Newsletter #28

Dear parents,

We have noticed an increase in the number of students who are at home because of illness, but are still logging into class remotely.

When your child is sick with stomach ache, fever, headache, etc. there is no expectation from the school that they should attempt to learn remotely. If your child has symptoms that would normally have kept them at home prior to COVID-19, please do not have your child log in to classes. We hope that time will be taken for them to rest and recover. It is difficult for teachers to engage students who are not feeling well, they distract their classmates, and the school believes that children recover more quickly when they are permitted to disconnect and rest.

Please take a few minutes to review our updated protocols regarding student attendance expectations for the three Learning Models we are using now, and we thank you for your support.

Remote Learning For A Medical Reason or Appointment: 

Now that the Junior School has moved to Fully In Person Learning for the majority of our students, our protocols are adapted to ensure continuity in student attendance, consistent expectations in the classroom, and effective lesson planning for our teachers.

If your child is required to remain at home for a medical reason such as :

• Allergies

• Runny nose

• Cough 

• Quarantine due to exposure or travel

• A doctor's appointment during school hours

but your child feels well enough to engage in learning remotely, please inform your teachers by email as far in advance as possible, but no later than 8:00am that morning, that your child will connect. 

It is crucial that your teachers are aware, before the school day begins for them at 8:00am. Notification the day before is preferable. Emailing your teacher directly and using SDM to alert the JS office informs the school in advance and allows your teacher to anticipate and prepare to support your child as a remote learner. Appearing on the screen when they are expected in the classroom is disruptive for the students, divides your teacher's attention, and interferes with planned lessons.

Note that students who connect from home as an exception, who are not normally remote learners, may not have all the learning materials they will need for that day’s lessons. Ensure that they begin the day with plenty of paper and pencils in front of them when they log in.

However, when your child is sick with stomach ache, fever, headache, etc. there is no expectation that they should log in to class. If your child has symptoms that would normally have kept them at home prior to COVID-19, please do not have your child connect remotely to their classes. We hope that time will be taken for them to rest and recover. It is difficult for teachers to engage students who are not feeling well and the school believes that children recover sooner when they are permitted to disconnect and rest.

Learning Model - Consistent Schedule

The Junior School has moved to fully in person learning for the majority of our students and to ensure continuity, consistent expectations in the classroom, and effective lesson planning for our teachers, we ask that all families adhere to a fixed attendance schedule.

Families have now opted for one of these 3 learning models:

• Fully In Person

• Fully Remote

• Hybrid

and the expectation is that Junior School students attend school consistently in accordance with the model the family has opted for at this time. Inconsistent in person attendance is disruptive for the class, for the teachers who need to plan lessons, and for the student. The school believes that a consistent schedule reinforces learning and appropriate classroom behavior, and reduces anxiety.

Exceptions to your child’s learning model schedule may be:

• Quarantine (connect remotely only if your child is asymptomatic and feels well enough to participate in lessons)

• Illness (please do not connect remotely if your child feels unwell)

• Appointments outside of school (connect remotely until the appointment time)

• Early dismissal for travel (connect remotely until departure time)

Changing the Learning Model for JS Students

The school’s expectation is that families will consistently adhere to the Learning Model they have opted for because a steady and predictable schedule reinforces learning and appropriate classroom behavior, reduces anxiety, and allows our faculty to prepare effective lessons for all of their students. 

For those families electing to change their current model during the remainder of this 2020-21 school year:

• Moving to Fully Remote from Hybrid or Fully in Person - Families give at least one day’s notice to the homeroom & jsoffice@unis.org so that teachers have an opportunity to send the student home with necessary materials to learn from home. The expectation is that the student will remain remote for the remainder of this school year.

• Moving from Fully Remote to Hybrid or Fully in Person - Families give at least 2 full school day’s notice to the homeroom teacher, schoolnurse@unis.org and jsoffice@unis.org that they would like their child to attend on campus. Health clearance from the nurse is required before any student can attend in person. The expectation is that the student will then remain learning on campus for the remainder of this school year on a consistent schedule, either in the Hybrid model or Fully In Person.

Pascal Vallet, Junior School Principal 

Alessandra Camilo, Junior School Assistant Principal

• • Thursday, May 6 - PA Meeting 7:00pm Webinar  LINK / Webinar ID: 95202671863 / Passcode: 474919 

• • May 9 through May 16 - Virtual Book Fair (Mark Your Calendar)

  • Wednesday, May 12 - JS Parent Coffee 7:00pm (Save the Date) 

  • Saturday, May 15 - Virtual International Food & Fun Fair (Save the Date)

  • Friday, May 28 and Monday, May 31 - School Closed - Memorial Day Weekend

  • Tuesday, June 1 - Classes Resume

  • Friday, June 4 - TH Graduation Day

  • Friday, June 18 - JS Last of Classes (Full Day)

• IMPORTANT INFORMATION: REVISED PROTOCOLS: LUNCH & SNACK

• INFORMATION: P.41 / CERTIFICATION OF UNIS ATTENDANCE / SCHOOL RECORDS

• PARENT ASSOCIATION CORNER: VIRTUAL BOOK FAIR / INTERNATIONAL FOOD AND FUN FAIR / PA MEETING

•  BIT OF NEWS: ENERGIZER CARDS

• REMINDER: TRANSITIONING BETWEEN MODELS OF LEARNING

• REMINDERS: HEALTH AND SAFETY

• REMINDERS: REMOTE LEARNERS

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

• REMINDER: UPDATE YOUR PARENT CONTACT INFORMATION

As we welcomed back the majority of our JS students to fully in person learning on April 26, over the past week we have reviewed and begun to adapt our Lunch and Snack Protocols to meet the needs of our students. We have observed that splitting lunch time, alternating between two groups of students who are either eating or engaging in another activity, leaves too little time for all students to eat in a relaxed environment. With the use of shields in the classroom, and maximizing the distance between students, moving forward we will allow all students in the homeroom to eat at the same time.

Our JS Lunch & Snack protocols, revised for the week beginning May 3 follow here:

All students will eat snacks and lunch in their designated classroom. An exception applies to specific homerooms with students who have severe allergies and specific health plans indicating that, for safety reasons, food is not allowed within their classroom. A second dedicated space is made available for this homeroom where only this group of students is permitted to eat.

JS Lunch and Snack Protocols, updated for the week beginning Monday, May 3.

Students will be asked to follow these guidelines:

• All students wash their hands before eating snack or lunch.

• All students wash their hands after eating snack and lunch.

• Students sit in their designated location in class for lunch.

• Students who are eating must be separated by at least one shield and will sit with maximum possible distance between each other. 

• Students who are eating are allowed to remove their masks and are required to eat behind their shields.

• Students are not allowed to share food. If a student does not have lunch, the teacher will inform the Junior School Office and parents will be contacted. Parents may be asked to purchase a lunch for that day from Flik.

• Snack and lunch are supervised by an adult.

• Immediately after eating, and before moving away from their seat, students replace their masks.

• Staff uses the provided disinfectant, gloves, and paper towels to thoroughly clean the tables after students have eaten.

• Flik has developed a system of boxed lunches that can be ordered and paid for in advance and delivered to classrooms.

Parents who do not purchase lunch service provided by the school will need to provide lunch for their child that does not require either heating or refrigeration and can be eaten independently, without requiring support from an adult to manipulate boxes or bags in order to open them. This is in order to limit cross-contamination.

If you need a P.41 for your employer in order to verify that your child(ren) attends UNIS, kindly email your request to Margaret Chiu in our Business Office mchiu@unis.org and include first and last name and grade.

Other school records can be requested from our Registrar, Estela van Aken, at evanaken@unis.org

The JS Virtual Book Fair - May 9 through May 16

Exciting Author Readings will connect our students with new and favorite authors, characters, series and much more.

Mark your calendars for the week of Sunday, May 9 though Sunday, May 16

2021 International Food and Fun Fair - A Virtual Event on Saturday, May 15

*Best food in the city recommended by UNIS community*

Dear UNIS Community,

This year's International Food and Fun Fair (IFFF) happens all over the map of New York City! Our second year of virtual IFFF invites everyone to share their favorite restaurants and grocery/specialty stores where authentic foods could be sampled and purchased. Let's support local businesses in these challenging times and share with each other our beloved food destinations in the city. PLUS, UNIS's favorite IFFF Raffle is back with an amazing selection of prizes for all ages!

Stay tuned for more details in the coming days!

UNIS PA Cultural Events Committee

All School Parents Association Meeting - Thursday, May 6 at 7pm

Please join us on Thursday, May 6 at 7:00 for our next Parents Association Webinar.

PA Meeting Link 

Webinar ID: 95202671863 

Passcode: 474919 

JS Parent Coffee - Wednesday, May 12 at 7pm

Please join us on Wednesday, May 12 at 7:00 for our next JS Parent Coffee Webinar.

Parent Coffee Link 

Webinar ID: 95727493359 

Passcode: 466750

Thank you to the families who contributed to the Energizer Card project for our faculty. The messages received by our teachers were meaningful and deeply appreciated !

"Thank you so much for sending this sweet card—it brought me to tears! It has certainly been a year of challenges, but I am so thankful to be part of such a supportive and resilient community. This means the world to me and I am so happy to hear my students are having a nice year, despite some of the limitations. I am going to print this and put it up in my classroom as a daily reminder."

"Thank you so much for this thoughtful card. I’m extremely moved. 

Every word received is a reminder of why I teach. 

Thank you to the PA and the students for their thoughtful messages."

"WOW!!! My heart just grew and grew!!!

Thank you soooo incredibly much, PA association!!! 

It is so lovely to get such positive, warm and thoughtful comments and feedback!!!

I so appreciate and care about all your children! 

Thank you again! I am over the moon with this card and messages!"

Following recent changes with CDC guidelines and NYDOH rules, UNIS is welcoming many of our students on campus every day.

Three Models of Learning are now offered to UNIS families:

• • Option 1: on campus every day

  • Option 2: hybrid schedule (continuing the yellow & blue group rotation)

  • Option 3: fully remote learning

UNIS will continue offering the hybrid model through June, as a transition path for remote families, and to help reduce the logistical challenges associated with the return of a large number of students on site.

If you would like to request a learning model change for your JS child, please send an email to both jsoffice@unis.org and your homeroom teacher with a minimum of 2 school days notice.

Note that fully remote students requesting a transition to on campus learning (either hybrid or full time) require health clearance from the Nurse as the first step. Please follow these directions to initiate the process:

• If you decide to opt for in person learning, either hybrid or 100% in person, please inform these departments at a minimum of 2 full school days in advance of the date that you would like to have your child return (for example, no later than Wednesday afternoon of the week prior to a Monday return):

  1. 1. 1. • jsoffice@unis.org

           • mrivera@unis.org

           • schoolnurse@unis.org

           • your homeroom teacher

• The first step will be for the nurse to confirm that all of your child's health forms are in order and that they are cleared to return to campus.

• After you have the nurse's health clearance, please coordinate directly with your homeroom teacher the best date for your child's return to learning in person.

• Inform jsoffice@unis.org about the agreed upon in person start date.

• When your child returns to campus, you'll need to complete the daily Ruvna Health Screening that you will begin receiving by text and email each morning at about 5:00am.

• You'll also need to update School Dismissal Manager (SDM) with your dismissal plan for each day that your JS child attends school on campus. The dismissing teachers will rely on the information you provide in SDM to escort your child to the correct location at the end of the school day (for example: pick up / care program / yellow bus).

• Note that your child will not be permitted to take the bus unless the SDM report printed for our Transportation Department each day indicates your choice of that dismissal option. Please contact Charles Umbach at transportation@unis.org as soon as possible if you want to arrange for yellow school bus service.

We look forward to welcoming your child back to campus!

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. 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.

5. For those families electing to change their current model during the remainder of this 2020-21 school year:

• Moving from Fully Remote to Hybrid / Fully in Person - Families give at least 2 full school day’s notice to the homeroom teacher, schoolnurse@unis.org and jsoffice@unis.org that they would like their child to attend on campus. Health clearance from the nurse is required before any student can attend in person. The expectation is that the student will then remain learning on campus for the remainder of this school year on a consistent schedule, either in the Hybrid model or Fully In Person.

• Moving to Fully Remote from Hybrid / Fully in Person - Families give at least one day’s notice to the homeroom & jsoffice@unis.org so that teachers have an opportunity to send the student home with necessary materials to learn from home. The expectation is that the student will remain remote for the remainder of this school year.

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 and NYSDOH guidance, students who are sent home or become ill may not return to UNIS until the following:

WITH A COVID TEST: MUST BE  A PCR NOT A RAPID (AS PER NYS)

• A negative COVID test must be emailed to the health office for clearance to return to on campus learning. 

• At least 24 hours symptom free.

WITHOUT COVID TEST: 

• • Must have a physician note. Must explicitly state that the student or employee is cleared to return to school. Physicians must also document an alternative diagnosis if symptoms are due to illness (ie- lab confirmed influenza, strep throat) or preexisting diagnosis and not COVID.

  • 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.

* Note: a signed note by the health care provider documenting unconfirmed acute illness, such as viral upper respiratory illness (URI) or viral gastroenteritis will not be accepted. If this is the physician indicated diagnosis, please know a negative COVID test will also be required to be cleared for on campus learning.

We kindly ask if your child is exhibiting symptoms consistent with COVID to 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.

Mt. Sinai are our consulting physicians and can help find a Mt. Sinai practice that will offer expedited results. You are also free to utilize any testing practitioner you are comfortable with.

For anyone who needs confirmatory testing, please email AccessDowntown@mountsinai.org or call 646-531-1504 and identify yourself as a part of the UNIS community. If there are any issues, please reach out to their team directly at BusinessHealth@mountsinai.org and they will assist.

If you are a parent and you are having your child tested at Mt. Sinai, please know you will need to create a MyChart account to access your minor child's test results. You will also need to ask the practice manager to upload the results to the mychart account, as it doesn't happen automatically for minors.

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.

9. When Your Child Learns From Home For A Medical Reason:  If you elect to keep your child home for a medical reason (allergies, running nose, etc.) but your child feels well enough to engage in learning remotely, please inform your teachers as far in advance as possible, and certainly before 8:00am.

Of course, when your child is sick there is no expectation that they should log in to class - we hope that time will be taken for them to rest and recover. 

However, if you plan to have your child engage remotely at any point during the school day, it is crucial that your teachers are aware before the school day begins for them at 8:00am, and preferable the day before, by emailing your teacher directly and using SDM to alert the office. Informing your teacher in advance allows them to anticipate and prepare to support your child as a remote learner. Appearing on the screen when they are expected in the classroom can be disruptive for the class and divides your teacher's attention.

Thank you for your support.

• • 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.