News from the Nest

• Monday, March 27 - Spring Pictures and Class Pictures
• Tuesday, March 28 - Spring Holiday Meal for 2nd Grade Families (more info to come!)
• Friday, March 31 - End of Grading Period/Quarter 2
• April 3-7 - Spring Break - No school
• Thursday, April 13 - 4th Grade Field Trip to TN
• Friday, April 21 - Leadership Day (more info to come!)
• Friday, April 28 - Weaverville Schools PTO hosts Spring Fling at Weaverville Primary!
• Friday, May 5 - Early Dismissal (12:25p)
• Friday, May 26 - Reading EOG for 3rd & 4th grades
• Monday, May 29 - No School (Memorial Day)
• Wednesday, May 31 - Math EOG for 3rd & 4th grades
• Friday, June 9 - Early Dismissal & Last Day of School

We are moving right along here at Weaverville Elementary School! The weather is warmer, and we're enjoying seeing our gardens and the trees coming back to life. We're also entering the final quarter of the year, and teachers will be submitting grades for the 3rd quarter on Friday, March 31. I hope you have plans for an enjoyable and relaxing spring break, and I'm looking forward to seeing everyone back on Monday, April 10th!

Here are some important reminders as we head into another great week:

• Picture Day is MONDAY (Tomorrow!): Students will be taking their class picture as well as individual spring pictures. More info is below, and there should have been some info in your child's folder. We also have extra copies in the front office.

• 2nd Grade Families: Our Spring Holiday Meal is this Tuesday. As happens with holiday meals, there's sometimes a bit of a wait. Please be patient and we'll do our best to be prepared and get families through the line as quickly as we can. Adult meals are $4.75, and non-student child meals are $4.25. The flyer below has more information. Here's the lunch schedule for each class:
• 12:05 - Hamilton
• 12:10 - Berzinski
• 12:15 - Wilson
• 12:20 - Swann
• 12:25 - Crayton
• 12:30 - Ingle

Repeat Reminders:

• On Friday, April 21st, our school will be hosting our annual "Leadership Day." The theme this year is, "The Farthest Bar" after Mr. Martin's poem of the same title. The event will start at 10 am, and wrap up with a whole-school lunch on the playground at 11:30. We'll have student displays of their clubs, leadership portfolios, and student jobs, and our chorus will sing as well. Mark your calendars, and we hope to see you there.

• EOG Assessment Dates Announced: As we wrap up the last half of the third quarter of the year, I want to remind families that it's super important that students are present for our state and district end-of-year assessments in May. 3rd and 4th grade families: Please plan to have your child attend the last 10 days of school.
• Friday, May 26 - Reading EOG for 3rd & 4th Grades
• Wednesday, May 31 - Math EOG for 3rd & 4th Grades

Thanks for all you do to support your child's success at school each day!

-Mary Nichols

Principal

Weaverville Elementary

Previous Weeks' News from the Nest

Dear 4th Grade Families,

We are so excited about our 4th grade trip coming up quickly on Thursday, April 13th. Our students are sure to have an amazing time together! Please take a minute to read my expectations about devices on the field trip:

• Students will not be allowed to have devices (phones, ipads, ipods). We want students engaged with each other and the trip activities. Smartwatches are ok, but we are not responsible for lost or stolen items.
  
• If there is an emergency, all 4th grade teachers have phones and Ms. Benfield will be on the trip as well. If a student is ill or needs to call home, our staff can use their phones to communicate.
• If a student wants to bring a camera, we recommend disposable cameras.
• If a student brings a digital camera, please know we can't be responsible for it if it's stolen or lost.

I know that having your child on a trip without their phone can feel stressful. As an educator for 19 years, I have gone on many day-long and overnight field trips with elementary and middle school students. I have seen such positive outcomes from having students leave their devices at home during school trips. The purpose of the trip is both educational and social, and we know that our students' interactions with the world around them will be greatly limited if they have the option to be on their devices. I hope you can support me in this request as you prepare your child for the trip. It will be a fun day and many memories are sure to be made.

Thank you for your support with this request,

Mary Nichols

For our families, adults and students who don't have access to dental: Zoe Dental has a free clinic on Saturday, April 22nd. Registration starts at 7 am but many people line up much earlier. Each person can receive a free cleaning OR extraction OR filling. People should bring warm clothes, a chair, snacks and drinks as they will be waiting outside until they are seen. Questions? Contact Laura Cleaveland, Spanish Speaking Social Worker - 828-777-2698 cell.

Weaverville Schools Counselors are looking for volunteers who would like to be a mentor to our students. Here's more information! Please let us know if you are interested.

• Free/Reduced Lunch Application: www.lunchapplication.com
• Please do not check your child out between 1:55-2:55 so that we can have a safe and calm dismissal for students each day.
• Please always let us know in writing if there is a transportation change for your child.
• Please let us know by 1:00 pm if you are changing your child's regular dismissal procedure.

Thank you for taking time to read the BCS letter that was sent this past week about inclement weather closures and what happens for student learning on those days when the school building is closed. In order to prepare for those kinds of days, our teachers are being proactive and we want you to know how to access information about remote learning if the need arises.

• Let your child’s teacher know if you need a hot spot. We depend on you letting us know this information. I encourage you to do this sooner rather than later.

  
  

• Make sure your child knows how to sign onto the internet at your home, using your child’s school issued device. Teachers have been sending devices home to make sure students know how to log on from home.

  
  

• Read your child’s teacher’s emails about where to find information like the schedule and other remote learning resources. Teachers will be sending this information home by December 9th.
  

• Take care of your child's device. Please read this letter from Buncombe County Schools about the importance of taking care of school-issued devices. Our school must pay for all damage to devices, and in some circumstances, if damage results from neglect or inappropriate use, we will send a bill to parents.

To keep us all prepared, I’ve put together all the remote learning information in one place.

Use this link to find information about remote learning at WvES.

Thank you for taking the time to be prepared for remote learning days!

Don't forget that our students, staff, and visitors have access to masks all day long. We have regular 3-ply masks and KN95 masks available. Masks are available in the front office, and we have reminders at hand-sanitizing stations that you can get a mask in the front office.

If a student requests a KN95 mask, we must have parent permission since it is considered a respirator. Parents must complete the Voluntary Respirator Use Form and sign and return. Here is a link to the form. If a student requests a KN95 mask, and we do not already have the form on file, we will email it to parent/guardians for you to sign.

Phone: 828-645-3127

Address: 129 South Main St., Weaverville, NC 28787

Email:

Mary Nichols - Principal (Mary.nichols@bcsemail.org)

*Please email both office staff if you have a dismissal change.

Dawn Flanigan-Bryson - Data Manager (dawn.flanigan-bryson@bcsemail.org)

• attendance
• student information/records
• immunizations
• enrollment

Ashley Mendoza - Head Secretary (Ashley.mendoza@bcsemail.org)

• general inquiries
• money questions related to school
• bus questions

• If a student tests positive for COVID (at home or at a healthcare provider), they would isolate for 5 days from when their symptoms began. We will recognize the guidelines established by the CDC and NCDHHS regarding the use of a face covering to be worn for days 6-10 upon return to school.
  
  

• Our normal exclusionary symptoms of fever, diarrhea, and vomiting are in effect. If a student has a fever, diarrhea, or vomiting, they must remain at home until symptoms are resolved for 24 hours.
  
  

• Hand hygiene, enhanced cleaning protocols, and improved ventilation are all still priorities and important mitigating strategies.
  
  

• Face coverings remain optional, to be worn by anyone at anytime.
  
  

• Physical distancing such as 3 ft or 6 ft apart is no longer required.
  
  

• Contact tracing is not required.
  
  

• Following the guidelines established by the CDC and NCDHHS, MAHEC will not be providing rapid antigen testing in our schools. Staff and families may order at home tests for free via this link: https://www.covid.gov/tests.
  
  

• MAHEC will send home further guidance regarding when students need to stay home due to an illness.

• For students where an absence is Covid related please indicate this in your parent or health provider's note.

• Students/teachers will follow the same guidelines for makeup work as they would for any other illness or injury.