Dear families,

We hope you had a restful and restorative winter break and are staying safe.  We miss you all and hope that 2021 brings us all together again.

This Tuesday, Jan. 12th, at 6:30pm we’ll be having a virtual PTO meeting — please keep an eye on your inboxes for the Zoom link, and join us if you can!

This Thursday and Friday we’ll have the 5th round of DLA pickup.  DLA families, please stop by the school on either Thursday, January 14th from 9am-12pm or Friday, January 15th from 12:30pm-3pm to pick up your child’s supplies.

Also, please note that next Monday, January 18th, is Martin Luther King Day, so there will be no school.

And finally, we hope you all saw the email from Superintendent Fleishman about the Supporting Your Child in the 2020-21 School Year forum on Wednesday, January 20th, at 7:30pm.  As he wrote:

“We know that supporting elementary students in hybrid and remote learning is not easy given the pressures adults face in their daily lives, as well as the inevitable conflicts and tensions that arise when working with young children. At the same time, we know that the pandemic has offered children and families newfound opportunities for shared learning and greater student independence.

To provide you with additional support as you navigate this challenging year, I am writing to invite you to a forum that will focus on supporting you and your elementary students’ school experience. The Supporting Your Child in the 2020-21 School Year forum will take place on Wednesday, January 20 from 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Zoom.

We have gathered together four Newton educators who have extensive experience working with elementary school students and are elementary parents themselves. The forum will feature:

• Becca Brogadir, Principal, Ward
• Dr. Lynn Chachkes, Psychologist, Cabot and Zervas
• Dr. Arthur Fergusson, Coordinator of Therapeutic Services
• Jesse Krotick, Coordinator of Elementary Support and Stabilization

They will share with you their expertise in elementary education and social emotional support structures, as well as provide advice and recommendations for supporting your student’s learning this year. They will also answer questions you may have related to helping your student in both hybrid and remote learning environments.

Please register in advance for this forum via this Google Form. You can also use the form to submit questions to be answered during the presentation or the Q&A session.”

Dear families,

We hope you all enjoyed the snow day on Friday and had a chance for some wintry fun!

K-2 Extended Day
On January 4th we begin the new extended day schedule for our kindergarten, first, and second grade students.  Please remember to pack a morning snack and lunch for your child.  I’d like to remind you that lunches are free for all students.  The monthly menu can be found on the NPS website.

Holiday Travel
As our partners at Newton HHS shared at Thanksgiving, and share now again for the winter holidays, all families are expected to comply with the Massachusetts travel order.  Details can be found on this webpage: https://www.mass.gov/info-details/covid-19-travel-order

In order to return to school after traveling, you must either:

• Quarantine for 14 days OR

• Produce a negative COVID-19 test result (molecular PCR) that has been administered up to 72-hours prior to your arrival in Massachusetts. (The test can be taken upon return, but the individual is required to quarantine until a negative test is obtained.)

• A test taken prior to leaving MA and returning within 72 hours does not comply with the order. The test must be taken while traveling out of state or upon return to Massachusetts.

This travel order DOES apply to day trips to “high-risk” states (visiting family, skiing, etc.). Please note all states except Hawaii are deemed “high-risk” as of today.

Ventilation Project
We are nearing completion of a comprehensive Ventilation Action Plan in which we have inspected, remediated, and improved the ventilation in all of our school buildings.  The documentation of the work, as well as the status of each room in the district, can be found on this webpage: https://www.newton.k12.ma.us/Page/3804.  On the “dashboards” created for each building, you will see green and yellow coded circles.  Green indicates testing is complete for that particular room.  Yellow indicates work is ongoing.  For yellow spaces, you will also see notes to indicate specific remediation steps, mitigation measures, and timeline for completion.

There will be no school December 24 – January 3 — we wish you a safe and happy winter break!

Principal Morrissey & the PTO

Dear families,

Please take a moment to fill out the PTO’s brief DLA-hybrid connection survey if you haven’t already: https://forms.gle/rE7vXtqcVhUihYgr8

The Zoom storytime/social chats last week were a lot of fun, and we hope to continue with a few this week and then more in January!  Watch your inbox for links to the meetings this week.  We do need parent chaperones to keep these going; please email Elizabeth at DLA@lepto.org to volunteer, or if you have any other suggestions for hybrid-DLA activities.

And don’t forget to visit our online Lincoln-Eliot book fair this week!:
https://www.childrensbookstore.com/welcome/lincoln-eliot-elementary-school/

A reminder as we head into the second part of the year and with the upcoming changes to the K-2 in-person dismissal time:

All students are expected to attend the morning meeting and participate in all of the teacher-assigned, synchronous and/or asynchronous learning activities on each school day, including special subject classes such as library, art, music, and PE.  There is no minimum number of classes students are permitted to attend and per MA DESE regulations, students who miss 10% or more of days enrolled (e.g., 18 days absent if enrolled for 180 days) are defined as being chronically absent.  As part of the Hybrid Learning model, students are expected to participate on all days (both in-person and remote days) and cannot selectively opt out of certain classes, including those in the specials areas and even if they are participating in a private pod.

Stay safe, and happy Hanukkah to those who are celebrating this week!

Principal Morrissey & the PTO

Dear families,

We hope you had a wonderful, restful holiday weekend!  Thank you to everyone who participated in our Lincoln-Eliot Gratitude Flipgrid; it is heartwarming to see your faces and feel connected to all our families, both hybrid and DLA.  There’s still one more day to participate if you want to submit a video — the Flipgrid code is f39f39be, and you can sign in with an NPS email to share a video of what you’re grateful for.  (Remember that each video must be approved before it appears, so you won’t see it show up right away.)

We also wanted to let you know that in addition to the L-E Holiday Helpers, Village Bank is having a similar program:

The Village Bank has partnered with the Newton Rotary and the city of Newton Department of Health and Human Services to sponsor the city’s annual Holiday Gift Drive.  We have seen a significant increase in need this year and our number of families requesting assistance has nearly doubled.  We are confident that the community of Newton can meet this need with enthusiasm and support!  Gifts should be for children ages newborn to 10 and may include age-appropriate toys, games, electronics and sporting goods as well as gift cards from local merchants.  Gifts can be dropped off to any Village Bank location in the City.  Other ways to give include purchasing and shipping online gifts through the Amazon Wish List (Holiday Gift Drive (village-bank.com)) or making tax-deductible cash donations to the Newton Rotary.

Elementary Progress Conferences
Fall conferences begin this week; please reach out to your teacher if you have not yet set up a time for a Zoom conference with them.  A reminder that Monday, December 7, and Thursday, December 10, will be “early release” days (no live afternoon instruction) for both DLA and hybrid students, to enable classroom teachers time to meet with all families.

Have a great week!

Principal Morrissey & the PTO

Dear families,

It was great to see so many of you at our virtual PTO meeting on Tuesday.  Please continue to reach out with any questions or ideas for community-building; we would love to hear them!

Each year the Lincoln-Eliot team works on putting together “Holiday Helper” gifts for families in need.  If you or someone you know needs a little extra help this year, please reach out to Principal Morrissey to sign up.  We have many fewer families signed up than usual, and we know it’s been a tough year for a lot of people, so please don’t hesitate.

Holiday Helper Flyer 2020

Holiday Helpers Flyer 2020 – Translations

Technology:

We have heard from some families asking about ways to block certain sites or manage what their children can do on the internet, particularly during remote schooling hours.

Internet Filtering

• All devices have internet filtering turned on when connected within an NPS building
• When outside of an NPS building:
  • iPads have limited internet filtering already in place
  • We are working with a vendor to set up filtering on Chromebooks

No one filtering method is perfect.  Student access to the internet should be monitored and clear expectations set.

Since these are school-managed devices, families cannot install or set up their own monitoring software on the devices directly — such software is incompatible with centralized management. If you wish to have greater control over internet access, we encourage you to reach out to your internet service provider to explore options on your home router for filtering and monitoring device access.

Student and Family Technology Resources Page
To help families navigate the use of technology during distance learning, we have developed this Student and Technology Resources Page.  Here you will find important information on your device, as well as information on the software we are using to facilitate distancing learning.  You will also find a page that provides status updates on systems and any technology glitches or issues we may be experiencing.

Technical Troubleshooting
For technical assistance (device is not working properly) please email ftsupport@newton.k12.ma.us.

Some Home Internet Filtering Options

Xfinity (Comcast)
Xfinity has parental controls built into their latest routers, and parents can call or visit their website for guidance on how to set it up.
https://www.xfinity.com/support/articles/set-up-parental-controls-with-comcast-networking

Verizon
Verizon offers a service called Bark to allow parents to limit time on the internet and to filter content.
https://www.bark.us/guides/cable/verizon

RCN
RCN suggests several options for home network security and filtering.
https://www.rcn.com/boston/high-speed-internet/internet-security

Koala Safe
This is a home network router with internet content filtering.
https://koalasafe.com/compare.html

Net Angel
This is a home network router with internet content filtering.
https://www.netangel.com/

We hope that’s all helpful, and we appreciate your support and patience in navigating the challenges of this year!

Have a great week!

Principal Morrissey & the PTO

Dear families,

We will be having a PTO meeting over Zoom this Tuesday, November 10th, at 6pm.  Superintendent David Fleishman and School Committee member Bridget Ray-Canada will be joining us to answer your questions; we hope to see many of you there!

A reminder that this Wednesday, November 11th, is Veterans Day, and there will be no school.

Also, we will be having Picture Day on Monday, November 9th for hybrid & DLA Cohort A and Thursday, November 12th for hybrid & DLA Cohort B.  Click here to see the full Picture Day schedule.  You should have received an email from the school with more information and a picture form, but please reach out to us if you need it again.  There will be no class pictures this year, and if the weather is poor, Picture Day will be rescheduled.

The third round of DLA supplies will be ready for pick up this week.  Please come either Thursday 11/12 or Friday 11/13 between 9:00am and 2:00pm.  If you have any trouble with the pick-up day or times, please call the office at 617-559-9540.

As you may have noticed, the tents placed at our schools prior to the start of school have been removed.  The unexpected snow we had last week compromised the structural integrity of the tents and they were no longer safe to use.  The tents were rented at the start of the year with the understanding that they could be used “until the snow flies” but we did not expect that to happen so soon!

While we no longer have access to the tents, we are still taking students outside and using our outdoor spaces creatively.  We are making use of our field and our playground spaces to the greatest extent possible.  When weather does not permit outdoor activity, we use our indoor spaces with all health and safety guidelines in mind.  Please know that even as it gets colder, we will continue to take students outside and we encourage you to send them with weather appropriate clothing.

Have a great week!

Principal Morrissey & the PTO

Dear families,

A reminder that due to Election Day this week, ALL students, both DLA and hybrid, will switch our Tuesday and Wednesday schedules.  Wednesday, November 4, will be an in-person day for Cohort A.

Also please note that the following Wednesday, November 11th, is Veterans’ Day, so there will be no school.

We will be having Picture Day on Monday, November 9th for hybrid & DLA Cohort A and Thursday, November 12th for hybrid & DLA Cohort B.  Click here to see the full Picture Day schedule.  You should have received an email from the school with more information and a picture form, but please reach out to us if you need it again.  There will be no class pictures this year, and if the weather is poor, Picture Day will be rescheduled.

I have had several parents reach out to me this past week about the notification we received from Health and Human Services.  I recognize that you may have concerns and I am always available to speak and answer any questions you may have.  I also wanted to share the communication protocol that the Newton Health and Human Services Department created.  At Lincoln Eliot, we are diligently following the district building cleaning protocols and they lay the foundation of our work this year.  We continue to work together as a community to follow our 4 pillars of health:

• Physical distancing
• Face coverings
• Hygiene
• Avoid exposure

The daily health assessment is a critical component of working together to keep our community healthy and safe.  Please do not hesitate to reach out to our school nurse, Kristen Thibodeau, if you have any questions.  We appreciate your partnership.

As we begin to enter the flu season while in the midst of a pandemic, please remember your child should stay at home if they are experiencing any of the following symptoms.  Also, if your child requires Tylenol or Motrin before school, they should remain home in order to get well.

• Fever (100F or higher), chills, shaking chills
• Cough (not due to other known cause, such as chronic cough)
• Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
• New loss of taste or smell
• Sore throat
• Headache (when in combination with other symptoms)
• Muscle aches or body aches
• Nausea, vomiting or diarrhea
• Fatigue (when in combination with other symptoms)
• Nasal congestion or runny nose (not due to other known causes, such as allergies and when in combination with other symptoms)
• Tested positive for COVID-19
• Are awaiting test results for COVID-19
• Are a close contact of someone positive for COVID-19 (as determined by health dept)

We hope you all had a safe and happy Halloween if you celebrated it, and have a great week!

Principal Morrissey & the PTO

Dear families,

We are celebrating our socially distanced Fall Festival all this week — scroll down for more details, and we wish you all a happy fall!

This is also the week of our virtual Back to School / Curriculum Nights for both our hybrid and DLA families.  We’ll miss having you all in the building with us for this event, but we are looking forward to seeing you online.

Back to School Night for our hybrid students will take place on Wednesday, October 28th:

K-2 will meet from 5:30-6:15pm
Grades 3-5 will meet from 6:15-7:00pm

You should be receiving a link and more information from your classroom teachers.

DLA Curriculum Night:

The DLA staff is looking forward to connecting with families through a curriculum night presentation.  Your child(ren)’s teachers will be sending the needed Zoom links.

Kindergarten and 1st grade: 10/27 from 7:00pm – 7:30pm 

2nd Grade and 3rd Grade: 10/28 from 7:00pm – 7:30pm

4th Grade and 5th Grade: 10/29 from 7:00pm to 7:30pm

*Due to conflicts, some teachers need to adjust the date of their event.  You will hear directly from them if your student’s Curriculum Night will be a different night.

Also, don’t forget that on Election Day, November 3, we will switch our Tuesday and Wednesday schedules.  Tuesday will be distance learning, a half day following the Wednesday schedule.  Wednesday, November 4, will be an in-person day for Cohort A.  The Tuesday and Wednesday schedules that week will also be switched for all DLA students.

Looking forward, we are starting to think about fall parent-teacher conferences and wanted to give you some dates to save.  You will receive more information from your child’s teacher re: scheduling a conference time as we near the dates.