Pinto Press
Friday, May 7, 2021
A Message from Your Principal
Hello, PIntos!
Thank you to everyone who helped celebrate Picotte's amazing staff this week for teacher appreciation week. In addition to some treats that I provided, PTA provided gift cards, lunch, and additional treats this week. I hope they know how much they are appreciated every single day!
Next Tuesday, May 11 will be an all-remote day for all Picotte students.
K-4 students will:
- begin their day at 8:50 with morning meeting. Attendance will be taken.
- have lunch/recess from 11:45-12:45.
Teachers will share their specific schedules with you.
Yearbooks are here! The 2020-21 yearbooks are on sale. They will be distributed before the school year ends. Yearbooks are $15. Checks can be made out to Picotte PTA. Remote families, you can drop off your check and order form anytime and pick up your yearbook during the week of May 17. Please call the school when you arrive. If you could avoid arrival and dismissal times, that would be appreciated.
While the warmer weather invites summer shoes, please know flip-flops or slides are not allowed at school due to safety reasons. They present lots of safety challenges, especially on the playground. Thank you for your support.
As we look ahead to next fall, we will have a few staff changes. Please join me in wishing Mrs. Jan Haun well on her retirement. Mrs. Haun has been a valued staff member here at Picotte and has made such a difference for countless students. We wish her well on her retirement journey! Mr. Yeoman will be relocating and continuing his career in another state. We are grateful for all he's done here at Picotte and wish him well.
You received an email on Wednesday with more news about the fall. The Remote Learning Program will conclude at the end of May 2021. If you are still interested in a blended learning environment for your current OPS student, be sure to check out that email to learn more about the Omaha Virtual School. The application for it will open on May 10 and close on June 4.
Please reach out if you have any questions or if we can help in any way.
Enjoy the weekend.
With Pinto Pride,
Mrs. Schovanec
Counselor's Corner
As we begin the countdown to the end of the 2020/2021 school year. We need to start thinking about transitions. For every child preparing for transitioning may look different. What does your child need? This year some of our kids our moving on to middle school, some to other schools, some are moving altogether and will not return to Picotte, still others will continue in school and participate in next level learning. Some will take breaks with a parent, grandparents, go to camps and will be away from school until the fall.
Asking your child how they are feeling about the changes. Looking for ways to practice the change and talk about what it might look and feel like. Continuing to read with them and practice academic and social activities to provide continuity as each moves forward.
In these last few weeks if you would like me to reach out to your child and assist in any of the transition process, please feel free to reach out to me.
Best!
Mrs. Ferree
https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=tm3mWBshN0q36A72lnQgwdfKyQI2d5hInvWH1P2GG29UM0YwTTAwUzZZM1hQRFNKOVQ1R0hRNlNaMC4uImportant Upcoming Dates
May 3 - May 14
- NWEA MAP testing for grades K-4
May 11
- REMOTE LEARNING DAY FOR ALL STUDENTS
May 12-May 25
- Field Day during your child's regular PE class
May 26
- Last student day!
OnLine Payment Option
Online Payment is a reliable and secure electronic payment processing solution for fees and fines transactions. The Infinite Campus Online Payment was launched on April 15th. Parents and guardians can set up a payment method and select fees to pay through their Campus Parent Portal account.
Parents or guardians must have a Campus Parent account to do this. If you would like to set up an account and have questions, please contact the office.
K-4 Arrival Drop Off Time Is 8:35
As a reminder, morning arrival drop off time is 8:35. If you bring your child to school, please keep them safely in your car until 8:35 or until staff signals them to exit. Staff is not on duty so therefore I do not have enough supervision for all students before that time.
I have a few extraordinary volunteers who are assisting me with getting our bus students into the building before then. I have to get buses unloaded and on their way and will not keep students out in the cold. However, regular drop off begins no sooner than 8:35, as that is when I have a full staff for supervision.
Thank you for helping me keep all students safe.
Early Childhood Drop-off
If you are the parent of an Early Childhood student and drop your child off in the morning, you must exit your child on the sidewalk (passenger) side. When students get out on the driver's side, it is not safe for them, you, or the drivers who are coming around you for the K-4 dismissal zones.
Thank you for helping keep everyone safe!
Attendance
Unless enrolled in the All-Remote Learning model, your child is marked absent if they are not physically here at school, even when they join on-line. We do not have a hybrid model where you can transition your child back and forth between In-Person and Remote Learning on a day-to-day basis.
If your child is arrives late (after 8:50) or leaves school early their absence is recorded as well.
Attending school on time every day matters. We know students are more engaged and achieve best when they are here. Plus, we miss our students when they are gone!
Please call the office if you have any questions. Thank you.
OPSF Early Childhood Parent-Pay Registration
To attend this program, your child must be age 4 before the first student day of the OPS 2021-2022 school year. They must also be fully potty trained and participate in rest/nap time.
Please see this link to register.
https://omahapublicschoolsfoundation.org/21-22-ece-reg-form/
OPS Early Childhood Application
This is an application-based program. Your child must reside in the OPS district and be ages 3 or 4 before July 31, 2021.
Application are being accepted from now until March 19. (Acceptance into the program is not guaranteed.)
Please see this link to apply.
Kindergarten Registration
iPad Battery Trouble? Check out these tips!
Battery Life of the iPad: A few things that could be draining your iPad battery:
- Tabs open in Safari- To close them, hold X on an open tab and hit "Close other tabs"
- Multiple Apps opened: Double click on the home button, a small version of all open apps will appear. You will need to swipe them off with your finger to close them out.
- Bluetooth is on: Go under settings and turn bluetooth off.
- Background Apps Refresh: In Settings, go to General, select Background Apps Refresh. Turn off apps that students do not use like maps, books, music, etc. This will prevent these apps from running in the background which will drain your battery and use data.
- Reduce Screen Brightness: In Settings, select Display and Brightness. You can lower the brightness of the screen. This is also better for the eyes!
- Cellular Data/Wi-Fi: If you are on a home Wi-Fi, you need to turn off the cellular data. If you are using the cellular data, you will need to turn off the Wi-Fi (under settings).
- Personal Hotspot: Under settings, turn off the personal hotspot.
Remember to charge all night for updates and battery charge!
Always use the charger that came with the iPad. Other chargers may not work.
Updated Breakfast Procedures
Instruction begins here promptly at 8:50. At that time, students begin actively participating in their morning meeting. We serve regular Grab and Go Breakfast until 8:45.
To limit the amount of time students are unmasked, students will finish eating breakfast no later than 8:50. At that time, students will put their masks back on.
If you plan to have your child eat breakfast here at school, please be sure they arrive as close to 8:35 as possible. That will allow us to balance the safety and nutrition needs of all our students.
Kindergarten Registration Information
Live Instruction for Foundational Skills
If your child is attending school at home, they must log on for morning meeting and for Foundational Skills. Your child's teacher will keep you informed of the times for the LIVE instruction for Foundational Skills. The content taught during our Foundational Skills time is absolutely vital for building strong readers, and attendance is required.
Daily Health Assessment (Updated 1-22-20)
Every day before they leave home, families must complete a self-health assessment, asking themselves three vital questions:
1. Have you or anyone in your household tested positive for Covid-19 in the last 14 days?
2. Are you awaiting a Covid-19 test result, following symptoms or a direct exposure to
someone who tested positive?
3. Have you had one or more of the following: a new cough, new onset of shortness of breath, new loss of taste or smell OR two or more of the following symptoms: fever 100.4 or above, chills, muscle aches, headache, sore throat, nausea or vomiting, diarrhea, fatigue in the last 24 hours?
If you answer "yes" to any of these questions, you will be expected to stay home.
Dressing for the Weather
Springtime means uncertain weather. Please dress your child for the day, knowing we will go outside nearly every day.
Meals to Go
Throughout the second semester, we will continue our Meals2Go curbside meal distribution at its regularly scheduled times. This program provides five days of meals for children ages 1-18 at no cost to our families.
- On Mondays, five days of meals will be available for drive-through pickup.
- Elementary meals are available from 9:30 - 10:30 a.m.
- Middle and high school meals are available from 8:30 - 9:30 a.m.
We are excited to announce that the Meals2Go program will continue to be available at no cost to families throughout the summer of 2021.
Summer meal information and schedules will be provided in the coming days.
If you have questions about student lunches or the Meals2Go program, please contact Nutrition Services at 531-299-0230.
Safety Links
Valerie Schovanec, Principal
Email: valerie.schovanec@ops.org
Website: https://picotte.ops.org/
Location: 14506 Ohio Street, Omaha, NE, USA
Phone: 531-299-1920
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PicottePintosOPS
Twitter: @OPS_PicotteFam