UPCOMING DATES

Date	Event	Time
9/30/2020	Library Book Bag Checkout: Last Name A-L	1-3 PM
10/1/2020	Library Book Bag Checkout: Last Name M-Z	1-3 PM

 

LETTER FROM OUR PRINCIPAL

Dear Glencoe Families,

Congratulations, you have finished your first full week of Distance Learning! As many of you know, our word of the month was introduced in our Monthly Assembly Video this week. I am sure you can guess why we chose PERSEVERANCE. These past few weeks have been a real test in doing hard things and not giving up! I want to thank you for supporting your child and helping to facilitate their learning. Supporting your child’s educational journey has looked much different than it does right now and we appreciate your partnership. 

I also want to applaud your child and our staff who have had to “flip” their classrooms, practices and learning habits into a virtual setting. If you haven’t watched the Wednesday Morning Meeting Assembly video with your child, I encourage you to do so. At the end of the video Ms. Gardner invited students to share a perseverance experience with us through a program called Flipgrid. We’d love it if you and/or your child submitted a Flipgrid response about perseverance.  Here is a LINK, to do just that: https://flipgrid.com/a9c9d204

There have been some questions and confusion about our Specials (PE, music & library) Live Classes & Specials NON-Live lessons/Activities: I am hoping I can clarify your child’s schedule when it comes to these classes. 

Subject	LIVE CLASS Found in Google Meets (synchronous)	NOT LIVE: found in Seesaw (asynchronous)
PE	Google Meets Code: mpg	Clever Portal: Seesaw Click on child’s name, top left corner of screen Find Class that says PE (Lile) & click on it  Click on “activities” top right and it takes you to the lesson/activity for the week
Music	Google Meets Code: mpg	Clever Portal: Seesaw Click on child’s name, top left corner of screen Find Class that says Music (Davidson) & click on it  Click on “activities” top right, and it takes you to the lesson/activity for the week.
Library	NONE Provided	Clever Portal: Seesaw Click on child’s name, top left corner of screen Find Class that says Library (Griffon) & click on it.  Click on “activities” top right, and it takes you to the lesson/activity for the week

When the class is LIVE it will say “LIVE” on their schedule.

●       Kinder & 1st Grade have 2 LIVE specials classes a week. During the LIVE specials class they will see both PE & Music teachers.

●       2nd - 5th graders have 1 LIVE PE and 1 LIVE Music a week.

When the class is NOT LIVE it will say Seesaw PE or Seesaw Music. Then the student should go to Seesaw and access the assigned lesson or activity. Library will always be found in Seesaw.

If you have questions or things are not going well when it comes to these classes, please contact the Specials teachers directly. The best way is through their email:

Mrs. Davidson (Music): ldavidso@pps.net

Mrs. Lile (PE): alile@pps.net

Ms. Layman (PE): mlayman@pps.net

Ms. Griffon (Library): cgriffon@pps.net

Glencoe is starting our “Let’s Get Reading Again” program the week of September 28th. Students will be able to check out grade level book bags for two weeks at a time. We will have pick up and drop off times organized by child’s last name on Wednesday and Thursday afternoons from 1-3, every other week. You can find specific information about the program in your child’s Library Class in Seesaw.

Originally, we had planned to hold this year’s Back to School Night this coming week. With only one full week of distance learning under our belts, we have decided to reschedule our Virtual Back to School Night (BTSN). Our hope is to give families, students and staff more time to acclimate to the expectations and settle into the routines. We also want to make sure we have a clear picture of the information you will want or need so we can be most effective at communicating with you during that time.   If you have questions or wonderings between now and then, please contact me, the office or your child’s teacher.

Our REVISED Virtual BTSN schedule is as follows:

Monday, October 5	Tuesday, October 6	Wednesday, October 7	Thursday, October 8	Friday, October 9
2nd Grade	5th Grade	Kindergarten & 4th Grade	1st Grade & 3rd Grade	NO SCHOOL

Warmly,

Lori Clark

Glencoe Principal

lclark@pps.net

NEWS FROM THE NURSE

Hi from Nurse Jenny! Hope you are all staying safe and healthy! This year we are able to provide an online student health condition portal for parents/guardians to complete forms for their students. https://www.multnomahesd.org/shs-boy-919413.html  You can email completed forms and any questions directly to me at jhoesly@mesd.k12.or.us.

The following is a great link with lots of information on air quality and wildfire effects. The section for Reducing Health Effects of Wildfire Smoke is especially important with our current air quality index of hazardous to very unhealthy. 

https://www.oregon.gov/oha/ph/Preparedness/Prepare/Pages/PrepareForWildfire.aspx

 

Special PTA meeting on Thursday, October 1st at 7:30pm via Zoom to elect new board members for the 2020 - 2021 school year. The PTA put out a call in August to fill several vacancies on the PTA board for this school year and these three parents stepped forward. They are Mackenzie Weintraub, kindergarten parent, for Co-president, Whitney Stark, kindergarten and 2nd grade parent, for Co-president, and Anna York, 3rd grade parent, for Secretary. If other parents are interested in running for these positions or the other unfilled board positions of Family Ambassador and Volunteer Coordinator, please let us know prior to the meeting.

 

In order to vote, you must be a PTA member in good standing. If you were a member last year, your membership is good through 10/31/20. If you are not yet a member or would like to renew your membership, the membership form is attached to this email or you can join online at https://www.oregonpta.org/membership. Cost is $15 per year per person.  Please note this meeting is focused solely on the election. There will be a general PTA meeting in mid-October, date TBD, to welcome new parents, go over the upcoming school year, and approve the 2020-2021 budget. 

 

Zoom link for the meeting Thursday, October 1st at 7:30pm

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83148077929?pwd=dXg5aGtvcitPbThuMCtoUWZJUHFrUT09

Dear Glencoe Families,

We have come to the end of our Soft Start schedule and teachers are ready to move into our Comprehensive Distance Learning schedules. By now you have met with your child’s teacher, your child has participated in some daily class meetings and practiced completing some activities in Seesaw.    All of this is not without effort on everyone’s part so I want to say thank you to all of you, your child(ren) and our staff. This year will definitely be a collective adventure. 

On Monday, we are actually starting our new school year and it is likely to be more challenging than any we have experienced in our lifetimes. Educators are teaching in ways that are new and different.   Students are learning from home, which is a new experience for most. And, families are worried and concerned about doing what is “right” or “best” for their child as they step into an additional role and facilitate this new learning adventure. 

I know you have received your child’s weekly schedule (as it stands for the coming week) and understand that school begins at 8:15 AM with a live whole group meeting for all students. We strongly recommend that you approach the school day as you would during a traditional school year, waking your child, getting dressed, eating breakfast and making sure they have what they need for school (books, supplies etc.). Also, helping them with independence. Just like when you drop them at the school or classroom door, you are having them sit independently (yes, you can be next to or nearby), toys removed and attention is given to the teacher and their classmates. 

If you have questions about your child’s schedule, or something does not seem clear, please contact your child’s teacher directly. As I said last week, everyone’s family circumstances are different, students are learning from a variety of places and with a range of support from adults. You are our main point of contact when it comes to your child so we will be communicating directly with you. If your child is being supervised by an adult other than you during the school day, I want to encourage you to share the school and teachers’ communications with them so they are best able to support your child.  

In order for any of us to get the most of our day, we need to feel safe and secure, and be emotionally and mentally ready to process and learn.   There are a great many things that have people worried right now.  Along with COVID and our day-to-day rituals being adjusted, we have fires raging all over Oregon and the news, smoke & air quality are constant reminders.  Kids and adults are showing stress and anxiety in a myriad of ways.  Your child may want to talk and process this and it is important to give time and space for this to happen.  Mrs. Gardner, our school counselor shared this article about how we can talk to kids about the feelings they are experiencing and suggests ways to help the fear go away.  https://www.insiderfamilies.com/how-to-talk-to-children-about-wildfires/  Mrs. Gardner also put together a little video for you to share with your child introducing herself and a great book called “The Anxiety Spot”.   You can find it HERE. 

I’d also like to offer this article for any of you who are feeling stressed or anxious. It can be additionally challenging to take care of others when we aren’t feeling safe or secure ourselves. 

Know that we are here for you. If you are needing supports or resources for any reason, please feel free to contact your child’s teacher, Mrs. Gardner at sgardner@pps.net or me. We are all in this together!

Warmly,

Lori Clark

Glencoe Principal

lclark@pps.net

 

 

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. 

Dear PPS Families,

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. 

Dear PPS Families,

As we shift from the soft start into ongoing virtual learning, families have shared questions about the middle grades schedules. We know you are essential partners in student learning, and we want to ensure you have answers to these commonly asked questions in one place. In case you are interested in state guidance behind the PPS schedules, we have linked information below for your reference.

Dear PPS Families,