Barrington Middle School
BMS Connected Learning Newsletter: September 27, 2020
The BMS Learning Community is Respectful, Responsible, and Ready to Succeed!
Mission:
Barrington Middle School’s Mission is to empower all students to excel in character, citizenship, collaboration, creativity, communication, and critical thinking, so that they may positively impact the future.
Common Commitments:
To empower ALL students to excel, The BMS Learning Community will provide:
A safe, caring, and supportive learning environment;
A challenging curriculum supported by current technology;
The best research-based strategies to meet the unique educational, physical, emotional, and social needs of the 10 to the 14-year-old learner; and
A deliberate and specific approach to meet the individual needs/abilities for each performance subgroup of our student body.
BMS Spotlight on Learning:
This week we would like to shine our BMS Spotlight on Kelly Nelson and Elaine Van Leer. Since the start of school, they have been with us throughout the day helping out anyway they can. From delivering food to our 6th graders, organizing lunch labels, monitoring students who are engaging in distance learning, answering phone calls, and, overall, helping out with all aspects of the day! Thank you Kelly and Elaine for all that you do!
BMS New Information
Updated BMS Blue/Gold Calendar:
Please see our updated BMS Blue/Gold Calendar. In order to help with clarity, we alternated each day to either be Odd or Even. As you will notice, due to the number of days off in November, there will now be 3 Even Mondays in a row, followed by 2 Odd Mondays in a row.
BMS Daily Calendar 2020 - 2021
Student Attestation and Emergency Contact Form Reminder:
We would like to thank everyone who returned their Student Attestation Acknowledgement and Emergency Contact Form. For those who have not returned the forms, we will be reaching out to you individually to ensure the forms are on file.
Update from the Volunteer Coordinator’s Office
Click here for updated volunteer information.
2020-2021 Rhode Island Student Assistance Services Information
Barrington Middle School, along with 56 other Rhode Island secondary schools, is implementing a Student Assistance Program based on a national model called Project SUCCESS. The program is provided by Rhode Island Student Assistance Services (RISAS) and is funded by the Rhode Island Department of Behavioral Health and the school department.
The goals of Project SUCCESS are to prevent and reduce alcohol, tobacco and other drug use and to improve school performance. To accomplish these goals, the program provides school-wide awareness programs, classroom presentations and individual and small group sessions to correct erroneous perceptions about substance use and teach skills to identify and resist social and situational pressures to use substances. Parent meetings and workshops will also be available to assist you in prevention efforts. Please click here for the full information.
Join the Adventure of Scouting with Troop 2 Barrington
Join us on Wednesdays at 5:00pm
Haines Memorial State Park (picnic site #20 -adjacent to boat ramp parking lot) Rte 103, East Providence, RI
Play BYOB (aka Bring Your Own Book!)
Tomorrow!!! Tuesday, September 29 from 3:30 - 4:30 pm
Grades 6 - 12
Outside! All you need is a book! Register on the teen page of the library.
Barrington Lions Club International Peace Poster Contest
Bringing Peace to the World, One Child at a Time.
Through service to others, we can give and receive so much - joy, kindness, hope and PEACE. Create a work of art that expresses your vision of "Peace Through Service" by participating in the Lions Clubs International Peace Poster Contest!
Please see this link for prize and contest entry information.
BMS Old Information
Flu Clinic
Please see the flier below for upcoming flu clinics that will be taking place in the district.
Student Attendance/early dismissal:
If your child is going to be absent from in-person learning or distance learning we ask that you contact the main office to let them know. If your child needs to be dismissed from school (in-person or distance learning) we ask you to follow the same procedure. It is important that we have accurate attendance records.
Screening Students
Barrington Public Schools abides by the guidelines set forth from the RI Department of Education (RIDE) and RI Department of Health (RIDOH) for Screening Students and Staff, related to COVID-19 Health & Safety Guidance for reopening schools.
Checking for symptoms at home each morning by families and caregivers is critical and will serve as the primary screening mechanism for COVID-19 symptoms. Communication of this protocol and a self-attestation form will be provided to parents to use as a screening tool. This tool will be used to symptom check, and families should not send their children to school if they exhibit any COVID-19 symptoms. We will update the checklist of symptoms provided on the form if any guidance from the CDC changes.
Student Attestation Procedures:
You must screen your child for temperature, other symptoms, and risk factors for COVID-19 each day before sending them to the bus or building. If the student has any signs of illness or risk factors, they will remain at home, and the parent/guardian will contact the school nurse.
Barrington Public Schools requires you to use the Student attestation form daily to screen your child. We will send out weekly reminders on Sunday evenings with reminders about screening for symptoms of and risk factors for COVID-19 and what would necessitate your child to stay home.
Please see the linked document below for additional information.
Notes about Screening Students:
Families and caregivers will screen students at home using a self-attestation form.
Fever is defined at 100° F or above related to this self-attestation form.
If a student has a low-grade fever, less than 100℉ before school, do not send your child to school and monitor at home for symptoms of illness or if increasing fever develops.
Remain in close contact with the school nurse or principal
If feeling well enough to learn, students monitored at home may engage in distance learning.
All students must stay home if they answer “Yes” to any screening questions before school.
If a student screens positive for any COVID-19 symptoms, the student’s parent/guardian should seek medical advice from the student’s healthcare provider and inform the school of the student’s absence and inform the school nurse (COVID-19 point of contact) at the school.
School staff (and bus drivers) should observe students throughout the day and refer students who may show signs of being symptomatic to the school nurse for assessment.
Nursing staff will monitor students who are symptomatic in isolation rooms until parents arrive and provide instructions for the next steps. Parents must pick up their children within one hour for the safety of all members of the community.
BMS Arrival/Dismissal Procedures:
Arrival | Dismissal | |||||||
General Information School Office hours 8:00 am - 3:45 pm | When students enter through their designated doors, students will be sanitizing their hands. Students will report directly to their first-period class and place their items under their desks. No lockers this year. Students' first instructional period for that particular day will be their homeroom. Students will not be allowed on campus before 8:20 am. | When students exit through their designated doors, students will be sanitizing their hands. It is incredibly important for students to pay attention to our dismissal announcements to know when to dismiss. Students will need to leave campus directly after school. | ||||||
Time | Beginning at 8:20 am Target Drop Off Times: 8:20 - 8:30: Last Name A-K 8:30 - 8:40: Last Name L - Z Homeroom will begin at 8:40 am. | To dismiss our students safely, we will begin the process at 3:00 pm. As we become more efficient, this time will be pushed back. Our official end of the day is 3:15 pm. | ||||||
Bus | Students arriving on the bus will use the front door entrance. | Students will be dismissed by bus (one bus at a time) using the front door entrance. | ||||||
Car/Walkers/Bikers | Students arriving at school from Middle Highway entrances will use the 3 story cluster wing’s front side door. Students arriving at school from the Lincoln Ave entrance will use the 3 story cluster wing’s backside door. |
When students are dismissed, they will leave out of the same door they used to enter school in the morning. |
BMS Distance Learning Student Expectations:
Last year, we learned a great deal of information about best practices for students to follow while engaging in distance learning. Linked below, you will find documentation that we will be reviewing with your students. We encourage you to share this with your students as well.
BMS Distance Learning Student Expectations
Learning Model Updates:
Families who have identified their learning model status (in-person learning or distance learning) are asked to commit to their preferred learning model for four weeks before switching models. This will allow your student to establish routines and rituals with learning and not be disruptive to learning. Frequent changes in plans will only add to confusion and disruption for the students. If you plan on changing your learning model after the four weeks, we ask that you notify your school’s principal 72 hours before the change of plans—this way, the school will be prepared for your child’s shift in plan.
Masks:
Students are required to wear masks throughout the day. Teachers will be providing students with outside mask breaks. We ask each student to bring two masks with them and a paper bag for soiled masks.
Canvas:
We are moving away from Google Classroom and beginning to use Canvas this year. We will be sending out specific directions to login and use Canvas. For now, we wanted to provide you with these introduction videos.
Unlike Google Classroom, you and your children will only have to log in to 1 Canvas Account to see all of your child's teachers at the elementary level and your child's courses at the secondary level.
Students’ Canvas Overview
https://community.canvaslms.co...
Parents’ Canvas Overview