2 Parsons Street

Northampton, Massachusetts 01060

413-587-1460 (phone) 413-587-1484 (fax)

Beth N. Choquette, Principal bchoquette@northamtpon-k12.us

Elizabeth Peterson, Administrative Assistant epeterson@northampton-k12.us

Jordan Celino, Secretary jcelino@northampton-k12.us

Nora DeJasu, Head Teacher ndejasu@northampton-k12.us

At the top of the weekly email, there's a link that reads "View it in your browser," click that and it takes you to the post on a webpage.

Scroll to the bottom where there's a black menu bar and pick the option that says "Translate."

Select the language you would like it translated in and it will then translate it on the webpage.

Le gustaría traducir esta carta de noticias? Aquí están los pasos para traducirlo:

En la parte superior del correo electrónico semanal, hay un enlace que dice "Verlo en su navegador", haga clic en eso y lo llevará a la publicación en una página web.

Desplázate hacia la parte inferior donde hay una barra de menú negra y elige la opción que dice "Traducir".

Seleccione el idioma en el que desea traducirlo y luego lo traducirá en la página web.

Good evening, I hope you all had a nice weekend. I'd like to start by apologizing for those of you who attempted to get into my Principal's Chat this past Thursday and couldn't. I had to leave school unexpectedly on Thursday due to my grandfather having a heart attack. I attempted to turn hosting privileges over to Ms. Nora and Mrs. Ruyffelaert, but it didn't work. I will reschedule in the near future. Thank you for the many kind emails regarding my grandfather. He is not well and I'm not sure what the coming week(s) will bring, but I am blessed to have the support of my family, friends, colleagues, and BSS community.

As you know, the school committee voted to transition to a hybrid model of learning. I understand that there are mixed feelings about this decision. You are concerned, worried, and wondering what this will all look like. These concerns, worries, and wonders should not be ignored and I want to do my best to answer all of your questions. I am committed to ensuring that your children and our staff remain safe and healthy. I will be hosting a town hall in hopes to answer many of your questions. I will be holding two on Thursday, October 29th. The first one will be in English and will begin at 3:15 p.m. and end at 4:15p.m. The second will be for Spanish speaking families and will begin at 4:30 p.m. and end at 5:30 p.m. Here are the links to the English and Spanish zoom town halls.

Town Hall (English)

https://zoom.us/j/98395099320

Meeting ID: 983 9509 9320
One tap mobile
+13017158592,,98395099320# US (Germantown)
+13126266799,,98395099320# US (Chicago)

Dial by your location
+1 301 715 8592 US (Germantown)
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
Meeting ID: 983 9509 9320
Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/aoXm9BYCT

Town Hall (Spanish)

https://zoom.us/j/96977681568

Meeting ID: 969 7768 1568
One tap mobile
+13017158592,,96977681568# US (Germantown)
+13126266799,,96977681568# US (Chicago)

Dial by your location
+1 301 715 8592 US (Germantown)
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
Meeting ID: 969 7768 1568
Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/abR7pR1ZY5

I know that there are many questions regarding what the hybrid model will look like. Our hybrid model was approved by the school committee back in August. I would ask that you review the reopening plan prior to the town hall meetings as I'm sure it will answer many of your questions regarding the schedule, enter/exit plans, safety protocols, etc. The reopening plan may also help you in determining your responses to the registration that was sent out on Friday. Some of your questions I am not able to answer at this time as impact bargaining between the teacher's union and school committee will take place over the course of the coming week. I am attaching several items for your review. As always, please feel free to reach out to me any time. We will get through this together. I have been so appreciative of your support. Your emails of encouragement and thanks are so helpful and mean so much to me. I've said all along, that this is new for all of us and it is so hard for everyone. Caregivers, teachers, and administrators are working extremely hard to do what is best for our kids. If we continue to work together and support each other through very difficult times, we will get through this. It won't be easy, but we will get through it. I hope you all have a wonderful week!

Please see the following attachments:

Superintendent Provost's School Committee Presentation for Transition to Hybrid Learning

Reopening Plan (please read carefully-as many of your questions may be answered in this document.

Safety Protocols

Student Daily Checklist (caregivers should go through this checklist everyday before sending students to school)

Electronic Registration for Hybrid Learning/Transportation (links below)

English Version: https://forms.gle/h4zE6rwdgj1Pbu1m7

Spanish Version: https://forms.gle/8Y8hCFxi8heaAvtC6

This week I decided to share a link to a story called Min Jee's Lunch by Elizabeth Kleinrock. In a world that has become more divided and where being unkind and making assumptions about others seems like the norm , I felt it important to share this short story with you to share with your children. It is from Teaching Tolerance, and there are questions at the end of the story if you want to discuss further with your children.

REAL (Racial Equity & Learning) is an NEF–funded project that brings together Northampton public school teachers, staff, students & caregivers to fulfill the project’s mission: support & strengthen our school community by developing an intentionally anti-racist culture. Check out our website at https://realnorthampton.com and follow us on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/REALNoho) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/real_noho).

REAL will be hosting an open meeting via zoom on Tuesday, October 27 from 8:00 to 9:30 p.m. This will be an opportunity for new members to learn more about REAL and for current members to (re)connect in a less structured/more social environment than our current subcommittee meetings.

And REAL’s NPS Community Resource Network Subcommittee (formerly named “NPS Equitable Reopening”) will meet again on Tuesday, October 6 from 7:30 to 9:00 p.m.

If you would like to learn more about REAL and/or receive the zoom link for either of the above meetings, please contact REAL’s Bridge Street School parent representative, Annie Salsich, at salsichannie@gmail.com. Or one of the REAL co-leaders: Jenny Bender at jennybinhbender@gmail.com, Kristen Elde at elde.kristen@gmail.com, or Deborah Keisch at deborahmdk2@gmail.com.

The deadline for enrolling in the district chromebook protection plan is Oct 30th. After that date, repairs will be completed according to the price points indicated in the guidebook. For example, physical damage to a chromebook will cost $89 to be repaired. Please complete the paperwork on the website and send it into the office. Checks can be made out to Northampton Public Schools. Every student who has a school issued device, should have turned in a piece of paper saying if they ARE or ARE NOT enrolling. These forms are on the website at Tech: Chromebook Program.

Single sheet for Elementary Protection Plan | SPANISH single sheet: Acuerdo del Manual del Programa Chromebook

Due to a greater than expected number of chromebook repair requests, to suit the needs of the district we have updated our hours available for appointments.

• Extended Tuesday hours, 9:00-3:30
• Extended Thursday hours, 9:00-3:30
• Added Wednesday, 9:00-3:30
• 
  

If you need a hotspot, fill out the form on Tech: Student/staff tech needs.

If a chromebook is broken, go to Tech: Chromebook Program fill out the repair form.

It will ask if you have insurance.

• If you say yes it will bring you to the calendar to book time to have it swapped by IT.

• If you say no, it will ask you to pay if the description you give about the damage is one that needs payment. There is an online option to accept payments and then the calendar link.

• The calendar link shows up at the end of the form when it's submitted. If the issue isn't something that requires payment, you'll be able to book a calendar appointment to drop it off at James house (42 Gothic Street).

We are all learners. The more we practice skills for learning, the stronger our brains will become. The stronger our brains become, the better we are able to learn. This week we will focus on two important skills for learning, listening and focusing attention.

Listening: At our school, we all work hard to be the best learners we can be. One skill for learning is to listen with attention. This is also a great skill for adults. When we listen with attention, our eyes are watching the speaker, our ears are listening, our voices are quiet, and we're still. This week, practice being a great listener.

Focusing attention: Learning happens every day at our school. An important skill for learning is focusing attention. When we focus our attention we use our ears, our eyes, and our brain! This week, put on your attent-o-scopes and notice how they help you listen and learn.