Husky Family Newsletter

Hopkins Hill Husky Happenings

Husky Happenings - Week of September 9

NEW FAX NUMBER: 401-823-1801

Hi Everyone,

We had a smooth K transition this week - a few tears but much better by Friday as students settled into the routine. This K cohort has transitioned very well to the cafeteria. Normally it takes a bit longer but they did great. Just a few reminders. We have no school on Tuesday. Schools are closed due to state primary elections.

We do have an announced Fire Drill scheduled for Wednesday. We are required by RI to have a specific number of safety drills each year and then report them to the RI Department of Education. For the first fire drill, I don't use the alarm. I will come over the l0udspeaker and tell students and teachers that we are about to have our first fire drill and to proceed quietly to their locations as they have practiced. Once at their spots, teachers take attendance using a card system. An adult coordinator in each section has a walkie and uses the walkie to convey attendance information from the classroom teacher so we can make sure we account for each child. For example, a child might be in reading interventions when the drill is announced or at the nurse. The teacher will then report that "so and so is with..." And we confirm that's where the child is. When we have the second drill, I will give the children a chance to hear the alarm and we work our way up to the full alarm. All drills are announced per new RI Law.

And, we have a fun event to end the week on Friday evening with our PTO Back to School Carnival. Notices went home last week. Save the date for Open House on September 18 from 6-8. I will send that schedule in the next newsletter.

Next week more on Open House and the Matrix below.

Best,

Mrs. Tancrelle

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In Other News...

Wellness Policy: This policy is linked in the section title. All school district policies align with RI state law. It is lengthy so I'll highlight a few things that usually come up, though you are certainly free to read all of it. The first section that I want to draw your attention to is on pages 4 and 5. This section talks about school breakfast and lunch, the required nutritional composition, what counts as a reimbursable meal, and length of meal time. In terms of a reimbursable meal, that means that there are certain things that come with the meal that children take when they get school lunch. At elementary school, items are not offered individually, other than milk. In Coventry, at the elementary level, we have twenty minutes for lunch followed by a 20 minute recess. If children don't finish, there are tables in the cafeteria that they have access to to finish and there are also tables outside.

Page 6 talks about school celebrations. This is the area about which we get the most questions. The policy does prohibit a family from sending in cupcakes for birthdays, treats for Halloween, candy canes in December, things like that. Certain food related activities may be allowed, for example, many younger grades like to make applesauce in fall and we do lemonade on Field Day. If that is the case, teachers are required to notify Nurse Deb and myself to make sure the food item is compatible with the policy and then send out a permission slip to families listing the ingredients. A family does have the right of refusal and can send in an alternate food item. Healthy snacks are encouraged at lunch and at snack time. Pages 6 and 7 address Physical Education and physical activity. All children have a Phys Ed class and a health class each week taught by certified physical education teachers and two twenty minute recesses, though the policy explains that children have to have at least 20 minutes. At times part of the second 20 minutes may be used to conference with a student or reteach recess expectations. We are able to provide extra recess as a reward or incentive, which we do, and in inclement weather, recess is indoor recess. That's it in a nutshell. Please let us know if you have questions and please let Nurse Deb know if your child has allergies or certain dietary restrictions or conditions that prevent them in engaging in physical activity.

Coventry Food Service Program: The Coventry Food Service Program - Breakfast and Lunch - is managed by Sodexo. Click on the link, which is the food service page from the Coventry Public Schools web page, in order to get pricing information.

September Breakfast Menu

September Lunch Menu

Free and Reduced Lunch: If you have been or think you might be eligible for free/reduced school lunch, you need to fill out the forms yearly before mid October. Once mid October comes and there isn't a new form on file, charges will accrue. You can find the on line application at the food service link above. This is now active, and I've linked it here - Free/Reduced Lunch Application. If you need a paper form, please let me know. The only exception to this process is if you are a direct cert from the state. You would have a letter and would just have to send us a copy.

Hopkins Hill Food Pantry: Hopkins Hill operates a food pantry throughout the school year. As part of this operation, we provide biweekly grocery deliveries from our food pantry supplies to any family that might be having a difficult time. All food pantry inquiries are confidential. You can call me or Nurse Deb if you are interested. We also have access to new coats, shoes, things like that, if needed. Reach out should any emergency arise and we are prepared to assist or help you find assistance.

Important reminder for all children: If your child’s regular mode of transportation is changing on any given day, you have to send a note to the child’s teacher. I also suggest that you copy Mrs. Mealey (or Mrs. Beaudoin while Mrs. Mealey is out) and me in the event the teacher is out. The earlier in the day that you are able to send this notification, the better and is appreciated. We won’t release a child to anyone other than a parent unless we have a note from you directing us to release to someone on your emergency list. We also won’t release without a picture ID. This is not meant to inconvenience you but for the safety of your child. if you request to pick up after 3:15, we will ask you to wait by the gym and your child will be dismissed as a Parent Pick Up due to the high volume of activity in the front office at dismissal time.

Notes From Nurse Deb

West Bay Smiles School Based Dental Program, in collaboration with CCAP and Ronald McDonald house, is committed to providing high quality dental care to schools and families who need dental services for their children. Services are of no cost to families and there are no co-pays as part of the community collaborations noted. If you wish to register your child for dental services, please register using the bar code on the linked flyer. West Bay gives us a date when they will be at HH and services are provided at school. Please contact Nurse Deb if you have questions.

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ENCORE

Physical Education and Health, Mrs. Marran; Mrs. (Berard) March:

Notes From Music, Mr. Johnson; Mrs. Masse: Please check out Mr. Johnson's web page and You Tube channel. Mr. Johnson Music Webpage YouTube Channel

Art News, Mrs. McKay; Mrs. Gauthier:

Library News, Ms Amberge soon to be Mrs. Peters:

Check out this new website that Ms Amberge created for Library! HH Library Website