Lowell Newsletter
May 28, 2020
LOWELL HELPLINE: 542-4040
8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Monday - Friday
(messages will be answered the next business day)
Mrs. Frank's Tuesday Update
This message is full of year-end information to help you plan the next couple weeks.
The topics included in this message:
Instruction for the rest of the year
Last two weeks of school
Student pick up schedule and protocol for collecting items from school
Library Books
“Lowell Teacher Parade”
5th grade information
Kindergarten Round Up
INSTRUCTION FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR
Through May 29th, families will continue the same remote learning process as the last 8 weeks.
LAST TWO WEEKS OF SCHOOL:
June 1st-5th, students and families will to continue have access to daily learning templates just like the past 8 weeks. However, the focus of these activities will be review, celebration and enrichment lessons. In addition, the district Teaching and Learning department will also have activities linked in classroom lesson plans.
Staff will also use the last two weeks of school to check in with families and discuss spring remote learning and information for next fall.
June 8th-11th-All engagement and enrichment activities will be provided by our district Teaching and Learning department- much like it looked when we returned from spring break. We will have summer learning activities on our district website through June 30th. This is ALL optional and available if families choose.
STUDENT PICKUP SCHEDULE AND PROTOCOL:
We have identified June 8th and June 9th as our student pick up days for collecting items from school. If you have multiple students, please plan to attend the pick up time for your youngest child and we can gather the supplies for all of your students. Please note our schedule below:
*Pickup will be in the bus loop on Sherwood
Monday, June 8th
Kindergarten- 9:00am-11:00am
First Grade-11:00am-1:00pm
Second Grade-1:00pm-3:00pm
K-2 Evening Pickup: 5:30pm-7:00pm
TUESDAY, JUNE 9th
Third Grade- 9:00am-11:00am
Fourth Grade-11:00am-1:00pm
Fifth Grade-1:00pm-3:00pm
3-5 Evening Pickup: 5:30pm-7:00pm
LIBRARY BOOKS AND COMPUTERS
Families can return library books during the weeks of May 18th-June 11th.
We will have a designated box at the front of the school
We encourage families to return library books by May 29th
For Families who checked out a mobile device, pleases return the device during your scheduled pick-up day on June 8th or June 9th
If a family needs a device over the summer, we can check out a laptop to families on June 11th.
LOWELL TEACHER PARADE-
We miss our kids so much!! We are planning our teacher parade for June 11th. We will send additional information to families so you know the route and how to follow city health guidelines. This will be a great opportunity to see our kids one last time before summer.
5th GRADE INFORMATION
Our 5th grade teachers are communicating with families in the coming days to outline our virtual 5th grade celebrations.
MCPS Instrument Return - Typically we have students return district rented instruments following our final ‘Pizza Tour’ performance, this year however we’ve had to be a little more creative than usual. Click here for a letter from Fine Arts Supervisor John Combs on the process to get that district rented instrument turned in.
5th Grade Middle School Transitions-Here are the links to virtual tours and meetings for our three Middle Schools. If you have any questions about the transition to middle school, please reach out to your 5th grade teacher or our counselor, Mr. Rude.
Porter
Orientation videos:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1-1-fEclvObep0W151_s6TUBbV89OTUiJ?usp=sharing
Google Form for questions from students and parents:
Washington
5th Grade Message (2020-05-18 at 10:16 GMT-7)
Meadow Hill
Students attending Meadow Hill are welcome to join whichever night works best for them. They can also watch a virtual tour of Meadow Hill by clicking this link: MH 6th grade virtual tour
Zoom Open Houses for Meadow Hill
Wednesday, May 27 at 7pm
https://zoom.us/j/92698618532?pwd=VlF4S24wY01lZGFNa054K3pSaE5Hdz09
Meeting ID: 926 9861 8532
Password: 601471
Thursday, May 28 at 7pm
https://zoom.us/j/99284251479?pwd=aFpDL2VUOTdVeHJ2ZnhSdDlXYThCdz09
Meeting ID: 992 8425 1479
Password: 523296
Tuesday, June 2 at 7pm
https://zoom.us/j/94813867160?pwd=QlppZjBBekRGdjRLVEo1MjViVWdsUT09
Meeting ID: 948 1386 7160
Password: 897104
KINDERGARTEN REGISTRATION AND ROUND-UP
We encourage families to please register as soon as possible.
We will have a fall “kindergarten Round-up” in mid-August- stay tuned for more information in the coming weeks.
Wow- that is a lot of information! Please don't hesitate to reach out with questions. Remember our office is open T-Th from 12-2 and the Lowell Helpline is available from 8-4 M-F @ 542.4040.
Have a great week!
Barbara
LOWELL COUNSELING CORNER
LOWELL LIBRARY CORNER
Library News:
Hope you have been enjoying Camp Library! New slides, read alouds and activities will be added to it for the remainder of the school year. Check it out if you haven’t already! All library lessons can be found on the Lowell Library webpage https://www.mcpsmt.org/Page/15359.
Congratulations Pearl Rogalski and Georgine Dorris! Pearl and Georgine won a free kindle from the Kindles for Books Program for 5th graders. We are delighted for both of you!
Library books can be returned to Lowell any weekday between 10-1 pm! Please leave your books in the book drop bin (where the food pick up occurs each day) by May 29th if possible. Thank you!
The final competition and district level competition for Battle of the Books has unfortunately been cancelled. Thank you teams for your effort, dedication and enthusiasm. I thoroughly enjoyed working with all of you and cannot wait for next year’s competition! Volunteers, thank you for your help. All of you are so greatly appreciated!
PaddleHead Hit the Books prizes and Battle of the Book certificates will be in your end of the year pick up bag. Thank you for your efforts and congratulations on your hard work everyone!
LOWELL FLAGSHIP
Hello Lowell!
This is the last week of Flagship LIVE! Check out what we have to offer here.
I will be sending out summer camp sign-ups next week. I will send out a priority registration on Tuesday, June 2nd to those who had previously signed up for camp. I will send out a general registration on June 4th.
Miss Izzy
Lowell School Garden Summer Info
The Lowell School Garden will be open this summer! Garden City Harvest staff have been working hard to prepare and plant the garden with spring vegetables such as peas, radishes, and spinach, as well as summer produce like tomatoes and cucumbers. Families are welcome to visit the garden and take home veggies through the Adopt-the-Garden and Open Garden Hours programs. Due to COVID-19, new cleaning procedures and other measures will be in place to keep the community safe and healthy. We missed seeing Lowell students in the garden this spring, and we hope to see you soon.
Adopt-the-Garden
Weekly, beginning June 8th
We are looking for families to adopt-the-garden each week of the summer. You’ll help by opening the garden for a couple of hours during the week, whenever it fits into your schedule. We encourage you to do some light weeding and harvesting. Some perks of the job: taking home free, fresh produce and enjoying the outdoors.
Interested? Great! Email School Gardens Manager Lori Blumenthal at lori@gardencityharvest.org to sign up.
Open Garden Hours
Wednesdays, 9am-12pm
June 24th - August 12th
School Gardens Manager Lori will be in the garden every Wednesday morning this summer. Come visit the garden, help out, learn about gardening, connect with neighbors, and take home some fresh fruits and vegetables. Please wear a mask, and bring your own work gloves.
Lowell School Garden Summer Info
The Lowell School Garden will be open this summer! Garden City Harvest staff have been working hard to prepare and plant the garden with spring vegetables such as peas, radishes, and spinach, as well as summer produce like tomatoes and cucumbers. Families are welcome to visit the garden and take home veggies through the Adopt-the-Garden and Open Garden Hours programs. Due to COVID-19, new cleaning procedures and other measures will be in place to keep the community safe and healthy. We missed seeing Lowell students in the garden this spring, and we hope to see you soon.
Adopt-the-Garden
Weekly, beginning June 8th
We are looking for families to adopt-the-garden each week of the summer. You’ll help by opening the garden for a couple of hours during the week, whenever it fits into your schedule. We encourage you to do some light weeding and harvesting. Some perks of the job: taking home free, fresh produce and enjoying the outdoors.
Interested? Great! Email School Gardens Manager Lori Blumenthal at lori@gardencityharvest.org to sign up.
Open Garden Hours
Wednesdays, 9am-12pm
June 24th - August 12th
School Gardens Manager Lori will be in the garden every Wednesday morning this summer. Come visit the garden, help out, learn about gardening, connect with neighbors, and take home some fresh fruits and vegetables. Please wear a mask, and bring your own work gloves.LOWELL FAMILY FUN!
Boys & Girls Club Summer Camps
Summer Club will look different this year.
Boys and Girls Club of Missoula County's top priority is safety, then fun.
With this in mind, we are making some adjustments to the structure of Summer Club to keep our Club Families safe, while still having the fun-filled summer we are all familiar with.
Here is what will look different:
- Smaller Group Sizes - if we remain in phase 1 of the state's reopening, each age group size will be limited to 10 kids.
- Different Clubhouses - Our three age groups will be housed at three different locations in Misosula. We will no longer just use City Life Center.
- Field Trips - We will still go on field trips, but some of our traditional places will not be an option.
Summer Club 2020 is still going to be our best summer yet and we can't wait to experience it with you
NMCDC Kids Club
Missoula Parks & Recreation
- Parents, please note: Campers must have a completed Health History and Waiver on file before camp begins. Please complete this form and email it to us. Thank you! Questions? Give us a call at 721-PARK (7275.)
- Register online, in person at Currents Aquatics Center, or by phone at 721-PARK (7275.) Please see the withdrawal/transfer policy at right.
- Give us a call at 721-PARK (7275) to add family members to your account or renew your CityCard city resident discount before you register online.
YMCA Summer Camps
Lowell has a few vouchers for one week of YMCA camp. Please contact Libby Miller at rmiller@mcpsmt.org if you're interested!
Our camp staff are continuing to plan for a fun-filled camp season! We have reduced each camp’s group size using guidelines provided by the CDC, the governor, and the Missoula City-County Health Department.
We are prepared to increase camp numbers should we be able to. We encourage you to put your camper on the waitlist should you be interested in a camp that’s already at capacity. Click here for more information on 2020 summer camp changes and safety measures.
Day camp starts June 8. Our licensed Camp Horizon and Camp Imagination programs start June 15.
Registration
Registration for 2020 Summer Camp is now open! Click here to register.
Missoula Butterfly House & Insectarium
Montana Natural History Center
The Montana Natural History Center has FREE DIGITAL resources to engage children in nature and science learning opportunities. MontanaNaturalist.org/online-educational-resources
SciShow Kids
SciShow Kids explores all those curious topics that make us ask "why?"
kanopy - The World's Finest Cinema
Google Arts & Culture
6 Zoos & Aquariums offering Live Videos
Six Zoos and Aquariums Offering Live Videos of Animals for Free
MCPS Early Kindergarten Registration began May 11th
Missoula County Public Schools, School District #1, will offer two Early Kindergarten classrooms for the 2020-2021 school year. The two classes of up to 18 students each will be housed at the Jefferson Center at 1700 South Avenue and will welcome students to their first day of school on Tuesday, September 1, 2020. Early Kindergarten classrooms will be separate from the existing Preschool classrooms at Jefferson Center, but students will have chances to intermingle during the school day.The goal of the Early Kindergarten program is to help targeted students with kindergarten readiness skills. We are focusing the Early Kindergarten classrooms on students who live in the following neighborhoods:
- Northside/Westside ( Lowell Elementary)
- Franklin to the Fort ( Franklin Elementary)
- River Road (Hawthorne Elementary)
- Southgate Triangle (Russell Elementary)
Learn more about this opportunity at: https://www.mcpsmt.org/earlykindergarten
MISSOULA COMMUNITY RESOURCES
Covid-19 Information Resources:
- Missoula City/County Covid-19 joint information - http://covid19.missoula.co/
- Missoula County Covid-19 info line: Call 406-258-INFO from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon. - Friday
- Covid-19 Emergency Resources for Employers and Workers - montanaworks.gov
- Missoula COVID-19 Mutual Aid Community - covidmissoula.org
- Governor's Coronavirus Task Force - covid19.mt.gov
- Partnership Health Center - (406) 258-4789
YWCA 24 Hr Crisis Line:800-483-7858
National Domestic Violence Hotline 24/7/365 at @ndvh by chat or by calling their hotline at 1-800-799-7233
Mental Health Supports
Montana Warmline 1-877-688-3377 (not a crisis line, but an option for someone with mental health to talk to someone. Can refer to other services if needed through three-way calling)
Crisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741
Suicide Hotline; National 1-800-273-8255 Montana; 1-800-784-2433
- Covid-19 and Mental Health - Missoula County Resources
Technology
Free and reduced internet, free online classes https://www.internetessentials.com/
Free and reduced internet https://www.spectrum.com/browse/content/spectrum-internet-assist
For families with Straight Talk they can add data for free right now by texting COVID to 611611
Legal (housing support)
The Montana Legal Services Association has compiled a guide to housing and other legal issues related to COVID-19. Visit https://www.montanalawhelp.org/issues/covid-19, or call 1-800-666-6899
The Associated Students of the University of Montana Renter Center has prepared a medium post with advice for tenants in this situation. Visit https://medium.com/griz-renter-blog/difficulty-paying-rent-heres-what-to-do-4f6f880bd34c
Call 2-1-1 to see if you can get financial and other assistance
Unemployment/Financial
Montana Unemployment Division http://uid.dli.mt.gov/
Non-Food Essentials
Families can contact the Food Bank- (406) 549-0543
and they will figure out a way to get people items the need (may be pick up/delivery)
Emergency Childcare Resources:
Volunteer Opportunities:
- Volunteer Opportunities - volunteermissoula.org
LOWELL FOOD RESOURCES
- Lowell Elementary Meal-site: Lunch, plus Breakfast for the next day, is available for pick-up from 10:00 a.m - 1:00 p.m., Monday-Friday - we prefer that adults pick-up for students, any child 18 or under is eligible. Access on the East side of the school at the cafeteria doors.
- School Bus-stop Food Delivery for Kids: 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m., Monday-Friday, CLICK HERE and enter your address to get your location and approximate time.
- Market at Lowell - Missoula Food Bank pick-up at Lowell School - Wednesdays from 10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m., Bags of food for the whole family will be available. If there are extras they will be available as requested throughout the week.
- EmPower Packs (Weekend Food) - These will be available on the bus routes and at Lowell Meal-Site on Fridays. Please request one if you normally receive one at school. If there are extras they will be available as requested throughout the week at Lowell.
- Missoula Food Bank & Community Center - (406) 549-0543, missoulafoodbank.org
Monday, Tuesday & Thursday, 10:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m
Wednesday, 10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Grab and Go meals are also available at EmPower Place, the center is closed for play.
If you are sick or cannot travel to the Missoula Food Bank, call (406) 219-1843 for delivery options.
SNAP Benefits/Applications: www.apply.mt.gov
- WIC (Women, Infant, Children) http://www.signupwic.com/
MIC and other community organizers have arranged for weekly food bank box distribution at Mt. Jumbo School in East Missoula as well as in Bonner and Clinton.
Boxes are delivered in East Missoula on Thursdays between 4-6pm. Families can call Janet at 406-282-4842 to reserve boxes. Reservations must be made by Tuesdays at noon for the Thursday box pickup.
Westside Park Playground
Lowell School
Forward Thinking, High Achieving
Email: lowellfrc@mcps.k12.mt.us
Website: mcpsmt.org
Location: 1215 Phillips Street, Missoula, MT, USA
Phone: (406) 542-4040
Facebook: facebook.com/LowellSchoolMissoula