Worthington School District
147 Huntington Road
Worthington, MA 01098
413-238-5856
May 6, 2022
Dear Community:
Hope to see you at the Annual Town Meeting beginning tomorrow morning at 9:30 a.m. under the tent in the R.H. Conwell parking lot. Have a wonderful weekend!
Cafeteria Tables: During April break, the Littleton School District donated their gently used cafeteria tables to the district. We are so excited to have the round tables for our students to eat breakfast and lunch.
News from the art teacher Mrs. Hawthorne: R.H.Conwell now has a clay program in art class thanks to an incredible donation by the Hilltown 6 pottery group. The 3/4 class just finished their first mugs and celebrated last week with an art party. Students tested out their mugs with hot chocolate, tea, and lemonade and the mugs worked great! Here is a link to a photo album of the students’ work.
3/4 Pottery at Conwell Google photo album
The 5/6 class are currently making bowls, mugs, candle holders, and other original designs. Grade 1/2 is learning the art form of the pinch pot and Kindergarten students are making texture turtles. Clay is such a rich medium and a student favorite. I am so happy to be able to offer this experience to R. H. Conwell Students.
We are so grateful for the generosity of Hilltown 6. With their donation, we were able to purchase clay, rolling pins, and an entire class set of quality pottery tools. Please thank these potters if you know them. They are an extremely talented group of artists right here in the hilltowns. Every year they have a pottery tour and last year they allocated a portion of their sales to school art program donations. Their next annual event is this summer.
News from the Third and Fourth Grade students: On May 13th, the third and fourth graders of Conwell will be having a one-day farm stand. It will be taking place at the shed near the school, and they’ll be there, helping their products sell. They will be selling cards, garden produce, maple syrup, bouquets; real and fake, and more! The money will be used for the school garden, the school’s bees, garden tools, and classroom supplies. Hope you come.
R.H. Conwell Employment Opportunities for the 2022-2023 school year:
Water Drinking Challenge: Our water challenge began this week. So far this week, the school in total has already consumed 1038 cups of water (Monday-Thursday). The students are all very excited about this challenge, and thriving on the competition among classrooms. Here is a short message from the Wellness Committee regarding this challenge. Message from the Wellness Committee
Nurse Sam Update:
Please check out my new website for the most up-to-date information and updates from the nurse’s office. https://sites.google.com/hr-k12.org/rhc-nurses-office/
- Mask Optional Remains In Effect: With the increase in cases throughout the state and region, at this time we will still remain mask optional. However, if we see a significant increase either within Worthington, or at RH Conwell, we may need to shift to universal masking for a short time.
- Tick Season Begins: We are heading into that time of year where Ticks are becoming more prominent. With the students spending more time outdoors, it is very important to check your child for ticks at the end of each day. How to do a tick check
Some common areas to check include:
- Inside and behind the ears
- Hairline
- Back of the neck
- Armpits
- Groin
- Legs
- Behind knees
- Between toes (if barefoot)
- If a tick is found, use fine tip tweezers and pull the tick as close to the skin as possible, pulling straight out and not twisting. Clean the area with soap and water and continue to watch for any rashes or signs of infection that may develop within the following few days. Here is a video on how to remove a tick: How to remove a tick
- If able, identify the type of tick it was and contact your child’s healthcare provider if it was a deer tick, or if any illness develops after finding the tick. Tick Identification Chart
- Tick Prevention Tips:
- Wear light-colored, long sleeve shirts with long pants tucked into your socks when in an area that is likely to have ticks.
- DEET containing bug repellent (no more than 30-35% DEET for children) can be helpful. (If applying bug repellent, please use in moderation as we have some individuals within the building with scent sensitivities)
- Stick to main pathways when traveling in wooded areas.
- For more information, please visit this site: https://www.mass.gov/info-details/tick-borne-disease-prevention
- Sunscreen: As students are spending more time outdoors, please remember to apply sunscreen with 30-50 SPF to their exposed skin, face, and neck prior to coming to school and have them wear a hat to protect their scalp. Light colored, breathable clothing may be helpful as well to not absorb the sun’s rays (How clothing affects UV ray absorption).
- We do not have sunscreen available at school. If you would prefer your child to reapply sunscreen at intervals throughout the day, you may send a bottle of sunscreen to school with your child, labeled with your child’s name, for their use only. Students will not be permitted to share sunscreen with other students. If able to self-apply appropriately, they may do so as needed.
- *School staff will not be held responsible for overexposure to sunlight, but will do their best to keep all students in shaded areas as much as possible.*
- At Home Covid Test Reporting Form: At-Home Covid Test Reporting Form
| Covid-19 Data Dashboard | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 5/6/22 | 4/29/22 | Trend | |
| Positive Cases at R.H. Conwell | – | – | – |
| External Close Contacts in Quarantine | – | – | – |
| BinaxNOW Rapid Antigen Tests Conducted | – | – | – |
| Positive Cases in Worthington (last 7 days) | 8 | 4 | ↑ |
| Positive Cases in Hampshire County (last 7 days) | 963 | 855 | ↑ |
| Positive Cases in Massachusetts (last 7 days) | 31,689 | 27,670 | ↑ |
| Weekly Routine Covid Safety Checks | ||
|---|---|---|
| Date Safety Checks Completed | 5/3/2022 | 4/26/2022 |
| Number of Individuals Participating | 40 | 45 |
| Number of Pools Tested | 10 | 8 |
| Number of Positive Pools | 0 | 0 |
| Number of Negative Pools | 10 | 8 |
| TOTAL NUMBER OF WEEKLY CHECKS COMPLETED: 15TOTAL NUMBER OF NEGATIVE POOLS TO DATE: 120 TOTAL NUMBER OF POSITIVE POOLS TO DATE: 2 |
Upcoming Events:
May 7: Annual Town Meeting beginning at 9:30 a.m. at R.H. Conwell Elementary School
May 10: MCAS Testing – Science for grades 5th grade
May 12: School Committee Meeting at 6:30
May 17: GOTR Practice 5K.
May 23: Noon Dismissal
Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns.
Gretchen Morse-Dobosz
Superintendent/Principal