OSPREY NEWS N E W S L E T T E R F O R F A M I L I E S

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Dear MBS Families,

We are always thinking of you, especially in this remote learning enviornment. You are all adjusting to new schedules and

working hard to support your child's learning. Your partnership is always important to us and our teachers had you in mind as

we planned our transition to remote learning last week. I shared an overview about the district's remote learning plan on

Friday evening with you but also wanted to make sure that you had some specifics about the upcoming week. Here's some

highlights about the week ahead:

Tomorrow, April 6th, is device distribution day from 9:00 - 6:00. If you completed the device distribution survey, you can

stop by Colchester High School to pick up a device for your child. Contact me at jordan.burke@colchestersd.org if you were

not able to complete the survey for device distribution or have further questions about devices.

Learning plans for the week will be posted tomorrow morning. Learning plans will be available tomorrow morning on

the website under the "remote learning" tab and through your child's Google Classroom, but this week's learning plan doesn't

officially start until Tuesday, April 7th. If it works for your family, students can begin the learning plan tomorrow. Students

also have an optional choice challenge that they can complete tomorrow.  

Next week marks a transition into continuation of learning. Our goal will be to help students and families get familiar

with the features of Google Classroom and to begin with continuation of learning over the course of the week.

Every student and family has different needs. We have designed learning plans so that students can work through them 

at a pace that works for you and for your family. This is what we call "asynchronous" learning. Over time there will also be

"synchronous" or real time learning for students, where they can connect with teachers and peers and recieve support. Most of

the synchronous learning we are doing right now are in the form of Morning Meetings, For now, we have also tried to include

as many asynchronous learning opportunities as possible to provide flexibility for families. If your child becomes frustrated

with an assignment, it's okay to have them take a break or stop altogether. Don't hesitate to contact your child's teacher or

case manager if you find that your child is frequently frustrated with work. Likewise over the course of the next few weeks, we

will also share additional resources through website for families looking for enriching opportunties for their students.

We're here for you and your student(s). Our teachers will continue to hold office hours so that families know when they

can send an email and get a quick response from their child's teacher during the day. Your child's teacher will also continue

to provide ongoing feedback and support to your child.

We will share additional resources under the remote learning tab on our website. We want to make sure that you have

resources at your fingertips to support your child with this new remote learning enviornment. We will be regularly updating

our "remote learning" tab with practical tips about Google Classroom and other information for busy families.

We have an MBS Facebook page!  See page 4 of this for more information! We are hoping to use the MBS Facebook page

as another way to stay connected to the community, share some fun, and promote MBS school spirit!

Finally, I thank you for everything you are doing for our students. I speak for our entire staff when I say that we appreciate

your partnership and support during this challenging and unprecdented time. Never have I been more proud to be a

graduate of Colchester Schools.

Be well,

Ms. Burke

Stay home. Many people who are mildly ill can manage their symptoms

at home with rest, drinking fluids and taking fever-reducing medicine,

when needed. Not everyone needs to be tested. Testing is not treatment. 

Call your primary doctor for guidance. If you are ill, call your health

care provider to find out if you should be seen for an evaluation and

consideration of testing. If you do not have a health care provider, call 2-1-

1 to be connected to a clinic in your area. 

What should I do if my child or family member is sick? 1.

2.

Separate yourself from other people

and animals in your home. As much

as possible, you should stay in a

specific room and away from other

people and animals in your home.

Also, you should use a separate

bathroom, if available. Avoid sharing

personal household items.

Wear a face-mask (if possible) if you

are sick around other people and pets.

Cover your coughs and sneezes with

your sleeve or a tissue, then throw the

tissue in the trash. Clean all “high-

touch” surfaces every day. These

include counters, tabletops, doorknobs,

bathroom fixtures, toilets, phones,

keyboards, tablets, and bedside tables.

Steps to Manage and Prevent theSpread of Illness at Home:

The CDC has a site you can access here with more tips and recommendations on managing

illnesses at home, and a COVID-19 symptom checker to help you decide what action is needed for

your symptoms.

OSPREY NEWS • A WEEKLY NEWSLETTER FOR FAMILIES

FROM NURSE JOS I E

HEALTH OFFICE UPDATES

Hello MBS Families! I miss seeing all of our Ospreys, and hope you are all staying healthy

and safe at home. Please continue to practice physical distancing to help prevent the

spread of illness. I am available by email at Josie.Lang@colchestersd.org and am happy to

answer any questions or concerns that you may have. I’m also regularly updating my blog.

The Vermont Department of Health continues to be an excellent source of information

and guidance for families regarding COVID-19 and I encourage you to access this site.

“How are you feeling today?” This is a question every preschooler is asked as they enter their

classroom each day. They use the pictures on this chart to “check in”. The teacher then  asks, “Why

are you feeling _____ today?” This gives the child the opportunity to discuss their feelings and the

causes of their feelings. It gives the adult the opportunity to understand what the child is thinking

about that may impact their behavior or day. We help the child make a plan or choose a strategy to

help them get back to baseline (OK) if they are feeling angry, silly, frustrated or sad. We sit with them

while they are using the strategy to coach them through it and to check in to see if it worked. 

Your children may be having big feelings about not being able to go to school. They may not

understand why they can’t go. They may be missing their friends and teachers. They may not be

able to put into words what they are feeling. Using these tools may help your child to express their

feelings about the school closure. Things to remember: Most preschool aged children are not

capable of working through their emotions alone. They need a grown-up to co-regulate with them

and model the desired behavior or strategy.Humans are not capable of processing their feelings

while they are in a very dysregulated, or upset, state. They need time to calm down using one of

their preferred strategies before they can talk about what happened. 

Self Regulation Activities: Belly Breathing, Finger Breathing Activity, Shape Breathing Activity, Yoga

Calming Exercise

OSPREY NEWS • A WEEKLY NEWSLETTER FOR FAMILIES

Other strategies include drawing a picture orwriting a letter to the person being thought

about or about what the child is thinking about.

Click this link to view the full "Feeding Your Family" flyer.

NEWS FOR YOU!

OSPREY NEWS • A WEEKLY NEWSLETTER FOR FAMILIES

You can now

follow us on

Facebook! Search

for "Malletts Bay

School" Like and

follow our page to

get the latest

MBS updates.

This message is from the University

of Vermont Medical Center: "Help us

show our gratitude for our

healthcare heroes. Share your

message of thanks at this link!

#ThanksHealthHeroes"

https://www.instagram.com/mrkspeworld/

"Feel Good Tip of the Day #2"

Counseling Corner webpage.

my blog.

NEW YouTube Channel!

Click here

the Epic

website.