Hello Middle School Parents,
I hope everyone is safe and sound after the rains we received Thursday. I also hope that your families across our state are safe. The roads were certainly covered with water when traveling home from school. As you travel this weekend be mindful of the remaining water as well as the many potholes and other road problems.
The Voyager Leadership Team continues to prepare for our return to in-person instruction in January. As we prepare for the students who will “come to school” we continue to prepare for our students who will continue the process of remote learning. We have been working on cohort assignments, schedules and operational plans for our January return. Our students who are in-person and our students who will continue remote learning the remainder of the year will receive a copy of our Bell Schedule once completed. The students in grades 5-8 will also receive their own class schedule prior to returning as there will be some changes to the order of class periods. Our 4th graders will receive their homeroom teacher’s name as we did have to make a few changes.
You should receive Cohort information today, Friday, via email so be on the lookout!
Stay healthy and safe – Practice the 3 W’s As we work together to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, please remind your children about the importance of the 3 W’s (Wear, Wait, & Wash). Wear a mask, practice social distancing by waiting and maintaining a 6-foot space between others, and wash hands frequently to help reduce the spread of COVID-19.
MASK PRACTICE: As we begin to prepare for returning to in-person instruction in January, I would like to encourage you to begin having your child practice wearing their face mask for long periods of time. All students and staff will be required to wear a face mask at all times (except for a period of time during lunch) when we return to in person instruction. It would be very helpful if you would begin having your child wear their face mask during morning meetings or for a one to two hour period during the school day as we prepare them for the transition.
Important Update: Food and nutrition support for families in need has been extended through June. From now until June 30, 2021, Durham County Public Schools will provide free meals to all children aged 18 and under. Drive-through pick up of meals is available weekly from 11 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. every Tuesday and Thursday. Pick-up sites are listed here and below. No ID is required to pick up the meals. If you are unable to pick up at the designated time, click here to obtain information on how to have meals delivered to your home.
Stay Up-to-the-Minute on Your Child’s Progress: Become a “Parent Observer” on His/Her PowerSchool Account
It’s very important for you as parents to know what is going on regarding their child’s grades and class assignments. An easy way to check both grades and completion of assignments is to check your child’s PowerSchool account. If it were me, I would at least check the account weekly. If you do not have access to your child’s PowerSchool account, please let me know by sending me an email.
Last Call from the High School for--------
FREE TUTORING: National Honor Society Tutors/Viking Buddies Back In Business
The National Honor Society at the High School is excited to be "virtually" back in full swing this year (although we miss seeing each other in person) and going strong! We are starting to plan some events for the upcoming school year. The NHS is most excited to have the tutoring/buddy program back up and running. We have sent out links to your child's teachers for them to request tutors. But in addition, this year we are also providing a link for parents to request tutors for their children!
We all know that these are trying times and we are glad to be able to help with anything from homework to studying for a test. Maybe your student could just benefit from talking to a peer and would like to sign up for a Viking Buddy to talk to through the day, who can give some tips on time management or test taking strategies.
Please click here to request tutoring from NHS!
Masks, Masks, Masks - oh, no, more mask info!!!!!!
If your children are coming to school and will be in the building, it is a requirement that your children, our students, wear a mask during the day. I know you are thinking - what about lunch? Well, during lunch students will be able to take off their mask when they are eating their lunch. Lunch will be a little different this year as all three campuses will have silent lunch for the first 10-14 minutes of their lunch period. Yes, that means eating and not talking. This should help eliminate germs being spread throughout lunch. Once they have finished eating their lunch, they put their mask back on and enjoy conversation with their friends for the remainder of their lunch period. We know this is a change but it is one way to support the safety of our students and staff.
The VAMS Yearbook Needs You! Many of you have asked about a yearbook for the 2020-2021 school year. We’ve heard your request and yes, we will have a yearbook IF we have support from you! We need pictures of your students working, learning, playing, etc to add to the yearbook. If you have pictures that could be part of the yearbook, please send the pictures to Ms. Pam.
Middle School Needs:
We need a supply of wipes for January - May. When you are shopping and you see wipes on the shelf of a grocery store, Walmart or any other store and you are able, will you please add a container of wipes to your cart and then drop them off at school? We will need lots of wipes so we can disinfect after lunch and throughout our day. It will be greatly appreciated! By the way, I was in Walgreens and Target and was able to purchase some wipes. If you can help, please check out Walgreens and Target!
REMIND Text: Thanks to those of you who signed up!
4th Grade-In the“To” section of the text type 81010 and in the message type @6agbha.
5th Grade-In the“To” section of the text type 81010 and in the message type @eh9f6kb.
6th Grade -In the“To” section of the text type 81010 and in the message type @beeh8h.
7th Grade - In the“To” section of the text type 81010 and in the message type @cak43k.
8th Grade -In the”To” section of the text type 81010 and in the message type @8cg9ch
DATES FOR YOUR CALENDAR:
As always, please email me at gjohnson@voyageracademy.net or call if you have questions, comments or concerns about anything.
Thanks,
Gwen
Gwen Johnson, MS Principal