Dear parents,

Please join your Homeroom Teacher(s) on Wednesday, October 7 in a Zoom session:

• • 5:00 - 5:30 with JA and J1 Homeroom Teachers 

  • 5:30 - 6:00 with J2, J3 and J4 Homeroom Teachers

The Junior School Back to School Night will be divided into 3 distinctive presentations, asynchronous and synchronous:

• • Multiple 5 minute pre-recorded videos from specialist teachers are available to parents in this newsletter (see below). It is meant to be easy to navigate so that you can select the curriculum information you are looking at.

  • Pre-recorded video, by grade, created by homeroom teachers to share general curriculum information related to their grade (in place of the traditional presentation by the homerooms, as a team, to the parents). These videos are also available below.

  • A 20-30 minute live Zoom meeting with your child's homeroom teacher this Wednesday, October 7. Teachers will be able to share more about their homeroom's specific routines and the expectations in their respective classes. Parents will be able to ask questions related to the curriculum and those routines. We will share the zoom link for the live meeting with your child's homeroom teacher on Tuesday, October 6 before 5pm.

Pascal Vallet, Junior School Principal 

Alessandra Camilo, Junior School Assistant Principal

• Monday, October 5 - JA students with older siblings permitted to ride yellow bus (update SDM)

• Wednesday, October 7 - JA students without older siblings permitted to ride yellow bus (update SDM)

• Wednesday, October 7 - JS Back to School Zoom with Homeroom Teachers:  JA & J1 at 5:00 / J2, J3, J4 at 5:30  (details in this newsletter)

• Monday, October 19 and Tuesday, October 20 - JS Photo Days 

• Week of October 26 – October 30 - No Classes for Students – October Break 

• Wednesday, November 25 - Friday, November 27 - School Closed – Thanksgiving Break 

• Week of November 30 - December 4 - Remote Make Up & Retake Photos (Coordinated by Stomping Ground with families)

In this Newsletter you will find the videos recorded by JS teachers sharing information about their curriculum. We encourage parents to watch these videos, especially those shared by our homeroom teachers before meeting with them on Zoom this coming Wednesday, October 7. You will also find the two iPad use webinars held for our JA to J2 students last week. We hope you will watch them again with your children and engage in conversation with them about proper handling of the iPads at home. We also share the link to last Wednesday's Parent Coffee about Technology at school and at home and the slideshow used during that webinar. Contained in there is important information related to handling technology at home and about our vision for using technology at school. Please enjoy the many photos of life in Junior School we have added to this Newsletter #04!

• TO DO: WATCH THE BACK TO SCHOOL NIGHT VIDEOS BEFORE WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 7

• TO DO: RETURN BOOKS BELONGING TO THE JS LIBRARY FOR INVENTORY PURPOSES

• IMPORTANT INFORMATION: iPAD CARE AND RESPONSIBILITY WEBINARS FOR J1/J2 AND JA

• PARENT ASSOCIATION CORNER: REMINDER - CLASS PARENTS NEEDED

• PARENT ASSOCIATION CORNER: PARENT COFFEE: TECHNOLOGY IN JUNIOR SCHOOL

•  BIT OF NEWS: UNIS-UN PRESENTERS NEEDED

•  BIT OF NEWS: QUARANTINE

• REMINDERS: HEALTH AND SAFETY

• REMINDERS: REMOTE LEARNERS

• REMINDER: UPDATE YOUR CHILD’S DISMISSAL PLANS in SDM

• REMINDER: UPDATE YOUR PARENT CONTACT INFORMATION

If you still have books at home that belong to the Junior School Library, our Librarians ask that your children bring them back to school this week for inventory purposes. Thanks for your support.

• J1 and J2 students: For those who missed it, or would like to review it again with their child, here is the link to the September 28 webinar with Mr. Vallet and Ms. Zammarano on proper use of iPads by J1 and J2 students:     J1 and J2 Responsible iPad Use   

• JA students: A webinar to help JA students use their iPads responsibly was held on September 30 and it can be viewed here:  JA Responsible iPad Use

• For all students using an iPad, here are basic instructions that families can print and keep on hand: Everything iPad! 

This is your chance to help out! Each class typically has 2 Class Parents. Class Parents help the teacher in communicating with the parents of children in the class. This is a very important role - even more so this year with all that is going on! In addition to assisting teachers in communicating with families, the Class Parents this year will also be asked to collect feedback from other parents in the class and to share that feedback with the JS Principal and Assistant Principal during regular Zoom meetings. The time commitment for a Class Parent is minimal (1 virtual Zoom meeting every week or two along with ongoing email communications) and the appreciation you will receive is HUGE!

If you are interested, please let your child's homeroom teacher know.

You will find below the webinar about Technology in the Junior School which was held last Wednesday evening, and the slideshow used on this occasion.

Dear UNIS Community, 

On behalf of the UNIS-UN executive committee, we hope this message finds you well. 

We are writing to you today to request your help and participation in this year’s UNIS-UN conference,  A Global Catastrophe: The Impacts of COVID-19 schedule to take place March 18 and 19, 2021 . For the first time in the 44 year history of the conference, we will run a fully virtual event where we will bring you a dynamic lineup of speakers from around the world. We know our UNIS community has a rich network of friends, family, colleagues and acquaintances that can lend their knowledge and expertise to make this, as always, a world class event.  

Without a question, the coronavirus has affected everyone worldwide. Lack of leadership and preparation left the majority of the world’s countries in disarray. As a result, thousands have lost their lives and millions have been infected. In order to prevent future pandemics, we, along with the world’s leaders, must collaborate and work towards a future of transparency and changes in the way we combat and prepare for potential pandemics. The 2021 UNIS-UN conference will address the situation we are in today through meaningful discussions and debate to not only imagine but actually construct solutions. In addition, this conference will investigate the disparities accentuated by the pandemic, specifically focusing on inequality in healthcare, education, and economic systems. Furthermore, we will examine how COVID-19 has highlighted the racial discrepancies that exist in society today. 

We are looking for engaging presenters who can speak on such topics as public health, development and distribution of vaccines, inequities in healthcare, managing mental health, changes in domestic life,  the repercussions of the virus on the economy and solutions for economic recovery, the influence of the media, the responsibility of politicians and leadership, the environmental implications, the effect on education, racial inequalities and more.  We would love to hear your ideas and recommendations for potential speakers who would bring a unique and engaging perspective to our student participants worldwide.  Please send your suggestions to Anna Bianco at 22abianco@unis.org by October 15, 2020.

On behalf of the whole UNIS-UN community, we thank you for your cooperation. Each one of your ideas contributes to making this year's conference the best one yet! 

Sincerely, 

Anna Bianco, Felipe Tavares, and Xudong He 

Coordinators, UNIS-UN Speaker’s Commission 

United Nations International School

Please be advised that New York State has recently extended its 14 day quarantine order to most countries. Travelers required to quarantine now include anyone arriving from a U.S. state on the NY watch list, but as well as any country on the international travel watch list. This watch list includes the EU, the UK, or Mexico, among other countries. Only 31 countries are exempt from this requirement. Make sure you take this into account when planning any travel during October Break or Winter Break. 

1. Arrival: To speed arrival for everyone, please have your child take possession of their backpack and lunch before they approach the entry gate in the morning and check to see that their mask is on, fits well, and is covering their nose.

2. Late Arrival: The late arrival of students in the morning delay our faculty and staff moving back to their positions. The JS gates should be closing no later than 8:40. Please ensure that you arrive at the time assigned for your child's grade.

3. Masks: Be sure you have packed spare masks in a clean bag in your child's backpack, as well as an extra bag to hold used ones. For the safety and peace of mind of all, do not send your child to school in a vented mask. We understand that many of you do use vented masks with filters inserted. But our teachers cannot be certain that every vented mask has the filter necessary to keep them safe. Please respect our community and do not send your child to school in a vented mask.

4. Remote Learning on Days with Appointments: We ask that you opt to have your child learn remotely on the days that they have appointments outside of school. Parents and caregivers will not be permitted inside the gate and late arrivals and early dismissals pull vital personnel from their assigned posts in order to escort your child. Just enter Remote Learning as an Exception in SDM to alert your teacher that your child will connect remotely instead of joining in person.

5. Switching from Remote to Hybrid: When requesting a switch from full time Remote Learning to Hybrid attending in-person classes, at least 48 hours (2 full school days) in advance, please email:

• your homeroom teacher

• jsoffice@unis.org

• schoolnurse@unis.org (to request health clearance to attend in person if your child has not been on campus yet)

The last step is to update SDM with your dismissal plans for each day your child is on campus.

6. Returning to Campus After Illness:  Based on CDC guidance, students who are sent home or become ill may not return to UNIS until the following:

• WITH A COVID TEST: A negative COVID test and clearance note from MD. Must explicitly state that the student is cleared to return to school.

• WITHOUT COVID TEST: Must be fever free (less than 100F) for 3 days with no fever reducing medications and improvement of symptoms

  • AND must be 10 days post-symptom (No symptoms in last 10 days)

  • AND report general feelings of wellness.

All students who are returning to campus after an illness, MUST FIRST SEE THE NURSE WHEN COMING BACK ON CAMPUS BEFORE STARTING CLASSES.

If your child is exhibiting symptoms consistent with COVID please have them tested so we can alert potential contacts within UNIS. This helps us keep everyone safe. If you feel these symptoms are due to a cause other than COVID, please have your physician clearly document this in your return to school clearance letter. For health related questions please email: schoolnurse@unis.org and mrivera@unis.org

7. Social Distancing Outside of UNIS: Exercise caution and, whenever possible, to stay clear of gatherings where social distancing or face masks might not be the norm. We advise students and families to be particularly vigilant on playgrounds and during play dates, keeping in mind the impact they may have on the safety of everyone in our community.

8. COVID Testing: We recommend that students be tested at least ONCE a month, preferably every two weeks. All UNIS Faculty and Staff will be pool-tested every other week on campus.

• • Instruction begins at 8:40 each morning. Remote learners are expected to connect with their homeroom no later than 8:40 to participate in Morning Meeting. Students who try to connect after that time disrupt the class and pull the teacher away from the rest who are already engaged in person or remotely. It is tremendously important that students are ready to join at 8:40. Meanwhile, we recognize that due to technical glitches or late arrivals, not all teachers will always be able to start at 8:40. We thank you for your patience. But, once the class begins, students who join between 8:40 and 9:00 are missing important direction and are inevitably disrupting the class. Let's try our best together!

  • Question related to technology should be addressed by email to tech.support@unis.org only. Tech Support will need your child's full name, teacher name and grade in order to assist you quickly. Please do not disrupt your teacher's instruction time to address tech support issues for your family. We understand it can be frustrating sometimes; we recognize it and are working hard to address the glitches we are facing. But we have noticed teachers trying to troubleshoot a system while teaching, a system that really requires technician intervention. They do it out of caring and concern about their students not being able to connect. Please help them by reaching out to our Tech Department for support instead. 

  • All families should check their internet connection. The audio when your child connects from home should never be distorted - it is disruptive to the class when that happens and is likely the result from a poor connection at home. You should have at least 3mbps up and download. A 5mbps up and download will ensure optimal quality. You can check your bandwidth here: fast.com 

Our homeroom teachers follow the instructions entered by parents in School Dismissal Manager (SDM) each day. Please update your SDM account to regularly indicate what the plans are for your child each day of the week. SDM is always mandatory for Dismissal but can easily be used for Attendance as well. If your child will be learning remotely on a day that he/she is normally scheduled to be on campus, please use SDM and select "Remote Learning as an Exception". On days when your child will not engage in classes either remotely or in person, please use SDM to mark your child "Absent".

SDM is the only way of letting the dismissing teacher know where your child should go at dismissal. In addition to indicating that there is an After School Activity, you must enter a description of the activity in the box below. If the activity name is not entered in SDM your child may be placed in the Care Program instead.

No student will be placed on a bus at dismissal if their SDM account does not authorize their ridership on that date.  They will be placed in the Care Program instead.