École James R. Henderson
Weekly Update
Friday, January 8th, 2021
Dear Families,
Thank you for your patience during this week of working virtually! We hope that you are all healthy and well, and that you have had some great moments with your children this week. The weather had been on our side for home rinks and snowmen, which has helped to keep our kids busy outside!
We wanted to let you know that we too, are disappointed that school will not resume in person, on Monday, January 11th. The government made an announcement yesterday, that we will instead be returning to face to face learning on Monday, January 25th. FCCC, Before and After School programs will continue to be closed, as well as classes for our students. Our staff continue to refine and reflect what went well this week, as well as look at the challenges, to teach virtually over the next 10 school days. We are very grateful for your support and patience as we work through a new learning format. Your children have been amazing in showing their ability to persevere and learn in new ways, and we are so grateful for their positivity and participation during their class time. Hearing the laughter, questions, and seeing their sweet faces in their Meets, has been the bright spots in our day! Thank you for your support and for getting your students set up for their learning! We know this isn't easy, and we continue to be in this and learning how to be stronger together. Some important information:
Monday, January 11th: Technology distribution continues at the school. We have handed out devices to parents that have needed one for their child thus far. If your situation has changed, and you realize now that you will need to borrow a school device, please call the school and let us know. Parents who called the school on Friday, will have devices ready for Monday, January 11th pickup from 10:00-4:00. Please wear a mask and respect physical distancing protocols when picking up a device for your child. If you are unable to pick up school technology during one of these times, please contact the school and we will make an alternate arrangement.
Tuesday, January 11th-Friday, January 23rd: Students will continue to participate in both synchronous (live) and asynchronous (independent) learning activities. Your child's teacher will provide you with a timetable so that you are aware of when the synchronous learning activities will take place. Please continue to do your best to help support your child's learning. We know this looks different for each family and each situation. As we are telling our students, all we can do is our best!
Attendance: Teachers will be taking attendance each day, by checking to see if students are online during synchronous learning, or by checking to see that students are accessing the asynchronous learning activities. Our teachers know that learning from home may look differently for different families: please don't hesitate to communicate with your child's teacher to discuss your unique situation, and ensure that you are receiving the information and support needed to provide continuity of learning for your child.
Staffing Update: We have some new (and current!) staff faces to welcome into our building when we return. As you may have know, Mme Gallupe is away for this term, and Mme Conrad will be her replacement in January. When Mme Oleschuk returns to her classroom at the end of this term (February), Mme Vines will be moving from our Grade 3/4 class into Mme Gallupe’s role from February until June. Lastly, Mme O’Brien is also away for this term, and M Panakkal will be supporting our kindergarten students. Welcome to our new and returning staff! We are happy to have you join our Hawk’s Nest!
Wellness Focus: We hope that our students know how much we miss them and look forward to seeing them in person on January 25th. Being away from school is hard for many students, let alone families at this time, and we too wish to be back in our building as soon as we can be. Please make sure students know that, like at school, wellness is a top priority. They need to be taking breaks, getting outside to run around, and unwinding during the school day. If they need to eat at a time other than their breaks, that is ok! We do this at school all the time. If your child's virtual desk looks a bit different than how ours might, we get this! They can bring that stuffie to hug, as well as having a whiteboard/chalkboard, writing utensils, comfy pants, squishy ball, and anything else that may help with them to learn virtually. As always, if there is something we can do to help support your family during this time, please let us know.
Thank you for being incredible Hawks. We are grateful for this community of learners that continues to work so hard. Take good care of yourselves.
All the best,
Mme Peart and Mrs. Davey
Needing Some Tech Support From Home?
Our Students’ Hard Work!
Henderson Hawks Spirit Wear and Accessories Online Store
We have decided that EVERY Friday will be a Henderson Hawks Spirit Day! On Fridays, slip on some green and yellow clothing, footwear or accessories, and show how proud you are to be a Hawk!
Families who wish to purchase Henderson Hawks Spirit Wear: Check out all of the amazing clothing and accessories available at our École James R. Henderson School E-Store:
School Council Information/Mom's Pantry Fundraiser
Our next School Council meeting will be this Thursday- January 14th, 2021 from 6:45-8:45. This meeting will be held virtually. Please email Mrs. Davey daveyjk@limestone.on.ca if you would like to attend.
Stay up to date with LDSB Social Media!
LDSB Website https://www.limestone.on.ca/
LDSB Twitter https://twitter.com/LimestoneDSB
LDSB Facebook https://tinyurl.com/wbhjtku
LDSB Instagram https://instagram.com/limestonedsb?igshid=1epyma6c0g5qd
École James R. Henderson Public School
Email: jrhen@limestone.on.ca
Website: https://jrhenderson.limestone.on.ca/
Location: 361 Roosevelt Drive, Kingston, ON, Canada
Phone: 613-389-2330
Twitter: @JRHenPS_LDSB