Husky Howler
January 29, 2021
Dear Hill-Roberts Families,
As of press time, we've had 57 out of 219 families in grades 2-4 complete the updated consent form for the pooled testing program that we'll be starting Monday. Families with kindergarten students and 1st graders are welcome to fill out the form now as well, though we won't include them in the testing for a few weeks. This is a crucial first step that we hope will help us get back to full, in-person learning as soon as possible. Without a majority of participation from our school community, it will not be as effective in helping us have an accurate picture of the prevalence of the virus in the school and will lead to delays in our return to fully in-person learning. Our current data suggest that there is little to no in-school spread, however, we cannot know for sure whether it's being spread asymptomatically. Without that information, we cannot guarantee the safety of a full return to in-person learning. The pooled, surveillance testing program will provide us with that crucial, missing piece of information.
Important Reminders:
- This program is only for individuals who are asymptomatic
- If your child is exhibiting symptoms you must continue to follow the guidance of keeping your child home and contacting your primary care doctor.
- Any student or staff member who is exhibiting symptoms will be sent home, per CDC guidance, and not be included in our pooled surveillance testing program
We need all families to complete the new consent form in Aspen, even if you filled out the original form a few weeks ago. Please contact the school if you need assistance with your Aspen log-in.
We're starting with grades 2-4 with a hope to include K and 1 after a few weeks
Students will swab themselves under the supervision of our Pooled Testing Team
Our teachers showed the video in class last week but we encourage you to view the video below and discuss the process with your children.
If a testing pool comes back positive:
Staff and students in a positive pool will be retested in school, with the BinaxNOW rapid antigen test, administered by our nurse, Mrs. Knight-Cloud
Families of students who test positive on the BinaxNOW, rapid test, will be contacted to pick their child up and isolate/quarantine following DESE/CDC guidelines.
Staff who test positive will also leave and isolate/quarantine following DESE/CDC guidelines
Contact tracing will take place based on the results of the BinaxNOW, rapid test and we will reach out to affected families
For more information please see the FAQ document that was created to answer questions surrounding the pooled testing program. The video below shows two Hill-Roberts students demonstrating the procedure (A 1st-grader and a 4th-grader).
Useful Links
Instructions for Completing the Informed Consent Workflow in Aspen
Instructions for Completing the Informed Consent Workflow in Aspen Using a Cellphone
Como dar el Consentimiento Informado Electrónico para la Prueba Colectiva de COVID-19
Warm regards,
Mr. Rich, Principal
This Week in Health
Dear Hill-Roberts Families,
In Health class, we continue to review practicing Healthy Habits. Your Huskies continue to develop and practice their healthy habits in their nutrition and water, in learning about the importance of sleep on their body and mind, how to recognize their feelings/emotions and healthy coping strategies when they are feeling anxious, stressed, scared, angry or sad. Many of your huskies report that they use their mindful moments learned in Health and take deep breaths as an immediate way to calm down their minds and bodies! We continue to work on different Yoga and Movement skills.
Since returning from Winter Break, your Huskies have studied what SMART goals are and developed their own goal for improving their health daily (short term goal). They all created action plans to achieve or give them a good chance of achieving their daily health goal. We discovered the difference between a Growth Mindset and a Fixed Mindset and how each type can influence how we think, learn and achieve our goals or new skills. Your husky should be able to explain to you the importance of having a Growth Mindset to achieve their goals and learn new skills or concepts in school.
We have now begun to learn about Responsibility. Your Huskies can identify their own responsibilities and contributions at home, in school, and in their community. We are learning about the different responsibilities of the different types of jobs in the community such as Doctors, Dentists, Police, Firefighters, Nurses, Counselors, Coaches (just to name a few) and what these and other occupations contribute to the community.
We are now in Term 2 Section 2. As a reminder, if your student is in one of these following classes, they will be attending Health class in-person during one of their in-person days until March 5: Kubel, Dileo, Leddy (1rst), Lindsey, Young, Laprade, Dalpe, and Lombardy.
If your student is in one of the following classes, they will be responsible to complete one weekly assignment during one of their remote days in their Health Google Classroom until March 5: Bakalars, Camelo, Landry, Puccio, Amancio, Scott, De Grace and Leddy (4th).
Stay healthy and safe and keep up the great work Huskies!
Ms. McKay
Health/Wellness Teacher
YEARBOOK PICTURES NEEDED!
If your student (either Hyrbid or AVA) did NOT get their school picture taken this year through Lifetouch, please send a picture of your child to HRYBpics@gmail.com so we can include them in the yearbook. **
Pictures should be:
- Portrait orientation, waist up preferred
- Student-centered in the image
- Quiet background
- When sending, please include student’s full name, grade, and teacher’s name.
Portrait Example
We are still looking for fun and happy photos from this unique school year to include in our yearbook. We are specifically requesting pics of the following:
- Snowstorm pics
- First Day of School
- Spirit Days
- Remote Learning/ AVA
Please send to HRYBpics@gmail.com
HRES MASKS ARE STILL AVAILABLE!
We still have masks available in two sizes, Youth and SM/M. Please visit this link to order: https://my.cheddarup.com/c/hres-masks
PTO Meeting
Tuesday, Feb 9, 2021, 06:30 PM
Zoom
Hill-Roberts CREST Winners
During the school day, (whether in-person or at-home) huskies who exhibit our core values of Caring, Respect, Excellence, Safety & Trust can earn a CREST ticket from any Hill-Roberts staff member (including the bus drivers!). Each student who earns a CREST Ticket has their name placed into a drawing to earn a weekly prize that is picked by Mrs. Cotsalas. Their name is called during the morning announcements and they get their photo taken with a CREST Certificate.
K: Aubrey Gilardi
Nicolas Marques
Gr. 1: Evelyn Araujo
Chloe Zheng
Gr. 2: Mia Crisafulli
Vibol Seang
Gr. 3: Darys Escalante
Kelsey Souza
Gr. 4: Matthew DellaGrotta
Alexander Winkler
CREST Winners from Last Week
CREST Winners from our 2 Week Remote Period
Upcoming Important Information & Dates
- Breakfast and Lunch Menus
- Don't forget to check your Feinstein Golden Ticket number each week by visiting The Feinstein Foundation's Facebook Page.
February 1: Begin pooled testing program
February 4th & 5th: Health & Wellness Spirit Days
February 9: PTO Meeting @ 6:30
February 10th & 11th: Show your LOVE Spirit Days
February 15 - February 19: No School - Vacation
Hill-Roberts Elementary School
Email: frich@attleboroschools.com
Website: http://hres.attleboroschools.com/
Location: 80 Roy Avenue, Attleboro, MA, USA
Phone: (508) 399-7560
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hillrobertselementary