RICHLAND REFLECTIONS

Dear Richland Families,

We are excited for warmer weather this week! Thank you and your children for participating in our Read Across America week of celebrating diversity in reading. Please enjoy many highlights of our spirit days below. We look forward to more activities this spring including International/Diversity Week, virtual Project PROUD, Jump Rope Day, and virtual assemblies scheduled every month for the rest of the school year!

Get to know three more staff members and how they live the 7 Habits in this week's Staff Habit Spotlight. Would you like to be included in a family spotlight? Your chance to share how your family lives the 7 Habits is coming soon!

Have a wonderful week!

Nicole Zuerblis

Richland Principal

Habit 2, Begin with the End in Mind

When students returned to Richland this year, my goal was to make sure they would have access to library books even though the library was closed due to the pandemic. With QCSD safety policies in mind, I got to work. I brainstormed what I would need to accomplish my goal. Any materials necessary to borrow new books and quarantine returned books were gathered or purchased. A Google sheet was shared with the classroom teachers so they could arrange book selection visits. A Destiny Discover tutorial was shared with the older students demonstrating how they could place holds on specific books they want to borrow.

I began visiting classrooms the second week of school. Currently, students have book exchanges every other week due to my schedule. I am very grateful for the opportunity to continue nurturing the love of reading in our school community.

During this process, I also used Habit 6, Synergize! Mrs. Demchick, Mrs. Ketterer, Mrs. Scholl, Mrs. Thompson, and Mrs. Zuerblis helped me create the plan. Mr. Nagle created and shared his Destiny Discover tutorial with me and the students. Mrs. Zuerblis ordered a new mobile book display cart and Mr. Hendricks assembled it for me. It is true, everyone benefits when we work together. Keep reading!

The Huber family tries to practice Habit 7, Sharpen the Saw, daily. Sharpening the saw helps us to relax and spend quality time together. Like many families, our schedules are busy, with work, school, and many activities, but I know it is very important to find the balance and take some time to sharpen the saw for our physical, mental, and emotional health. We choose activities that are enjoyable for us and that we look forward to doing together. This includes different ways of exercising, such as taking family walks with our dog, playing basketball, hiking, and playing with our dog in the backyard. This past month, we’ve also had the opportunity to play in the snow as well, doing activities such as sledding! One of our family goals in 2021 is to learn and try new recipes for healthy eating, which is another important way we are trying to sharpen the saw. Individually, I also like to sharpen the saw by reading, watching sports, camping, and listening to music. Practicing Habit 7 is important for finding balance, and it is especially fun when you choose activities that you enjoy!

The Casale family uses Habit 7, Sharpen the Saw! Everyone needs to feel balanced in life, and we do that by partaking in activities that we really enjoy. My husband Steve loves playing his guitar, running, and biking. He practices his guitar in the evening and sometimes plays in local restaurants. My fifteen-year-old son Jack is a thrill-seeker, and can be found riding his skateboard or BMX bike all over Doylestown! He also races mountain bikes for the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Cycling League and was the state champion for 8th graders last year. My daughter Katie sharpens her saw by playing team sports like basketball and lacrosse and she also enjoys biking. This spring she is on THREE different lacrosse teams. And when I am not driving to all the games and races, I love to get out into the woods and ride my own bike. I love the downhill bike parks, especially the ones in New England! We also do these activities as a family, traveling to Colorado for some great biking. Sharpening the Saw keeps us healthy and active.

A great way to express gratitude. I share these weekly with staff. Keep the shout outs coming!

Every week, we'll provide activities for families to practice the 7 habits together! Share your pictures in Seesaw, with your teacher, or send them directly to nzuerblis@qcsd.org, and we'll include them in the next Richland Reflections!

Each day, we read a question of the day that stems from our work with Leader in Me. We encourage you to continue the conversations at home! Below are this week's questions. We'd love you to participate! Share your answers each day on Twitter @RichlandQCSD.

MONDAY: Describe a time you made a plan.

TUESDAY: When you are having a rough day what do you want or need from your classmates?

WEDNESDAY: When you are having a tough day what do you want or need from your teacher?

THURSDAY: When you are having a tough day what do you want or need from your family?

FRIDAY: What is one thing you are looking forward to this weekend?

Currently, our district is providing ALL families with children up to the age of 18 with FREE breakfast and lunch for the remainder of the school year through funds from the US Department of Agriculture. However, if you do not have a current application on file for the 2020-2021 school year, you could miss benefits from the State, should it decide to provide the Pandemic EBT Benefits again.

Please click here for the Free & Reduced Meal Program applications.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Stacy Reiss, Free & Reduced Lunch Program, at sreiss@qcsd.org or 215-529-2022.

A dedicated section of the website serves as a COVID-19 directory place for families to locate resources and see the impact of the pandemic on the district. It's located in the Community Section and titled COVID-19 directory.

Each school year, Richland staff adopts one word. This year called for two! We invite you to join us in supporting each other with courage and grace and explore what these words mean to you.

Hoping to incentivize more people with a Bachelor’s degree to become substitute teachers, the Quakertown Community School District is significantly increasing pay for substitute teachers for the 2020-21 school year.

The per diem rate is being raised from $105 to $120 per day. Long term per diem pay is being raised from $140 to $175 per day, highest in the area. The average per diem rate in Bucks County and surrounding districts is $109. The long term substitute rate is $125. Please click here for the story.

QCSD has several job openings that can be found by clicking here. They include substitute nurses, aides, and food service workers.

Click here for job openings in the Upper Bucks County Technical School.

The free food program is funded by the United States Department of Agriculture.

The United States Department of Agriculture has extended a nationwide waiver to allow the Quakertown Community School District to provide FREE meals to ALL students regardless of need. No qualification or identification is needed.

ALL students are eligible to receive FREE breakfast and FREE lunch through the end of the school year in June.

Breakfast will be served at Richland in our lunch room or classrooms from 8:45-9:00.

Lunch will have three selections daily: A sandwich/wrap/hot entree, a salad with a protein and roll, or a Grape/Peanut Butter Uncrustable. An assortment of fresh fruits and vegetables along with milk will be available daily. Students will order their lunches in the morning and will eat lunch in their classrooms. Lunches will be assembled by the cafeteria staff in bags, with aides delivering to rooms at the scheduled lunch times.

For Virtual Learners, free meal pickup is now held two days a week, Mondays and Wednesdays. On Mondays, students can receive meals for two days, and on Wednesdays for three days. Pickup remains at the Quakertown Community High School bus loop from 11:15 AM until 12:30 PM.

What should you or your child do if asked to quarantine due to exposure to Covid-19? After an exposure to Covid-19, it may take between 2-14 days for symptoms to appear. When ordered to quarantine, you must stay inside of your home until cleared by the Department of Health. Even if you have no symptoms, you or your child should not be outside of your home having close contact with friends and neighbors. If you become infected with the virus, with or without symptoms, interacting with others not in your household can cause community spread of the disease.

While in school, we require children and staff to be masked, wash their hands often, and socially distance to prevent our Richland community from becoming ill. Even if your child has been diagnosed with a common cold, please ensure they avoid contact with other children to prevent transmission and missed school days. Following these same good habits outside of school will prevent you, your children, and others from becoming sick, whether it be from Covid-19, Flu, or any number of common fall and winter illnesses.

For more information, please read QCSD Exclusion from and Return to School Requirements.

Attendance is mandatory for school age children, and the live portion of our school day is 9:00-2:00, with additional time allotted for work after these hours.

Every day Monday through Friday is a school day.

Please keep your child home if they show any symptoms and call to let us know. You will receive a follow up call from our school nurse. We will confirm if your child will become a virtual learner for a period of time so they are not marked absent from in person instruction while staying home with symptoms.

FOR STUDENTS WHO ARE PHYSICALLY IN THE BUILDING:

Attendance will be taken as in the past, and students will be marked absent if they are not physically present. *Please note, only students who need to quarantine or are approved by the principal or school nurse will learn virtually instead of in person.

FOR STUDENTS WHO ARE 100% VIRTUAL LEARNERS:

Attendance will be taken daily. All students are to complete their "check-in" activity as explained by their teachers by 2:00 daily. To allow for the completion of work asynchronously, students may complete other school activities after 2:00, but the check-in must be completed by 2:00 in order to be marked as present.

IF YOUR CHILD IS ABSENT:

You will receive an email at 3:00 on the day your child is marked absent. The school must receive an excuse from you within 3 days of the absence.

New this year, you may respond to the email with your absence reason. You can also email an excuse to lmoyer@qcsd.org. If you prefer, you may send in an absence note to the office. All excuses must be received within 3 days of the absence.

Thank you for your support in making the changes to this year's drop off and pick up run so smoothly! To accommodate more car riders, that location has been moved to the back of the school. Please enter in the morning and afternoon from 313 on Chestnut Street.

The live school day begins at 9:00 and ends at 2:00.

Please note AM Kindergarten pick up at 11:00 and PM drop off at 12:00 are in the front of the school.

All buses will drop off and pick up in the front of the school.

Email: nzuerblis@qcsd.org
Website: https://res.qcsd.org/
Location: 500 Fairview Avenue, Quakertown, PA, United States
Phone: 215 529-2452
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RichlandQCSD/
Twitter: @RichlandQCSD