#PVES "In the Know" Newsletter
New School Year Edition!
Welcome Back!
On behalf of our entire faculty and staff, I would like to welcome you to the 2020-2021 school year. Whether you are new to Powdersville Elementary School or have a student returning, certain practices and procedures will indeed look different this year. Please know that our district office and school leadership teams have worked tirelessly in an effort to create a safe environment for students to return to face-to-face instruction while creating an opportunity for students to also learn virtually. We believe we have the best plan possible, given all information available to us at this time, but the reality is that we may have to alter various portions of our plan often. Patience and flexibility is the name of the game and we know our school community will indeed support us through both difficult and positive experiences along the journey. We pride ourselves on communicating well and constant two-way communication will be paramount this year. Parents can start by communicating a positive message to their child(ren). Tell your child that you are hopeful that this will be a wonderful school year and encourage them to smile and remain hopeful through productive struggle. As principal, I do not enjoy wearing a mask nor do I prefer some of the changes you have been hearing/reading about, but I will remain positive and seek opportunities for hope and celebration because our teachers and students deserve this! We will follow guidance from our local and state authorities. We send out a monthly "In the Know" newsletter so parents can remain well-informed and work in partnership with our school. One of the many reasons why we are a successful school is simply due to our community support. I look forward to working with all of you this year, but most importantly, I am both humbled and genuinely excited that we get to teach your child this year. As always, we will work hard to show off our #pvespride in all we say and do!
Sincerely,
Brad Moore
Communication at PVES
- Connecting with your child's SeeSaw account. This is our main mode of communication from classroom to home.
- Checking real time grades and attendance via Parent Portal. If you need assistance with this, please call the front office.
- Completing the registration update that was emailed this summer, if your child is a returning student to ASD1. If we do not have an accurate phone number or email address on file, this is both a safety concern and might mean you do not receive important notifications.
- Frequently checking our school's Facebook, Twitter, and/or Instagram accounts.
- Making any changes regarding your child's transportation via School Dismissal Manager prior to 1:15 P.M. daily (more information on this will be sent home this week - please take action when you receive).
Pay School Fees
- Instructional Fee - $12.00
- iPad Protection Plan - $29.00
- Yearbook - $20.00
School Lunch
P.T.S.O.
Julie Williamson - President
Carol-Ann Sasser - Treasurer
Ashley Crippin - Secretary
You can email our PTSO, which meets monthly, at ptsopves@gmail.com.
First Week of School
- Tuesday, August 25th - 5th Grade ONLY
- Wednesday, August 26th - 4th Grade ONLY
- Thursday, August 27th - 3rd Grade ONLY
- Friday, August 28th - All Students Report to School
Can I Walk My Student in On the First Day?
- Classrooms will open at 7:30 A.M. Visitors will be asked to wait if you arrive any earlier than this.
- Please enter the building through the double doors nearest the cross walk.
- Parents and students will be required to wear a mask and have their temperatures checked upon entering the building.
- Do your best to respect social distancing as you walk down the hallway to your child's classroom.
- Parents should not enter the classroom. Plan on giving your child a hug and letting your child enter the classroom on his/her own.
- As soon as your child enters the room, please walk down the hallway and exit through the front doors nearest the front office.
School and Office Hours
Arrival and Dismissal Procedures
In the afternoon for dismissal, students will remain in their home rooms. We will be using a new program called School Dismissal Manager (SDM). You will receive detailed information via email this week in which you will need to set up your account in order to change your child's transportation daily as well as receive your unique identification number/PIN to be able to pick your child up in the car line. Please read the letter included above in this newsletter. Thank you in advance for your patience as we work through a new process. The morning and afternoon car line start out slow but improve daily the first few weeks of school.
*Parents of students at multiple locations should not park in our overflow lot and wait for students to walk over from the middle school. The district has built in plenty of transition time so that parents can access the car line at other schools. Due to construction in the back of the school, many of our staff will be using the parking spaces in our overflow lot. Additionally, we need spots for parents who have business at the school or are waiting on a child who is delayed in being dismissed from the classroom.
Safety Protocol at PVES
- Students and adults should wear masks/cloth face coverings/face shields when entering/exiting the building or during any transition. Parents should begin now to secure several cloth masks/face shields for their child(ren). For younger children, they should begin to practice wearing the mask and getting used to putting it on and taking it off.
- Recess time is provided in our schedule. While we are not able to use the playground equipment at this time, we recognize how important it is for students at this age to enjoy physical activity and a break from learning. We have identified areas on campus for teachers to utilize to accomplish this.
- Breakfast and lunch will be eaten in the classrooms to start the year (See menu above). Due to this change, parents/visitors will not be able to eat breakfast or lunch with students in the classroom.
- As always, visitors should report to the front office. Our front office staff will ask you to identify your name and reason for your visit. During the school day, only visitors deemed essential (i.e. school maintenance workers, technology support staff, etc.) will be allowed beyond the front office. We certainly encourage parents to stay connected with us and utilize Zoom/WebEx, email and telephone communications for conversations and conferences throughout the year.
School Exclusion Information
We are implementing a variety of safety procedures and protocol, as described in the Return to School document linked above. We will be teaching our students about healthy habits including, but not limited to, frequent and effective washing of hands, appropriate social distancing, and appropriate use of masks. We will also be sanitizing rooms frequently. However, no policy or procedure created can provide a 100% guarantee that the virus will not be transmitted in our schools.
Students and staff should be excluded from school if they have:
- Any of the following with or without fever:
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing -or -
- Loss of taste or smell -or –
- New or worsening cough
If these symptoms are explainable by an underlying condition (such as shortness of breath for an individual with asthma) exclusion may not be necessary. This is not a complete list of all symptoms of COVID-19, but only those that should trigger an automatic exclusion and evaluation for COVID-19.
Powdersville Elementary School
Email: mooreb@apps.anderson1.org
Website: www.anderson1.org/pves
Location: 139 Hood Road, Greenville, SC, USA
Phone: 864-269-4431
Facebook: facebook.com/pvespride
Twitter: @pvespride