Dear BRS Community,
It was so wonderful to welcome so many of you to our Open House events! I know how special it is to get the opportunity to see where your child spends their day, and all of the amazing things they will be learning. I hope that you enjoyed being back at Beecher as much as we loved welcoming you!
The start of the year is filled with a lot of information. I recently attended Open House at the high school and found myself taking screenshots of various communications so that I could update my calendar at home! This newsletter is no different! You will find details about an upcoming vaccination clinic, notes from the nurse, a message from the cafeteria and other important pieces of information.
BOWA COVID Vaccination Clinic:
The BOWA Region (Bethany, Orange, Woodbridge, Amity) is offering a free COVID Vaccination Clinic on September 22nd from 11:00-4:00 at Amity High School. For additional information, please visit the Amity High School website here.
Notes from the Beecher Road School Health Office:
The Role of the Beecher Road Nurses: Our main role is to keep the students in school and in class as much as possible. If you receive a call that your child is ill or injured, the nurses are following guidelines developed with our school medical director. Any child with a fever must stay home until 24 hours fever free without the use of fever reducing medications. We also do not routinely let parents know each time a child visits the nurse unless it is a significant illness, injury or head bump. If you would like to be called each time your child comes to the nurse, please call the health office and your name will be added to a list. If your child does sustain an injury at home or become ill in a way that may impact their learning at school, please contact the health office so we may help return your child to school as quickly and safely as possible.
Reporting Illnesses: Please contact the school nurse if your child is experiencing COVID-like symptoms or tests positive for COVID. We will continue to collect this data and will report the number of positive cases in our school community as we have in past school years. In most cases, a student will need to be out for five days. If they feel well enough to return on day 6, meaning they are fever free for 24 hours and symptoms have significantly decreased or are resolved, they must wear a mask on days 6-10. This is the ONLY time a mask is required at this time.
Test-Mask-Go: Test-Mask-Go strategy applies to all students. If your child has symptoms of a mild respiratory illness and 1) is fever free and 2) is not living in a household where someone has tested positive in the last two weeks, they can come to school with those mild symptoms if they test negative each day. Masking is recommended but not required. Also, please call the health office if you need at home test kits to complete daily testing.
Kindergarten Parents: Please be sure to send in a change of clothes to keep in your child's cubby at school and remember to switch out summer clothes for winter clothes once the weather changes.
News from the Cafe:
This year while we transition back to a normal school year 22/23, we opted in to receive SMART funds providing lunch meals at no cost for all students for the first few months of the school year. We will notify parents and guardians of the date when students who are not directly certified or have no approved application on file will be expected to pay for their meals. We encourage anyone to submit an application, if your household's income falls at or below the limits of the Federal Income Eligibility Guidelines, to see if you qualify to receive Free or Reduced-price meals. Thank you for your support of our Lunch Program.
Cell Phones/Smart Watches:
As a reminder, Board of Education Policy #5131.81 states: "The Board prohibits/limits the use of….electronic devices by students during the school day in District buildings; on District property; on District buses and vehicles; during the time students are under the supervision of the District." This policy applies to cell phones and smart watches. Students may wear a smart watch and use it as a watch. They may not send or receive text messages on any devices during the school day. Thank you for your attention to this matter; it will ensure that our learning is not disrupted!
Picture Day:
Picture days are coming! Picture Days will be on September 19th and 21st. Your child's teacher will inform you of the specific dates and times of pictures. We are also excited to bring back class pictures this year! Please see attached flier for more information!
CHET Dream Big Competition:
The CHET Dream Big Competition is open to students in grades K-12. Prize-winning students could be awarded:
- Three $25,000 prizes
- 15 $7,500 prizes
- 240 $500 prizes
To enter, students are asked to answer, in the form of a drawing, short essay or video, a question focusing on their dreams for the future. Submissions must be uploaded by 11:59 p.m. on October 21 For program details, rules and regulations, and to enter, visit this site.