Harvest Moon...update!SB 10-2-2020
So, I wanted to go with Harvest Moon at dismissal today but I was pretty confident that middle school students would not really appreciate a Neil Young tune as an uplifting ditty for a dancing dismissal. Clearly, their loss. But it does seem fitting that this year’s Harvest Moon landed in October instead of September along with all of the other delays in 2020. If you haven’t been paying attention to all of the moon cycles...it is a matter of survival at times in middle school... then you might not yet be aware that we end the month with a Blue Moon for Halloween...that should be interesting.
Translations via Google Translate
(I decided to move the Translation links to follow the opening paragraph since our website includes the first few lines of each message in the list of posts which helps establish some of the content of the message if folks are searching for previous information...just in case you were wondering...if you weren’t...please disregard this interruption to your reading enjoyment.)
Starting on Monday, we are going to be using the “period attendance” feature in our iPass system for taking attendance in all of the remote “live” sessions. What does that mean? It means that when you get the report cards later in the year it will have a column that includes the number of instances if a student missed a remote class. Our students are doing a great job already and we have only needed to speak with a small handful of parents about students not logging in to their remote classes. This new process also means that if you are concerned about your student’s ability to independently be logging into their classes remotely, you can also check their attendance regularly in the iParent portal. The biggest change for students with this new procedure...other than their parents being able to check up on their class attendance...is that the students who are doing afternoon remote sessions for the week do not need to log-in to their Advisory Google Classroom in the morning just for attendance as we will be taking their attendance during their remote sessions in the afternoon. However, there might still be times when we need students to log-in to Advisory for a specific activity or event and the teachers will communicate that with them in advance so that they can be prepared.
Last week, I ended the update with a reminder that we will not be upset with anyone if they choose to return textbooks from last year at this time. I used the example of a 7th grade math book; to be clear, we are not only missing 7th grade math books. Any WPS books or resources that you happen to find once they pick their clothes up off the floor or if it is even possible for them to see under their bed, please feel free to have them bring them back to school. The 6th grade social studies teachers let me know today that they are still missing a bunch of Atlases. Now, I can understand a student wanting to hold on to an Atlas as they prepare their future world travels, but let’s be real...the Atlas will be different by the time they are old enough to travel independently...so let’s share those with this year’s 6th graders.
We will be starting up our School Advisory Council meetings for the 2020-2021 school year very soon. Our meetings take place on the third Tuesday of the month from 2:30-3:30. The first meeting will be Tuesday, October 20, 2020. All of the meetings this year will be conducted remotely using Google Meet. I am happy to say that we have returning members from last year willing to continue their participation and have a few openings for new members since some of our previous members' children have moved on to other schools. If you would be interested in participating, please email me directly at cchew@westfordk12.us
Additionally, another way for parents to get involved is by participating in the Stony Brook PTO. Here is a quick update regarding this new organization:
The Westford Middle School PTO (WMSPTO) will be transitioning to the Stony Brook PTO and the Blanchard PTO. Both Middle School PTOs will be joining WEPTO (Westford Elementary PTO), along with the other 6 elementary schools, to have 8 individual school PTOs under one non-profit umbrella. While this is pending approval at the 10/7 WEPTO meeting, we are looking forward to establishing the Stony Brook PTO at our first meeting on Tuesday, October 13th at 2:15 pm. Please save the date. Additional information and a zoom link will be sent out in next Friday's email.
If you are interested in joining the board or have questions, please contact us at westfordmiddleschoolpto@gmail.com .
Here is this week’s message from our Clinic:
Thank you again for the amazing amounts of paperwork that are piling up on my desktop. It is very much appreciated! So many of you have already brought your children in for a flu shot. If you are unable to get into your pediatrician’s office-local pharmacies are offering flu shots. Any documentation is acceptable.
Please know that even though we are trying to minimize time out of the classrooms, if your child needs to come to the clinic for a mental health break, personal reasons or anything else, I am so happy to see them here. This week has brought a few more visits to the clinic-I am grateful for that. If your child has any medical questions or concerns, encourage them to stop by and see me. If they need to take any medication during the school day, please have them bring it to me: All medications should be administered from my office.
Finally, I am attaching one more document here for clarification purposes about quarantine and close contacts. If your child is a close contact of a close contact, they do not need to stay home! Do not hesitate to call me with any questions you may have about your child’s health or whether or not you should keep your child home. This is a confusing time for both staff and parents!
Sue Hanly, MSN, RN, NCSN
978-392-6974 (direct line number)
WPS Nurses blog: https://westfordpshealthservices.weebly.com/
Last year, our students had the opportunity to participate in a screening survey conducted by Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. Specifically, the research group (Project ARCHES: Adolescent Research on Cognition, Health and Emotions in Schools) is working to bridge the gap between what we know and what we need to know about teen decision-making in order to develop more effective treatment, prevention, and education programs. The school-wide survey is the first phase in which everyone is able to participate. Please read the following letter for more specific information regarding the survey and the opportunity to participate in the second phase of the study if interested: ProjectARCHES All School Letter
If you do NOT want your child to participate in this survey: you must email ProjectArches@mgh.harvard.edu by October 22, 2020. The study staff will tell Stony Brook Middle School who has been withdrawn from the screening. There will be no penalty or consequence to you or your child for opting out of the survey. If the study staff does not hear from you by October 22nd, it will be assumed that you consent to your child completing this brief and confidential questionnaire. Even if you do not object to your child completing this survey, your child is in no way required to do it if he/she does not want to.
The Westford Rec department reached out to me today with the information regarding their plans to run the WPC afterschool program at the Millenium building. You can find that information as well as links to the registration at the end of this week’s update!
Earlier this afternoon we sent out a message via BlackBoard connect about a new link to access required forms. Here is that information again:
COVID-19 required Stony Brook to reinvent and reimagine how we do things at the school. One area is start of the school year documents that we typically send home for your review and signature.
Please follow this link to a website hosting several Google Forms for parents/guardians (and one for students too) to review and complete by October 19, 2020. These forms eliminated the need to bring home most annual papers to be reviewed and signed. Please visit the applicable links on the website even if there has not been any changes to your student's information since the last school year.
This link can also be found on our website's homepage at: http://westfordk12.us/sb. Please look for the announcement highlighted in red.
Please email Cathy Mucci at cmucci@westfordk12.us if you would prefer a paper copy of any of the information requested.
Finally, if you are already getting excited about scrapbooking and documenting this incredibly unique school year, consider putting in your order for the Stony Brook 2020-2021 Yearbook early and benefiting from the discount. Here is a link with information about the process and the current offer from the company: SB Yearbook October Discount Flier
It might be a good thing to have and dig out...ya know, once in a blue moon...revisiting middle school yearbooks has a way of keeping everyone humble.
Cheers!
Chris
Dr. Christopher Chew
Principal
Stony Brook School
WPC Rec Club at Millennium
REGISTER TODAY! Program for grades 1-8 starts on 10/5/2020.
(See link below for your child's Pod designation)
For the 2020/2021 school year, a modified Westford Partnership for Children After School Enrichment Program (WPC) will operate at the Millennium Building. The program provides a safe, stimulating and fun environment, Monday through Friday, beginning with school dismissal and running through 5:00 or 5:30 p.m., depending on grade.
WPC participants will be transported directly from their respective schools to the Millennium Building, ensuring an easy and safe transition from the classroom to the program. The program is aligned with the current health and safety protocols for school reopening, including social distancing, use of masks/face coverings, and mask breaks. In addition, all WPC staff maintain current CPR and First Aid certification.
The WPC program will provide supervised asynchronous learning during afternoon school hours. Upon completion of the school day, participants will transition to a wide range of after school activities, including homework help, science exploration, math, technology, storytelling, visual arts, crafts, sports, and games. Staff will be supervising children’s remote learning and will be available to offer technical support if needed. Staff will only be able to offer individualized classwork assistance during After School hours, and not during the Supervised Asynchronous Learning time.
Follow this link to registration page:
https://westfordrec.com/info/activities/program_details.aspx?ProgramID=29281