Happy New Year to all Middle School Families,
Wow, I wonder if we are going to get enough snow to have some fun sledding. I think a little sledding would be lots of fun even if it’s going to be very cold. I hope all of our students had a great first week at school after celebrating the holidays. I know I enjoyed the time away from school!
8th Grade Families
This is an invitation to all 8th grade families. Dr. Nolan, HS principal, and his team would like for you to attend Rising 9th Graders’ Night! The information session will take place on Wednesday, January 13 from 6:00 to 7:00. The Zoom link for the session will be sent out next week. I hope to see all of you attending the Zoom meeting as I know there will be lots for each of us to learn about 9th grade.
Lottery Application
The new year also brings the opening of our application process for admission for the 2021 -2022 school year. The application period opens on January 1 and closes on February 28, 2021. We are scheduling a virtual information session for prospective families on February 9, 2021. We are also planning an information session on January 13, 2021 for current Voyager 8th graders and their parents to discuss the high school transition and share information about academic, athletic, and extracurricular opportunities available at Voyager High School.
Greenlight App - Health Screenings - Speed up Carline
We have partnered with Duke and Greenlight Ed to complete our daily health screening so we can monitor the overall health of our school community. Please set up your Greenlight account today and complete the survey daily for each child even while your children are learning remotely. We will use this data and input to ensure we are ready for reopening safely. The links to set up your account are below.
ACTION NEEDED: Directions and links to set up your Greenlight Account
Setting up your account is simple. Select the link below and enter the email address you use to receive Voyager newsletters. Families with multiple children can select any school their children attends. Once your account is set up you will see all of your children associated with your account and be able to complete the daily health screening for each of them. After you complete your first survey you will see the Greenlight pass indicating your are clear. We will have students select that option to show the larger pass during car line for screening along with their temperature check. Each student will be able to show their Greenlight pass to ensure they are healthy and can attend school. The app also provides support for families that need access to health care, testing, or additional community resources.
Please select the link below to set up your family account now.
Middle School- activate account here: https://glit.me/go/voyager-middle
Account set up questions should be directed to help@greenlightready.com
The app is not yet in the app store so you can't just download it at this time. The developer is currently waiting for approval from Apple. Once you set up your account you can send the link https://app.greenlightready.com/ to your phone. Additional resources are below to assist with setting up your phones for easy access to our Greenlight health screening.
Here is a link to a video that walks through registering for Greenlight:
Greenlight Video from Claire –instructions to add Greenlight to your home screen on your phone
For iPhone users:
https://www.macrumors.com/how-to/add-a-web-link-to-home-screen-iphone-ipad/
For Android users:
https://www.howtogeek.com/667938/how-to-add-a-website-to-your-android-home-screen/
Questions regarding setting up your account should be directed to help@greenlightready.com. Once your account is set up you can also use their chat feature.
Community Partnership with Kate’s Korner for K-5
Kate’s Korner will provide a supervised remote learning space for Voyager Academy Elementary (Kindergarten-3rd grades) and Middle School (4th & 5th grade) students to complete their school work while Voyager is operating in a remote learning environment and parents are working. Additional information regarding Kate’s Korner can be found on their website https://www.kateskornerdurham.com, and registration can be completed using this Registration Form
Community Partnership with Student U for Grades 6-12
Student U will provide a supervised remote learning space for families of Voyager Academy Middle School and High School students to complete their Voyager school work in a safe supervised learning center while Voyager is operating in a remote learning environment and parents are working. This community partnership will support struggling Voyager families in need of free child care while they are working during the remote learning environment. Applications for the learning center will be prioritized by Student U for families that qualify for free or reduced lunch, have parents that are essential workers, or have become recently unemployed, are experiencing homelessness, are part of the foster care system, or live in public housing. Apply to Student H Here
Job Opportunity at Voyager Academy
Voyager Academy is seeking enthusiastic positive role models to fill open positions in the Before and After school programs for grades K-8. The part-time shifts are Monday-Friday 6:30am-8:30am & 3:00pm-6:00pm beginning mid January 2021. Applicants must be 18years old. You can apply online at https://nc.teachermatch.org/applyteacherjob.do?jobId=485603
For more information contact the Operations Manager, Patrice Johnson at pjohnson@voyageracademy.net.
SUBSTITUTE TEACHERS NEEDED: As we prepare for our January return to school, we need to increase our substitute teacher list. If you are a Voyager parent and you would be willing to discuss subbing for the middle school, please email me at gjohnson@voyageracademy.net. We need YOU to make our reopening plan a reality.
HYBRID PROCEDURES MANUAL: I know the procedural manual was part of previous newsletters but I am leaving the link in this newsletter just in case you’ve lost it. There is much information in the manual that you will need beginning January 19th which is the day we plan to have students in the building. Hybrid Procedures Manual
School Supplies
Students will need to bring their school supplies to school. Book bags are permitted and should only have supplies and notebook/folders in the book bag. School supplies should be stored in a plastic pencil box or zipper pencil bag to help transport the supplies and maintain their personal supplies. Students will not be allowed to share their materials with other students. If students do not have the necessary materials, the teacher will have materials to give the students needing supplies. Students will use their personal supplies throughout the entire day. Lockers will not be available for student use at any time during the day.
Reminders
All students in grade 5-8 will receive a schedule prior to the January return to school date. Both In-Person and Remote students will have a schedule. The order of subjects per class period will more than likely change for many of our students. Teachers will also provide updated zoom links if needed.
Students will not be assigned lockers. Lockers will not be used for books, backpacks, etc. There will be no use of cubbies, lockers nor use of the locker rooms for change of clothing for physical education. Lockers in the hallways will be secured so students will not be able to use lockers nor put belongings in the lockers.
When it is necessary to change classes, students will move in small groups with one group moving at a time. Teachers will supervise/escort students as they move from one class to the next class. Students will be monitored in the hallway and will not be allowed to congregate and will continuously move to the next location.
Carline Number - Very Important
You should receive an email to provide you with your child’s car line number. The car line number that you receive will be used during afternoon carline. If your child was at Voyager during 2019-2020, the car line number will be the same as in the past. If your child is new to Voyager, the 4 digit number you received is your child’s 4 digit number that will be used for dismissal each day. On the first day of carline, the MS will provide you with a piece of blue cardstock. You will need to write the names of all of your children on the cardstock and write their carline number beside each student’s name. Again, we will provide you with a piece of blue cardstock. Some of you may have your blue card from last year! We need you to display your sign on the right side of your dashboard as this will help our staff who are outside monitoring the dismissal process. This is done daily.
If you did not receive your car line number prior to the Winter Break, please send an email to Gwen Johnson at gjohnson@voyageracademy.net requesting your car line number.
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. Masks will need to be worn except when eating lunch.
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:
Christmas in India
Author - Shreya (5th Grader)
My first Chrismtas in India was the most lively and unexpected one in my life. I was at my gradnparent’s house on the 4th glorrfloor in Puttaparthi. When I looked out of the window, I saw that all the radiant lights on the streets were like fireflies dancing in the night. In India, it does not snow and I was a little disappointed. The temperature was warm but at night it got very cold. We were just about to leave to go to the the temple. It was cold so I wore a long hand shirt and a jacket.
As we left the house and got to the main road the first thing I saw was the temple. It was glowing like a flame, “Wow so amazing”, I thought in my head, looking at the beautiful bright lights. We sat on the cool white marble floor of the temple and my legs shivered. The designs on the pillars holding up the temple were like swirls on a cake. The melodious carols were echoing in the hall.
When the caroler finished we got a salty snack. While I was eating my snack sitting on a rock wall, all of a sudden a little dog came up to me and licked my leg. “Stop that, it tickles, “ I said laughing. The dog sat up next to me and I petted it. It felt as soft as cotton.
As we were leaving I saw Santa! I had never seen Santa before, and I was surprised. His beard was like white, curly strings and not much like real hair. Santa gave me chocolates and candies and I took pictures with him. He greeted me, “Merry Christmas”, and I said, “Thank you and have a Merry Christmas”.
I was so exhausted on my way home that I almost fell asleep while I was walking. When we got back to the house, I changed into my flower printed cotton pj’s and collapsed on the bed like a log. As I fell asleep, I thought about all the fun I had. I hope I can go back to India again and enjoy another Christmas with Santa.