Friday Update

Hello Foster’s Finest,

What a great week we have had! A special shout out to the PTO for three wonderful events at school this week: we had our annual Harvest Lunch, as well as two fantastic enrichment programs: one for our third graders, the other for our kindergarten students. These programs were a big hit according to the staff and the students. I must say, the garlic bread was a HUGE hit for our students, and the kale chips and potatoes were delicious as well. Thank you so much to all of the parents who were involved in making this happen. As I sit here typing we have more parents here working on the Holly Fair. We are truly lucky to have such a supportive community.

Our first two recess out in the front of the school have been a big success. The students seemed to enjoy the new venue for recess. They have been following directions and being safe while they play. Please give them a lot of praise for being so attentive and following directions.

Our art teacher, Mrs. McKeon, wanted to share a big milestone with you. Our Foster School Art Gallery, hosted on Artsonia, just passed 60,000 visitors on Thursday, December 1st. You can see all the student art here: https://www.artsonia.com/schools/school.asp?id=104097. Mrs. McKeon has put in many hours of work to make this gallery happen. She deserves a big thank you for her efforts.

Families who have incoming kindergarten students next September should mark their calendars: on January 11, 2023 at 6:30 PM at Town Hall, there will be a forum about the kindergarten registration process. This will be a great event designed to inform you about the events coming from registration through screening and orientation.

I am hosting another coffee with the principal, next Friday, December 16 at 9:00 AM. Please sign-up here so I have a count of how many people are planning to attend.

Wishing you all wonderful weekend!

Mr. Scheufele

From the Nurse’s Office: We are seeing an increased number of cases of influenza (the flu) and strep throat at Foster School in the past several weeks. This is a reminder to please keep your children home if they are sick. It is recommended that they see their healthcare providers if they have a fever, sore throat, or a persistent cough. If strep throat is diagnosed, your child must be on antibiotics for 24 hours, and be fever free without fever reducing medication for 24 hours, before they can return to school. Those with the flu are contagious for 3-4 days from when they begin to feel sick and should stay home for this period of time, even if their fever has subsided. In addition, Covid is still around, so please test your children if they are sick—it is the best tool we have for stopping the spread of Covid. Please reach out with any questions or concerns. Hvigneau@ hinghamschools.org

Care Solace

We are committed to the well-being of our students, staff, and families to create a safe and healthy learning environment. In support of our ongoing commitment, we partnered with Care Solace to provide an additional layer of care for our community.

Care Solace helps individuals find mental health care providers and substance use treatment centers. Their Care Companion™ team is available 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, and 365 days per year to quickly connect you to carefully verified providers in your community.

Students, staff, and families may access Care Solace services in two ways:

• Call (888) 515-0595 at any time. Support is available in 200+ languages. A dedicated Care Companion™ will help you every step of the way to research options, secure appointments, and follow up to make sure it is a good fit.
• For an anonymous search, answer a few questions to get matched with an extensive list of care providers at www.caresolace.com/hinghamschools.

Care Solace is now available for use at no cost to you. They will connect you with providers accepting all medical insurances including Medicaid, Medicare, and sliding scale options for those without insurance. All information entered on the Care Solace tool is completely confidential and securely stored.

Please note, this service is an optional resource available by choice and is not mandatory to use. Care Solace is not an emergency response service or mental health services provider. In the event of a life threatening emergency, please call 9-1-1 or the National Suicide Hotline 9-8-8.

If you are interested in counseling-related services for your child, yourself, or another family member, please contact Care Solace for valuable assistance. This is a resource provided by Hingham Public Schools. Additionally, the district has added two new pages on the website, social-emotional wellness (resources) and school counseling (contact info). Please take some time to look at these resources.

FOSTER SWAG NEW ONLINE STORE IS STILL OPEN:

Check out our new Beanie Hat $30 Order online – Direct Shipping to your house now available! START YOUR HOLIDAY SHOPPING TODAY.

https://hemlock-ink.printavo.com/merch/foster-elementary

Join Us This Saturday @ The Annual Holly Fair Sat. 12/10 – 9:30-12

The Holly Fair Is a wonderful giving tradition in which 5th grade elves help younger ones shop & select gifts for family members. Parents wait outside to allow the shopping to remain a secret. We will also have gift wrapping, a bake sale and a hot chocolate bar! Come join us!

There's still time to buy raffle tickets to win two front-of-stage tickets at Taylor Swift's concert on 5/21!
Enter NOW for your chance to win!! The Raffle is open until 12/19, winner announced on 12/20. Enter as many times as you’d like!
All proceeds will support our Foster’s Finest Curriculum Enrichment Programs & The Foster PTO. Feel free to share with friends and family to enter too!
https://go.rallyup.com/fosterptotaylorswift/Campaign/Details

Yearbook Committee Needs Your Help:

Are you looking for a way to volunteer for the Foster community at a time & place that’s convenient for you? Join the yearbook committee! The 2022/2023 yearbook development is kicking into high gear and we are looking for help from parents in ALL grades. What do you need to volunteer just few free hours between now and April 30th – that’s it! There are lots of ways to become involved. Please contact Denise Dockrey for more information at dsdock@gmail.com.

Scholastic Book Fair Save the Dates: March 13th – 17th

We are planning to bring back Family Night as well as the Used Book Store…Stay tuned for more info. If you’re looking to volunteer to help with this great event please reach out to Ally Forrest @ forrae01@yahoo.com

We are bringing back the K-5 Foster Talent Show:

Save The Dates: Dress Rehearsal Fri. May 5th & Talent Show Sat. May 6th Location: @ Hingham High School Auditorium

Please email kellyhoppe@gmail.com if you would like to help be a part of the planning committee.

Upcoming Community Events:

Sat. 12/10 & 12/17: 11am-2pm Horse Drawn Hayrides in the Square

Monday Dec. 5th @ 7pm Parent Support Group: Please join parents of kids with special needs for Parent Support and Connection at Hingham Public Library Whiton Room 7pm on Monday December 5th.

CAPC Mtg December 7th at 7pm on Zoom: The Town of Hingham's Climate Action Planning Committee (CAPC) has been working hard crafting a plan to meet Hingham's approved goal of net zero carbon emissions by 2040. What roles will our schools play? Electric school buses? Public charging stations at the schools? Solar arrays on our school buildings? The CAPC invites all residents to attend its third public input session to provide feedback on the near final outline of the Climate Action Plan. We need citizen input as we consider priorities and potential warrant articles.

Meeting ID: 882 9309 3002
Passcode: 992912

One click login: https://tinyurl.com/CAPCDecember