Straight From The Lions Mouth
December 5, 2020
Hello December!
As much as I am ready to see 2020 go, I can not believe it is December! We had a smooth transition back to school this week, which is always a blessing, and we are back on track, working hard with our students until the next holiday break.
We completed all MAP assessments this week, and teachers have started to work on their student feedback for you. See letter below, which indicates when you will receive this feedback and how to sign up for a parent-teacher conference. I am very pleased with how we have all adjusted and now are truly into the rigor of academic instruction as well as social emotional and behavioral learning.
I want to share with all of you that this coming Monday, December 7th, Mrs. Mac will start her transition back to the Cashman library. Mrs. MacIntire kindly agreed to cover a long-term leave in second grade until we were certain that we had found the ideal candidate to step in. We were very fortunate to find a great second grade long-term substitute, Ms. Fagan, and I know that you all join me in thanking Mrs. Mac for her flexibility and for the outstanding job thus far. We look forward to seeing her back in the library!
I also would like to acknowledge Mrs. Waterman who stepped in to fill the librarian position during these trying times. She enriched our students with many read- alouds, book discussions, comprehension questions and brainstorming. She worked hard to enrich students' vocabulary and knowledge that aligns with grade level curriculum and standards. Thank you so much, Mrs. Waterman!
I will continue to praise our teachers for being amazingly flexible, and outstanding, making sure that students have the quality education they deserve. Once again, I feel fortunate for being surrounded by extraordinary educators, students, and families.
Hope all our families had a great return to routine this week.
Sincerely,
Principal Mascia
A note from the Nurse's Office
This year, Massachusetts instituted a mandatory flu vaccine requirement for all students PreK-12 as an important step to reduce flu-related illness and the overall impact of respiratory illness during the COVID-19 pandemic. Students must receive the seasonal influenza vaccine by December 31, 2020. Students who are in the full remote cohort are required to receive the vaccine as well. Please forward documentation of your child's flu vaccine to Nurse Courtney by December 23, 2020, or upon return to school on January 4, 2021. Medical or religious exemptions are being accepted. A letter from a parent/guardian is required for a religious exemption and a note from your child's healthcare provider is required for a medical exemption.
If you are traveling during the holidays, please remember to follow the MA state guidelines regarding quarantine and/or testing for COVID after traveling to all states, except Hawaii. Even visits to our neighboring states in New England fall under the new guidelines.
All visitors entering Massachusetts, including returning residents, who do not meet an exemption, are required to:
Complete the Massachusetts Travel Form prior to arrival, unless you are visiting from a lower-risk state designated by the Department of Public Health.
Quarantine for 14 days or produce a negative PCR molecular COVID-19 test result that has been administered up to 72-hours prior to your arrival in Massachusetts.
If your COVID-19 test result has not been received prior to arrival, visitors and residents must quarantine until they receive a negative test result. Testing for children, 10 years and younger, who are traveling with an adult from their household is not required if the parent was tested and their result was negative. If parents opt to quarantine for 14 days, children have to do so as well. If the child is 11 or older, then the child needs to be tested or will need to quarantine for 14 days, unless an exemption criteria applies."
Cashman School Council - one more week to apply!
A school council is a representative, school building-based committee composed of the principal, parents, teachers, community members and, at the secondary level, students, required to be established by each school pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 71, Section 59C.
The law outlines four major areas of responsibility for councils. School councils are to assist principals in:
Adopting educational goals for the school that are consistent with local educational policies and statewide student performance standards
Identifying the educational needs of students attending the school
Reviewing the annual school building budget
Formulating a school improvement plan
There is to be membership parity among the parent, teacher and community members of the School Councils. Currently our Amesbury and Cashman Elementary School are looking for 2 parent representatives as well as a community representative. It is our goal to have this committee by the end of the 2020 year, so the first meeting can be held in January 2021.
If you have an interest in participating in this committee please submit your interest through the PTO’s Google Form “School Council Parent Interest Submission". All interests must be submitted by December 11th, 2020. At that time, PTO will review the applications and determine next steps.
Don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns.
The direct link for the form is: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdLqSVy3mxF9P9f5UjE3ODgp5pwZOsKBD1pF8O8l_nAYn_23Q/viewform
The PTO website link is: https://www.amesburypto.org/
Charles C. Cashman Elementary School
Email: karina.mascia@amesburyma.org
Website: https://schools.amesburyma.gov/Domain/454
Location: 193 Lions Mouth Road, Amesbury, MA, USA
Phone: (978) 388-4407