Scotty Updates
A Newsletter from Scotland Elementary School
Scotty Updates
Scotty Updates has been created to provide families and staff with information regarding upcoming events, happenings, and programs at Scotland Elementary School. Please take time each Monday to review our newsletter.
A Message from Jill & Tim
Dear Scotland Families and Staff,
Hoping you had a great weekend! We set the clocks ahead this weekend, giving us one more hour of sunshine!
Schedule Changes:
Our tentative last day of school for students is now Friday, June 16th. This may change due to any weather cancellations that may occur. Just a reminder to families that our elementary schools will have early dismissal days for conferences on Tuesday, April 4th and Thursday April 6th. There will be no school Friday April 7th-Friday April 14th for Spring Recess.
Free Lunch Program:
As shared by Jill Browne, pursuant to House Bill (HB) 6671, an additional $60 million of federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds was allocated to the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE) for the Free School Meals for Children grant. What this means for Ridgefield families with students in grades K-8 was that beginning March 1, 2023, the additional funding will allow us to offer lunches at no cost to students for the remainder of school year (SY) 2022-23.
Should you have any questions about this program or funding, please contact Jill M. Browne, Director of Finance at jbrowne@ridgefieldps.net.
Kindergarten Registration:
Kindergarten Registration is underway! If you have a child turning 5 before January 1, 2024 please contact the main office at (203) 894-5825. Please note that kindergarten enrollment numbers have an impact on the number of sections of kindergarten, and the overall staffing within Scotland. Information has been shared with incoming families. If you have a child entering kindergarten in August, and have not received information about kindergarten registration, please reach out to Mrs. Lupinaccci at llupinacci@ridgefieldps.net.
Have a great week!
Kind regards,
Jill & Tim
Reminders:
- If you need to make a change to your child's dismissal after the daily cutoff time of 12pm, you will need to send an email to both canderson@ridgefieldps.net and llupinacci@ridgefieldps.net in order for us to make that change. We really appreciate your help with this!
Cultural Night - This Thurdsay!!
Events & Happenings 📆
Monday, March 13th:
Tuesday, March 14th:
Wednesday, March 15th:
Thursday, March 16th:
- C Day
- Scotland Cultural Night - 6-8pm
Friday, March 17th:
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Coming Soon:
Friday, March 31st:
- Parent portal opens for report cards
Tuesday, April 4th:
- Early release for students (11:40am)
- Conferences for teachers
- Evening conferences available
Thursday, April 6th:
- Early release for students (11:40am)
- Conferences for teachers
Friday, April 7th - Friday, April 14th:
Snaps Around Scotland 📸
March is Womens History Month!
Ms. President Representatives from Scotland!!
Several of our Scotland students, Olive Moffatt, Brianna Gmelin and Wynn Mack are participating in the Ms. President program this year. Learn more about Ms. President here. These students are learning about the local, state and federal levels of government, while exploring their own potential to lead. Their campaign is focused on increasing awareness about composting, and they are proposing implementing a composting program at the schools to cut down on food waste.
Thursday, March 9th, Ms. President sponsored a field trip to Hartford to tour the Capitol, including the Legislative Office Building, Supreme Court, and League of Women Voters tours. They heard from speakers such as the Secretary of State, Stephanie Thomas and others. The Ms. President election is next Sunday, March 19 at 2pm at the Ridgefield Playhouse. It’s free and you can register below. Best of luck to our Scotland girls!!
Ms. President US Campaign and Election RSVP (google.com)
Scotts Ridge Middle School Presents...
Essentials' Schedule - January 24th - End of year
Scotties Celebrate Winter!
The PTA needs your help decorating our "Scotties Celebrate" board for winter. Please click the link below to send in pictures and comments showcasing the different holidays and activities your family does in winter. We'll be including a section for Black History Month and Women's History Month which both fall in winter. Suggestions for ways to honor these diversity months are included on our form. Don't have pictures for all three questions? Don't worry, send in what you have now and send more throughout the winter.
SDM Reminder
In an effort to ensure that all students are safe and know how they are getting home, all dismissal changes must be put into School Dismissal Manager no later than 12pm daily. Our office is experiencing a great deal of calls changing the dismissal plans for students at the end of the day. It is challenging to navigate these changes, ensuring that staff are aware and students know how they are getting home so close to dismissal. If you need to make a change to your child's dismissal after the daily cutoff time of 12pm, you will need to send an email to canderson@ridgefieldps.net and llupinacci@ridgefieldps.net in order for us to make that change. We really appreciate your help with this!
Scotties Helping Scotties!
Within the Scotland community, affording supplies, field trips, yearbooks, enrichment, and activities is never something a student should miss because of financials!
The PTA sets funds aside to help families in our community. We all experience financial challenges, from layoffs to life's moments and everything in between.
If you are experiencing any type of financial challenge, please email the principal about your needs. Your request is FULLY ANONYMOUS to everyone except our principal.
Do not be bashful; our community is always here to help! Please reach out to Jill with any needs you may have!
Information to keep handy...
School Lunch 🥪
Ridgefield Public Schools announced that they have contracted with Aramark to be the District’s new food service provider. Aramark’s commitment to excellence, affordability, the environment, and diversity were all important in this decision.
The Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE) advised that federal funds have been allocated for the Free School Meals for Children grant.
- Funding will support free lunches for all students in grades K-8 until funds are depleted.
- Snacks and additional items will be available through The Lunch Time POS system that allows students to purchase their lunch by entering a 5-digit code at the cash register. These items can be prepaid online at School Payment Portal Powered By LunchTime Software and at the school kitchen. Please read the letter here.
School Lunch will be available from the first day of school.
The school lunch menu is available online on the RPS website; click District Offices and click on Food Service, as well as below.
There will be no change in the payment system; all school lunch balances will roll over.
Questions in regard to Lunch Time POS can be directed to Eric Nickelson, RPS Food Service Director at 203-894-5550 x1127 or enickelson@ridgefieldps.net
Please find the lunch menu below.
Library Volunteers!
Hello and welcome to a New Year in the SES Library! We are excited to once again have volunteers during Library Classes. The SES library is looking for volunteers to help with library book check out, reshelving returned books and hands-on activities. If you have time in your busy day to volunteer, the SES library would appreciate your help!
No long-term commitment necessary and it is not hard to do. If you have some time during the day and would like to be a part of the fun, here's how it works in 3 easy steps:
1) Click the link below to see our Sign-Ups by grade on SignUp.com
Kindergarten:https://signup.com/go/RXgASEF
First Grade:https://signup.com/go/sdfnzCz
Second Grade:https://signup.com/go/oAwbgON
Third Grade:https://signup.com/go/DJogDsp
Fourth Grade: https://signup.com/go/mcPzzKd
Fifth Grade: https://signup.com/go/XzBEjrg
2) Review the options listed and choose the spot(s) you would like. Please be considerate of other families and choose a few spots to begin with. Once everyone has had a chance to sign up, you can go back and volunteer for any open spots. If you do not see your class listed, it means it already has a volunteer.
3.) Fill out the Visitor Form to let us know the time and day you are coming to Volunteer.
The link is: https://bit.ly/3qbV1is
Sign up! It's Easy - you will NOT need to register an account or keep a password on SignUp. Use the links here or find them on the SES PTA WEBSITE
Please contact Amy Tomasco at sesnotes1@gmail.com with any questions.
It's not scary to help out in the LIBRARY!
⚽️ 🎼 Essentials 🎨 📚
- Each class will have one 45 minute essential per day (art, library, music, or PE)
- We will continue to follow the six day A-F day schedule
- Please find the essentials rotation below
Arrival & Dismissal đźš—
We will follow a similar drop off / pick up procedure that we did last year.
Arrival
- Drop off begins at 8:30am. Please do not drop off your child prior to 8:30am as there will be no supervision at this time.
Dismissal
- Pick up will begin at 3:25pm.
- Each day, please have your child(ren)’s first and last name displayed on your passenger visor, and have it remain visible until your child is in the car. This needs to be bold and large enough to be visible at a distance. This is a very important step to ensure we have your child ready when you arrive.
- For the safety of both students and staff, proceed carefully and slowly through the lot.
- Please have your child exit/enter the vehicle when your gear is in the park position and is one of the cars at the front of the line designated for drop off.
- Students must exit the vehicle on the passenger side (building side) of the vehicle. Multiple children must exit on the passenger side. It is dangerous to exit/enter on the driver's side of the vehicle!
- Students need to have all of their items ready in hand and will then exit the car immediately.
- Parents, please stay in your vehicle at all times so that the process will prevent backups on Barlow Mountain Road.
- If you miss the drop off time (after 8:45 a.m.), please park in the front lot and walk your child across the designated crosswalk to the main entrance of the building. If you arrive after the drop off window and must park in the parking lot, we ask that you kindly use the crosswalk.
Chromebooks đź’»
Chromebooks K-5:- For information on this year's Chromebook distribution and policies click here to watch a short video
- If you have further questions or concerns email: helpdesk@ridgefieldps.net
School Dismissal Manager
We will continue to use School Dismissal Manager this year at Scotland. Please click below for information regarding this system. This system will be available to families in late August. A welcome letter will be emailed to families when the system is available. If you have any additional questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to us!
