Our students go outside at recess if it feels like 15 degrees or higher. Students are required to stay on the black top if there is snow on the ground and they do not have snow pants and boots.

We are looking for

some slightly used boots and snow pants

to have as a spare for some of our students.

Please consider making a donation.

The next meeting of the Leeds Equity & Inclusion Committee will take place (virtually) on Wednesday, January 12, from 6:30 to 8:00 PM. New folks are always welcome and encouraged to join! Please reach out to leedsequityandinclusioncomm@gmail.com for the meeting link, to join our email listserv, or with your questions/ideas. We plan to meet the second Wednesday of every month throughout the year. E&I participation is always completely flexible–you can choose to commit to as much or as little as you’d like.

This week we’re sharing some info on local holiday support, upcoming virtual events related to equity and race, and local in-person events.

Holiday support:

• Families seeking assistance with holiday gifts can contact The Bridge Family Resource Center (CSO) by calling (413) 773-1314. The deadline to apply for holiday support is Dec. 17.

• Additionally, while the official deadline for the Gazette’s Sidney F. Smith Toy Fund has passed, applications from families are still being accepted. The Fund provides $40 vouchers for local businesses like A2Z, High Five Books, and Once Upon a Child. Contact The Bridge (above), at (413) 773-1314 for more information.

• Feel free to connect with the E&I Committee for help connecting to local resources or networks of support: leedsequityandinclusioncomm@gmail.com

Upcoming virtual webinars/workshops:

• Amherst-based Embrace Race will offer a free interactive webinar on Thurs, December 16, 8:30pm ET: RaceTalk among White Families Post-Floyd. Now What?

• REAL will offer a Book Talk on Tues, January 4, 7-8pm ET, with Oakland-based writer, Courtney Martin, author of "Learning in Public: Lessons for a Racially Divided America from My Daughter's School." Email sarahlaurenmarcus@gmail.com for the Zoom link. If you'd like to purchase the book from High Five Books, use code LEARNINGINPUBLIC to get 15% off. This event will be free, though participants will be encouraged to donate to a community organization/cause of Courtney Martin's choosing.

• Raising Race-Conscious Children will offer an interactive workshop/webinar on Sun, January 9, 8:00pm ET, on talking about race with young children. (A follow-up workshop/webinar is scheduled for Jan. 23rd). Check link for pricing details - individual registration is $45 for the first webinar, and $70 for both. Registration for the 1/9 webinar may close on 1/7.

Current and upcoming in-person events/exhibits:

• The Eric Carle Museum’s current exhibitions include:

• “Boundless: Picture Books About Disabilities,” on exhibit through December 31. “Through art and innovative design, the featured books promote accessibility and encourage young readers to imagine life from varied perspectives.”

• “The Undefeated: An Exhibition of Original Paintings by Kadir Nelson,” on exhibit through April 3. “Nelson portrays American heroes, past and present, including the countless African American activists, artists, athletes, musicians, and writers whose contributions have enriched American culture.”

• Springfield’s 2021 Citywide Kwanzaa Celebration and Black Wall Street Market: Mon, December 27, 11am-6pm. “The 2021 Regional Kwanzaa Celebration Begins at 12 Noon [with a] Candle Lighting Ceremony that honors Faith, Family, Community, and African American cultural history along with entertainers and speakers who will address our present circumstances and what is to come – in our personal and communal lives.”

• Our January Early/Late Bird form is now available. Please sign up by December 17th. If you need assistance, please contact our coordinator, Gabrielle Hollender.

• Payments: Pay Online (preferred) or make checks payable to "City of Northampton"
  

  *Note: UniPay seems to have an aversion to Visa cards... so please try another card for payment

• Please be sure to choose the dates you need for after school care. We have a limited number of staff and may not always be able to accommodate drop ins.

• Late Bird - 2:10-5:15 (Please send your child with a snack from home.)

• Just a reminder that we do not have school on the following dates in January:
  

  • Thursday, January 6th
  • Monday, January 17th
  • Friday, January 28th

  Additionally, we will be having PreK through Grade 5 Caregiver/Teacher conferences on the dates listed below. We will have Early Bird on these dates, but we will not have Late Bird. Teachers will reach out to schedule conferences. Preschool teachers will contact caregivers regarding their schedule.

  • Monday, January 24th
  • Tuesday, January 25th
  • Wednesday, January 26th
  • Thursday, January 27th
  • Monday, January 31st

LEAP

Be on the look out for the February Early / Late Bird forms and LEAP forms (our enrichment program) will be sent out in early January. If you or you know someone who would like to be a LEAP instructor, please reach out to Gabrielle with more information, (ghollender@northampton-k12.us or 413-587-1530 ext 3659)

Online payments are accepted for Early Bird/Late Bird and the LEAP program.

Online payment instructions: I know some of you had difficulty with our online payment system, so we have created a document with instructions. Here is the link.

BEHAVIOR POLICY: All staff and students will adhere to the Northampton Code of Conduct found at http://www.northamptonschools.org/project/code-of-conduct/

• 12/14 Covid Testing
  

• 12/15 Picture Retake Day

• 12/17 Report Cards and progress reports for grades 1-5 go home
  

• 12/21 Leeds School Council meeting @6:15

• 12/23 - 12/31 Holiday Break

Upcoming Dates

• 1/3/2022 - School Resumes

• 1/6 - No School in observance of Three Kings Day

• 1/17 - No School in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

• 1/24 - Early Dismissal @11:30 Caregiver / Teacher Conferences No Late Bird

• 1/25 - Early Dismissal @11:30 Caregiver / Teacher Conferences No Lift Off / No Late Bird

• 1/26 - Early Dismissal @11:30 Caregiver / Teacher Conferences No Lift Off / No Late Bird

• 1/27 - Early Dismissal @11:30 Caregiver / Teacher Conferences No Lift Off / No Late Bird

• 1/28 - No School - Teacher Work Day

• 1/31 - Early Dismissal @11:30 Caregiver / Teacher Conferences No Late Bird

Click here for the School online calendar.