RBS Principal’s Notes
November 6, 2020
Parent Resources
K-8 Hybrid Calendar Daily Health Screening for Students
RBS Hybrid Parent Guide Quarantine Protocols/Flowchart
RBS Remote Parent Guide RBS Welcome & Orientation Video
Bedford Reopening Plan COVID-19 Schools Dashboard
Monthly Friday Schedule
November 13: Group B (L-Z)
November 20: Group A (A-K)
December 4: Group B (L-Z)
December 11: Group A (A-K)
NEW PROCEDURE TO REPORT COVID CASES
If you need to report a case of COVID-19 over the weekend or during off hours, please fill out THIS FORM.
Reminder…we do not have school on Wednesday, November 11th in observance of Veterans’ Day. On behalf of RBS, I want to thank all of our military families for their service. We are so grateful for your selflessness, bravery and sacrifice.
IN THE NEWS:
Report Cards – Available Today at 2:45 PM
As an FYI to our new parents and a reminder to our returning parents:
Student report cards are available online only in the PowerSchool Parent Access Portal. To access your child's report card online, log into the PowerSchool Parent Portal and you will see a Report Cards icon in the left hand pane. When you click on this icon your child's report card will appear on the screen. You can scroll to see the entire report card and choose to print it, if you'd like. Anytime you click on the Report Cards icon, the most recent report card will generate.
If you haven’t already, please schedule a conference with your child’s teacher. It’s so important to hear about your child’s progress as well as ask questions and share important information about your child with his/her teacher.
Raffle Winners
This week’s Calendar Raffle winners:
Monday, November 2 – Brandy DiCicco (sold by Michael Angove) – $50 to Amazon
Tuesday, November 3 – Becca Durrell (sold by Madeline Durrell) – $50 to Target
Wednesday, November 4 – Paul Reuland (sold by William Reuland)– $50 to Lowe’s
Thursday, November 5 – Kelly Ratliff (sold by Liliana Elias) – $50 to Barnes & Noble
Friday, November 6 – Dylan White (sold by Cole White) – $50 to Bed, Bath & Beyond
RBS Yearbook
The RBS Yearbook is a parent run endeavor. Our former coordinators “retired” at the end of last year, and reached out to parents last spring (via Principal’s Notes) to inquire about a replacement(s), but no one volunteered at the time. If anyone is now interested, please let me know and I can connect you with the previous coordinators. I would hate to see the annual yearbook not take place, but I do understand that this is an undertaking that may be too much for families this year.
Enrichment Riddle of the Week
Ms. Babine will post a new riddle each Friday (below) and reveal the answer the following Thursday. Families are encouraged to think together and come up with as many creative solutions as possible, and can submit responses through the Google Form link included on my website.
RBS Clothing
You can order Riddle Brook School clothing and other items online! Please go to www.bedfordwear.com. They have a variety of colors and styles. An order typically takes 7-10 business days to be delivered. 10% of profits come back to the school.
PTG News and Information
GIFT CARD FUNDRAISER: ONE order only this year (order due date is November 20th). Get a head start on holiday shopping! We are featuring many local area merchants, along with your favorite national businesses. Purchasing gift cards through the PTG provides support for the Bedford schools with no additional cost to you!
For more information about this program on the PTG’s website click HERE.
For Hybrid Student Families: To download an order form and memo with program information, please click HERE.
For Remote Student Families: To download an order form and memo with program information, please click HERE.
HAPPY SHOPPING!
HANNAFORD COMMUNITY BAG PROGRAM: For the month of November, the PTG will receive a donation of $1 for each purchase of the Community Reusable Bag (cost of bag is $2.50) at the Hannaford store located on KILTON ROAD.
COMMUNITY SPIRIT 9/11 MINI-GRANTS PROGRAM: The Bedford PTG is the proud recipient of the Community Spirit 9/11 Mini-Grants Program funded by Harvard Pilgrim. This $500 grant was awarded due to the generous nomination of a Bedford family.
REMINDERS:
Contact Tracing through NH DHHS
It has been our experience lately that NH DHHS is very delayed in contacting families with contact tracing information, and as a result, it’s possible that students come to school without knowing they have been in close contact with a COVID positive person (and should be quarantining). Please know that if your child has been contact traced as a result of contact within school, you will be called by the school (most likely, Michele Ouellette, our nurse) rather than wait for DHHS. However, if the contact happens outside of school, we will not know about it. My ask is that if your child tests positive, you contact the parents/guardians of any child who has been contact traced as a result of outside of school activities, so that the child can quarantine and/or get tested in a timely fashion. Hopefully, things will slow down soon at DHHS. Thank you!
Picture Retake Day (REVISED)
Rather than having to travel to a central site, Geskus Photography has agreed to come to Bedford schools for retakes on Monday, November 23rd, which is an A-K day. However, L-Z and Remote families are welcome to come in for retakes during that time as well. The photographers intend to arrive at approximately 10:00 AM and be here 1.5 hours or so. For planning purposes, it would be helpful to know how many students will be having retakes, so that we can put together a rough schedule. Please fill out THIS FORM if you would like your child to have a retake. You will need to fill it out for each of your children who will be having a retake.
The form will be closed at 3PM on Friday November 20th.
Please see THIS FLYER for ordering information.
Pictures will be taken inside in rooms 216/218.
We will maintain our distancing and mask protocols.
The photographer will fill out our HEALTH SCREENING FORM prior to being allowed in our building.
Travel Reminder
As you begin to plan for Thanksgiving and the rest of the holiday season, please keep in mind the NH DHHS Travel Guidance, which the Bedford School District is following:
If a staff member or student travels outside of New England, do they need to self-quarantine for 14 days upon their return to New Hampshire? Yes. The general recommendation from the NH DHHS General and Employee Travel Guidance is that those who have traveled outside of New England need to self-quarantine and self-monitor for COVID-19 symptoms for 14 days upon their return to New Hampshire. Exceptions to this recommendation can be made for “essential employees” or for staff who have to conduct “essential travel” as outlined in the public health guidance linked above, and the Universal Guidelines. Schools/districts should develop policies to address situations in which students may need to travel for child custody and/or education related purposes (e.g., visiting colleges). You can find a link to this document HERE (pg. 6).
Also, students cannot test out of quarantine with a negative COVID-19 test. They must complete the entire 14 days. Please take a look at our Quarantining Protocol/Flowchart for more information.
In order to ensure the health and safety of our students and staff, it is essential that we adhere to the policies and procedures outlined in our Hybrid plan.
Food Drive – October 19 – November 20
This year more than ever, the Bedford Community Food Pantry is a valuable resource for those in our community who are facing hunger or food insecurity. The Food Pantry is a 501(c)3 organization that is a well-coordinated effort between 5 area churches, local organizations, including the Bedford Lion's Club and the Boy Scouts, and individuals and families in Bedford.
They are always in need of THESE FOOD ITEMS, but any nonperishable food items are welcomed. At RBS, we would like to make a concerted effort to collect these items for our food drive. If you are able to make a donation, I know the Food Pantry would GREATLY appreciate it! We will donate the food items just in time for Thanksgiving.
*Monetary donations are also welcomed in order to purchase food from the NH Food Bank (checks made out to Bedford Community Food Pantry).
UPCOMING EVENTS:
November 11 – Veterans’ Day Observance – NO SCHOOL
November 25-27 – Thanksgiving Break
December 10-18 – Happy Hanukkah!
December 14-18 – Ellis Island Week (Grade 4)
December 24-January 1 – Holiday Recess
December 25 – Merry Christmas!
January 15 – End of Quarter 2
January 18 – Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Observance
January 22 – Report Cards Released Online
February 14 – Happy Valentine’s Day!
February 22-26 – Winter Vacation
March 9 – District Workshop Day – NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS
March 27-April 3 – Passover
April 2 – End of Quarter 3
April 2 – Good Friday
April 4 – Happy Easter!
April 9 – Report Cards Released Online
April 26-30 – Spring Vacation
May 31 – Memorial Day Observed – NO SCHOOL
June 11 – Tentative Last Day of School
