News From Paris Elementary School
October 7, 2020
Welcome to October
October has come very quickly it seems. However, I will admit I love the gorgeous foliage we are able to experience in our beautiful state of Maine and the cooler weather has also been a nice change. Although we have only been in school for just over a month, it does seem that this month has had it challenges as we have tried to navigate our new procedures for arrival and dismissal, changes to our lunches, recess, and specials. I know this has also been hard for families as we've had to tweak some of our procedures for drop off and pick up. We are very appreciate of your support as we have worked through some of these changes.
Please be sure to read through this newsletter as it has important information about our hybrid model for students in grades 4-6, important dates that are coming up, and I have also included the Pre-Screening Tool that families should be using each morning before sending their children off to school.
We have really enjoyed having students back in the building. They are doing a wonderful job keeping their masks on and practicing appropriate social distancing. I even had a kindergarten student remind me yesterday, "Mrs. P-keep back 6 feet!" as he held his hand up to me so I would not walk any closer. The students really are doing well with our new procedures and we have created an environment in which students are happy and learning each day.
Please reach out to me if you have any questions, concerns or suggestions. We value your input!
Respectfully,
Lori Pacholski
Hybrid Model for Grades 4-6
Students in grades 4-6 will begin hybrid learning on Tuesday, October 13th.
Each pod will attend in-person learning two-days a week and remote learning three days a week.
Pod A students will attend school on Mondays and Tuesdays.
Pod B will attend school on Thursdays and Fridays.
Teachers will be providing parents with more information regarding the in-person and remote schedules.
Students currently enrolled in the remote learning plan will continue to learn remotely.
Students receiving programming in special education, self-contained settings will attend school in-person 5 days a week.
Parents do not need to purchase technology for their child.
The district has ordered technology to support learning from a distance for each child in the district.
As soon as it arrives, we will get devices out to students.
If parents are able to subscribe to an internet provider that works in their town, it will support student learning.
K-2 Parent Pick Up & Drop Off
THANK YOU
We made some unexpected changes to our K-2 parent pick up and drop off procedures on Tuesday morning. We have been trying to work through the issue we have had with cars getting backed up on High Street trying to turn onto Hathaway Road and then waiting to pull into the school. This has also made it difficult for the Town of Paris Highway Department crew to access Hathaway Road during arrival and dismissal. Therefore, we moved our parent drop off and pick up location so we now have students loading and unloading in front of the building and entering through our main doors.
This seems to have gone well so far. Families in K-2 who are dropping off and picking up their children should still pull into the school and enter the staff parking lot to follow the line of cars around to the front of the building. Continuing to use the parking lot for our line of cars will allow for us to get more cars off the road and not block either High Street or Hathaway Road.
We greatly appreciate how receptive and flexible you all were with this unannounced change this week. We hope this will do the trick and allow for a less congested arrival and dismissal for all.
Safety
PLEASE DO NOT PASS ANY CAR WAITING TO PICK UP OR DROP OFF A CHILD IN THE VARIOUS CAR LOOP LOCATIONS.
Symptom Screening Before Coming to School
We recognize the strain it puts on families when children need to stay home from school. However, we must follow the district and CDC guidelines regarding illnesses which does mean students and staff cannot come to school if they have at least one of the most common COVID-19 symptoms which are:
- Cough
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
- Fever of 100.4 or greater
- Chills
- Sore throat
- New loss of taste or smell
Students and staff must also stay home if they have two or more of the less common symptoms such as:
- Muscle pain
- Nausea or vomiting
- Stomach pain
- Diarrhea
- Fatigue
- Headache
- Rash
- Swelling or redness in hands/feet
- Red eyes/eye drainage
- Congestion/runny nose
If you answer 'yes' to any of the 4 questions on the Pre-Screening Tool below, please keep your child home and call your Primary Care Provider for guidance. Any person showing symptoms must report their symptoms to the school and must not be present at school. Please call the the school nurse, Victoria Knight, if you have any questions. Please be kind to our school nurse who is simply following protocols when she needs to call home.
Please be available by phone and make arrangements for your child to be picked up from school as soon as possible when they are ill.
Student/Parent/Teacher Conference Day
Upcoming Dates
- Workshop Day-No school for students PreK-12
Monday, October 12th
- Indigenous People's Day-No school for students PreK-12
Wednesday, October 28th
- Student/Parent/Teacher Conference Day-This date is pending school board approval to change conferences from Oct. 22 to Oct. 28 in an effort to allow Pod B students to attend school on Thursday, Oct. 22nd.
Sunday, November 1st
- Day Light Savings-Turn your clocks back one hour
Wednesday, November 11th
- Veteran's Day-No school for students PreK-12
Picture Day Schedule:
Tuesday, November 3rd is Picture Day for Pre-K - Grade 1 and Pod A 4th-6th Grade
Wednesday, November 4th is Picture Day for Remote Paris Students from 2:30 pm - 4:00 pm
Thursday, November 5th is Picture Day for Grades 2-3 and Pod B 4th-6th Grade
Visitors to the Building
Due to the current COVID-19 guidelines, we will not be able to allow visitors into our school this year. This includes the parents and guardians of our students. In an effort to maintain a safe and healthy learning environment for all, only staff and students will be allowed to enter the school building.
Please know that this is a safety precaution and we will miss seeing our parents, volunteers, and guests inside the building this year. We hope we can invite you back into the building soon!
Contact Us At Any Time
Email: l.pacholski@msad17.org
Location: 4 Hathaway Road, South Paris, ME, USA
Phone: 207-743-7802
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pariselementaryschool