Fair Haven Grade School

Reminder - Virtual Meeting happening tonight at 6:00pm! Please log in to learn more about PBIS and how it is used at Fair Haven Grade School.

Vermont Forward Plan Clarifications to School Sports Guidance With changes May 1 in the State’s COVID-19 guidance that included advancing to Step 2 of the Vermont Forward Plan, the transition of recreational sports programs to Universal Guidance, and an updated masking policy that requires masks outdoors when you are in a crowd or with other households where you can’t maintain a 6-foot distance, there have been a number of questions about how these apply to both recreational and school-based sports programs. Please review the following clarifications. For athletes participating in school-based sports: The most recent version of A Strong and Healthy Year Guidance, published by the Agency of Education states the following: All staff and students are required to wear facial coverings while in the building. They must also wear them when outside of the building if adequate physical distancing of at least six (6) feet cannot be maintained. -Consistent with the Strong and Healthy Year guidance, athletes participating in low contact and no contact school-based spring sports (i.e., tennis, track and field, baseball and softball) are no longer required to wear masks so long as six feet of physical distance can be maintained. Baseball and softball players must wear masks while sitting in the dugout -Athletes participating in sports involving moderate contact or close proximity (i.e., boys and girls lacrosse, ultimate frisbee) must continue to wear masks at all times during practice and game play. All athletes must wear masks when being bused to a game or meet, in any indoor setting (i.e., locker room or training room), or participating in team-based meeting with six feet of physical distance cannot be consistently maintained. For spectators at outdoor school-based or recreational sports events: -Consistent with the Vermont Forward Plan, 300 unvaccinated people, plus any number of vaccinated individuals, can attend outdoor sports events as spectators. Spectators are not required to wear masks at outdoor sports events so long as six feet of physical distance can be maintained between households. For spectators at indoor school-based or recreational sports events: -Consistent with the Vermont Forward Plan, one unvaccinated person per 100 square feet up to 150 unvaccinated people (whichever is less), plus any number of vaccinated people, can attend indoor sports events as spectators. Spectators must wear a mask at all times while attending an indoor sports event. If an event has no way of determining if an individual is vaccinated, assume all are unvaccinated for capacity limit.

Good afternoon, as of this moment the Agency of Education has not changed their stance on mask wearing outdoors even though it was changed for the general public. Masks are still required for spectators at all Slate Valley athletic events. We will notify families when the Agency of Education changes their guidance. Thank you for your help with this.

Save the Date! Virtual Listening Tours with SVUUSD Board Members (Note: You are welcome to attend any of the meetings regardless of what town you reside in.) Join board members for a conversation about Middle School Reorganization prior to their vote on May 24th. May 17th, 6 PM - Fair Haven/West Haven - Connect by going to https://meet.google.com/pdu-abre-xnm or by phone (US) +1 585-532-5413 (PIN: 713397202) May 18th, 6 PM - Castleton/Hubbardton - Connect by going to https://meet.google.com/gee-acpe-ota or join by phone (US) +1 442-900-4083 (PIN: 398252852) May 19th, 6 PM - Orwell/Benson - Connect by going to https://meet.google.com/djm-sekz-bca or join by phone (US) +1 786-563-9119 (PIN: 104762513)

As part of the "work hard/play hard" model our middle school participated in challenges and fun activities after working on their SBAC testing. These pictures are from the Salinas/Moffatt cohort working on the Spindle Challenge, Bulletin Board Challenge and Obstacle Course.

Thanks to the availability of vaccinations, we are now able to have in-person services from our Caring Canines providers.

Due to the weather, baseball and softball practices will be moved indoors today, 4/28/21. Baseball will be in the CVS gym (please enter at the front of the school) and softball will be at FHGS (please enter on the south side of the building - directly into the gym) Thank you!

Due to the weather, 6/7/8 Track and Field is canceled today. Thank you.

Wednesday, May 5th, we are hosting a virtual meeting for families to learn more about Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports or PBIS.

The champions of today's Chicken Leg Piece hide and seek game!

Save the date! On Monday, May 3, 2021, Slate Valley will hold a special screening of the documentary, “Angst: Raising Awareness Around Anxiety," online to open up a dialogue between local families, community leaders and experts. The event will feature a viewing of the 56-minute film, followed by an informative panel discussion, led by Kristin H. Benway, Director of Special Services, with special guests Megan Oldenburger, RMHS School Based Clinician, Michael Kell, School Counselor, and former Slater Cael Christian. Register at https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN__ElOViTuQDG2QTV7IWdFqA. iNDIEFLIX Education has sparked a global conversation about anxiety through screenings of its documentary, “Angst: Raising Awareness Around Anxiety.” For more information: https://5il.co/rpnd

Good Evening, Please read the following letter regarding the special airing of “Angst: Raising Awareness Around Anxiety” on Monday, May 3: https://5il.co/ry3u

Save the Date! Virtual Listening Tours with SVUUSD Board Members (Note: You are welcome to attend any of the meetings regardless of what town you reside in.) Join board members for a conversation about Middle School Reorganization prior to their vote on May 24th. May 17th, 6 PM - Fair Haven/West Haven - Connect by going to https://meet.google.com/pdu-abre-xnm or by phone (US) +1 585-532-5413 (PIN: 713397202) May 18th, 6 PM - Castleton/Hubbardton - Connect by going to https://meet.google.com/gee-acpe-ota or join by phone (US) +1 442-900-4083 (PIN: 398252852) May 19th, 6 PM - Orwell/Benson - Connect by going to https://meet.google.com/djm-sekz-bca or join by phone (US) +1 786-563-9119 (PIN: 104762513)

Preschoolers hunting for bugs and signs of spring!

FHGS middle school is employing a "work hard, play hard" model to motivate students during SBAC testing. Students are designing spring bulletin boards, decorating spindles for a tower building challenge, and competing in relay races. Students complete their testing sessions in the morning and have fun in the afternoons.

Our April newsletter is out now! Check out our upcoming events and see some of the great things happening at FHGS : https://5il.co/rw0p

Dear 8th Grade Students and Families, We understand that there are a lot of questions regarding the end of year activities. We wanted to touch base with you regarding our current plans, knowing that it is likely that guidance may change and therefore, these plans may change. First, we want to recognize how different this year has been for you. There have been many changes and some of those changes have resulted in the loss of events and activities that are long-standing traditions. In addition, there are changes that have impacted your day to day existence here at school. You have faced these challenges and persevered. The fact that we have been in person 5 days a week at FHGS, with only a couple exceptions, is a HUGE success - attributed, in part, to your efforts and work in following our Health and Safety Guidelines. We thank you for your role in this success. We are expecting additional guidance from the Agency of Education regarding end of the year activities in the next couple of weeks. When we receive that guidance, we will revisit our current plans and see if there are changes we can make. Currently, we are working to plan an 8th grade trip that is in-state, likely to the lake. We still have to determine the details of this trip. Graduation is currently planned to be in-person with students and 8th grade advisors/teachers. The event will be recorded and/or streamed live for families to view. If new guidance comes out and indicates that we can have spectators present, the plans for graduation may shift. There will possibly be limits to the number of spectators that a student can have present and there will be mask and distancing expectations to enforce. Another component to consider will be weather. It is possible if we can hold an event with spectators, it may need to be outside. It will be challenging to have a contingency plan for this when our tentative graduation date for FHGS is the last day of school. It has been over a year of living differently and rethinking how we do everything. We applaud our successes, are grateful for light at the end of this tunnel, honor all that you have endured and done, and ask you for a bit more patience as we navigate the last few months of this year. We know you are tired and we are all longing for our old normal. We will do our best, and the work required, to lessen the impact of loss experienced during this time, in any way that we can. Thank you and stay tuned for updates that may come through advisory, emails, mailings and/or information shared on our websites and social media sites. Stay healthy! Mrs. Infurna, Ms. Paquette, Mrs. Armitage View PDF of Letter: https://5il.co/ru8y

Dodge House Donation Drive - A FHUHS Student’s R.E.A.L. Project Please view the flyer here for more information: https://www.smore.com/xpe32 This drive is being held by the Slate Valley Unified School District. We hope to raise awareness of homeless Veterans, and support the Dodge House in Rutland, which "provides shelter, clothing, food, and an individualized program to reintegrate veterans back into the community and help them to achieve self­ sufficiency" (http://www.chcrr.org). Donation boxes will be located in the front offices of all Slate Valley schools from March 29th and April 25th.

Save the date! iNDIEFLIX Shines the Light on Anxiety with Must-See Documentary, “ANGST: RAISING AWARENESS AROUND ANXIETY” ANGST will screen live on: Monday, May 3, 2021 AT 6:00pm Register at https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN__ElOViTuQDG2QTV7IWdFqA iNDIEFLIX Education has sparked a global conversation about anxiety through screenings of its documentary, “Angst: Raising Awareness Around Anxiety”. On Monday, May 3, 2021, Slate Valley will hold a special screening of the documentary online to open up a dialogue between local families, community leaders and experts. The event will feature a viewing of the 56-minute film, followed by an informative panel discussion, led by Kristin H. Benway, Director of Special Services, with special guests Megan Oldenburger, RMHS School Based Clinician, Michael Kell, School Counselor, and former Slater Cael Christian. For more information: https://5il.co/rpnd

Reminder! Tonight (April 19th) You’re invited to the Slate Valley Unified Union School District Board (virtual) Meeting at 6:30 p.m. Participation will be virtual only. Connect by going to http://meet.google.com/nmr-haqy-umb or join by phone (US) +1 617-675-4444 PIN: 151 630 604 3623# Tonight’s Agenda: https://5il.co/rpa2 Previous Meeting Minutes: https://5il.co/ranl