Cherry Crest Chronicler
September 10
Hello Charger Families!
What an exciting and unusual way to begin the 2020-2021 school year. Thank you for partnering with us to support each and every one of our Chargers . We continue to work through technology access problems and are committed to getting every student connected to their teacher, their classmates and learning. If your child is experiencing problems, please see the Tech Tips and links to support by phone, email or in person below.
During this first week of class (and first days for kindergarten), teachers have focused on building relationships, establishing classroom community and demonstrating how virtual classroom instruction will work this fall. Our specialist teachers (Art, Music, PE, Library) have been supporting classroom teachers and building relationships since the first day of school and will begin teaching their own classes beginning September 14th. Each week your child’s class will attend each of the four specialist classes for 20 minutes of live instruction followed by some asynchronous or “on your own” practice in the afternoon. (Students in our 5th grade and 4th/5th combination classes will receive Band/Orchestra instruction two times/week in lieu of music and library). In preparation for these classes, your child will see a new “Team” appear in their Microsoft TEAMS app on the iPad or laptop computer.
To prepare for this new navigation, classroom teachers are modeling how to join specialists classes from their classroom meeting with students and helping them do this as part of their school day. We also wanted to share this information and “how to” with you so you can review it with your child and/or help navigate if needed. I’m including a video modeling how students will transition from their class meetings to their specialist’s meeting and back to their class meeting.
How To Navigation for getting “to and from” general class meeting to specialists*
*If prompted please enter your child’s login and password to access video
(login: s-lastnamefirstinitial PW: s#studentnumber)
Thank you for your continuous flexibility and support this school year!
Dusty Steere, Principal Cherry Crest Elementary
For those of you new to Cherry Crest, you are reading the September edition of the Cherry Crest Chronicler. The Chronicler comes out monthly and is my way, as principal, of sharing important information, dates and announcements related to our school. Thank you for taking a few moments to read the newsletter. In addition, I encourage you to regularly visit the school and PTSA websites for the most current information.
https://bsd405.org/cherrycrest https://www.cherrycrest-ptsa.org
IMPORTANT DATES
September 11 Virtual Principal Coffee @ 9:30 am Join Microsoft Teams Meeting
September 14 Specialist Lessons Begin
September 15 PTSA Virtual General Membership Meeting
September 16 All School Welcome Back Assembly @ 9:40am join LIVE Event
Please remember to regularly visit the Cherry Crest & PTSA websites for the most current information.
https://bsd405.org/cherrycrest http://www.cherrycrest.my-ptsa.org
Top 5 Tech Tips. Supporting student technology needs during remote learning is important to the Bellevue School District. The following are the top five questions families have and their solutions:
1. What is my ParentVUE activation key?
2. How do I monitor my student’s online behavior?
3. My student’s device is constantly freezing in Teams. What do I do?
4. My student is unable to access content that should be available. What do I do?
5. Where do I find my student’s Teams meeting links?
Get Help With Technology. Teachers are not typically available or able to help troubleshoot technology problems during live instruction each day. Students and families can get technology support by phone, email or in-person. All students have access to the district’s Student How-To Guides online. Sometimes, restarting a device can solve basic issues.
Online
- Monday through Friday: 7:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
- Parents email [email protected]
- Students email [email protected]
Phone
- Monday through Friday: 7:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
- Parents and students call (425) 456-4321
In-Person at Tech Centers
- General tech support for issues that are difficult to resolve via email or phone
- Curbside device pick-up/exchange
- Staff and visitors will follow guidelines for minimizing the risk of COVID-19
- Monday, Wednesday, Friday: 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
- Tuesday, Thursday: 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m
Attendance on Wednesdays. In order to maintain state allocated funding, teachers are required to take attendance every day of the week including Wednesdays which may contain asynchronous or “on your own” learning.
To comply with state attendance directives, please look for communication from your child’s teacher about Wednesday participation expectations. For some classrooms this may be a required morning TEAMS check in; for others, students may be asked to log onto their Teams account and complete an assignment. It is very important that whatever your child is asked to do, that they complete their online learning on Wednesdays between 8 am and 12:15 pm, which is our normal Wednesday schedule. Any student who does not complete their online assignment during that time will be marked absent.
If for some reason your child is unable to participate in online learning any day during the week, it is important to email [email protected] by 8 am with the child’s first and last name, and the reason for the absence.
We thank you for your understanding and cooperation as we are all learning together about the new requirements for online learning this school year! If you have any questions about attendance requirements, please contact our school secretary, Denise Anderson.
Virtual Principal Chat Friday 9/11 @ 9:30 am. Join Principal Dusty Steere and PTSA presidents Britt Heath and Deepa Panchapekasan on Friday morning for a virtual meeting between 9:30 and 10:30 am. We will share information about the start of school and answer questions from our families. Join Microsoft Teams Meeting.
PTSA General Membership meeting on Tuesday, September 15th at 6:45pm via Teams Link (6:45 Get connected and socialize. Meeting Starts promptly at 7pm). Come meet your PTSA Board of Directors, approve an updated 2020-21 budget and start planning for an awesome school year. If you haven’t already, visit the Cherry Crest PTSA page to join or renew your PTSA membership.
If you need tech help to attend the meeting please email [email protected]. We do not have a way to dial in for a voice-only connection.
Questions? Contact your PTSA Co-Presidents at [email protected]
Welcome Back from your School Nurse, Amy Borberg, RN! We know that this year has been a very challenging one for everyone. COVID-19 has changed how we access health care, and we understand that last spring it may have been difficult to get the needed immunizations or signatures on your student’s Individual Health Plans.
Although we are beginning the school year with at-home/virtual learning, we are still collecting student’s proof of immunizations and signed IHPs in hopes that we will soon return to in-building learning. Student’s medications can stay at home until we return to buildings.
REQUIRED HEALTH FORMS ~ Medication Authorization, Immunization Requirements, CIS Forms and Exemption Forms (in all languages) can be found here:
https://bsd405.org/services/health/required-health-forms/
IMMUNIZATIONS ~ Make sure you’re up to date! Find a list of resources:
Highland Health Center Vaccine Clinic
If your BSD student is due for immunizations, we want to help them get caught up! The Highland Health Center will be at Stevenson Elementary has a no-cost service for BSD students. A parent/guardian needs to be present. Please call the Highland Health Center at 206-503-3132 for more information. Se habla Español.
Need help finding a doctor or clinic, or other health resources? Call the Help Me Grow Washington Hotline at 1-800-322-2588.
Not sure if your child is up to date on their vaccines? Access their immunization record for free at wa.myir.net/register
For additional information and resources about immunizations during COVID-19, visit immunitycommunitywa.org.
Free Vaccine Clinic for Kids Age 0-18. If your student needs immunizations, call Eastgate Public Health to sign up for a FREE appointment for Thursday, September 17, 2020 from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
- Offering all vaccines required for K-12 students + additional childhood vaccines
- Starting September 3, call (206) 477-8000 to make an appointment for Thursday, September 17
Eastgate Public Health Clinic address:
14350 SE Eastgate Way, Bellevue, WA 98007
Public Health – Seattle & King County
English
Spanish
Chinese
SCHOOL YEAR NUTRITION ~ The Meals2Go program, offered by our Nutrition Services team, is designed to provide a FREE grab & go breakfast and lunch option for families to access for their child(ren).
Meals will be available beginning Wednesday, September 2 for any child 18 years and younger from seven (7) regional locations. Connect to information here: https://bsd405.org/services/nutrition-services/meals2go/
Any questions or help with finding resources, please email me at: [email protected]
2020-21 Official Notices for District Families. It is the intention of Bellevue School District that all students, parents and school employees have access to an and understanding of state laws, regulations and district policies that pertain to school and student rights. Find linked below the BSD Official Notices for this year. https://bsd405.org/about/resources/notices/
Cherry Crest Elementary prepares all students to become life-long learners through inquiry, collaboration, and discovery. Each student will feel a sense of belonging in our Comm(UNITY) while learning social-emotional and academic skills to be successful in an ever-changing and diverse society.