Riverside Monday Memo

MONDAY MEMO

8th graders Koji, Topher, and Cameron played D&D with Mr. G at break this morning.

Greetings!

It's our penultimate week of school, and you'd be surprised how long this Memo is with all the logistical details for end-of-year activities. Thank you for reading carefully!

Happy Monday,

Nelia

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NOTES

WHY DO WE LOVE RIVERSIDE TEACHERS?

If you were wondering, find out the answer to that question on this wonderful 1-minute video created by Molly Moore '13. Thank you to our Parent Advisory Group for suggesting this little project!

Riverside Teachers by Riverside Students

SPRING FIELD TRIPS

So much fun was had on field trip adventures by most of our students last week. We are really grateful for parents who supported us in trying lots of new things this year, one of the benefits of the pandemic has been being inspired to think outside our usual norms about what we do with students. Please thank your teachers if you feel gratitude for their plans and efforts. Thank you also to parents who drove carpools, camped out, and donated supplies, we couldn't make these things happen without you!

Photos will be posted soon to albums on our website.

Preschoolers: Wednesday, June 2 (off campus by carpool): East Burke

K-3rd graders: Wednesday, June 2 (off campus by bus): Fairbanks Museum, details will be posted in lesson plan links below.

SUPER CASH RAFFLE

Thank you to everyone who bought tickets, sold tickets, volunteered to help run the event, and showed up to have some fun together on Saturday afternoon! We had a great time with our 1st annual Super Cash Raffle, and look forward to hosting an even better version of the event next year (more elaborate food, dancing, side activities). This is one of the parent-led events that helps us bridge the gap between tuition income and program expenses. If you'd like to help make the 2nd annual Super Cash Raffle the best ever next year, please let Nelia know. We expect this will replace our usual annual auction event, as it seems to be much less work, easier to run by parents instead of out of Krystal's office, and more fun to attend!

COVID GUIDELINE UPDATE

We are just nine school days from the end of the year, and we are so grateful for how careful and supportive the community has been through all of the various stages of guidelines this year. On several occasions, the extra caution and open communication from families helped us keep our doors open, and that has been our ultimate goal all year.

As we come into the last few weeks, we want to remind you about the protocols that are still in place: we are still requiring students to stay home if they have symptoms or if there is a sick or potentially exposed individual in the household until a negative result comes back. This policy in particular has been integral to our success in maintaining in-person education this year. To clarify, the guideline that vaccinated individuals do not need to wear masks does not apply to schools; we ask that everyone who is on campus with students stay masked, unless they are situated at a 3' distance, outdoors. This is the same rule we have for students. Also, the new state travel guidelines do allow for travel without quarantine even for unvaccinated individuals.

MOUNTAIN BIKE CLUB

This week:

Middle School: Wednesday we will ride the East Haven trails. We will meet in the parking lot there, and ride from 4:00-6:00. Email Sean directly if you need directions, or need help shuttling a bike.
Elementary School: Thursday we will meet at East Burke Sports again this week, and ride trails from there based on ability. There are lots of options, so all riding abilities will be comfortable. We will plan to ride 3:45-5:00.

If your child does not have a KT pass, please email Sean by Wednesday so he can get those set up through KT. Otherwise we will assume they have one.

TEACHER APPRECIATION from ELLEN & KIM

Thank you in advance for all your support with our two main teacher appreciation activities occurring! We (PAG) are getting so active at this time of year - mainly due to stepping out of COVID limitations. We hope you are not getting overwhelmed with the opportunities and activities! Have a great summer! If anyone has questions, please feel free to email Ellen Moore or call her at 802-535-7972, or email Kim Adams.

Meals

Instead of purchasing any year-end thank you gifts for teachers, the Parent Advisory Group would like to encourage parents to help prepare breakfast and lunch meals for the Riverside staff during the last week of school. If you'd rather not cook, and your schedule allows, you could come in to school to set up the meal, or clean it up and pack the leftovers for them to take home. This newer Riverside tradition (less than ten years old) has come to be very appreciated by the staff, they really look forward to it!

This year we focused on the last four days of school, as we have 20 faculty and need to make more food! We are encouraging people to team up with each other to make a meal. Each day has six options to choose from: vegetarian and non-vegetarian breakfast and lunch, as well as set-up and clean up, in case anyone has no time or interest to cook, but can devote some time to being at the school and getting the prepared food ready and cleaning up after the meal. The teachers love having leftovers to take home to their families, and we already have a collection of containers to use at school

Thank You Books

In case you missed the opportunity to sign the teacher thank-you books this past Saturday, we'll be around this week. Please look for Deandra, Arcelie or Kim Adams at drop-off or pick-up times this week. Park your car, and come over to their table to spend some time writing with your child(ren). Also, if you wanted to just send a note in, or have your child draw a photo, make sure it's 4"x5" so it fits in the book. We can glue it in for you! (Those must be given to Krystal by this Friday morning; put it in an envelope and label it "For Kim Adams"). Please note, all books and notes need to be completed by the afternoon of Friday May 28th.

MIDDLE SCHOOL EXAM SCHEDULE

6-8th graders will be taking semester exams next week. Please help them to organize their study materials, prioritize which classes and units deserve the most of their time and attention, and to find the study strategies that work best for their learning styles. Teachers and advisors will be discussing the same intentions this week in their classes.

6th Grade

Tuesday: Math, English
Wednesday: Latin, Science
Thursday: Spanish, History

7th Grade

Tuesday: Latin, Math
Wednesday: History, Spanish
Thursday: English, Science

8th Grade

Tuesday: Science, Latin
Wednesday: Math, English
Thursday: World Issues, Spanish

LAST DAY OF SCHOOL

Friday, June 4, our last day of school, will be a fun day full of celebration of a successful year.

Bike to School: This is being more carefully planned this year than in the past, so as to follow guidelines set by the police department for safety and smooth flow of traffic. There will be some group rides from popular starting places, or a single family can ride together from wherever the like. Stay tuned for details in next week's Monday Memo.
Morning: mixed-age field day activities entirely outdoors
Afternoon: Talent Show and Preschool-7th grade Awards ceremony; both will be streamed on Google Meet. We'd appreciate having one or two parent volunteers to manage the camera so that faculty can focus on the activities. If you can help with this, please email Nelia.
Dismissal: It is a full day, with regular dismissal times at 3:00/3:30, and the Afterschool/Extended Day programs will run. Please email Sean or Sarah and Jamie if your child will attend, so that they can plan accordingly for this unique day.

GRADUATION 2021

Riverside's graduation ceremony is one of our all-school traditions, carried out the same way for the last 40 years. This year in order to be extra safe while sitting in a designated space for a long period of time, we are limiting attendance to faculty, 8th-graders, a select chorus of 6-7th graders to help the class of 2021 sing their song and Gaudeamus Igitur, and approximately five guests or family members per graduate. Because we will be sitting in proximity to each other for an extended period of time, we will need to be masked (except for speakers) during the ceremony.

The ceremony will be shared on Google Meet, and we hope that all students will watch, to celebrate these leaders and graduates at the end of such an unusual year. One of our founding teachers, Sally Newell, will be the graduation speaker, and awards will be presented to 8th graders.

The event will be followed by a potluck meal for those who are present. Please bring a salad or a main dish to share, with a note about its ingredients.

Help Needed, please email Nelia if you can assist:

Thank you to Jen Croft (7th grader Adrienne) who is making corsages for the graduates, head of school, and speaker.
Thank you to Mimi Smyth (8th grader Harper) who is doing the calligraphy on the diplomas
We need one or two parents of those 6-7th graders who will be at graduation because they're joining the select chorus to manage the camera for the Google Meet
We need one or two parents of the 7th graders who will be in the select chorus to help set up and clean up the potluck meal (this is usually a 7th grade parent effort).

TEACHER GOODBYE

Our kindergarten teacher Heidi Toney will be leaving us after this year. She is a master teacher that has greatly enriched our community over the last several years and we will miss her very much. Please take a moment to wish her well if you see her around campus. We have formed a hiring committee and are posting the position this week.

WISH LIST

a 12v battery charger (for a car battery) to lend students for a few days, that would be helpful on the golf cart/solar car project
someone with sewing skills or a sewing machine to piece together fabric squares about 5th grade's trout project

VACCINE INFORMATION FOR STUDENTS

Vermont students ages 12+ are now eligible to register for COVID vaccination appointments. This short information sheet from the VT Department of Health and this fact sheet from the FDA may answer any questions you have about the vaccine. If you'd like to have your child vaccinated, use this link to set up an account to register for one of the Department of Health's community clinics.