Riverside School PTA Newsletter |
Friday, December 3rd, 2021 |
|
|
|
Did you know that Riverside School recently received a ranking by U.S. News & World Report, naming us as one of the top elementary schools in Connecticut? (#4 in the state) We would like to congratulate our students, teachers, and staff for these outstanding results; and we thank all of our families and the PTA for all of your support, helping us deliver a top educational experience to your children, and for all of the students at Riverside School!
|
|
|
|
|
PLACE YOUR ONLINE BOOK FAIR ORDERS
This week, students visited the school's Book Fair to browse a number of titles in person! They brought home a wish list of books that they would like to purchase via Riverside’s Book Fair Website. Please be sure to ask your children for either their Book Fair Wish List or photos of books they captured on their school iPads.
Purchases can be made through Friday, December 10 and no code is needed to place your order. As a reminder, a portion of the sales directly supports the Riverside School PTA, so please consider getting a head start on your holiday shopping through next week!
|
|
|
|
|
HAT, GLOVE & SCARF DRIVE NEXT WEEK
The Wellness committee will be holding a Hat, Glove & Scarf Drive from December 6-10. We will be collecting NEW hats, gloves and scarves for children ages 0-18. These will be given to the Domestic Violence Crisis Center in Stamford, where they currently have 247 children living in shelters.
Donations can be dropped in the boxes at the front of school. If you have any questions or need an alternative drop-off option, please reach out to H&W co-chairs Jackie Dowling and Yvonne Ormerod. Thank you in advance, we appreciate your support!
|
|
|
|
|
SUPPORT LUKE’S 5TH ANNUAL HOLIDAY FUNDRAISER
Greenwich High School student (Riverside School alum) and brain cancer survivor Luke McQuillan is hosting his 5th annual fundraiser and gift drive benefitting 10 to 18-year-old patients at Yale New Haven Hospital. See Luke’s flyer for additional information.
You can support the “PRISM” (Promoting Resilience, Reducing Stress) pilot program which helps young Oncology patients, and their families, manage depression and anxiety due to COVID-related isolation. Donate on Luke's fundraising page by December 15. You can also donate new and unwrapped gifts for 10 to 18-year-olds battling life-threatening illnesses. Drop gift donations in the labeled bin at the front of the school from December 7-14.
Please note that while these efforts are being supported by our PTA communications, they are completely optional.
|
|
|
|
|
OH WHAT FUN! THE HOLIDAY SING IS BACK!
Riverside School families are invited to gather outdoors and sing festive songs to ring in the holiday season. The Sing will take place on Friday, December 10 for 15-20 minutes immediately after dismissal, outside the gym in the front of the school led by our music teacher, Ms. Punchatz. Masks required for ALL attendees. Bring your merry spirit and help us jingle along!
Students are also encouraged to show their holiday spirit by wearing their favorite holiday colors to school on Friday, December 10.
|
|
|
|
|
RECYCLE YOUR HOLIDAY LIGHTS
Do you have holiday lights that no longer work or have you upgraded to LED strands? Please consider placing old and unwanted strands off to the side as the Green Committee will be hosting a holiday lights recycling drive in January (specific details to follow). Let's work together to keep dangerous materials out of our landfills!
|
|
|
|
|
ENRICHMENT PROGRAMS
Catch the vibes... Last week, our 5th grade students learned amazing facts about sound. Scientist Nina from High Touch High Tech led them through experiments to visualize sound, use sound to move objects, and broadly illustrate what sound is. Our students studied wave motion and hearing through hands-on experiments to test out their new knowledge.
Upcoming Enrichment Programs:
December 10, 14-15: High Touch High Tech's "What's the Matter" (Grade 3)
December 16: Dinosaurs Rock (grade 2)
These programs are paid for by your generous donations to the PTA. Thank you!
|
|
|
|
|
THANK YOU FOR YOUR DONATIONS!
Thank you so much to everyone who donated and participated in our 4th Annual Holidays for Haiti. Thanks to all of you we raised $11,000 for gifts and necessities for the students and orphans at Danita’s Children School! In addition, all 370 students will receive a personalized holiday card with their gift at the school wide party later this month. Your generosity and kindness toward those less fortunate is so appreciated. We can’t wait to share the photos of their holiday party in the New Year. Happy Holidays!
|
|
|
|
|
THANK YOU FOR *580 POUNDS* OF HALLOWEEN CANDY!
Thank you again to all families who contributed to the Halloween candy buy-back program. Greenwich Pediatric Dental Group shared its official announcement to Operation Smile with us, highlighting that we donated a whopping 580 pounds of candy, by far the most of any school in Greenwich! That led to a $1,160 financial donation to Operation Smile, providing funds for four life-changing surgeries for children. Thank you, Riverside!
|
|
|
|
|
VISIT THE ONLINE APPAREL STORE
Whether you're a returning Red Hawk or new to the nest, you can support Riverside School by showing your school spirit! Our online apparel store is open for business and stocked with lots of great new items, including tees, shorts, sweatshirts, ROPES shirts, water bottles and more. Go to RIVPTA.ORG to shop spirit wear now! Orders placed by noon on Thursdays can be picked up between 7am-7pm on Fridays at 41 Owenoke Way.
|
|
|
|
|
SAFETY DUTY: MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN JUST 15 MINUTES!
In addition to making sure everyone is familiar with the drop-off/pick-up “Rules of the Road”, Safety Duty is an important part of keeping our children safe at Riverside School. Volunteers make the morning drop-off process more efficient and secure. Volunteers assist from 8:30-8:45am daily and must wear a mask at all times during a shift. Sign up online. For more info, contact Brielle Goldfaden at brielleg@gmail.com.
|
|
|
NOTIFYING THE SCHOOL IF YOUR CHILD RECEIVES THE COVID-19 VACCINE
If your child has received either dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, and you choose to share this information with the school, kindly email Nurse Melissa Luiso evidence of your child's vaccination card so that the school's medical records can be updated accordingly. Thank you!
|
|
NOTE FOR PARENTS: ITEM DROP-OFFS
As a reminder to parents, when dropping off items for children, please make sure the item is labeled with the child's name and teacher. Sometimes office personnel cannot immediately obtain items from the bins due to other obligations, and clear labeling will minimize confusion and inefficiency at the time of retrieval.
|
|
ORDERING LUNCH
PLEASE NOTE: School lunches continue to be FREE this school year. All orders MUST be submitted at least TWO full school days in advance (and up to five days in advance). Orders entered for same day lunch may not be seen, and cafeteria staff don't want students missing out. Please visit the Lunch Page on rivpta.org for information on submitting lunch orders and a link to the school's order form.
|
|
REPLAY OF THE DISTRICT'S ALP PRESENTATION IS AVAILABLE
A replay of last week's ALP presentation has been posted to the district's ALP webpage. Please scroll down and click the tab labeled “Informational Meetings” then go to “ALP 10/21 BOE Slides.”
Save the Date: The district's ALP Team will be presenting information meetings for 5th grade parents regarding Advanced Placement for 6th grade on Monday, January 3 at 9am and 6:30pm.
|
|
WAYS TO FOSTER INDEPENDENCE & RESPONSIBILITY IN CHILDREN
Greenwich Public Schools is holding its next “Effective Ways to Foster Independence and Responsibility in Children” parent workshop, which will happen Thursday, December 9 from 12:30-2:00pm at Greenwich Town Hall (in the Hayton Conference Room on the 3rd floor). Space is limited to 15 participants, and attendees are required to register ahead of time. To register, or see additional info, visit the district's SEL Events Page.
|
|
GREENWICH PUBLIC SCHOOLS BOARD OF EDUCATION MEETINGS
Board of Education meetings are easier to attend now that they be viewed on Zoom--stay informed! Here is a list of 2021-2022 academic year Greenwich Board of Education meetings. Information on how to access the meetings can be found on the GPS Accessing Virtual BOE Meetings page. All meetings start at 7:00pm unless otherwise noted.
- Thursday, December 16, 2021
- Thursday, January 20, 2022
- Thursday, February 3, 2022 (Retreat, no public comment)
- Thursday, February 24, 2022
- Thursday, March 24, 2022
- Thursday, April 28, 2022
- Thursday, May 19, 2022
- Thursday, June 2, 2022 (Retreat, no public comment)
- Thursday, June 16, 2022
|
|
SUBSCRIBE TO RECEIVE GREENWICH PUBLIC SCHOOLS NEWSLETTERS
Make sure you are receiving GPS e-newsletters directly to your inbox! To subscribe, select the relevant newsletters below and click the orange "Follow" button on the right side of the page.
|
|
Junior League of Greenwich Presents “PositivelyMe!”
PositivelyMe! is a FREE program for 3rd grade girls encouraging self-confidence, leadership, assertiveness, and positive decision making. Sessions will be taking place in January, February, and March. Applications are currently being accepted. Learn more at www.jlgreenwich.org/positivelyme/.
|
|
Audition for the Open Arts Alliance Musical Production of Cinderella
Open Arts Alliance is proud to announce auditions for its upcoming musical production of Cinderella will be held December 7 & 9, at 6pm at The River House (125 River Road Extension, Cos Cob). Callbacks will be held on December 10 at 6pm. All youth in the community ages 8-18 are encouraged to audition. Complete required audition registration by December 5. Auditioners need only attend one of the scheduled audition dates. They should be prepared to sing a song of their choosing a cappella, and be ready to read from a portion of the script. Performances of Cinderella will take place from April 28-30, 2022 at The Powerhouse Theatre in New Canaan.
|
|
COVID Resources from the School |
|
IN-SCHOOL COVID-19 SYMPTOM PROTOCOL
The Nurse’s Office has received many questions about how the school is making decisions about when the school is sending students home. Extra precautions are being taken in order to do our best to keep students in school. Unfortunately, there will be many students sent home this year even though they may have normally been allowed to stay in school and we hope all families will be understanding.
Greenwich Public Schools COVID Symptom Protocol:
- If a student exhibits 1 low risk symptom (fever of 100.4 or greater, congestion/runny nose, nausea/vomiting/diarrhea, sore throat, headache, muscle aches) and has had no exposure to a COVID-19 positive person, the student may return to school 24 hours after symptom resolution (without medication for fevers)
- If a student exhibits 2 or more low risk symptoms (see above) or has 1 high-risk symptom (new cough, difficulty breathing, loss of taste/smell) AND has had no exposure to a COVID-19 positive person, the student must be seen by a healthcare provider.
- If the student has a negative PCR swab test for COVID, the student may return to school 24 hours after symptom resolution (without medication for fevers).
- If the student has lab testing and evaluation, or an alternative diagnosis, the student may return to school 24 hours after symptom resolution (without medication for fevers).
- If a student has a positive PCR swab test for COVID, the student may return to school after 24 hours without fever (without medication) AND symptoms improving AND approval of local health department (10-14 days); AND release by the primary care provider will be required
- If a student is exposed to a COVID positive person, the student may return to school 14 days after last contact unless symptoms develop. If symptoms develop, the student must obtain a swab.
|
|
|
|
SUBMISSIONS
Have something to add? Email us at: peekweekriv@gmail.com Deadline for submissions is 3pm on Wednesday of the school week
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
