Dear GMS Community,
It has been another joyful week of reconnecting with many of our students in person and on screens large and small in our classrooms. Alice Chang drove through the parking lot flanked with cheering 7th-graders after an exceptional Entrepreneurial Night! Each week of in-person instruction provides us with new ideas; we build on our successes and learn from trying new ways of learning together. We are excited to welcome our 8th-graders back to campus on Monday, March 8th.
We are also staying on top of the significant developments in COVID-related news in the past week. Some highlights:
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Santa Clara County has directed K-12 schools to refer to California’s Safe Schools for All Plan. We are reviewing that guidance carefully and shifting some of our on-campus practices as a result.
- One exciting change is that students can socialize with friends outside their cohort, and we can bring multiple cohorts together for some class and whole-grade activities. This is allowable ONLY when students are outdoors, masked, and maintaining six feet of physical distancing.
- Santa Clara County and San Mateo County are now both in the state’s Red Tier. While this shift does not bring immediate changes to the guidelines for schools, it is encouraging to see this progress!
Much of the news in the past few weeks has been encouraging and comes as a welcome relief after a long and challenging winter. In order to do our part to maintain these positive trajectories, we ask that everyone stay committed to the precautions that have helped improve health metrics in the Bay Area: wear a mask, maintain at least six feet of physical distancing, practice good hand hygiene, limit gathering outside of your household, and move activities outdoors whenever possible. With nearly 90% of our students participating in on-campus learning, we are all in this together.
COVID Testing
Our third week of testing ran smoothly; many thanks to parents for arriving on time and to students for making COVID testing look easy! Eighth-grade families should look for an email from Marjorie on Thursday with next steps.
Next week we begin our second cycle of COVID testing. Moving forward, there will not be a detailed reminder and follow-up email message, but you will still receive the automated reminder email 24 hours before your appointment. If you have COVID testing or scheduling questions, please reach out to Marjorie.
Reminders
Carpooling
If you are carpooling to school, please follow these guidelines:
- Wear a face covering, a medical-grade mask, or we recommend wearing a double-mask.
- Seat students as far apart as possible in the vehicle.
- Only the driver’s child should use the front passenger seat.
- Keep windows open to maximize outdoor air circulation.
- Ensure the carpool driver or students have screenshots of their Magnus Mobile “Go” message on their phone before arrival on campus.
If you need additional yellow dashboard placards made for your carpool group, please contact Alejandra at the Front Desk.
Drop Off, Pick Up, & Attendance
Students should be dropped off between 8:00 am and 8:20 am. We will not be assigning drop-off times as we did in November. Other drop-off procedures remain the same. Whether arriving by car, bike, or on foot, students need to show their green “Go” message from Magnus Health to come on campus each day.
If you are dropping your child off late or picking them up early, please notify the GMS Front Desk (650-968-8338 x100 or frontdesk@girlsms.org) to coordinate.
If your child is sick or will otherwise not be attending classes, remember to call the Front Desk or email attendance@girlsms.org.
The school day finishes at 3:20 pm each day. Please note that this includes Fridays for students learning on campus. Students not participating in after-school activities should be picked up between 3:20 and 3:35 pm. Students participating in GMS after-school activities should be picked up between 4:45 and 5:00 pm. Please put the student’s yellow name placard on the dashboard to facilitate pickup.
Extracurricular Activities
We will kick off the after-school physical activity program for 8th-graders next week. Parents will receive a TeamSnap invitation by Monday; TeamSnap is an online platform for sports teams, serving as a communication tool to you and providing the coaching staff with your contact information in case it is needed.
What to Wear
Rain and cooler temperatures are in the forecast for next week. Students will be outdoors for all recess and lunch periods, and some classes will be taught outside. Students should come to campus in warm layers and dressed to learn outdoors comfortably. A reminder that students are expected to follow regular dress code expectations while learning on campus.
What to Bring
Eighth-grade families and students will receive an email from the 8th-grade team about the specific school supplies that students need to bring next week. More generally, students should always bring:
- one mask and an extra mask in a ziplock bag
- a clean ziplock or Tupperware to hold the mask while eating or drinking
- GMS laptop, charge cable, and headphones
- snack and lunch (microwaves will not be available)
- water bottle (foot-operated water coolers are available for refills)
- asthma inhaler or EpiPen (if prescribed)
If you have any questions, please reach out to our team (reopening@girlsms.org).
In partnership,
Laura and the COVID Response Team
