Dear Secondary School Families:
Happy Friday! We have arrived at the interim point of the second marking period - only a week and a half remain until the holiday recess. The month of December is always a very busy time of the year for everyone. Please remember to take a few minutes to review your child’s progress when the parent portal opens (at noon) on Friday, December 18. If your child is struggling, do not hesitate to reach out to our counselors or individual teachers to set up a time to discuss. For fully remote families, please remember that there will be an opportunity to switch to in-person learning at the start of the third quarter. The open enrollment period will begin on January 11 and end on January 22 (the last day of quarter 2). This is especially important to consider if the interim report indicates that your child is not attending remote classes and/or working up to their potential. More than half of the year remains to build positive work habits and improve. When the end of the year arrives, we want to avoid any scenario where summer coursework is required to advance - our shared goal is your child's success! In other news, this Secondary School will be saying goodbye to Ms. Helen Parsons who is retiring next week. Ms. Parsons taught 11th grade ELA and dedicated herself to helping students improve their ability to read and write. She was also an active member of our school community. We wish her all the best on her new journey!
Arts In Education & Social Emotional Learning: The Secondary School is excited to have Mr. Charles Smith and Mr. James Warren with us today for virtual presentations with our 6th grade students. These two very talented artists will explore a range of topics including wellness/self-care, goal setting, and the mystery of magic! The presentations are sure to be interactive, thought provoking, and fun! A big thank you to our Arts department including Ms. Findlay, Ms. Koonz, Ms. Pecylak, and Ms. Noto for providing this wonderful opportunity to our students!
Social Media Presentations: As parents, many of us worry about the amount of time our children spend on electronics, use of social media, and the overall impact of technology on mental health. The challenge is that we also know that technology provides significant purpose to adolescents' personal and social lives, more so than any other generation. Our dependence on technology to learn and stay connected has been accelerated due to the pandemic. Education around technology/social media use has never been more important for our children.
The Secondary School is partnering with state police and local law enforcement to talk with students about digital citizenship and social media. This will occur at 9:00 am on Monday, December 21 for 6th, 7th, and 8th grade. Sixth grade students will attend virtually along with their fully remote peers. The high school will have a separate assembly at 9:00 am on Wednesday, December 23. Ninth and tenth grade will attend virtually with their remote peers. We will be sending out links for these presentations in the near the future.
Principal’s Advisory Committee & Community Service: Our PAC organization has been planning community service projects for the month of December beginning with a hat day fundraiser (see below). Proceeds from the fundraiser will be donated to both the Van Rensselaer Manor Nursing and Rehabilitation facility and the Hudson-Mohawk Humane Society. Check out this short video about the animal shelter.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_YY9pHFBJKyAusbUmIL02U_6GfB7zCkm/view?usp=sharing
We are also collecting donations for both causes through Friday, December 18. Please have your child bring any donated items to the main office - here is a list of items being accepted.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LIvEDYlQVivy2AL4PGyMdIvJiPsdrLBgXHEylXXVVYo/edit?usp=sharing
Hat Day(s): Any student in the building and staff may donate a dollar and wear a hat in school on Wednesday, December 16 (Red Day), Thursday, December 17 (White Day), and Friday, December 18 (Blue Day). Students will receive a special stamp indicating they have donated when they enter the building each morning. Thank you in advance for helping to support this event for two great causes!
Remote Student Attendance: A reminder that remote students need to email Lperfetti@brunswickcsd.org each morning between 7:30 am and 7:45 am for attendance. On Virtual Fridays, check in time is 9:00 a.m. to 9:15 a.m. Please be sure to include your name and grade in the email. If you are going to be signing in late or signing out early from your remote learning (e.g. doctor appointment), a parent/guardian should email.
Health/Wellness: **IMPORTANT** Please be sure to complete the daily screening survey before sending your child to school each morning. Your child should be kept home if they are experiencing any symptoms consistent with COVID. If your child’s symptoms are improving AND they are fever-free for at least 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medicine, they may return to school with a note from their doctor with an alternate diagnosis clearing them to return to school OR a copy of their negative COVID test result. We appreciate your help in keeping our school safe for everyone!
Weekly Calendar:
Mon. 12/14 = White Day Tues.12/15 = BLUE DAY Wed. 12/16 = RED DAY
Thurs. 12/17 WHITE DAY Fri 12/18 BLUE DAY
I hope you have a healthy and relaxing weekend! #TamaracStrong
Sincerely,
Ken Rizzo
Principal
Tamarac Secondary School