Principal Madden’s Weekly Message—Week of November 29, 2021
Chilly November Greetings!
I hope you enjoyed a nice Thanksgiving! It will be nice to see all of your children again.
Photos
This week’s photos show some of our school community contributions from our All School Gathering on the day before Thanksgiving. Ms. Patel’s 5th graders shared their Land Acknowledgement in a video production. Ms.Egitto’s and Mrs. Simmons’s classes shared their “buddy” artwork of a Native American poem from the book, Giving Thanks, A Native American Good Morning Message, by Chief Jake Swamp. I have included photos from the gathering and of the collaborative and creative pieces. The 5th Grade Land Acknowledgement reads:
Room 2 acknowledges that we stand on Nonotuck land. We’d also like to acknowledge our neighboring indigenous nations: The Nipmuc and Wampanoag to the East, the Mohegon and Pequot to the South, The Mohican to the West and the Abenaki to the North.
COVID Updates
We did not have COVID testing last week, but we will resume this Thursday, (12/2). Our fabulous nurse, Karen Schiaffo, and/or I always accompany any testers as we collect all the swabs. We are getting this down to a pretty efficient routine. We have a large number of students and staff testing, which is fabulous. If you want to have your child participate or if you have questions about the testing, please contact Nurse Karen.
Here is a handy QR Code to sign up for testing at school!
Testing-QR-Code-1Please stay vigilant regarding COVID safety and get vaccinated if you have not already done so. I am glad that I have heard from so many of our students that they have been vaccinated, as this is the best way to keep the whole school community safe. I am a little anxious about the return after Thanksgiving. I hope everyone had a safe holiday.
We will begin having all students eat in the cafeteria (nobody outdoors for lunch) this week. We will have seating plans (assigned seats) and classes will need to be separated (just to limit contacts). We’ll continue with our “No Mask, No Talk” rule, but it will be trickier with them being so close together with more students at the tables. Please reinforce with your children how important it is to remain safe at lunch and only talk with masks on. I always say, “It is not forever, but it is the way it has to be for now.”
Call (587-1557) or email our wonderful nurse, Karen Schiaffo, if you have any health questions.
Thank you for keeping your child home if they are ill. Here is a link with some guidelines to help you make the decision: http://www.northamptonschools.org/project/illness-prevention/
StoryCorps
StoryCorps is an amazing project working to document the lives of everyday people. Typically, interviews are produced for radio. They now have a series of animated short interviews as well. You can check them out here
Here is a great one between an uncle and his nephew talking about Space.
Florence Bank
If you are a Florence Bank customer, please vote for R.K. Finn Ryan Road School!
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Important Upcoming Dates
November 30: Liftoff Learning resumes
December 8: Teacher Work Day: Half Day with an 11:30 dismissal
December 21: Winter Solstice
December 22: Last day of school before the Holiday Recess
January 3: Return to School—Happy 2022!
January 6: No School—Three Kings Day
January 17: No School—Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
January 24-27 & January 31—Early Release Days (11:30 Dismissal) for Teacher/Caregiver Conferences—Teachers will be in touch with you about signing up.
January 28: No School—Teacher Work Day
Stay up to date with all of our school activities on our School Website’s Calendar!
I hope that all families and caregivers feel welcome, comfortable, and valued at our school. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns. I am happy to meet with any of you after school hours (when I can allow you inside!) or can talk on the phone anytime.
Sincerely,
Sarah Madden, Principal
