December 1, 2020

Letter from the Principal – December 2020

Wow! It is hard to believe that December is here and school is still open for in person learning. I feel incredibly grateful that this is the case! I hope that you all had a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving break. December always feels like a busy month and this one will be no different!

COVID Updates: We are incredibly fortunate that we currently have no instances of school based COVID transmission. This is a great sign that masks, distancing, testing and quarantine protocols are working effectively. However, with cases increasing, we do expect that the need for isolated or classroom quarantines will continue to be necessary. In these instances, you will receive direct communication from either myself, Assistant Principal Olson or Nurse Amante. Each case is different and can be confusing but we are here to support you! We continue to be grateful at how understanding all of you are, even when we may be calling to tell you that your child needs to remain home for an extended period of time!

Bike Racks: As you may have noticed, we received three new bike racks that are now located at the entrance by the baseball field. We owe a thank you to the Concord Ed Fund for giving us these bike racks! They are certainly helpful at a time when we have more students biking than ever. Just remember to make sure your child brings a lock to secure their bike if they leave it there during the school day.

Drop Off and Pick Up: As the weather gets colder, we are starting to have more cars at drop off and pick up than we had in the fall. I wanted to share a few reminders with families, especially those who might be new to driving this year, to ensure that the process is smooth and safe for all involved:

When you get into line on Laurel Street, please remain in line until you arrive at the designated drop off/pick up location. Please do not drop off or pick up students on Laurel Street.
Once you arrive at the drop off location, please make sure your child exits through the passenger side door so that they exit directly onto the sidewalk. The same holds true for dismissal – please have your child enter your car through the passenger side.
Once on school grounds, please wait in a single line and pull forward when staff direct you to do so. Please do not pass cars that are unloading to pull into an open space ahead of them.
For drop off, it helps to move the line quickly by having your child ready to hop out of the car as soon as you pull up to the curb. We see lots of families have their kids put their masks on and get their bags ready while in line on Laurel Street, which allows kids to jump out right away. It also keeps the line moving quickly if the driver remains in the car.
Last but not least, if you are new to car pick up, please make sure that you have a sign with your child’s full name and grade level prominently displayed in your window.

Wednesday, December 2: On the afternoon of December 2nd, all staff will be involved in a district wide professional development. Specialists who usually zoom on Wednesday afternoons will be unavailable due to their participation in professional development. As a result, students will have an asynchronous specialty assignment in either SeeSaw or Google Classroom but not a zoom meeting on Wednesday. Wednesday morning is still a regular, in person school day. This only affects specials on Wednesday afternoon.

Flu Vaccine: Thank you to everyone who has already submitted documentation of their child’s flu vaccination for the year. If you have not, we are asking families to submit documentation by December 11th.