History was made this week with our country's first female, Black, Asian Vice President being sworn into office. Our teachers spent time this week talking with students about the facts of the Inauguration and identifying our new President and Vice President. Discussing the Inauguration provided students with a conclusion to an earlier Social Studies Election Mini unit, particularly for our first graders.
As always, there are several important reminders below, including information about preschool and kindergarten registration.
Have a great weekend.
Best,
Amy McDonald, Principal
Preschool Lottery and Registration
We are excited to announce that information regarding our Integrated Preschool Program will be available on February 1, 2021 via our newsletter as well as the school and district websites. Please check back for details about the program, lottery process, and registration timelines.
Here is a quick overview of the registration process for community peers.
Kindergarten Registration
The district will open registration for the 2021-2022 school year in March. This includes registration for those entering kindergarten!
Please share with your neighbors and friends that live in Medway and who have children that will be 5 years old by August 31st as they are eligible for kindergarten.
More information and timelines about the "Road to Kindergarten" will be shared in the next newsletter.
Close Contact Guidelines Definition
Please see the below message from Dr. Pires regarding an update on the close contact definition.
DESE recently updated their guidelines to reflect an updated definition of a close contact. The new definition is An individual who was within 6 feet of an infected person for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period.
An important caveat to this definition is that multiple brief or transitory interactions (less than a minute) throughout the day are unlikely to result in 15 minutes of cumulative contact and do not meet the definition of close contact.
This change will certainly make the definition of close contacts more challenging and will likely lead to more close contacts being identified. It is important that all staff are aware of this definition and take active steps to ensure that we are not unnecessarily creating close contacts, particularly with other staff.
Chromebook Home Page
Hello families, the Chromebooks are here! Hip hip hooray!
I would like to make a request that you please do not change your child's landing/home page from Clever. This is incredibly important when we are working on technology in the classroom, as it ensures a smooth classroom flow and helps build a child's independence when navigating their Chromebook.
Thank you so much!
Mrs. Fogaren
Nurse's Notes
As you may be aware, The Massachusetts Department of Public Health is removing the requirement for flu vaccination for attendance in childcare/preschool, primary, secondary and postsecondary education.
As a reminder, if your child is not feeling well, please keep them home!
Thank you and stay healthy!
Penny McKay, Nurse
Yearly Student Information Update - Online Registration- ACTION REQUIRED!
We request that all families complete the beginning of year packet [Online Registration] in the parent portal to ensure we have the most up to date information for you and your child. To access OLR in the portal, login and choose MORE > Online Registration. Please follow the prompts to complete this information. If you are new to Medway or in need an access code to create an account, please email support@medwayschools.org.
We are only at an 18% completion rate and it is critical that all families update their information so that we have the most up-to-date contact information.
Medway Public Schools COVID-19 Information Hub
To provide families with the latest information and resources related to COVID-19, we have created a COVID-19 information hub, which can be accessed here, and by visiting our district’s homepage. Please visit this site for information about school/community COVID-19 health data, positive test reporting, student protocols, and local testing sites.
Covid Response Hotline
In order to ensure confidentiality and begin Contact Tracing as soon as possible, the District has established lines of communication if ever you need to report a positive COVID Test.
Report a student positive COVID test results by either emailing or calling the hotline below:
- covid@medwayschools.org
- 508-321-4779
Nutritional Support / Remote School Lunches
In order to ensure that children’s nutritional needs are satisfied during this period of remote learning, we are offering any Medway resident under the age of 21 the opportunity to access free school meals every day of the week and/or food to prepare meals at home. For more details about these offerings and to sign-up for remote meals please click here.
Dressing for Recess and Outdoor Time
Please be sure to dress your child in layers. Students go out for recess daily for 25 minutes. In addition, students may have music or wellness classes, which are also taught outside for 40 minutes.
Here is a helpful graphic to ensure that students are arriving to school with the best layers and apparel as we transition from warmer temperatures to the crisp cooler air. What is also hard is weather like this week and have a 23 degree morning on Thursday as compared to a 46 degree morning on Friday. Please remember that we keep windows open on the bus and in the classroom to increase air flow. When it is really cold outside, teachers will have one window that is cracked. Even this can increase the air flow throughout the classroom.
Finally, on snowy days, students will need boots, snow pants, a hat, mittens, and winter coat. Flexibility... the key word to this year! Students can always take a layer off if they are hot, but the same can't be said if they are cold.
Communication
Shamrock Shuffle!
Calling all Artists! Participate in the 2021 Shamrock Shuffle Logo Design Contest! The Medway Elementary PTO is looking for logo design submissions for the 10th Annual Shamrock Shuffle. The winning logo will be featured on the official 2021 Shamrock Shuffle t-shirts and the winner will receive a $25 giftcard to the Muffin House! Entries should be relevant to both St. Patrick’s Day and the race; please include your name and age upon submission. All entries must be sent to MEPTOshuffle@gmail.com through January 31, 2021. Good luck!
The 10th Annual MEPTO Shamrock Shuffle is going virtual!
The pandemic can’t stop us – please join us for the 10th Annual MEPTO *VIRTUAL* Shamrock Shuffle in March! Details can be found here.
Do you need the Smore Newsletter Translated?
Here is the link for the master directions in English.
Here is the link for Spanish.
Here is the link for French.
Here is the link for Russian.
Here is the link for Arabic
Haga clic en los siguientes enlaces para obtener instrucciones sobre cómo traducir el boletín.
Aquí está el enlace para español.
Here is the link for Spanish.
Veuillez cliquer sur les liens suivants pour savoir comment traduire le bulletin d'information.
Here is the link for French.
Пожалуйста, нажмите следующие ссылки для получения инструкций о том, как перевести информационный бюллетень.
Вот ссылка на русский.
Here is the link for Russian.