Wasco Weekly
THE STRENGTH OF THE WOLF IS ITS PACK
August 22, 2020
Dear Wasco Families,
What a great week it has been! I am so appreciative of your kind and helpful actions. Thank you for working together and with us to follow procedures in order to facilitate a smooth transition into remote and in-person learning. Arrival, Remote Material pick up, Dismissal, Meet and Greets, all events successfully took place this week. I hope you and your child enjoyed meeting the staff and their new classmates. I have certainly enjoyed meeting you and your children and I look forward to our learning journey together. Our success is dependent on our ability to cooperate and work together and this week showed me what is possible within our school community.
Inside the school, I already see teachers practicing spelling patterns, modeling movement breaks that teach peer cooperation, and constructing activities that build the social skills of turn-taking and language modeling. Remote teachers have been able to build connections with students, evidenced by students' motivation to follow schedules and eager participation in activities with their teacher and their classmates. So much accomplished by our community in a short period of time!
During this unique time of educating students in both remote and in-person settings, we are making every effort to balance class sizes and maintain a sense of community for all our students. As parents continue to request changes for their children, impacting both remote and in-person class size, we will need to continue to shift personnel and adjust the remote and in-person classroom makeups. While continuity is our goal, these adjustments may result in changes in placements. We appreciate your patience as we work to provide meaningful educational experiences for all our students.
Kind regards,
Principal Brennan
331-228-6294
Stephanie.Brennan@d303.org
Lunch for 1st and 2nd Grade Begins Monday, August 24th
Wasco first and second graders will begin following lunch procedures on Monday. At Wasco, students can bring their lunch or purchase a lunch. You can pay for lunches by sending a check into the school made out to CUSD 303 or you can manage the lunch account online via Pushcoin. Please note the student's name and class if you send in a check. The best way to know the balance of your student’s lunch account is to sign up via Pushcoin. The access can be found on the school district website under the "For Parents" section. Menus and prices are also available online from the District 303 webpage.
On a daily basis, teachers will record student's lunch choices. At lunchtime, students will be escorted to the lunchroom where they will eat their lunch from home, or receive their purchased lunch. There are tables in the lunchroom designated as allergy/nut free.
In order to meet health and safety guidelines, we will serve lunch in one of three rooms which have been arranged to provide distance and allow for individual student areas. After eating lunch, students will participate in a recess break.
Idea from a parent: You may want to provide a fresh new mask in the lunchbox.
Mask and Space Requirements When Visiting our Campus
Parents and other visitors to a school campus are expected to be wearing a mask when at the school. Our school community goal is to be as safe as possible and following the precautions such as wearing a mask when sharing space with others or when we are unable to keep our distance is a community practice that decreases the spread of germs. Your help modeling mask-wearing and spacing from others demonstrates our commitment to the health of one another.
I forgot to mark my child's health survey. What happens next?
Thank you for adding the
self-certification process to your morning routine. Our parent community is doing a very good job of completing this process before school. Once on the school campus, a staff member checks the backpack tag to make sure the day's screening has occurred. If the health check was not signed, a staff member escorts the child to our school nurse's station at the front entrance. She takes the student's temperature and has the office staff call you to verify the completion of the self certification checklist.
Escorting children to a separate entrance, screening their temperature, and calling home is an involved process, but a safety requirement of D303, working with health officials. It is very helpful to the safety of our school if you can please remember to screen your child before arrival at school.
News from our Physical Education Department
This
letter introduces our PE teachers and provides information about times, location, and processes for PE. Our PE teachers have helped by creating a booklet of activities for our teachers and recess staff to use.
We are sharing the Wasco Socially Distranced/No Equipment Game Book with families in case you would like to try some of these fun activities at home. Driving to Wasco?
The following procedure is from our Welcome to Wasco Manual. This year, please stay in your cars until doors open at 7:50. The video link to my arrival directions is below and I have provided a picture of student line up at dismissal. Students will be lining up, socially distanced, by grade level, and waiting until their parent's car is next to curb before loading. Your help keeping our school campus safe by following these rules ensures a cooperative and efficient environment for all.
Arrival and Dismissal Procedures -
When driving your child to and from school, safety procedures must be followed by all drivers to ensure student and adult safety for everyone.
Please plan to arrive early as drop-off/pick-up lines can be long.
Please be patient as we direct traffic and supervise the safety of our students.
If parking your car, please park ONLY in the school parking lot in front of the school. Do not park along School Street or in the bus lane behind the school. We have many buses that drop off/pick up students in the bus lane and/or driving along School Street while getting in line to drop off/pick up students.
NEVER park, wait in or block the handicap parking spaces. Even for a moment.
When dropping off/picking up students, please enter/exit the school parking lot slowly and follow the directional arrows around the lot into the drop off/pick up lane.
Please pull all the way up to the first open space.
Students must be ready to enter/exit the vehicle immediately and should be able to independently exit/enter the vehicle and not require assistance.
Students must enter/exit the car on the passenger side, closest to the school. NEVER allow students to exit the car on the driver side.
If your student requires assistance entering/exiting the vehicle, please park in the parking lot and walk them to/from school using the crossing lane.
CELL PHONE USE IS PROHIBITED IN ALL SCHOOL ZONES, INCLUDING THE PARKING LOT! IT IS THE LAW!
We have staff members on duty to assist and who will gently remind you of our safety precautions as needed. Please know that these reminders are for the purpose of keeping our students safe at Wasco School and are not intended to upset or offend our community.
Please drive slowly and safely while driving through or parking in our school parking lot. We have many small students and siblings that are hard to see as they navigate through the lot.
We had a good year of safety in the parking lot and during arrival and dismissal procedures! Thank you! We would like to keep this going throughout the next year! If you witness a safety violation, please alert our staff immediately.
Safety is #1-thank you for your cooperation!
New to Wasco? Here is a guide to help! Welcome to Wasco Elementary for Families SY 21
We realize there is much information to digest, especially if you are a parent new to Wasco. Please use this
link to access a plethora of information about the daily operation of our school. We hope this guide answers all of your questions. When in doubt, please reach out to our office. We are happy to help! Even if you are a returning family, you might want to keep the link handy.
Bus Information
Transportation route information is accessible to families using this link:
Bus Routes. You will need your HAC number to access the information. Transporation route information will not be sent home through the mail and can only be accessed online. Please note that for the first two weeks of the school year, the district will not make adjustments to the transportation routes. Our transportation department will collect suggestions about the routes and make adjustments where necessary after the first two weeks of classes.
Something to keep handy: D303 Self-Certify Process
Please use this Self Certification web site and login using your HAC Parent username and password.
- Once you are logged in, for each of your students please read the screening questions to determine if your student meets the criteria and is healthy to come to school each day.
- You will select No to each of the questions if your student is healthy and ready to come to school.
- You will select Yes for any of the questions if your student is experiencing any of the symptoms related to COVID-19.
- Once you make your selection, please click Submit. When you select No, the app will present you with a Green Pass; When you select Yes, a Warning will be displayed indicating that your student should not attend school that day.
- The self-certification must be completed before your child come to the Open House or Meet and Greet. When you arrive for these events, we will ask you to confirm that you have completed the self-certification checklist.
- The video linked here was created for our high school parents self-certifying their students for athletic practice.
During the school year, you will log in each day and answer the screening questions before your child leaves for school. A luggage tag on your child's backpack will be used for you to initial and date the colored pass.
If your family needs assistance to get a thermometer, contact our office. We would be happy to help. Thank you in advance for taking these extra steps to ensure our school is healthy and safe.
Information about Extracurricular: BAND
We are very happy to introduce you to our band teacher, Mrs. Marianne Rice. If you are interested to know more about our band program, Mrs. Rice has provided information for you
here, including a nice Q & A section. I hope you will encourage your child to pursue the arts as a part of their education
There are informational meetings coming up:
Wednesday, August 26 6:00PM Beginning Band Parent Informational Meeting
Thursday, August 27 6:00PM Beginning Band Parent Informational Meeting
Our library is opening!
Mrs. Furlong has created a virtual classroom so you can explore our library and its resources. We are excited to offer access to the wide world of fiction and nonfiction reading for all types of readers. Use
this link to find out how to check out books, electronic or physical copies, from the Wasco Library. This link also gives information about how book check-out will work during the school year. Come explore! All are welcome!
Click the link above for more information about our food service programs.
Since March, District 303 has collaborated with our food service vendors to provide grab and go meals for students to enjoy at home. As we move into the school year, we want to make you aware of the procedures for making sure that students continue to receive meals, whether they are learning in-person or remotely.
The tables you will find in this document outline the procedures we have put in place to ensure that our student will continue to have access to healthy meals. Unlike the summer food service program, families must specify the name of the child who is receiving the meal. Families who choose to purchase meals for their children will have their PushCoin accounts debited, unless eligible for free lunch. For more information about eligibility for free and reduced lunch, please contact Patricia Townsend at 331.228.6529.
Join The Orchestra!
Don't forget to sign your child up for Orchestra! In-person and remote students are welcome to participate. Students will participate in a weekly small-group lesson (in-person, or synchronous-remotely), along with a smaller group rehearsal. A high level of attention is being directed towards keeping students healthy and safe, while still allowing them to have fun while learning the violin, viola, cello, or bass.
If your child is new to orchestra, please join us for a Parent Information Meeting on Zoom! Choose the meeting that works best for you. Meet the D303 orchestra staff, and ask any additional questions you may have.
Registration Links and Login codes will be sent out prior to the meeting.
Wednesday, August 26 - 7:00PM
or
Thursday, August 27 - 7:00PM
Questions? Contact: Christopher Pettit at christopher.pettit@d303.org
