CCS Newsletter
May 29, 2020
ADMINISTRATION UPDATE
Dear CCS Families,
We are often filling our final newsletters with dates and details about our end-of-year activities. While some are postponed ~ we’d rather reschedule things like our field day celebration and step-up connections for when we’re back together in person than cancel them - we want to share with you how we will be handling our important year-end milestones. Here are the brief details - more detailed communication will be coming out within the next two weeks!
- The Last Week of School: Teams are planning for their menu items to be celebratory and to bring a sense of closure to the year. Many teams have students finishing the year with personal interest projects, which will be shared and celebrated. The final student day for CVSD is Friday, June 12th.
- Placement & Step-Up: Teams are finalizing their placement tasks and class lists. Typically, our step-up day is at the beginning of the final week of school. Our teams will be sharing team videos with their incoming students for the 2020-21 school year at the beginning of the week of June 8th, to introduce themselves and share a little bit about their team and grade. It is our hope to include in-person connections, likely in smaller groups, at some point this summer, prior to the beginning of the school year.
- End-of-Year Reports: Final report cards will be shared with families. While the reporting for the final semester will be different than in typical school years, reports will be completed and shared. CVSD and CCS will be sending more detailed information about the content of reports. Grades K-4 will issue standard VCAT report cards with comments only for the final semester. We typically send these home directly with students, but this year report cards for K-4 will be mailed home to families on June 19th, 2020.
We have enjoyed seeing so many of our students showing up to their scheduled classes, with more of them joining from their yards and porches as the weather improves! Our students and their families continue to bring the positive energy to our remote classes!
We wish you a wonderful weekend,
Stephanie, Jen and Cassandra
IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER
Saturday, May 30th
Green Up Day! CCS West Parking Lot, 8:00am - 6:00pm
Monday, June 1st
Library Porch Pickup & Drop Off, 1:00pm - 5:00pm
Thursday, June 11th
8th Grade Virtual Graduation, 6:00pm. A virtual 8th grade graduation link will be sent to families, 6:00pm
Friday, June 12th
8th grade diploma pick up, 9:00am - 11:00am - more specific guidance and a sign-up for this is coming next week.
Last student school day
June 15th - 17th - teacher in-service days, completion of end-of-year reports for students (will be emailed home).
Friday, June 19th
End of Year Reports sent home
CCS LIBARY PICK-UP & DROP-OFF
Your CCS Library is here for you!
In order to continue to support our students’ academic and independent reading needs, we have expanded our digital services, and we are also offering the opportunity to borrow library books to read over the summer. Click here for more details!
***Any CCS Books may be dropped off during this time as well (STARS, Library) - we will collect them now, to be sorted over the summer.
LOST AND FOUND
Our three tables of Lost and Found will also be on display Monday, June 1st. Look for the red tent to browse. Please honor the social distancing recommendations.
ATHLETIC UNIFORMS
We would happily collect any lingering CCS athletic uniforms that may be out there. We will have a drop box available during the June 1st library book pick-up/drop off.
8TH GRADE GRADUATION UPDATES
This year’s production is coming to fruition through the talents and passions of our CCS families and educators. There will be a combination of our CCS traditions and innovative alternatives all focused on the pride and adoration we have for this graduation class. As certain restrictions from the State, Agency of Education and Health Department are adapting, some parts of our planning remain fluid.
On Thursday 6/11, a remote ceremony will be shared with the CCS community via YouTube Premiere. It will remain viewable in the days and weeks that follow. We encourage you to watch the ceremony with your family members near and away.
On Friday 6/12 from 9-11 am, a procession of graduates will drive through the CCS grounds, be welcomed on The Red Carpet and awarded their diplomas, awards, yearbooks (and more). All CCS staff members have been invited to cheer on the 8th graders. Everyone will be socially distanced, but this is our way to give the 8th graders a different sort of send-off.
Our entire Charlotte Community can help honor our 8th-grade graduates, our local CVU graduates and all of the CCS students who have persevered through this unprecedented year by decorating their homes with Red and White- ribbons, bows, & signs the week of June 8th.
SCHOOL ISSUED CHROMEBOOKS AND THE SUMMER
We will be reaching out sometime next week via email with information about the options families have to either keep their student's school-issued Chromebook at home or return it to school for the summer. Families that choose to keep it at home would need to "opt-in" to this agreement, but there is absolutely no pressure to do so. Families that do not wish to take on this responsibility over the summer will learn more about the timing and process for returning it in the email that goes out next week.
ELLIS MUSIC AND RENTALS
If you rent an instrument through Ellis Music and would like to return it for the summer months please see below:
Ellis Music (802) 234 - 6400, will be coming through Charlotte on Mondays through June 16. They are not allowed in the building however, if you call the number above, you can arrange a parking lot pick up with their delivery man (Tom). They will know his approximate arrival time.
Sorry for the inconvenience.
LOCAL BUILDING PROJECTS
Local Building Projects
A substantial amount of work is underway to address various needs around the CCS building and campus.
- Sidewalks and Curbs - If you have driven by CCS recently, you will notice significant improvements to our front walkway! New sidewalks have been installed and the front entrance walkway is being refurbished as well.
- Faucets and plumbing fixtures, and additional filtration systems for water bottles have been installed. Many of these installments were planned upgrades, but are also addressing necessary remediation in response to regular water testing results.
- Coming soon - CCS will have a smaller garage installed in the former site of the Quonset Hut.
- Summer Work - Small custodial and maintenance crews have begun summer work and cleaning at CCS. We look forward to new paint in many areas! The bright new hallway in the elementary wing will be a welcome sight when we return.
APPROVED 2020-2021 SCHOOL CALENDAR
CCS BEHAVIOR SYSTEMS SUPPORT DURING REMOTE LEARNING
Tim Holcomb and Mike DiNicola, CCS Behavior Systems Coordinator and Planning Room Facilitator, will offer office hours beginning next week on Mondays from 1:30 pm - 2:00 pm and on Thursdays from 2:30 pm - 3:00pm. The focus of this will be to provide families with support as they navigate remote learning and build positive expectations at home. Mike and Tim can collaborate with parents regarding common school language, reinforcement plans, and learning structures. Mike and Tim understand that each family's situation is different, and will be available to consult with parents as needed.
Weekly office hour links:
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR FAMILIES
At CCS, we are working hard to meet the academic and social-emotional needs of our students. During this time, people can be feeling stress, anxiety and in some cases despair. We never want families or children to feel alone.
Additional resources to keep accessible:
First Call - 488-7777: phone support, crisis intervention, assessment and referrals
In Crisis: 1-800-SUICIDE (1-800-784-2433) (National Hopeline Network: USA)
1-800-273-TALK (8255) (National Suicide Prevention Lifelife: USA)
Crisis Text Line - text HOME to 741741 (24 hours a day, seven days a week)
Outright Vermont - support for LGBTQ+ community
UVM Breathe In Breath Out - How to deal with stress due to COVID-19
- Vermont 211 -Vermont database of resources and services
SCHOOL-HOME PARTNERSHIP ON BEHALF OF STUDENT SAFETY
With students online even more during remote learning, it is critical that we all join together to support them. When Chromebooks went home with students, our district added a filtering and monitoring program to student school-issued Chromebooks that is similar to what we have in place when in the buildings. We are viewing data about sites that students attempt to access and we can truly say that they are focused primarily on educational content. That being said, some students have tried to access other sites, most of which have been blocked by our system.
There are going to be occasions where a site may not be blocked and should be. We do count on parents and caregivers, whether during this time of remote learning or at any time, to partner with us to help monitor your child’s activity online. Please see the resources on the Technology page of our COVID-19 site. There, you will find not only information about getting tech support, but also more about digital citizenship, digital wellbeing, and a new podcast, “Parent Trapped,” from Common Sense Media designed specifically for parents at home with children during the pandemic. Here’s a link to the flyer that went home with Chromebooks as a reminder for how to get help. We hope you find something that is useful and informative. Thank you for working with us to support student learning.
Tech Support for Remote Learning
Internet Connectivity - VT Dept of Public Services
Common Sense
Common Sense Media (ratings, reviews, tips, common topics for parents, guides, how-to)
Common Sense Media Plus ($3/month, $30/year - access to more resources)
Resources for Families During the Coronavirus Pandemic
Resources for Family Engagement (family activities, media agreements, discussion guides)
Family Online Safety Institute (FOSI)
Brainpop Videos (contact your school’s digital learning leader or librarian for login details, where needed)
The full collection of videos related to Digital Citizenship
Brainpop Jr. - Internet SafetySTAY INFORMED
GREEN UP DAY - CCS PARKING LOT COLLECTIONS
- E-waste collection run by Transition Town Charlotte. Large boxes of e-waste is collected by Good Point in Middlebury.
- Town Road commissioner Junior Lewis parks trucks for scrap metal collection, separated tires, clean wood and acceptable construction debris. Along with all the trash collected by GUD volunteers.
- Additionally, Abby Foulk will be rinsing recyclables collected along roadsides for bottle redemption at Tenneys. This becomes a fund raiser for the Boys and Girls Club or the Children's Medical Center.