Hope Valley School WEEKLY UPDATE
Friday, February 12, 2021
Calendar of Events
February 2021
2/15-2/19 - February Vacation
2/24 - Early Release Day (students dismissed at 12:45)
2/26 - Hearing Screening
March 2021
3/3 - Early Release Day (students dismissed at 12:45)
3/8 - PTO Meeting at 6:30pm (Virtual)
3/8 - SIT Meeting at 4:00pm (Virtual)
3/10 - Early Release Day (students dismissed at 12:45)
3/15 - State Professional Development Day (Virtual Learning for All)
3/17 - Early Release Day (students dismissed at 12:45)
3/19 - Trimester 2 Ends
3/24 - Early Release Day (students dismissed at 12:45)
3/26 - Report Cards Issued
3/31 - Last day to complete Survey Works (see information below)
Attestation Self-Check: https://ps.chariho.k12.ri.us/public/
Monitor for Symptoms
It is IMPERATIVE that families are monitoring their children for symptoms. We are still in the middle of a pandemic and we need to continue to be watchful. No one with any symptoms should be coming to school.
Reading Week Activities and Book Fair Information
The "Reading-Week Committee" is very excited for our annual week of reading activities this year. Reading week will be March 1 through March 5. Students will participate in reading activities, research, and community standards throughout the week. We have a cute initiative that ties into Reading Week. It's the "Be the Change" initiative.
“Be the Change!” Hope Valley School is collecting spare change to adopt an African Elephant from Roger Williams Zoo. We are citizens, aware that our actions can make an impact on the world. All donations can be brought to school the week of March 1st-5th. Our school will listen to the staff read the book The One and Only Bob by Katherine Applegate. Join our Hope Valley Herd and be the change in the world!
Book Fair will be held Friday, March 5th in the gym, following COVID safety measures. Consider choosing the E-wallet option as an easy and safe option to have money available for your child to spend during his/her time at the Fair. More information to come home soon.
A Library Sneak Peek
When can a child access DL?
We are running into issues where families are trying to access DL for reasons other than what's listed below. There are district guidelines and expectations for Distance Learning. Students cannot simply just move to DL, there must be a valid reason. So, please know that if your child is registered for in-person learning, the ONLY time they should be accessing distance learning is:
- if they have symptoms,
- are in quarantine/isolation,
- the class/district/school is placed on distance learning per the district/school administration, or
- DL was the learning scenario they registered for T2.
If a student does access DL when they are an in-person learner, and it is not for one of the reasons noted above, the student will be marked absent for the day.
Message from Superintendent Picard
We have several important reminders. Please take the time to carefully review all of the information.
February Winter Recess - Feb 15-19
At this time, we are planning to return to in-person learning on February 22nd for all families that are registered for in-person learning. There are no plans to move to Distance Learning(DL) after the break. The decision to move to DL is always based on our school/district COVID data. As of now, our cases would not warrant a move to DL after February Recess. We monitor the positive COVID cases every day. Please know we work very hard in collaboration with the principals to avoid a full move to DL. We try and move only the students/class or team whenever possible. Our goal is to keep schools open as much as possible and to ensure we do it safely.
Upcoming Meetings
March 2- Annual Budget Hearing- 7:30 pm -You will need to register usingthis link, answer the required questions (ensuring it matches your voter registration information) and be a registered voter in Hopkinton, Charlestown or Richmond to be counted towards the quorum. The Chariho Act states we will need 25 residents from each town to attend. The Board of Canvassers will be reviewing all information to confirm the quorum.
March 3- Anti-Racism Task Force- 7 pm- Use this link to register to attend the meeting. Agendas are posted 48 hours prior to the meeting per the Open Meetings Act. Agendas can be found on our Website by selecting the District Information tab, clicking the Calendar Section, and locating the date of the meeting as well as on the Secretary of State’s website. You can access recordings of previous meetings using this link.
March 9- Health and Wellness Sub Committee 4 pm-Use this link to register to attend the meeting. Agendas are posted 48 hours prior to the meeting per the Open Meetings Act. Agendas can be found on our Website by selecting the District Information tab, clicking the Calendar Section, and locating the date of the meeting as well as on the Secretary of State’s website.
Travel
As many families are contemplating travel and making decisions about upcoming school breaks/vacations we wanted to remind all families of our travel policy. As a reminder, students who travel out of state to any location with a positivity rate greater than 5% (those states are listed here, and the list is constantly updated) will require a 14-day quarantine upon return. Travel for Chariho is defined as going to another state to attend any event/performance, family gathering/party/reunion with people outside of your immediate household. It does not matter if it is overnight or a day trip. This is the preferred response of the RI Department of Health as well as what is required in our school committee approved policy, as a negative test only indicates that the virus is not currently present. In the event there are families who must travel, we ask that you inform your school principal so that we can accurately record absences and communicate with staff about attendance and plans for continuity of education upon return.
Registration for Trimester 3 and Quarter 4
Elementary School(ES) Registration for Trimester 3 will begin after February Recess. We do not anticipate any major concerns in regards to accommodating elementary school requests. Trimester 3 begins on March 22nd.
You will only need to register for Trimester 3/Quarter 4 if you are looking to change your learning scenario. If you want to continue with your current selection no registration is required.
Please note that if your child is registered for in-person learning the only time they should be accessing distance learning is if they have symptoms, are in quarantine/isolation, their class/district/school is placed on distance learning per the district/school administration or DL was the learning scenario they registered for T2/Q2 & Q3.
The school administration will be continuing to message the district expectations in regards to when a child may participate in distance learning. Students cannot simply just move to DL, it must be for the reason stated above. If a student accesses DL and it is not for one of the reasons noted above the student will be marked absent for the day.
Responsible Use of Technology Policy
During the 2/9/2021 school committee meeting, the school committee approved a revision to this policy that made the following change: The District will not make use of any camera or microphone on District technology for remote monitoring purposes except during distance learning. The District can monitor devices not issued by the District that are using the District network or Internet services. This revision was put in place to ensure our student expectations to turn on the camera during specific instructional times, assessments, and tests were clearly articulated. Here is a link to our expectations
Click here to review the updated policy.
Chartwells Grab and Go
Chartwells is handing out meals over February Recess. During February Break. You can pick up meals at Chariho Regional High School Monday, Wednesday, and Friday 9:15-10:45 am weather permitting. This opportunity is open to all Chariho students/families. Click here for the flyer.
Our COVID rates
To date, the number of positive cases for our district remains low in comparison to the State. Based on our current enrollment and staff numbers we have less than a 1% positivity rate. Here is the link to the most recent school data of cases in our district and for all schools in the state.
Sincerely,
Gina M Picard
Superintendent
Super Bowl Poll
For those interested, most wanted to see Tom Brady win which he did in a big way.
- 67% were rooting for him
- 18% were NOT rooting for him
- 15% were conflicted (I will admit, I was conflicted)
CHECK OUT THIS OPPORTUNITY
8 CORE SKILLS FOR A LIFETIME OF MENTAL WELLNESS. SIGNUP AND GET A FREE WEEKLY TEXT MESSAGE TO HELP YOU TEACH TOUR CHIULD THE 8 SKILLS FOR A LIFETIME OF METNAL WELLNESS. THE GREATEST 8 DELIVERS TIPS AND ACTIVITIES YOU CAN USE TO NURTURE YOUR CHILD'S HEALTHY EMOTIONS AND BEHAVIORS. THIS IS GREAT FOR CHILDREN FROM BIRTH TO AGE 8.
THE 8 CORE SKILLS ARE: Communication, Identifying and Understanding Feelings, Balancing Emotions, Problem Solving, Coping and Resilience, Conflict Management and Resolution, and Diversity Awareness & Respect. THEY are separated in 4 age groups: 0-1, 1-2, 3-5, and 6-8. Find out more by clicking here: http://thegreatest8.org/.
Survey Works
How to Complete the Survey: Visit http://bit.ly/ridefamily (click on the link) and choose your school from the dropdown list. I will challenge all the parents like I have done the past 2 years. The challenge is to get 60% participation, and we will have a live DJ party with the well-known DJ Jazzy G (covid style of course). This is always a hit for students (and for me).
Very Important: When you click on the survey link above, you will have to choose your child’s school from the dropdown menu. There will be two options for Hope Valley School. You will see Hope Valley Elementary School (Chariho) and Hope Valley Elementary School Annex (Chariho). All families of pre-school children MUST use Hope Valley School ANNEX and all families of children in grades K-4 will use Hope Valley Elementary School. RIDE had to separately identify the two schools a few years ago. Thank you.
Background Info: The Rhode Island Department of Education is currently administering its annual SurveyWorks Family Survey, which is an opportunity for family members to provide feedback about our school community and our children’s opportunities to learn. The survey results are most useful when all families participate, so I am writing to ask you to take this survey for our school. Your views on matters like the safety of your child at school, the way students are taught, the condition of the school, and how connected you feel to the school are important. By taking this short survey, you can help our school leadership and school community to make improvements. Responses are anonymous and cannot be linked to any individual. You can take the short survey online between January 19 and March 31.
Life Changer Award
Life Changer of the Year!
Did you know that Hope Valley School has NOT 1, NOT 2 but 3, yes, 3 teacher’s who have been nominated for the life changer of the year award?!!!
This is a nationwide award with over 700 nominees. In the next few months those 700 will be narrowed down to the final 16. The 16 winners will get a stipend for the school and also for themselves! You can help our Hope Valley Community by taking a minute to see what people have to say about these amazing educators and perhaps leaving a comment of your own! Click on the nominees name or scan the QR code! You can also help by mentioning these teachers on twitter or facebook using the hashtag #LCOY
You can click right on the teacher's picture below and it will take you to the teacher's page so you can leave a comment or click on the links directly below.
Support Mrs. Mankoff
Support Mrs. Abbott
Support Mrs. Mello
Recess and Outdoor Learning
Great Opportunity from RIDE
Information from the RIDE website
Social Media Outlets
@CharihoRegional
use #HopeValleyHawks
Tik Tok
Social Media
About Hope Valley Elementary School
The mission of the Hope Valley Elementary School is to work in partnership with our colleagues, students and families. We are committed to creating a learning environment where children are expected to achieve their full potential.
Email: ggen@chariho.k12.ri.us
Website: hopevalley.chariho.k12.ri.us
Location: 15 Thelma Drive, Hope Valley, RI, United States
Phone: 401-539-2321
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Mr.Gencarelli/?ref=br_rs
Twitter: @JoeGencarelli1