The Big Cat Courier

This week's edition of The Big Cat Courier is out a day early in recognition of the student's short break, which starts tomorrow. As a reminder, there is no school tomorrow or Tuesday for staff Professional Learning as well as no school on Monday in observation of Presidents' Day. As far as this past week at HBS, it was eventful, if somewhat shorter than expected. We had a snow day on Tuesday and while it was a picturesque New England snowfall, it did push the end of the school year back to Wednesday, June 12th. I'm always impressed at how the students and staff are able to jump into the hard work of teaching and learning without missing a beat after an unexpected schedule disruption. I've said it before and I'll say it again, Big Cats are the best cats! Unfortunately, the PTO's Red Robin Fundraiser had to be rescheduled due to the storm but the good news is that it will still happen. It is now scheduled to be held on evening of February 27th. So if you like burgers and endless fries, come on out to Red Robin for a fun family event. Speaking of fun family events, check out all of the upcoming events scheduled for this spring in the "Upcoming Dates to Keep an Eye On" section below.

Have a wonderful 5 day weekend with the kids!

While not a true regular, some version of this article has been shared in The Big Cat Courier multiple times over the past few years. I think it is important to revisit it and to stress the fact that as your child's school, we are here to help you with any questions or concerns that you may have.

Having said that, please make us your first stop rather than Facebook, Nextdoor, The Enfield Forum, etc... Social media platforms are a great way to share photos and cute pet videos with your friends and family but not an effective way to solve an issue that you feel needs to be addressed. Unfortunately , Social Media is terrible at is solving problems or getting accurate information. If something school related ever comes up that you are unhappy with, don't understand, or otherwise need help with, please contact the school directly so we can help. Whether you reach out to your child's teacher, a specialist, an interventionist, our nursing staff, the front office, or any of the other people who work in the building, we are all here for you.

Please know that as a school, we cannot respond to questions or concerns on Social Media platforms. While every school would love to, we cannot for a number of reasons, including student confidentiality. As is typically the case in any Social Media post, there is more to the situation that we, unfortunately, cannot address in a public forum.

We ask that if you find an individual expressing some kind of question or concern regarding our school on Social Media, please refer them back to the school so that we can assist them in bringing the issue to a positive resolution. We are always here for our students and their families.

Enfield Public Schools is looking for good people to help us do good work for students. If you're looking for meaningful work where you can make a real difference in the lives of others AND need to keep child friendly hours, EPS may be the opportunity you've been looking for! From Paraprofessional and Behavior Technician positions to Long-term and Building Substitute positions, our available career opportunities run the gamut of possibilities. Follow the link to our current postings for more information about available positions: https://enfield.tedk12.com/hire/index.aspx

The lunch menu for the coming month is as follows:

No School for Students due to Professional Development on Friday, 2/16 and Tuesday, 2/20

No School in Recognition of President's Day on Monday, 2/19

Monthly PTO Meeting on Tuesday, 2/20

PTO Thunderbirds vs Wolf Pack Fundraiser, Friday, 2/23

Red Robin Fundraiser, Tuesday, 2/27

Early Release, Wednesday, 3/13

Grade Level Math and Literacy Nights on Thursday 3/21, Wednesday 3/27*, and Thursday, 4/4.

*Please note the change of date from 3/28 to 3/27.

No School for April Vacation, 4/8-4/12

Welcome to Kindergarten Night for Fall 2024 Incoming Kindergarten Families at JFK, Tuesday, 4/16

Kindergarten Family Night with the CT Science Center, Thursday, 4/18

Spring Pictures with LifeTouch (no group, just individual), Friday, 4/19

Early Release, Wednesday, 4/24

First Grade Family Night with the CT Science Center, Thursday, 4/25

Barnard Family Music Night with Miss Rene on Tuesday, 5/7

Second Grade Family Night with the CT Science Center, Monday, 5/13

Do you have an incoming kindergarten child that has been impacted by CT's change in the kindergarten eligibility age or know somebody who does? Please see below for today's press release from Enfield Public Schools.

In March and April HBS and our partners in the FRC will be hosting grade specific family Math and Literacy Nights. We'll have fun math and reading activities for families to enjoy together. Look for flyers with more information and how to RSVP to come home starting the second week of March.

Check out this upcoming match!

Student Progress Reports and Report Cards are sent out via email blast directly from PowerSchool. It is vital that contact information, including email addresses, are up to date in PowerSchool to ensure that the emails find their way to you. Families are also able to access their child's/children's documents as well as manage contact information and preferences in PowerSchool through the parent portal. If you have not signed into your PowerSchool account, you may do so with assistance from the PowerSchool Parent Help page on the main website (https://www.enfieldschools.org/parent_support/pspp). If you have any questions about your account or accessing your child's/children's documents, please don't hesitate to call the main office.

There is an option for families to block YouTube from their child's school issued iPad. If you are interested, please follow the link and fill out the information on the survey. Once your survey information is processed, YouTube will be filtered from your child's device.

Optional Survey - Disable Student YouTube Access

The winter season always brings with it all kinds of seasonal sicknesses and this year is no different. We are already seeing cases of the seasonal flu, colds, strep, stomach bug, RSV, and even COVID among our students and staff. In order to help keep our students, staff, and their families as safe as possible, I'm including the following reminders regarding the illness protocols.

• If your child has a fever (temperature greater than 100 degrees), they will need to remain home until they are fever free for 24 hours without medication;

• If your child is dismissed from school due to a fever, they will need to remain home the following day and until they are fever free without medication for 24 hours;

• If your child is ill with vomiting and/or diarrhea, they will need to remain home until they are free of these symptoms for 24 hours and are well enough to return to school;

• If your child is ill with COVID, they will need to remain home for 5 days following the onset of symptoms or a positive test – presuming symptoms are improving.

By following these protocols, we can help minimize exposure to these illnesses here at school, which translates to healthier kids, teachers, and families. Thank you in advance for your diligence.

Research is showing that children who are chronically absent in the primary grades are much less likely to read at grade level by the third grade, making them four-times more likely to drop-out of high school.

The statistic above is a frightening one but one that both schools and families need to pay attention to. A designation of chronically absent describes students who are absent 10% or more of the school year. That sounds like a hard threshold to reach but when you consider it takes fewer than 2 absences each month to reach it, the importance of good attendance starts to present itself. Furthermore, the total number of a student's absences are counted rather than just those that fall into the unexcused category. In addition the the 10% threshold for a chronically absent designation, any student with four or more unexcused absences in a month is also designated as truant.

As a primary building (and many of us parents ourselves), everyone at HBS understands that childhood illnesses occur. However, it is essential to students' successful acquisition of academic skills and later scholastic success that they are in school as often as possible. Thank you for your partnership on this important issue.

Getting signed up for both PowerSchool and SchoolMessenger is vital for Henry Barnard and Enfield Public Schools to share important information with you. PowerSchool is our main student information platform and includes things like your child's Report Card, Progress Reports, Emergency Contact Information, etc. SchoolMessenger is the platform we use to send you important automated calls, emails, and texts. If you haven't updated your contact information recently or logged in to either platform to manage your contact preferences, it's likely that you are missing important updates from our school and our school district.

Families may access both platforms on the front page of the District's main website. Both can be found under the "Quick Links" section and appear as big red buttons. You can find our website at:

https://www.enfieldschools.org/

While it can feel tricky, planning ahead for Early Release Days alleviates a tremendous amount of stress and anxiety for your child. Students who mistakenly don't get picked up at 1:50 or who are returned to school by the bus company because there was nobody at the bus stop to get them off the bus are often fearful of the situation. While I can assure you that your child will always be safe in the main office until you arrive, students often arrive shaken and scared about what happened and what might come next. Families can easily stay informed about when Early Release Days are planned throughout the year by keeping a copy of the school calendar handy and by relying on SchoolMessenger reminders that are sent out by EPS. Please see the section above about schoolMessenger and PowerSchool to make sure those channels are open to you. You can also access the school calendar at:

https://www.enfieldschools.org/calendar/2023-24_school_calendar

We all know how important it is for students to attend school and that good attendance is tied directly to positive student outcomes, both academic and social/emotional. However, what happens when a student is absent? The EPS BOE policy on attendance has the answers to all your attendance questions. The policy can be found in the Elementary Handbook at:

https://viewer.joomag.com/eps-elementary-handbook-2023-24/0028781001692965944?auth_sso=1

As noted in the EPS BOE attendance policy, letters outlining current student attendance are sent home to alert families of their child's absences. The letters are sent to families when their child has reached absence number 5, again at 9, followed by one at 10, and then every few absences after that.

The letters report overall absences from school rather than just unexcused absences. The State collects student attendance data yearly and looks only at overall absences, which mirrors the letters sent home to families.

If you have any questions regarding what an excused vs unexcused absence is, or when the State deems a child to be Truant and when they are assigned a designation of Chronically Absent, please take a look at the policy. If you still have questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to us here at the school so we can help.

If a child is being dropped off, we will be using the doors in the back parking lot in between the library and gymnasium. Please remain in your car as you loop around the back lot to drop your child off at the doors. If you are the family of a walker, please look for the orange traffic cones at the drop off doors to guide you safely into that space.

Please note that during arrival times, the front doors to the school are being reserved to receive bus students only. All other students, will use the doors in the back parking lot between the library and gymnasium. If you need to speak with somebody from the main office in person, please plan to do so before or after student drop off to alleviate congestion at the front doors.

Please remember that when a school bus, of any size, is stopped with it's lights on and it's "Stop" sign extended, other vehicles must stop as well. Vehicles may only pass by a bus if their lights are off and their "Stop" sign is not extended. It can feel frustrating to have to wait while a bus is unloading but it's the law.

To better support orderly traffic flow on campus and on Shaker Road, please stick to the right lane of the entry driveway. This will allow buses to line up and use the left lane leading down to the loop in the front of the building. It is also helpful in keeping the drop off line moving efficiently if students have their backpacks ready and have said their goodbyes before the vehicle pulls up to the arrival doors.

During the first two weeks of school, all non-classroom teachers will be strung through the halls of our building to help students to their classrooms. It will be helpful if you label your child's backpack with their name and room number/teacher.

If you are dropping your child to school tardy, please park in the front lot and walk your child to the front door. Ring the doorbell and we will assist you right away.

All schools in CT, including HBS, are required to hold a variety of safety drills to prepare students and staff should a real school emergency ever present itself. We typically hold at least one each month and practice everything from what to do in the event of a heating system failure all the way through what we'd do in the event of a fire on campus. This past week we conducted a Fire Drill at Henry Barnard under the supervision of our District's Security Director and the acting Fire Marshal. As expected, the students and staff did an amazing job!

The joint Barnard/Crandall PTO is getting ready to kick off another school year in support of our students, families, and staff. Virtual meetings are held monthly and all families are encouraged to sign on to see what the PTO is all about. Take a look at the meeting schedule below and I hope to see you at October's meeting.

If you are still not signed up for the Remind App or still have questions about it, please follow this link for more information:

https://help.remind.com/hc/en-us/articles/4409807883149-Frequently-asked-questions-for-parents

Enfield Public Schools uses mySchoolBucks as a payment platform for our school lunch program (iPad insurance is paid on mySchoolBucks as well). With mySchoolBucks, you can register for an account, view account balances or recent lunch purchases, add money to the account and setup low balance alerts. You do not have to put money on account online to have an account and view lunch transactions.

Information for mySchoolBucks is available is available at the following link:

https://www.enfieldschools.org/search/default.aspx?q=mySchoolBucks&type=0,

The Student Handbook is packed with information for families about dates, policies, procedures, and more. Please take some time to take a look through the document. It can be found at the following link:

https://viewer.joomag.com/eps-elementary-handbook-2023-24/0028781001692965944?auth_sso=1

The PTO at HBS and our sister school, Prudence Crandall, have a unique partnership. Last year, the two groups started the process of joining together to help facilitate more continuity for students and families between the two buildings. By meeting together, planning together, and even holding many events/fundraisers together, we have the opportunity to not only get to know our new families but keep in touch with the families who have moved on to Crandall.

Having said that, all the good work that the PTO puts into our schools translates directly to a richer educational experience for our students. They help fund fieldtrips and educational experiences that we would otherwise not have available to our students.

The PTO meets once each month. Meetings usually run for less than an hour and are dedicated to school updates and planning for upcoming events. Please consider being a part of the PTO. Many hands make light work!

For more information, please follow the link: https://enfieldpto.com/henrybarnard

Henry Barnard School is proud to be one of the two Family Resource Center locations in Enfield. The FRC is available to help families who find themselves in need connect with services across town. From finding winter clothing for students to helping families through parenting and support groups, the FRC has been a wonderful support for families here in Enfield.

For more information, please follow this link: https://www.enfield-ct.gov/375/Family-Resource-Center

The ERfC, or Enfield Resources for Children, not to be confused with the FRC above, offers quality before and after care for students at Henry Barnard School. If you have any questions about before and after care for your child, reach out to this longstanding partner organization.

Follow this link for more information: https://erfcinc.org/

Email: jgraham@enfieldschools.org
Website: https://henry.sharpschool.com/
Location: 27 Shaker Road, Enfield, CT, USA
Phone: (860) 253-6540
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EnfieldPublicSschools/
Twitter: @EnfieldPS