Welcome to the 2020-2021 school year! We are so excited to start the year and have been hard at work preparing for a strong virtual learning experience for our students. Below, you will find a checklist of items to complete before the first day of school, along with important information relating to curriculum, nutrition, technology, and more. 

Checklist

• All Alief ISD parents must complete the required Student Residency Questionnaire (SRQ). Please complete the questionnaire for each Alief ISD student (www.aliefisd.net/srq)
• Complete the application for free/reduced meals in order to pick up curbside meals (fill out the paper application provided by your campus or visit www.aliefisd.net/mealapply for the online application).
• Set up your child’s device and/or Internet hotspot (www.aliefisd.net/setup)
• Log into Schoology and Home Access Center to ensure you and your student can access course materials, grades and attendance information. 
• Visit the Alief Learns at Home webpage for additional resources to help prepare your student for August 6.

Important Information

• Schedules for virtual instruction will be provided by your student’s teachers. Students should plan to log into Schoology the morning of August 6 a few minutes before the start of their first virtual class.  For school hours, please visit www.aliefisd.net/hours. 
• Curbside meal pick-up will take place from 5-7 p.m. Mondays through Fridays (except for district holidays) at all elementary, middle, and intermediate schools, and at Elsik and Taylor High Schools. Per federal regulations, elementary, intermediate and middle school families must pick up meals for their children at the campus where each child is enrolled. High school students can pick up their meals at either Elsik or Taylor. Meals are intended to be consumed the following day. For more meal pick-up information, including the latest updates, please visit www.aliefisd.net/curbside. 
• Virtual attendance will be documented in multiple ways, including assignments completed, time logged in, and student-teacher interactions. In virtual learning, students will have until 11:59 p.m. to show engagement in any given class for that day. After 11:59 p.m., students can submit late work to be incorporated into their grade, but that work would not count for attendance credit for the date it was due.

If you have questions about…

• Learning: Contact your child’s teacher through Schoology or email, or call your child's school. Email search tool: www.aliefisd.net/email 
• Technology: Call your child's school.
• Meals: Call your child's school.
  
  
  

The commitment of Alief ISD's families to the education of their child(ren) and youth is exceptional and appreciated. Texas’ compulsory school attendance law (TEC §25.085) compels parents and guardians to have their children attend school each day of their instructional program.  Alief ISD’s parents and guardians understand this responsibility, and their support of regular attendance is appreciated.

When lessons are scheduled to be delivered virtually, attendance is still expected.  Student attendance can be tracked based on student participation in online assignments and activities.

Alief ISD appreciates all of the guidance provided by families as they support their student's meaningful engagement in learning through virtual means.  The tips and tools offered here identify specific actions that can be taken in support of continuous learning outside the four walls of a classroom.

It is important to identify an at-home learning space. Ideally, this space should have:

• A computer, iPad, Chromebook or other device
• Good lighting
• Ready access to learning materials and tools

A dedicated learning space for distance learning should ideally be located in a shared area of your home such as at the kitchen table, a large kitchen counter, or a desk in a living room or family room.  When your student's learning space is separate from their bedroom and distanced from the television, it sets the expectation and tone that the space is for work and not play. Additionally, an online learning space in a shared area allows parents and guardians to readily support learning while also monitoring online activity.

Meaningful distance learning engagement will not require a big shift in the ways teachers share student progress or in the ways parents and guardians can check on their child's progress. Grades will continue to be posted in the Home Access Center.

When you need help logging into a district resource, please contact the following:

• BrainPop
• Edgenuity
• Ed Your Friend in Learning 
• EduSMART
• GO Math!
• HMH Algebra I online textbook
• HMH Personal Math Trainer
• i-Ready Support - i-readysupport@cainc.com, 800-225-0248, Mon-Fri 7:00 am - 9:00 pm EST
• IStation Support - support@Istation.com, 1-866-883-7323
• Jason Learning - scroll down to the bottom for contact information
• Khan Academy
• McGraw Hill
• National Geographic online - scroll down and click on the email customer service link
• Pearson Online textbook
• Read180 - 1-877-234-7323
• SchoolCity Support 
• Schoology Support
• STEMScopes - stemscopes@acceleratelearning.com, 800.531.0864
• If your student needs accommodations, please follow this link which will take you to a page that holds a form to complete for requesting help: Requesting Help