Dear Earth School Families,

A very short Buzz this week, with just a couple of heads up and reminders...

Frost Valley Camping Trip  Two of our 4th and 5th grade classes (Maya/Amy and Jess/Jia)  will be leaving for their Frost Valley Trip this Wednesday!  If you are a family that arrives at school early for breakfast you may run into a bit more traffic than usual, as campers are expected to arrive at 7:30 AM and and busses are expected to load up and depart at 7:45 AM. 

Studio in A School  As we announced last week, students will be starting the Studio in A School program next Monday! For families who are interested in more information, the Studio in A School website (studioinaschool.org) has more information about their PreK-K program and the Elementary residency programs that will be in place in our school. Keep an eye out for additional updates from your child’s classroom teacher(s) to find out more about the specific media your child will be exploring and learning to use as an artist. 

Food Drive! Please donate in the ES lobby!. Highly needed items include canned goods like tuna, beans and vegetables; pasta, rice and other grains; cereal; and Tetra-packed milk. Thanksgiving-themed foods also welcome, however, please consider that hunger is a larger problem than just the holiday, so all types of food are appreciated. Donations will first be utilized within our school community and then donated to the food bank on Ave B. Any questions, see Maya in Rm 152. 

Have a wonderful week! 

Claudia

Dear Earth School Families, 

Last week was a busy week! The PA’s Monster Bake Sale (parts I and II) and Picture Day were just days apart, and we appreciate the many parents who came to help out. 

Additionally, we are so grateful to the parents who have been helping out bit by bit to begin to set up the art room! Our teachers have met with the Studio in A School instructors to plan, and we are scheduled to start Monday, November 18th. Every class will receive art instruction once a week (either Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday), with their classroom teacher(s) and an art instructor from Studio in A School. While some classes will go to the art room for Studio in A School, others may be inviting the art instructor to “push in” to teach art in their classrooms. Keep an eye out for updates on what your child’s class will be doing in their classroom newsletter! 

Parent Corps meets again tomorrow (8:30-10:00, Rm 106), hosted by our guidance counselor, Shirley.  Make connections with other parents and caregivers, discuss parenting challenges and strategies, and enjoy some light breakfast goodies. It’s okay if you weren’t able to attend last week’s meeting. The program runs 14 weeks so attend whenever you can! 

Does your child take medication?  If your child has a condition such as asthma, allergies, diabetes, or any other condition for which treatment at school might be needed, it is important that the nurse’s office has up-to-date information on your health-care provider’s instructions for care and medication. The DOE has different forms, depending on the condition/treatment needed, and if you have not yet submitted a form for the current year, it’s important to do so as soon as possible. Among the Health Services Forms available from the DOE website are: 

If you are not sure whether your child requires any of the above forms or another of the Health Services Forms, our nurse’s office can help you figure out which forms are necessary and how to get them filled out.

Food Drive! Please donate in the ES lobby starting Monday. Highly needed items include canned goods like tuna, beans and vegetables; pasta, rice and other grains; cereal; and Tetra-packed milk. Thanksgiving-themed foods also welcome, however, please consider that hunger is a larger problem than just the holiday, so all types of food are appreciated. Donations will first be utilized within our school community and then donated to the food bank on Ave B. Any questions, see Maya in Rm 152. 

Have a wonderful week! 

Claudia

Dear Earth School Families,

It was a busy week of family conferences last week, and we have another full week ahead of us!  If we weren’t able to arrange for a family conference last week or had to cancel, please reach out to your child’s teacher(s) to (re)schedule a time to meet. 

Tomorrow is the kick-off meeting for Parent Corps (8:30-10:00, Rm 106), hosted by our guidance counselor, Shirley.  Make connections with other parents and caregivers, discuss parenting challenges and strategies, and enjoy some light breakfast goodies. The program runs 14 weeks so attend whenever you can! Find out why many parents come back for a second or third year! 

The PA’s Monster Bake Sale is tomorrow, Oct. 28!  You may wish to send your kiddos with a couple of dollars so they can enjoy a treat at dismissal. After school programs will bring the kids by as well.  Drop off your ghoulish creations in Jocelyn's office anytime during the day or bring them directly to the ES lobby at dismissal time.

Picture Day is this week! Due to space and scheduling constraints, we’ve had to move Picture Day to this Thursday, Oct. 31. If you are available to help out for part of the day, please contact Jocelyn (jocelyn@theearthschool.org).

For those in our community who celebrate Halloween, it's an exciting time as children look forward to festivities, treats, and costumes. At Earth School we celebrate the seasons (like the Autumn Equinox), but we do not have celebrations or parties for holidays like Halloween. Therefore, we respectfully ask that families keep costumes, candy, etc. at home.  Thank you for your attention to this, and if you celebrate Halloween, please have a safe and fun holiday after school hours!

Attendance  As I mentioned in the Buzz earlier in the year, daily attendance systems are an important part of how schools verify student well-being (documenting and confirming whether/why students are absent, etc.). Additionally, consistent attendance plays an extremely important role in ensuring that student learning isn’t disrupted. When children are frequently absent or late, they can miss academic and social learning experiences that can make it difficult for them to make academic progress and build positive relationships. Moreover, attendance records are considered when students are applying to middle schools and special programs. 

If your child will be absent for any reason, you should notify the Earth School office as soon as possible. To report “same-day” absences or late attendance, and/or to make changes in going-home or afterschool arrangements, you should call the Earth School Office at (212) 477-1735. When your child returns to school, you should provide a written explanation of the absence or a doctor’s note and submit it to Carmen Nieves in the main office (schools are required to enter a “reason code” for absences in the DOE attendance system).  In cases where you know in advance your child will be absent, you should notify the classroom teacher(s) and the main office in writing.

Cell Phone Use at The Earth School As outlined in the Earth School Handbook, cell phones are allowed at the Earth School with some important limitations. We strongly recommend that students below the fourth grade not bring cellphones to school. If a student needs to bring a cell phone to school, it must be turned off and given to the teacher at arrival and picked up at dismissal. Students are not permitted to keep cell phones in their possession during the school day. Cell phones that are not stored with the teachers during the school hours will be taken and returned to the child’s parent. Repeated (4 or more in one year) violations of the cell phone policy will result in the loss of the privilege of having a cell phone on school property. The use of cell phones and other devices in the school hallways before and after school should be limited to necessary communications (for example, to call/text one’s parent to confirm important information). We kindly ask that parents support modeling these school habits by limiting their own non-essential cellphone use in the hallways (i.e., limit social media, games, web browsing, entertainment, etc.).  

Have a wonderful week! 

Claudia