WMS Family Smore

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It has been great to have all students and staff back at school, and we had a wonderful first four days! Although it we started off the year with rain, it was much needed after our hot dry August.

We want to thank Maureen, Sue, and Naomi in the cafeteria and our entire custodial staff for their hard work in preparing for the first week of school. welcoming all of our students into the building. Breakfast and lunch are free for all students during the 2022-23 SY, we do still need all families to return the free and reduced lunch form that you either received in the mail or that came home with your student.

In order to keep families informed of what is taking place in each class/cluster, teachers are putting together Cluster/Specialist Smore newsletters. These will be linked in our family s'mores every other week, starting this week.

Teachers spent time this first week getting to know their students, and helping all students learn the routines and expectations of their classrooms and Watertown Middle School. This will continue during the advisory and WIN periods.

We will also be starting the i-Ready diagnostic test in the ELA classes (September 12-14) and Math classes (September 15-19). Please be sure your children have their fully-charged Chromebooks with them, as well as a set of headphones/earbuds. Please also encourage them to do their best on the i-Ready diagnostic; we want them to show what they know so we are better equipped to meet them where they are with our interventions and enrichments. It is an adaptive test, so they will not know all of the answers, and that is okay! We just want them to do their best. :)

Please feel free to reach out to us with any questions or concerns. We look forward to working with all of you this year!

Respectfully yours,

Ms. Jennifer Chen Fein, Principal

Ms. Jennifer Sarmiento, Assistant Principal (Clusters 2, 4, 6)

Mr. Patrick Dayton, Interim Assistant Principal (Clusters 1, 3, 5)

Click on the link below to find updates from your child's teachers.

Cluster 1

Cluster 2

Cluster 3

Cluster 4

Cluster 5

Cluster 6

World Language and Reading

Specialists

Connections Smore

Wilson Reading

Language-Based Math

Picture day will be on Monday, September 19, 2022.

Flyers with information for ordering pictures will come home with students later this week. Families will be able to order pictures either online or through the paper form.

Make-up picture day will be on November 2, 2022.

Next Thursday evening, September 22nd, is Back to School Night when you can visit your child’s classrooms and meet their teachers. This event is from 6:00-8:00pm.

Information for the 8th grade Washington DC Trip will also be shared at this event.

We are very excited that we will finally be able to host this event in person again and we hope to see many of you here at school! Students do not need to attend.

There are a number of students at WMS who receive student services through the Specials Education department, or the ESL department, or both. Those services are starting up this week, if they hadn't already last week. For students who receive services from both departments, we will take a wholistic approach in providing access to student growth in skills. There may be some days that students start their WIN block in resource, and then go to see their ESL teacher. Your child's liaison is the best person to contact first if you have questions about your child's services.

In the event that a student is absent, a parent or caregiver must call the absence hotline at 617-926-7783 before 8:30 a.m. Please state the name, grade, homeroom of the student and the reason for their absence. In the event that the absence is not reported, a Robocall will automatically go out to the student’s home or the place of employment of the parent or caregiver to inform them that the student is absent. Students are responsible for working with their teachers to make up work they missed while absent.

For more details, see the WMS Family Handbook

We welcome parents/family members, and want to partner with you in ensuring an excellent education for your child. It is also challenging to meet with parents/family members without advanced notice, as we are teaching students.

If you want to talk with a teacher or administrator, the best way is to email them to set up an appointment so that we are able to dedicate time to meet with you.

Hours: The main entrance on Waverly is open to students starting at 7:45am each morning. Students can come in to get free breakfast in the cafe, or be in the gym or library, where they will be supervised until 8:15am when they can begin getting ready for the day.

Drop Off and Pick Up - Please use Bemis St. when you drop off and pick up children from school. It is one-way from Waverley Ave. to Westminster Ave. The Waverley Ave. entrance is reserved for our busses and is closed during drop-off (8:05-8:25) and pick-up (2:50–3:10).

This is a reminder that all students receive a chromebook from WPS. Students need to use this chromebook when they are at school, and are not able to bring in their own devices to use. Please direct any questions to our digital learning/IT Technician, at alexandria.brenonhodas@watertown.k12.ma.us

The following is an excerpt of the Watertown Public Schools Handbook

2022-2023 COVID-19 Response Protocols

Handbook Addendum

OVERVIEW

The goal of the Watertown Public Schools is to continue to provide a safe teaching and learning environment for our students and staff. This handbook addendum is designed to provide all members of the Watertown Public Schools Community with the necessary information, guidelines, and procedures to safely and effectively participate in the educational program. In accordance with the directive from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, all instruction will be in person for the 2022-2023 school year. It is imperative that all families read and review the contents of this addendum.

All individuals who are eligible for the COVID 19 Vaccine are strongly encouraged to get vaccinated and boosted.

SCHOOL-WIDE HEALTH AND SAFETY STRATEGIES

Continuing to maintain safe in-person school environments requires a culture of health and safety every step of the way.

Specifically:

● Students, with the assistance of families, must be monitored daily for symptoms, and Staff must monitor themselves for symptoms daily. Staff and students must stay home if feeling unwell. Everyone must do their part to protect others and not come to school if they are exhibiting any COVID-19 symptoms or are feeling sick, until they obtain a negative COVID-19 test. This can be an at home, rapid antigen test. This applies to all individuals, regardless of vaccination status. Staff and students who have symptoms and are negative for COVID-19, may attend school/ work. Symptomatic individuals should wear a mask to prevent transmission of illness to others..

● Hand hygiene is critical. Students and staff are required to exercise hand hygiene (hand washing or sanitizing) upon arrival at school and before eating. Handwashing with soap and water for at least 20 seconds is the best practice. However, hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alcohol can be substituted for handwashing. Hand sanitizer stations will be set up in common areas and classrooms.

• Masks are required to be worn in the school nurse’s office, and are otherwise optional.

WHEN MASK WEARING MAY BE MANDATORY

In order to ensure the health and wellbeing of all or our Watertown Public Schools Community, the District will use the following metrics when determining whether masks should be required or optional based on the level of COVID present in the school and the community at large.

These metrics were determined together with the WPS Health Team and with support from the Watertown Health Department.

• Vaccination rates

• CDC COVID-19 Community Levels

• Community COVID cases and positivity rates

• The number of students/staff with COVID

*Vulnerable student and staff populations are encouraged to wear masks at school

While mask-wearing remains a great mitigation strategy for the prevention of COVID-19, families and staff will be making individual decisions regarding mask-wearing based on many factors. While we encourage and support mask-wearing in our schools, we also honor and respect the decision not to wear masks. We will endeavor to make learning environments where students and staff feel comfortable either wearing or not wearing masks.

COVID SYMPTOMS AND MONITORING

Most common symptoms of COVID-19 and testing requirements

Many symptoms of COVID-19 are the same as the flu or a bad cold and it is important not to assume that symptoms are due to another condition. The collective health of the Watertown Public Schools community relies on individual attention and shared responsibility.

Below is the full list of symptoms for which caregivers should monitor their families, and staff should monitor themselves and household members, EVERY MORNING:

❏ Fever (100.0° Fahrenheit or higher), chills, or shaking chills (CDC has lowered the temperature from 100.4 to 100.0)

❏ Cough (not due to other known cause, such as chronic cough)

❏ Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath

❏ New loss of taste or smell

❏ Sore throat

❏ Headache when in combination with other symptoms

❏ Muscle aches or body aches

❏ Nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea

❏ Fatigue, when in combination with other symptoms

❏ Nasal congestion or runny nose (not due to other known causes, such as allergies) when in combination with other symptoms

POSITIVE COVID-19 CASES

Returning after COVID

Self-isolation for COVID-19 positive cases is a minimum of 5 days - regardless of vaccination status.

If a student or staff member tests positive for COVID and they are asymptomatic, they may come back on day six. The day they test positive for COVID is day 0. For example, if an individual gets a positive test on Wednesday, they can return on the following Tuesday. See chart below.

• If a student or staff member is symptomatic and then they test positive, day 0 is the first day they had symptoms.

• If a student or staff member tests positive and develops symptoms AFTER their positive test, day 0 resets to the day they become symptomatic.

• A student or staff member CAN ONLY RETURN after 5 days of isolation if they were asymptomatic, OR if they are fever-free and symptoms are significantly resolving.

Day you test positive OR day you develop symptoms

Return day (end of isolation)

*The start of day 0 is when you test positive OR when you develop symptoms. Sometimes you develop symptoms before you test positive, and sometimes you develop them after you test positive. And sometimes, you remain asymptomatic. If in doubt, contact your doctor or Kathleen Desmarais, Director of Student Services, for an accurate count.

A mask must be worn at all times whenever outside of the home for 5 additional days to minimize the risk of infecting others. Repeat testing prior to return is not recommended. Return to school is based on time and symptom resolution.

COMMUNICATION

Watertown Public Schools will communicate with staff and families when there is a positive case in a a preschool or elementary classroom, ensuring that rights to privacy (HIPAA and FERPA) are not violated.

SCHOOL OPERATIONS

Air quality

All classrooms, offices, and common spaces utilize ventilation strategies to maximize air exchanges, including air purifiers with HEPA filters in each room across all buildings, open windows with screens, and increasing airflow in the existing HVAC systems.

END OF COVID-19 ADDENDUM

Please see the SEPAC's September Update.

We are welcoming English Learner families new to the district and asking returning families to join us if you would like to support other families who speak a language other than English at home. We would like to create language affinity groups for parents who speak the same language to support each other.

Please join us at Filippello Park in Watertown on Saturday, 9/17 from 2-5 pm.

See the flyer below for sanitation changes in Watertown starting soon. You can contact the Recycling Coordinator Anya Pforzheimer at apforzheimer@watertown-ma.gov with any questions

In collaboration with Watertown Faces Climate Change (WFCC) and 350.mass Watertown Race Reels will be screening Come Hell or High Water. The Battle for Turkey Creek. “Come Hell or High Water follows the painful but inspiring journey of Derrick Evans, a Boston teacher who returns to his native coastal Mississippi when the graves of his ancestors are bulldozed to make way for the sprawling city of Gulfport. Derrick is consumed by the effort to protect the community his great grandfather's grandfather settled as a former slave. He is on the verge of a breakthrough when Hurricane Katrina strikes the Gulf Coast. After years of restoration work to bring Turkey Creek back from the brink of death, the community gains significant federal support for cultural and ecological preservation. Derrick plans to return to Boston to rebuild the life he abandoned, but another disaster seals his fate as a reluctant activist. On the day Turkey Creek is featured in USA Today for the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explodes.” - Bullfrog Communities

Derrick Evans, whose journey we follow in the film, will be our guest speaker for this event! Derrick will be able to speak directly to where things stand with The Battle for Turkey Creek AND give us some insights around environmental justice battles that are happening right in our backyard (Roxbury) and how we can help.

There are many ways to get involved as a parent/caregiver at WMS. We are looking for a diverse representation of parents on all of our structures.

School Site Council (SSC):

A school council is a representative, school building-based committee composed of the principal, parents, teachers, community members. Site-based decision making places the school at the center of planning, goal setting, and budgeting for school improvement. Councils exist to assist principals by reviewing the school building budget and developing the school improvement plan. Councils may also take on other responsibilities, including policymaking, as granted by the local school committee. Councils' school improvement plans are submitted to the local school committee for review and approval.The WMS SSC will meet once a month on the first Tuesdays at 7:00pm, virtually. The first meeting will be on October 4, 2022. Any interested members should email me at jennifer.chenfein@watertown.k12.ma.us to express interest in joining School Site Council.

Diversity Council:

The mission of the WMS Diversity Council (DC) is to build and promote opportunities for WMS community members to create a courageous culture of anti-racist education and action, and support inclusion, diversity and belonging for all students and families.

DC members partner with WPS to:

1. Outreach to families of color
2. Plan social justice activities
3. Facilitate dialogue within the WMS community
4. Promote inclusivity
5. Provide equity-lens input into administrator decisions / serve as a sounding board
6. Diversify staffing

The WMS Diversity Council embraces our core values of anti-racism, inclusivity, equity, community, social justice, action, dialogue, courage, and anti-bias.

The WMS Diversity Council will meet once a month on the third Thursdays at 6:00pm, virtually. This year, we will be focusing on actionable steps outlined in the district equity audit taken last school year.

Any interested members should email me at jennifer.chenfein@watertown.k12.ma.us to express interest in joining the Diversity Council.

Parent Teacher Organization (PTO): The WMS PTO is seeking parents and caregivers to join this year. Meetings are held virtually on the second Wednesday of each month.

The first meeting will be on September 14. Reach out to the PTO President Erin Macomber at erin_macomber@neds.org with any questions or to express interest.

• September 14: 7:00pm PTO Meeting (virtual)
  

• September 19: Picture day (Make up: November 2)

• September 22: 6:00-8:00pm Back to School Night/8th Grade Washington DC Trip Information

• September 28: Early Release Day: PD for teachers

• Watertown Public Schools Calendar 2022-2023