English – Arch of Seattle click here
Coronavirus Mental Health Resources – Spanish – Arch of Seattle click here
ARTICLE: Why Working From Home Is So Exhausting—And How To Reinvigorate
Click here https://www.forbes.com/sites/tracybrower/2020/03/30/why-working-from-home-is-so-exhaustingandhow-to-reinvigorate/#5a34ea3d55ab
ACTION: Consider seeking out an accountability buddy aka: (Prayer buddy or Lenten Buddy) who becomes your Easter
buddy to help hold each another accountable for self-care with daily or weekly check ins. We are now on information
overload. How can we take action to show our love and compassion for each other by prioritizing time for ourselves for
self-care? What it looks like to take care of ourselves physically, emotionally, spiritually, socially and psychologically so
we can exude confidence to those looking to us for support? Can we intentionally walk with our neighbor? Who is YOUR
buddy? Who is YOUR neighbor? Let’s model and practice the 4 Ms… 4 M’s for Self-Care: Mindfulness, Meditation,
Movement, and Meaningful Relationships. It is a time for HOPE and TRUST IN THE LORD.
Visit www.mycatholicschool.org for more news and information
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