Bates Family Newsletter

Greetings Bates Families!

Many thanks to all families who came out for parent/caregiver conferences this past week. It's so important to us that we maintain a healthy home-to-school connection with all of you. It's going to be a fun week at Bates with the holiday shop opening up tomorrow and our annual winter concerts take place this week as well. Just as a reminder:

December 12th:

• 4th and 5th graders will sing for families @ 8:15am
• 2nd and 3rd grade will sing for families @ 1:00pm

Early release!

Also, please note that there is another early release on Wednesday for staff professional development. We appreciate your promptness in picking up your students.

Students in grades K-5 take STAR assessments in early literacy and/or reading, and math three times per year. Star tests are computer adaptive, which means they adjust in difficulty to each answer students provide. This helps teachers get the best data to help students in the shortest amount of testing time (about one-third of the time other tests require). We'll be sending our your student's STAR testing results during the week of 12/18. Please check your student's backpacks as they will be send hard copy.

Mrs. Smith will host a parent/caregiver meeting on Tuesday, 12/19, via Zoom at 3pm to provide a brief overview of the reports and answer any questions you may have. A link will be sent via Parent Square before the meeting.

As cold and flu season is upon us, we'd like to revisit the policy on calling students out from school as well as how to dismiss early:

REPORTING STUDENT ABSENCE:

Parents and guardians must call the school by 8:00 a.m. to report absences. The absence call-in number is 978-740-1172. Please leave a message on this line. It's always good practice to message the teacher regarding an absence via Parent Square AND let the front office know of the absence via the absence reporting line. Per School Committee policy, a written note explaining the absence is required within 5 days when the child returns to school following an absence. A doctor's note is required upon return if a student is out of school for more than 3 days in a row. If the child returns to school without a doctor's note after 3 or more days absent in a row, parents/guardians will be expected to meet with the Family Engagement Coordinator, Assistant Principal, and/or Principal.

DISMISSALS:

Parents or guardians who wish to have their child dismissed from school before the end of the school day must send a note to the school prior to dismissal. The note should state the date and time of the dismissal and the name of the person who will pick up the child at school. Phone calls to dismiss students should only be placed in case of an emergency. The office must dismiss all children and the person picking up the child must sign in at the main office. NO CHILD WILL BE ALLOWED TO LEAVE THE BUILDING ALONE. Also, please be aware that the person picking up your child must be on the emergency form and be prepared to show identification.

Our focus this month is on Citizenship, and we'll also work on defining "big and small problems". We spent a good portion of last week and the week before discussing empathy.

Many students joined me on the morning announcements and did a great job reading the book Empathy is Your Superpower: A Book About Understanding the Feelings of Others (by Cori Bussolari) LIVE on the morning announcements. We saw some great reading skills!

Following this day by day reading of the book, there was discussion and reflection. Empathy is a critical thing to learn and really put into practice… and we would love it if you could reinforce this at home as well?

This is a read aloud video of the story that has been read this week. Consider reading it with your little ones and take time to respond thoughtfully to the questions and prompts in the story. See where the conversation takes you and know that we value your partnership in teaching these essential skills and values!

The school menus are posted on the SPS website. Find them here.

Reminders:

We ask that students wear shoes that have backings. Slides and crocs are not safe for the school playground. There have been many accidents from students not having backings on their shoes. Sneakers are the best option when in school.

Please make note of upcoming concert date!

December 12th:

• 4th and 5th graders will sing for families @ 8:15am
• 2nd and 3rd grade will sing for families @ 1:00pm

Please reach out to our City Connects Coordinator, Sari Rudolph, at srudolph@salemk12.org. Ms. Rudolph will be able to help you with winter clothing, connecting you with the Family Resource Center, and with other needs you may have.

Please visit the Salem Public Schools webpage here for guidance on the district's homework policy.

Huge shout our to our PTO and PTO president, Angel Nelson, for their fundraising and volunteer efforts thus far this year! This week, the holiday shop will serve as a substantial fundraiser for our school. Many thanks to Kate Carmody who put together our Salem Children's Charity "gift basket" with the theme "Rake in the Cash".

Did you know you can earn money for our school just by scanning your grocery receipts? All you need to do is download the Boxtops app, and scan those receipts! Don't want to scan? No worries, you can always send receipts into school with your student in an envelope marked, "PTO Boxtops".

Again, we're stressing that if you MUST leave your car during drop off, pull up past the school entrance and drive as far down the sidewalk as possible. Adults are exiting vehicles close to "the rock" causing a cars to back up into the street. This is unsafe. Please follow the drop off rules.

Our Bates spirit rock is available for weekly rentals. Celebrate your student's birthday or other accomplishments by painting a message on our rock. Please click here to rent the rock!

Bates Elementary School, in partnership with our families and community, will provide all students with a culturally responsive, student – centered, and equitable learning experience that celebrates our students’ diverse backgrounds, creative pursuits, and their academic, social, emotional success.