Winter break is HERE! We hope you and your family have a wonderful extended break. Happy holidays to each of you. Students and staff members will be out of school from Dec. 20-January 3. JANUARY 4 IS THE FIRST DAY BACK FOR STUDENTS.
MATTRESS FUNDRAISER: The Voyager Academy High School Chorus Program Mattress Fundraiser is right around the corner on Saturday, January 29th. There will be 25+ different styles of beds on display for customers to try. The beds are new, brand name, made to order, available in all sizes, and cost less than retail stores. In addition to beds, there will also be luxury pillows, mattress protectors, adjustable power bases and even massage chairs!!
MONTHLY CHARACTER TRAITS AT VAES: Beginning in January, Voyager elementary students will focus on a new character trait every month. KINDNESS, will be the trait we focus on in January. Students will discuss the trait and complete class activities during their morning meeting sessions. Our 3rd graders will be our Valiant Vikings and they will be looking for students who are showing the monthly trait and they will TICKET them. If the student is ticketed, their name will be announced over the intercom during morning announcements. We hope this is a fun way to teach valuable community lessons to our amazing students.
THANK YOU, VOYAGER PARENTS ROCK: Thank you to the families who made the staff feel so special during this holiday season. Your kind deeds, generosity, gifts and amazing food items are much appreciated. Voyager parents ROCK!
THE SEASON OF GIVING: Thank you to all the Voyager families who helped us meet the holiday needs of various families within the Voyager community. You have helped us make a difference in our school community.
ADD THESE DATES TO YOUR CALENDAR:
Dec. 20-Jan 3: Winter Break
Jan. 04: Students Return to School/3rd Quarter Begins
Jan. 04 -Jan. 25: Middle of the Year Reading Assignments Begin
Jan. 07: Report Cards Are Issued
ELEMENTARY HOLIDAY MUSIC: We did it! Our K-3 students enjoyed a winter themed music concert on Dec. 14. The elementary choir sang, the middle school band performed, and the Viking Troopers sang. Later that afternoon, every grade level shared one of their favorite songs with their classmates. It was a wonderful time and we even learned a winter themed dance. Ask your child to show you the shoveling snow move! A link to the performance will be sent to all elementary families so you can enjoy the gift of music as well.
SPECIAL READING SESSIONS: This week our reading interventionist, Mrs. Roberts, was able to visit classrooms and share one of her favorite books, Gingerbread Baby by Jan Brett!
Our students loved the visit and enjoyed the book, as well as Mrs, Roberts’ gingerbread outfit!
Many children asked if Gingerbread Baby stayed with the main character, Mattie, after the book ended. If you want to find out, check out Gingerbread Friends, also by Jan Brett, at your local library!
FIELD TRIP PAYMENTS AT VOYAGER: Field Trip Payments will now be made through the Titan Family portal at Family.Titank12.com. It is the same system we are using to deposit funds for lunch. If you have not set up an account yet, I've included the instructions (Spanish & English) to this email. I also created a short video tutorial of the process. Each family will need to set up an account in order to pay for field trip and classroom fees.
Watch the video here:
You will need to create an account on the portal first to begin making payments. Once in the Titan family dashboard
Link your student(s) to your family account. All Voyager students are in the Titan system.
Add a payment method here under profile or in your cart before checking out.
Use the menu on the left to select "Store." This is the future home of all fees payments at Voyager Academy.
Select the item you aRe purchasing (field trip, etc)
Select your student(s) name from the drop down list.
Select the plan selection.
Select your students' grade level.
Select the month of service.
Press the add to cart button.
A pop up button will appear with the option to continue shopping or view the cart. If you have a sibling to register or need an additional plan, click continue shopping. Otherwise, continue to the cart for payment.
Review your cart before completing your purchase. To delete an item. Click the 3 dots to the right of the item.
The system should email you a receipt. You can also view your transaction history from the dashboard menu under "History."
Please do not set up recurring payments within the portal for field trip fees.
WHAT IS NEW? Just a couple of quick updates for everyone:
Voyager has been using our fall fundraising money to improve our school
We have had one sensory walk installed and will have a second sensory walk installed around February or March.
We have been able to purchase a new electric keyboard for our music classroom.
We have purchased new outside benches for our elementary and kindergarten playground.
We have ordered additional picnic tables and they should arrive soon.
We are in the process of getting some quotes to try and improve the playground equipment for the elementary school.
We are thrilled to announce that Mrs. Roberts, our reading interventionists, will be moved to a full time position beginning in January. This will give even more students the opportunity to experience reading support.
We have hired an additional first grade teacher assistant to work with our first grade teachers and students as we seek to develop independent learners. Please join me in welcoming Ms. Nichole Utley to our staff.
LET’S STAY CONNECTED: Let’s stay connected! Scroll on over to our Voyager Academy website to see all the updates and additions. Be sure to follow, friend, like and subscribe to all our Social Media accounts! #GoVikingsGo #VoyagerVikings
WHAT IS AMAZON SMILE? AmazonSmile is a simple way for you to support your favorite charitable organization every time you shop, at no cost to you. AmazonSmile is available at smile.amazon.com on your web browser and can be activated in the Amazon Shopping app for iOS and Android phones. When you shop with AmazonSmile, you’ll find the exact same low prices, vast selection and convenient shopping experience as Amazon.com, with the added benefit that AmazonSmile will donate 0.5% of your eligible purchases to Voyager Academy Inc.
IS YOUR CHILD READY TO RETURN TO SCHOOL AFTER A COLD? OR ALLERGIES? A TEST IS BEST! Parents, please remember that our current Sick Child Policy REQUIRES that if a student stays home from school with ANY symptoms of illness - such as cough, sore throat, headache, fever, loss of taste or smell, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea - that they MUST obtain a PCR COVID test with a negative result or have a note from their doctor before they are able to return to school. Even if the symptoms are mild - or they just appear to be a cold or allergies. We apologize for the inconvenience, but at this point in time we cannot allow children to return to school without a negative COVID test. This policy helps keep students, teachers, and the Voyager community safe. For convenience, there is a PCR testing facility right down the street from Voyager that offers free, no-appointment required COVID testing.
NASHVILLE SONGWRITERS: TICKETS ON SALE NOW FOR NASHVILLE SONGWRITERS AT DPAC. Proceeds from this show will benefit Voyager K-12 Arts Programs. Click on the link below for more details.
SHOW WILL BE HELD ON FEBRUARY 11, 2022 - 7:30 PM
CHICK-FIL- A READING CHALLENGE: We love Chick-Fil-A (on Roxboro Rd) and how they support our school community. Stay tuned for details about how Voyager Elementary will be partnering with Chick-Fil-A to promote the value of reading. This program began on December 1. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE READ OVER WINTER BREAK. WE NEED YOUR HELP TO KEEP OUR STUDENTS MOVING FORWARD WITH LEARNING!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS CONCERNING COVID: Voyager’s amazing school nurse has created a document for all of our families entitled FAQ Concerning Covid. We understand how challenging and stressful this situation has been and we appreciate your support and partnership. I highly encourage you to click on the link below and read the health information so you can stay informed and will better understand the guidelines Voyager is following as we seek to keep all students and staff safe.
QUARANTINE GUIDELINES: Listed below are the guidelines we have been given as they are related to quarantine:
When your children need to stay home to learn, always contact me and your child's teacher.
The teacher will provide remote assignments for your student. As long as the student is doing some work at home and you complete the attendance link provided below they will be counted present. The link to complete your child’s attendance is HERE
Because your student has been directly exposed to someone, outside of school, who has tested positive for COVID, your student needs to quarantine for 10 days. They may return to school after the 10 days of quarantine have been completed AND have no symptoms from the time of exposure.
The 10 day quarantine protocol is not school days, it also includes the weekend. For example, if your child was exposed on Aug. 9, they can return to school on Aug. 20 (10 days).
Please keep me, your child’s teacher, and our school nurse, Mrs. Skoff updated on your child’s symptoms and/or test results.
See below for details for siblings where ONE tests positive, another tests NEGATIVE. Or for students and a parent tests positive, but student tests NEGATIVE.
Your positive student will need to complete a 10 day quarantine and may return to school after those 10 days so long as they are fever free for 24 hours and their symptoms are improving. With regard to siblings - as of now, IF you are able to isolate the positive child from the family, eat in separate spaces, wear masks in the home, use separate bathrooms, etc the negative child may return at the end of the positive child’s 10 day quarantine IF you were able to ensure the above protective measures were taken in the home.
The negative child(ren) would need to have NO symptoms and obtain a COVID test NO SOONER THAN 5 days following their last exposure to the positive sibling. So, if you used Monday as Day 1, they could test after Friday. If that test is negative AND you have been able to keep the positive student isolated the entire time, then the negative siblings could go back to school after the positive child's 10 day quarantine is over. We would request that you provide us documentation of their negative PCR tests before the children return. IF any of your other children develop symptoms at any point, they should get tested. If they then test positive they would then just complete a 10-day quarantine from the onset of symptoms.
These are the recommendations that the Durham Health Department has provided us as of today. They will continue to assess and monitor the situation and may update their guidelines. We will make changes to our protocols here at Voyager if that happens.