Conrad Owl News
February 2022
Hello Conrad Families,
Wow, it's been exciting to see our students back at school and experience new learning opportunities with them. Thank you to everyone who participated in our BINGO nights last week. We look forward to seeing you all at our next family event- Parent Teacher Conferences and the Scholastic Book Fair.
Conrad ELC will be hosting a Scholastic Book Fair on Friday, Feb. 18th, and through Parent-Teacher conferences. You'll be able to shop for your preschooler and other children during the conference days or drop off/pick up times on Friday, 18th. All proceeds from the book fair will go toward the purchase of new library books for our library. If you would like to help with the Book Fair, you can sign up here or contact Mrs. Melissa.
Parent-Teacher Conferences will be held in person on Tuesday, Feb. 22nd-Thursday, Feb. 24th. Your child's teacher will be sending a link for you to sign up for your conference. We are using a new sign up system called Calendly rather than Sign-Up Genius and it seems much easier. Please let us know if you experience any difficulties with signing up. Teachers' sign up links will also be posted on Conrad's website. Your child will be bringing home their Teaching Strategies Gold report (think of it like a Preschool report card) on Friday, Feb. 18th. Your child's teacher will review the report with you at the conference.
Although conferences will be held in-person this month, if you or anybody in the family are ill or have been exposed to COVID within 10 days of the conference, we ask that you schedule a Zoom conference with your child's teacher. Contact her to let her know of the need for a virtual conference, even if it is the day of your conference. This note can also be added to your Calendly sign-up.
Be sure to check out Nurse Sheena's COVID updates in the Nurse's Notes below. In addition, if your child will be absent from school, you can use the Student Absence Reporting form that is located on Conrad's website at anytime.
We are looking forward to seeing you all at conferences in a couple of weeks. Here's to kindness and continued opportunities to connect with each other and build a strong community. At Conrad, we are BETTER TOGETHER!
Kindly,
Stephanie Lee
Conrad Administrator
Important Upcoming Dates
*Reminder- there is no AM/PM preschool on Mondays*
February
Monday, 7th- 8:00-9:30 AM- CPP Council Advisory meeting by Zoom
Friday, 11th- AM/PM Valentine's Celebrations in class (no outside guests)
Monday, 14th- 8:30-9:30 AM- PTO/Room Parent meeting in-person and Zoom
Friday, 18th- DRESS UP DAY: Dress as your favorite Storybook Character
Friday, 18th-Thursday, 24th- Scholastic Book Fair in Conrad office lobby
Monday, 21st- President's Day Observed- District/School Closed
Tuesday, 22nd-Thursday, 24th- Parent-Teacher Conferences
Friday, 25th- Conrad closed for February Break
March
March Family Event- Literacy Night (more info to come!)
Friday, March 4th- DRESS UP DAY: Dress in Conrad gear or Classroom Colors
Monday, 7th- 8:00-9:30 AM- CPP Council Advisory meeting by Zoom
Thursday, March 10th- Individual and Class Spring Photos
Monday, 14th- 8:30-9:30 AM- PTO/Room Parent meeting in-person and Zoom
Tuesday, 15th- DRESS UP DAY: 100th Day of School- Dress as a 100 Year Old Person
March 21st-25th- Spring Break
Conrad's Library Books
Just a friendly reminder about caring for the library books. In recent weeks, multiple books have been removed from circulation due to water damage, coloring on the pages, destruction by a pet, or lost.
Library guidelines were posted in the Parent Handbook:
- Keep your book in a safe place away from babies, pets, crayons, pencils, pens
- Keep your library book dry & away from food & drinks
We love that Conrad ELC has a library that our students can enjoy books with their families. Please help us maintain a large selection of books for all of our students.
With the upcoming Scholastic Book Fair, all proceeds will go toward the purchase of new library books. Thank you for your support!
Conrad PTO/Room Parent News
A HUGE Thank You for all the donations for the Humane Society! Our Conrad community is very generous and kind. It was also wonderful to see all the pet posters that our students made.
The next PTO/Room Parent meeting will be on Monday, Feb. 14th from 8:30-9:30 AM in Conrad's conference room or by Zoom. We have a better virtual option beginning this month! We hope you join us!
Our PTO/Room Parents will be organizing a Taco Bar for Conrad Staff for Tuesday, Feb. 22nd (Taco Tuesday, during conferences). Do you make crazy good carnitas, green chili to die for, or festive fajita veggies? Maybe you serve a delicious jar of nacho cheese sauce! Either way, if you'd like to feed Conrad's staff during conference week, you can sign-up here or on the link on Conrad's website. Yum!
The following parents represent Conrad's PTO Board:
President: Mikaelle Towns (Mrs. Kate's Classroom)
Vice President: Rachel Williams (Ms. Tico's Classroom)
Treasurer: Lura Jepson (Mrs. Kayla's Classroom)
Secretary: Krystal (Wilson) Gagnon (Ms. Tico's Classroom)
We always welcome more parents to join and be actively involved in school planning and events. You can connect with Room Parents and PTO at the following Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/conradpto/
Nurse's Notes
Conrad families –
Recently the district sent out new practices around COVID exclusion and return to school. These new practices are based on the recommendations put out by the CDC, CDPHE and El Paso County Public Health as well as district data from cases, testing, and spread in schools. In an attempt to help keep our kids in school, there are some changes in length of time out when excluded and in the expectations for when they are allowed to return. These new practices can be a bit confusing and are based on a series of events that must occur before safe return is possible. Please know that your nurse will work with you and your family to ensure return as quickly and safely as possible. This does mean that every situation must be looked at individually and not ever scenario will be identical. For this reason, it is imperative that you notify the nurse as soon as possible if there is an exposure either in your household or from the community so exclusion and return can be completed as safely and expediently as possible.
The first goal of these new practices is to continue to prevent spread within the school and allow for in person learning, which is so important for our community. To this end, the practices focus on prevention of disease spread within school.
- Strongly encouraging all staff and students to wear a mask (whether vaccinated or not),
- Masks are required on Fort Carson per a 2021 Department of Defense memo. This includes FFC8 schools located on Fort Carson. Masks are not required at FFC8 schools located in Fountain.
- Masks are also required for all students and staff on school buses, per federal mandate.
- Masks may be required as an expectation for return to in person learning after an exposure or positive test as well, which will be situation dependent
- making rapid and PCR testing available to all students and family members. This service will be dependent on equipment (test) availability. An appointment must be made with the nurse if testing is desired.
- encouraging social distancing and cohorting where possible throughout the school day and during after school activities
- practicing and allowing time for proper hand hygiene frequently throughout the day and making hand sanitizer readily available
- utilizing isolation and exclusion for illness guidance per the EPCPH, CDPHE and CDC
- frequent sanitizing of all indoor spaces.
The time frame of exclusion for exposure and illness is very situation dependent. Length of exposure, symptom severity and improvement, and other criteria will be taken into careful consideration when developing a student’s exclusion and return plan. Though the same practices will be followed for each case, there are many variables that must be taken into consideration to ensure safety, so though two situations may seem from the surface to be the same, the exclusion times may be different based on the details of each situation. Due to these specifics, a plan for return must be created with the nurse. If a student returns before all criteria have been met, or if they are unable to fulfill the requirements for return (mask wearing, testing, etc.) parents will be contacted to pick their student up and additional exclusion days may be required.
The hope is that the exclusion times will be reduced from what has been required in the past and the shortest possible time frame will be assessed in each situation; however, there may be situations where 15-20 day exclusions may be required due to specifics within that situation.
Please contact the school nurse or administration if you have questions regarding these new practices. Thank you for working with us to keep all our students and staff safe and healthy.
Student Absence Reporting
Winter Weather and Labeling Student Items
In addition to clothing items, please also remember to label other items your child may bring to school such as water bottles, folders, blankets, etc.
If your child is missing anything, you can call or visit the office to check if it has been placed in the lost and found.
Siblings in Classrooms
Parking Lot and Drop Off/Pick Up Procedures
In addition, students should not be dropped off or picked up at the back of the school. That area is a bus loading/unloading zone. For the safety of our children, please adhere to these procedures and communicate to baby-sitters, family members, emergency contacts, etc. who may not receive this notice.
Transportation/Bus Info
Dogs on Campus
Conrad Early Learning Center
Email: sdlee@ffc8.org
Website: https://www.ffc8.org/Conrad
Location: 10605 Jimmy Camp Road, Fountain, CO, USA
Phone: (719) 304-3500
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ConradFFC8