Dear R.H. Conwell Families,
Hope this message finds you well. Fall is officially here! During my morning walks I have had to throw a fleece on because the mornings have been crisp. I have also noticed driving in from Shelburne that the leaves are changing colors and falling much faster than I would like to see.
Third and Fourth Grader Farm Stand: Mrs. Orzechowski ¾ graders will be selling eggs and produce from the school garden. These items will be located in the shed between the school and the Worthington Church. Items will be priced and families can leave their money in the money jar. All proceeds will be used to purchase chicken food, garden tools, and seeds for the garden. The students really appreciate your support!
Parent Coffee Update: Thanks to the parent and couple of community members who joined the parent zoom last evening. Next week, I plan to send home a short survey about the monthly parent meetings to see if there are better times to meet via zoom during the evening hours. Please look for this in my Friday News! During the meeting, I shared a short presentation about ESSER III funds and how the district can spend the money over the course of the next couple of years. Please follow the link to view the presentation. As always, please feel free to contact me with any questions.
Pavillion Committee: The district is looking for members to join the Pavilion Committee. This committee will look closely at funding options and will develop a timeline for building and site prep. The pavilion will support outdoor teaching and learning at Conwell and available for community members to use. If you are interested, please send me an email at gmorsedobosz@hr-k12.org.
Preschool Paraprofessional: The district is seeking a paraprofessional for the preschool classroom. Preschool runs from 8:15 – 3:30 Tuesday – Friday! Please contact me at gmorsedobosz@hr-k12.org for more information.
Substitutes: We are looking for classroom substitutes. Please contact the main office for more information.
A Message from Nurse Sam:
| Covid-19 Testing in School:We will begin conducting Covid testing for all students and staff who wish to participate using the Abbott BinaxNOW Antigen testing. This testing will be for symptomatic individuals (who begin symptoms in school) or anyone identified as a close contact (while in school). See attached notice sent home to families this week. Please fill out the consent form for your child(ren). If you are choosing not to have your child(ren) tested in any capacity, please still fill out the consent form as there is an option to opt-out of testing. If you are unable to access the online consent form, paper copies are available on the nurse’s office page of the R.H. Conwell website. Please fill out the consent form by end-of-day today. Consent Form:https://www.cic-health.com/consent/ma?district=Worthington If you have any questions regarding testing, please see Nurse Sam (spease@hr-k12.org). Masks: We are still noticing some students not wearing masks properly while indoors (masks below nose). Individual students have been given frequent reminders, and whole classrooms received a lesson on the importance of masks in containing respiratory droplets and how to wear them properly by Nurse Sam during health class this week. Going forward, phone calls home will begin for any student continuing to not wear masks properly or any student not following our health and safety guidelines. In addition, supplying students with properly fitting masks and an adequate supply of masks to change throughout the school day when soiled or broken is the responsibility of the families. The nurse’s office has a supply of kids sized paper masks for emergency use and unforeseen circumstances only. Please send your child(ren) with multiple masks each school day. If you have difficulty finding properly fitting masks for your child(ren), please contact Nurse Sam for assistance. Illnesses: If your child(ren) are experiencing any symptoms of illness, no matter how minimal they may be, please reach out to me via email before sending them to school. What may look and appear like a basic common cold, could be indicative of a more serious illness such as flu, covid-19, or strep. Rule of thumb, if they have any symptoms at all, please keep them home until you have clearance from me for them to return. If students are presenting in school with symptoms that began at home, they may be sent home and a covid test will be required before returning. To avoid this, please communicate any and all illnesses to me so we can discuss the best plan of care to keep everyone safe. I check my email throughout the day and night, and will get back to you as soon as possible. Please see the attached Attendance Guidelines during Illness document that is also available in the student handbook sent home at the beginning of the year. Donations: We are currently looking for some donations from any families who are willing to donate the following items: Child sized face masks (Masks should be paper or cloth, have 2-3 layers, and should fit snugly over both nose and mouth) TissuesDisinfectant WipesUnscented Baby WipesIf you are interested in donating any of these items, please deliver them to the main office. Please specify if you would like your donation to be for whole school use or individual classroom use. Thank you! |
Parent Volunteer: We are seeking a parent volunteer every Monday from 11:30 -12:00 to support recess duty and from 12:00 – 12:30 to support lunch duty. This volunteer position begins immediately. Please contact the office at 413-238-5856 if you are interested.
Lunch Volunteers for Preschool: We are seeking one volunteer every day from 12:00 – 1:00 to help preschoolers with lunch and getting settled for rest time. This will allow for the preschool teachers to take a lunch break. Please email me at gmorsedobosz@hr-k12.org if you are interested.
Lunch: Until further notice students will eat snacks and lunch outside.
- Friday lunch: Caregivers are welcome to join Friday lunch. We are limiting lunch to three caregivers per class. The K-2 lunch begins at 12:00 and the 3-6 lunch begins at 12:35. Please sign up to attend Friday lunch using the following link. The next family lunch will be Friday, September 17, 2021. Please come to the front door and sign in at the office first.
- If you (the caregiver) will be purchasing lunch please include this into the comment section when you sign up. School lunch costs $4.00. While attending family lunch, we expect that caregivers will sign in at the front office, will wear a mask while they are inside, and find a spot outside with their child. At that time, we ask that families be mindful of social distancing since masks are not required while outside.
Upcoming Events:
September 22, 2021: Equity Advisory Committee at 3:30 p.m.
September 27 2021: Noon Dismissal – Faculty PD
October 7, 2021: Virtual Curriculum Night and Open House beginning at 6:00 p.m.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Gretchen Morse-Dobosz
Superintendent/Principal
gmorsedsobosz@hr-k12.org