Dear CDS Families,
We’ve had an exciting week of cultural celebrations, highlighted by the Bicentennial of Costa Rican Independence on Wednesday, where our staff and students honored Costa Rica through traditional songs, music, foods, dances, clothes, and history. Our MS and HS students, sponsored by our Spanish teachers, conducted actos cívicos, illustrating the unique and historical features of Costa Rica. Our EC students enjoyed tortilla-making lessons (and eating the delicious results!), riding in a traditional oxen-drawn cart, and dancing to the music and with the mascaradas. Our school always does these celebrations really well, with memorable experiences for our students, which contributes to their appreciation for and love of Costa Rica. I want to share a Shout Out of Thanks to our Spanish teachers in all our Houses for presenting these rich experiences to our students!
Covid+ Protocol
Since there have been a few questions about our Covid+ protocol and Virtual School (VS) given some recent student and parent cases in both the Primary and Secondary divisions, I want to share our process again. (This was communicated earlier in the August 19 Newsletter.) In the instance of a Covid positive case, the protocols will continue to require the student or staff member to be quarantined for the required period of time (usually 10 days). Yet we will not automatically close that child’s class or grade; instead, we will do contact tracing to determine potential exposure to others and only invoke quarantine if exposure warrants that result. (The same applies to a student or driver/monitor on the bus). In the case of a positive case by nexus (where a family member in the household, but not the student, is positive), the student will need to be separated at home from the positive relation and be monitored for symptoms. If the student doesn’t present with symptoms and the proper time of possible infection has passed, they will be able to attend school. These decisions will be made by me in consultation with our school nurse and the family involved. Siblings of a positive case student who are vaccinated do not have to quarantine and may attend school. Where there is a positive Covid case, families with children in the affected class or direct contacts in the grade will have the option to choose Virtual School for their child if they wish. Our goal remains the highest standard of safety for all, yet with the goal of minimal disruption to and consistency of on-campus learning, and with allowing the families to decide what’s right for them.
Virtual School (VS)
We wish to prioritize face-to-face on-campus learning, so would like to keep Virtual School (VS) to a minimum and only for exceptional circumstances (including those cases noted above about required quarantine or optional VS due to a positive case in the class or grade). The secondary (MS & HS) division will use an asynchronous “broadcast” or “posted” model of VS learning, where teachers will post assignments and activities on Google Classroom and follow up with students during scheduled Zoom calls. The primary (EC & ES) teachers will use a “mixed” model of VS learning, with some synchronous Zoom-based classes and some posted assignments and activities. Both VS models aim to maintain our students’ learning to the highest degree possible, as well as offer a personalized approach. Contact your House Principal (Jose Luis Menendez or Ariel Weissburg) if there’s a VS need for your child.
If I can be of any help or service to you or your children this year, to make their year the most awesome one ever, please write to me at cds_director@cds.ed.cr or call me at 2289 0919, ext. 2224.
Wishing you all a great weekend!
With Panther Pride,
Dr. Scott Adams, Director
