MES NEWS!
News & Notes from Ms. Kapuchuck
January 23, 2022
Dear Families,
The weather definitely made this past week interesting! As a reminder, there is no school for students tomorrow, Monday, January 24th. This is now a make-up teacher workday. We can't wait to welcome our students back on Tuesday, January 25th! The January calendar has been updated and is posted below.
At tomorrow night's school board meeting, the board will discuss potential changes to the RCPS Health and Safety Plan, including the requirement for masks to be worn during the instructional day. Whatever the decision may be, one thing is for sure- the need for us to continue to work together as a team to support our students. While nothing over the past 22 months has been easy for parents, students, and educators, we have persevered through so many obstacles together, as a team, with one common goal of supporting our children. On Tuesday, January 25, when school resumes, all schools in RCPS will be prepared to follow whatever decree is voted on the previous night by the RCPS School Board. Dr. Scheikl will follow up Monday's School Board meeting with a message to all RCPS parents regarding the decision of the School Board that evening. No matter what the board's decision may be, we ask that you continue to support us as a school. There is nothing we can't get through together!
At MES, we work hard to make sure that we are providing clear, frequent, and accurate communication so that all families are informed about upcoming events, dates, and important happenings! All official school communication is done through the weekly principal newsletter, school messenger emails and text alerts, the MES website at http://mes.rockingham.k12.va.us/, and the McGaheysville Elementary School Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/mes22840. If you ever have any questions, please reach out to me or call the school office at 540-289-3004. We are always happy to help!
Report cards will be sent home with all students on Thursday, January 27th. I encourage you to take the opportunity to talk with your children about all of the great things they are learning here at MES and ask them how you can support them in their learning journey!
Please consider donating an item or two for the MES staff bubbles bar clicking here or using the link below. There are only a few spots left! Let’s show our MES staff how much we appreciate them! Please sign up by Friday, February 4th, if you are able to help! Please reach out to me if you have any questions!
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0548A4AE2BA3F49-bubbles
I hope all of you have a wonderful week. Thank you for sharing your amazing children with us!
"Alone, we can do so little; together we can do so much."- Helen Keller
-Leslie
MES To Use LanSchool In Classrooms
We are excited to let you know that we will be piloting the use of LanSchool classroom management software starting January 31st. This is a great resource for teachers to use to guide and manage student Chromebook use in their classrooms. When students log into their chromebooks in the classroom, they will be enrolled in their teacher’s Lanschool classroom. The software will allow teachers to keep students on task, check on their progress during classroom projects, manage which websites they should be on, and provide instructional feedback on projects as they can monitor student use while in their classrooms. This feature can only be used within the school (while on the school network) and will not be operational outside of the school/in the home. They have been utilizing this in Middle School classrooms this school year and it has proven to be a valuable tool. Our teachers will have various levels of comfort utilizing this software at first, so it may not be implemented by all teachers for now.
Below are a couple of FAQ's for students:
Can school personnel (teachers, administrators, technology staff) see my screen when I am at home?
No. Lanschool ONLY works when your Chromebook is on the school's network. No monitoring or control outside school is possible. (Internet filters, as always, do remain in place when you use your RCPS Chromebook at home.)
Am I not deserving of privacy when using my Chromebook or desktop computer at school?
Students, teachers, administrators -- ALL RCPS employees abide by the same privacy rules. There's no expectation that any information on an RCPS device is private. Important to understand is that accounts are typically only searched when there are compelling reasons to do so. During class, you are expected to share your screen if prompted.
Why are we using this?
This is a tool that helps teachers in two ways:
1 - assists classroom management
2 - provides extra tools to use during classroom instruction.
You can visit the LanSchool website using the following link: https://lenovosoftware.com/lanschool/
Save the Dates! Online Registration for the 2022-2023 School Year!
March 8, 2022: MES Kindergarten and PreK Help Desk (By Appointment only 9:00 am-2:00 pm).
March 9, 2022: MES Kindergarten and PreK Help Desk (By Appointment only 10:00 am-6:00 pm).
More information will follow next month as we get closer to the scheduled registration dates.
Martin's Grocery "Round Up at the Register" to Benefit Student Hunger Challenges
Please consider rounding up at the register when shopping at Martin’s if you are able and help us address food insecurity in our community.
Don't forget to purchase your yearbook!!
https://strawbridge.fotomerchanthv.com/search/YB100499
Yearbooks are $20 until April 1st! After April 1st, the price increases to $25.
Heating Assistance
PTO Board Members for 2022-2023!
We are in need of the following positions:
President
Vice President
Treasurer
Secretary
Meetings are held virtually once a month through Zoom and dates and times can be flexible to fit your schedule! All parents and all staff members are members of the PTO. If you are interested in serving on the PTO board, please feel free to contact Ms. Kapuchuck either at school or by email! Together, we can support our students! Thanks to those of you who have already reached out!
RCPS COVID-19 & Health Plan Information
You can find the RCPS reopening information by clicking here. You can find the RCPS health plan here.
We continue to follow the same health and safety procedures as last year when it comes to COVID-19. Thank you for understanding that all of our schools in RCPS are following this plan in order to maintain the health and safety of our students and staff. We appreciate your patience, flexibility and understanding as we navigate this "new normal".
As COVID numbers in our area are rising we need to come together as a team to keep our children healthy and safe.
DO NOT SEND YOUR CHILD TO SCHOOL IF:
They have to take any medications to make them feel better or reduce fever
They have had a fever of 100.4 or higher in the last 24 hours
They have a bad cough, sore throat, vomiting, diarrhea, a runny nose that will soil more than 2 masks per day
Someone in your household is sick and being tested for COVID
If you think that you have been exposed to COVID, DO NOT send the child to school without consulting the school first.
If you are unsure of household contact or have any questions as to whether or not your child should attend school, please call the office at 540-289-3004 and ask to speak with the school nurse.
Thank you for helping us to keep all of our students and staff safe and healthy!
Transportation Changes- IMPORTANT!
Any same-day transportation changes during the school year must occur before 1:30pm. Please make sure these are taken care of through the office, rather than contacting the teacher, so that we can ensure your child gets home safely! Often, teachers do not have time to check messages and email during the day, so it is important that these changes are communicated to the office. The office will take care of making sure teachers know of the transportation changes.
Attendance
1. Student Name
2. Teacher Name
3. Reason for Absence
4. The name of the person submitting the email
You can also use this email address to send Dr. notes!
McGaheysville Elementary School
Leslie Kapuchuck
PrincipalEmail: lkapuchuck@rockingham.k12.va.us
Website: http://mes.rockingham.k12.va.us/
Location: 9508 Spotswood Trail McGaheysville, VA 2284
Phone: (540) 289-3004
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mes22840/