January 27, 2022
Bonjour,
Celebrations are still in full swing here at L'Ecole! Last week and this week, the halls have been filled with the delicious smell of a favorite annual treat-- la gallette du rois!
Re-enrollment for the 2022-2023 school year is open at this time. Enrolled families will receive their invitation to complete the new school year contract this weekend. Please read on for more information!
Thank you to those who replied with interest regarding a potential February Vacation Camp. It's a go! The link to enroll can be found here for those who expressed a need for childcare during the upcoming week off from school.
In addition to Vacation Camp, we'd love to invite you to start thinking about warmer days and consider Bilingual Summer Camp. Enrollment for the seven weeks of Summer Camp 2022 is open at this time. Last year, several weeks filled quickly, so we encourage planning ahead as best as you can!
Please find more on the current COVID-19 protocol specifics regarding the duration of quarantine (with exemptions), testing requirements, and further information at the bottom of this newsletter.
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Upcoming dates to keep in mind
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January 31: Date Limite Bourses Scolaires AEFE du Consulat de Boston
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February 1: Pooled Testing date for consented participants
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February 4: This year's final Ice Arena Friday noon-2pm for any interested school community participants
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February 18: Early Release Day: Dismissal at 11:30 am
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February 21-25: February Vacation Week, No School
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Re-Enrollment Season- 2022-2023 School Year |
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It's time to re-enroll for the 2022-2023 school year. Priority re-enrollment will remain in place until February 18, 2022, after which we will begin open enrollment for all interested families. Please complete your 2022-2023 enrollment contract as soon as possible to ensure your student's spot in the classroom!
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February Vacation Camp- Enrollment Open |
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Thank you to all who took the time to complete the recently shared survey regarding a potential February vacation camp. At this time, enrollment for the week of vacation is open for those who requested childcare during Feb. 21-25.
Please use the following link to enroll your family for any days needed.
This camp is an effort to maintain our closed small community group and limit those seeking alternate means of childcare/exposure. The camp will consist of purely childcare, no school work or followed curriculum. Merci!
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One more chance to skate with EFDM! |
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The final Ice Arena Friday of the season is next week, Friday, Feb. 4th! There is still room if you and your family and interested in attending.
The ice at Troubh Arena in Portland will be just ours from Noon to -2:00pm. 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 is 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 at office@frenchschool.me.
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Join us for Bilingual Summer Camp 2022 |
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What better time to start thinking about summer than amidst the freezing temperatures of January? We invite you to consider enrollment for this year's Bilingual Summer Camp at EFDM! The summer camp program runs by the week; students are welcome to sign up for one, a few, or all seven weeks of camp, depending on your June-July-August plans. Half days and partial weeks are also offered; you can select the dates you need. Please do sign up early as it fills quickly. The program is open to both enrolled students at EFDM as well as those not enrolled in the school. Mornings include an interesting and age-appropriate French activity, and afternoons are full of arts & crafts, games, and nature-inspired adventures.
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Before the recent snowfall, parts of the playground provided petites with a chance to practice their ice skating! Lots of pretending to be penguins and giggling while sliding across the frozen ground. |
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With their crowns and cheers, the Moyenne Section made a delicious galette last week. Bravo les enfants! |
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A new game in the GS classroom makes for fun mornings re-creating patterns with tiles. We love when smiles show through the masks! |
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Can you find all the right angles in the classroom? How about ordering the months of the year en francais? Elodie's class has been busy with these challenges and lots more! |
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Projects, presentations, games, and gears-turning downstairs in Simon's classroom! |
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In English class, fourth and fifth grade students were practicing being knowledgeable thinkers as they learned about these learner attributes from the IB. Students had to match descriptions of each of the ten attributes with their terms. It was a challenge! But they were able to work together to use what they know to make connections between the terms and their descriptions and find the matches. |
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Donations Supply Wishlist |
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Thanks to the generosity of families at the start of the year, we have paper towels and hand sanitizer to last us through the winter season. At this time, we could use more of the following wishlist products if you happen to come across any while doing your weekly shopping!
- Disposable child-size masks
-Hand Soap dispenser refill
Merci beaucoup for keeping these items in mind and for your generous donations!
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UPDATED Covid Protocols and Recommendations |
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Guidelines for positive COVID-19 case and quarantine after exposure to a person with COVID-19 (Updated Jan. 6, 2021)
1. For students/staff who test positive, the case must be reported to the school as soon as possible. The school will notify the entire school community and identify close contacts. Isolation of 5 days will be required regardless of vaccination for the positive case; a return to school is possible after 5 days from positive test result IF asymptomatic or symptoms have improved significantly or are gone (no fever or fever-reducing medications for more than 24 hours). When returned, individuals need to wear a well-fitting mask at all times— a K-N95 or surgical mask is recommended. The individual should isolate within their household as much as possible. The school recommends following up with healthcare providers to report the positive case and for further medical support.
2. 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 period during which they would be considered contagious. For purposes of school, we will consider all members of a classroom to be close contacts in the event of a case within that classroom. We will refer to before/aftercare attendance to identify other potential close contacts.
3. Quarantine Requirements for Close Contacts
For an unvaccinated individual of the school community exposed to a person with COVID-19: the individual must quarantine for 5 days from school after initial exposure to the positive case. They are required to wear a well-fitting, preferably surgical or KN95 mask around others after their return to school. Testing for COVID (PCR recommended, antigen test accepted) 5 days from exposure will be required before the unvaccinated individual can return to school.
Exceptions from quarantining for close contacts are as follows:
- The close contact (staff or student) is boosted; or
- The close contact (staff or student) is not eligible for a booster but is fully vaccinated; or
- The close contact (staff or student) completed their second mRNA dose within 6 months (or completed their J&J vaccine within two months); or
- The close contact (staff or student) participates in school pooled testing
Close contacts who fall under the above exemptions do not need to quarantine from school but are required to mask around others for 10 days and should test after 5 days since the initial exposure.
4. Testing Requirements
A PCR confirmation of a positive antigen test will not be required for individuals with known exposure to a positive case.
PCR tests are recommended, but antigen and at-home test results will be accepted for vaccinated/unvaccinated close contacts required to test 5 days from exposure.
5. Household exposure
Fully vaccinated (including eligible boosters) close contacts with ongoing exposure to a positive individual (within the same household) will not be required to quarantine from school, but they must get tested 5 days after their first exposure AND again 5 days after the end of the isolation period for the COVID-19 positive family member. A person with COVID-19 is considered infectious starting 2 days before they develop symptoms or 2 days before the date of their positive test if they do not have symptoms. They must wear a mask throughout the infected person's isolation period, it is recommended to do so at home and within the community. They must immediately isolate if symptoms develop or they test positive.
An unvaccinated close contact with ongoing (household) exposure must quarantine 5 days past the end of the contagious period for the sick household member. That MAY be 5 days, plus 5 days if the sick family member's symptoms have improved and no fever for 24 hrs. It may be longer if the sick family member remains symptomatic at 5 days of illness.
6. Unvaccinated eligible individuals (those who meet the age requirements for vaccination but are not yet vaccinated) who also choose not to participate in pooled testing will be required to follow the above quarantine restrictions for COVID-positive exposures whenever there is a positive case identified at school, regardless of the classroom of initial exposure.
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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Bourses Scolaires AEFE 2022-2023 |
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Les familles disposant de faibles revenus peuvent demander une aide à la scolarité sous forme de bourses scolaires (de la petite section de maternelle à la classe de terminale) pour leurs enfants inscrits dans les établissements relevant de l’ AEFE (Agence pour l’enseignement français à l’étranger)
Les enfants de nationalité française âgés d’au moins 3 ans, inscrits avec leur famille au registre des Français établis hors de France (plus communément appelée inscription consulaire) et scolarisés ou en voie de scolarisation à l’Ecole française du Maine, homologuée par le ministère de l’Education nationale peuvent prétendre à l’attribution d’une bourse sous conditions de ressources :
Dans tous les cas, les demandes de bourses scolaires doivent être renouvelées chaque année pour chaque enfant concerné. La date limite de dépôt d’un dossier de bourse est fixée au 31 janvier 2022
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The IB Organization aims to foster internationally-minded students, aware of their impact on their community both locally and globally, and understand their role in creating a better and more peaceful world.
To better execute this mission, the IB Organization created a concept called the Learner Profile, a list of 10 attributes valued and upheld by all IB World Schools.
As we move forward as a PYP Candidate school, we are also incorporating the Learner Profile into our school community.
This week, we are taking a closer look at the Communicators attribute and how being a proficient communicator can help foster well-rounded members of local, national, and global communities.
The IB Organization describes the Communicators attribute as members of a community who can express themselves confidently and creatively, in more than one language and in many ways. In addition, they collaborate effectively listen carefully to the perspective of other individuals and groups.
At FASTB, educating students who can communicate proficiently in both French and English with confidence, creativity and compassion is always a top priority. Our international environment is ideal for fostering efficient, communicative skills and learning to listen to one another.
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Window to the past ... just for fun |
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October 31, 2007; Mary Lou Carhart welcomes students to her "Village Store" during the Halloween Parade. Mary Lou successfully ran the South Freeport store as a deli from 1997 to 2010. Kids loved Mary Lou and her friendly personality!
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