Big Lake Elementary Newsletter
AUGUST 6, 2020
WELCOME TO THE 2020/2021 SCHOOL YEAR
A NOTE FROM THE BIG LAKE ELEMENTARY PRINCIPAL - MRS. LEIGH MAGNAN:
Growing up in Alaska, I have called it home for over 40 years. I spent my childhood in Anchorage, but the valley has been my home for over 20 years now. My husband and I love our family, being outdoors, fishing, hiking, biking and basically anything that keeps us outside:)
Having been both a teacher and administrator in MatSu, I feel so fortunate to be at Big Lake Elementary. When school buildings closed during 4th quarter, I was able to spend a few days each week at school. I met with most of the staff 1:1 and learned what makes our school such an amazing place to be. The staff are community centered people who love your children and want them to be back with us at school.
It is my privilege to be the principal at Big Lake Elementary. While I know this is a time with many uncertainties right now, I am here for you. Please let me know if you have questions or concerns and I look forward to meeting you in person.
REGISTER FOR SCHOOL
We hope to see you in person at Big Lake Elementary but you also have the option to select at-home learning which gives you access to a Big Lake Elementary teacher.
Below is information on the benefits of selecting at-home learning vs correspondence school:
- Students who select at-home learning will have access to a brick and mortar MSBSD teacher who can provide support and direct instruction in-person, over the phone, and/or Zoom meetings.
- At-home learning students still have access to our electives and enrichment classes in a brick and mortar environment. For example, they may take their core classes at-home via Apex, but they could also attend school for music or welding. We have had many parents ask: if they choose at-home learning, can they still participate in sports or our elective classes. The short answer is—yes.
- Families who register for at-home learning can also shift to at-school learning or, conversely, can shift from at-school learning to at-home learning.
We hope to see you on August 19th.
MASKS ARE REQUIRED
NURSE RX
A NOTE FROM THE SCHOOL NURSE
Dear Parents,
As your school nurse I am looking forward to starting school with your student. I like an old saying from GI Joe “Knowing is half the battle”. I would like to prepare you for this upcoming year so you will be “in the know” for some big changes. My hope is that being aware of this knowledge will help us all make the necessary changes.
- Parents prescreen students at home.
- Masks are required 3rd, 4th, 5th grades. Masks are not required PreK, Kdg, 1st, 2nd.
- Water bottle – Drinking fountains are not available.
- Medication drop off will be from the parking lot. The nurse will go to your car and receive medication and sign paperwork.
- Religious exempt forms and immunizations will be required to start school. Please email rachel.lund@matsuk12.us with your immunization records. If you need forms, I will email them to you or send them home with your student. Please avoid coming into the nurse’s office as much as possible.
Please be aware that this year will look different than any other year. I know this is not a big surprise. A very important concept to be aware of is that students will not be able to be at school with any CoVid symptoms listed below. As a nurse I am aware that students get on average 12 viruses a year, but this year any symptoms will keep the student from going to school. For example, if your student has the common cold they will have to stay home. The student will not be able to attend with a runny nose, a cough, fever, trouble breathing, chills, sore throat, body aches, headache, stomachache, diarrhea, joint pain or any of the other symptoms listed below. Please do not premedicate your student before school for any of these symptoms. Simply keep your student home. If your student has any of these symptoms at school, they will be sent home immediately. This is very different than our previous “tough it out policy”. This is different. If your child has any symptom keep them home or they will be sent home immediately. They will be sent home for 10 days and they must be symptom free for at least 24 hours before returning to school. So, a runny nose would keep the student out of school for a minimum of 10 days.
We will be encouraging less face to face interaction. For example, if your student is taking daily medication at school please coordinate with the school nurse and I will meet you in the parking lot. Parents will stay in their car for medication drop off.
Please make a plan for your student to be picked up at school. It’s been my personal experience that the kids always have to be picked up at the most “inconvenient” time. They will have to be picked up quickly. Please prepare for that. Please update your emergency contact information.
How do you do a prescreen?
Prescreen Guidelines
Ask these questions. Anyone who answers “yes” to one or more of these questions must not be permitted to enter the school or participate in a school sport or activity.
- Within the last 14 days, have you been diagnosed with COVID-19 or had a positive test for the virus?
- Do you live in the same household or have you had close contact in the last 14 days with someone who has been told they had COVID-19 or tested positive for COVID-19? Close contact counts if you have been within 6 feet for more than 10 minutes, or if someone from public health contacted you to let you know you are a contact.Note: If a child or staff member lives with someone else who was named as a contact, it is okay for the child or staff member to go to school. We do not quarantine contacts of contacts.
- Have you had any of these symptoms in the last 3 days?
- a. Fever (defined as a temperature over 100.3F)
- b. New cough
- c. New trouble breathing or shortness of breath
- d. Chills
- e. Night sweats
- f. Sore throat
- g. Body aches
- h. Muscle aches
- i. Joint pain
- j. Loss of taste or smell
- k. Headache
- l. Confusion
- m. Vomiting
- n. Diarrhea
- o. Abdominal pain
If a person answers YES to one or more questions, they should STAY HOME or go home
immediately. Their next step is to get tested for COVID-19. They should call their doctor or other health care provider if they have questions or concerns. They should not go to their doctor’s office without calling first. If they have worsening difficulty breathing, chest pain, confusion, sleepiness, or other severe problems, they should seek emergency care.
They do NOT need a doctor’s note to return to school. Instead, they should follow the RETURN TO SCHOOL pathway. A doctor’s note is only needed to allow someone back to school if they have NOT had COVID-19 and there is another reason that they had symptoms.
If there are any questions or concerns please feel free to contact me via email rachel.lund@matsuk12.us phone 907-892-9705 or fax 907-892-9780.
All the best,
Rachel Lund, BSN, RN
MSBSD School Nurse, Big Lake Elementary
YEARBOOKS HAVE ARRIVED!
We still have yearbooks available for purchase for $15 each, so if you would like to purchase a yearbook from last year please call us to make arrangements to pay for and pick up the yearbook. You can pay with cash or check.
LIBRARY PAGES
OTHER ITEMS
Supply List
School Calendar
First day of school for kindergarten is August 26.
About Us
Leigh Magnan, Principal
Chris Sawyer, Admin. Secretary
Shari Mason, Office Secretary
Mandy Trelfa, Records Specialist
Email: ble@matsuk12.us
Website: matsuk12.us/ble
Location: 3808 S. Big Lake Road, Big Lake, AK
Phone: 907.892.9700