We had a fantastic celebration of Hispanic Heritage this week at Watkins. Please see the photos on our Instagram page and even more student learning will be shared next week.

We also hosted members of the White House Covid team at Watkins this week. They were interested in our practices and were overly complimentary. A member from the testing contractor, T3Shield, described our operations as the benchmark for all of the 25 schools he's visited. We could not be more proud of Ms. Carraway and the operations team who have created an efficient and effective system. We are also doing a great job at Peabody but we also recognize that the saliva production for our younger students is more of a challenge.

The Chancellor and Mayor announced that all DCPS schools will receive additional staff to support our Covid responses and procedures and a full-time substute. This is very welcomed news!

• Oct 26-27 - Congressional Softball game on Watkins field. No outside activities at Watkins.
• Oct 25-29 - Spirit Week!
• Oct 29 - Character Book Day!




Every Thursday: Asymptomatic COVID testing for students.

Monday, October 25 - Rock the Red Day: Show Your Cluster Spirit and wear red!

Tuesday, October 26 - Sport Day: Show your favorite team or sport!

Wednesday, October 27 - Wacky Wednesday: Wear mismatch, inside-out, anything goes!

Thursday, October 28 - Hat Day: Wear a favorite or silly hat!

Friday, October 29 - Book Character Day (& Parade): Dress as a favorite book character! See details below...

After collaborating with our Family Engagement Leadership Team this summer, we want families to know that you can expect a weekly newsletter from their homeroom teachers that includes what students learned last week, what's coming up, and some evidence or artifact of learning at least every other week.

This week, 2nd-5th graders, caregivers should have received information on WIN time. If you have any questions about this information, please contact your homeroom teacher. 1st grade families also received an update on how teachers will intervene and enrich learners during the instructional block.

Student become better readers by reading! All students PK-5 should be reading daily - this includes being read to by a caregiver or sibling. Peabody staff encourages students to read independently or with someone for at least 15 minutes a day.

At Watkins, we increase the expectation with age:

Grade 1 – 15 minutes daily

Grade 2 – 20 minutes daily

Grades 3-5 – 30+ minutes daily

Caregivers - please partner with your children to support them and enjoy some reading time yourself!

The Congressional Softball Game will be held on the Watkins field on Wednesday, October 27th. Due to the security measures that need to be put in place and the restrictions to our facilities, aftercare will be canceled for all students on this day. Please plan accordingly.

Note for students enrolled in FLEX five days per week: A credit will be placed onto your accounts for future use. This credit doesn't apply to scholarship students or students enrolled part time.

The library will be open for students who do not currently have Library as a special, so they will be able to checkout books on a weekly basis. The library days are specific to each grade level.

Grade 1 - Monday (8:10 - 8:45am)

Grade 2 - Tuesday (8:10 - 8:45am)

Grade 3 - Wednesday (8:10 - 8:45am)

Grade 4 - Thursday (8:10 - 8:45am)

Grade 5 - Friday (8:10 - 8:45am)

Once students arrive at school, they will proceed to the gym and request a library pass from an on-duty staff member. Once they have a pass, they can go to the library to select their book. We will maintain social distancing in the library; 25 students at a time will be permitted.

Any questions, please reach out to Ms. Jurkowski (Kimberlynn.Jurkowski@k12.dc.gov)

Peabody's Specials Team will incorporate a celebration of Hispanic culture and the Spanish language into our four special subject classes over the coming weeks. Students will enjoy read alouds, arts and crafts, music and movement and more!

PEABODY

Book Character Day Details: At Peabody, we love to read and we love the characters we read about!

· On this day each child dresses up like a favorite book character

· At 9am, PreK 4 students (followed by PreK 3 & K students) will start a parade around our block and families are invited to watch (please distance for safety). Route will be out the C Street Playground gate, west toward 4th and around the block to Constitution, 5th Street and return to the front door.

· Permission Slips Will Go Home! We need these signed to allow students to leave the building to walk around the block.

· We encourage families to send in the book or a picture of the book that has your child’s character in it. If you need help finding a book, please email your child’s teacher or Ms. Bloom (susan.bloom@k12.dc.gov.).

· RAIN PLAN: Grade levels will have mini-parades on each floor.

· Details regarding costumes: Children should arrive at school with their costume on and be able to put on and take off costume independently for toileting purposes; please do not send in toy props; children must wear shoes with costumes.

WATKINS

Book Character Day Details: At Watkins, we love to read and we love the characters we read about!

· On this day each child dresses up like a favorite book character!

· At 2:15pm, all students (starting with 5th grade) will parade around our football field and families are invited to watch (please distance for safety).

· We encourage families to send in the book or a picture of the book that has your child’s character in it. If you need help finding a book, please email your child’s teacher or Ms. Jurkowski (Kimberlynn.Jurkowski@k12.dc.gov)

· RAIN PLAN: Grade levels will have mini-parades on each floor.

· Details regarding costumes: Children should arrive at school with their costume on and be able to put on and take off costume independently.Please do not send in toy props; children must wear shoes with costumes, and masks are not allowed.