Hawk Weekly
January 24th-28th
Havel Elementary
Our mission is to educate students, promote life long learning and encourage students to become productive citizens within a positive and safe learning environment.
Email: kristina.tepper@uticak12.org
Website: havel.uticak12.org
Location: 41855 Schoenherr Road, Sterling Heights, MI, USA
Phone: 586 7975200
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HavelElementary/
Dates To Know
January-
18th-31st- Classroom NWEA Testing Window (teachers will communicate class testing schedule)
27th- 2nd Quarter Conferences- Teacher Invite
February-
9th- Severe Weather Drill
11th- 1/2 way through the 3rd quarter
21st-25th- No School- Mid-Winter Break
Sofia and Alyssa--Artists of the Month :
Social Studies Update
Kindergarten- We talked about Dr. King and how he had hope for a kind world and made connections for us to be kind to everyone. We also talked about how we wish for all people to be happy and healthy!
1st Grade- First grade learned about Martin Luther King Jr. with the help of our Scholastic News Magazine. Students learned about how MLK wanted everyone to be treated fairly and with respect. We learned about the word justice and what that means. Students wrote about what they can do to make the world a better place.
2nd Grade- We began a unit of study on Martin Luther King for this week to study his life.
3rd Grade- We did a web quest to learn about Martin Luther King, talked about what it was like to be him (how he felt, what he saw, etc..), and shared out if we could tell Dr. King one thing, what that one thing would be.
4th Grade- 4th grade student teacher, Ms. Lasater, led a powerful lesson honoring Martin Luther King, Jr. Students recorded observations of different-colored eggs to illustrate that although we may be different on the outside, we are the same on the inside.
5th Grade- Our students watched Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s I have a Dream speech and a video about his life. The students are working on their very own "I Have a Dream!" Speech. They are choosing a topic that is important to them (pollution, environment, endangered animals, world hunger, and clean drinking water). They will be turning their passion for their topic into a speech. One speech could be the beginning of a change.
6th Grade- Students studied Dr. King, and talked about being a positive change, identified meaningful quotes about change, and reflected on how to be the change. Look for pictures in next weeks Hawk Weekly.
Change In Macomb County Quarantine Guidelines
Dear UCS Community,
Since the beginning of the pandemic, Utica Community Schools has worked closely with the Macomb County Health Department (MCHD) and its expert guidance in the development of health and safety protocols. This week, the MCHD has revised its guidance for how schools should approach the isolation and quarantine of students and staff for in-school exposure. The most important pieces have remained the same:
- Keep those who are sick home
- Staff/families must report positive COVID-19 cases and isolation/quarantine remains at five days
- The district will notify families of positive cases in school buildings
- Cases will continue to be reported on the district’s COVID-19 Dashboard
PROTOCOL CHANGE
The Macomb County Health Department has adjusted its contact tracing and school-based case notification from individual to entire classroom. No longer will individuals be identified as close contacts. Instead, the entire class where a positive case was reported will be notified of the potential exposure.
- All students and staff in the impacted classroom should monitor for symptoms.
- Those who have or develop symptoms should isolate/quarantine and test for COVID-19.
- Others may quarantine individually but are not required to unless symptoms develop.
These changes follow CDC guidance and will support our commitment to ensure healthy students who do not have symptoms remain in school. They will also help with staffing issues and the significant amount of resources being spent in schools on individual contact tracing. The continued daily contact tracing has moved the focus of our staff from other critical work, including supporting students’ social/emotional needs, school safety measures, staff development and educational leadership of our schools. We need our education professionals focused on the education and well-being of our students and staff.
The countywide protocol changes will become effective on Friday, January 21. Staff and students currently quarantined due to in-school exposure or are on day 6 or later of a COVID-19 illness and have significantly improved symptoms, can return to school on Monday, January 24. The MCHD website reflects the new protocols.
Your partnership remains critical. Our communities should continue to self-screen every morning and students that do not feel well should remain at home. In addition, I encourage you to take advantage of a federal program that provides up to four free COVID-19 testing kits to families.
Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,Robert S. Monroe
Havel Mask Requirement Reminder
A reminder that our Havel Mask Requirement will continue through next Wednesday, January 26th and is scheduled to lift on Thursday, January 27th. We will continue to monitor case input and consult with the health department as we move forward. Despite the scheduled lifting of that mandate, we continue to implore families and students to follow the Macomb County Health Department guidance and mitigation strategies that we’ve shared over the last weeks and months including staying home when sick and the benefits of masking. A reminder that our mask mandate is still in effect through Wednesday, January 26th,
Virtual Academy News
2022 Kindergarten Open House
UCS Wellness Podcast
The UCS Wellness team is happy to announce the first episode of our podcast series. The team worked with community members to create a podcast regarding different physical, mental and social health areas for UCS staff, students and families. These podcasts are available on the UCS Wellness page: UCS Wellness - Utica Community Schools (uticak12.org)
This episode of the UCS Wellness Podcast explores the different levels of grief and how we can cope as well as what to look for to help identify grief in children. We called on SandCastles Grief Support Program, a free, local community based program to help us with the topic of grief. This episode features Malow Junior High School counselor, April Raupp, speaking with SandCastles program supervisor, Michele Kreft, LMSW.
Check Out Information From Our Parent Group!
Time: Jan 27, 2022 07:00 PM America/Detroit
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/78889726577?pwd=97XSpym3s7YtMHPfc3fmdlvm6KQ2GG.1
Meeting ID: 788 8972 6577
Passcode: s7ENjZ
Havel Elementary Is Hiring!
Ever thought of joining the team at Havel?
Our school has a variety of positions now open for parents who may be interested in working here with a family-friendly calendar. It is an opportunity for you to be even more involved in your child’s school and have a direct impact on the students in this community.
Positions we have available at our school include:
Daily Classroom Substitute Teachers
Daily Health Aide
Special Education Para Professionals
Lunch Supervisors
Openings across the district for positions that provide an important service to Havel include:
Food Services
Transportation
Child Care
Skilled Trades
We hope you will take advantage of this opportunity. If interested, the district will be hosting a job fair on Wednesday, November 10 from 6:30-7:30 p.m. at the Community Education Building at Walsh, 38901 Dodge Park Road (at 17 Mile Road), Sterling Heights, MI 48312.
More information is available at: https://uticak12.org/ucsjobs
Birthday Celebration Reminder
All teachers and staff at Havel support and encourage the recognition of a child’s birthday during the school day. It is an annual milestone in every child’s life that should be celebrated! While there are many wonderful and creative ways to celebrate a child’s birthday in school, birthday celebrations at Havel will not include food treats or items delivered to the school. As adults, we will certainly acknowledge children who are celebrating a birthday in the same way as usual (for example: a crown, a sticker, a visit to the Principal). Some possibilities for recognizing the day in a variety of special ways that do not include food treats include:
· Class sings “Happy Birthday”
· Happy Birthday Recess gift to class from child
· Morning “Happy Birthday” PA announcement
· Parent makes a donation of book to class library/read to class
· Student reads favorite book to class
Your child’s teacher will have more information on how birthdays will be celebrated in the classroom. As educators, caregivers and loved ones we all want the best for our students. Thank you for joining us in giving students healthy opportunities to celebrate important events and achievements.
Attendance Policy
Your child will be excused from class for illness, bereavement, recognized religious holidays and medical or dental treatment that cannot be scheduled after school or on weekends.
Your child is responsible for makeup work.
Homework requests may be made for an absence of two or more days in the case of both excused and pre-excused absences.
Homework requests require 24 hours to process.
VACATION POLICY
Absence for family travel during scheduled school days is discouraged.
However, should family travel be necessary, parents must submit a written request to the teacher for a pre-excused absence at least one week in advance.
Arrangements to complete classroom assignments can be made with the teacher.
You can arrange for home study through the school principal should your child be absent from school for an extended period due to physical disability or illness.
LATE ARRIVAL
If a student arrives late to school, the parent must accompany the student into the office, and the student must be signed in before he or she can go to class.
Truancy officials will be contacted in the event of a student having excessive tardies or absences.