CCS Newsletter
February 14, 2020
ADMINISTRATION UPDATE
Dear CCS Friends and Families,
At CCS, we frequently hear the phrase “sharing is caring”. We would like to share some highlights to warm your hearts on this chilly Friday.
- Our kindergartners attended the colorful presentation of Rainbow Fish at the Flynn Theater. They skipped their way back into the building sharing how much they LOVED the play.
- Students in third grade shared books with classmates. Partners giggled at the picture and pointed out their favorite text. Who knew books could be so enjoyable?
- CY Mentors are generous with their time and commitment to our students. This week, they went with their Mentees for a celebratory outing to SpareTime in Colchester.
- Will Evans is a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and touring artist that spent Friday afternoon at CSS. He shared his inspiration for songwriting about the stewardship of the environment and social justice with the 5th graders and then performed for all of the middle schoolers. Thank you to those who contributed to the PTO, our sponsor of this event.
- Congratulations to the following students who competed in the Regional level math counts competition held at UVM last Saturday. 7th graders - Miles Bergeson, Vega Tariyal, Erin Caldwell, & Zane Martenis.
- Our CCS basketball teams are finished with their regular season and are entering the CVSD tournament next week! The final games of the tournament will be played on Monday and Wednesday next week.
- Thursday afternoon, classes of students were able to spend some time on the sledding hill. Teachers and Ms. Roth were sharing their amazement as groups of students came laughing down through the bumps.
- Thank you CCS alumna Rory McDermott for sharing CVU wisdoms to our 8th graders as they prepare for their High School transition
Kind Regards,
Stephanie, Jen and Cassandra
IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER
Tuesday, February 18th
Early Release, 1:55pm
Wednesday, February 19th
Field Trip - Youth Empowerment Conference (select students), 8:00am - 2:30pm
CCS Schoolwide Spelling Bee, MPR, 1:15pm - 2:45
Monday, February 24th through Friday, February 28th
NO SCHOOL - Winter Break
Tuesday, March 3rd
Town Voting & Town Meeting, MPR, 7:00am - 7:00pm
Early Release, 1:55pm
Friday, March 6th
Principal Q&A, 2:15 - 2:45
Tuesday, March 10th
Early Release, 1:55pm
Wednesday, March 11th
Field Trip - VAMLE Conference at Champlain College (select students), 8:15 - 2:30
Friday, March 13th
Trimester 2 Ends
Teacher Appreciation Luncheon, sponsored by 3rd & 4th grade families, Staff Rm, 11:00am - 1:00pm
Dance! Grades 6-8, MPR, 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Tuesday, March 17th
Early Release, 1:55pm
Wednesday, March 18th
Field Trip - 5th Grade Chorus to Elley Long Music Center, 8:05am (no return to CCS)
Thursday, March 19th
Variety Show, sponsored by the PTO, MPR, 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Friday, March 20th
NO SCHOOL - Parent Teacher Conferences
Monday, March 23rd
Field Trip - 1/2 Team to Flynn Theater, 8:45am - 11:30am
Tuesday, March 24th
Early Release, 1:55pm
Thursday, March 26th
Shrek the Musical! MPR, 7:00pm
Friday, March 27th
Shrek the Musical! MPR, 7:00pm
Saturday, March 28th
Shrek the Musical! MPR, 7:00pm
Tuesday, March 31st
Early Release, 1:55pm
LOST AND FOUND
The Lost and (not yet) Found is once again overflowing. Please have your child(ren) check the tables in the hallway by the elevator for any missing items. These items will be donated on Friday, February 21st (before the Winter Break). That's 1 week to find your child(ren)'s missing items. We hate to give away family's missing items, so please come by!
CALLING ALL 6-8 GRADE VOLLEYBALL PLAYERS
CCS volleyball is right around the corner and the deadline to sign up is coming up. Mr. Elderton will be coaching the team this year and we are trying to get an official roster before the start of February break. The season will be from March 2nd - March 27th, with 1 match against another CVSD school each week. No volleyball experience is required. If you are interested in signing up, please follow the sign-up link below. The official schedule of practices and matches are also below.
Official CCS Volleyball sign up form
WHEN SHOULD I KEEP MY CHILD HOME?
Parents/Guardians often ask us when they should keep their child home and when they should send their child to school. In general, we encourage parents to ask themselves, "Is my child ready to be a student today?" If their illness is preventing them for being a productive member of their class, then staying home is best. Also, please keep in mind that a sick child can spread illness to their classmates so staying home is also important for others' health as well.
• Fever (greater than 100°) You must keep your child home until your child’s temperature is back to normal (less than 99°) for at least 24 hours before returning to school without the use of fever-reducing medication (Tylenol or Ibuprofen)
• Coughing (excessive) Your child’s cough should be “dry” sounding and easily controlled by a drink of water or cough drop before returning to school.
• Vomiting or Diarrhea Your child should be able to eat food and drink liquids without vomiting or diarrhea for at least 24 hours before returning to school.
• Red or Draining Eyes Please keep your child at home and check with a physician to ensure your child does not have conjunctivitis.
• Excessive Nasal Drainage Please keep your child at home and check with a physician to ensure your child does not have an infection.
• Lice Please treat your child’s lice and nits with proper medication, and let the nurse know if your child has lice so proper precautions can be taken to reduce cases of head lice in the classrooms. Children may return to school following proper treatment.
• Unusual Rash Please keep your child at home and check with a physician to ensure that the rash is not contagious.
• Infection If your child has been tested or treated for any contagious infection, please ensure that he/she has been taking the prescribed medication for at least 24 hours before returning to school.
If you give your child medication such as Tylenol or Ibuprofen prior to them coming to school, please let the school know. This does not prevent illness from spreading if your child is sick, it will only mask the illness for a few short hours.
Keeping your students home when they are sick is vital in preventing the spread of illness and helps keep our students and staff healthy.
CCS staff understands this can be a hardship on families. Please plan ahead for an unexpected illness. Working out a “Plan B” can relieve the stress associated with an ill child. Most often, a child who comes to school not feeling well comes to the Health Office needing to go home. This can be stressful for a parent as well.
Thanks for your support in helping to prevent the spread of germs!
REMINDER FOR 8TH GRADERS!!!
please complete the Google form to register for your 9th grade math class and electives at CVU by FEBRUARY 19, 2020!!! Please use the link below:
Please see Betsy (School Counselor) if you have questions!
ANXIETIES/WORRIES
Dear CCS Community,
There are so many things to worry about in the world I am sure many of us have felt it and so do our kids! We are seeing increases in anxiety, and stress across our society and that can be really hard to manage. Some of the symptoms of anxiety or stress might not be what you would expect especially in young people who haven't learned yet to identify these feelings for what they are. You might see an increase in or a sudden change in behavior. You might notice your child is complaining of headaches, stomach aches or other physical ailments. Your child might withdraw or seem restless, and difficult to settle. It is important to be able to help young people identify worries, and intrusive thoughts and know there are tools to feel better. Building in daily time to practice being present and engaged on right now without worrying about assignments, peers, he world, or the future is important for all of us. I am including some resources for parents to support their child to manage worries and anxiety and as always please don't hesitate to reach out with questions or to talk more. And try out my favorite easy, do-anywhere grounding exercise to help slow the mind and be present.
Grounding in 5-4-3-2-1
STOP what you as doing and NOTICE (it helps to say them out loud but this is not required)
5 things that you can see around you (eg. the beautiful snow out my window)
4 things that you can feel/touch (eg. my back on the chair)
3 things you can hear (eg. the children on the playground)
2 things that you can smell (eg. my laundry soap from my sweater)
1 thing you taste (eg. is there a taste in your mouth right now? or maybe have a sip of water and notice its taste)
Now take a deep breath and take note of your space, your body, and your thoughts. You can do this activity more than once if you are still feeling anxious and if you get the steps in the wrong order it is no big deal.
I like this activity because it is easy to remember, it can be done anywhere, needs no special tools and nobody even has to know you are doing it. Each task corresponds with one of the five senses and it works to reconnect your mind and body by giving your brain tasks to think about that relate to your physical presence. It helps gets you out of your head and puts you back in control of what is happening. And it is great for kids too!
Books for Kids
Stress Can Really Get on Your Nerves
Sea Otter Cove: A Relaxation Story
Online Resources
Apps
Be Well,
Tanya Vyhovsky, CCS Clinician
CVSD CAPITAL CONSTRUCTION BOND ON TOWN MEETING DAY BALLOT
On the ballot for Town Meeting Day, March 3, not only will there be articles about the school district’s proposed budget, fund balance, and school buses, but this year there will also be an article about the proposed Capital Construction Bond. Information about the other articles will be shared in upcoming posts, but we wanted to share details about the proposed bond with our communities as soon as possible. We hope this article answers some immediate questions. Please view the Budget page of the CVSD website for additional information about the proposed budget and bond. www.cvsdvt.org/budget.
CVSD BOND PROPOSAL INFORMATION
Information about the Proposed CVSD School Budget and Capital Construction Bond
The District has added new materials to the website, including 2 new videos! We hope this helps to inform our communities and voters about the Proposed CVSD School Budget and Capital Construction Bond. You may access this by going to https://www.cvsdvt.org/ or straight to the Budget webpage at https://www.cvsdvt.org/budget
CVSD BOND PROPOSAL INFORMATION
CVSD $6 Million Bond Proposal Information - District-Wide Facility Improvements and CCS Building Efficiency Improvements Project
As part of its ongoing facility stewardship, CVSD is planning the next steps in building renovations to CCS. The thermal performance of the building is severely compromised due to a degraded envelope, causing significant waste in the form of out-sized fuel oil heating bills. Due to water-damaged siding and inadequate building insulation, as well as poorly-controlled, outdated mechanical systems, the building experiences great temperature swings throughout the day. Spaces lack adequate mechanical ventilation, often resulting in stale, stuffy, hot classrooms. These conditions result in health impacts on students and staff in hot and cold weather, and significantly impact learning.
Please click here for in-depth information: CCS Phase 1 Handbill or visit the CVSD Capital Construction Website.
We will be hosting informational tours at CCS on the following dates:
Monday, February 17th - 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.
Tuesday, February 18th - 9:00 - 11:00 a.m.
FREE FLAG FOOTBALL PROGRAM AT CVU
FlagFootball@CVU is a pick-up style football program for boys and girls in grades 2 through 7. Sessions will be held on Sundays in February (beginning 2/9) and March from 3:30pm to 5pm, in the CVU gym. Coached by Redhawks football players and supervised by CVU Football coaches, participants will play in a non-contact indoor football game comprised of four to seven players per side. The program is free and open to all interested youth regardless of town of residence or experience.
No pre-registration is required, just bring the waiver the first time you participate. Come to the sessions that fit your schedule – no commitment necessary.
More information and the required waiver are available at: https://tinyurl.com/u6ayqqb
Those interested are encouraged to visit the program’s Facebook page for updates: https://www.facebook.com/CVUFlagFootball/
FlagFootball@CVU is sponsored by CVU Redhawks Football and the Buccaneers Youth Football Program.
2020 SUMMER CAMPS
Camp Basin Harbor - ages 4-12. Two week long camps: June 15th - 19th and June 22nd - 26th.
Generator Kids Summer Camps - various ages / camps
Rosie's Girls 2020 - Explore the exciting range of activities we have in store for middle school girls and gender non-conforming youth entering grades 6-8 this summer. This year we have more camp spots open than ever before, meaning more opportunities for youth to explore the skilled trades and STEAM fields.
Vermont Comedy Club Summer Camps - Ages 11-19. Week long camp available in June, July and August.