Husky Highlight
Sunday, January 24, 2021
Note from Ms. Moulton
Greetings, Hosmer Families,
I hope you are all doing well and that you have enjoyed this weekend with your families. Please do be sure to read through this letter as it includes important information regarding the potential switching of learning models, which some of you have begun asking about.
Switching Models (Hybrid/Virtual)
As we continue planning for the remainder of the school year, it is important for us to know if you are hoping to make a change in the model of school that your child is currently enrolled in. At this point, we are not anticipating significant changes to the daily or weekly schedules. If you are interested in changing models (hybrid to virtual OR virtual to hybrid), we ask that you communicate this request directly to the school principal as soon as possible (email erin.moulton@watertown.k12.ma.us). The deadline to do so is Friday, January 29th. Please note that a change in learning preference will most likely result in a change of teachers and/or cohort. Additionally, based on the current class sizes, we may not be able to accommodate all requests for model changes at this time. Thank you.
Superintendents Survey Closes Tomorrow!
As we head towards the mid-point of this school year, we are looking forward to gathering your feedback about your experiences during pandemic schooling and invite you to take a few minutes to complete the mid-year WPS family survey. Please fill out one survey for each of your children, as your experiences may be different for each of your children, especially if they are in different schools. This feedback is invaluable to inform decisions moving forward into the second half of the school year and beyond. Please complete this survey by Monday, January 25 and we will share the collective results with all of you. Students in grades 3-12 as well as faculty and staff are also providing feedback via surveys.
Covid Testing
As you are aware, students continue to participate in weekly pool testing for COVID-19. It is not too late to sign-up! If you would like your child to participate, please visit this link to fill out the consent form for testing. It is vitally important for as many families as possible to sign up for ongoing testing, especially during the winter months. Please do your part to keep our students and staff safe by signing up for testing. It’s quite easy and isn’t the long nasal swab, but rather the anterior short nasal swab. Students in Cohort A are testing on Tuesday, and students in Cohort B are tested on Wednesday.
Parent Diversity Council
Thank you to those who have expressed interest in beginning a Hosmer Parent Diversity Council. It's inspiring to see that there is excitement to get this going. Stay tuned for more information about our first meeting in the coming weeks.
Thank you for your continued support of our wonderful school.
Erin Moulton
Thank you, School Nurses, for everything you are doing to keep our schools safe!
Important Calendar Reminders:
Monday, January 25th - Site Council Meeting - 4:00 -5:00 pm
Meeting ID: 982 9897 2537
Passcode: 926690
Thursday, February 4th - Kindergarten Information Night - 6:30 pm
Monday, February 8th - Virtual School Student Materials/ Report Card Pick up
- 7:30 am - 8:00 am
- 1:15 pm - 2:30 pm
Wednesday, February 10th - Cohort B Report Card Distribution
Thursday, February 11th - PTO - 6:30 pm
Monday, February 15th - Friday, February 19th - No School - Vacation
Do you have a child starting Kindergarten in September?
Student Services Q&A with Kathy Desmarais
Dear WPS families of students with disabilities,
We hope that you can join us at our next Q&A session, in collaboration with Watertown's Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC), via ZOOM on Thursday, January 28, 2021, from 6:00 to 7:00. You can find the ZOOM link here.
Kind regards,
Kathleen Desmarais, Director of Student Services
CELEBRATING BLACK HISTORY MONTH : STUDENT VOICE "IMPRESSIONS" SHOWCASE
We are very excited to collaborate with you and share the WPS Black History Month Student Voice "Impressions" Showcase. The submission form is open from January 22 - March 1, 2021.
Here is the link to our 2021 WPS Black History Month Student Voice "Expressions" Showcase" that hosts the submission details, some student work examples for inspiration, few guidelines, and the student work submission form.
Honoring the Legacy of MLK, Jr.
----- Curriculum Notes -----
Report Cards are Coming Soon
All report cards will be sent home as a paper copy according to the following schedule:
Monday, February 8th - Virtual school students from both cohorts will have a supply pick up day. They will also receive a paper copy of their report card.
Tuesday, February 9th - Cohort A hybrid students will take home report cards.
Wednesday, February 10 - Cohort B hybrid students will take home report cards.
Are you interested in learning more about Readers'/Writers' Workshop?
Upcoming Whole School Reads
Derrick Barnes & Gordon C. James
Christian Robinson
Gaia Cornwall
Oge Mora
Ibram X. Kendi
Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich
Tech Notes from Rashmi Pimprikar
We look forward to supporting you with your educational technology questions.
Here is a link to the weekly 01/23 Family Ed-Tech for All Newsletter, LIVE Ed-Tech Support Sessions, Resources, Tutorials & tips that are curated and created, just for you. Do you need help with Ed-Tech? Please complete the WPS Ed-Tech Support Request Form. A member of the WPS Ed-Tech team will reach out to you within a school day.
Please email me if would like to add to the website or need more information. Need Classroom or submission support? Please use the Ed-Tech support form or you can also reach out to the teachers, library media learning specialists, and digital learning support specialists at your school.
Thank you and have a terrific day,
Rashmi Pimprikar (District Ed-Tech Coordinator), Digital Learning Team and IT Team
-- Community Resources --
Free COVID Testing for Watertown Residents this Month!
The following announcement was provided by the Town of Watertown:
Free COVID-19 Testing for Watertown Residents – Additional Slots
The Town of Watertown is offering, by appointment only, one - free COVID-19 Test for Watertown residents.
Testing is free, does not require a medical referral and you do not need to have COVID-19 symptoms to get tested. Pre-registration is required to receive a test (preregistration details below) and we ask that you only sign up for one test to allow other residents access to testing.
Testing will be held inside the Commander’s Mansion 440 Talcott Avenue on the following dates and times:
- Tuesday January 5, 2021 from 1:00 PM to 7:00 PM
- Wednesday January 6, 2021 from 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM
- Tuesday January 12, 2021 from 1:00 PM to 7:00 PM
- Wednesday January 13, 2021 from 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM
- Tuesday January 19, 2021 from 1:00 PM to 7:00 PM
- Wednesday January 20, 2021 from 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM
- Tuesday January 26, 2021 from 1:00 PM to 7:00 PM
- Wednesday January 27, 2021 from 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM
In order to obtain an appointment, a Watertown resident must pre-register by clicking on the following link: https://proemscovidtesting.as.me/watertown
This is not a drive up test. Watertown residents who have an appointment will enter into the Commander’s Mansion and with the assistance of Pro Ambulance employees will conduct a self-administering nasal swab (PCR test).
Test results:
As a reminder, a negative test does not mean you cannot spread COVID-19, or get infected with COVID-19, at a later date. Residents should continue to practice physical distancing and hygiene, regardless of a negative test result.
The above dates and times are the only dates and times available for Watertown residents through this program.
For questions about testing results, please email: COVID@proems.com
More information can be found at this link:
--- Support Hosmer PTO ---
-- WPS Covid Related Resources --
About Us
Website: www.watertown.k12.ma.us/hosmer
Location: 1 Concord Road, Watertown, MA, USA
Phone: 617-926-7740
Facebook: www.facebook.com/HosmerElementarySchool/
Twitter: @HosmerSchool