From the Principal's Pen
December 4, 2020
MARK YOUR CALENDARS!
Early Release Day - Wednesday, December 9th
Lunch will not be served at school. Students will be provided with a "grab and go" bagged lunch to take with them when dismissed. In the past, we have doubled up on lunch waves but can no longer do that due to COVID social distancing requirements. Lunches will be provided free of charge, but they must be ordered that morning. Please send your child with a substantial healthy snack on early release days!
All after-care programs (YWCA, Boys and Girls Club, Family First, and FLEX Eagle's Next) will be open that day.
Upcoming Important Dates
*IMPORTANT NOTE: Boys and Girls Club and YWCA will be open. Family First and FLEX Eagle's Nest will be closed on 12/23*
Winter Recess - Thursday, December 24th - Friday, January 1st
School Reopens - Monday, January 4th
Absences and Remote Instruction
Dear Parents,
It has been a challenging year for us all and many “novel ” requests are arising as we are operating in our new COVID-19 environment. It has come to our attention that parents of students who are home on a temporary absence (i.e. sick day, doctor’s appointment, family travel, or vacation) have requested to access instruction remotely. We have also received questions about students being able to attend in-person instruction on a part-time basis. These options are not available at this time. If your child attends in-person school, then he or she is expected to be here and the student is marked absent when they are not present at school. The only exception is when they are asked to quarantine.
Students will be provided with work when they are home for an extended period of time for quarantine as directed by the school. When an entire grade level or class is quarantined, that entire group will move to remote instruction along with their teacher. However, when a single student or students within a family are directed to quarantine, the individual family can make arrangements with the classroom teacher for work to be completed while at home. The teacher might create a packet of work to be picked up or may push out work through Google Classroom. If a student is called in sick on a particular day the teacher will be unable to provide work immediately for that day. If the student is out for several days they will provide work based on the lessons missed. Students with IEPs will continue to receive their specialized services remotely with their service providers according to their current school schedule unless otherwise arranged by mutual agreement with families.
Should you wish for your child to move to remote instruction on a permanent basis, you will need to put in a request to do so. Once your child is assigned to the Greenwich Remote Learning School (GRLS), please know that your child will remain with their GRLS class should the entire district move to remote learning. They will not be returning to their current class at Julian Curtiss.
If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact me to discuss.
Sincerely,
Trish McGuire
Principal
Author Visit Updates
We received some wonderful follow-up information to our recent virtual author visit with Simran Jeet Singh! Last week, the New York Public Library listed Fauja Singh Keeps Going as one of their Best Books for Kids 2020!
There will be a live virtual event via Zoom with Simran Jeet Singh through the Greenwich Library this Saturday at 11 am. This is a free event, but registration is required. Click here to register.
Some of the children requested Fauja's address to send letters to him. We are delighted that Fauja's story touched them so much. Here is Fauja's address:
Fauja Singh
C/O 76 Whalebone Lane South,
Dagenham
Romford, Essex
RM8 1BB, United Kingdom
Julian Curtiss School Fall 2020 Virtual Art Show
We are very excited to share our first JC Art Show of the year with you! The students in Cohort A (kindergarteners, second graders, and fourth graders) have worked very hard to develop their skills and practice their new knowledge. Students selected their own work to share. Many thanks to the second and fourth graders who also photographed their own work.
Ms. Gold, Ms. Brown, and Miss Hinkle are so proud of all our students' accomplishments in the first eight weeks of school!
Please click below to enjoy a gallery walk of all of the students' beautiful artwork!
Parent Workshop Opportunity
The Greenwich Special Education Advisory Council (Greenwich SEAC) welcomes renowned psychologist, Dr. Ross Greene, on December 8 at 7PM via Zoom! Dr. Greene will be hosting a webinar that addresses his evidence-based model: Collaborative and Proactive Solutions - Moving from Power and Control to Collaboration and Problem Solving.
You are invited to a Zoom webinar.
When: Dec 8, 2020 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Topic: Greenwich
Please click the link below to join the webinar:
https://zoom.us/j/98181039517?pwd=UjlVZm5JL0t5QzM0b2c4d1RJVFZKZz09
Passcode: 064618
This is the evidence-based model Dr. Ross Greene describes in his influential books The Explosive Child, Lost at School, Lost & Found, and Raising Using Beings. The CPS model has transformed thinking and practices in countless families, schools, inpatient psychiatry units, and residential and juvenile detention facilities throughout the world, and has been associated with dramatic reductions in adult-child conflict, challenging behaviors, disciplinary referrals, detentions, suspensions, seclusions, and physical, chemical, and mechanical restraints. The model represents a significant departure from discipline-as-usual: it focuses on solving problems rather than on modifying behavior, emphasizes collaborative rather than unilateral solutions, encourages proactive rather than reactive intervention, de-emphasizes diagnostic categories, and provides practical, research-based tools for assessment and intervention. Participants in this workshop will leave with an understanding of the underpinnings of the model, its refinements over the past 8-10 years, and practical assessment and intervention tools that can be brought back to and used in these diverse settings.
Dr. Greene is a clinical psychologist who has been working with children and families for over 30 years. His influential work is widely known throughout the world and he's a New York Times bestselling author. We are thrilled to have him present to our GPS community! Please reach out to the Greenwich SEAC if you have any questions at greenwichSEAC@gmail.com
Virtual Parent Chats
Dr. Fabian Boie
Behavior Support Team
Ms. Jessica McEvily
Behavior Support Team
Dr. Alina Boie
Behavior Support Team
During these challenging times, please join us for a virtual “Parent Video Chat” facilitated by one of our GPS psychologists. Connect virtually with other parents in our community and learn effective strategies to manage personal stress and discuss relevant topics. You can join at any point during a session and stay for as long as you can. We are here to answer questions and provide support.
Themes:
December - Coping with Anxiety and Stress Management
January - Fostering Resilience at Home
Elementary School Parents
Wednesday, December 9 at 7pm
Tuesday, December 22 at 7pm
Friday, January 8th at 11 am
Monday, January 11 at 7pm
Secondary School Parents
Monday, December 14th at 7 pm
Tuesday, January 5th at 7pm
Wednesday, January 20th at 7pm
Friday, January 29th at 10 am
Elementary & Secondary Parents in Spanish
Thursday, December 17th at 7 pm
Tuesday, January 26th at 7pm
Directions
In order to join this session, you will have to access the Google Meet Conference link shared with you. You can choose to open our camera or not. Once you join, please mute your microphone to avoid background noises. You can turn it on when asking a question or use the chat function to ask questions or make comments. Presenters will share with you additional resources and links after the session is over.
Google Meet Link for all meetings: meet.google.com/arm-hbjd-yvy
Don't Forget to Show Your JC Spirit!
It's the perfect time to shop for holiday gifts - there is a 25% off sitewide sale!
If you are looking for some new Spirit Wear, families, staff, and teachers may order whatever they like. There are masks, stadium seats, blankets, and other fun accessories as well as clothing. You can customize the logos, colors, etc. (within select choices). There are no minimums. The company will produce and ship directly and Julian Curtiss will receive a 12% commission. Hopefully easy for all! Click below to see all of our fun, new JC Spirit Wear!
¿Necesita leer nuestro boletín en español?
¿Necesita leer nuestro boletín en español? Haga clic en cualquier parte de este correo electrónico, desplácese hasta la parte inferior y haga clic en traducir. Luego, seleccione español, y el boletín debería aparecer en español. ¡Gracias!
Please follow Mrs. McGuire and Mrs. Brush on Twitter
@JCSPrincipal and @JCSEaglesAP
Mrs. Trish McGuire - Principal
Email: trish_mcguire@greenwich.k12.ct.us
Website: www.greenwichschools.org/jcs
Location: 180 East Elm Street, Greenwich, CT, USA
Phone: (203) 869-1896
Twitter: @jcsprincipal