Dear Rochester families,

Welcome back! It is great having students back in the building after the long vacation. This week we are in full swing reviewing learning expectations and jumping back in with academics. Next week will start Winter Wellness! Please review all the details if you have any questions.

Winter Wellness at Pico Mountain begins next Friday! Students in grades 1-6 will take a bus to Pico Mountain for skiing or snowboarding for 6 consecutive Fridays beginning January 13. Look for details about the program in Thursday folders (and below). Included in Thursday folders will be one final permission slip that must be returned to school prior to January 13.

Students in kindergarten, as well as those in grades 1-6 that elected not to ski/snowboard will stay at Rochester School for a mix of indoor and outdoor activities including ice skating, snowshoeing, and more to be determined.

Students should come to school dressed warmly for skiing/snowboarding. Please have your student(s) already in their gear when they arrive at school, since we will leave for Pico at 8:10. This includes:

We will have a limited quantity of winter appropriate socks and mittens available for students that do not have them at home. Due to a generous donation from Turtle Fur, we will also have several face warmers available for students that need them.

Students that have their own equipment should bring it to Rochester School each morning of Winter Wellness. PLEASE REMEMBER HELMETS! Helmets are required for the group to ski/snowboard at Pico. Gear should be lined up along the front wall of the elementary building no later than 8 a.m. Parent volunteers will transport equipment to and from Pico Mountain each week. Students are permitted to bring ski/snowboard boots on the bus so they stay warm, but other gear will be transported. PLEASE LABEL YOUR CHILD(REN)'S ITEMS WITH THEIR NAME! This helps tremendously if/when an item is left behind or misplaced - and is especially helpful for parent chaperones trying to load gear that may be left alongside other Pico guest gear.

Students that have their own Pico pass should bring it with them EVERY FRIDAY of Winter Wellness! We do not have access to individual ticket window passes this year, so if your child does not bring their pass, they may not be able to participate that day.

Students that DO NOT have their own Pico Pass will be issued a Pico Mountain Vermont student pass valid all season at Pico! We will collect these passes each week on Friday following Winter Wellness to avoid forgotten/lost passes for the following week. We will be unable to issue additional passes for those that do not have them each week, hence the weekly collection of these passes. If your family would like to use the student passes at other times, please contact Erica in the office to request the pass. It must be returned in time for the next Winter Wellness, or your student will not be able to attend the next week. Passes will be given to students after the final Winter Wellness Friday for use for the rest of the ski/ride season at Pico.

Early release dismissal during Winter Wellness: On the early release Fridays (Jan. 13, 27 and Feb. 10), dismissal will be at 12:15 instead of 11:55, to allow students to finish their lesson, eat lunch, return to Rochester School and be dismissed in their appropriate fashion. This is a 20 minute delay to allow for flexibility in loading buses/getting back to school timely. Lessons run from 9-11 a.m., then students will eat lunch at Pico before loading the bus and heading back to Rochester.