Paola Middle School

Newsletter

Solar Eclipse @ Paola Middle School

Monday, August 21, 2017

Paola Middle School Staff are planning for this once-in-a-lifetime eclipse event! Staff are aware of the dangers of viewing the eclipse and are planning on reviewing the following safety guidelines with students Monday prior to experiencing the eclipse. If parents or guardians do not want their student to participate, this can be indicated on the attached form and alternate activities inside will be arranged.

Looking directly at the sun is unsafe except during the brief total phase of a solar eclipse (“totality”), when the moon entirely blocks the sun’s bright face, which will happen only within the narrow path of totality (https://go.nasa.gov/2pC0lhe). Paola is not in this path of Totality so students will be instructed to use glasses any time they will be looking up.

The only safe way to look directly at the uneclipsed or partially eclipsed sun is through special-purpose solar filters, such as “eclipse glasses” or hand-held solar viewers. Homemade filters or ordinary sunglasses, even very dark ones, are not safe for looking at the sun; they transmit thousands of times too much sunlight.

Safety Guidelines Paola Middle School Staff will share:

Always inspect your solar filter before use; if scratched or damaged, discard it. Read and follow any instructions printed on or packaged with the filter.
Children will be supervised while using solar filters.
Stand still and cover your eyes with your eclipse glasses or solar viewer before looking up at the bright sun. After looking at the sun, turn away and remove your filter — do not remove it while looking at the sun.
Do not look at the uneclipsed or partially eclipsed sun through an unfiltered camera, telescope, binoculars, or other optical device.
Similarly, do not look at the sun through a camera, a telescope, binoculars, or any other optical device while using your eclipse glasses or hand-held solar viewer — the concentrated solar rays will damage the filter and enter your eye(s), causing serious injury.
Outside the path of totality, you must always use a safe solar filter to view the sun directly.
If you normally wear eyeglasses, keep them on. Put your eclipse glasses on over them, or hold your handheld viewer in front of them.

We have made special arrangements with the USD368 Food Service to serve sack lunches on Monday so that our students can fully experience the eclipse. On the Eclipse Form please indicate if your child will be ordering a school sack lunch Monday or bringing a lunch from home. This form needs to be returned, signed, Thursday so the kitchen can plan accordingly.

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Student Chromebook Distribution

Student Chromebooks will be distributed Thursday morning to all students who have a returned Chromebook Agreement Form. If you are new to this initiative or would like to review the information shared last year, you can refer to the USD368 Web Page.

STUDENT 1:1 INITIATIVE