The Hiawatha Buzz!

Dear Hiawatha Community,

We are so excited for next week! We have 34 families who signed up for the walk to school routes on Monday, Nov. 11th and Tuesday, Nov. 12th. The Safe Route Walk to School has been cancelled for Wednesday, Nov. 13th. Please see the routes below and feel free to join.

Monday Morning

6:50 1 South St. (7)

6:50 Corner of South St. and Cascade St.

7:05 Corner of So. Summit St. and West St. (3)

7:15 Corner of Roscoe Ct. and West St. (5)

7:15 Corner of Loubier Dr. and West St. (1)

Tuesday Morning

7:05 Corner of Hayden St. and West St (3)

7:10 Wilkinson and Hayden St. (5)

7:10 Tyler Dr. and Hayden St.

7:20 Hiawatha Ave.

We welcome all families and community members on Thursday, Nov. 14th, to join us for our Walk for Ruby Bridges. We will begin at Hiawatha at 8:00 AM and walk about a half mile. We will end at our driveway and walk the Joel Rasco Community Track where we will see what our students have learned about Ruby Bridges and the actions they are taking to make the world a better place.

We will have donuts, apple cider and coffee.

We hope you can join us!

* November 12th - PTO Meeting at 6 PM

* November 14th - Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day

* November 25th - 29th - Fall Break - NO SCHOOL - please plan accordingly

Hello Hiawatha Families,

I wanted to share that I have started vision and hearing screenings at Hiawatha. It is important that student health issues that may be barriers to learning, like vision and hearing, are identified and addressed through a collaboration between the school nurse, the family, and the medical home. Due to this, the Vermont Department of Health requires vision and hearing screenings of certain grades to occur either at school or during a health care provider visit.

The vision and hearing screening requirements at the elementary school age are:

• All pre-Kindergarten students (as able)

• All Kindergarten students

• All First Grade students

• Second Grade students on IEP’s or 504 Plans

• All Third Grade students

I will contact you if your student does not pass their screening. Please reach out to me at any time if you have questions or concerns about your student’s hearing or vision.

Thank you,

Nurse Reyna

rmaher@ewsd.org

802-857-7740

During the month of Know-vember in the library, Hiawatha students will be reading and learning using nonfiction books and online databases (PebbleGo and World Book Kids). We will have nonfiction book displays and student-researched facts on the bulletin board.

The EWSD Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC) will hold an opportunity for members of the community to learn about special education basics and network with other families. The educational session will be presented by Katie Ballard, SEPAC Co-Chair, and Erin Maguire, Co-Director of Student Support Services. They will explain how the special education process works in EWSD and go over basics, including parental rights and procedural safeguards. Dinner will be provided to all participants. Onsite childcare is available upon request. Register here.

Dear Families,

Please click this link to read the details about our upcoming Hand to Hand Sale.

Please join us for our PTO Meeting, Tuesday, November 12th at 6 PM. It's low key, and a great way to know what's going on at Hiawatha and meet other parents in our community. No membership or commitment required, just show up and participate as much or as little as you'd like.

This month we will be continuing our discussion on ways that we can support Hiawatha staff by giving them items that would make their learning spaces better. We will also discuss upcoming events.

Please click this link to see the hot lunch menu, be sure to select the correct month you need and select lunch in the drop down in the top of the page. The menu can also be found on our website :-)

The Heavenly Food Pantry, located at the First Congregational Church on Main Street in Essex

Junction, will be open to families residing in Essex, Essex Junction and Westford on Monday,

November 11, from 5:30-7:30 p.m.

Visitors will be given a number when they arrive and asked to wait in the sanctuary. When their number is called, they will be registered beginning at 5:30. A volunteer will greet and escort them around the pantry, allowing them to make selections of their choosing. After food is gathered, it will be weighed (information for pantry use only) and another volunteer will bring the food to the family’s vehicle. Shopping carts will be made available for those within walking distance of the pantry.

The pantry asks for proof of residence for each household in the form of a current utility bill with physical address listed. In lieu of this, families may provide a current correspondence from a government agency or other official mail. Identification for each household member may consist of a driver’s license, hospital card, insurance card, school issued id, social security id or birth certificate.

As usual, there are no income requirements to visit the food pantry and a variety of food is available to everyone; however, eligible households who fall below federally mandated guidelines may access additional food provided by the USDA once each month.

Those not able to attend the pantry may call the Church office at 878-5745 Ext. 4 between 9:00 AM and noon today and Monday to leave contact information (name, address, phone number, number of people in household) so arrangements for delivery can be made. A follow- up call to complete registration will take place on Monday morning.

Families are currently able to visit the pantry each time it is open-on the 2nd Monday of the month from 5:30-7:30 PM and the 4th Thursday of the month from 3:00-6:00 p.m. (except for November and December when it is the 3rd Thursday).

The next food pantry distribution will occur on Thursday, November 21, from 3:00-6:00 p.m.

Please note that the Thursday distribution has been adjusted due to the Thanksgiving

holiday.

Email: hiawathaoffice@ewsd.org