Principal Madden’s Weekly Message—Week of April 5, 2021
Dear Caregivers,
Big Week!
School returns to full time, five days a week this week!
Yea!!
All of the information I have been sending about full-time school starting on April 5 is listed here.
Info-School-Start-April-5 Specialist-ScheduleI am only listing some bulleted highlights below.
- School begins full time (five days a week) for all students on April 5.
- School hours will be 8:50-3:00. Supervision and free breakfast for all will be available starting at 8:30. Lunch is also free for all for the rest of the year.
- There will be NO in-person school for any students this coming Thursday and Friday, April 1 and 2. These days will be used to prepare the building for full-time school and to allow staff to collaborate about student and classroom schedules for this transition.
- Masks are required at school. We always have back-ups if needed.
Please contact me with any questions. I have been so grateful for all of your communication and questions.
I am excited to see more of your children!
Photos
• This week’s photo shows a great example of our outdoor learning! We will try to access our wonderful grounds as much as possible as we enter into this next phase of pandemic education! Thank you to our wonderful PTO for helping fund some items to help make this possible.
• Also, we will start our school gardening this week with our garden educator from School Sprouts, Hope Guardenier. Each class will have 4 sessions with Hope this spring (always on Tuesdays).
From our Nurse, Karen Schiaffo:
The COVID-19 protocol is as follows:
In order to minimize risk and keep the school community safe, district nurses are required to send students home that have 1 symptom. Symptoms include: headache, stomach ache, nausea, vomiting, chills, fatigue, body aches, cough, congestion, runny nose, sore throat, diarrhea, or fever since these mimic COVID-like illness. Caregivers will be asked to contact their health care provider to see if testing is needed. There may be other diagnoses that cause these symptoms and your provider can discuss that with you. In order for your student to return to school, you will need to provide a negative test result or a note from your provider documenting an alternative diagnosis as the cause for the symptoms.
Many students experience seasonal allergies at this time of year and allergy symptoms can mimic COVID-like symptoms. Please consult your child’s health care provider about treating your child’s seasonal allergy to avoid your child being sent home for symptoms that appear Covid-like.
Remember to review the Student Daily Checklist before sending your child to school.
Thank you for your cooperation.
Mr Ted
• Our beloved Mr. Ted is retiring from the Hitchcock Center. Most of you know of Mr. Ted. He worked with our school community for many years as a knowledgeable naturalist, educational leader, nurturer or nature, and wise wonderer. He has a gift with children (and adults) and for years he brought an awe and calm appreciation of our natural world with him on hundreds of field trips with our students and staff.
If any of your children (graduates from RKFRR will remember him!) want to send a note of appreciation to Ted, please drop it off at school or email it to Andrea Egitto. aegitto@northampton-k12.us
Deadline for these notes/emails is April 15. Thank you!
2021-2022 School Year
• The 2021-2022 school calendar has been approved by the school committee. Here it is. Please note the change in school hours (in the lower left-hand corner) that were recently approved by the School Committee to allow for a later start for high school students.
2021.2022.Calendar• Looking for information about Kindergarten for the 2021-2022 School Year?
https://northamptonschools.org/kindergarten-2/
Also, I have had many questions about whether or not we are planning to have our kindergarten students in-person full time, and that is certainly our plan. We are all looking forward to a typical and spectacular start at Ryan Road School!
• Please see flyers for a fun school vacation activity sponsored by the Northampton Education Foundation.
NEF-April-Vacation-School2School-Fun-Run_Walk_Ride-Flyer Spanish-April-Vacation-School2School-Fun-Run_Walk_Ride-FlyerImportant Upcoming Dates:
• Monday, April 5: Return to full in-person learning!
• April 19-23: Spring Vacation
• Monday, May 10: School Photos (taken outside) More information will be coming home soon.
• Tuesday, May 11: Half day with a 12:20 dismissal (Teacher Work Day)
• Monday, May 31: No School for Memorial Day
• Friday, June 18: Last day of School!
Stay up to date with all of our school activities on our School Website’s Calendar!
I hope that all families feel welcome, comfortable, and valued at our school. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
Sarah Madden, Principal