Dear Parents,
The staff has returned, the rooms are being prepared, we have welcomed many new members to our Little Flower family and we are excited to get started.
The weekly blast will provide much of the information you need, but I wanted to take this opportunity to highlight a few things and to give a bit of a principal's update.
FIRST WEEK SCHEDULE
During the first week, Tuesday and Wednesday are half days. Thursday and Friday are full days. PreK starts on Wednesday. Everyone else starts on Tuesday. We will go together to mass at noon on Friday, but it is not a half day. Parents are invited to join us for our Opening Mass on Friday.
SAVE THE DATE - BACK TO SCHOOL NIGHTS
Read carefully and mark your calendars because some of these dates have changed.
Thursday, Sept. 9 - New Parents' Welcome 7 PM under the tent Monday, Sept. 13 - PreK Back to School Night 7PM - On Campus Monday, Sept. 13 - Kindergarten Back to School Night 7 PM - Virtual Tuesday, Sept. 14 - 2nd and 3rd Back to School Night 7PM - Virtual Wednesday, Sept. 15 - 1st, 4th, and 5th Back to School Night 7PM - Virtual Thursday, Sept. 16 - 8th Grade High School Prep 7PM - On Campus Thursday, Sept. 23 - 6th, 7th, 8th Back to School Night 7PM - Virtual
The teachers look forward to meeting you and to sharing all of the great things we have planned for this year.
COVID PRECAUTIONS
We are working with a new, smaller list of COVID symptoms. (fever of 100.4 or higher, sore throat, cough, difficulty breathing, diarrhea, vomiting, new onset of severe headache, or new loss of taste or smell). This will help us to keep more students in school. However, the new guidance requires that we follow up when students have one symptom as opposed to last year's two symptom threshold. Our new nurse, Nurse Meghan Long, will help to walk us through these requirements. In short, we expect parents to keep their students home if they are exhibiting any of these symptoms and consult with their physician as to whether or not COVID testing is recommended.
DRESS CODE FOR STUDENTS
We have had much summer discussion about uniforms and dress codes. Here's where we landed.
We will continue with a few "pandemic leniencies" with the dress code. Most notably, we will continue to permit students to wear their gym uniform all day when they have physical education classes, rather than switching back and forth. Belts will be optional for boys in grades K-2.
We will loosen the requirements and increase the accountability for middle school students. The new handbook language will say that the hem of girls skirts should be no shorter than 4 inches above the knee, as opposed to 2 inches. Middle school students are expected to wear dress shoes, not sneakers, with their school uniform. Sperry's are considered dress shoes. Vans are considered slip on sneakers and are not permitted. Non-LFS sweatshirts are not permitted indoors. Nail polish is also not permitted. Boys' hair should be regularly cut so that it does not touch their collars or extend past their eyebrows. Repeated dress code infractions will require that students bring a note home. We expect parents to work with their children to rectify the situation.
We have heard that some parents are struggling to acquire uniform pieces because of shipping delays, etc. If this is the case, parents can send students to schools in uniform-like clothing.
GROUPINGS
The staff has put a great deal of thought into the way that students are grouped for instruction throughout the day. We want parents and students to understand that this year is very different from last year. In most grades, students will end up having the same number of instructional minutes with each teacher regardless of where they start their day. The home group is often only together for 10 minutes before they start teaching. Similarly, if their best friend is not in their home group, it is likely that they might be grouped together later in the day. The groups are more fluid within grade levels this year.
ARRIVAL AND DISMISSAL
The office has shared detailed instructions about arrival and dismissal, but here is the short story.
Students should all arrive at school between 7:55 and 8:05. They line up near the tent by grade levels. Parents can arrive from Kirkland or Massachusetts Avenue. (PreK can only arrive from Massachusetts Ave.) Don't get out of your car and let's try to move these drop off lines quickly. Staff and volunteer parents will ensure students get where they need to be.
Walkers are dismissed at 2:55 and car riders are dismissed at 3:00. Parents follow directions to come park in straight lines. When all cars have stopped moving, parents are signaled to get out of their cars and to carefully take students to the cars. The cars are not released until all cars have been loaded. It usually takes two shifts to load all cars.
KUDOS TO THE SUMMER TEAM
I want to recognize and thank our incredible summer team. Diane, Hector, Eaner, Miriam, Rebecca, and Carlos have worked so hard to prepare everything for the return of our students and staff. This was a big job. We set up four new teaching spaces. We painted, cleaned, and repaired. We moved more furniture than I think we ever have moved during a summer. Diane helped to orient and welcome new parents and staff. She spent countless hours calendaring, preparing class lists, and supervising so many of the practicalities that go into a smooth school opening. Most parents don't see the tireless work of these six individuals but I want all to know that we are very fortunate to have them on our team.
The staff has had a positive and productive week as gear up for the kick off of another wonderful school year. There still is some pandemic uncertainty for sure, but we are ready and quite certain that with your support we are going to have another excellent year of teaching and learning. God Bless, Ms. Favret
Be sure to stay connected with LFS on our updated social media accounts! |