Welcome to Pinecrest Elementary
January 2021
About Us
Main Line: 651-480-7280
Attendance Line: 651-480-7281Health Office (Nurse): 651-480-7286
Kids' Campus: 651-480-7296
Hastings Bus Company: 651-437-1888
Website: http://pinecrest.hastings.k12.mn.us
Location: 975 12th Street West, Hastings, MN, USA
Phone: 651-480-7280
DATES TO REMEMBER
JANUARY
1 - NO SCHOOL - Holiday Break
5 - Learning Model Change Request Due
5 - Transportation Opt Out Due
4 - 12 - Continue Distance Learning model
11 - PTA Zoom Meeting - Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83876862559?pwd=RVJaR1VvTGp5S3ZuQTFlVUQ3elpJdz09
Meeting ID: 838 7686 2559
Passcode: PELPTA
13 - NO SCHOOL (transition planning)
14 - NO SCHOOL (transition planning)
15 - NO SCHOOL - District Workshop
18 - NO SCHOOL - Martin Luther King Day
19 - Begin in person learning for Kindergarten, 1st grade, & 2nd grade
FEBRUARY
1 - Begin in person learning for 3rd grade & 4th grade
12 - NO SCHOOL - District Staff Development
15 - NO SCHOOL - President's Day
DISCIPLINE POLICY REVIEW - GROUP MEMBER NEEDED
Families,
Dr. McDowell is looking for support to help review our discipline policy. Group members will consist of one of each of the following from the high school, middle school, and elementary levesl: admin, counselor, teacher, and parent. The group will begin meeting (via Zoom) in January and meeting requests will be sent once the group is finalized. The meeting commitment is anticipated to be once per month, with the potential of two times a month if needed.
I anticipate this work will take until the end of the school year to have a final product developed. If you are interested in joining this group, please call 651.480.7280 by Friday, January 8th.
Thank you!
Mr. Bakker
REMINDER: LEARNING MODEL SHIFT
- Classes for all students begin Monday, January 4 in distance learning.
- Students in grades kindergarten through grade 2 will attend full-time, in-person learning 5 days per week beginning Tuesday, January 19. The school time schedule remains the same as when the district was in hybrid (school begins at 9:40 and ends at 3:25).
- We plan for children in grades 3 & 4 to begin full-time, in person learning 5 days per week on February 1; until then, they will continue distance learning.
- Any child who participates in the Hastings Online Academy will continue learning virtually 4 days per week with Wednesday Flex Days.
WHAT IS THE "SCHOOL DISTRICT LEARNING MODEL"?
- full-time, in-person learning (5 days per week face to face),
- hybrid learning (2 days face to face and 2 days virtually with Wednesdays as Flex days), or
- distance learning (4 days of virtual learning with Wednesdays as Flex days)
We hope this quick description helps to clarify the "district learning model".
REQUESTS DUE JANUARY 5
We are offering families of elementary children another opportunity to make a change to their child's learning model. We will plan for each child to continue in their current preference - either the district learning model (which may shift between in-person, hybrid and distance learning) or Hastings Online Academy (full time distance learning). If you would like your child to change, please fill out this form. Please know that by filling out this form, you are committing to your chosen model for the remainder of the school year. We will close this opportunity to change on January 5. If you have questions, please call your child's school.
Transportation Opt-Out
Because of the shift to in-person learning that no longer follows the hybrid cohort model, we will need to reorganize school bus routes. If you know that your child in grades k-4 will not use district transportation, please fill out this opt-out form. We want to work quickly and also be as accurate as possible when rebuilding our routes; please fill out this form by January 5 if your child will NOT be using district transportation during the full-in-person schooling. If you opted out of transportation this fall, you will need to complete this form again. If you have questions, please call the Hastings Bus Company at 651-437-1888.
THERE'S STILL TIME TO OPT-IN TO DISTRICT TEXT MESSAGING!
Hastings Public Schools seeks to provide parents and guardians with important information in the timeliest and most efficient manner. Current laws require the District to ask for consent prior to using an automatic service to send text messages to quickly notify parents and guardians. These communications may include unexcused absence notification and emergency communications, including health and safety risks, threats, closures, fire as well as important non-emergency matters. You can opt-in to the Text Message Service through your Infinite Campus Parent Portal.
Opt-In Consent Statement:
By enabling the Text (SMS) boxes in your Campus Portal Account, you are consenting to receive text message alerts to the phone number(s) you have identified and are responsible for all related charges.
You may opt out of this service at any time by simply un-checking the Text (SMS) box in your Infinite Campus Parent Portal.
All Emergency text messages and subsequent alerts will come from 822-90. Please save this codes as a contact and program it as Hastings Public Schools so you can quickly recognize this number as the official source of our messages.
DRESS FOR THE WEATHER
DON'T WAIT UNTIL WINTER...PREPARE FOR A "SNOW DAY”
It is important that you have accurate phone numbers on file for your student with the school district. Although we are using a calling system to contact families in case of inclement weather, the district will still continue to post school delays or closings in the following ways:
Official school closing announcements will be made on Hastings KDWA Radio 1460, WCCO-Channel 4, KSTP-Channel 5, KMSP-Channel 9 and KARE-Channel 11 television and Hastings Public School Website.
Click HERE for instructions on how to update contact information in Infinite Campus Parent Portal
MESSAGE FROM THE NURSE
Please continue to monitor your child every morning for symptoms of COVID-19 that could indicate that they are not well. If your child has any COVID-19 symptoms or they have been exposed to a person with COVID-19, please keep them home and call the attendance line. Symptoms of COVID-19*
● Fever or chills (T = 100.4 or higher)
● Cough
● Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
● Fatigue
● Muscle or body aches
● Headache
● New loss of taste or smell
● Sore throat
● Congestion or runny nose
● Nausea or vomiting
● Diarrhea
*This list does not include all possible symptoms (see Symptoms of Coronavirus for more information).
We learn more about COVID-19 every day, and as more information becomes available, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) will continue to update and share information with us. As our knowledge and understanding of COVID-19 evolves, this guidance may change.
During the school day if your child develops illness symptoms we, the school, will notify you and help you and your family take needed actions. Students who develop illness symptoms during the school day will be sent home.
Meeting ID: 838 7686 2559
Passcode: PELPTA
HOA - LENDING LIBRARY CART
Need Books?
H.O.A. Lending Library Cart
Open: 8am-3pm
Located: outside McAuliffe Office doors (in the school entry way)
Contact-free option
Available to all HOA students
No book check out required!
Take what you need, return what you can, donate more books if able!
Always use the provided hand sanitizer on the cart before selecting books. If there is a family looking at the books on the cart, please practice social distancing and wait at least 6 feet away for your turn.
Community Education Recreational Opportunities
https://hastingscommunityed.com/ or 651-480-7670