In Science Class over the last two weeks, students have been completing their 8th Grade Safety Training Program. This is the faculty version of Fire, Earthquake, and Intruder Training. Students are also trained in First Aid, the CPR sequence and use of our two AED machines (Automatic External Defibrillators), and the physiology involved in first aid and CPR which augments our chapters on the Circulatory and Respiratory Systems. |
|
It's the SCOOP for March 11, 2021
Your weekly news from Santa Barbara Middle School
|
|
|
Dear SBMS Families,
Thank you for everyone's continued patience with rainy day schedules and adventure day logistics. As we head out to the trails on Friday we can all take a deep breath, soak in our beautiful home town and smile knowing that we have kept school open all the way to the Spring Break. We hope that you parents feel the same excitement for two weeks with your children and hope you can relax and recharge in some way.
We are thrilled to see the recent pandemic progress and we are working with our COVID Response Team on all sorts of models for more spring electives, outdoor activities and trip possibilities. There may be an uptick of case numbers following Spring Break with increased travel and potential gatherings which we will have to keep an eye on. But with over 90% of our teachers vaccinated or getting their first shot this week, and our track record with no positive cases on campus to date, we are hopeful that this will help us find ways to get back on the road to safely end the year with some quintessential SBMS experiences.
As we return from Spring Break, we will begin a phased approach to new electives, outdoor activities and trips. We will start by adding new electives choices with more contact sports and activities the week we return to campus for Q4. From there we will be adding Diamond Time and Friday afternoon electives like ocean sports and mountain biking for more activities and fun outside of school. And if all pandemic news stays positive, we will be looking into multi-day expeditions and trips to close out the year. We can’t tell you how excited we are to safely get back out on the road and do what we do best.
Now let’s bring the energy from the video below into our last few days before Spring Break!
With Gratitude,
Brian, Bianca, and the SBMS Staff
|
|
THURSDAY RAINY DAY SCHEDULE
Thank you for all of your efforts to prioritize in-person learning and work with us on these rainy days. Below are today's pick-up schedules for each grade:
- 6th Grade: Pick up at 11:55am
- 7th Grade: Pick up at 12:05pm
- 8th Grade: Pick up at 12:20pm
- 9th Grade: Pick up at 12:35pm
LOST AND FOUND
Our school lost and found closet is getting pretty full! If your child is missing an item of clothing, a lunch box, or anything else, make sure they check our lost and found closet before leaving for break. It is located on the ground floor by the parking lot next to the Science Room and is full of items and clothing.
ALL-SCHOOL ADVENTURE DAY
Friday the whole school will be hitting the trails for an all-school Adventure Day! Please read your child's cohort email with important details, directions and times. It may be cold, so remind your hiker to dress warmly! We can't wait to kick-off Spring Break out on our beautiful trails!
DLP SCHEDULE REMINDER
Please help us in reminding your student to bring home all their books, materials and assignments for DLP week at home. Below are important dates to keep in mind:
- Monday, March 15 – Friday, March 26: Spring Break
-
Friday, March 26: Return From Travel (a later return means a later ‘in-person’ to campus return)
- Monday, March 29 - Friday, April 2: Distance Learning Week (Schedule below)
- Monday, April 5: Return to In-Person Classes
|
|
SONGFEST 2021!
It's that time of year again where we celebrate together as music lovers and Middle School student Superfans!
Songfest is always a highlight of the school year whether it is live in the park or "live" online. This year will be another awesome showcase of students delivering performances of all musical styles and genres through the magic of the online stage. Students will be turning in video recordings of their performances prior to the show. This gives everybody a chance to capture their best take and also think outside of the box creatively!!
Sign ups are flowing in, the students are getting hyped and The Songfest Team is already at work building the show but IT IS NOT TOO LATE TO SIGN UP! We encourage everyone to not be brave and not miss out on this chance to share and feel all the love music and an SBMS Songfest can deliver!!
Here is the link to the sign-up FORM.
And here is a link to last year's INCREDIBLE show! Click the link to get inspired and let's all mark our calendars for April 24th to watch SONGFEST 2021 together live, online!!
|
|
THE WEEK AHEAD
Monday, March 15 - Friday, March 26
Spring Break
Friday, March 26
Return From Travel
Monday, March 29 - Friday, April 2
Distance Learning Week
Monday, April 5
Return to In-Person Classes
|
|
⚠️ WEEKLY SAFETY UPDATE ⚠️ |
|
SPRING BREAK REMINDER
Though everything seems to be getting better in terms of the pandemic, we all must continue following CDC and local public health guidelines both on and off-campus. If you are traveling, please return by Friday, March 26 so your child can return to campus in-person on Monday, April 5. If you have any questions or your child will need to quarantine for a longer period of time, please inform Erik.
CDC RELEASES NEW VACCINE GUIDANCE
This week, the CDC released their first set of recommendations for fully vaccinated people. For the purposes of this guidance, people are considered fully vaccinated for COVID-19 2 weeks after they have received the second dose in a 2-dose series (Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna), or 2 weeks after they have received a single-dose vaccine (Johnson and Johnson).
Fully vaccinated people can:
- Visit with other fully vaccinated people indoors without wearing masks or distancing
- Visit with unvaccinated people from a single household who are at low risk for severe COVID-19 disease indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing
- Refrain from quarantine and testing following a known exposure if asymptomatic
For now, fully vaccinated people should continue to:
- Take precautions in public like wearing a well-fitted mask and physical distancing
-
Wear masks, practice physical distancing, and adhere to other prevention measures when visiting with unvaccinated people who are at increased risk for severe COVID-19 disease or who have an unvaccinated household member who is at increased risk for severe COVID-19 disease
- Wear masks, maintain physical distance, and practice other prevention measures when visiting with unvaccinated people from multiple households
- Avoid medium- and large-sized in-person gatherings
-
Get tested if experiencing COVID-19 symptoms
- Follow guidance issued by individual employers
- Follow CDC and health department travel requirements and recommendations
Though these guidelines are promising, the CDC still recommends taking precautions in public and avoiding medium to large-sized gatherings. Let's continue our hard work even while away from campus on Spring Break!
|
|
SBMS BOOK CLUB
Our next book club meeting will be on Monday, May 17 at 9:30am. The next book will be "When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir" by Patrisse Khan-Cullors and Asha Bandele.
Following the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin, three women – Alicia Garza, Opal Tometi, and Patrisse Khan-Cullors – came together to form an active response to the systemic racism causing the deaths of so many African-Americans. They simply said: Black Lives Matter; and for that, they were labelled.
|
|
FROM THE PARENT ASSOCIATION
March Parent Association Meeting
Tonight! Thursday, March 11 at 7pm
PA meeting #7:
Taming the Beast: Managing Screen Time During the Pandemic and Beyond
Thursday, March 11, 7:00 pm via Zoom
Are you facing a "screen-demic" at your house? We all know that screen use is a big part of our kids' lives, especially now. As parents, we are often overwhelmed by how to approach it with our kids. We know there are no clear answers and no one-size-fits-all solution. This workshop will bring us together to discuss screen time struggles and propose tools and strategies to address the ones most impacting YOUR family. Join us!
TrueNorth, the team that will be facilitating this workshop, is collecting RSVPs to assign groups for breakout discussions.
A zoom link will be shared 48 hours ahead of the session.
|
|
ON THE HORIZON
Please note that dates and events are subject to change and updates will be communicated. **Subject to SBMS COVID-19 Committee & Public Health Guidance**
April 2021
Monday, April 5: Return to In-Person Classes
Saturday, April 24: Songfest
Monday, April 26: No School / Faculty In-Service
May 2021
Monday, May 31: Memorial Day - No School
June 2021
Monday, June 7: Normal School Day
Tuesday, June 8: Last day of school for 6/7/8
Wednesday, June 9: No School
Thursday, June 10: Rites of Passage**
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
