Newsletter #20


MONDAY, FEBRUARY 22 IS A BLUE DAY FOR J2, J3, J4

REMINDER: Update SDM with February & March Dismissal Plans

Dear parents,

120 families have already registered for the series of 6 workshops "Mindful Parenting in an Upside-Down World!" offered by the Junior School in collaboration with the Parents Association and, if you are not one of them, there is still an opportunity for you to register!

This series of workshops will help families find elements of answers to these questions: Are my kids going to be okay? Am I going to be okay? How can I help all of us to manage our stress and anxiety?

Now more than ever, parents need support to foster emotional health and resilience in their homes. During this 6-part workshop series, Rachel Henes helps parents build their own social and emotional toolkit so that they can skillfully navigate stressors and worries, become aware of biases and judgments, and deepen their most treasured relationships. Using research-based and mindful parenting practices, parents learn new ways to lead with calm and compassion during this uncertain time.

In this newsletter, you will find more information as well as resources from the first workshop.

Pascal Vallet, Junior School Principal 

Alessandra Camilo, Junior School Assistant Principal


Each session is 75 minutes, including time for Q&A. Parents are encouraged to attend the full series.

6-Part Parent Workshop Series 

7:30 - 8:45pm

Topics:

Resources

Please find the slide deck  and the North Star worksheet from the February 9 session, and additional resources that dive a bit further into the topics discussed that night.

North Star Worksheet - Parents.docx

See all the Junior School Photos 2020-21

IMPORTANT DATES

THIS WEEK

THE HYBRID CALENDAR

See the hybrid calendar for the full year here

UPCOMING EVENTS

IN THIS NEWSLETTER

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TO DO: REQUESTS FOR EARLY PICK UP

Use Remote Learning on Days with Appointments or Travel

We ask that you opt to have your child learn remotely on days when you have scheduled appointments outside of school or when you need to leave early for travel. 

Because parents and caregivers are not permitted inside the school gate, a request for early dismissal for a JS student requires that school personnel leave their work in order to escort your child. There is no guarantee that we can free staff from their work duties at any point during the day to accommodate an early dismissal.

Instead of requesting an early pick up, please enter Remote Learning as an Exception in SDM to alert your teacher that your child will connect remotely instead of joining in person.

Of course, if your child falls ill during the school day, the nurse's office will coordinate an early pick plan with families.

Thank you for your support.

INFORMATION: MESSAGE FROM UNIS BOARD OF TRUSTEES

The UNIS Board of Trustees has launched the application process to fill a number of expected vacancies on the Board for the school years 2021-2022 and 2022-2023.

They invite parents, alumni and friends of UNIS to apply or encourage someone they think would be suitable for the Board to submit an application. The application package is accessible by clicking the link here. Applications should be sent to the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for UNIS, Ms. Joan W. McDonald, at mcdonald@un.org, with a copy to caceresk@un.org, no later than 4 March 2021.


INFORMATION: J4JH SERVICE LEARNING ACTION

Beat the Boredom Blues for a Good Cause with J4JH!

The students in J4JH have been working on a service learning project on-and-off for the past few months. Today, we are very happy and excited to finally be able to share our project with you, called...Beat the Boredom Blues for a Good Cause with J4JH. With your help, we are hoping to support people in the Philippines who were affected by a number of horrific typhoons in October and November 2020. 

Please click here to view our class website and learn more: Beat the Boredom Blues for a Good Cause with J4JH.

How long will our fundraiser last?

Our action will be running from Friday 12 February to Friday 23 April, and so children can access our website anytime. February and Spring breaks, as well as weekends might be a good time to take a look and help your child beat the boredom blues!

How it started?

Last November during Humanities, while learning about natural hazards Chloe heard from her parents that two terrible typhoons had hit the Philippines. She then shared this devastating news with the class and this was the catalyst for a class investigation, a series of guest speakers who are from the Philippines and have experienced natural hazards, and our decision to act. You can read about this on our website. 

Who are we raising money for?

Since the Philippines is far away the option for direct acts of service was not possible, the class decided to support an organization that is already working with people affected by the typhoons and raise money for the Philippine Red Cross. To encourage donations some students then created "How to..." videos in their own time that they thought would interest Junior School students and help them stay motivated during the pandemic. 

Collaborative Effort:

Working on our project hasn't been easy, and so we are very, VERY appreciative to have the help and guidance of Mr Vallet, Ms Zammarano, Ms Bertrand and Jay Patel (TUT house student and brother of Darshan in J4JH) along the way. THANK YOU, thank you, THANK YOU!

All the students in J4JH hope you enjoy our videos and want to thank you in advance for supporting the Philippine Red Cross. 

Yours in service and learning, 

Gabby, Amaira, Matthew, Margret, Gia, Avery, Jack, Chloe, Elena, Dallas, Camila, Nirvan, Laila, Jonathan, Steven, Findlay, Georgia, Emmanuella, Darshan, Emma, and Mrs Hiebl

INFORMATION: SPARK ACTIVITIES FOR REMOTE & HYBRID STUDENTS

The UNIS PE Department is pleased to share a new program of physical activities for students when learning from home. You can find a brief introduction to the SPARK program from Daniel O'Connor, our PE Team Leader, below. The program will be posted for JS students on Schoology after the February Break. 

Daniel SPARK PE Program.mov

PARENTS ASSOCIATION CORNER: MARCH 3 JS PARENT COFFEE  & JS TALENT SHOW SIGN UP

JS Parent Coffee

Please save Wednesday, March 3 at 7:00 for the next JS Parent Coffee on the topic of Student Led Conferences.

JS Talent Show

Who's got talent? Calling all Junior School students to sign-up for this year's Talent Show! We will be conducting a virtual Talent Show this year. Each performance will be recorded at home and uploaded (details will be sent to all confirmed participants). The final Show will be a webinar and will be open to all in the Junior School, date is still TBD.  Performances can include vocal, instrumental, theater/drama, dance, sport, or anything you would like to do! Note that performances should be individual or with siblings given the current pandemic. 

Please sign-up by March 5th. All grades are welcome to participate! 

Questions? Email to erin.russell@pa.unis.org. 

BIT OF NEWS: TWO STUDENTS SHARE THEIR THOUGHTS ON BLACK LIVES MATTER

Dolly in J3KM wrote a poem that her teacher Ms. Ager is very proud of and wanted to share with the community!

Ms. Mercurio's J2 student Lucia decided to do a project honoring Black History Month during her free time. Ms. Mercurio is very proud of the work and wanted to share it with everyone!

 BIT OF NEWS: REMOTE ORIGAMI IN J3 ELL

Ms. Pelegano shared how heartening it was to see her J3 ELL students connecting with each other and working together to make origami, even over Zoom.

REMINDERS: ARRIVAL / DEVICES / PE

ARRIVAL: 

So that JS students do not wait too long in the cold at the front gate, and to support the Junior School, we ask parents to time their arrival at school in the morning to the usual staggered schedule for each grade.

Staff is stationed in the tents to supervise students at these times only:

Students arriving earlier than the time scheduled for their grade may wait outside the gates with their guardians. We understand that waiting in cold weather makes this difficult, but JS students cannot be in the tents, or on campus, without adult supervision.

As a reminder, arrival is staggered by grade in order to ensure that we do not exceed a safe number of students in the tents at any given time, or families waiting at the gate.

And, please keep in mind that late arriving students disrupt morning meetings in the homerooms and delay the work day for our staff. The JS gates should be closing no later than 8:40. We understand that commuting during the winter can be a challenge so please allow enough time to arrive before 8:40.

Thank you for your support.

NO IPAD OR CHROMEBOOK USE IN THE BUS OR TENT: Some students who take the yellow bus are using their Chromebooks or iPads in the bus and at school in the arrival tent while waiting to join their classroom in the morning. While the school will reinforce that the usage of devices is not allowed in the tent, we ask that parents remind their children that Junior School students, for safety reasons, are expected to keep their devices in their backpack when outside of their classroom and during transportation. Thanks for your support in reinforcing this rule at home. 

DRESSING FOR PE: As a reminder, please send your JS children to school in their PE uniform on the days that they have PE, especially wearing sneakers. This is to allow students to take part in the many activities with ease, and certain clothing can restrict movements. 

REMINDERS: HEALTH AND SAFETY

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 or Travel: We ask that you opt to have your child learn remotely on days when you have scheduled appointments outside of school or when you need to leave early for travel.

Because parents and caregivers are not permitted inside the gate, a request for early dismissal for a JS student requires that school personnel leave their work in order to escort your child. There is no guarantee that we can free staff from their work duties at any point during the day to accommodate an early dismissal. Instead of requesting an early pick up, please enter Remote Learning as an Exception in SDM to alert your teacher that your child will connect remotely instead of joining in person.

Of course, if your child falls ill during the school day, the nurse's office will coordinate an early pick plan with your family.

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:

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:

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.

REMINDERS: REMOTE LEARNERS

If you have technology issues, please send an email to tech.support@unis.org

If you have academic tech questions, please contact Ms. Zammarano at fzammarano@unis.org 

All other times: If you are having trouble logging in at any other time, please call 212-584-3100 for technology support. 

REMINDER: UPDATE YOUR CHILD’S DISMISSAL PLANS in SDM

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.


REMINDER: UPDATE YOUR PARENT CONTACT INFORMATION

Please take the time to review your family profile and contact information to ensure that your cell phone numbers, email addresses and home address are correct and are entered in the correct fields. You may update your information at any point throughout the year, but if you have not reviewed your information recently, we encourage you to do it today. 

All departments at UNIS rely on the information that you provide in the Veracross Parent Portal to contact you. The only way you can be reached in an emergency, or when there are school wide announcements, is through the information that you have entered in the Portal. After logging into the Portal at myunis.vc , you may review and update all of your family contact information by:

If you need support in order to make your updates, please email veracross@unis.org