Wildcat Weekly
January 23, 2022
Hello Wildcat Families!
This past week the Chester County Health Department updated their guidance in regards to contact tracing and quarantining for Covid-19. As such, schools no longer have the authority to contact trace for the Corona Virus on the CCHD's behalf. This means that students will no longer be sent home to quarantine if they were found to be a close contact to another student who tested positive. Moving forward, we just ask that students who are sick/symptomatic, stay home until they are feeling better. At school, we will continue to enforce the mitigation strategies of social distancing and wearing masks in the building in accordance with the district's health and safety plan. For additional information, please refer to both the Chester County Health Department's website and Dr. Sokolowski's letter below.
Although we have consistently seen the number of positive cases of Covid-19 decrease since the winter break, students in grades 3-5 who are absent from school due to Covid-related reasons will continue to have temporary camera access to classroom instruction until January 28th. Teachers in grades 3 - 5 sent communication home to parents on how to access their zoom link when absent, along with the scheduled times for direct instruction in Math and ELA.
With the daylight getting a little bit longer each day and the Covid cases continuing to decrease, I can't help but look forward to spring when the weather gets warmer. I am hopeful we will be even closer to life as we knew it pre-covid. In the meantime, stay healthy!
Kind regards,
Dr. Cruice
This morning the Chester County Health Department (CCHD) released new guidance for school districts regarding contact tracing. Effective immediately, school districts in Chester County are no longer authorized to conduct contact tracing on the CCHD’s behalf.
To comply with this guidance, the WCASD is stopping contract tracing procedures moving forward. This means that we will no longer be notifying individuals or students in classrooms if they are a close contact of someone who has tested positive for COVID-19. Additionally, families will no longer receive communication of positive cases within our schools each day. The CCHD strongly encourages individuals who test positive to independently notify their close contacts. If a parent keeps their child home because of being a close contact, please contact the school nurse and/or attendance office to have the absence coded as nurse exclusions.
The District’s current protocols regarding individuals who test positive for COVID-19 or are presumed positive for COVID-19 based on their symptoms have not changed. These individuals will still need to complete the isolation period per CCHD and CDC guidance prior to returning to school. To keep our families informed of cases in the District, we will now update our COVID-19 Dashboard on both Tuesday and Friday afternoons.
The health and safety of our students and staff remain our top priority, and we ask that staff and families work directly with your school nurse to continue reporting positive COVID-19 test results. As we adjust to new guidance yet again and maintain our commitment to in-person education, it is critical that we continue our mitigation measures including daily home health screenings, social distancing and proper mask wearing. Our commitment to in-person education and the health of all those in the WCASD will continue to form the foundation of our decisions as we move forward with the second half of this school year.
Finally, please remember that anyone who does not feel well should stay home and get tested. The CCHD has provided a new Quarantine Guidance Tool, Updated Isolation Guidance and an interactive testing site map for links to local testing providers including resources for at-home testing.
I know that changes in guidelines may raise questions. If you have questions, please contact me, your child’s principal or school nurse.
Thank you for your continued support,
Dr. Sokolowski
Important Attendance Reminders
ABSENCES/LATE ARRIVALS
For all absences or late arrivals, please call the Safe Arrival phone line at 484-266-1810. This answering system can be accessed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to leave messages.
A maximum of ten (10) days absence for students verified by a parent note will be considered an excused absence. All absences beyond the tenth day of absence will require a note from a licensed practitioner of the healing arts. The caveat to that is the five vacation days students are permitted each year that can also be used as parent notes instead, which brings the total to 15. After that, you’ll need doctor notes or they will be unlawful.
Additionally, during the districts temporary access to classroom instruction from 1/18 – 1/28, 5 days can be nurse exclusions if the students get a vaccination or boosters during that time. Please contact our nurse for nurse exclusions.
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Early Dismissals
- For all early dismissals, you MUST send in a signed note with your child on the day of the early dismissal. Only if it is a last-minute emergency change, please CALL the office at 484-266-1802 or 1803.
- Doctor notes will excuse the time that your child is being absent from the school day.
- Early dismissals that are 60 minutes or more before the end of the school day without a doctor's note, will be considered an unlawful early dismissal.
- Early dismissals that are less than 60 minutes before the end of the school day, will require a parent note to be excused and will not count as a full day absence.
Congratulations Mr. Thompson!
Dear Wildcat Community,
I was recently offered and accepted the position of Teacher on Special Assignment to support Dr. Cruice and the school community administratively for the remainder of this school year. I am excited to continue serving the students and learning community at WTE, as well as begin supporting at Penn Wood Elementary.
Since 2018, I have been serving as a gifted education teacher (math, reading & enrichment) to students at WTE. I’ve also provided math remediation and support to students in grades k-5. Outside of my instructional responsibilities, I have been serving as head teacher to the Westtown Thornbury staff. Another responsibility was to select and manage Safety Patrol students and I worked to establish Student Council for grades 4-5. Additionally, I served as the Equity Affiliate in the building, attending trainings and facilitating professional development sessions for the building’s equity team. I also managed summer programming for English Language Learners this past summer.
The most important aspect of my career has been to serve students. This is something I’ve proudly maintained in all roles during my career. As a member of the WTE community, I will continue to work alongside Dr. Cruice to maintain the students’ positive school experience, as well as to support teachers to best serve their students.
Thank you for your continued support and devotion,
Jason A. Thompson
New Band Teacher
WTE Valentine Cookie Kit Fundraiser
12ct cookie kits- 12 large sugar cookies, 4 bags of icing, 3 containers of sprinkles $30ea 6ct cookie kits- 6 large sugar cookies, 2 bags of icing, 1 container of sprinkles $17ea
Original Chocolate Cocoa Bomb- $8ea
*Bakery states that the recipes for these cookies are nut free. However, the kitchen is NOT completely nut free... cross contamination cannot be guaranteed.
Order deadline is Friday, January 28th. Pick up will be at Westtown Thornbury Elementary (outside front entrance) on Friday, February 11th 5-6pm or Saturday, February 12th 9-10am.
Order yours now through the link below. Payment information (Venmo or check) can be found there as well.
West Chester Communities That Care
After School Sports
Nurse's Corner
6 Easy Habits for a Healthier Mind & Body
1. Give your grocery list a makeover…
Reduce the packaged, salty and fatty foods and increase the fresh (or frozen) fruits and veggies to boosts every meal. Think about putting blueberries to top your cereal, having avocados for your midday sandwich spread, or adding broccoli or cauliflower in pasta sauce, stews, and more.
2. Break away from your comfy couch…
Aim for at least 30 minutes of physical activity each day! If the weather does not permit outside activity. Try doing do toe touches or jumping jacks during TV commercials, pace while talking on the phone, or take extra trips up and down stairs.
3. Fire up your brain…
Along with binging on your favorite comfort shows or videos, check out an audio book, try working on a crossword, doodle or color in a coloring book, or look into free language courses.
4. Jot your worries in a journal…
If anxious worries are stealing your sleep or messing with your productivity, designate a specific time to write them out in a journal (list some solutions, too!) This can help train your brain to worry only at your designated time.
5. Pause to renew and restore…
Maybe take a bath or steamy shower with your favorite music or just sit quietly outside watching the clouds drift by or listening to the rustling leaves. Wherever you choose for your peaceful spot, close your eyes and take slow deep breaths, paying full attention to the moment.
6. Stay connected with others…
Follow CDC guidelines based on your vaccination status for in-person get-togethers. For people you’re still unable to see, keep up with phone calls, video chat, texts or emails and talk about the things you plan to do when you’re finally able to see each other in person!
Original source https://blog.healthadvocate.com/2021/04/6-easy-habits-for-a-healthier-mind-and-body/
Volunteers Needed for Track Meet
Is your child in 4th or 5th grade? We are excited to share that the 4th and 5th District-Wide Track Meet is back! Our students will enjoy a day at the WCU track in a friendly competition against other WCASD elementary schools. WE WILL NEED YOUR HELP!!! The success of the track meet rests heavily on the parent volunteers. YOU WILL NEED YOUR CLEARANCES. You can visit this link on the district website for information for information about obtaining your clearances. We suggest you put in for your clearances now as they do sometimes take a bit of time to receive them back.
Save the Date below to attend as a parent volunteer. More information will come with specific times.
May 18, 2022 (rain date – 5/20)
WTE Courtyard
We are beginning to plan and design the renovation of our courtyard using the money that the PTO has raised. We are so excited with the ideas we have come up with so far! Before we start finalizing and ordering materials, we wanted to reach out to see if we had any families that would be willing to lend a hand and had more knowledge in this area than ourselves! If you are or know someone who is knowledgeable in hardscaping and landscaping we would appreciate your expertise! We were also hoping to get our scouts involved-boy scouts, girl scouts, eagle scouts-whoever would like to participate!
Our hope is to keep a grassy area around the tree and we would like to build or purchase some sort of circular bend around it for students to gather. We also would like to do some raised garden beds so we can plant a variety of produce that could be donated to the Chester County Food Bank. Finally, we are hoping to change up a good portion of the remaining grassy area into different stones, gravels, mulch, etc. for the students to work on with some sort of large stepping stone divider.
We aren’t sure if the scouts would like to do any of this as a service project, but we are open to anything! Our hope is to work with Mrs. Griffin to have each class create a large stepping stone to incorporate into the divider/pathway.
This is a project that we hoping to have complete this spring so that the teachers and students can take advantages of this space as soon as possible. Please contact Dr. Reilly (mreilly@wcasd.net) or Mrs. Worrilow (jworrilow@wcasd.net) if you are interested in helping out in the renovation of our courtyard.
Thank you!
Maggie Reilly
Jess Worrilow
Volunteers Needed for Pretzel Fridays
Help make pretzel Friday's successful by volunteering to sort pretzels by class and prepare the pretzel bags for pick up. Please click on the sign-up genius below for more details and to sign-up for a slot. Thank you in advance!
Supporting Reading, Writing and Math at Home
Grades K - 2
Listed below are the areas in grades K - 2 that are integral to learning beginning math and reading, k-2.
· In K-1, phonological awareness and phonics.
· In 1-2, practicing high frequency words and addition concepts.
· In K-2, understanding story elements( character, setting, events, problem and solution) , reading/writing numbers, and skip counting.
In the link below, please find fun ways to practice these with your children at home.
Supporting Reading, Writing & Math at Home
Attached below you will find a wealth of resources with ideas on how you can support your children at home in the areas of reading, writing and math. Providing additional support at home can have a tremendous impact on student learning.
Drop Off
The school day begins at 9:10 which means students must be in their classroom by 9:10.
This year the gate to the parent drop-off will be closed at 9:00 a.m.
Please be sure to drop your child off with enough time to get to their classroom by 9:10 so that they are not marked late.
- ACP uses the cafeteria and the back playground. If you are later than 8:30 for ACP drop off, continue all the way to the back in the regular CAR LOOP with the rest of the parents, please.
- Buses are able to transport more kids than last year, so that should help alleviate our large car line from last year (hopefully).
- If the gate is closed when you arrive, please park your car and walk your child to the door to be let in. If it is after 9:10, you will need to sign them in, too. If it is later than 9:00 but the buses are also still emptying, you are able to drop them off at the walkway as we will still have staff out front.
Update and Reminders About Parent Pick-Up at Dismissal
Starting with ACP and parent pickup, dismissal begins at 3:35 daily.
Please do not arrive before 3:00 for car line as this causes a backup on Westbourne Road. When you arrive for car line, please do not park directly in front of the gate as we have students playing outside for recess. The car line should start at the flag pole.
Once the gate is opened, you will be directed to pull all the way down to the lower lot and loop around. Cones will once again be out to designate the spots where students will be walked to their car. See the pictures as well as additional reminders below.
IMPORTANT REMINDERS
1. PARENTS MUST STAY IN CARS during pick up. Staff members will assist students in getting into the cars.
2. NAME CARDS (provided on the first day of school) MUST BE DISPLAYED IN WINDSHIELD. If you need a new one, please notify the office.
3. CARS MUST STAY IN THE CAR LINE. Please DO NOT try to cut around a car that is still loading in front of you.
4. If you need to pull over to get situated after picking up your child, please pull all the way up to the basketball hoops parallel to Westbourne road and pull over to the side out of the car line.
Thank you for your cooperation!