This week was certainly a wild one with a return to winter at the beginning of the week, followed by spring temps at the end! We look forward to your presence next week at our spring family conferences. If you did not have a chance to sign up for an appointment, please contact your child's teacher directly.
The lost and found will be stationed at the top of the stairs in the entryway on Monday morning through the end of the week for guardians to peruse. Thanks for claiming your family's belongings!
In addition to family conferences next week, the 3rd and 4th graders will have their final alpine ski day on Monday, and there is no school for students on Friday, March 22nd.
On April 8th, students will be dismissed from BPS beginning at 11:30, due to the solar eclipse. Please be sure to note any plan changes in Pick Up Patrol well in advance of this date!
HUUSD School Board Seats
The Harwood Unified Union School Board is seeking to fill two (2) vacant seats for Waterbury. The Board seeks volunteers who reside in Waterbury to fill the seats until Town Meeting Day in March 2025. If the appointees would like to serve beyond that date, they would then run for election on Town Meeting Day 2025.
Board Meeting Details
When: Wednesdays 6PM - 9PM
Frequency: 2-3 times/month
Where: Harwood Union High School library
There are often a couple hours of reading preparation before each meeting. No previous board experience is necessary, but an open mind and interest in learning about the way school boards work are important!
Being on the school board can be a challenging volunteer experience; at the same time it offers a chance to make a meaningful difference for residents and families in our six towns. School boards are an important part of Vermont's local governance tradition as well as an important way that we keep Vermont's current governing structures vital and effective. School board members learn a lot about our community, education funding and policy, and the democratic process.
To Apply:
Complete the Town of Waterbury’s application: https://tinyurl.com/BoardAppForm
Send both the completed application and a letter of interest to Board Chair Ashley Woods (awoods@huusd.org) and Superintendent Mike Leichliter (mleichliter@huusd.org) by March 27.
The school district will forward all materials to the Waterbury Town Clerk.
The Waterbury Select Board will interview candidates on April 1, 2024, and recommend candidates to the School Board, which will officially make the appointment on April 10, 2024. You can find more information about the district and the Board at huusd.org, and you will find answers to frequently asked questions ("Join the School Board FAQ") here: https://huusd.org/board-information.
The Book Fair is here!
Shop in the library Monday-Thursday 3-5 or ONLINE beginning March 18!
Music Notes
Spring Concert
Mark your calendars! The BPS Spring concert is scheduled for Thursday, April 11th at 6pm in the gym. This concert will feature all 4th grade classes as well as 3rd Grade Chorus and 4th Grade Chorus. We hope you can join us!
Please reach out to Lizzy Palumbo at epalumbo@huusd.org with any questions.
Updated VDH COVID Guidelines
Over the last two weeks the Centers for Disease Control and the Vermont Department of Health have updated their guidance on isolation practices after testing positive for COVID-19. Both organizations are no longer recommending a strict 5 day isolation period.
We continue to recommend that people stay home when they are feeling sick or have a fever. You can still spread viruses to others.
If you are feeling sick with respiratory virus symptoms, the Vermont Department of Health recommends to:
Avoid contact with others, including people you live with who are not sick.
Consider testing for COVID-19 to help you decide if you need to take more steps to protect yourself and others.
Talk to a health care provider about treatment and other options if you are at risk of getting very sick or your symptoms get worse.
You can go back to your normal activities after at least one day (24 hours) if:
Your symptoms are getting better overall and
You have not had a fever for at least 24 hours (and are not using fever-reducing medicines).
The Vermont Department of Health recommends the following prevention steps to prevent the spread of respiratory viruses:
Practice good hygiene. Wash your hands often with soap and water or use hand sanitizer, cover your coughs and sneezes, and clean and disinfect surfaces as much as possible.
Keep physical distance with other people as much as possible.
Improve air quality. Take additional steps for cleaner air such as bringing in fresh outside air, using an air filter, or gathering outdoors.
Wear a mask. Look for a well-fitting, high-quality mask, or a disposable mask under a cloth mask.
Consider testing for COVID-19. Testing can help you decide if you need to take more steps to protect yourself and others. Even if you test negative for COVID-19, if you are sick with another respiratory virus you can still spread it to others.
Respiratory viruses most often spread through the air from an infected person when they breathe, talk, cough or sneeze. The closer you are to someone who has a respiratory virus, the more likely you are to get sick.
Consider testing for COVID-19 if you develop symptoms.
You might want to take extra protective steps, especially if you or the people around you are at higher risk of getting very sick or if you are unsure if they are at higher risk.
Learn more at Centers for Disease Control and the Vermont Department of Health
COMMUNITY POSTINGS
Please note that the opportunities/events listed below are not specifically endorsed or screened by school staff. As always, families should use their own standards and review processes to determine appropriate activities.
CLiF's Two Sentence Writing Contest
CLiF's second annual Two-Sentence Writing Contest has launched! This year's theme, ahead of the upcoming Total Solar Eclipse on April 8, is "Tell Us a Story That Takes Place in the Sky."
You can find all the details, as well as a downloadable writing template and a complementary implementation guide, by clicking here.
The contest is free to enter and open to all Vermont and New Hampshire children aged 12 and under
Prizes will be awarded to top entries in each category
Entries must be emailed or postmarked by March 29.
Entries may be emailed to communications@clifonline.org, or mailed to: CLiF Writing Contest, 3579 Waterbury-Stowe Road, Waterbury Center, VT 05677
New Little Free Library at CLiF!
Children’s Literacy Foundation is excited to announce that we have joined the Little Free Library (LFL) global network of book-exchange boxes, just in time for eclipse mania! Thanks to a partnership between LFL and the Simons Foundation's Science, Society and Culture division, we have received our very own book-sharing box with a curated collection of eclipse-themed books for children and adults.
CLiF invites the Waterbury community to stop by our headquarters at 3579 Waterbury-Stowe Rd. to browse our library and choose a book!
Online Safety Workshop for ages 7-14 together with their adults
Tuesday, March 26, 6-7 pm at Warren Elementary School
To be safe online, young people of all ages need strong social-emotional safety skills. Social-emotional development extends through the teen years,
so even older kids with strong tech skills are safer with caring adults involved in their online lives. You’ll leave this program with more strategies to:
Strengthen communication to keep conversations with your kids about their online lives open, respectful, and supportive
Apply boundary setting principles to set clear rules about where, how, and when youths can use online tools
Make a “Long-Term Shared Goal” about your kids’ online lives that you all agree on – and can work toward as a team
Build an age-appropriate understanding of issues such as online privacy, cyberbullying, and digital citizenship
Coach young people in making online adaptations for all of their in-person social-emotional safety skills
Develop safety plans for trying new things online – and for getting help when things go wrong
Light refreshments will be available.
Register here: https://tinyurl.com/KP-Warren-3-26-24
Questions? Contact Laura Slesar - laura@kidpower.org
Summer Camp Opportunity
Mad River Path Adventures Camps
Monthly Parent/Caregiver Group at Hannah's House
Our March meeting happens to be on the same night as the Online Safety Presentation, however, it will still be happening.
This is an open group for all who identify as a parent or caregiver to come together and cultivate community, mutual support, and normalize the realities that coincide with this very big job.
Available in-person or via Zoom, all are welcome. Childcare can be made available with advanced notice.
Hannah's House therapist Katie will facilitate the monthly session - on the last Tuesday of each month, 5:30-7:00pm in the 2nd Floor Conference Room at MRV Health Center, Waitsfield.
Highlander Lacrosse Sign Ups
Highlander lacrosse registration is still open and we would love to have your child try out this exciting team sport! We are especially seeking 3-6 grade girls to fill out our teams. Join us!
Find out more at highlanderlacrosse.com
Weather permitting, outdoor practices begin in April at Mad River Park or Crossett Brook Middle School. Practices are held two afternoons a week and starting in May, games are played on Saturdays for boys and Sundays for girls. The game season is 6 weeks from May to early June.
The registration fee is $100 before February 10 and after February 10, the registration fee will increase by $20.00. Equipment is provided for kindergarten through fourth-grade players, First-timers are welcome at every level and scholarship money is available upon request.
