• Dear Cabot Community,

     

    I know that this is an unprecedented, unnerving, and stressful time for our entire Cabot community. While this school year will be different, the teachers and staff at Cabot have been working hard to make sure that all students will receive the academics, support, and social emotional connection they need.

    Whether you have signed up for a Hybrid Learning Program or Distance Learning you are part of the Cabot community.  We are going to be responsive to your child’s educational needs.  We value the relationship with your family and we will do what we can to make sure your child’s needs are met.

    Here are important pieces of information that will help you prepare for the year ahead.

    Staff that left Cabot since last year: 

    Sydney Balise - Caroline Barry - Stephanie Canavan - Cristi Deluca - Angie Galbraith - Dan Hammond - Patrick Heenehan - Susan Kass - Sam Kelly - Sara Levine - Jacque Matula - Allie Morey - MJ Mulkerrin - Lorri Pace - Steve Shulman - Krista Sumski - Mariza Texeira - Sara Wais - Molly Williams


    New staff at Cabot this year

    Melanie Brawley - Grade 1 DLA
    Erin Keady - Kindergarten 
    Michelle Kith - Grade 1
    Chelsea Lablanc - OT 
    Lisa Lacava - Social Worker
    Bree Leggio - School Psychologist
    Nicole Murphy - BCBA 
    Mary Quessier - STRIDE BT
    Micaela Ryan - grade 5 co-taught intern
    Caroline Sloan - Grade 5 
    Nancy Spaulding Gray - grade 2 intern 
    Elizabeth Stahl - ELL 
    Sherine Thelemaque - STRIDE BT
    Lauren Dietz and Mary Manning - Technology 
    Isabel Wagner - Grade 3-4 teacher
    Meghan Williams - Inclusion facilitator
    David Wright - Team Specialist (See attached letter)


    Staff changes (internal)

    Heidi Lucas - grade 1-2 teacher
    Brenna Green - grade 2 teacher


    Distance Learning Teachers for our 100 Cabot DLA students

    Kindergarten - Sarah Ekholm (Memorial Spaulding)
    1st grade - Melanie Brawley (Cabot)
    2nd Grade - Amy Martins (Cabot) and Lindsay Olson (Cabot)
    3rd Grade - Margaret Merrell (Franklin)
    4th Grade - Sam Rautenberg (Franklin) and Vanisha Bapat (Burr)
    5th Grade - Mike Feldstein (Horace Mann) and Ariana Foster (Lincoln Eliot)


    Cabot Protocols for Hybrid Students

    Cabot School is focused on the four pillars of health and safety

    Physical Distancing
    Face Coverings
    Hygiene
    Avoiding Exposure - Stay home if you are sick

    Newton Public Schools Reopening and Safety Information

    Newton Public Schools reopening plans along with health and safety measures are located here.


    Arrival

    We are going to request students arrive at 8:20.  Students should not arrive before that time and should remain at least 6 feet apart.  Please follow this map which indicates where students should line up.  Please note grades K-2 will be on the plaza side of the school and grade 3-5 will be near the humpty dumpty side of the school.

    If your child arrives between 8:25 - 8:35 and their class has entered the building please wait in the following locations 6 feet apart from others.

    Grades K-2 - under the overhang near the cafeteria

    Grades 3-5 - near the humpty dumpty bench

    If your child arrives after 8:35 please ring the buzzer and enter the main entrance near the humpty dumpty statue.  Students are asked to enter the building on their own.


    Bathrooms

    Bathrooms will be monitored in order to limit the number of students that go inside at one time.  Students will be reminded to wash their hands when they leave.


    Coming to School

    Your child should stay at home if they:

    Have symptoms
    Fever (100F or higher), chills, shaking chills
    Cough (not due to other known cause, such as chronic cough)
    Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
    New loss of taste or smell
    Sore throat
    Headache (when in combination with other symptoms)
    Muscle aches or body aches
    Nausea, vomiting or diarrhea
    Fatigue (when in combination with other symptoms)
    Nasal congestion or runny nose (not due to other known causes, such as allergies and when in combination with other symptoms)
    Tested positive for COVID-19
    Are awaiting test results for COVID-19
    Are a close contact of someone positive for COVID-19 (as determined by health dept)

    Dismissal

    All students leaving school at 12:30 will be dismissed to the plaza, but we will stagger the exit out of the students starting at 12:25 - 12:30.  We ask that parents space out around the exterior of the plaza so we can help keep students socially distanced.  We will be using a new on-line system (replacing school pass) to indicate dismissal changes.  We share more information before we return to school.


    Food

    Students will eat snacks at school and in some cases eat lunch.  Snack time will occur outside when possible.  If eating outside is not possible students will eat at assigned seats in the classroom.  Whether students are inside or outside students will be seated 6 feet apart from one another.  Before and after meals students are required to wash their hands.


    Hand washing/hand sanitizer

    Hand washing and/or using sanitizer will be done upon student entry into the building and regularly throughout the day including after playground use, before and after snack, after using shared materials, and more.  


    Lockers

    Students will have a structured time when they can access their lockers.  Based on cohorts, students will be assigned to every other locker to assist with spacing out students.


    Masks

    Students will be asked to wear a mask when they are on school grounds.  The only time students are allowed to remove their mask is during a drink, snack time, and mask breaks.  Cabot students are asked to bring two masks.  Students will wear one mask and bring a second mask to school as a backup.  Students are asked to bring a small ziplock bag to hold the mask when they are taking a mask break or eating.  Mask breaks will be provided for students throughout the day (at least twice) and other times as necessary.  NPS Mask Policy


    Nurse/Medications

    The school nurse will be in touch later this week to share the process to collect medications for those that need to keep medication in the building.


    Professional Development

    Staff participated in a variety of professional development opportunities the past few months to help ensure a successful start to the school year.  Professional development topics included: anti-racism, Seesaw, Google classroom, Math, Literacy, Social Emotional Learning, Responding to Trauma, Student safety,  Play, Culturally Responsive Teaching, and more.


    Recess

    Recess will be encouraged, but activities will limit the amount of time students are in close contact with one another to less than 10 minutes.  In addition, students will be required to wash their hands after recess.


    Schedules

    Class schedules are still a work in progress.  We do know hybrid A is in school from 8:20 - 12:30 Monday/Tuesday and hybrid B is in school 8:20 - 12:30 Thursday/Friday.  The remainder of the school day is remote learning.  Your child’s teacher will send you a more detailed schedule prior to the first day of school.


    Separation of students

    Classrooms are set up to have students seated at least 6 feet apart from one another.  An example is here or here.  At times students may pass each other in the classrooms, hallways, or at recess and be within 6 feet of peers.  Cabot students will be directed to avoid being within 6 feet of one another for more than 10 minutes.


    Shared materials

    To the extent possible, we limit sharing of electronic devices, toys, games, learning aids, art material and other items that are difficult to clean or disinfect. We will limit the use of supplies and equipment to one group of children at a time, and if possible clean and disinfect items between uses.  Books and paper-based materials are not considered a high risk for transmission and do not need additional cleaning.  Each child will be provided with their own bin of materials to use within the classroom.


    Signs

    We will have multiple signs around the building and in classrooms reminding students of the school expectations for safety, hand washing, and 6 feet of separation.


    Tents

    We have two tents at Cabot where classes will be able to have snacks/breaks/instruction.  We will have a set schedule that classes will follow to ensure students are spaced out appropriately.  In addition, we will have furniture for students to sit on and the PTO is looking into providing seat cushions for each child.


    Visitors

    Cabot is not able to allow parents or visitors to enter the building past the main office.  If you are picking up your child please come to the main entrance and your child will be brought to the office.  If you enter the building to pick up your child please wear a mask.


    Water

    Students are encouraged to bring water bottles that they can refill to school.  Refillable water stations will be working.  The water fountains will not be available.


    HYBRID STUDENT SCHEDULE SEPTEMBER 16, 17, 18

    Your child’s teacher will send you a schedule/zoom links by this Friday, September 11.


    SEPTEMBER 16

    All remote
    Cohorts A & B are introduced to norms & routines for their digital classroom (at different times, ~1 hour each)
    Cohorts A & B complete an independent, asynchronous task related to back-to-school. 
    Teachers begin calling parents/guardians to introduce themselves & briefly connect  

    SEPTEMBER 17

    COHORT A

    Cohort A visits building/practices arrival, dismissal & classroom routines - in person orientation
    Parent drop off child at grade level spot and pick up at dismissal spot (plaza)
    Kindergarten -  8:30 (drop-off) - 9:30 (pick up)
    Grades 1 - 5 - 8:45 (drop-off) - 9:45 (pick up)

    COHORT B

    Cohort B Digital classroom experience - online meeting via Zoom 
    Digital classroom activity
    45 minutes
    Time is TBD by classroom teacher (teacher will send the time/link)
    Teachers continue calling parents/guardians to introduce themselves & connect  
    Asynchronous orientation content is available for families to access  

    SEPTEMBER 18

    COHORT B

    Cohort B visits building/practices arrival, dismissal & classroom routines - in person orientation
    Parents drop off child at grade level spot and pick up at dismissal spot (plaza)
    Kindergarten -  8:30 (drop-off) - 9:30 (pick up)
    Grades 1 - 5 - 8:45 (drop-off) - 9:45 (pick up)

    COHORT A

    Cohort A Digital classroom experience - online meeting via Zoom 
    Digital classroom activity
    45 minutes 
    Time is TBD by classroom teacher (teacher will send the time/link)
    Teachers will continue calling parents/guardians to introduce themselves & connect  
    Asynchronous orientation content is available for families to access  

    Important Dates - Links to parent meetings will be sent this week

    Monday, September 14 METCO family meeting 7:00 PM 

    Tuesday, September 15 Parent Coffee 7:00 PM

    Wednesday, September 16 Virtual Orientation for all Hybrid Students (see below)

    Meeting with kindergarten parents 7:00 PM

    Thursday, September 17 In-Person orientation for Cohort A/Virtual Cohort B (see below)

    Meeting with New Cabot families (grades 1-5) 7:00 PM

    Friday, September 18 In-Person orientation for Cohort B/Virtual Cohort A (see below)

    Monday, September 21 Day 1 Grades K-2 Cohort A in school -- Cohort B on-line 

    learning; Grades 3-5 start on-line

    Monday, September 28 School Holiday - Rosh Hashanah

    Tuesday, September 29 Day 1 Grade 3-5 Hybrid Group A in building; Cohort B on-line

     

    DISTANCE LEARNING ACADEMY DATES 

    If your student is registered in the Distance Learning Academy, you will be receiving an email from the DLA principal (Jennifer Shore) shortly about staffing and other details.

    Wednesday, Sept. 16 - Friday, Sept. 18 - Virtual Orientation for Students in DLA
    Please watch your email for more information about specific times and schedule, including information about the structure and content of A & B days.

    Monday, Sept. 21 - 1st Day of Virtual Learning K-5
    Students in the DLA follow their schedule virtually according to their cohort assignment.