East Hill Happenings

 

IMPORTANT!

If your child is coming in to school late (after the buses have arrived), you MUST walk them into the building and sign them in. Please do not just drop off your child and leave. All doors, including the  front doors, are locked and many of our students do not know how to ring the bell for admittance. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding.

The Yearbooks Are In! The Yearbooks Are In!
Thank you to Mr. Smith for all of his work on the awesome 19-20 yearbook! He, along with his committee, did a great job capturing the year. All yearbooks were sent home last week with the exception of remote students, who will be able to pick up their yearbook when they come for school pictures.

School Pictures

As a reminder, next Tuesday is school picture day at East Hill. Order forms have been sent home, and you can also order online at mylifetouch.com. Our picture day ID is EVTHXS9NV.  Remote student pictures will also be taken as follows: A-D, 3:00; E-M, 3:15; N-4, 3:30; S-Z, 3:45. Please remember to park at the back, right side of the building.

Screening Slips

As a reminder, please make sure your child comes with their complete, purple, screening slip on a daily basis. Thank you!

Update from the WG Nurses

Please take a minute to read this note from the WG nurses if you have not already done so. The note outlines the protocol that the school must follow when students show signs and symptoms of illness. Just as an FYI - you should not eat, drink, or brush your teeth 30 minutes prior to the test. (This is not noted in the nurses update, but has been the experience of many people who have been tested so I thought I would pass it on!)

PTA

The first PTA meeting of the year will be held via Zoom on 10/13 at 6:30 p.m. You will be receiving more information about this soon.

Teamwork
This week we are focusing on the character strength of teamwork/citizenship. Teamwork is the ability and willingness to place overall group success as a higher priority than individual achievement. Citizenship is a willingness to work towards the common good as opposed to one's own self-interest. For more about this strength, click here!

Teacher Workshop Day

Friday, 10/16 will be a half-day for students. Bus dismissal will be at 11:00 with parent pickup from 11:15 - 11:30. 

Have a great rest of the week!

- Lisa

Learning About My Brain

 

Learning About My Brain

Have you heard your child use the terms/phrases "upstairs brain", "downstairs brain", or "flipping my lid" yet? As you may have heard at Curriculum Night, each grade level is beginning the year with a unit designed to teach students what is happening in their brain and give them a vocabulary for their emotional experiences that they and others can understand. Here is a brief article by Dr. Hazel Harrison that explains the upstairs and downstairs brain if you are interested, and here is a video that explains what is meant by "flipping your lid". The students are also learning several strategies to help keep them calm and stay in their upstairs (learning ready) brain versus their downstairs (survival) brain. Ask your child to tell you more!

Ben demonstrates "Flipping his lid"!

School Pictures

Tuesday, October 6th is picture day. You will be receiving an order form today, however you can also order ahead of time online at mylifetouch.com. Our picture day ID is EVTHXS9NV. Remote students are being mailed their order form. Remote student pictures will also be taken on October 6th as follows: last names A-D, 3:00; last names E-M, 3:15; last names N-R, 3:30; last names S-Z, 3:45. We are asking remote families to park at the back, right side of the school (beginning at 3:00), and enter the back door. Speaking of pictures, our yearbooks have shipped!! We will get them out as soon as we get them. Remote students should plan to pick them up on 10/6 when they come for pictures.

Late Arrival and Early Dismissal

If you need to pick up your child early, or if they are being brought in late, please make sure you send in a note (for early dismissal) and please come in to the building to sign them in/out. All early dismissals must occur by 2:00 p.m. All students who come in after the buses have unloaded should enter the main door, even if they typically enter a different door. 

Arrival and Dismissal
I wanted to thank you again for following all of the protocols for arrival and dismissal. As a reminder, please try to pull up as far as possible, even if you see your child (at dismissal), and for safety's sake, please try to have your child enter and exit curbside if at all possible. You might want to consider moving your child's car seat to the passenger side if possible. The buses will be getting to East Hill roughly 10 minutes later in the afternoon than they did previously so you may want to arrive about 10 minutes later. Thank you for your understanding (and for not "flipping your lid" like I did when I learned about it!). 

Positivity Project

Our first character strength this year that we are exploring is curiosity. Curiosity means you like exploration and discovery. You ask a lot of questions because you want to learn more about anything and everything. For more about curiosity, click here. 

Breakfast and Lunch

Breakfast and lunches must be pre-ordered on the Nutrislice system. You can access a description of the app and how to use it by clicking here. 

Enjoy the rest of the week!

- Lisa

International Dot Day!

 

International Dot Day

Yesterday was International Dot Day. Many students wore their dots and several read the book, "The Dot", by Peter Reynolds and completed follow-up activities. The teachers and staff even got in on the action!

Consider Joining the PTA!

Please consider joining the East Hill PTA. Being a PTA member will help support East Hill and benefit your child. As a member you can get connected to know what's happening at school; tap into a network to meet other parents and teachers to share ideas, concerns, and experiences; and get involved! Meetings are virtual at this point (not required, but informative). Anyone can join! Membership is $6.00 per individual. Click here to join online! Thank you SO MUCH to the PTA for the lanyards and hooks that they provided for students' masks. Very much appreciated!

Curriculum Night

Tomorrow night (Thursday, 9/17) is Virtual Curriculum Night. You should have received a Zoom link from your teacher. Kindergarten and 1st grade present from 6:00 - 6:25; 2nd and 3rd grade present from 6:30 - 6:55, and 4th grade is from 7:00 - 7:25. This is a time for your to meet your child's teacher(s) and learn about the program your child will experience this year. If you did not get the Zoom link, please contact your child's teacher.

New Faces at East Hill

Thank you to Mrs. Rose for displaying all of the new faces, masked and unmasked, at East Hill! We are fortunate to have so many bus drivers available to help supervise lunch in the classroom and do general cleaning in the building throughout the day!

Thanks again to everyone for making arrival and dismissal run safe, smooth, and efficient! Enjoy the rest of the week!

- Lisa 

The First Day of School!

The First Day of School

We have had a great first day! Arrival went off without a hitch! To make it even more efficient, please pull up as far as you can before letting your kids get out of the car, and please do not get out of your car unless absolutely necessary. If you arrive after the buses have arrived, your child should use the main entrance, even if their tag indicates a different entrance. Dismissal was not quite as efficient, but I know it will get better with time. Please try to pull up as far as you can, and if at all possible, try to only let your child enter and exit your vehicle curbside for both arrival and dismissal. This will help keep everyone safe. Thank you for your patience!! Pictured below are arrival, two kindergarten classes, Mr. Schuessler's "Music on a Cart", and outdoor PE. 

Curriculum Night

Virtual Curriculum Night will be held next Thursday, 9/17. Your child's teacher will send you a Zoom link. K & 1 will take place from 6:00 - 6:25, 2 & 3 will take place from 6:30 - 6:55, and 4th grade will take place from 7:00 - 7:25. This will be a time for you to meet your child's teacher and learn about the program he or she will experience this year. 

Polka Dot Day

Next Tuesday is International Dot Day so we have decided to have Tuesday be a polka-dot day. Please have your children wear their dots! Why? Why not!! 😊

Positivity Project

Next week we kick off the Positivity Project with the Other People Mindset. This mindset consists of the five elements intended to hep people understand ways to build positive relationships in their own lives: identifying and appreciating the good in others, knowing my words and actions affect others, supporting others when they struggle, cheering others' success, and being present and giving others my attention. #PositivityInAction

Welcome New Staff

In an earlier blog we welcomed several new staff members to East Hill. I would now like to welcome four more new staff members: Elizabeth Rapple is our new early literacy teaching assistant. Donna Nadler-White is our new library aide, and Becky Tully and Courtney Unser are our new building substitutes. We welcome them to our East Hill family!

Twitter

Please follow us on Twitter! @EHElementary (School), @EastHillPE (Physical Education) and @MoserVogler (art) are just three of the twitter handles we use. Your child's teacher may also have a twitter account.

Screening Slip

Don't forget to have your child bring in their completed, purple screening slip daily. If a child forgets, no worries.  Nurse Condon is prepared!

 Have a great rest of the week!

- Lisa

East Hill Update

 

Welcome New Staff!

We are excited to welcome several new staff members to East Hill this year! First of all, music will be taught by a combination of fine arts staff, including Don Schuessler, Mike Stachnik, and Christy Knowlton. All of these teachers have taught in the district for several years. Siani Amidon is our new psychologist, replacing Tara Powless. Cynthia Whiting is our part-time speech therapist, replacing Sarah Moore. We are welcoming several teaching assistants, including Elizabeth Rapple, Jennifer Francey, Patti Gabello, Patti Yeager, and Megan Garropy. Kathleen Clark will be teaching PE on Tuesdays as well as teaching APE. Please give them a warm, East Hill welcome!

Last Minute Reminders

School starts this Thursday, September 10th. Please remember to have your child bring their completed screening form each day. We will be sending more forms home with students the first day of school. Please make sure you have secured your child's tags (bus and parent-pickup tag, if appropriate) to their backpack. If you are dropping off your child in the morning, please do so between 8:40 and 8:55. If you are picking up your child in the afternoon, make sure you bring your parent pick-up tag, and plan on arriving at 2:25. Buses will be dismissed at 2:15 and cars will not be allowed in the driveway until the buses have loaded. Please remember that at this time we are not allowing adults in the building or on the sidewalks during arrival and dismissal. We appreciate your understanding in this matter as safety is our top priority. If your child is walking home or riding a bike, we must have a note in advance. 

Entrances

We will be using three entrances this year (see below) to cut down on possibly congestion. Your child's entrance was noted in their placement letter and is also indicated on their bus/pick-up tags. Students in Mrs. Thome's class should use entrance 2. (The entrance was listed incorrectly on the placement letters.) We will have plenty of staff members on the sidewalks to assist students. 

Yearbook Update

Unfortunately, the yearbooks have not yet shipped. Lifetouch/Shutterfly seem to be trying their best but have been hit hard as a non-essential business located in multiple states. The multiple printing locations at Lifetouch (subsity of Shutterfly) had to shut down multiple times for COVID. They are finishing the books in the order in which they were received. They are hoping they will be shipped in the next three weeks. The books will be distributed at East Hill and WGMS. We think you'll be very pleased with last year's book as the unique learning environment was captured nicely. 

Updates and Changes for Physical Education (from Miss O'Keefe)

Physical Education will look and feel a little different this year, but it is still going to be tons of FUN! There are a few changes that are important for our East Hill friends to know:

1. Please bring your water bottle to PE. If we go outside we will have a safe place to put them. If we are in the gym, there will be a table to place them on, and if we are in the classroom, they can stay on your desk.

2. Students will need to wear masks, and wash their hands before and after PE class.

3. As always, we will be outside when the weather allows, even on days when the grass is wet in the morning, which means socks and sneakers could get very wet. On PE days, please bring an extra pair of sneakers and socks. Bringing an old pair of sneakers to wear outside is a good idea!

4. There will be some days when someone other than Miss O'Keefe and Miss Clark will be teaching PE. On these days there will be activities provided via the Elementary PE website. If you have any questions, please email Miss O'Keefe (mokeefe@westgenesee.org). She can't wait to see you!!

Notes from West Genesee Nurses

If you haven't yet read the notes from the nurses, please take a minute and do so! You will find information about what to do if you have a child with chronic health conditions. You'll also find information about masks, physical exam and immunization requirements, and medications at school. Please remember that medication can be dropped off at East Hill on Wednesday from 12:00 - 3:00.

Enjoy the week! We can't wait to see the students!

- Lisa

The Teachers Are Back! The Teachers Are Back!

The Teachers Are Back!

Although most teachers have been in and out throughout the summer getting their rooms ready, today is their first official day back. It's so nice to see everyone! Several teachers came in yesterday, along with their children and nieces, to help make this video that shows what school will look like this year. A HUGE thank you goes out to these teachers and their children. Please check it out!

Placement Letters

Hopefully you have received your child's placement letter along with information regarding the health screening sheets, arrival, dismissal, the school meal program, Chromebook and supply pickup, and the PTA. If you have not received this information by Thursday, please call the office.

Remote Students

Please do not forget to come to East Hill on Wednesday, September 9th from 12:00 - 3:00 to retrieve your Chromebook and instructional supplies.  If you are unable to come at this time, please call the office and we will arrange for an alternate time. 

P2 for Families is Live!

P2 for Families is an easy and effective way for families to discuss the importance of character and positive relationships, especially during these unique times. P2 for Families is differentiated for grades Pre K-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12. Each character strength follows a 1-1-3 model: 1 quote, 1 video, and 3 questions to drive conversations around character at home. Here is a direct link to the site. It can also be found as a drop down under their Resources page. Most pages are password protected. The password is simply P2. Here is the Character Strength Calendar for 2020-2021.

Arrival and Dismissal

We can't stress enough the importance of parents following the guidelines we have set for arrival and dismissal. Of particular importance is when you can drive into the East Hill parking lot. For arrival, students can be dropped off (or arrive by bicycle or on foot), from 8:40 - 8:55. No cars will then be allowed into the parking lot until all of the buses have arrived and unloaded. For dismissal, no cars will be allowed into the parking lot until all of the buses have been loaded, roughly 2:25 to 2:30. If at all possible, please try not to pick your child up early unless it is absolutely unavoidable. All early pick-ups must occur by 2:00. Car tags and bus tags will be sent home by the end of the week. Please check your bus tag for accuracy and let us know if anything needs to be changed.

Medication, Physical Examinations, and Immunization Requirements
If you have medicine to drop off for your child, please bring it to school on Wednesday, September 9th between 12:00 and 3:00. Students are not allowed to bring their own medicine to school. If you need to arrange for an alternate time, please contact the office. For information regarding necessary physical exams and immunization requirements, please refer to this recent Notes from West Genesee Nurses to Families. 

School Reopening

The first day of school for all K-4 students is Thursday, September 10th. If you have any questions on the reopening of school, please refer to the District's Reopening Information/Plan on the website. 

Enjoy the Labor Day weekend! I look forward to seeing the students next week!

- Lisa