THE NEWSLETTER

Dear CCS Families, Caregivers and Charlotte Community,

We value and appreciate having caregivers and community members enhancing the experience and wellbeing of our students. Thank you to those who have reached out to either work or volunteer at CCS to amplify our learning community. Are you interested in ways to engage in our community of care:

1. Mentor for a youth in our school. We have an ever-growing list of students who wish to spend one hour a week with someone who will hold them with unconditional positive regard.

2. Check the newsletters and classroom blogs for celebrations and upcoming events. Our goal in these communications is for you to have insight to what students are experiencing here.

3. Have ideas about an enrichment club for after school? Let us know.

4. Send some positive vibes to the people who keep our school running- our bus drivers, administrative assistants, the cafeteria staff, our maintenance crew, our nurses and all of the educators of CCS.

Thank you for your continued support, inspiration and partnership in raising these wonderful humans.

A shout-out of appreciation to our sixth grade cohort for leading today’s whole school assembly. Structured like a morning meeting, every member of our school community greeted each other and shared which emoji represented their morning. 6th graders read an inspiring book aloud for the whole school and concluded the assembly by leading everyone in the Hokey-Pokey. Whether they were in kindergarten or eighth grade, laughter and cheers showed the joy of this activity as students and teachers together danced along. Congratulations Sixth Graders for spreading JOY throughout CCS.

We hope your child(ren) brings home stories about a joyful start to January. Please look through our photos from This Week at CCS to see highlights of our time together. Have a wonderful weekend! We can’t wait to see the kids back here on Monday.

Best,

Jen Roth, CCS Principal

Please help your children be prepared and dress appropriately to be outside for recess!

Hats, gloves/mittens, jackets, and pants are all highly recommended. Don't forget to label your items - we don't want them to end up in the Lost and Found. Students will be outside as long as the "real feel" is above zero degrees and it is not raining.

If you need help getting any warm winter gear, please contact CCS School Counselor, Betsy Lloyd - blloyd@cvsdvt.org.

• Tue, Jan 9th - CVSD Board Budget Mtg, CVU Rm 160 or online, 6:00pm (Topic: Summary & Tax Implications) (Zoom information available at https://www.cvsdvt.org/budget)
• Mon, Jan 15th - Martin Luther King Jr's Birthday - NO SCHOOL
• Fri, Jan 19th - DEI Town Hall, Shelburne Community School, 6-8pm, Nepali Community in Vermont
• Tue, Jan 23rd - CVSD Board Budget Mtg, CVU Rm 160 or online, 6:00pm (Topic: Final Approval & Warnings) (Zoom information available at https://www.cvsdvt.org/budget)
• Fri, Mar 15 - DEI Town Hall, Williston Central School, 6-8pm, Somali Community in Vermont

CCS parent, Julie Lin is supporting a small team of parents in providing a Spelling Club for kids using materials from the Scripps Spelling Bee. With some research we think it could be a possibility for students in grades 3-8 to participate in a spelling club during their lunch/recess block. Kids in these cohorts who are interested in working with words and rich literature would be invited to join. We are ironing out some details including a NEED for a few parents to volunteer to support this endeavor. The commitment would be two days a week from 10:50-1:00 (Monday and Friday). Students who excel at our local spelling contest could proceed to a larger arena of students who love to work with words. If you are interested in supporting this, please email Julie Lin, juliehlin@gmail.com.

We’re Back to 5 Trips, and ready!

** Important Parent Meeting for 1st time Program participants

Thursday, Jan. 4th, 7:00 p.m. in the CCS Library **

(Electronic registration form link for all below - PLEASE read all information before registering)

Five week program, on Wednesdays - after school on Feb.14th, 21st, March 6th, 13th,+ 20th. (make-up date this season is Mar. 27th). Open to students in grades K - 8… Kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd graders must be accompanied by a chaperone, or shared chaperone.

• Cost is $149, **includes bus or car transport. Lessons are mandatory for new skiers and boarders (+$65), optional for others at $75 (available only up to “level 3” – lift ready and linking turns). Students signed up for lessons must commit to taking them for the entire program. **Students who hold a Bolton Season Pass or are 5 and under, the Program cost is $55. ** All checks made out to “Charlotte Recreation” + handed in to CCS office, (not Town Hall).
• Chaperones are needed to maintain a 1-to-10 ratio to students. Chaperones ski free or at sharply reduced rates and are expected to help and have fun. Some Chaperones are needed to ride the bus. Please help if you can. More information at the meeting! Buses leave CCS after school and return to CCS by 7:40 pm. Students MUST, (unless pre- arranged), return the same way they arrived. If changes occur for the ride home, the Parent or Child MUST notify the bus coordinator or the driver of the car in which your child arrived.
• Program/School Equipment is available at no charge on a “first come/first serve” basis. We make every effort to outfit everyone who needs equipment. Helmets are now required to reduce potential head injury and keep heads warm. We have helmets for loan. (If preferred, BV offers whole discounted season packages for asp participants for $109 (you can keep until April). We can use more equipment… please donate if you can, (especially shaped skis & helmets).

• Registration acceptance is on a first come/ first serve basis due to space availability.
• Payment (check) + electronic registrations are due by Friday, January 12th, (PLEASE identify student in check memo) but you can begin registration now. A late fee after Jan. 19th.

Registration form (please follow prompts + submit) : https://forms.gle/cWGGr8uS8j3uKHoo8

Please Note: Bolton Valley will not accept any registrations from us after Friday, Jan.22nd!

Questions? Michael Krasnow, 802-425-3997 or email at: mkrasnow1@gmail.com

*** Financial Aid / Scholarships, (need-based), are available for any student, call Michael Krasnow, or CCS Guidance Counselor Betsy Lloyd, 802-425-6641 for information. ***

Several grade levels will be working on weaving projects and I am looking for yarn donations to support these creations. Any color, any style will work, but if you have any questions please reach out: enorris@cvsdvt.org. Thanks!

The CVSD Early Education Program is now accepting applications for a random prekindergarten lottery drawing for the 2024-25 school year. This lottery is for an opportunity to enroll in one of our school-based classrooms which run 10 hours per week. Our school-based prekindergarten classrooms are 5 STARs, licensed early education programs that provide play-based, developmentally appropriate environments for all children in an inclusive setting. Our curriculum is based on the Vermont Early Learning Standards (VELS).

Our programs follow the CVSD school calendar. Children who will be age 3 or older by September 1, 2024, who are not eligible for kindergarten, and live in the communities of Charlotte, Hinesburg, Shelburne, St. George, and Williston are eligible to enter the lottery. Families who are selected for the lottery and choose to enroll their child in a CVSD program access their Act 166 publicly funded prekindergarten funds for the school-based program. (Note: Charlotte pre-k students will attend a program at another CVSD site.)

All applications must be received by February 5, 2024, and are located on the CVSD Early Education website under 2024-2025 Preschool Lottery . Paper applications are available upon request.

For additional information, questions about our program, or any concerns about your child’s development, please visit our website or contact Director of Early Education, Erin Gagne at egagne@cvsdvt.org. Our Early Education team is also available for developmental screenings in the areas of communication, social-emotional development, motor skills, adaptive development, and cognition. More information about an Early Multi-Tiered System of Supports is also available on the website.

You’ve likely heard more about youth vaping these days. And rightly so, the most recent Youth Risk Behavior Survey reported 16% of Vermont high school students used an EVP (electron vaping device) in the past 30 days. Vaping is not a social norm or youth trend. It’s an increasingly serious health issue for our kids.

That’s why CVSD and Connecting Youth continue to proactively address vaping as a health issue. Our prevention strategies are restorative, not punitive. We aim to educate, empower and support. Not point blame. And we know prevention is most effective when it connects people across multiple social and economic settings.

From community education to readily accessible quit resources, learn more here about our prevention efforts to help youth make the healthiest choices. If you have questions, ideas or just want to learn more, reach out to your school’s SAPs. We're in this together!

-Connecting Youth

Happy New Year, ParentIN family!

As we step into 2024, we know the New Year can bring a gamut of emotions. For some, it's a time of joy and fresh starts. For others, it's a bittersweet goodbye to a year of challenges. And for most, it's a beautiful blend of both.

Here at ParentIN, we see you, all of you. We see the superhero strength you bring every day, juggling caregiving, work and all the goodies in between. Most of all, we know you’re here because of your unwavering love for your family. Reminding you that ParentIN is your constant sidekick throughout these years. Providing you support groups, resources, and a listening ear when you need a break.

And guess what? We've got some great programming coming!

• CVSD and ParentIN join forces against tobacco/vaping! Check out Access CVU's February cessation classes coming at you!

• Dr. Maheux, UNC brain expert, joins us to talk addiction and science. Get ready for mind-blowing insights about youth and addiction prevention.

• Outright Vermont partners with us for our annual Pride event in June. We’re also working with them on another parent education event to learn together!

We would love to hear your ideas on how to build our programming and strengthen this community. Don’t hesitate to reach out to me with hot topics you want addressed or suggestions for learning opportunities you hope to see offered. We can’t do this work without you.

All the best,

Amy Sayre

Happy New Year! We have some exciting teen science, coding & engineering programs coming up and we hope you will join us!

January 13 - Come to our first teen science cafe of 2024 and learn all about Life in a Drop of Water - A Deep Dive into Aquatic Microbiology and Phytoplankton! In this cafe you will interact with aquatic microscopic life in Lake Champlain, mud puddles, and the ocean using microscopes; learn about the importance of microscopic aquatic life (and why NASA is sending algae to space!); compete for prizes; and even create living mini-ecosystems in a bottle to take home. Open to youth in grades 7-12. Click here to register.

February 1 - Start practicing for the Vermont Science Olympiad! UVM will be hosting the Vermont Science Olympiad on Saturday, April 6, 2024, and we are looking for high school teams to join us for this exciting day of science competition! Contact Lauren.Traister@uvm.edu if your school wants to compete. We can help you get started.

February 1 - Have you ever wanted to learn how to create your own website? Well, here's your chance! In this 4-H World Changers: Learn to Code series, you will learn to design and build a website to take action on something that matters to you. Learn to code and use your voice to make a difference! We will meet virtually each Thursday from February 1 - March 7, 7:00-8:00 pm. Open to youth in grades 5-12. Click here to register.

February 10 - Our next teen science cafe of 2024 will focus on AgroTek Innovation! This café will introduce you to different ways that technology is applied in agricultural settings to create new products or improve our environment as a teaser to get you interested in the summer AgroTek Academy at UVM. Open to youth in grades 7-12. Click here to register.

February 17 - Discover Engineering is a FREE annual event for youth in grades 5-10 who want to learn about engineering, build skills and network with engineering students, faculty and professionals. Event information and registration will be available next week at www.uvm.edu/extension/youth/announcements.

More information about each program and registration links can be found at: https://www.uvm.edu/extension/youth/announcements

• Athletics
• Bus Schedules / Routes
• CCS Handbook
• Connecting Youth Mentoring
• CVSD Divsersity, Equity and Inclusion
• CVSD Handbook
• CVSD School Board
• Food Service and Menu
• Health Office
• MySchoolBucks
• Volunteer at CCS

• Access Community Education Classes and Registration
• Charlotte Food Shelf
• Charlotte Public Libary

• Charlotte Recreation Department

Jen Roth, Lead Principal

Amanda Riggleman, Assistant Principal

Beth Slater, Director of Special Services