Gunnison Watershed School District’s Blended Learning University is a resource for parents and guardians of K-12 students. This resource was built to support parents and guardians as they support the educational success and growth of their student(s). Below you will find a multitude of resources organized by category. This resource was designed to utilize as you need throughout the school year.
What is Blended Learning?
Blended learning combines intentionally coordinated online and offline experiences that include some element of student agency in regard to time, place, path and/or pace. Blended learning empowers students to be actively engaged in learning through collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and creativity.
Getting to Know Your Child's Chromebook
How do K-3 students sign into their Chromebooks?
1) open the Chromebook
2) there will be a message to sign into your Chromebook
3) click next (bottom right)
4) the ClassLink sign-in camera will appear
5) place quick card in front of the camera (it detects quickly!)
6) an all set page will pop up, click "get started"
7) ClassLink will auto-launch
How do 4th-12th graders log into their Chromebooks?
1) open the Chromebook
2) a sign-in window will appear
3) log-in with gwsds.net account and password (titan lunch# if in CB, gunni lunch # if in Gunnison)
4) ClassLink should auto launch
District Supported Digital Applications
Gunnison Watershed School District works hard to ensure that we are using the highest quality and safest applications with our K-12 students. Using high quality digital applications that are free of third-party advertisements and that protect the personal identifiable information of our students is a priority. Click here to view district supported digital applications, and/or click on the image below to view the GWSD Public Portal of approved digital applications.
ClassLink
ClassLink is the district Single Sign-On (SSO) that is used by students and staff to access digital curriculum/resource sites that are SSO capable. This eliminates the need for a user to remember multiple usernames and passwords. ClassLink can be found at myclasslink.com/gwsd (sign in with Google).
Click here to watch the webinar ClassLink for Home: How Students Can Use ClassLink Launchpad (password is ClassLinkAcademyStudents).
Device Cleaning Guidelines
Technical Support
Need technical support for your child’s device? Start with a hard reset of the device by following the steps below:
If support is still needed, please contact your child’s teacher librarian:
GCS and Lake: Peg High/Rain Bodine - gcslibrary@gunnisonschools.net
GHS: Lisa Danos - ldanos@gunnisonschools.net
CBCS: Erica Young/Amy Barnes - eyoung@gunnisonschools.net, abarnes@gunnisonschools.net
Google Classroom Navigation
K-12 classes are organized in Google Classroom. Google Classroom is a Learning Management System (LMS) that allows teachers to communicate to students, and allows students to view content, assignments, turn in work and participate in discussions with their peers.
Student Data Privacy
PowerSchool
PowerSchool is our district SIS (School Information System). This platform stores student data and is where 6th-12th grade students and parents/guardians can access their grades.
Policies & User Agreements
Screen Time
The American Academy of Pediatrics encourages healthy media habits through the creation of a personalized Family Media Use Plan. A plan can include: Screen Free Zones, Screen Free Times, Device Curfews, Safety expectations, and more. Here are 3 templates to help get you started:
Common Sense Media also provides Family Media Agreement and Device Contracts which highlight a healthy media diet:
- What kids do.
- How much time they spend doing it.
- Age appropriate content choices.
Printable Family Media Agreement from Common Sense Media
Finally, the Family Online Safety Institute provides a Family Online Safety Agreement that families can print and review together.
Credit: JeffCo Public Schools
Digital Citizenship
All students need digital citizenship skills to participate fully in their communities and make smart choices online and in life.
With a K-12 approach, it will help students use technology responsibly to learn, create, and participate.
Core Topics of Digital Citizenship
- Media Balance & Well-Being
- Privacy & Security
- Digital Footprint & Identity
- Relationships & Communication
- Cyberbullying, Digital Drama, & Hate Speech
- News & Media Literacy
GoGuardian
To help keep your child safer and more scholarly online, Gunnison Watershed School District has adopted online services provided by GoGuardian.
It may be helpful to know that over 10,000 other schools use GoGuardian to protect 5.5 million students across the world, and the Global Educator Institute has endorsed the GoGuardian Teacher product.
How are we using GoGuardian?
We have chosen GoGuardian Admin and GoGuardian Teacher services to:
- Help protect students against harmful and inappropriate online material
- Help students stay “scholarly” and more focused when learning online
- Help assess students’ progress towards class assignments
- Facilitating communication between teachers and students during class time
When and how does GoGuardian operate?
GoGuardian’s web-based services operate on our school’s managed G Suite for Education Chrome accounts (i.e. when a student is logged into Chrome or a Chromebook with his/her school email address).
GOGUARDIAN ADMIN SETTINGS: Gunnison Watershed School District helps protect your child while a GWSD issued device is being used and/or a student is logged into Google Chrome with their @gwsds.net account. Content filtering occurs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Filter refers to GoGuardian features that interact with or block web content that are not related to school (i.e. gaming, streaming). Monitor refers to GoGuardian features that record students' web activity and occurs only during school hours (8:00AM-4:00PM, Monday-Friday). When GoGuardian icons are present on the Google extensions bar, content is being filtered (all day) and/or student browsing is being monitored (school hours and days).
GOGUARDIAN TEACHER SETTINGS: Gunnison Watershed School District enables teachers to use GoGuardian Teacher with students in their classes only during school hours from 8:00AM-4:00PM Monday-Friday. GoGuardian Teacher allows teachers to monitor student browsing, push out URLs, send announcements, lock screens, limit the number of tabs, and text chat with questions during their in-class time in order to support students in using their time efficiently and staying on task.
What are the school’s responsibilities?
Gunnison Watershed School District selected GoGuardian services to help our students stay safer and more scholarly online. We will work with students during class time to help teach them digital responsibility and safety. Additionally, we will train teachers about how to operate GoGuardian and about our policies and procedures to help protect student privacy.
What are my parental/guardian and child’s responsibilities?
We ask that students uses their school-managed Google accounts and school-managed devices for educational purposes within the boundaries of Gunnison Watershed School District’s Student Use of the Internet and Electronic Communications and the Annual Acceptable Use Agreement.
During the off-campus hours of 4:01 PM to 7:59AM, GoGuardian filtering is still activated for all web browsing on district-issued devices.
When a student is off campus, parents are responsible for supervising internet access and usage. We encourage you to discuss rules for appropriate internet usage with your child, and to reinforce lessons of digital citizenship and safety with him or her. We also highly encourage you to report any potential cyberbullying or other sensitive issues to us.
How does GoGuardian help protect my child’s privacy?
To help your child remain scholarly and safe online, GoGuardian collects certain personally identifiable information about your child. GoGuardian has consulted with privacy experts, participates in privacy organizations, is a proud signatory of the Student Privacy Pledge, and has been awarded certifications by iKeepSafe for complying with both the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act and California student privacy laws. For more detailed information about GoGuardian, you may visit GoGuardian’s website, Trust & Privacy Center, and GoGuardian’s Product Privacy Policy.
Blended Learning University prepared by Katie Gallagher
Innovative Learning Specialist
Gunnison Watershed School District
kgallagher@gunnisonschools.net