December 3, 2021
Bonjour,
Frigid winter weather and the cheery holiday season are upon us! With these few weeks of school left before the new year, we are preparing a few special celebrations for our school community. The previously scheduled Winter Performance for December 3 will once more be an asynchronous virtual presentation shared remotely for families to enjoy at their leisure as we get closer to the holiday break. Relatedly, about 60% of our eligible student population has now received at least one dose of the COVID vaccine; we are setting our sights on the possibility of hosting more in-person events come spring!
Moving forward with our pooled testing initiative, we ask all families to consent for their students to be tested below! Lots of info, links, and questions answered can be found in this newsletter. Only those who provide consent will participate in the pooled testing. Although not mandatory, we encourage you to take advantage of this initiative to increase peace of mind for our school community. Our first week of testing will likely be the first week back to school after the holiday break!
Currently, the school is in contact regarding scheduling at least one Sugarloaf Friday this year for ages 7+ with the Outdoor Experience Program. In addition, we have also secured Ice Arena Fridays this year for our entire school population who may be interested in attending. Learn more below, and be on the lookout next week to receive news about a potentially confirmed Sugarloaf event too.
The frosty mornings and dark afternoons of late make for some bundled-up recess time. Thank you for sending your student in daily with the necessary accessories and outerwear to enjoy the outdoors. We also will remind you that cold weather and lots of running around make for extra condensation on masks-- Please begin to pack a few additional spares in addition to your usual mask bundle. Merci!
And an extra reminder, your child must be in good health to come to school. A mild case of the sniffles does not necessitate staying home, but any strong present symptoms from a cold or illness must be improved and no longer threaten contagion. Would you please review our daily wellness checklist for details on what symptoms to look for and action steps to take if your child has a cold?
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Upcoming dates to keep in mind
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December 3: No Winter Performance - virtual performance TBA
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Wednesday, December 8 at 8:30 am Café et Conversation with Willy & Emily
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Friday, December 17: Ice Arena Friday noon-2PM
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December 20-31: Winter Break- No School
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In the spirit of our traditional "Sugarloaf Fridays" (and potentially in addition to-- more info soon!), we want to ensure we are offering opportunities for special Maine winter activities to all of our students. Due to the popularity of these skating events last year and to stay a little closer to home, we are excited to host Ice Arena Fridays again. Take the afternoon off from the classroom and spend it with members of just our small school community. Group size per event is limited, so sign-up soon while space is available!
There will be four Fridays with the chance to skate:
December 17th: A great way to kick off the holiday vacation!
January 7th
January 21st
February 4th
You are welcome to sign up for one, just a few, or all "Skating Fridays" of the season. The ice at Troubh Arena in Portland will be ours from Noon to -2:00pm on the following Fridays. Rental skates are available for anyone who may need them. If you are interested in attending, you will need to pick up your student(s) from school around 11:30 am to head to the rink. A packed car lunch before hitting the ice and an afternoon of fun to follow!
COVID protocols at the arena are as paramount as at school: masks at all times on and off the ice, a screening waiver, and proper hand hygiene will be expected from all attendees. In addition, the arena thoroughly cleans rentals and spaces between every use.
Please sign up with your interest in attending this event here, and/or email Emily ASAP with any questions office@frenchschool.me
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Each year at this time, we ask all of our parents and friends to join in supporting the school with a gift to the Annual Fund. Your support helps to enrich all aspects of the curriculum and French immersion experience - everything that benefits your child and every student. So, as you celebrate the holiday season and think of all you are grateful for, we hope EFDM makes the list. Your generosity helps the school in many ways such as, improving campus facilities and supporting our financial aid program. As always, feel free to let us know if you would like to apply your gift to one of these specific areas. |
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Pooled Testing - Next Step, Provide Consent! |
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With over 60% of our eligible student population having already received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccination, we are setting our sights on how to maintain a safe space in light of potentially lifting state-wide mandates in the months to come. To stay proactive, we at EFDM have received approval to join other schools across the state in a free pooled testing program. We hope that with a regularly scheduled "nose tickle," our students and school community can limit the threat of the unknown.
Before we can get started, we need your help! We are requesting each family to participate in this program to help safeguard the wellbeing of our entire school community. Please sign the online consent request below and read the attached overview from Concentric by Gingko (website here) to answer some questions you may have:
To get started, please fill out the consent form with your permission to perform a COVID-19 pooled test for your student at L'Ecole Francaise du Maine. This process should take no more than 5 minutes to complete using a computer or a smartphone.
- First, click here (https://testcenter.concentricbyginkgo.com/minor-consent).
- Then, enter this access code: EFDMTEST2022 (note, the numbers correspond to the new year to come, not the current year!)
- Finally, enter your child’s information, and you’re done!
Note: If you need to provide consent for more than one child, please complete the process once for each child.
If you are a staff member or are over 18 planning to be tested at EFDM, a separate link for non-minors will be shared directly.
Our school plans to use a backup rapid antigen test to provide "quick tests" for any individual in a positive pool. We have requested medical support staff to assist our school staff as testing observers and supervisors and assist our younger students in performing the testing. We will divide into pools by classroom. Each classroom pool will be tested on the same day, once a week. We will share our testing schedule as soon as the details are solidified.
What is pooled testing?
Pooling can test 25 people using one test. All students in a class, pod, or cohort swab their noses and place their swabs in a single tube (that’s the pooling step). The samples in that tube are then run as a single sample, using one test. See it in action here.
Why pooled testing? Why should my student participate?
You know the old saying: “knowledge is power.” Tools like pooled testing empower us to make great decisions. However, without knowing the specific prevalence of COVID-19 in our school, it’s tough for us to make informed decisions about safeguarding our school community.
Only students with completed consent forms can participate in testing. If you do not want your family to participate, your student will not be included in the testing program. Though, we hope you do!
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Free Webinar: COVID-19 Vaccines for School Aged Children: What Parents and Families Should Know |
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Please join the U.S. Department of Education and National Association for Family, School, and Community Engagement for an informational webinar following the approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech age 5-11 vaccine.
Thursday, December 9, 2021
At 8:00 PM EST
This is such a special time of year, and this year, we all have one more thing to be grateful for: Kids ages 5 to 11 are now eligible to get vaccinated. The vaccine is safe and effective, specifically formulated for young kids. And getting your child vaccinated is the best way to keep them safe from COVID, including the Delta variant. This is great news for parents and families.
During the webinar, esteemed panelists, including United States Deputy Secretary of Education Cindy Marten along with representatives from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics, will address common concerns and worries among parents and families about the COVID-19 vaccine for their child(ren) ages 5-11.
Parents are invited to submit questions about the vaccine on the registration form. Pre-submitted questions will help plan the content of the session. Time will also be reserved for live questions and answers at the end of the event.
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PS students are turning the corner into the world of winter craft wonderland! They're also having a blast lately acting out a storybook using some manipulatives of the characters they've been learning about. Bravo les enfants! |
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Switching things up! The MS room is trying out a new-to-them laundry and home chore area of the classroom. In addition to taking care of their pretend home, the MS students also had a hand preparing a soup, just like the characters in a story they had read together. |
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The colors of fall lend themselves to such beautiful art projects! Be sure to view the recent work on colorful fall trees and other Artsonia masterpieces. |
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CP and CE1 carry on what they've learned in kindness week-- letters with well wishes and friendly words are being shared with classmates. Another great photo of a hilarious activity from Elodie; trying to put the toothpaste back into its tube is the same as trying to take away the effects of unkind words or actions- impossible! |
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Week old witches brew or one of Simon's science experiments? CE2, CM1, and CM2 students put their observation and data recording skills to the test last week with their activity of mixing different liquids such as water and oil. "What happens when you...?" is the kind of inquiry and curiosity that we are looking to hear in the classroom as an IB candidate school! |
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Making the IB PYP Happen! |
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L'Ecole Française du Maine's IB Coordinator, Elise Le Bihan, and MLF-America, Pedagogical Advisor, Catherine Caillet-Cohen at Winslow Memorial Park, Freeport-Maine.
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Huge thank you to Catherine Caillet-Cohen for offering hands-on training to our staff earlier this month. Catherine presented recent research and practical application in Conceptual Learning and Concept-Driven Education; This is particularly relevant to our school because teaching and learning happen through concept-driven units of inquiry in the IB Primary Years programme.
Conceptual learning:
- connects new information with what students already know and understand.
- bridges disciplines and subjects to support deeper knowledge of topics and ideas.
- sharpens metacognitive abilities for students and facilitates higher-order thinking.
- draws students into immersive learning experiences with multiple starting points.
- rewards multiple ways of thinking, learning, and expression.
Conceptual Learning in the Primary Years Programme begins with Key Concepts:
- Form (what is it like?)
- Function (how does it work?)
- Causation (why is it like it is?)
- Change (How is it changing)
- Connection (How is it connected to other things?)
- Perspective (What are the points of view?)
- Responsibility (What is our responsibility?)
- Reflection (How do we know?)
Catherine Caillet-Cohen is the former lower school director of the French American International School of Portland, Oregon. Catherine commended the school for its efforts toward the IB-PYP accreditation; so much progress has been made already! Thank you, Catherine, for your guidance! |
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Josephine Baker honored at Panthéon |
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Josephine Baker is the first Black woman to be inducted into France's Pantheon
Josephine Baker, the American-born entertainer and civil rights activist who first achieved fame in Paris in the 1920s and 1930s, was given France's highest honor on Tuesday, November 30th when she was inducted into the French Pantheon, the nation's mausoleum of heroes. Some 80 other luminaries, including Voltaire, Victor Hugo, and Marie Curie are among those buried in the Paris monument.
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Covid Protocols and Recommendations |
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To reinstate our protocols for this year, please be sure to familiarize yourself with the following presentation:
Download ==> 2021-2022 protocols and recommendations.pdf
Here is a summary of our 2021-2022 protocols and recommendations:
- We encourage all parents/caretakers/older siblings to get vaccinated.
- Masks will be required for all members of our school community inside the school during operating hours (teachers and staff, students, and parents, as well as vendors, volunteers, and visitors) and are recommended outside on the school grounds.
- Masks will be required inside regardless of vaccination status.
- Access to the school building is limited to essential workers and students.
- COVID 19 PCR will not be required before school starts.
- Domestic travel doesn't require testing either before or afterward.
- International travel requires testing 3-5 days after return.
Procedures if Someone Becomes Ill or Exposed to COVID-19
- If a child becomes ill during the day, they will be isolated in the room near the main office, and the school will notify parents to pick them up immediately.
- If a staff member becomes ill during the day, they must go home.
- If a child or staff member is diagnosed with COVID-19, the school will notify the entire school community. Possible outcomes include staying open, closing a classroom temporarily, or closing the school temporarily. Regardless, rigorous cleaning and sanitizing of the school, inside and out, will precede any return of students and staff.
Guidelines for quarantine after exposure to a person with COVID-19:
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Exposure to COVID is defined as having close (within 6 feet) contact with a COVID-positive person for a period of at least 15 minutes in a 24 hour during which they would be considered contagious. Persons are considered contagious, beginning 48 hours before exposure. The use of masks decreases but does not fully remove the risk of transmission and therefore is not taken into consideration when defining an exposure.
- If an unvaccinated parent is exposed to a person with COVID-19, the parent must quarantine for 10 days, consistent with state and federal CDC guidance. A PCR COVID test 7 days into the quarantine is recommended to help assure that an exposed person is not an asymptomatic carrier. The negative test does not shorten the quarantine period of 10 days per Maine CDC recommendations. Children of exposed parents do not need to quarantine UNLESS the parent develops symptoms or tests positive for COVID. These children would still be permitted to attend school provided they can be safely picked up and dropped off by someone, not under quarantine.
- If a vaccinated parent is exposed to a person with COVID-19, the parent is NOT required to quarantine but must monitor their symptoms and get tested if any symptoms develop. It is also strongly recommended that vaccinated persons exposed to COVID-19 wear a mask whenever around others for a period of 10 days.
- Students at EFDM who are exposed directly to someone with COVID-19 must follow the guidelines for unvaccinated parents above. As vaccinations for children are available, the school will issue updated guidance on quarantine for vaccinated students.
The school is extremely grateful to the following parents, who are medical professionals, for sharing their time, expertise and for helping us write clear protocols.
At l'Ecole Française du Maine:
Dr. James Gallea, MD, Emergency Medicine Specialist
Dr. Lisa Lucas, DO, Primary Care Physician
At the French American School of Tampa Bay:
Dr. Gaetane Michaud, MD, Pulmonary Critical Care, Tampa General Hospital and USF Tampa
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Window to the past ... just for fun |
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October 5, 2005: photo taken a few weeks after the school's Grand Opening! |
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