Weekly Family Update #42
June 6, 2021
Principal's Message
Hello Falcon Families,
This past week was Safety Preparedness Week at Oak Valley. We spent time in each class preparing students for what to do in the event of a disaster or safety event as well as practiced several different safety drills. I appreciate how seriously our students took these practices drills. Safety first!!
8th Grade Families, the Promotion Ceremony is coming up! We need to know how many students will be in attendance so we can reserve them a spot. Please use the link HERE to access our RSVP Form. Please complete the form by Friday, June 11th. We appreciate your time and look forward to a great promotion ceremony.
Please make sure to read through the textbook, Chromebook, and Chromebook Charger return process for all virtual and on-campus students.
Upcoming Calendar Items
June 7: 6th Grade Virtual Student textbook return, 3:00-4:30 (in the library)
June 8: 7th Grade Virtual Student textbook return, 3:00-4:30 (in the library)
June 9: 8th Grade Virtual Student textbook return, 3:00-4:30 (in the library)
June 11: 8th Grade Picnic and 8th Grade Yearbook distribution, 11:00-2:00
June 14: 6th & 7th Grade Yearbook distribution
June 15: On-campus student Chromebook and charger return
June 16: Virtual Student Chromebook return and yearbook distribution, 2:30-4:30 (in the MPR)
June 17: Promotion practice for all participants, 12:45-2:15
June 18: Promotion 9:00 am OVMS Quad
June 18: Virtual Student Chromebook return and yearbook distribution, 11:30-1:30 (in the MPR)
Thanks for all you do for our Oak Valley Community! Go Falcons!
Beaming with Falcon Pride,
Mr. Young
Colin Young
Principal
Oak Valley Middle School
Schedule for the Week of June 7-11
New Information
Yearbook Distribution
Yearbook Distribution is coming!! Our student yearbook staff is excited to share all of their hard work with you. Those students who purchased a yearbook will receive it during the schedule below:
8th Grade: Friday June 11. Yearbooks will be distributed at the picnic on June 11th. Students who do not attend the picnic will receive their yearbook on Monday June 14 in their Connections Class.
6th and 7th Grade: Monday June 14. Students in 6th and 7th grade will receive the yearbook in their Connections class.
Virtual Students: All virtual students can pick up their yearbook when they return their Chromebook and Charger. If you do not need to return a Chromebook, you are welcome to come during the drop off event to just pick up your yearbook.
June 16: Virtual Student Chromebook return and yearbook distribution, 2:30-4:30 (in the MPR)
OR
June 18: Virtual Student Chromebook return and yearbook distribution, 11:30-1:30 (in the MPR)
Yearbook Expectations: Students are expected to be respectful of other students’ yearbooks. If your student writes or draws inappropriate words, phrases, messages or pictures and/or defaces any photographs in another student’s yearbook, they may face disciplinary consequences that could include being responsible for replacing the yearbook and/or not being permitted to participate in any end of year events. Thank you for your partnership.
Falcon Foundation Dine-Out Thank You!
Thank you to all families who are supporting our monthly “Dine Out” nights. Through your annual fund donations, and by feeding your families, the Oak Valley Falcon Foundation has been able to approve a wide variety of teacher and staff grant requests that supplement learning for all our Falcons. Be sure to follow the Oak Valley Falcon Foundation on Facebook to learn more.
Next up is Burger Lounge later this month!
The Arts Corps Art Show is Coming!
The OVMS Art Corps Annual Art Show is coming to you virtually this year! Thank you to our OVMS Social Studies teachers and parent volunteers who have been busy gathering photos of this year's student artwork for a digital showcase.
Look out for the link in the 6/13 Weekly Family Newsletter to view the art gallery for your class! If you have any questions, or didn't get a chance to submit art to your teacher and want to make sure it makes the art show, please email us at: OakValley.ArtCorps@gmail.com
OVMS Science Olympiad
OVMS Science Olympiad is preparing for the upcoming 2021-22 school year and we are excited to announce our program will be in person! If you are an incoming 6th, 7th or 8th grader who would like to be a part of our award-winning program please visit our website to sign up on our Student Interest List. We are also looking for coaches for many of next year’s events, plus someone to fill the position of Data Analysist on our Leadership Team. All interested parents, both new and returning, need to sign up on the Coach Interest List.
Contact us at ovmsso@gmail.com for more information.
Continuing Information
Textbook/Chromebook Return Volunteers Needed
(Masks will be required)
Virtual Students Textbook Return Schedule
All virtual students can return all their textbooks to the Oak Valley Middle School Library
at the following days and times:
6th Grade: Monday June 7th from 3:00-4:30
7th Grade: Tuesday June 8th from 3:00-4:30
8th Grade: Wednesday June 9th from 3:00-4:30
Note: Please do not bring Chromebooks on these days.
Here is a list of the books your student should return in addition to any free reading books that have been checked out:
6th graders
3 science textbooks - Planet Earth, Forces and Energy, Cells and Genetics
1 Literature book
1 CMP 3 math book
1 Ancient Civilizations
7th graders
3 science books - Ecosystems, Weather and Climate, Matter
1 Literature book
1 CMP 3 math book
1 Medieval and Early Modern Times book
8th graders
No science textbook
1 Literature book
1 CMP 3 math book, Integrated Math, or their math was online
1 America - History of Our Nation
Possible Spanish book
Virtual Students Chromebook and Charger Return Schedule
All Virtual and on-campus Students who have checked out a PUSD Chromebook device will need to return the device and charger. All PUSD students will be issued new devices in August before the return to school
Virtual Students - Chromebook and charger Check-in is Wednesday - June 16th - 2:30 - 4:30 if you have technology at home that allows you to access school for the rest of the week.
Chromebooks can also be turned on Friday June 18th from 11:30-1:30 for those without other home devices.
Please make your students aware of how important it is to return their Chromebooks and Chargers. Students will be held accountable for Chromebooks and chargers not returned.
Thanks for helping us out! Your OVMS Library.
Oak Valley Coding Club
Oak Valley performed very well in the American Computer Science League (ACSL) this year, with our team tying for 1st place nationally with a perfect score! Five students achieved a perfect score on all 4 contests. Oak Valley also did well in the ACSL Nationals Competition, with 2 students winning Silver awards and 2 students winning Bronze awards. In the USA Computing Olympiad (USACO), we had 10 students qualify for the Silver division which is an impressive achievement given this is a high school competition. Congratulations to all of these students!
This year we expanded our club activities to include an internal coding competition, which is planned for June 6th. We were also fortunate to have four guest speakers from The MIT Club of San Diego on several exciting topics related to STEM careers. A few teams from OVCC will be competing in the Montgomery Blair Informatics Tournament in June. The coding club is concluding a very successful year with our end-of-the-year meeting and awards on June 12th.
Students interested in joining OVCC next year can complete this interest form now and we will contact you in the new school year!
For more details, please visit our website.
Face Covering Reminder
Dear PUSD Families,
California has made amazing progress in the fight against COVID-19. According to the California Health and Human Services Agency: with more than 34 million vaccines administered, our state has among the lowest case and positivity rates in the nation. With your help, we have reopened our schools, kept them open, and prevented the spread of COVID-19.
On Monday, May 17, the Health and Human Services Secretary, Dr. Mark Ghaly, made this statement that the state will not be changing its face covering guidance to align with the new CDC recommendations for vaccinated people at this time. As a result, face coverings are still required in all PUSD office spaces and learning and teaching spaces in our schools and classrooms, including outdoor spaces (except when eating/drinking).
Dr. Ghaly also stated that on June 15, California plans to implement the CDC’s guidelines around masking to allow fully vaccinated Californians to go without a mask in most indoor settings. We have not received clarification yet on how this will apply to school and office settings.
To reiterate, until June 15, when California plans to fully reopen the economy, California will keep its existing guidance around masks in place. Thus, nothing will change for PUSD until June 15th, at the earliest. If more specific guidance is released for our schools and offices, we will share that with you. Thank you for adhering to the most current requirements for use of face coverings to ensure a safe and healthy environment for all staff and students.
Thank you,
The Poway Unified School District
School Lunch Reminder
Falcons, Remember to Bring Your ID Card Each Day
Students need to continue to bring their ID cards each day as they will scan into our attendance kiosk each morning upon entry to campus. If you have not picked up your ID card, please come to the library for help.
Caring Connections Counseling (CCC)
8th Grade End of the Year Information
8th Grade Picnic on Friday 6/11
As a special surprise to our 8th grade students, all 8th grade Falcons will have the opportunity to decorate a legacy rock with their name, words of encouragement or a special memory, and place it around campus. Our Forever Falcons will have an opportunity to decorate our campus.
Bring a lawn chair. Bring a beach towel to sit on. Bring a game to play.
We look forward to seeing you there!
More details and RSVP information will be coming later in May.
8th Grade Promotion on Friday 6/18
We are excited to announce our Promotion Ceremony will be held on the OVMS Quad/Outdoor Stage on Friday June 18 from 9-10:30am. We are very excited to be able to provide this opportunity for our Forever Falcons!
We need to know how many students will be in attendance so we can reserve them a spot. Please use the link HERE to access our RSVP Form. Please complete the form by Friday, June 11th. We appreciate your time and look forward to a great promotion ceremony.
Please see the family informational letter HERE for more details!
8th Grade Open Campus for Pictures the Week of June 14th
Smile Falcons!!
8th Grade Yard Sign Distribution Information
Yard signs are ready! If you missed the drive-through pick-up, you can still get your signs at the 8th-grade picnic on Friday, June 11th. We can't wait to see these sprouting up all over our neighborhoods!
Congratulations to all of our Falcons!
Continuing Schedule and Reopening Information
Health Office Notes
Please remember to be proactive and prescreen your student at home prior to leaving for school. If your child has any of the following symptoms, please keep them at home. If your child has developed any one of the symptoms below while at school, they must be sent home immediately. Parent(s) will be notified to pick up their student immediately.
- Fever or chills
- Cough
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
- Fatigue
- Muscle or body aches
- Headache
- New loss of taste or smell
- Sore throat
- Congestion or runny nose
- Nausea or vomiting
- Diarrhea
Per the CDC Guidelines (use link below of Decision Tree updates as of 2/22/21):
The individual may return based on one of the following:
https://covid-19.sdcoe.net/Portals/covid-19/Documents/Health%20Practices/COVID-19-Decision-Tree.pdf
a) 10 days from the day symptom(s) first appeared, AND improved symptoms and no fever (or fever reducing meds) for the last 24 hours.
b) With proof of negative PCR COVID viral test (no rapid results test accepted for negative results), may return immediately if symptoms are greatly improved AND student has been fever free (without fever reducing meds) for 24 hours.
c) A signed note from a licensed MD, DO, NP, or PA (who manages that condition) must: confirm the chronic diagnosis (i.e., cites labs, date-of record when diagnosed); include provider’s contact information; explain how symptoms are unrelated to COVID-19; and be accompanied by signed consent for school to interact with MD, DO, NP, or PA.
Please call Mr. Ennis in the Health Office at 858-487-2939 ext. 6129 for any questions or concerns.
Health Symptom Screening Information
If at-home screening is not possible, please come to the Welcome Center before entering campus to check your temperature.
More information on the self-screening process can be found below in the Health Office Notes message later in this newsletter.
We will return to our normal morning drop off route now that we are no longer taking temperatures.
On-Campus Students Reminders
For our families that are returning to campus. Please read over our Reopening Plan and Family Handbook carefully. There is lots of important information and reminders in those documents. All on-campus students must return a signed PUSD Health and Safety Agreement in order to be on campus. This form can be found HERE. We will be collecting these forms as students are dropped off and will have blank copies available in the Welcome Center if families need.
Here are some key reminders:
1. Please make sure you return the PUSD Health and Safety Agreement Form when you drop off your student. You can find the form HERE.
2. All students must come to school each day with a fully charged Chromebook.
3. All students will need to bring with them each day headphones, any needed school supplies, PE appropriate clothing (on the day they have PE), water bottle, independent reading book, and a packed lunch.
4. Students must wear a clean mask each day. We recommend bringing a second mask on the day they have PE.
5. Students who are on campus will go to their connections teacher for both connections and office hours. They will be able to zoom into to any classroom to ask questions. Students can also use this time to finish up work.
Learning Preference Change Request
We appreciate your patience.
PE for On-Campus Students
Welcome Back Falcons!
The PE team is so excited to have students coming back to campus – We have missed you!
Some information for an easy transition:
Students will not be dressing out in the locker room or using PE clothes. All Falcons must come to school dressed in appropriate athletic attire and tennis shoes on their PE days in order to receive credit for the daily activities.
Things you might want to send with your student on PE days are:
1. Extra face mask
2. Water bottle
3. Hand sanitizer
4. One warm days, a hat/visor, and sunscreen.
Weekly Bell Schedule and Monthly Calendar
Please see the attached weekly bell schedule HERE and below.
There is also a monthly calendar attached HERE and below. We will follow this same weekly schedule pattern for the reminder of the year, unless the School Board changes our current school model, with the exception of a few weeks where we have to adjust for holidays. Please look at both of these documents closely.
Asynchronous Fridays
Asynchronous Fridays are a day for students to work independently and for teachers to have time to prep, grade and collaborate as seen in the details presented at the last Board Meeting (bulleted below) as well as work with students needing support. This is still a work in progress and staff will continue the conversation to adjust as we move forward.
For Students:
· Review and preview work from the week to deepen learning
· Review feedback and complete corrections
· Independent learning time
· Reduce screen time
· Additional support time with peers and staff
For Teachers:
· Provide timely feedback to students; including grades
· Review assessments and plan based on student needs
· Complete required COVID attendance tracking
· Collaboration
· Professional learning
· Office hours to provide support to individual student
Parent Academy
Oak Valley Middle School
Email: coyoung@powayusd.com
Location: 16055 Winecreek Road, San Diego, CA, USA
Phone: (858) 487-2939