Second Grade

Dear Friends and Families,

Our second grade team is delighted to officially welcome you to the 2020-2021 school year! Our team is excited to meet all of you soon! We hope that you have had a fun, safe, and relaxing summer. Our vacation time has been spent reading, exploring, gardening, exercising, learning, and enjoying time with family and close friends. We have also been working on making our classroom spaces (and our remote classroom) a special place to spend our upcoming days together.

Our second-grade team consists of Jennifer Baroody, Shelby Chadwick, Teresa Curtis, and Caitlin Fitzpatrick. Ms. Chadwick will teach the remote 1st/2nd grade class. Our Education Technician is Jennifer York. We are excited to partner with you this year in your child's education. Our goal is to create a safe, enjoyable, and productive environment that will foster your student's curiosity and passion for learning.

During our first six weeks of school, we spend a lot of time getting to know each other, building our classroom community, and establishing our rules, routines, and safety protocols. We practice these initiatives to ensure our classrooms are brimming with fun, mindfulness, friendship, kindness, empathy, and learning.

Please take a moment to read the important information below. This website will continue to be a resource for you throughout your student's school year.

Welcome Back to School Day

• Our welcome to school day is scheduled for Monday, September 14th. Be on the lookout for your Parent-Teacher conference sign-up (PTC Fast) that you will be receiving via email. Each student will have the opportunity to see their classroom and tour their new space. As a COVID-19 safety precaution, parents will remain outside of the school building during this time.
  **Remote students will meet with Ms. Chadwick outside and collect their technology and school supplies.

MyMedBot

• Thank you for doing your part to keep our classroom communities safe. Please be sure to complete this online health check each morning (all students must do this- in person and remote students).

Individual Supplies

There are a few items that each student needs individually (provided by families... sent in by 9/30):

• (2) Composition Notebooks (hard cover and NOT spiral bound). Please place your child’s name on the BACK of each notebook. Thank you!

• (1) lined or blank notebook or sketchbook for free draw/free writing during choice time.

• One small container of play-doh.

• A 12” ruler (with inches on one side and centimeter on the other)

** Optional: Headphones if your child prefers them over earbuds. (THESE WILL BE RETURNED AT THE END OF THE SCHOOL YEAR.)

** If you are unable to provide the above items, please contact your child’s teacher.

Breakfast

• Breakfast will be available in the school lobby each morning. Due to COVID-19 safety precautions, students will be eating in their classrooms or in another designated area where distance guidelines can be accommodated.

Lunch

• Lunch can be brought from home or purchased at school. You can find the monthly menu on the CRES website. sad.fivetowns.net/programs/food_service/c_r_e_s_menu. Second-grade's scheduled lunchtime is 12:40 to 1:05 pm. Students will be eating in their classrooms or in another designated area where distance guidelines can be accommodated.

Healthy Snacks and Water

• We ask that parents send in a healthy snack each day along with a water bottle. Communal water fountains will not be an option this year; however, students can refill their water bottles.

Home Folders

• In-person classes will use a plastic folder that will go home each day. Student folders will be checked daily. Students will receive these folders Monday, September 14th during our meet & greet time or on the first day of school.
  ** Remote students will not need folders. They will pick up materials once a week at CRES- procedure and day to be determined- and most forms/work will be submitted electronically.

Technology Advances

• Due to the requirements of social distancing, instruction and feedback will look different this year. Using an iPad, students will learn to navigate an online platform called Seesaw. Students can take photos and videos, draw, write, and access Google Slide links. Students absent from school can access Seesaw and stay up-to-date with assignments. Teachers will also communicate updates and information via Seesaw.

Supplies

• This year CRES will provide individual supply boxes filled with materials including pencils, a pencil sharpener, an eraser, markers, a pair of scissors, tape, a glue stick, color pencils, paint, and earbuds. Students will also have an iPad and whiteboard. Teachers will notify parents when supplies are low and ask for additional donations (see our Classroom Donations section on our website). Students should have a backpack. Again, if your student is uncomfortable wearing the school provided earbuds, we ask that parents send in headphones for their child. Headphones will be returned at the end of the year.

Clothing

• We will be outdoors in all sorts of weather as long as the "feels like" temperature is above zero degrees. It's important your child has the appropriate clothing for outdoor learning. In a large Ziploc bag, pease send in an extra pair of clothes, socks, and undergarments. Label the bag with your students first and last name. If we send clothing home to be washed, ensure new items are brought in the following day.

Masks

• Have your child bring two extra masks in a labeled bag. Classroom teachers will have some masks on hand for students to use as needed. A clean mask must be worn each day. We will have scheduled five-minute mask breaks throughout the day. CRES will provide a lanyard to attached the mask to keep it from getting lost or dirty.

Parent Morning Drop-Off

• Students can only enter the school playground when the playground gate is open and a duty teacher is present, beginning at 8:30 am. Students must stay with a guardian until 8:30 am. You may see children on the playground before 8:30 am as part of the YMCA morning program; YMCA is only responsible for students in their program.

Dismissal

• Second-grade students being picked-up will be dismissed at 3:10 pm. If a second-grade student has a sibling in kindergarten or multi-age then they will be dismissed at 3:00 pm. Students riding the bus home will be dismissed at 3:30 pm. A parent/guardian note must accompany any changes to a student's dismissal plan, e.g., your student will be pick-up by a designated person rather than take the bus home. If a change occurs during the day, please call the main office, as teachers do not readily access email throughout the school day.

We are excited to get this year started, and look forward to partnering with you as we embark upon our learning journey. Please do not hesitate to reach out to your student's classroom teacher with any questions. Know that we are in this together. WE'VE GOT THIS!

Sincerely,

The Second Grade Team- Jennifer Baroody, Shelby Chadwick, Teresa Curtis, Caitlin Fitzpatrick, and Jennifer York

CRES Main Office: 207-236-7809

• Jennifer Baroody jennifer.baroody@fivetowns.net Room 157 236-7809 ext. 1157

• Shelby Chadwick shelby.chadwick@fivetowns.net Online 236-7809 ext. 1151

• Teresa Curtis teresa.curtis@fivetowns.net Room 149 236-7809 ext. 1149

• Caitlin Fitzpatrick caitlin.fitzpatrick@fivetowns.net Room 159 236-7809 ext. 1159

• 8:30 - 9:05 am Morning Arrival

• 9:10 - 10:00 am Specials

• 10:05 - 10:20 am Morning Meeting

• 10:20 - 11:10 am Writing

• 11:15 - 11:35 am Snack & Outdoor Movement Time

• 11:40 - 12:35 pm Math

• 12:40 - 1:05 pm Lunch

• 1:10 - 1:35 pm Recess

• 1:40 - 1:50 pm Quiet Time

• 1:50 - 3:05 pm Reading and Word Work/Science

• 3:05 - 3:10 pm Pack Up & Choice Time

• 3:10 pm Students Dismissal: Pick-Up

• 3:30 pm Students Dismissal: Bus

Classroom Donations

• Tissues

• Classic Crayola markers

• Crayola crayons

• Crayola pencils

• Elmer's glue sticks

• Ziploc bags (variety of sizes)

• Ticonderoga pencils (top erasers or block erasers)

• Expo markers (black)

Individual Supplies (we're asking families to provide these items, but we welcome donations of these items too)

• A 12 inch ruler

• A container of Play-Doh

• One composition notebook (hard cover and not spiral bound, lined or blank pages) for free draw/write.

• Two composition notebooks (hard cover and not spiral bound) for writing. Please place your name on the back of each notebook.

• Headphones if your child does not like using earbuds. Headphones will be returned at the end of the school year.