Meadowbrook News
January 21, 2022
From Mrs. Sawatzky
Good afternoon Meadowbrook,
I learned today that just over 70% of Meadowbrook students have received the Covid-19 vaccine! This means that for many of our students, should they be identified as being a close contact to someone at school who tests positive, a quarantine will not be necessary. Additionally, we recently updated our quarantine timeline for unvaccinated close contacts at school to a 5 day quarantine. All of this results in more students at school!
If you are still looking to get your child vaccinated, Gatewood Elementary is hosting a vaccination clinic tomorrow, January 22 from 12pm-4pm. Appointments are required and you can schedule yours here. If prompted to enter a zip code, enter 55345 and select the Gatewood Clinic; then select your appointment time.
Take care and stay warm,
Natalie
2022-23 Calendar Approved
From Nurse Karen
I want to thank everyone who has notified myself or Mrs. Sawatzky of positive Covid cases. We do check our emails in the evenings and on our days off because we know that Covid does not take a day off. Here are a few reminders:
1. If you are waiting for the results of a Covid test for your child, please keep them home until you get the result.
2. Please let us know as soon as you receive a positive result. Any time of day, even on the weekend!
3. Students who are vaccinated and are identified as a close contact will not be sent home, but you will be notified and asked to watch especially close for symptoms. Unvaccinated close contacts will now have a five day quarantine. Students who are unvaccinated and have a household member who has tested positive will need to quarantine for 10 days (shortened from 14 days).
4. Symptoms of this new variant include a scratchy throat (or sore throat), headaches, muscle aches, runny nose, feeling run down...like a cold! Fevers do not always occur.
5. If your child says they don’t feel well in the morning, please keep them home. If your child needs medicine to “make it through the day,” please keep them home. Please, please, please do not send them to school with “if you can’t make it, go see Nurse Karen.” If they feel that unwell, they really should stay home.
Thanks for your part in keeping Meadowbrook healthy! As always, email or phone me for any concerns; 952-988-5104.
Book Swap
To celebrate I Love to Read month, Meadowbrook is collecting gently used or new books for the book swap that will take place on February 24 and 25. Students may bring their books to the benches outside of the media center. Every student is projected to get 2-3 books regardless of how many they donate.
We also need as many parent volunteers as we can get to help set up and run the swap. Please sign up to help out! https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C084BA8A929AAFF2-meadowbrook
Please contact parent Debbie Wolfe with any questions debbie1028@comcast.net
Jamaican Exchange in Teaching
You may remember that Meadowbrook has partnered with Thrive-Ed to launch a Jamaican Exchange in Teaching (JET) program. In this program, 4 Meadowbrook teachers (Kristan Nalezny, Stephanie Bell, Anna Muer, and Katie Duffy) will travel to Brown’s Town Primary in St. Ann, Jamaica to have a deep, transformative experience in a global context. In turn, the Jamaican teachers will travel to Minnesota this October to have a similar experience.
This teaching exchange is fully funded and expected to be funded for many years in a partnership between Hopkins School District and Thrive-Ed. We can’t wait to see the impact it will have on our teachers and students! Not only will we be sending teachers, but we would also like to provide “in kind” support and that’s where you come in! Brown’s Town Primary is in need of some school supplies that would greatly enhance their teaching and learning. If you would like to be part of this, here’s how to contribute:
**Direct financial donations are better (if possible but anything is greatly appreciated) because all items need to be brought down in suitcases!**
Direct Financial Donation to: www.thrive-ed.org/donate (be sure to put in the line item: for JET)
OR: Mail checks to:
Thrive-Ed
11501 Ridgemont Ave W
Minnetonka, MN 55305
*Please provide financial donations by February 16, 2022*
Other in kind needs (can be brought to the Meadowbrook Office):
- Mini Projectors (can purchase on Amazon)
- Laptops or tablets (new or used, wiped clean without password protection)
- Masks, pencils, crayons, notebooks, red ink pens, white board markers, 2 sided tape, headphones, etc.
*Please provide “in-kind” donations by February 4th, 2022
Hopkins Education Foundation Royal Bash
Happy Friday Families!
Hope everyone had a wonderful week! The weather forecast calls for chilly temps this weekend, but despite the cold, we have some HOT ITEMS for sale on the Plaid Pop-Up Shop.
Remember, even a little PLAID can make a BIG difference. Check out and purchase a key chain or magnet under HEF Shop Items or get a discount if you purchase a Plaid Pack. 100% of YOUR purchase will go back to HEF. After you shop, make sure to register for the in person or virtual Royal Bash on February 26!
Also, we are looking for volunteers to help before, during, and after the event! It would be PLAIDTACULAR if you signed up.
Stay warm this weekend!
💙 HEF ROYAL BASH COMMITTEE
PLAID POP UP SHOP
https://hef-shop.myshopify.com
ROYAL BASH REGISTRATION
https://hef.ejoinme.org/Bash2022
VOLUNTEER TO HELP
Win Tickets to HEF's Royal Bash
Enter here!
Girls on the Run returning to Meadowbrook, volunteer Coaches needed!
A group of parents and teachers are hoping Girls on the Run Minnesota (GotR MN) can return to Meadowbrook this Spring. GotR MN is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to inspiring girls to be joyful, healthy & confident using a fun, experience-based curriculum which creatively integrates running.
To restart a GotR MN site at Meadowbrook, we are in need of volunteer coaches. Coaches select their preferred training dates right in the coaching application and the season will be 8 weeks/16 practices, starting either the week of April 4 or April 11 (whatever works best for Meadowbrook scholars & coaches) and ending with a celebratory 5K the weekend of June 4th.
· Learn more about coaching HERE
· Returning coaches application HERE
· New coaches application HERE
Once the coaching positions are solidified, we can restart the site at Meadowbrook, opening up sign-ups (a Lottery managed by GotR MN). The goal is to have coaches identified by Feb 1st, but no later than March 1st.
Reminder on Family Home Internet Options
If you currently do not have stable internet access at home, please reach out to our school counselor, social worker, or school office and we can assist! We can provide a temporary WiFi hotspot so you have connectivity at home and can work with our partners to provide you free internet through Comcast with a federal grant. We understand internet access can be a challenge during our current situation so please let us know if we can help.
Meadowbrook Book Fair
Save the date for a new twist on the Meadowbrook Book Fair!
The Meadowbrook Book Fair is back and better than ever! Save the date for a private shopping event at Cream & Amber in Hopkins on Monday, February 7, from 4-8 pm. Co-owned by a Hopkins graduate, this locally owned bookstore sells new and used books and has a great selection of gifts and games as well. Kids are welcome to attend! Cream & Amber has generously agreed to donate 10% of all purchases made that evening to the Meadowbrook PTO. Come ready to shop!
Shop online NOW and 10% of your purchase will be donated to the Meadowbrook PTO
Now until the book fair on February 7, Cream and Amber will donate 10% of all online sales to the Meadowbrook PTO. Just use the code MEADOWBROOK when shopping online. Thank you for supporting the Meadowbrook PTO and this locally owned business!
Non-School Day Child Care
With the 2021-22 calendar changes for elementary students, Kids & Company will be offering an option to register for full-day child care.
If your student is currently registered in Kids & Company and will need care on these additional non-school days, please log into your account and register for the additional days.
If your student is not currently registered for Kids & Company, please register HERE. Please note: registration does not guarantee a spot for child care. Availability is based on space and staffing. You will receive confirmation at least one week prior, when your child’s spot has been secured.
Please take note of the following registration dates:
- Child Care for March 11 - registration deadline of February 25
- Child Care for May 6 - registration deadline of April 22
Limited financial assistance is available upon request. Please reach out to our Kids & Company Account Manager Monica Baran at (952) 988-4080.
The Meadowbrook PTO has a new website, check it out! This is where you can access the online directory and so much more!
Room Parents Needed
Are you interested in being a room parent this year?
Please let us know which teacher/class you would like to help by completing our form here: https://forms.gle/VBDyZfHtbPBoDbiXA
Restaurant Nights
Join us for our next Restaurant Night:
- Red Robin in Plymouth: 2669 Campus Drive, Plymouth, MN, 55441
- February 9, 4-8pm
Online orders, To Go only
Mention Meadowbrook in the Special Instructions
20% is donated to the PTO!
Any questions? Reach out to us at meadowbrookelementarypto@gmail.com or visit us on Facebook, Twitter, Instragram, or our PTO website
Yearbooks
School is in full swing and we are hard at work on your child’s 2022 Yearbook. We can’t wait for you to see this year’s book! Don’t put it off, order now at the link below.
https://ybpay.lifetouch.com/Order/LookupJob?jobNumber=14465722
Hopkins Public Schools COVID-19 Dashboard remains live on our website. Please remember to have your child complete a daily health screening every day before attending school. It is very important that you keep your child home if they are experiencing any signs of illness.
The MN Department of Health (MDH) will allow us to adopt a recent change in quarantine guidance from the CDC. You can find updates and information related to our school’s safety plan on our COVID Hub.
Please note, your school has rapid tests available for Hopkins scholars with symptoms or known, specific exposures / close contacts. We will also continue our weekly surveillance testing. Those saliva test kits go out on Mondays, and samples must come back by noon on Tuesdays. If you are in need of a test kit for your child, please reach out to your school who will be able to assist you.
COVID-19 Vaccinations
Hennepin County offers free clinic options for first, second, or booster vaccinations. You can register for an appointment online or by calling their navigation line at 612-348-8900. Help is available in English, Spanish, Somali, and Hmong. Check back often as events continue to be added. While supplies last, the county is offering $50 Visa gift cards to all people who receive a vaccination.
The Mall of America and MDH still have a vaccination clinic going at the mall. For more information or to schedule an appointment, please click here.
Find more vaccination options near you here.
Hopkins Public Schools is Hiring!
If you or someone you know would like to be a part of an inclusive school community on a mission to transform what education looks like — we need you! We currently have positions open in transportation, nutrition, event coordination, marketing and communications, teaching, early childhood, special education and more. Ready to get started? View our Careers page.
For additional information about paraprofessional support jobs in special education, please email Heidi Wilhelm at heidi.wilhelm@hopkinsschools.org or call the Special Services Department at (952) 988-4044.
Guest Teachers Desperately Needed
The nation-wide substitute teacher shortage is also impacting Hopkins Public Schools. We are looking for Guest Teachers to help us when our Hopkins Teachers are absent. It is very easy to become a Guest Teacher.
All that is needed is a bachelors degree and a Substitute Teaching License obtained through the Minnesota Department of Education and is very easy to get. Guest Teachers work up to 8 hours per day and we pay $165 per day. Our Human Resources department will help you obtain a Substitute Teaching License if you are interested in serving in this capacity.
We really need you! If interested in working with our amazing students in this role, please contact our school office at 952-988-5100 or Principal Sawatzky at 952-988-5101.
Important Calendar Dates
February 3: PTO Meeting 7:00pm
February 9: Restaurant Night - Red Robin, Plymouth
February 17-18: No School - Conferences
February 21: No School: Professional Learning for Staff
February 21-27: Meadowbrook Service Week
Meadowbrook Elementary
Main Office Line: 952-988-5100
Attendance Line: 952-988-5110
https://meadowbrook.hopkinsschools.org/families/attendance
Online Student Directory: www.meadowbrookpto.ptoffice.com
Email: natalie.sawatzky@hopkinsschools.org
Website: https://hopkinsschools.org/schools/elementary-schools/meadowbrook-elementary
Location: 5430 Glenwood Avenue, Golden Valley, MN 55422, USA
Phone: (952) 988-5100
Facebook: facebook.com/HopkinsMeadowbrook
Twitter: @MeadowbrookGV