Wrightstown Ravens' News
November 6, 2020
Dates to Know
November 10th - 1st Marking Period Ends
November 11th - PTO Meeting - Virtual
November 23rd - Early Dismissal - PM Kindergarten attends
November 23rd - Parent-Teacher Conferences 1:00 PM-4:00 PM
November 24th - Early Dismissal - AM Kindergarten attends
November 24th - Parent-Teacher Conferences 1:00 PM-8:00 PM
November 25th - Parent-Teacher Conferences 8:30 AM-12:00 PM
REPORT CARD UPDATE
Dear Parents of students in Grades 3-6,
I send this message to inform you that we will be making a modification to our first marking period report cards. Specifically, we are narrowing down our assessment fields to two specific categories: Characteristics of a Successful Learner and Support Services Received. This change will impact the first marking period only. Marking periods 2 through 4 will reflect our traditional array of report card assessment categories.
One of our lessons learned from the first marking period is that it took much longer than expected to teach our young students how to take digital assessments. Rather than race through the process of acclimating learners to the new test-taking technology, our teachers dedicated the necessary class time to the process. Time spent on this task now impacts our ability to accurately assess student learning as thoroughly and successfully as we will be able to do in the second marking period and other marking periods to follow.
We believe that focusing our first report card on the Characteristics of a Successful Learner and Support Services Received is the fair and right thing to do for grades 3-6. Please know that teachers will use the upcoming parent-teacher conferences to discuss student progress and share information about the assessments that have been completed.
Please feel free to contact me with specific questions or concerns related to this communication. Specific conference times and information will be communicated through your child's teacher.
COHORT ASSIGNMENTS
For those families that are changing to Hybrid this marking period please reference the cohort assignments below. We have communicated on an individual basis to any NEW HYBRID families that will be attending a different cohort than what is reflected below.
A-Ld—Cohort A (Monday, Tuesday in-person)
Le-Z----Cohort B (Thursday, Friday in-person)
Wednesday- Everyone is virtual due to school wide cleaning
2nd Marking Period - Virtual to Hybrid Format Selection
The start of the 2nd Marking Period Begins on November 11th...This is a Wednesday & therefore a VIRTUAL DAY for ALL STUDENTS!
Cohort B starts - Thursday, November 12th
Cohort A starts - Monday, November 16th
HYBRID REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL THE WEEK OF DECEMBER 8th...per the BOARD VOTE last evening to go 5 days a week beginning Monday, December 14th. More information will be forthcoming regarding that district-wide change.
Car Riders for 2nd Marking Period
If you are continuing in the Hybrid model and have previously submitted a form, there is no need to resubmit UNLESS you are making a change. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to Mrs. Ricciardi at pricciardi@crsd.org
Veterans Day - November 11th
This year we won't be able to host our annual Veterans Day Program due to the current circumstances. However, we would like to recognize and show our appreciation to our veterans. If you are interested in having a veteran recognized please complete the form directly below.
Students are invited to show their patriotic spirit and wear red, white, and blue on November 11th!
What is new in the Library!
This fall we have been reading stories about Autumn, Hispanic Heritage Month, Halloween, Dia de los Muertos and of course the election process. Soon we will begin Coding with students in grades 2-6. We will use the Hour of Code format which is web based and students will be able to access at any time. Coding is a wonderful way for students to practice their reasoning skills.
Virtual students are able to check out Library books. If you are interested in learning about how to do this please visit your child’s Library Google classroom. The link is in the classroom under the heading Virtual Book Check out.
Families are able to apply for public library cards digitally. The public library has thousands upon thousands of ebooks for families to read. If you are interested in applying for the public library card here is the link: https://buckslib.org/onlinelibrarycardapplication/
Please Visit HAC for your Transportation Information
If you have changed from the Virtual to Hybrid Format and selected BUS as your mode of transportation please be on the lookout for your bus route information in HAC. Information is expected to be posted by Saturday!
Demographic Updates in HAC
Every year we ask parents to go in and update their demographics in HAC. Even if nothing changes, you need to go in and click submit. This is very important as it contains information that the School Nurse needs. If you wish to change your email or phone information this is where you do that also. Please see the instructions below on updating information.
Log into HAC (You will land on the registration tab).
Click the “New” button which will invoke the form.
Review the demographic form and make any necessary changes.
Scroll to the bottom of the page and click the “I agree” box.
Click “Submit”.
Council Rock’s Family Code Night
Attend Council Rock’s Family Code Night from home! This is a free, fun and valuable experience for you and your K-5 children. No sign up, no coding experience needed. Just join the LiveStream on December 1st at 7pm. Here are links to provide more information:
http://bit.ly/nationalfamilycodenight
PTO Pumpkin Contest
Congratulations to all of our Pumpkin Decorating Contest participants on your amazing, creative pumpkins! You are all talented artists!
Enjoy this fun video of all of the participating and winning decorated pumpkins that was shared on this morning's announcements!
Tied for Overall Winner (1st/2nd Place):
Gabriella (5th Gr.) & Nathan (1st Gr.) Ravenna
"Winnie the Pooh" & Anastasia Dyachenko (2nd Gr.) "Professor Hootsburgh"
3rd Place:
Leanna (5th Gr.) & Mark (3rd Gr.) Jacoby
"Mike Wasowski"
Runner Up:
Colin (6th Gr.) & Caroline (4th Gr.) Funk
"Among Us & Sinister Pumpkins"
School Counselor - Ms. Gulnac's Message About Mindfulness
If you are looking for new ways to help your children manage stress and tough emotions, mindfulness is a great place to start. Mindfulness is about learning how to be fully present and engaged in the moment while being aware of your thoughts and feelings without distraction or judgment. Research is increasingly finding that mindfulness is not only beneficial for adults, but also for children of all ages. Benefits attributed to mindfulness are thought to include:
· Improved physical health
· Improved mental health
· Improved social-emotional skills
· Increased intellectual skills
· Improved cognitive outcomes
· Greater overall well-being
Mindfulness practices can benefit anyone, of any age, and can be a great way to connect with your kids while teaching them coping skills. Check out the following link for more information and mindfulness activities you can do at home with your kids: https://positivepsychology.com/mindfulness-for-kids/
Struggling At Home With How School Has Changed...
Having trouble managing your school day? Struggling with emotions and feelings related to COVID? You’re not, but you know someone who is? Don’t do it alone! Let’s work through it together! We want to help! Please contact your school principal, counselor, teacher, or another trusted adult in the school so we can talk.
Family Trip Request Form
If you have plans to travel out of the state it is important that you check the PA Government website found HERE to see if your destination is on the recommended quarantine list. Upon return from your trip, if your child/ren will need to quarantine the nursing staff will reach out to you.
Please ensure the Family Trip Request Form is completed and submitted to the school office prior to the start of your trip. This form is located on the front of the WES website and is also provided directly below.
Planning for Potential Teacher Absences
This year, there are revised procedures for nearly every process that we had in place at Wrightstown Elementary. The manner in which we plan for potential teacher absences has been revised, as well, and I'd like to keep families aware of these revised plans.
If your child's primary teacher is absent, communication will be sent via email from the teacher or me to provide information about the plan. Absences are often the result of unforeseen circumstances, so the message could be sent in the morning prior to the start of the school day.
The most significant part of the communication will be to inform parents whether the activities for the day will be synchronous or asynchronous. Synchronous activities will look like a typical day for the students, and someone will be working live with the children who are learning in school and virtually at home. Asynchronous activities would be planned if there is an unforeseen situation that requires the teacher to be out of school. These activities would not have a staff member live streaming with children learning at home, and therefore these students would be working independently on tasks that will be defined in each student's Google classroom. In addition, there will be a staff member with the children in the classroom to provide supervision and assistance.
All of our protocol this year has been designed to make sure that both children and adults at WES are safe and healthy each day. Sometimes this requires that students and the staff may need to miss school if needed. We want to make sure that there is effective teaching and learning on all days, and the manner in which we now provide instruction makes this more complex when there are absences. Thank you for your understanding and please reach out to me or your child's teacher if you have questions.
A Message from the WES Nursing Staff
KDG and New students: The state requires a physical and dental to be on file in the health office. Kindly send to the nurse if you have not already done so.
2nd Grade Parents: The state requires a dental exam in 3rd grade. Any exam done after September 1, 2019 can be accepted.
3rd Grade Parents: Kindly send the completed dental exam to the nurse if you have not already done so.
5th Grade Parents: The state requires a physical exam in 6th grade. Any exam done after September 1, 2019 can be accepted.
6th Grade Parents: Kindly send the completed physical exam to the nurse if you have not already sone so.
Please feel free to contact the health office with any questions at 215.944.2309.
Thank you!
Stephanie Mallee
Dianne Mullin
Face Coverings Reminder!
Please make sure that face coverings are washed and disposal coverings are discarded daily.
Attendance Update
A change in procedure for student attendance has recently been updated. A new attendance code was created in the eSchoolPlus system - "AV - Attended Virtually." This code will be used when students attend "Virtually" on days when they are to attend "physically" based on their cohort.
For example:
Beth is a student in Cohort "A". This cohort attends class in school on Mondays and Tuesdays. If Beth decides to attend "Virtually" and not physically on either of these days, her attendance will be coded as "AV" for attending virtually.
A Message from the Technology
At the current moment, the only mechanism for parents/students in a virtual/hybrid environment to get help is via the email address chromesupport@crsd.org
Effective Monday morning, October 26th, students/parents should start using our help desk system. The link is this one: https://crsdstudent.sherpadesk.com
The system will allow students/parents (student ID is required to submit a ticket) to submit a ticket for help. It will also allow them to see the status of existing tickets.
The first time they use the system, they will need to set up their account. This will require a unique email address, the location where the student attends school (this is a required field), their first and last name, a phone number where they can be reached (if additional/different contact information/preferences are desired, they can be included in the body of the request), the type of issue (called class on the form - this is also required), the student ID (this is required), a subject or brief description of the issue, and then the details about the issue.
To see the status of a ticket that was submitted, they can click on that option, log in with their email address and password (set during account creation).
We will continue to monitor the chrome support email address but will refer parents/students to the ticketing system if they have an issue or problem that needs to be resolved.
The two biggest advantages to this system are that the ticket will go directly to a technician, and the parent/student will be able to see the status of the tickets they have entered.
WiFi Issues: Contact your provider (Comcast, Verizon, Xfinity, etc.)
Password Issues: Contact our Librarian Assistant, Kristi Marino at kristi.marino@crsd.org
The "You be the Chemist" (YBTC) Challenge for Students in Grades 5-8
Do your students love science? The You Be The Chemist (YBTC) Challenge® is a free, fun, and innovative academic competition associated with the Chemical Education Foundation and Dow Chemical. The YBTC Challenge® is an interactive event in which fifth through eighth-grade students work with teachers, peers and Science National Honor Society students to learn about important chemistry concepts, scientific discoveries, and laboratory safety. This program also educates students about the value of science education and the role of chemistry in their everyday lives. Check out more information directly below.
PTO Virtual Meetings via ZOOM
Wednesday, November 11th
6:30 PM
Monday, December 7th
6:30 PM
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/2860676322
Meeting ID: 286 067 6322
Virtual Wednesdays
Students participating in the 100% Virtual model will follow the schedule that homeroom teachers provide.
All students will be virtual on Wednesday, November 11th.
Please note: On Wednesdays, students should follow the VIRTUAL schedule only. This is the schedule students followed for the first three weeks of school. This schedule is a combination of Synchronous, LIVE instruction, and asynchronous learning.
COVID-19 Daily Screening Tools for Parents
Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) is a disease capable of rapidly spreading to other persons with whom you come in contact. If you have been infected, you are capable of exposing other people to COVID-19, even if your symptoms are mild, such as a cough. Symptoms of COVID-19 may include fever, cough, and shortness of breath. Early symptoms may also include chills, body aches, sore throat, headache, diarrhea, nausea/vomiting, and runny nose. Given that COVID-19 is a threat to the public’s health, staff members are asked to perform the following self-symptom assessment prior to entering school. Similarly, guardians are asked to conduct symptom assessment of children each morning prior to the students entering school.
Symptom assessment:
Do you or your child have any of the following?
Fever (body temperature of 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit or 38.0 degrees Celsius)
Cough
Shortness of breath
New loss of/altered taste or smell
Fatigue
Chills
Body aches
Sore throat
Headache
Diarrhea
Nausea/vomiting
Runny nose
If you answered yes and do not have another explanation for that symptom (e.g., allergies), please remain home until symptoms improve or medical documentation for alternative diagnosis is provided and notify the school nurse of the reason for remaining at home. If you have any questions or concerns, contact your primary care physician and/or school nurse.
Thank you for helping to keep our entire Council Rock community healthy and safe!
Lunch Information
Our lunch menus have changed in that what we serve on Monday and Tuesday for Cohort A will be the same for the children in Cohort B on Thursday and Friday.
Drink Reminder: Milk comes free with lunch but if your child wants a bottle of water or a capri sun that will cost extra.
To avoid confusion, be sure to review the lunch options with your child each day.
CR District Calendar
The Council Rock School Board recently approved the 2020-2021 district calendar, and you can find it at the following LINK
Wrightstown Elementary
Principal
Email: bfox@crsd.org
Website: http://crsd.org/wrightstownes
Location: 729 Penns Park Road, Wrightstown, PA, USA
Phone: (215) 944-2300
Twitter: @BethFox_WES