Castleton Village School

Dear Slate Valley Families, As the pandemic wears on, I know that the coming months may be especially difficult for everyone in our Slate Valley Community. I so appreciate all of your efforts and diligence as I know it has been challenging to say the least. For many of us, we miss our family and friends and long for a return to normal. I am hopeful that 2021 will bring with it a return to "normal" albeit a slow return. As we enter winter and the holiday season I would be remiss if I did not remind everyone of the holiday travel guidance from the CDC and the Vermont travel map which is now a sea of red and yellow. I know that as a result many of us will need to adjust our holiday/vacation plans and for that I am sorry. I am certainly hopeful for better days ahead. Our primary goal is to remain in person for as long as possible with everyone healthy so as such I need to remind you that if students travel out of state during the holiday breaks they may need to quarantine before they return to school. We greatly appreciate your attention to this matter as it will take all of us to do our part. I have included some recent articles on Pandemic Fatigue and the rise of cases. As always please reach out with any questions. Best, Brooke Farrell Superintendent VT Digger: Pandemic Fatigue https://vtdigger.org/2020/10/20/as-cases-rise-vermont-balances-economic-health-with-concerns-of-pandemic-fatigue/ NY Times: Pandemic Fatigue https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/17/us/coronavirus-pandemic-fatigue.html CDC Coping with the Holidays https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/holidays.html#thanksgiving Cross State Travel https://accd.vermont.gov/covid-19/restart/cross-state-travel

Good afternoon, Here is the weekly update of the cross state travel map: https://accd.vermont.gov/covid-19/restart/cross-state-travel The only Vermont border county that travel is allowed is Washington, NY. All other border counties now require a quarantine.

The Village Focus

We are very excited that Slate Valley is offering parent tutorials for our remote learning platforms. A huge thank you to Lisa Cacciatore and Rodney Batschelet Slate Valley's Technology Integrationists! CVS: 11/5 6 to 6:45pm grades 6-8 http://meet.google.com/vco-mbxe-iux

Picture Day is Tomorrow! Thursday, October 22, 2020 Helpful Tips & Tricks 1. Help your student pick out clothes and colors that look good on them. After all, your student is the star of the photo—not their shirt, so avoid slogans, logos, and big patterns. Small jewelry and accessories are fine but nothing too big or distracting. Make sure to check your flyer to see sample poses for your Picture Day. 2. Glasses are okay! 3. Any hairstyle works for Picture Day. 4. Keep kids relaxed and ready to be themselves. Smiles can look fake if they’re practiced ahead of time. Remember, smiles are like french fries—they’re better when they’re fresh. 5. Don’t worry about “perfect”! That hair that always sticks up or a missing tooth shows your child just as they are right now—and you’ll enjoy looking back on that for years to come. On Picture Day, teachers and volunteers will help straighten collars and check posture. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the Castleton Village School at 468-2203. To order online, please visit http://www.mylifetouch.com. Your Picture Day ID is EVTT92ZND.

Good afternoon, here is the updated travel map for this week: https://accd.vermont.gov/covid-19/restart/cross-state-travel Please note Washington County, NY is green again. However, many more counties adjacent to Vermont are now yellow and red.

Reminder, the FHUHS REAL Class's Care Package Donation Drive runs through Friday, October 23rd. For more information: https://www.smore.com/qumzr

This week's newsletter: https://5il.co/m6vj

Cross-state Travel Update - The cross-state travel map has been updated by the State of Vermont: https://accd.vermont.gov/covid-19/restart/cross-state-travel. Please be aware that Washington County, NY is now yellow again as are many other border counties.

The FHUHS REAL Class is holding a Care Package Donation Drive from October 12 through 23. Please visit: https://www.smore.com/qumzr for more information.

Reminder! Tonight (October 12, 2020) You’re invited to the Slate Valley Unified Union School District Board meeting. Fair Haven Union High School, 6:30 p.m. Participation will be in person or virtually connect by going to http://meet.google.com/grn-jxau-emp or by calling (US) +1 225-414-2284 PIN: 456 101 981# Tonight’s Agenda: https://5il.co/lvat Previous Meeting Minutes: https://5il.co/lmhb Upcoming Meetings: November 9, 2020 - SV Board meeting, 6:30 p.m. (FHUHS) November 9, 2020 - SV Finance Meeting, 5:30 p.m. (FHUHS)

FHUHS REAL Class Sponsors a Care Package Donation Drive Oct. 12th-Oct. 23rd It is our goal to collect items to make over 50 care packages that can be given to homeless youth and families in need within our community. Please Help us make this possible by donating the following foods and items: Pop Top Canned Food Packaged Crackers or Trail Mix Youth or Adult Socks Winter Hats Soap Mini Shampoo Hand Lotion Hand Warmers All Donations can be dropped off at local drop boxes out front of FHUHS, Fair Haven Grade School, Castleton Village School or Benson Village School. If you would like to make a donation but can’t make it to one of our drop boxes please feel free to contact Nicole Rice, nrice@svuvt.org for pick up.

This week's newsletter: https://5il.co/lyai

Dear Slate Valley Families, We are very fortunate to be entering the 6th week of in-person learning in Slate Valley. Our district had one of the most aggressive plans for the return to school for our students in the state and to date it has been very successful. However, we are still in the midst of a pandemic and we all need to do our part. We do not want to find ourselves in a situation where we have to move to remote learning as we strongly believe that it is not what is best for our students. As Halloween approaches we are hearing of different events that are being held in the communities of Slate Valley. We continue to remind everyone to take the health guidelines into consideration when planning activities. We know this is a difficult time for us all and especially our children. The CDC has released guidance (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/holidays.html#halloween) on low, moderate, and high risk activities for celebration. We want all of our children to have fun and also remain safe and healthy. We truly care about the health and well-being of all of our Slate Valley Community. Be well, Brooke Farrell Superintendent

Cross-state Travel Update - Please view the updated cross-state travel map: https://accd.vermont.gov/covid-19/restart/cross-state-travel. Washington and Essex Counties in NY are now green, so you can travel to those counties this weekend. Warren and Saratoga Counties (NY) remain on the quarantine list though. Also, while there are no travel restrictions within the state of Vermont, Addison, Bennington and Grand Isle Counties have a large increase in infection rates.

Substitute Teachers 2020-2021 Vacancies Slate Valley Unified Union School District is seeking Substitute Teachers for the 2020-2021 school year for an hourly rate of $15.00. All applicants must apply on https://www.schoolspring.com/. Position will remain open until filled. EOE

This week's newsletter: https://5il.co/lqyj

Dear Slate Valley Families, The Cross-State Travel map changed again today and many of the NY counties that border Vermont now require a 14 day quarantine if you travel there for non-essential activity. This includes Washington, Essex, Warren and Saratoga Counties. Please know that as a school district we are required to enforce these rules by the Department of Health. This means that if your child travels to any of these areas for non-essential activities such as but not limited to apple picking, dance lessons, sports, funerals, etc they will be required to quarantine and will not be allowed to attend school in person. If you have a question regarding this please call the Vermont Department of Health or visit the website https://accd.vermont.gov/covid-19/restart/cross-state-travel.

Reminder! Tonight (September 28, 2020) You’re invited to the Slate Valley Unified Union School District Board meeting. Fair Haven Union High School, 6:30 p.m. Participation will be in person or virtually connect by going to http://meet.google.com/pgv-bvyg-sux or by calling (US)+1 541-897-2511 PIN: 644 673 160# Tonight’s Agenda: https://5il.co/lc2h Previous Meeting Minutes: https://5il.co/l20l Upcoming Meetings: October 12, 2020 - SV Board Meeting, 6:30 p.m. (FHUHS) October 12, 2020 - SV Finance Meeting, 5:30 p.m. (FHUHS) November 9, 2020 - SV Board meeting, 6:30 p.m. (FHUHS) November 9, 2020 - SV Finance Meeting, 5:30 p.m. (FHUHS)

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