I know this year has been a challenge and Thanksgiving will be no different. I am thankful to have my own immediate family to celebrate the holiday with, but I am saddened at the thought of other family members who may be alone and quarantining, like my Mother. We all have family members that are considered high risk for contracting COVID and for not surviving the illness. I understand why we HAVE to do it, I just know it is a difficult choice and won't be easy. We have arranged to Facetime with "Nana" during dinner so she can join in the family conversation. Please remember to check in with family that may be home alone this year by any means possible. As we face a holiday season like no other, please cherish what you have and with whom you share it. From our DES Family to yours, HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

PS. Thank you for my turkey pictures! I love them all!

Please visit Mass.Gov for the latest travel orders for the state of Massachusetts. There are essentially very few states considered low risk at this time and travelers returning to MA are mandated to quarantine for 14 days. Please keep our school community safe by following regulations for quarantine if you are traveling for the Thanksgiving holiday.

Thank you so much to the following volunteers that will be joining us for School Council this year:

• Derek Donohue
• Michelle LeBlanc
• Amanda White
• Kim Legere
• Diana Hryzan
• Christina Cabrera
• Beth Waye-Betz
• Lisa Bilis
• Julianne Winans

Our first meeting will be on December 3, 2020. Looking forward to it!

As you may have heard at the last School Committee meeting, we are exploring options to evolve our hybrid model. The School Committee members have asked that the administrative team return on December 9th with additional information on each of the different evolutionary possibilities. I have begun working this weekend on what some of those possibilities may look like, and what resources would be necessary to make them happen.

Like so many others, I am anxious to have all students back in school 5 days a week, provided we can do so safely. While I am acutely aware of and thankful for families that are finding ways to make this situation work for their students, there are just as many families and students that are struggling greatly with at home learning. I am looking for a solution that will ease the stress and anxiety that plagues our students and teachers working in both the hybrid and remote models. There are several options to consider, with varying degrees of feasibility. I am looking forward to thinking through each one and finding the solution that will work for the majority of students at DES.

Reminder that flu shot documentation should be forwarded to our school nurse, Kathleen Wilson (kwilson1@dcrsd.org).

Check out our Flu Vaccine Q & As below.

In the last month, we have had several families opt into our remote learning program. Because of this, I thought I would add a little "Remote Learning Refresher" to our newsletter to outline some of the basic expectations for Remote Learning:

• Find and set up a quiet space for your student to "attend school."
• Make sure you are at home or in a stable environment with the learning tools necessary for class (avoid shopping, driving, or visiting relatives during class time)
• Support your students with getting online if necessary and with any technical difficulties that may occur, but try and let them complete their schoolwork on their own. It is very important for our remote teachers to be able to accurately assess how much your student has learned independently or without adult interference.

Thank you so much for your continued partnership in remote learning. We understand this can be difficult and want to work with your to make this a successful learning environment for your student.