The Fortitude of Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY (March 9, 2020)—For school districts worldwide, the pandemic caused a significant change in the ways students learn. Farmingdale School District met the challenges of this new form of learning head-on. Now students learn both in-person and virtually, and knowledge they acquire in the classroom can be utilized in the real world in new and topical ways.

The introduction of the “Schoology” platform in the fall of 2020 helped the Farmingdale School District create and maintain an efficient form of communication among students, teachers, and families. With the stroke of a few keys and the click of a button, parents can view their children’s assignments and progress. By providing access to these resources, the Farmingdale School District can ensure that teachers can continue to seamlessly offer an engaging educational experience and parents remain informed of their child’s progress. Creating this one-stop-shop for educators allows them to collaborate more effectively and share approaches and ideas. Ongoing daily support for teachers, students, and families with Schoology and all technology-related issues during remote learning continues to be provided in accordance with the District’slongstanding efforts always to put students’ needs first. Our teachers have been working above and beyond to learn the new platform while tackling virtual learning challenges. They are participating in professional development workshops led by staff developers and building collegial circles with each other to learn and grow with best teaching practices. The Remote Learning Teacher Resource guide provided several tutorials for platforms such as Schoology, Google Meets, and Flipgrid to ensure teachers are proficient in using all platforms.

Being engaged members of their classes has allowed students to bring their ideas to life. To fortify safety measures, the District administration worked around the clock, along with Farmingdale High School Technology Department and Maintenance, to design and produce desk divider reinforcements. Students chipped in as well! Mr. Sterler’s Wood Materials Processing Classes and Mr. Bilello’s Vocational Carpentry Classes processed over 40,000 linear feet of PVC material needed to provide the reinforcements for over 8,000 desks in the school district as part of the “Shield Project.” The additions to desk dividers not only ensured the safety of both students and faculty but provided students with the chance to see their education meet the real-world application.

From inside Woodward Parkway Elementary School, our teachers continue to provide students with engaging learning experiences, both in person and virtually! The integration of Schoology and virtual tutorials of how to use the innovative learning platform have prepared our youngest students for this particular chapter of their academic journey. Teachers are committed to providing moments of educational and social-emotional support—both inside and outside the classroom. Additionally, morning meetings are being conducted for all students to cultivate a sense of community. Participating in this new morning ritual covers morning routines, what makes someone a hero. It recognizes the people in our lives that inspire us—a sense of normalcy is created for our remote students.

For more information about the Farmingdale Union Free School District, please visit the district’s website at https://www.farmingdaleschools.org and like our Facebook page: @FarmingdaleSchoolDistrict.