Dear Families,
I hope you are all doing well.
We are so proud of our students and staff for all of their efforts with online teaching and learning! It is amazing to see how far we have all come with new technologies and ways of doing things. Their ability to adapt and grow has been incredible to see. All of the support given by parents at home has not gone unnoticed – THANK YOU!
Here is some information for this week:
Return to School
· Students return to in-person learning on Monday January 18th
· Grades 9, 10 & 11 students resume the hybrid learning model (attached) until February 5th
· Students will continue to enter the building through the designated entrance for their grade
· Please remember to screen your children for symptoms prior to sending them to school
Enhanced Mask Protocol
· Beginning on Monday January 18th, all students will be required to wear a school issued surgical/procedural mask when they are at school – this includes outside on school property
· Cloth masks or any mask brought from home will not be acceptable
· We will be providing 2 surgical masks to each student every day
· Exceptionally on Monday, students can arrive to school wearing their own mask – please send them with a surgical mask if you have some at home
· When students arrive on Monday, they will receive a surgical mask prior to entering the building – they will be distributed at all entrances by a staff member wearing gloves and using tongs
· The student will bring the mask to class and once inside their classroom, they will quickly switch out their own mask with the mask provided
· When students return from being outside at the end of lunch, they will be provided with a second mask which they will put on after returning to their classroom
· Used masks must be disposed of in garbage cans and NOT recycle bins
· During last period, staff members will deliver a re-sealable bag and another mask to each child
· They will put the fresh mask in the re-sealable bag and put it in their backpack
· They will be required to wear this mask the following day – including on the school bus
· Starting on Tuesday, students will receive one mask at the end of lunch and a second mask during last period (for the following morning)
· Please watch the following video from the Canadian Red Cross on how to effectively use procedure masks:
Inclement Weather
· Students will continue to spend the last half of lunch outside unless the temperature is below -20®C
· Please remind your child to dress appropriately for the weather
Post-Secondary Open Houses
· While the open houses are geared towards graduating students, students from all grade levels are able to participate
· These open houses are a great opportunity to learn about post-secondary options and to help make important decisions about where to apply
Algonquin Open House
- Wednesday, January 20th from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
- Participants must register in advance. Click here to register.
Cegep Heritage College Open House
- Thursday, January 21st, 6:30 p.m.
- Click here to access the Zoom link. Meeting number: 941 1533 9799 Password: 317375
Parent-Youth Workshop (click Here)
· Please see the attachment with information regarding a parent-youth workshop
· This series of 4 online workshops is intended for youth who face challenges with reading and writing tasks
Upcoming Dates
· January 22 – Report Cards will be published to the parent portal
· January 22 – Planning and Training Day – No school for students
We are looking forward to having our students back at school next week!
Take care and have a great weekend.
Tara Laine
Principal
Symmes Junior High School/D’Arcy McGee High School
819-684-7472 x 437001