Buffett Bulletin
September 23, 2020

No School for Students
Middle school students will not have school October 1st and 2nd. Teachers will be using those two days to prepare for return of in-person learning. Students might want to consider using those two days to prepare for their own return by:
- checking their schedules using Infinite Campus
- preparing their backpacks and supplies (water bottles and earbuds are encouraged!)
- review the bell schedule

Arrival and Dismissal Procedures

Arriving to School
- School begins at 7:40 a.m. and concludes at 3:05 p.m. daily.
- The school building is open at 7:25 a.m. Students are not to be in the building or on property before this time. Doors will be unlocked from 7:25-7:45 a.m. and then once again locked until the end of our school day, which is at 3:05 p.m. Additionally, at 3:15 p.m., our doors will be locked for the day.
- Students will go to their first block class rather than reporting to hallways, the gym, or cafeteria upon arrival to school.
- See breakfast information below.

Locker Usage
At this time, student will not be allowed to use their lockers to avoid close contact with other students in the hallways. Your student may carry their backpack from class to class.
What do students need everyday?
- school-issued device
- one writing utensil
- notebook
- textbooks needed for class (only bring A Day books on A Days and B Day books on B Days)
Leave these items at home:
- extra books
- extra school supplies

Keeping Every Bobcat Safe
Face Coverings Students will be required to wear face coverings while at school. Students can use the five district-provided face coverings. If using their own, the face covering needs to be 2-ply. | Handwashing/Sanitizing All classrooms are supplied with hand sanitizer and sanitizing wipes. Students will be asked to sanitize their hands often and to wipe down the space and shared items they use with sanitizing wipes. | Social Distancing The district's decision to reduce the amount of students on site has helped us ensure students in classrooms will be socially distanced. The Family 3/2 model, along with changes to our schedule, produced class sizes that are generally less than 15 students. This allows teachers to space students the proper 3-6 ft. apart. |
Face Coverings
Handwashing/Sanitizing
Social Distancing
Health and Safety Signage
Enhanced Cleaning and Safety Procedures

New Faces of Bobcat Nation!

Jennifer Mallett Smith is Buffett's new Journalism teacher! Before coming to Buffett, Mrs. Mallett Smith taught high school English for grades 9-12 and middle school ELA for grades 6-7. She also coached middle school and high school speech and debate for about nine years. In addition to these courses, Mrs. Mallett Smith taught theater for one year and produced a play called, "Game of Tiaras." Mrs. Mallett Smith also provided ESL support to many students for almost two years in Okinawa, Japan. She gets bored when things are predictable, so she is very excited to be embarking on a new journey as a journalism teacher this year at Buffett.
Mrs. Mallett Smith is married to her husband, Colin. They have two young men living in their home and eating all of their food named Nolan and Fletcher. The family is in servitude to two cats named Ernie and Bill. Their bearded dragon, Astro, rounds out their small family and loves to snuggle. They all enjoy playing video games and reading, but they also love to go fishing, hiking, and forest exploring. They try to keep a healthy balance between electronics and living in nature. Welcome, Mrs. Mallett Smith!


Tips for Assisting Your Student in Remote Learning
Refresh Apps
When apps aren't performing the way they should, your first step is to close the app completely and reopen it. To close an app, swipe the app up. Then swipe up again, to fully close apps that are open.
If closing the app doesn't work, try reinstalling the app from the Manager App.
- Tap and hold on the app
- Choose delete from the popup menu
- Open the Manager app
- Find the app you deleted
- Tap update/reinstall
Email Etiquette
When using school email, please remember:
- emails are not private
- your language matters
- it is for school use only
- creating group email chains is not appropriate
- email when on your time, not during class unless requested
- use a greeting and a salutation ("Hello, Mr. CK" and end with "Have a good night" or "Thank you"
- include a subject


New Club Opportunity!
Are you interested in joining a club to promote kindness and acceptance at Buffett? Do you have ideas to make everyone feel welcome and appreciated at our school? Buffett is starting a No Place for Hate group for any 5th-8th grader who wants to help spread kindness not just throughout our school, but throughout our Omaha community.
Martin Luther King said, “The time is always right to do what is right.” If this sounds like a group you would like to be a part of, our first club meeting will be Wednesday Sept. 30th, after school, 3:05-4:05 PM. We will meet remotely through TEAMS. To join or get more information, contact the club sponsors Ms. McKim-Richards (Madison.McKimRichards@ops.org) or Mrs. Tunning (amy.tunning@ops.org).

Note from Nurse Boyer
All incoming 7th graders are required by the state of Nebraska to have a physical completed after March 1, 2020. This physical can also be used for students interested in participating in athletics for the 2020-2021 school year. The state of Nebraska also requires all incoming 7th graders to have a Tdap (Tetanus, Diphtheria and Pertussis *Whooping Cough* booster) vaccine. Vaccine information has been updated in Infinite Campus parent portal if you have questions if this information has been recieved by the school. If you have not provided your student's updated immunization record/phyiscal to the school please have this completed as soon as possible. As always, if you have any questions or concerns please reach out to me at tara.boyer@ops.org or via phone at (531)299-2321 or fax to (531)299-2339. Thank you and stay healthy!

Family Support Center Update
Services Available at the OPS Family Support Center
The following services will be available for families:
· 1 to 1 Technology Support
· Nutrition Services to assist with meal applications and Meals2Go
· Student and Community Services
· Counselors
· Social Workers
· Student Support Liaisons
· Bilingual Liaisons
In addition to in-person supports, we have produced several videos to help families navigate district-provided iPads. To review these resources, click here.


Upcoming Dates to Remember
- Oct. 1 and 2 - Building Based Professional Learning Day
- No remote instruction for elementary and middle school students.
- Oct. 5 - Phase 3- Early childhood, elementary and middle school students return in the Family 3/2 Instructional Model
- Nov. 4 - Building Based Professional Learning Day for staff
- No in-person or remote learning for students
- Dec. 14- Jan. 5 - Winter Recess*
- Jan. 15 - Building Based Professional Learning Day
- No in-person or remote learning for students
