Distance learning begins

Earliest district will reopen to students is April 13

Lower Moreland Township School District instituted its distance learning plan after Gov. Tom Wolf’s extended his school closure order to April 6. The earliest LMTSD will reopen is April 13 since spring break is scheduled for April 6-10.

The township Board of Commissioners met March 20 to extend the seven-day Disaster Emergency Declaration. The school board will reconvene April 1 with a virtual meeting.

Montgomery County reported five new cases of COVID-19 in Lower Moreland between March 20 and 26, bringing Lower Moreland’s total to nine positive cases.

The district changed its lunch distribution schedule from daily to biweekly starting March 23.

“Lunch distribution will take place on Mondays and Thursdays, with more than one meal (three meals on Mondays and two on Thursdays) provided at each pickup so that families need only visit Murray Ave. twice per week,” Superintendent Scott Davidheiser wrote in a letter to families.

For the weeks of March 16-20 and March 23-27, teachers provided students with voluntary online enrichment opportunities through the school’s online resources. The district will begin required distance learning today. Parents will be asked to report student attendance, and teachers will provide students with work equivalent to at least a half-day of instruction through Class Dojo (K-2) and Google Classroom (3-12).

Middle and high school already have access to school-provided Chromebooks through the district’s One2One program. To ensure that Pine Road Elementary School (K-5) students also have access to a device for online learning, administrators distributed Chromebooks and iPads to elementary school families on March 23.