BCS Virtual Days Start on Wednesday

Oakley Elementary teachers and staff gather take-home materials for families.

By Tim Reaves
BCS Communications Department

(Photography by Tim Reaves and Benjamin Rickert.)

Starting tomorrow, BCS classes will take place online, following a herculean effort by teachers and staff across the district to organize and distribute needed instructional materials to our families.

As of Wednesday, March 18, students can reach their community schools online at VirtualDays.BuncombeSchools.org. This emergency online learning comes after the unprecedented closure of all North Carolina public schools for at least two weeks in response to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) threat.

Proving that planning pays off, BCS has been able to deliver online instruction thanks to our years-long investment in the BCS Technology Department’s 1:1 Digital Initiative, which has provided an instructional device (typically a laptop or iPad) to every child in the district. Up to this point, teachers have used the devices to enhance classroom learning. Now, with school buildings closed to students, the devices will allow us to continue educating children even in this difficult time.

BCS teachers, administrators, and staff have been working since Friday to prepare take home kits of learning materials to help implement Virtual Days. They spent Monday and Tuesday handing out devices and take-home bags at schools in a “drive-thru” fashion.

The BCS Technology Department also has expanded another helpful service for families – Homework Hotspots. The hotspots allow school-issued devices to connect to mobile networks at no cost to our families. If you do not have internet at home and you need a Homework Hotspot, please call your school for more information or fill out the online request form at Response.BuncombeSchools.org.

Response.BuncombeSchools.org is your resource for all announcements, information, and community services related to our school system and our community's comprehensive response to the coronavirus. Check back often for important updates.

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