Chester Elementary School
March 23, 2020
Hard at work at home!
Awesome Snow Person!
That is one big backyard buddy! Well done!
Greetings CES Families & Friends,
Plumas schools closed until April 13 (possibly longer, according to Governor Newsom). We are facing some extremely challenging times, and we are all saddened about the impact this pandemic is having on our children. We are doing our best to provide distance learning opportunities for our students. Please see the following paragraphs and links below for additional information. We'll get through this challenge! Thanks!
Teachers reaching out to families. Our teachers will soon be in contact with our families and provide some suggestions to help keep our students' brains active and growing while our schools are closed. They are missing their students and are eager to help. Unfortunately, we can only connect with students via email, phone or Internet resources (ex Zoom, Face time, Google Hangout, etc) and must abide by the social distancing requirements as outlined by our local and national leaders.
Chromebooks available. We can proceed with our chrome book distribution on Monday, March 23 from 7:30-10:00 am (same time as meal distribution). Parents can pull up to the west side of the campus and pick up meals for children from Ms. Jen and the rest of our kitche team, then pull to the front curb of CES. A staff member will greet you, then go collect your child's chrome book, packet and report card. Parents will have to sign for the chrome book, and assume financial responsibility for the machine. Please bring your own pen.
If these times do not work you can make a special appointment with Mr. Reeder or Ms. Nicole. Please contact us to set up a special time to pick up your child's Chromebook. (areeder@pcoe.k12.ca.us , npeterson@pcoe.k12.ca.us or 258-3194).
If students have a tablet or computer at home, they can access the same resources we will be suggesting. Unfortunately, without Internet access the chrome book won’t be useful. However, check out the ABC channel 10 news link below which shares some potential opportunities for families to secure Internet at home.
Parents can return completed packets to the boxes in front of the office. We will forward on to the teachers.
Report cards. We can provide hard copies of report cards on Monday when families pick up packets and chrome books. Additionally, families will be able to view report cards on Monday in our Aeries parent portal.
Online resources. We will continue to share resources on our Facebook account and on our website for students and families to explore. There are a lot of resources that are free and interesting. We have links to museums, national parks, educational videos plus much more. Please take advantage of these resources to keep your child's brain active and growing. Now might be a great time to explore some individual interests. Please visit the link below, our Facebook account and our website to explore these learning opportunities.
Meals! Our kitchen crew are working on providing meals to anyone up to 18 years old (any school - not just CES or CJHS). These meals can be picked up at the kitchen west door from 7:30-10:00 Monday-Friday. Starting Tuesday, March 24, meals will be distributed via revised bus routes. See link below for times and locations. Thanks!
Daily schedule for your children. With all of the chaos, you may want to consider establishing a daily schedule during the week days for your child. We rely on schedules at school, and this might provide some normalcy for your child and help get him/her into a routine. I've included a link below with information on setting up a daily schedule for your child. Please check it out. Thanks for considering.
Let's have a Covid Spirit Week! Ms. O'Kelley forwarded a picture to me (see below) regarding students dressing up in a theme each day. Please consider participating and send a picture to your child's teacher and me (if you're okay with us putting it in a future newsletter). We'd love to see pictures of our students!
We are here for you. We truly miss our students, and we want to help. Although we can't meet in person, if your child would like to speak via phone or video chat to one of our staff members, please send him/her an email with a good contact number, and we will do our best to reach out, say hello and offer assurances that he/she will be okay. If you do not have a staff member's email, feel free to email us areeder@pcoe.k12.ca.us, npeterson@pcoe.k12.ca.us or call us (258-3194) and we will relay the message to the CES team member your child requests.
Tech Savvy. Check out the links below from Josh at Smart Social. We anticipate students will be increasing their screen time with schools closed, and we want to make sure they stay safe and only visit sites that parents are aware of and hopefully previewed.
Reading each night? I was suggesting 20 minutes/night when school was in session. At this time, I'm suggesting a minimum of 40 minutes/day, which can be broken up into chunks. Students can now take AR tests from home (link below). Check out the calendar below offering a variety of reading suggestions. Send me your pictures and your favorite books and we'll put them in an upcoming newsletter! Now more than ever we'd love to see your pictures. We miss our students!
We have some suggestions, including a video from Josten's, to hopefully lift our families' spirits. Please check them out. Additionally, please share helpful information and we will pass on to our families and post on our Facebook account. Thank you!
In closing, we appreciate your ongoing support and teaming with us to make the most of these difficult circumstances. Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns. Thanks!
Snow Octopus!
Children enjoying the snow!
Send us your pictures - we miss our students!
Upcoming Dates
March 23 - Chrome books available for pick up by parent/guardian 7:30-10:00
March 23 - Teachers' hard copy packets available for curbside pick up. 7:30-10:00
March 23 - Report cards available for pick up. 7:30-10:00
March 23- Meal distribution at CES 7:30-10:00
April 13 - Current plan to re-open schools. Stay tuned - Governor Newsom hinted schools could be closed longer, possibly for rest of school year. :(
April 23 - Proposed CES Kindergarten Round up (CES will be having an all day K program next year, similar to this year's program)
Creative snow sculpture from one of our CES students!
CES student creating a snow cave!
Hard at work from home - we miss you!
Thanks for your support!
Email: areeder@pcoe.k12.ca.us
Website: https://ces.pcoe.k12.ca.us/
Location: 158 Aspen Street, Chester, CA, USA
Phone: 530-258-3194
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChesterElementary/
Twitter: @acreeder