News from the Creek
Hippo Nation...Better Together! September 2020
A Note from your CCE Principal
Dear CCES Families--
We are excited about all of the learning that has been going on in Hutto ISD! This has definitely been a new and challenging year for not only Texas Educators, but for all educators across the world! Our teachers and staff have been working very hard to ensure that we are providing lessons and instruction aligned with the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) required by the Texas Education Agency. Our goal for all students and teachers is to mimic classroom learning as close as would be provided with students actually attending class "in-person". Our district has gone above and beyond many of our neighboring districts to provide live on-line learning for students. As we know that some of our families and students will need to access live lessons and learning outside of those live times, our teachers also provide virtual office hours and upload recordings of their live lessons daily to their google classrooms (Grades 1-5) or SeeSaw (Grades EE,PK, K) platforms. You can access your teacher's schedule in their learning platforms or by reaching out to them directly or calling us at the campus at 512-759-5430.
Many parents have reached out to the campus for suggestions on how to create a conducive learning environment at home, check out the suggestions provided for you to review. We thank each of you in advance, we know that you are taking on multiple roles at home including facilitating and supporting on-line learning. Our common goal continues to be aligned with your goal for our children: to inspire excellence in our students in their academics, development of character, and involvement/impact in their community. Thank you for partnering with our campus and with our staff!
In-Person Learning begins on September 14th for all students in Hutto ISD who opted for that choice. All students who selected on-line learning for the 1st 9 weeks will continue with the same schedule that they currently have in place. Please continue to check the Hutto ISD website for any additional important updates. Hutto ISD will send out a survey within the next week or two asking parents to make a decision about their choice for the 2nd 9 week grading period; parents will have a choice for in-person learning or virtual learning for the 2nd 9 week grading period, please keep an eye out for that survey to make your choice.
Once again, if your family is having difficulties and needs additional support with assignments, please remember to reach out to our staff/teachers. We will work to support your family needs the best that we can! A link to our campus staff can be found below for your convenience!
Cottonwood Creek Elementary has the BEST Staff, Students, and Families! We truly are "Better Together"! Our students are "Legendary" at Cottonwood Creek Elementary!
With Hippo Nation in Mind,
Linda Pachicano
Principal, Cottonwood Creek Elementary
A Message About Safety & School Processes from Mr. Althoff, Assistant Principal:
What will arrival and dismissal look like?
ARRIVAL: Car Drop off begins at 7:10 AM and CCES will be able to receive students at their designated drop off locations. We ask that parents avoid early drop-offs in the morning, as staff will not be on duty until 7:10 AM.
As you can see on the map, parents will drive around the building; dropping their child off at each designated grade level location. Student drop off areas will be located on the South, West, and North Side of the building.
Once your child has been dropped off, you will follow the traffic flow as you EXIT on the northside of the building. Your student will continue to their classrooms (1st-5th) for breakfast in the classroom with their teachers OR the cafeteria (EE, PK, K) with their teachers.
ARRIVAL NEED TO KNOW
● Students in HiH, ECSE, PPCD & Kindergarten WILL receive door opening support from staff to exit their vehicles.
● Staff will not open car doors for students in grades 1 through 5. We want to build independence in students and also practice health and safety distancing.
● Students and staff will sanitize their hands at every entry point upon entry into the building and use masks upon entry and in transition until arrival to their classroom.
● Students will arrive by walk-up, bicycles, car drop-off, or school bus but
parents/guardians will NOT be able to leave their cars or enter the building. All traffic will follow the same traffic pattern flow.
DISMISSAL:
For Dismissal, student groups will be dismissed at staggered times; beginning at 3:00 PM. Staggering the groups of walkers, car riders, bus riders will help manage student movement in the building and decrease the risk of potential crowding outside at dismissal time.
Staggered Dismissal Times:
Bus: Students will be released to the gym area at 2:55 PM & readied to load the bus at 3:00 PM
Car Riders: Students will begin to be dismissed at 3:00 PM
Walkers: Students will be released to walk home at 3:10 PM; Teacher guides students to correct gathering area.
DayCare/YMCA: Students will be released to daycare or YMCA at 3:20PM; Teacher guides students directly to that correct area.
****Important Note, Walker Pick Up will not be an option for dismissal. ****
Car Rider Process
Students will dismiss from their classrooms. We will continue with our same traffic pattern from the morning and work to ensure that our students are socially distanced when leaving/exiting their classrooms.
Parents will drive around the building, where a staff member will check them in. It’s important that you have your car rider tag displayed clearly on your dash/front windshield so that our car dismissal staff can clearly radio for your student.
All car riders will be picked up at the FRONT of our campus. Students will line up at our front numbered columns and wait for their car to pull up.
Siblings will be called at the same time to dismiss from their classrooms together.
DISMISSAL NEED TO KNOWS:
Sanitizer stations will be placed at each exit and students will be encouraged to sanitize hands prior to exit.
Parents picking up students during the day will call ahead so that students can be sent or accompanied to parent vehicles upon arrival. Parents will all have to stay in the car line; no walk-up pick-up due to social distancing and to ensure systems run smoothly.
Early pick-ups are not permitted one hour before the dismissal time, which is 2 PM.
MASKS & FACE COVERINGS
We will require students and staff to wear masks on school buses, upon entry into the school, and any time in transition as students move from one classroom or space to another.
Students will need to provide their own personal face masks. We will have extra masks at the campus, but your student may prefer their own mask that they are used to and comfortable with.
Students and staff may remove their masks once they are in the classroom, but
staff can require students to wear them. If students are not able to maintain social distance in their classrooms, masks will be work for the health and safety of all.Students will need to wear a face mask any time they leave their classrooms
such as when going to the bathroom, and any time in transition.
COMMON AREAS- Hallways, Cafeteria, Library, Restrooms
● Students and staff will wear protective face coverings.
● Staggered releases from each class may be organized to limit the number of
students in the hallway during transitions.● When transitioning between classes, students will travel corridors as far to the
right as possible.● Visual markers will be developed to help students maintain physical distances
and adhere to established campus traffic flow in hallways.● Traffic patterns will be established throughout the campus that separates
individuals to the greatest extent possible.● Where possible, one-way traffic throughout campus corridors may be
established.● Classroom doors will be propped open to reduce high touch areas.
● Access to hand sanitizer will be provided throughout the campus and students will be encouraged to practice healthy hand washing habits throughout the day.
Breakfast & Lunch
Students will be offered a breakfast when they report to their homeroom (Grades 1-5) or cafeteria (EE, PK, K).
All teachers will be on duty upon arrival at 7:10 AM.
Signage and staff will reinforce physical distance and traffic patterns in the
cafeteria.Hand sanitizer stations will be available at entrances and exits of the cafeteria.
Lunch schedules; including indoor and outdoor seating areas, have been designed to allow students to eat safely apart from each other
In addition to these campus practices, all classrooms will also be equipped for clear partitions for classroom desks/tables where social distancing is less than 6 ft apart., small group tables have also been prepared to receive students with privacy folders/clear dividers to help maintain students/staff healthy while in close proximity, student water bottle fill stations will be located in the cafeteria and gym where staff will assist students with refilling their water bottles as needed. Extra water bottles will also be provided for students who may have forgotten their re-usable water bottle at home.
All staff will participate in completing a health screener daily before arriving to campus, we ask all parents to remember that they must complete their own at home healthy screening to ensure that students and families are not exhibiting any COVID19 symptoms prior to arriving at school. Our campus nurse, Nurse Rod, has been trained for addressing any concerns related to COVID at the campus when school is in session.
Estella Alvarado, Campus PEIMS/ Attendance Clerk
Billie Duncan- Smith, Campus/ Principal's Secretary
Nicole Baker, Campus Receptionist
From our campus registrar, Ms. Estella~
How does attendance work during remote learning?
If your child is absent during online/remote or in-person school, attendance notes should be sent to your campus registrar. All attendance notes must be emailed or faxed to document your child's absent. You may email your attendance notes to cces.attendance@huttoisd.net
Remote learning students will need to interact in one of three ways to receive credit for attendance for the school day. Here are the ways that we will document attendance:
1. Student logs in and joins their live learning class and their teacher will document their attendance (Teacher-Student Interaction)
2. Students attendance will be noted when they turn-in an asynchronous assignment into their learning site (Completed Assignments)
3. Student shows progress and has activity on their learning sites posted by their teacher (Learning Progress)
We will use all of these methods, but at least one, to credit students for attendance for the school day. Please reach out to your classroom teacher if you have any questions about this or email estella.alvarado@huttoisd.net.
Once we return to in-person learning, regular attendance policy will continue as teachers will take attendance daily. The student day begins at 7:40 and ends at 3:00 PM. Thank you!
From our Campus Receptionist, Mrs. Baker~
From our Campus Secretary, Mrs. Billie~
Our Staff has been working hard to promote safety! Check out the videos below from some of our staff!
Mrs. Navarro Ward and Mrs. Taylor teach a lesson about health and safety! Way to Go!
Mrs. Kozak (CCE Counselor), Mrs. Dodd (Librarian), Mrs. Johnson (Library IA) show how we will greet our students when they return! How exciting, start practicing with your kiddos.
A message from Valerie Kozak, Campus Counselor~
Could your child use some encouraging words during online learning? Email me and I can help students get through any stressors that they may be experiencing, we are all here to support our students!
Email me at valerie.kozak@huttoisd.net, Thank you!
Notes and Reminders from....
August 31st-September 11th: Students Academic Screener Window Opens for K-5 students.
All Hutto ISD Elementary campuses begin RENSTAR Screeners to assess student learning and establish a baseline for all student learning in the areas of Early Literacy, Reading, and Math. These screeners are important for teachers as we meet students where they are and develop lessons based on that data. As much as we will want to help our students with responses, that will skew results for students. Instead support students with accessing and taking the screener online, but not with the responses. Your teachers will send you specific directions to support your student at home with this important screener.
September 9th: Campus Q & A with Principals @ 4:00 PM
Google Meets Link: https://meet.google.com/owc-fapy-pqi
We are excited to share our morning, lunch, and afternoon processes for students! We will also be available to answer any questions that you may still have with returning to in-school instruction. We have space for 250 participants! Looking forward to seeing everyone virtually!
September 14th: In-Person School Begins; Online Learning continues for students who have opted remote learning for the 1st 9 Weeks.
September 17th: Hutto Football Vs. Belton (Home Game)
September 24th: Hutto ISD School Board Meeting 6:30 PM
We look forward to seeing everyone soon either in-person or virtually!
Families of GT students statewide are invited to join a new network for Texas GT families!
The Gifted Education Family Network (GEFN) is a new opportunity for GT families to receive support, information, and connections with other families, facilitating positive advocacy for Texas GT programs, GT funding, and excellence in gifted education. GEFN is committed to equity and diversity in gifted education. We support the annual GT Parent Conference at the Baylor Center for Gifted Education and Talent Development and other low-cost opportunities for parent engagement across the state.
GT parents from all regions of Texas are invited to join us for free, to subscribe to our e-mail news (https://giftededucationfamilynetwork.org/subscribe/), to explore our website, and to follow us on social media (please visit our site for Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram links: https://giftededucationfamilynetwork.org/).
Student Opportunity Available:
Join us for Virtual Fall Super Saturdays!
Dates: September 12, 19, & 26 @ 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. CT
Tuition: $80 (some financial assistance available: email gifted@wku.edu)
Virtual Fall Super Saturdays offer 17 classes for students in grades 1-6 that give high-interest young people the ability to explore minds-on, hands-on classes in art, math, science, filmmaking, and so much more! Taught by an experienced teacher via Zoom. Students register for a class and connect with other like-minded kids all three Saturdays. Classes are fun, fast-paced, and filled with learning opportunities. A full list of classes can be viewed at https://www.wku.edu/gifted/super_saturdays/.
Have a Question about Online Learning or Assignments?
Ways to get help for students from teachers:
2. Families of students with special needs can reach out directly to their special education teachers for more support in working on those assignments. Our sped teachers are here to support our amazing students.
gina.navarroward@huttoisd.net (FA Classroom)
michelle.taylor@huttoisd.net (FA Classroom)
shannon.travis@huttoisd.net (Special Education/PK-2nd)
lori.beran@huttoisd.net (Special Education/3rd-5th)
ashley.coombs@huttoisd.net (ECSE/Hand in Hand)
jessica.garza@huttoisd.net (ECSE)
3. Need technology support? click this link to open the chat
4. Spanish Support? Call (512)759-4770 to speak with someone who can help
Remember that we are here to support our families! You are part of our family at CCE and we care about you!
Are Live Lesson Being Recorded?
- to make sure that student's have their microphone on mute unless teacher prompts them for engagement
- watch for adult/sibling conversations and language in the background (we want to protect your private conversations or language use at home)
- to think about student's background displayed, remind siblings to walk behind the screen appropriately clothed to avoid being captured on video
Teachers have control of their video recordings and what happens on their end, help us maintain the learning environment appropriately at home.
A Message from Dr. Gloria Marquez, Campus Instructional Coach:
Although the school Chromebooks may be the easiest solution to fix those problems that is NOT the only solution. Students DON'T need the school Chromebooks. They can use their personal device but they have to make sure that they are only logged in to their Hutto account.
Here is a video to demonstrate what needs to be done to make sure they are completely logging out of all their google accounts and are only in the child's Hutto account.
English Video
Spanish Video
Thank you CCE Parents, you are the best!
Does CCE have Curbside Breakfast/Lunch?
CCE Curbside "Grab and Go" for breakfast and lunch times has been updated to 10:30a.m-12:00p.m! Breakfast is free to all HuttoISD students, and lunch is based on qualifying students. If you would like to apply for free/reduced lunch, you may do so on the district Child Nutrition Services website linked HERE.
CCE Curbside is located in the bus loop. For additional information, please refer to the Parent Update sent by email on 8/11 and found below for your convenience.
Curbside “Grab and Go” will be offered at all campuses.
● Student ID is required.
● Multiple meal waivers will allow breakfast and lunch to be picked up at the same time.
● Multiple day pick-ups are not allowed.
● Parents can pick up meals for all siblings at one school as long as all student IDs are provided. We request that student ID number(s) be visible when picking up meals for faster service. We recommend writing in large print and placing on the dashboard where our staff can easily record the numbers and avoid contact with
parents and students.
● The menus will be posted on the website.
● Breakfast will still be free to all students providing a student ID number.
● Meals for qualifying students continue to be free, but not all meals are free of charge for all students as they were in the spring. Non-qualifying or paid students are charged on their lunch account for “Lunch Grab and Go.”
● As per state guidelines, we can only feed Hutto ISD students. No outside district students may participate
Do you know of anyone needing help to pay rent or utilities due to COVID-19? Williamson County’s Wilco Forward Phase III can help!
Williamson County is working with several agencies to handle applications for Wilco Forward Phase III assistance in each agency’s service area. These agencies will be reimbursed by the County for rent and/or utility assistance provided to a landlord, property management company, or utility company between March 1 through December 30. Please feel free to reach out to see how you may qualify for support.
Round Rock Area Serving Center serves Hutto areas outside of Georgetown ISD and The Caring Place serves Hutto areas within Georgetown ISD.
Kristi Robich, Manager
Community Outreach & Programs
500 W. Live Oak Street. | Hutto, TX | 78634
T: (512) 759-4029
Connect with Us on your Social Media!
@ cottonwoodcreekelem
@cottonwoodcreekpe
Email: cces.secretary@huttoisd.net
Website: http://www.hipponation.org/
Location: 3160 Limmer Loop, Hutto, TX 78634, USA
Phone: 512-759-5430
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CottonwoodCreekElementary/
Twitter: @CCES_Hippos