Happy New Year!
Happy New Year! I hope everyone has had a restful break, and you are now looking forward to heading back to school. As we begin 2021 together, I know that we are going to have a fabulous rest of the school year. Thank you to all staff and families for your efforts and supports in keeping Bradner a healthy and safe building for everyone, as well as a positive place for students to learn and grow. Although we have faced challenges, we have faced them together, and our school community remains united and working together! It is humbling to be a part of such an amazing team!
As we begin January back to school, I would ask parents to keep a few things in mind, given that we must continue to be mindful of virus transmission, and that we all wish to continue to be successful in minimizing the opportunity for transmission within our school.
We will be continuing with a soft start to our mornings, and we encourage you all to take advantage of this. No need to rush to school by the bell time! Students in all classrooms begin their day by hanging up their things, changing their shoes and washing their hands. As you can imagine, this looks very different when all 20 or more students arrive at the bell and enter the classroom together, as compared to trickling in a few at a time over a 15 minute period of time. With the first scenario, crowded coat areas, line ups at the sinks and of course, human desire to visit upon arrival, creates crowding and opportunity for touching and speaking too closely together. Students who arrive in a more staggered manner more easily maintain space, and get their routines done without so many close interactions. Your child will not miss anything critical during those first 15 minutes, as they will be used for a variety of practice and choice activities. Please take advantage of this more laid back school arrival, and take it easy some mornings. You have an extra 15 minutes!
Similarly, after school we will continue to dismiss in a staggered manner. Divisions 4 and 5 will be out to the parking lot at 3:00, following by Division 3 at 3:03 and Divisions 1 and 2 at 3:05. This has worked quite well so far, with most parents being able to drive through the parking lot and pick up their children without even parking. If you do need to park to wait for multiple students, please remain at your vehicle as much as possible, Teachers are out there helping me to make sure all students find their vehicle safely.
Our school playground remains closed to everyone during the time period between dismissal and the last bus leaving (about 3:30). Please help by not visiting the playground before 3:30.
We are also asking all students to keep their personal toys at home. Unless requested by the teacher for a unique purpose, bringing toys to school invites sharing and this is a tricky thing during these times. No one wants to say "don't share" to a child, but for now, we need to minimize physical contact between students, and restricting the sharing of food and toys is one way to help accomplish this. This is not really anything new, as bringing personal items to school has always been discouraged for a variety of reasons. It has simply become more important to enforce it this year.
Finally, please continue to keep your child at home if they are sick with anything that might be contagious. Again, this is expected practice any year, but especially important this year as we all strive to keep our immune systems strong and healthy. Our community has been exceptional about this and your willingness to monitor and respond to your child's health needs (even when it is just the sniffles!) is so appreciated.
You are always welcome to contact your child's teacher, or the office, if you have any questions or concerns. We ask that you please continue to make an appointment if you wish to speak to someone in person. We are always happy to have you in the building, with this one added step!
I am looking forward to seeing everyone on Monday!
Mrs. Jordan