9/25/20: Inside this Issue

• School News (NEW)
• Upcoming Dates (NEW)
• Websites to Know
• Childcare Update (NEW)
• Update for Nutrition Services Fall 2020 (NEW)
• Latina/o Community COVID-19 Test Event, October 1 & 3 (NEW)
• Student Health Assistant Amy Liber Office Hours (NEW)
• From the Library: It’s Time for Book Bags
• Roosevelt Student Health Center Open for Health Service
• MS adults: Add yourself as an observer to students’ Canvas courses
• Story Walk
• Counseling resources
• Anti-Racist Reading and Resources (NEW)
• SES PTSA News (NEW)

School News (NEW)
Dear Sunnyside Community:

We hope you are taking care of yourselves, each other and finding strength and balance in these tough times. 

Because of all the changes and newness this school year, we look forward to connecting with you at Back to School Night.  Please know we are working to find dates and times that don’t conflict with other schools and community events.  We will be scheduling different grade levels on different evenings, and hope to make this virtual event relevant and worthwhile.  We will send you detailed information within the next week.

Thank you,
Alix and Amy

Upcoming Dates (NEW)
Check the school online calendar here.

Websites to Know

• District COVID Resources & Info
• PPS Family Resources Page
• Sunnyside School Page

Childcare Update (NEW)
In addition to community child care programs that are available citywide, seven partner organizations will offer licensed child care in 11 PPS schools during Comprehensive Distance Learning. The programs will be phased in starting next week: 

• Sept. 28: Beach, Creston, King, Rigler 
• Oct. 5: Hayhurst, James John, MLC, Vestal, Winterhaven
• Oct. 12: Irvington, Lent

To register for child care, click on the flyer below. Information below is included on the flyer. 
English | Español | Tiếng Việt | 中文 | Русский | Soomaal

Child care programs:

• Accept children ages 5 - 12.
• Enroll no more than 30-40 students per school.
• Set aside 50% of the slots for families qualifying for state subsidies. Low rates last for one year if subsidy is approved by Oct. 31, 2020. State subsidy application is here.
• Enroll PPS students and children of PPS employees regardless of which school children are enrolled in.
• Follow strict licensing guidelines including stable cohorts, face coverings, hand hygiene, routine cleaning and sanitation, parent drop-off/pick-up outside of the school building.

SUN site managers, coordinators and community agents have been trained to support families in accessing child care, whether in a PPS building or in the community. In addition, child care staff have been trained on supporting students during distance learning. 

For more information, visit the PPS Child Care website.
 

Update for Nutrition Services Fall 2020 (NEW)
English | Español | Tiếng Việt | 中文 | Русский | Soomaali

As the 2020-21 school year gets under way, we are excited to share news about school meals. Through our partnership with the United States Department of Agriculture, we will be able to provide school meals for all students at no cost at this time.

The USDA announced that it is continuing a program that made free breakfast and lunch available to all children during the summer. For Portland Public Schools, that means we will be able to offer seven days’ worth of meals every week for not just PPS students, but all Portland children ages 1-18.

As we announced in August, we have expanded our meals sites to 38 schools where families can pick up sacks of breakfast and lunch on select days, from 3 to 5 p.m.

Our regular meal service schedule will be:

• Mondays: 2 days’ worth of food
• Wednesdays: 2 days’ worth of food
• Fridays: 3 three days’ worth of food

The complete list of meal pickup sites is available at our Fall 2020 Meals webpage. Families are welcome to visit any school site for meals, regardless of whether their children attend that school. There is no need to sign up, register or provide student ID when you arrive. All sites are outside, and we ask that you wear a facemask and practice physical distancing as you pick up meals.
 
We will continue to inform you of any updates or changes to meal service. For more information or support, please contact the Nutrition Services department at 503-916-3399 or nutritionservices@pps.net.

Latina/o Community COVID-19 Test Event, October 1 & 3 (NEW)
Estamos muy contentos de compartir sobre el próximo evento de prueba COVID-19 de la comunidad latina / latina el 1 y 3 de octubre de 2020. Trabajando en asociación con Legacy Health, Latino Network, El Programa Hispano y Familias en Acción, Oregon Latino Health Coalition ofrecerá pruebas de COVID-19 que serán gratis y seguras para residentes latinos / latinos / a del condado de Multnomah. Todos son bienvenidos independientemente de su edad o estatus migratorio y toda la información se mantendrá confidencial y no se compartirá con los funcionarios de inmigración ni con la policía.

We are excited to share about the upcoming Latinx/Latino/a Community COVID-19 Test event on October 1st and 3rd, 2020. Working in partnership with Legacy Health, Latino Network, El Programa Hispano, and Familias en Accion, Oregon Latino Health Coalition will be providing safe and free on-site drive thru COVID-19 testing for Latinx/o/a Multnomah County residents. All are welcome regardless of age or immigration status and all information will be kept confidential and will not be shared with immigration officials nor the police.

Click here for more information.

Student Health Assistant Amy Liber Office Hours (NEW)
Hello Sunnyside Community,

As this school year gets rolling along, I am excited to let you know that I will be having Zoom office hours every Tues, Wed, and Thurs from 12-1 until November. This is a chance to stop into my virtual office and ask questions, connect, say Hi, or just stop in for some silliness in your day. Just like my office at school, I would love to see your beautiful faces and connect, even if just for a brief moment. It is during a lunch hour so feel free to bring your chow—no one needs to have lunch alone!

Adults are absolutely welcome to come in and chat, connect, ask questions, etc. (if you are needing more time or privacy, just let me know and we can set up an individual meeting).

New students and kindergarteners are also encouraged—I am excited to meet our newest Sunnyside people! My email is still available to reach out with any concerns: aliber@mesd.k12.or.us. I hope to see you all soon!

Topic: SHA Amy Liber office hours
Every T, W, Th from 12pm-1pm
Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 977 8366 6529
Passcode: 368453

From the Library: It’s Time for Book Bags
It's time for BOOK BAGS! Becky and I have been hard at work packing bags of books for every student at our school and we are ready to get started with our Sunnyside Reads! Book Bag Program. Beginning next week we will roll out book bag pick up days to students. Every student is eligible to pick up a bag weekly! In order to keep things safe, please make sure you stick to your book bag day, that you store your books in the bag when not in use and that you not add additional books to the bag. 

A few items to note:

• Per current CDC information books will be quarantined for 96 hours before they are checked, adjusted if necessary, cleaned and sent out again. 
• If you lose a book, please let us know so we can add a new book to the bag before it goes out again. There are no fines during Distance Learning but please make every effort to return your books. 
• If you have library books from last year please bring them with you anytime you come to pick up or return book bags, there will be a bin provided for returns. 
• If you can't come during the pickup/drop off hours, please email Gillian at ggrimm@pps.net and we will figure out a way to get books to your kids!

Book Bag Schedule: 

• Monday, Sept 21st: Kindergarten through 2nd grade ONLY, Families with last names A-M
• Friday, Sept 25th: Kindergarten through 2nd grade ONLY, Families with last names N-Z
• Monday, Sept 28th: 3rd-8th ONLY, Families with last names A-M
• Friday, Oct 2nd: 3rd-8th 3-8th ONLY, Families with last names N-Z
• All following Mondays: Families with last names A-M
• All following Fridays: Families with last names N-Z

All pickup days will have the hours of 9:30-12 and 4-6. Please come to the Library Playground Doors for pick up and please practice social distancing. 

Roosevelt Student Health Center Open for Health Service
This fall, while schools are engaged in Comprehensive Distance Learning, PPS Roosevelt Student Health Center will be open starting Monday, September 14th for phone, video and in-person visits. Monday-Thursday  8:45 am-4:45 pm and Friday for phone and video appointments only. Call 503-988-3909 to make an appointment. 

Any Multnomah County K-12 youth can visit the center and there are no out of pocket costs. We also can connect students and their families with community resources for food or help with medical insurance. 

Student Health Centers at David Douglas & Parkrose high schools are also open. For more information visit https://multco.us/health/student-health-centers. Stay connected via Facebook and Instagram.

Link to fliers in multiple languages: English | Español | 中文 | Русский | Soomaali | Tiếng Việt

MS adults: Add yourself as an observer to students’ Canvas courses
It is highly recommended that middle school students’ adults follow this guide to add themselves to their students’ Canvas accounts. This will allow adults to follow all of their students' courses with ease, viewing course content, assignments, feedback and grades in Canvas. 

Story Walk
Ready to get outside after all that smoke? The Sunnyside Story Walk is the perfect way to stretch your legs, do a little reading and have some fun! Our Story Walk features Matt de la Pena’s beautiful book Love and each stop shows a new page! Take a smart phone and scan for a map with suggested route and read-alongs as you go or follow the clues on the signs to find the next stop! Start at Sunnyside with our welcome sign in front of the Chicken Coop! Please remember to practice social distancing and be aware of traffic! Have fun and Happy Reading!! Download the map here.
- Gillian 

Counseling Resources
SES Counselors Rebecca Johnson and Ashley Bevan want to share the following resources. Please use them if you're needing extra support:

• Rebecca’s email: rjohnson10@pps.net 
• Ashley’s email: abevan@pps.net
• SES Counseling site
• Resources focused on the wildfires affecting Oregon:
  • Oregon state wildfire resource list
  • Information consolidated and managed by @GlowSaepharn on Twitter
  • American School Counselor association: Natural disasters and helping kids during crisis
  • Wildfire damage housing relief
  • List of temporary shelters

Anti-Racist Reading and Resources (NEW)
Vanity Fair’s September issue, The Great Fire, is a special project about Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, the Black Lives Matter movement, and more. Edited by Ta-Nehisi Coates, the issue features work by Kiese Laymon, Jesmyn Ward, Hank Willis Thomas, Angela Davis, Ava DuVernay and more. Amy recommends the entire issue, particularly Minneapolis Street Art During and After the BLM Protests, by poet Danez Smith.

Estimados amigos y socios de la comunidad:

Estamos muy contentos de compartir sobre el próximo evento de prueba COVID-19 de la comunidad latina / latina el 1 y 3 de octubre de 2020. Trabajando en asociación con Legacy Health, Latino Network, El Programa Hispano y Familias en Acción, Oregon Latino Health Coalition ofrecerá pruebas de COVID-19 que serán gratis y seguras para residentes latinos / latinos / a del condado de Multnomah. Todos son bienvenidos independientemente de su edad o estatus migratorio y toda la información se mantendrá confidencial y no se compartirá con los funcionarios de inmigración ni con la policía.

 A continuación, encontrará más información sobre quién puede hacerse la prueba, qué traer y qué esperar en el evento. ¡Gracias por compartir esta oportunidad!

Quién puede hacerse la prueba:

• La prueba es gratuita y no necesita seguro

• Puede hacerse la prueba incluso si no tiene síntomas de COVID-19. Por ejemplo, si cree que ha estado en contacto con alguien que tiene COVID-19 o si recibió una llamada del departamento de salud que le informa que puede haber estado expuesto.

Que traer:

• Use una máscara o una cubierta facial si puede

• Traiga una identificación válida

• Traiga su mensaje de texto o correo electrónico de confirmación si puede.

Qué esperar en el evento:

• Si se inscribió para una cita en línea o por teléfono, el personal le pedirá ver su mensaje de texto o correo electrónico de confirmación, o puede decirles su nombre, fecha de nacimiento y dirección.

• Se requiere preinscripción. Regístrese en línea en https://COVIDtestschedule.as.me/LatinxEvent o llame a Misty Silva en Latino Network al 503-703-2995 o Anakaren Gutierrez en Oregon Latino Health Coalition al 971-732-2124.

• La fecha límite de inscripción es el 30 de septiembre de 2020 a las 5 p.m.

• Llegue al sitio cerca de la hora de su visita programada. El personal lo registrará cuando llegue y le dirá adónde ir. Los sitios de prueba están diseñados para garantizar el distanciamiento social y la limpieza adecuada para mantenerlo a salvo.

• Un trabajador de la salud insertará suavemente lo que parece un Qtip largo en la nariz y lo hará girar durante unos segundos para obtener una buena muestra. Luego se extraerá y se colocará en un frasco para enviarlo a un laboratorio para su análisis.

Averiguar el resultado de su prueba:

• Los resultados tardarán unas 72 horas.

• Si los resultados son positivos, nuestro equipo lo llamará al número que dio durante el registro. Responda todas las llamadas en los próximos días, incluso si no reconoce el número.

• Si es negativo, se le enviarán los resultados por correo. También publicaremos un aviso en el sitio web de Oregon Latino Health Coalition cuando todos los resultados estén disponibles y cada persona positiva haya sido contactada.

• Los resultados de su prueba no se comparten con nadie fuera de su departamento de salud pública. No compartimos su información con otras agencias gubernamentales, empleadores o proveedores de atención médica.

Good morning SES families,

By now, each family should have heard from their teacher in regard to the basic structure of the soft start, 9/2--9/11. Most of you should have heard from your child's core teacher already and scheduled a time for a family distanced home visit or digital meeting. With 530+ families across 9 grade levels, the soft start schedules across our school vary dramatically based on student age; because of this we asked our teachers to contact you last Friday and this week instead of sending a large communication from the office. From now on, you can expect a family newsletter every Friday that will contain important information, and we are also building a parent/guardian resource page on our website. The PPS website contains a lot of additional information about meal distribution, resources for technology assistance, and other COVID related, district-wide supports and announcements. 

Some elements of the final schedule at each grade are still in flux for two reasons: 1) as a staff we chose to build our final, distance learning schedules responsively, in a way that includes your input as a family. While doing this takes a little more time, we chose to invest this time because it is critical to have your input and to better understand individual family needs. Your child's final, synchronous group times (time on screen with the teacher) will come to you by 9/11/20, after your teacher has time to gather information from your family and create a classroom schedule that is as responsive as possible, 2) some details are still being worked out at the district level. This includes negotiation processes for contract amendments for certain work groups and other workload details for various employees. I do know that some families are hoping for concrete, full distance learning schedule information as soon as possible. While it may feel like you are getting information "slowly" right now, I assure you that this is an intentional investment in your family, one that allows us to create detailed, individual weekly schedules for students that honor your input. Thank you for your patience. This is a difficult and unprecedented time for our school, our state and our nation. Our main goal is to center your child and the needs of your family. We are using the soft start to gather input as quickly as we possibly can. 

Today I am able to share the general "architecture" of the full distance learning week for every student, K-8, beginning 9/14:

--The student day begins at 9:30 am, Monday--Friday. Your child will always start in a class meeting with their homeroom teacher, and this will always be at 9:30.

--The student day ends at 3:15 pm, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Wednesdays are district wide meetings and professional development for all staff beginning at 1:30 pm. Your student may have asynchronous/independent work on Wednesdays from 1:30--3:15, but they will not be assigned to any learning with a teacher on screen after 1:30 pm on Wednesdays. 

--For every student, the full digital day will be a mixture of synchronous and asynchronous learning with a lunch period midday. Synchronous means that the student is on screen with a teacher, asynchronous means that students will be working on assignments independently, not on screen with a teacher or peers. Some synchronous learning will be in whole class format, but most of it will be done in smaller learning groups. Your teacher will share your child's specific, synchronous learning schedule and their assigned small groups with you by Friday, September 11. Again, the reason this will come to you at the end of the soft start is so we can get your input and best tailor your child's individual schedule to your family needs. 

--We know that many families have childcare needs and are working within your own, small communities and extended families to share childcare with others in a COVID safe way. The master schedule accounts for this; regardless of whether children are assigned to the same core teacher, the majority of the grade level schedule mirrors that of the other classrooms in your child's grade over the course of the week. This allows for students to be in digital school, side by side, usually working in the same subject area across all classrooms at that grade level. This was an important accommodation to work into our master, weekly schedule based on input from many families at Sunnyside. Another way to say this: even if your child is not in the same homeroom as another student in their grade level, the schedules will be similar and students will be able to work side by side on similar subjects during the week. 

--The teacher day at SES is from 8:30 am to 4:15 pm. Your teacher will provide you with their specific, weekly times available for family calls, meetings and connection as we move to full distance learning on 9/14. 

Lastly, next week our administrative team is offering optional, drop in sessions for parents/guardians. These sessions do not have a formal agenda--these are times where you can drop in with questions, concerns or anything that is coming up for you or your child. Again, these sessions are optional and we will be using Google meet as our digital platform. We are offering 2 sessions per grade band in the hopes that we can accommodate working families and the vast array of family schedule constraints. For digital privacy reasons, I am not putting the codes into this email as it will also be displayed on our school website later today. You can expect the codes for these meetings to come via email through your child's homeroom teacher by the end of this week. The schedule is as follows:

Tuesday, 9/8, optional drop in for 1st/2nd grade families: 

session 1- 12:30--1:30 pm, session 2- 6:30-7:30 pm

Wednesday, 9/9, optional drop in for 3rd, 4th and 5th grade families:

session 1- 12:30--1:30 pm, session 2- 6:30-7:30 pm

Thursday, 9/10, optional drop in for 6th-8th grade families: 

session 1- 12:30-1:30 pm, session 2- 6:30-7:30 pm

Friday, 9/11, optional drop in for KG families:

session 1- 12:30-1:30 pm, session 2- *5:30 pm (earlier than the other grade levels to accommodate the weekend)

***digital codes for all meetings will come via email, through your child's homeroom teacher.

Thank you for your patience and support and I look forward to seeing you and your children. Today was our 6th grade orientation--it filled me with joy to see our students again, even if only from the neck up. 

Warmly,
Amy Kleiner, Principal
Alix Pickett, Assistant Principal

Dear PPS Families,

We want to update you on our progress on the Enrollment and Program Balancing project we have undertaken. As we have previously announced, our initial work is focused on schools in Southeast Portland in advance of the reopening of Kellogg Middle School.

Dear PPS Middle School Families,

We apologize for the confusion many students and families are feeling with regard to middle school schedules and expectations for distance learning instruction. We have worked with educators and administrators throughout this week to come to a more clear understanding related to middle school learning experience, and want to make sure you know what to expect as well.

Dear PPS Parents and Guardians,

As we welcome students back to the new school year, an important step for teachers is to understand your student’s most essential learning needs. To collect this valuable information, students will take Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) assessments. The MAP assessment is a low stakes test – this means that the results are not used for grading students or for school accountability purposes.