We always look forward to feedback from our parents and students.

I have been very impressed with how quickly and smoothly LFPS has transitioned. The teachers at LFPS have anyways provided excellent, effective, and engaging instruction whenever and however they interact with the students. This continues unabated and is only possible through the talent and dedication of the entire school. 

Equally impressive is how well the students have transitioned. It is clearly evident that the teachers had already instilled in the students the desire and ability to learn in any environment. It also reveals the respect and appreciation the students have for their teachers. It is not possible to speak too highly of LFPS’s faculty. My heartfelt thanks and continuing engagement to each of them.

This part you might or might not want to share:

I am reluctant to compare LFPS to other schools rather than appreciating LFPS for what it is on its own. However (and you had to know that was coming), the words concerning the current situation I most hear from parents with children at other schools are ‘ineffective’ and ‘irrelevant’. Such never entered my mind, and it had been difficult to not feel guilty about the incredible opportunity LFPS has created for my children.

-Brad Pyle

I hope all is going well and you and your loved ones are safe and healthy.  I first want to say thank you to all of the staff at lake forest for getting things ready so quickly for our children, this is a transition for all of us and it’s mind blowing how quickly you all sprung into action and made things happen for our little ones. I am forever grateful for that as it’s a source of normalcy and certainty in these uncertain times.

This are going really well,  I love the fact that Zion gets to see his class mates and miss Palmer he has the interaction with out the distraction, the breaks seem very reasonable and give him a moment to step away from the computer screen.

Has there been any thought into possibly condensing the week into four days or even a shorter day on Friday’s ? (Example- mon-thurs and Friday be a teacher planning day)   This would give the teachers some relief as I know they are doing so much to prepare to make sure our children have what they need as well as the.

I am looking to asses after another week or so myself after Zion and I really get into the rhythm of us both being home and am happy to share additional feedback at that tome if welcome.  thank you again for everything it means so much to us all.

-Danielle Artis

We appreciate everything the PK3 team is doing. Even though Isaiah has returned to preschool this week, he’s still asking to look at the Seesaw app and send in the activities. We’ll submit something, and he’ll say, “What did Ms. Dewey say? Did she like it?” It’s really adorable. I’ve also appreciated that some of the activities can be done on the IPad instead of being printed out. We don’t have a printer so that flexibility is appreciated (although I do realize the benefit of him actually holding a crayon, pencil, or whatever and not just getting adept at moving things on a screen).All that to say, thanks for the variety of activities on Seesaw. As a fellow teacher, I know it takes a lot to do these things and to do them without much notice, so a giant thank-you to all your teachers and to the administration staff that supports them!

-Erin Miller

Thanks for sending your email the kids are doing well on the distance learning we typically just let Hazel watch her classes and Bennett just as the videos that has teachers send over since we don’t like to do all of it in a row since we’re still trying to work. I think Miss Rodriguez is doing a great job! Miss Mauer looks to be doing a great job too but I like I said we haven’t been doing as much of Bennett’s class.

Keep up the good work!

Best,
Kara

Thank you to our Middle School teachers for stepping up to this new platform of Distance Learning.  The challenges of technology in the face of limited interaction must be difficult. The students seem to like it and are adjusting well.  Keep up the great work, keep them engaged and hopefully, we will all get back to a new “normal” soon.

Thanks
Andrea Niemann

I hope all is well with you and yours.  Distance learning is going well for us.  Mrs. McCarty is doing a fabulous job with all this.  Ms. Shadan is posting super cute story videos and I appreciate her getting on zoom each day.  Savannah has an opportunity to see her and her friends and I think that’s really important.  Mason is staying focused pretty well for the zoom calls and the amount of school work given is perfect I think.  It’s just enough to keep him engaged without losing focus and he’s having fun with it.  My only question is would be about the enrichment classes.  Are these being graded or are we doing them as a review/fun/just listening?

You guys are all doing an incredible job!

Thank you for everything❤️

Summer Port

First I would like to thank you and your staff for doing such an amazing job. The speed in which you developed and deployed LFPS’s distance learning system is to be commended! I am truly grateful that Presley is enrolled in your school. I know I already told you that in another email but it deserves to be said again.

I love the structure your system provides in having a morning meeting and classes scheduled throughout the morning/early afternoon. I am wondering if there is something that we, his parents, should be making sure he is doing, or doing with him, for the rest of the day. It seems like his schoolwork is completed as soon as he is done with the virtual meetings and little to no “homework” is given.

Right now, Presley has certain chores about the house which may take up about 15 minutes a day every day. We also have him continuing a regimen of studying Science and History for 15 minutes each and practicing his Clarinet for 20 minutes. Those are done daily M-F. 

We try to occupy him with other activities whenever possible. (baking, gardening, exercising, etc) However, sometimes it is difficult for us to do these things with him because we both have our own work to deal with as we are both working from home. 

The rest of his time is mostly spent socializing with his friends on Zoom (We realize the importance of that.) and watching TV. Fortunately he has found the joy of karaoke and spends a portion of his free time singing and rapping. LOL With all of this being the case, I am concerned with the amount of time he is spending staring at a screen. 

Is it normal for him not to have any “homework” when the class meting is done? Do you or any of his teachers have any suggestions on assignments or activities we could task him with? Lastly, I loved the idea of an online group for parents. Would you consider creating Facebook groups for LFPS parents to share ideas and stories of what works and does not work? 

We appreciate any advice or help you could give us with home schooling. As you know, we are new to this too.

Thank you for your attention and for all the hard work you and your staff have put in to ensure your students are continuing their education. We are open to having a Zoom meeting with you or any of his teachers if that would be preferred. 

Thanks again.
Swann and Stephanie

This is going very well. Mrs. Hurst is doing an amazing job. She is giving my son individual time when needed along with the full class. I feel like he’s getting everything he needs from her. I appreciate her efforts and applaud her for all she’s doing at this crazy time.

Daisy McHenry

Michelle,

Thank you for leading the charge to get the campus online in a quick and efficient manner! I know it was probably not an easy ship to turn, but it seems to have pivoted on a dime! Huge cheers to you – hope you feel good about it as well!

Now for my feedback – good bad and other! 🙂

– After our first week, it seems like the kiddos are finally getting the hang of it and learning “zoom manners” for the most part! haha (I mean this is Kindergarten we are talking about!)

– Mrs. Hurst has done a great job keeping the class engaged. Learning to mute and unmute when needed.

– Seesaw has been extremely user friendly and loving the different types of activities on there. 

– Overall, I would say one week in, I finally feel like we are in a groove of some kind.

– Huge props to Ms. Benner – her activities are SO much fun for the whole family! 

Jen Ulen

I can not thank everyone enough!  Lake Forest has done so much for the students and I know our family appreciates everything!

-Stephanie Dalvit

I think they are doing an amazing job.  The hard part is getting Matthew to actually doing his tasks.  I decided not to be so neurotic about sticking to the schedule and letting him do at his own pace.  Not sure how that will work.  It’s a better mood in our household, but we will see if he gets his work complete by the end of the week.   Thanks for checking in. 

Mary Boadway

Nick is really enjoying the zoom classes.  He likes that he can see and communicate with everyone.  Loading his schoolwork has been a challenge, but he is really enjoying school. We would like to see some encouragement with physical activity. We love to hear the interaction with the teachers and students.  They are super encouraging and supportive.  Nick has never participated in classroom discussions like he is doing right now.  His self-esteem has improved so much.  He does not complain about school anymore and he is always anxious to start his day!!

Thanks,
~Lisa Guiley

We cannot say enough good things about Mrs. Hurst. She has gone above and beyond to make us feel comfortable and make sure we are all understanding and on the same page. I feel like the luckiest parent to have her as our teacher in the regular setting but even more so now.
It’s been stressful for us all but distance learning has been easier to get a hold of with the help of Mrs. Hurst.
We look forward to getting back to normal but for now, we get excited to log on and learn at home. Also I really like seesaw.

Thank you ,
Marissa Davis

I first want to thank you for running such an awesome school.  You always go above and beyond to make sure all students, teachers, and parents are taken care of and connected especially in a time like now.  All of the e-mails you have sent out have helped me a lot.
Ms. Lallathin is one of the best teachers I’ve ever seen.  We are so grateful to have her these past 2 years.  She is so caring and loving towards her students and can still be strict when she needs to be.  She is always on top of any questions I have and when I was having a problem with Seesaw in the Enrichment tab during the first few days of distance learning, she went out of her way to communicate with other teachers to resolve the problem.  Abby loves her so much, and she’s never felt comfortable enough with any other teacher like she does with her to where she trusts her and is so happy and proud to have her as her teacher.
Thank you for taking the time to stay connected and for all of the work put into distance learning to keep the children educated and on a scheduled routine.

Thank you,
Ashley Lingo

I hope this email finds you and your family doing well.  The Sicklers are hanging in there….what a crazy time!!!!  The feedback for the online schooling: Sam misses the contact with his teacher, enrichment teachers and classmates. He feels sad it when his sessions end with Miss Palmer because he misses her and loves the face to face with her. Sam says he really likes the fact he is able to interact with his classmates during this time. He finds all the notifications on seesaw to be overwhelming at times…..pressure of the numbers showing what you have and don’t have to do …..he says Senorita has too many things on there and he does not understand what to do with her stuff.  He says miss Benners thing was too long and confusing.  I have not watched either….If I go in and watch them will it mess up Sam?

Sam really misses Miss Benner, Mrs. Johnston, Coach and Miss Schweiberger….I am not sure the video thing at his own leisure works for him so I need to figure that out.  He says he misses them explaining what to do??  I have been meaning to look at their stuff to really see what he is talking about.  Is it possible to do a zoom with them maybe once a week?

With that said…..Sam is driving the online school bus and being very independent about it and private about it…..I think it is his control thing….I am ready to pump the brakes if I need to.

All in all you and Lake Forrest are wonderful.  We all just miss each other and our routine.  I am so proud of all of you and your hard work to make sure our children get what they need and then some….It has been challenging to create a new routine……I hope Sam can keep up his good work….. he loves learning, but as you know this is a tough age ☺

I pray every day and I know you do too.  If there is anything I can do please let me know.

Thank you!!!!!!!

Geeya 

Hope you are doing well.  We really appreciate the videos and activities that the teachers have been uploading for the primary class.  Henry really enjoys them and it also gives us ideas of what activities we can do with him outside of what we think of or his toys.  Henry has a little hard time with the zoom meetings but I think it’s a little hard to focus since so many of us are on at one time but it still makes us feel good that he can see his teacher and friends.  As always we thank all of you for always doing your best to support us with our babies.  Take care and we look forward to seeing everyone once this finally calms down.

Thanks,
Stephanie Galindez

Hi Mrs. Purvis!

Hope you and your family are doing well during this time. Distance learning seems to be going well for the most part.  A few items have come up for me. I appreciate all the activities posted for enrichment, but it is a bit overwhelming. I feel it would be more beneficial and helpful as a parent for David to attend a zoom meeting with his enrichment teachers. I know many of the activities for enrichment only take a few moments to do but when there are multiple a day plus his academic classes I find we are spending most of the evening just trying to complete assignments so we start the next day fresh. My other concerns are mostly related to how we move forward. Are kids being graded for distant learning? I anticipate that school will not be returning to normal this academic year. So I ask what would the plan be for next year? Will kids progress to the next level? Specifically, where will that leave David? I know there is a lot going on and much is day by day, but I would like to know what the longer-term plan is.

I appreciate you taking the time to ask for questions and continuing to stay in touch with us!

Thank you!

Amber Poling

I would say generally, given the circumstances, its been great so far! Mrs Rodriguez has been excellent. Dalton LOVES Seesaw and his only complaint is he wants more Seesaw assignments.

Everyone’s situation is different and I think ours has provided more flexibility than other situations.

Mom and Dad working from home with Dad facing hours cutbacks due to COVID.

Getting everything critical on to a family shared calendar that everyone can easily view has been essential for us. Probably helps Dad is a project manager 🙂

To summarize, some points to consider improvement:

Centralize all key information so parents are not hunting through emails. Possibly to the school website, SharePoint, etc. Always link back to the central location in key emails and ensure message alignment across site and email messaging.

More Seesaw assignments : )

Thanks for everything you do!
The Blakelys

Our family is happy with the distance learning system that school has put together. Sabina has acclimated to it and is enjoying it. We are grateful for the time, effort and ideas that the teachers have invested in this program.

We hope this program continues to the end of the school year. We’re concerned that the government in its wisdom might decide to resume school attendance before then. If that becomes the case, out of an abundance of caution we wouldn’t want Sabina to return. Would it be possible to continue offering distance learning in such a case? Please let us know your thoughts regarding this potential situation.

Warm regards,

Maryam & Garth

Christopher is loving his distance learning experience! He looks forward to the routine. Of course he misses really seeing and being with teachers and friends. We have noticed the days he has flvs he seems more anxious and a bit grumpy. We think it’s due to too much time on the computer those days so we are trying to figure out how to adjust that. Everyone has been great with continuing to meet his accommodations.

Thanks for asking and stay safe and healthy!

Angela and Troy

We think this is going very well for us.  Lorelai is starting to act out as I think she misses her normal routine and rejects the classes but once we are on she clearly enjoys seeing everyone and loves when she is called on.  Our teachers are doing a great job and we appreciate you all very much! 

Thank you,
Julia Willis (Michler-Willis)

First and foremost, Amy and I want to thank you and the ENTIRE Lake Forrest staff.  We have paid attention to how you all have responded and we are certain we will never know the extent and depths of your work.  We honestly couldn’t be happier with what each and every one of you have done, and we are forever in your debt.  My words are woefully short of mine and Amy’s gratitude.  As you meet with staff and have the opportunity, please take the time to thank them personally on our behalf.  Your response was absolutely remarkable.  In simple words……thank you.  We appreciate you.

That being said, as for feedback as to what is working:

Zoom meetings-  The zoom meetings I feel are absolutely wonderful; once the children learned how to calm down and get used to the technology, it seems to be a very good vehicle for online/distance learning.  What seems to be problematic, is the amount of times a day that a connection needs to be made.  I imagine the breaks are there by necessity, but if there were a way to stay connected and go through the different subjects continuously. I believe it would be better.  Even if the break of instruction was just filled with social talking, or show and tell, or whatever, it seems that it would shape a more school-type day.  Just my opinion.

Seesaw-  I really like the seesaw platform.  Zach seems to be able to follow the instructions and complete the assignments on his own.  As with any new program, there is still learning of some of the navigation, but that’s only frustration with the novelty, not the program itself.  I understand some of the enrichment exercises are not graded and have no due date, but some due dates or some form of structure when assignments should be done would be helpful.

Mrs. Redding- She seems to have been born for this type of learning.  🙂  The very first day on Zoom, I saw her face and excitement at seeing her class on Zoom.  She looked very, very happy.  I have no other feedback, other than she’s doing great!

Overall, we feel that distance learning is going well; especially given how quickly it had to be adapted.

If it wasn’t clear already, we appreciate everything you’ve done.  🙂

Thank you,
Dale and Amy Robertson