Newsletter #04

Dear parents,

Our Back to School Night series continues this week. Parents will have the opportunity to join our Specialist and Language B Teachers this coming Wednesday, September 29 from 5 pm to 6 pm. You will find more information below.

Many of you joined the Back to School Night "Meet and Greet" with Homeroom Teachers and Mother Tongue Teachers last Wednesday. Walking the JS hallways and observing our faculty connecting with you on the screen was reassuring evidence that the pandemic is not defining us: while it challenges our "traditional" interactions, we have been able to rise to the occasion and maintain the important connection between school and home. 

• • Monday, September 27 | 1st Day Yellow School Bus for JAs without older siblings

  • Wednesday, September 29 | Webinar JS Back to School Night - Specialist Teachers 5:00 pm | BTSN Specialist Webinar (details in this newsletter)

• • Monday, October 4 | After School Classes Begin

  • Tuesday, October 5 | JS Parent Coffee - Student Support Team 7:00 pm | Parent Coffee Webinar Link (details in this newsletter)

  • Monday, October 11 | No Yellow Bus Service

  • Monday, October 11 | PK - J2 Picture Day with Stomping Ground |  Stomping Ground Link

  • Tuesday, October 12  | J3 - J4 Picture Day with Stomping Ground |  Stomping Ground Link

  • Friday, October 22 | UN Day Celebrated

  • October 25 - October 29 | October Break - No Classes for Students 

  • November 10 - November 12 | Parent Teacher Conferences (details to follow)

MAP Testing Dates for J3 and J4:

Tuesday, October 5

Wednesday, October 6

The MAP Test (Measure of Academic Progress) is offered by the Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA) and is normally administered in two sessions (Fall and Spring). MAP is a computer adaptive test, which means every student gets a unique set of test questions based on responses to previous questions. As the student answers correctly, questions get harder. If the student answers incorrectly, the questions get easier. By the end of the test, most students will answer about half the questions correctly. MAP results are provided as a numerical RIT score. This score is used to measure a student’s achievement level at different times of the school year and compute growth. Think of this like marking height on a growth chart. You can tell how tall your child is at various points in time and how much they have grown between one time and another. Think of the score as a student’s height. The score reflects the student’s academic knowledge, skills, and abilities like inches reflect height. The RIT (Rasch Unit) scale is a stable, equal-interval scale, like feet and inches. Equal-interval means that a change of 10 RIT points indicates the same thing regardless of whether a student is at the top, bottom, or middle of the scale, and a RIT score has the same meaning regardless of grade level or age of the student. Scores over time can be compared to tell how much growth a student has made, similar to measuring height with a ruler.

MAP testing results allows teachers, in English and in Mathematics in particular, to better meet students where they're at, and better understand where there are needs for remediation or for enrichment.

For students fully remote, we are looking at the possibility to welcome them on campus outside school hours. More information to come.

JS PICTURE DAYS:

• Monday, October 11 for PK, JA, J1, J2

• Tuesday, October 12 for J3, J4

TIMELINE

PICTURES ONLINE & READY TO VIEW: Friday, October 29

1ST ORDER DEADLINE: Tuesday, November 23

MAKEUPS & RETAKES: Thursday, November 18

MAKEUPS & RETAKES READY TO VIEW: Thursday, December 2

2ND ORDER DEADLINE: Friday, December 17

PICTURE DAY DETAILS - CLICK HERE

Stomping Ground Photo Support: help@stompinggroundphoto.com

Note for Remote Students: Families will have the opportunity "self-submit" a photo of their child that Stomping Ground can then edit to match the background of the in person photos. There will be a link for families to follow to submit their photos. You may contact Stomping Ground for support as needed help@stompinggroundphoto.com

Please join us on Tuesday, October 5 at 7:00pm 

for our 1st JS Parent Coffee Webinar, 

hosted by:

Pascal Vallet, Junior School Principal

Alessandra Camilo, Junior School Assistant Principal

Dr. Dana Marnin, School Psychologist

Alyssa Frost and Amy Iamundo, Junior School Counselors

The first JS Parent Coffee Webinar this year will be devoted to the work of our full JS Student Support Team:

• JS Psychologist: Dr. Dana Marnin (also PK & JA Counselor)

• Counselors: Amy Iamundo (J1 & J3) and Alyssa Frost (J2 & J4)

• ELL Teacher: Sidney Maas and Janine Pelegano

• Learning Support Teachers: Karen Ager and Carmen Escobar

This evening will be an opportunity to learn more about the work that the team does with our Junior School students and to ask questions.

JS Parent Coffee Webinar - October 5

"For the International Day of Peace Poems, Mrs. Turner encouraged her students to express their views on the concept of Peace.  It just happened that I was walking by the classroom to spend a moment with them... It was mindblowing! I am so lucky to be School Principal!" - PV

As many of you know,  Hispanic Heritage Month will be celebrated every year from September 15th to October 15th. This year, we wanted to include the whole JS in this celebration and dedicate a few minutes every day to a Spanish speaking country. We are enjoying music from each of the 21 countries every single day during these 21 days at the beginning of the school day!! This music would be in relation to the country of the day (see below) First country ... ARGENTINA.

In Junior School we ask that students not wear an Apple watch when they are on campus. In addition to the possibility of loss, or of damage to a watch on the playground or during PE, there is the potential for interference with learning in the classroom.

If a JS student does arrive at school wearing an Apple watch, they will be asked to turn it off and place it in their backpack until they leaves campus. The policy is the same for a smartphone. 

When Your Child is Sick

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, parents should not request to join classes remotely. We hope that time will be taken for your child to rest and recover as the school believes that children recover more quickly when they are permitted to disconnect and rest.

Learning Model Consistency

The expectation is that Junior School students attend school consistently, through the end of this marking period, in accordance with the learning model the family has opted for at this time (either fully in person or fully remote). Inconsistent in person attendance is disruptive for the class as a whole and for the individual student. The school believes that a consistent schedule reinforces learning and appropriate classroom behavior, and reduces anxiety.

Dismissal for Parents and Guardians

At dismissal please stay in motion, circling through the tents as you wait to pick up your children, or wait outside the main gate between pick ups. The school has not relaxed it's policies regarding gatherings. Please do not linger or sit down in the tents to wait for a second child, or gather within the school gates to speak with other parents or teachers. At dismissal our goal is to have as few people on campus for the shortest time possible, and always in motion. Thank you for understanding and support as we work to keep our community safe. 

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. JS students are expected to arrive no later than 8:20 and the front gates should be closing no later than 8:30. Please ensure that you arrive at the time assigned for your child's grade.

3. Masks: Be sure you have packed 2 or 3 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 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. Days with Appointments or Travel:

Because parents and caregivers are not permitted inside the school gate, a request for either late arrival or early dismissal for a JS student requires that school personnel leave their work in order to escort your child. 

Please support the school by arranging appointments and travel outside of school hours.

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

5. Returning to Campus After Illness:  

We appreciate your cooperation in keeping the community safe!  

Please use the guidance shared by our Nursing Staff in this newsletter in coordination with your physician to address any illness.

For health related questions please email: schoolnurse@unis.org and mrivera@unis.org

6. 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.

7. 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 regularly on campus.

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 and fzammarano@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 work hard to address the glitches we face. 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. 

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 your child has 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.