RIVERSIDE REVIEW
03.12.21
Principal Message
RSI Parents and Community,
“Don't let anyone rob you of your imagination, your creativity, or your curiosity."
- Mae Jemison, first African American woman astronaut in space
Innovative practices are certainly growing here at the River! Over the years, we have poured time and energy into several place-based features that make our campus a unique space for experiential learning. This is why our Innovation Committee's mission statement is "to promote the long-term development and success of all children through providing rich opportunities to explore interests, identify gifts, and grow abilities."
We have three areas of focus that provide outstanding opportunities for young people to grow academically and to develop a passionate vision for their future:
- Agriculture: Mrs. Floetker, Mr. Johnson and Mr. Vincent lead our goat, chicken and bee projects. We are excited to make future plans to better incorporate classrooms into these areas for students to interact with our livestock. Our young people love to learn about and care for our animals, and in return the animals provide eggs, honey and a sense of relationship that brings wholeness to what we offer students and the greater community. We would love to better utilize our garden areas. Please feel free to let me know if you have ideas or expertise with this piece.
- Environment: Given that our campus sits directly east of the White River and south of the Nonnie Werbie Krauss Nature Preserve, we have wonderful access to amazing ecosystems in which students can learn and explore - forest, river, and prairie. We are developing partnerships with three organizations, Hamilton County Parks & Recreation, Central Indiana Land Trust and Indiana Phenology, who look to share their expertise with us and allow our students to contribute authentic data in real-world applications. HC Parks & Rec offers a variety of outdoor programs relevant to our curriculum in the areas of nature/ecology, life skills and anthropology. Indiana Phenology is dedicated to finding and mobilizing Hoosiers in experiential science programs while building a more complete database of phenological data. The Central Indiana Land Trust is the steward of the preserve and is eager to engage our students in caring for the ecosystem. Additionally, Miss DeKruiff has done a wonderful job expanding her knowledge of bird-watching and has become a local expert who shares not only with her class but also has won grants to place bird houses in strategic areas of our property. Mrs. Miller also has secured grants for us to track changes beavers have made near the White River. We are excited for future projects in partnership with our classes and these organizations.
- Engineering: This winter, our STEM PLC has taken time to grow in the area of engineering technology, specifically to develop skills related to coding, data collection and design thinking. Mr. Hochstetler organized opportunities for teachers to learn in a 'petting zoo' format to connect Microbits, Pocketlabs, Makey/Makey's, 3D printing, robots and more to academic lessons in an integrated manner. In the picture to the right, Mrs. LaCross' class explored how speed is calculated and manipulated through designing tracks for toy cars. Mr. Hochstetler showed students how Pocketlabs attached to cars would generate data & graphs through apps on their iPads. Students took over and designed experiments to explore the phenomena and analyze the data. Talk about true STEM learning: potential & kinetic energy, ratios & proportions, design, integrated technology, and more!
I believe we have a very bright future at RSI in many innovative areas! We only can do it with such wonderful students, talented teachers, and partnerships with key community members. We welcome you to follow our projects and offer support if possibilities arise.
Gratefully,
Brent Farrell
Assistant Principal
Riverside Intermediate School
100% In-person Learning Student Hours and Schedule
District Guidance on Report Cards
Parent/Student Guidance:
The third quarter ends on Friday 3/12/2021.
You can view your student’s report card by logging into Skyward Family Access, opening the portfolio section, and opening your PDF.
This year is a bit different for us as we navigate assessments and reporting in an in person and virtual setting.
- Any blank areas have not yet been assessed. These will be assessed in Quarter 4.
- The Personal Behavior and Work Habits section of the report card represents study skills or social skills. Some of these have been assessed but a few are more difficult to determine in a virtual setting.
- The Speaking and Listening section of the report card may also contain skills that are a bit more difficult to assess in a virtual setting.
- Tasks/Assignments that are marked with a grade or score represent opportunities for a follow up conversation with your student. Celebrating and setting goals helps your student develop more ownership when talking through the various indicators on their report card.
- If your child did not receive a grade for a subject area, review the assignments completed versus not completed for this quarter. If the teacher felt that the student had not completed enough work to assessment his/her level of understanding, tasks/assignments completed were marked as No Count and those not completed were marked as Missing or NHI (not handed in). Receiving no grade would indicate that further communication needs to occur with the student, family, and staff to find a way for the student to complete work and turn it in to be assessed by teachers to understand their level of mastery in the content area. (If a student is not given a grade, it should be assumed that there has been multiple contacts with students and parents to get the multiple summative tasks/assignments turned in, and therefore the ‘no grade’ will stand in the report card.)
- If a student communicated with the teacher that s/he will be completing an assignment after break, an Incomplete may have be given. This grade will be adjusted after the work is turned in.
Please pay special attention to any comments indicated on the report card. While this is an important section for notes of celebration, it can also be a section in which teachers may indicate a need to partner with you regarding various areas of concern such as need for a higher attendance rate/engagement in Zoom classes, turning in assignments, etc.
Thank you for your partnership to work for the success of your child!
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Spring Break Travel Information
If you plan to travel outside the United States, the CDC offers recommendations for a safe return to the U.S. and school:
· Get tested 3-5 days after travel AND stay home and self-quarantine for 7 days after travel.
o Even if you test negative, stay home and self-quarantine for the full 7 days.
o If your test is positive, isolate yourself to protect others from getting infected. (10 days isolation from start of symptoms or test date, whichever occurs first)
· If you don’t get tested, it’s safest to stay home and self-quarantine for 10 days after travel.
· Avoid being around people who are at increased risk for severe illness for 14 days, whether you get tested or not.
Here's the link to the travel restrictions and recommendations: Requirement for Proof of Negative COVID-19 Test or Recovery from COVID-19 for All Air Passengers Arriving in the United States | CDC
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Honor and Excellence Nominations
Honor and Excellence are two of the terms that appear on the Hamilton Southeastern Crest. One might attribute these qualities to our students, and rightly so, but the same terms can also describe our staff. We honor representatives of our outstanding teachers at the end of each year through the Teacher of the Year program. We would also like to recognize representatives from our SUPPORT STAFF who demonstrate excellence in their work, particularly in a school year like no other!
We are looking for support staff employees who go beyond the normal expectations of their job description resulting in outstanding support of Hamilton Southeastern students and the Hamilton Southeastern Community.
Nominees must be Hamilton Southeastern employees or contracted employees working in our buildings. They could be from any support staff category, including: custodial services, transportation, food service, technology, grounds, secretarial, instructional assistants, maintenance, accounting, treasurers, school resource officers, nurses, therapists, probation officers, etc. Qualifications to be nominated would include anything beyond the normal expectations of the person’s job. It could be a “one-time” act or a series of acts.
Nominations may be received from any person from the Hamilton Southeastern Community, including: professional staff, support staff, parents, students, community members, etc.
Feel free to nominate past recipients of the award. Past award winners are eligible to be chosen again.
If you would like to nominate someone for this award, please complete the form on or before March 23. If you have any questions, please contact Sharon Moore at smoore@hse.k12.in.us. Be sure to get your nomination in early - those received after March 23 will not be considered.
Thanks for your help in honoring the excellent work of our support staff!
Survey Link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/85CF3HB
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HSE Second Semester Operations Plan - UPDATED!
CONTACT TRACING HSE
Schools will immediately contact Fishers Health Department and/or Hamilton County Health Department upon learning of a positive COVID case among student body or staff. The Indiana State Department of Health will lead contact tracing and case investigation in consultation with FHD. As of Feb. 17, general notification of COVID-related cases in schools via Skylert will cease. Families will only be notified if their student(s) are a close contact. This change in practice is to reduce confusion. All COVID-related cases among students and staff can be found on the COVID19 Data Dashboard and is updated on Monday mornings. The dashboard was created to provide transparency about what is happening in the school corporation.
Second-Semester-Operations-Plan-2-12-21.pdf (hseschools.org)
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Tips for Staying Healthy
5th Grade Vision Screening
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Equity and Inclusion Practices - A Virtual Event for Parents
Important Dates
March 12 3rd Grading Period Ends
March 19 NO STUDENTS - FLEX DAY
April 2-9 NO STUDENTS - Spring Break
May 26 Last Day for Students - 2nd semester ends
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Riverside Clarinetists are "Golden" Hawks
RSI clarinetists Konstanty Nowacki, Penny Taylor and Seth Girbert participated in the Indiana State Solo Contest. These musicians submitted videos of their solo performances for evaluation. They each received the rating of “Gold” and will receive medals. Way to go Hawks!
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March Madness
We invite all of our Golden Hawks to join us in celebrating March Madness with spirit days!
Monday – Wear your favorite hat
Tuesday - Wear RSI spirit wear
Wednesday - Wear green
Thursday - Wear your favorite NCAA team gear
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Healthy Hawks/Geist Race 2021
This week, the Geist 5k/10k/Half Marathon organization made the difficult decision to cancel this year’s race. Due to this, there will be no Healthy Hawks season this year. Mrs. Krapinski and Mrs. Kitchell are so disappointed to miss out on training and racing with all of you! We WILL be back - better than ever – in 2022! Until then, get out there, get some fresh air, and move those legs!
Tennis Anyone?
Intramural Tennis for 5th and 6th graders starts right after Spring Break. Sign-up forms are now available in the document tower at the front office and need to be returned to Mr. Foutty no later than Wednesday, March 19th. Due to restricted court space and social distancing requirements, the number of players will be limited to the first 15 players per session who send in their completed sign-up form with payment. Three identical sessions will be offered to accommodate as many players as possible. For more information contact Jeff Foutty at jfoutty@hse.k12.in.us
RSI Photography Club
Any 5th or 6th grader interested in participating in RSI’s Photography Club may fill out the form below and turn it into Mrs. Krapinski by March 26. This form will be their transportation note.
This year looks a little different, just like everything else! I will have a 4 meeting schedule for 5th grade and another 4 meeting schedule for 6th grade. Masks are mandatory. You may use a camera, SmartPhone or IPad. You will be responsible for your own equipment.
Creating Positive Relationships
Your child’s sixth grade PE class will be participating in the Creating Positive Relationships curriculum during the weeks of March 8th through March 26th. Please review the curricula summary provided below. (Parents have the option to opt-out at any time during the school year before lessons are taught.)
6th grade curriculum-Building Healthy Futures
Students are taught what to expect as they progress through puberty: physical, emotional, social and mental changes. They learn about the reproductive system anatomy, the steps of physical affection, delaying gratification, and the importance of choosing friends that encourage good decision making. Students also learn how STIs are spread and any myths they may believe are dispelled. Students are shown how HIV effects the immune system. Porn is defined, and it is explained how it provides no health benefit. Students receive a booklet for note taking and they are encouraged to share each day’s lesson with their parent/guardians.
Parents have the right to review the material before lessons are taught at school.
More detailed information is available in a Parent Webinar at: cpr4teens.org/parents/webinar-info/
If you do not wish for your child to participate in these lessons, please speak with the teacher before you exclude your child. These lessons provide great discussion starters for the parent/guardian and child about relationships.
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2020-2021 RSI YEARBOOKS ON SALE NOW!
- RSI is now accepting orders online for the 2020-2021 Riverside Intermediate School Yearbook - Please note that this is the first time this school year that the RSI yearbook has been offered for sale
- Yearbooks are $15 for a pre-order. Yearbooks purchased after March 19th will be $20
- To order go to: https://inter-state.com/yearbook
- Enter Code: 54068Z
- Online orders can be placed until Friday, March 19, 2021
- Yearbooks will be distributed at the end of the school year (May)
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Learning Opportunities
The Continuous Learning Challenges, provided by educators at the Indiana Department of Education, are specifically designed without technology in mind. The skills are connected to Michael Fullan's Deep Learning Competencies, and children can participate either on their own or with some parental support. For families interested in extending or enriching their students' learning, this resource offers some great ideas!
https://www.doe.in.gov/covid-19/resources/continuous-learning-weekly-challenges
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Support for Virtual Students
Attendance Notes and Changes
Teachers are required to take attendance daily during virtual and in person instruction. Students are expected to be present for all classes, zoom or physically in person. If your child is going to be late, absent or needs an early dismissal, virtually or in person, we ask that you report the absence to the Attendance Line, 317.594.4328. If the absence remains unreported, it will initiate a Skylert reminder.
Dismissal changes should always be reported to the office. Please send a note or call our office if your student is deviating from riding the bus. Otherwise, the student will be transported home by bus.
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Cafeteria Updates
Breakfast and lunch meal deals are free through the end of this school year!!!
Cash and checks are accepted for extras (chips, Izzie drinks, etc) as well as Efunds payments. Please include your student’s name and ID number on the check and envelope. Students are only permitted through the line one time. Once the student has been seated they are unable to return to the line. Students will stand six feet apart in line and all items are prepackaged in disposable containers.
Stay connected! Follow us on Twitter @hsefoodservices, @RSICafeRJH
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We are pleased to announce the return of the Snack Attack program for students in need. This program, supported by the Fishers Youth Assistance Program, is designed to provide students a little extra nourishment for the weekend until they can receive a hot meal at school on Monday.
Here's how the program works. Your student will pick up a small sack of food to be taken home over the weekend. The sack is filled with individually wrapped snacks such as granola bars, fruit cups, pop tarts, peanut butter/crackers, goldfish crackers, etc. The type of snacks will vary each week. Please let us know if your child has a peanut allergy as he/she will receive a special bag of peanut-free snacks. Snacks will be delivered to your homes on Thursdays beginning on September 17th. Snacks will be delivered while we are virtual. Once students are back 50/50, students will pick up snacks from the school to take home.
There is no cost to you or the school. If you are interested in having your student participate in FYAP's Snack Attack or have questions, please contact Nancy Logue, School Counselor at nlogue@hse.k12.in.us
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Student Handbook
All HSE Schools student handbooks (K-12) are now online for easier access. The 5/6 handbook is available via this link: https://www.hseschools.org/about/policies-procedures
We encourage you to review it at your earliest convenience. Should you have any questions, please contact the RSI main office at 317-594-4320. Our staff is available to assist you. Have a great school year!
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Using Skyward
If you do not know your Skyward Family Access login and password simply click FORGOT LOGIN/PASSWORD. Skyward allows parents to access grades, report cards, bus information, immunization records, lunch account/food service information, student fees, schedules, and the BACK TO SCHOOL FORMS 2020-2021. All students are required to have an iPad to expand our HSE21 curriculum. Families have the choice of purchasing an iPad on their own or they may choose to rent the iPad through the school. Please visit our HSE21 website for more information.
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Canvas
The following instructions are how to create and pair accounts in Canvas. Your HSE students will be using Canvas throughout virtual and in-person instructions. If you have a child or children that are new to the district, please use the following instructions to link your child's Canvas account to your parent account. Please note that if you have already created a Parent Canvas account and linked your child(ren)'s account(s), you will not need to do this.
You will need your child's school email address and ID#. This information can be found in Skyward. Please click here to access Skyward. If the link is not working, you can go to the HSE homepage and click on the Canvas tab located at the top right of the screen.
Once you are logged in, you will select your child's name from the drop down menu under Family Access at the top of the page. Next, you will click on the Student Info tab from the column on the left. Your child's school email can be found next to the word School in the middle of the screen (just to the right of their school picture) and their school ID # is located under their picture (their school ID # is labeled as Other ID).
Steps:
- Please click here to access Canvas. If the link is not working, you can go to the HSE homepage and click on the Canvas tab located at the top right of the screen. You will click on the Students/Staff Portal rectangle to login with your child's information, using your child's full school email address as the username. Enter "hse" in front of their 6 digit other ID number for the password. You will now be logged in under their name.
- While on their Canvas page, click on Account and then Settings. Look to the right and click Pair with Observer. You will need to write down the code so you can use it to link your accounts.
- Click Account and Logout. You are now logged out of your child's account.
- If you have multiple students in the district, you will need to complete steps 1-3 for each of your children. You will need a pairing code for each student in an HSE school.
- Once you have a pairing code for each of your children, you will click here to access the home page of Canvas. If the link is not working, you can go to the HSE homepage and click on the Canvas tab located at the top right of the screen. You will click on the Parent Canvas Portal rectangle to create your profile. You will need your name, email, create a password, and one student pairing code. Click on Start Participating.
- Check your email now to finalize your Canvas sign-up.
- To add other children, go back to the HSE homepage, click Canvas tab, click Parent Portal, and login. Click on Account, click on Observing, and add your next child's pairing code.
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UPDATED YMCA ELEARNING CARE - click for more information!
RSI PTO
2020-21 PTO Officers
Vice President - Jess Hodge
Treasurer - Teresa Hunckler
Secretary - Christel Cater
Member at Large - Susie Strange
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Support our School - with Papa John's
Future dates are:
March 18th
April 15th
May 20th
Spring T-Shirt Fundraiser!
https://bad-apple-graphics-483da1f4-cde6-4fec-ae2b-d45f529d7304.printavo.com/merch/riverside
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Live Online Auction!
Friday, April 16th - Saturday, April 24th
If you have a business and would like to donate an item or giftcard, please reach out to our PTO or Susie Strange at strangesusie@gmail.com or 317.502.5227.
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Kroger Community Rewards
Link your Kroger Card to Riverside Intermediate.
1. Sign in to your digital account.
2. Select Riverside Intermediate.
Riverside Intermediate will earn rewards.
Any transactions moving forward using the Shopper’s Card number associated with your digital account will be applied to the program, at no added cost to you. Kroger donates annually to participating organizations based on your percentage of spending as it relates to the total spending associated with all participating Kroger Community Rewards organizations.
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New Box Top Information
AMERICA'S SCHOOLS LOVE BOX TOPS!
For over 20 years, Box Tops for Education has given families an easy way to earn cash for their school, with products they already buy.
Now you can simply scan your store receipt with the Box Tops mobile app to identify participating products and instantly add cash to your school's earnings online.
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Mudsock Youth Athletics Update
We are ready to welcome all our spring athletes to the fields and kick off the season!
Please reach out to us at info@myathletics.com to ask about availability for track & field, baseball, softball, boys and girls lacrosse, rugby, and soccer. We do have a few openings left and you can still register at myathletics.com for certain divisions.
What’s the best way to stay up to date over our programming? Along with your individual league pages, follow us on Facebook at Mudsock Youth Athletics and Twitter @MudsockYouth. Questions? Start with our FAQ’s here.
Help us celebrate our coaches! We want to hear from you. Email info@myathletics.com with your Volunteer of the Month nomination and tell us who we should be recognizing. They’ll win goodies from Dick’s Sporting Goods. Thank you!
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HSE COMMUNITY INSIDER
HSE Report it!
As you know, Hamilton Southeastern Schools has benefitted over the years from a “Text-a-Tip” service to provide anonymous information to the district. We wanted to let you know that we have launched “HSE Report It!”, a new school safety mobile reporting app that allows students, staff and community members to provide anonymous information about concerns for their own safety or the safety of others. HSE Report It! replaces Text-A-Tip product, which is going out of service.
We believe that HSE Report it!, which can be downloaded via Google Play or the Apple App Store, provides enhanced reporting capabilities. It’s anonymous and reports are made exclusively through the mobile app. Plus, unlike SMS text reports, HSE Report it! will have no length limitations or the need to remember a short code. Reporters can attach photos, screenshots, videos, documents and/or audio recordings to their concerns and they can engage in a two-way dialogue with a real person.
Reports are monitored by HSE building and district administration and the school resource officers (SROs).
The new HSE Report It! app will be an important resource for our community to submit anonymous tips when they wish to report concerns for their safety and the safety of others. Please encourage your family to download the app and be aware that this resource is now available to use when needed.
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Contact information:
RIVERSIDE INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL
11014 Eller Road ♦ Fishers, IN ♦ 46038
317.594.4320 (phone)
317.594.4328 (attendance line)
317.594.4329 (fax)
Follow Us on Twitter: @RSIHawks
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Always feel open and free to contact your teachers with questions. Please note the contact of the administration and counselors below as well. We are here to serve you! Never hesitate to contact any of us with questions.
Dr. Kaminski - Principal -dkaminski@hse.k12.in.us
Mr. Farrell - Assistant Principal - bfarrell@hse.k12.in.us
Mrs. Underwood - 5th Grade Counselor - runderwood@hse.k12.in.us
Mrs. Logue - 6th Grade Counselor - nlogue@hse.k12.in.us
Mrs. Bohannon - IT Specialist - kbohannon@hse.k12.in.us
Thank you for always checking your skylerts and we can't wait to get started with your amazing RSI Hawks!
Meet the Teachers, Counselors, and Administrators - https://flipgrid.com/47041546 Meet your Team - https://flipgrid.com/726b8a5e (Students will login with school email account)
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