MARCH 2021 NEWSLETTER

 

McLane Families, my heart is full. A year ago we were forced to close schools. I am grateful and impressed with our amazing teachers and staff who came together to provide a distance learning platform while we navigated the pandemic. Closing schools was challenging, and safely reopening schools has required significant work from our custodians, office managers, health room staff, paraeducators and teachers. On Monday, March 8th, we had students in person grades K-5th for the first time in close to a year. It is heartwarming to hear laughter and joy in the hallways once again. As a community, I ask that we all keep doing our part (filling out monthly attestations for students on Skyward is required to be at school) to stop the spread of Covid-19, please know that we will continue to follow the guidance of our health department and school district, this week was a big step in the right direction for our students and community.   

I want to give a thank you to the Trail and Garden committee for the work they have done in support of the McLane Trail. If you didn’t know, the PTSO partnered with the West Olympia Rotary to raise funds for our McLane trail. My hope is that it is a space that brings joy to the community and can be a bigger part of the educational experience for students at McLane. Hopefully in the near future we can have our students regularly outside learning on the trail as part of their experience here at McLane.  

As I end, I just want to emphasize that spring is such a special time of year!  Daffodils are blooming and there is “gold” on our trail… go check it out, but be careful Mr. Edwards, our PE teacher, has some exercises to go along with our treasure hunt. Also Kindergarten registration opens March 29th, Spring conferences are March 30th-April 2nd (More info below), and hopefully, Spring weather. I hope that spring is bringing hope and optimism to everyone and I look forward to seeing everyone at school, over zoom or on the next episode of The Hoot!

Take Care, 

Principal Brock 

FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK:

https://www.facebook.com/McLaneElementary/

Keep up to date with events and happenings at McLane.

SPRING CONFERENCES March 30th-April 2nd:

This is for all students Kindergarten-5th grade, Pre-K students will be scheduling directly with their teacher. 

Monday is a regularly scheduled day

Tuesday-Friday see below:

• Distance schedule for Tuesday thru Friday schedule will be 9:00am to 11:30am
• Hybrid, in-person, schedule for Tuesday thru Friday schedule will be 9:35am to 12:57pm students will still be in their cohorts

Parent-Teacher Conferences are upon us and all families will be able to schedule their conference using Skyward’s Family Access Online Scheduling. 

Conferences will be Tuesday, March 30th thru Thursday, April 2nd

Scheduling Conferences:

**Families with two or more students at McLane will be able to  sign up for conferences on March 15th.

**Scheduling is open to all McLane families from March 17th - March 26th.  

First Step:

Do this as soon as possible to ensure you are ready to schedule your conference. Please make sure you are able to sign into : Skyward Family Access by following this link https://www2.crdc.wa-k12.net/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=wolympis71/seplog01.w

ZOOM Conferences: 

Tuesday, March 30th to Thursday, April 2nd

Scheduling times are 1:35 to 4:05  Please note that each conference time is 20 minutes long. This is important to allow time to prepare for the next conference. Please sign in on time.

Please do not hesitate to contact the Help Desk at 360-596-6172 or the McLane office 360 596-6600 if you are having trouble with scheduling a conference.

Our teachers are looking forward to meeting with you and your student.

SICK DAY PROTOCOL:

Please notify the School Office as soon as possible when your child is sick.  

360 596-6600

Keep child home for these symptoms:

Class A Symptoms (Must stay home)               Class B Symptoms (2 or more must stay home*)

      Fever (Temperature 100.4) Fatigue

      Cough Headache

      Loss of Taste or Smell Muscle or body aches

      Shortness of breath/difficulty breathing Sore throat

Congestion or runny nose

Nausea or vomiting

Diarrhea (2 or more loose stools in 24hrs)

*One symptom in either Class A or B and student will be sent home from school

School will inform you of the procedure for returning to school safely.  

ATTENDANCE:

OSD requires us to mark attendance as excused or unexcused.  Here is a short video to watch  Student Attendance Video. Please make sure that the student clicks on the submit button.  For Elementary students attendance is not about being at the zoom meeting, so much as it is about signing into the portal.

100% Distant students must sign into the Portal everyday school is in session. 

Hybrid students must sign into the Portal everyday school is in session and they are not present at school.  When they are present at school, their classroom teacher will take attendance. 

In the portal attendance can be taken at any time throughout the day. For students who do not sign into the portal or do not attend their in person class, they will have a call sent out the next day to alert the parent/guardian of their absences. If you receive a call and do not contact the McLane Attendance Line (360 596-6603), your student will be marked as unexcused.  Please call the McLane Office to let McLane us know the reason for the absence.

SPRING BREAK:

Monday, April 5th to Friday, April 9th

NO SCHOOL

INDIVIDUAL SCHOOL PHOTOS:

All students will have photos taken that are present for:

Cohort A on Thursday, March 25th before 

Cohort B on Friday, March 26th during in school time

Distant Learners plan on bringing students in to have photos taken:

Grades K through 2nd on Thursday, March 25th 2:15 to 4:00 

Grades 3rd through 5th on  Friday, March 26th 2:15 to 4:00 

If you would like to order photos they will be processed online. 

Here is the Link to order your student’s photos. 

 https://vando.imagequix.com/g1000846118#login

 

 

THURSTON COUNTY COVID TESTING SITE INFORMATION:

https://www.thurstoncountywa.gov/phss/phssdocuments/COVID-19%20Testing%20Locations%20FINAL%2010.13.2020.pdf

KINDERGARTEN REGISTRATION:

 

Countdown to Kindergarten set for March 6, 2021

 

Kindergarten Registration officially starts on March 29th. Please share with any families who will be joining us in the fall for Kindergarten. Families are encouraged to come by McLane and pick up a registration packet. If you missed our Countdown to Kindergarten event, please follow this link to view the presentation discussed.  

 

For more information Please visit our Enrollment page:

 

https://osd.wednet.edu/our_district/schools/student_enrollment/kindergarten_registration

 

 

LIBRARY NEWS:

Battle of the Books

4th & 5th Grade students have been participating in the Battle of the Books for the past three months.  We had 20 students that continued to participate using social distancing and navigating battle sessions on Zoom.  Several students read all 6 titles. Our final battle session is Wednesday, March 3rd at 3:00 via Zoom.  They are all champions!

Spring Book Fair

Scholastic Online Book Fair is set for  March 22nd-April 3rd. This book fair benefits McLane’s library.  You can access this online fair by clicking on this link:  https://www.scholastic.com/bf/mclaneelementaryschool3 

Checking Out Library Books “Hybrid Style”

At this time the library is still “closed” due to Social Distancing challenges in this space and with these materials, but students can continue to check out books using the online system they’ve used all year.  The best part for Hybrid Families is that I can get the books to the student’s classrooms saving a trip to the school.  If you and your child need a refresher on how to place books on hold/check out from the library, here is a video of the steps to take:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKsHPpoaTig

Overdue and Lost Books

If your child has misplaced a book, no worries.  You have options.  Replace the book with the same title, send me money and I”ll go purchase the replacement, or send a book of comparable value from your own book collections as home.  Give me a call if you have any questions at 360-596-6602.

IMPORTANT LINKS:

McLane website

https://mclane.osd.wednet.edu/

Skyward/Family Access

https://www2.crdc.wa-k12.net/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=wolympis71/seplog01.w

Volunteer Application form. Forms can be found on the OSD website. This must be renewed every year.

https://osd.wednet.edu/community/volunteer

OSD Transportation 360 596-7700

 http://osd.wednet.edu/departments/transportation

Emergency Information

https://osd.wednet.edu/families/emergency_information

Alternate Bus Routes & Snow Bulletin

https://osd.wednet.edu/departments/transportation/emergency_snow_routes_west/

NOTICE OF NONDISCRIMINATION

The Olympia School District will provide equal educational opportunity and treatment for all students in all aspects of the academic and activities program without discrimination based on race, religion, creed, color, national origin, age, honorably-discharged veteran or military status, sex, sexual orientation, gender expression or identity, marital status, the presence of any sensory, mental or physical disability, or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with a disability. The district will provide equal access to school facilities to the Boy Scouts of America and all other designated youth groups listed in Title 36 of the United States Code as a patriotic society. District programs will be free from sexual harassment. Auxiliary aids and services will be provided upon request to individuals with disabilities.

 

The Olympia School District offers many Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs/courses in the following areas: Skilled and Technical Sciences/STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics); Agriculture/Natural Resources; Business/Marketing; Family and Consumer Sciences; and Health Sciences. For more information about CTE course offerings and admissions criteria, contact Pat Cusack, Director of College and Career Readiness, 111 Bethel St NE, Olympia, WA 985016, (360) 596-6102. Lack of English language proficiency will not be a barrier to admission and participation in CTE programs.

 

The following people have been designated to handle inquiries regarding the nondiscrimination policies, reports of alleged sexual harassment, concerns about compliance, and/or grievance procedures:

 

Scott Niemann, Title IX RCW 28A.640 Officer
Knox Administrative Center, 111 Bethel St NE Olympia, WA 98506
(360) 596-6185; [email protected]

 

Autumn Lara, Executive Director of Elementary Education

Knox Administrative Center, 111 Bethel St NE, Olympia, WA 98506

360-596-8534;  [email protected] 

 

Ken Turcotte, Section 504 and ADA Coordinator 
Knox Administrative Center, 111 Bethel St NE, Olympia, WA 98506
360-596-7530; [email protected]

 

Scott Niemann, Affirmative Action Officer and Civil Rights Compliance Coordinator
Knox Administrative Center, 111 Bethel St NE, Olympia, WA 98506
360-596-6185; [email protected]

 

Pat Cusack, Director of College and Career Readiness
Knox Administrative Center, 111 Bethel St NE, Olympia, WA 98506
(360) 596-6102; [email protected]