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Dear Families,
Happy New Year to all of you! With the new year, brings new opportunities for growth, collaboration, involvement, support and community. It is a time for us to look at ways to begin anew, with many people setting resolutions, making new commitments; focusing on ways to better themselves and the world around them. As people of faith, we look to the new year with hope, filled with light from the Christmas season. We are refreshed spiritually with Christ’s birth, and are called to action to be people for others, especially going out to those who are marginalized. My hope for each of us is that we can find ways to do this in our homes, in our community, at OLG and beyond--- that in this season of new beginnings, we bring light to others, sharing it as we are called to do.
In our first week back, we have seen the wonderful gifts of the Christmas break being shared; refreshed and recharged students and staff, happy times and experiences from break being shared, new babies in some of our school families (congratulations!), and irreplaceable time and memories made and shared with people that we love. It’s joyful to see and hear the kids share all their holiday break joys and experiences.
As we begin the new year, there are a few things to be refreshed on. Please read below and share with your students too.
But before you do, just a quick reminder-- tomorrow is OLG Spirit Day! Wear CYO, school colors, or uniform.
Now to the reminders:
Cell Phones/ Smart Devices: New Gifts from Christmas
We have also seen the gifts of Santa and family being shared, especially in new tech gadgets like phones, smart watches, smart devices etc. If this applies to your child, please take a moment to refresh yourself on the school handbook (pages 51-52), knowing that all devices brought to school need to be for academic purposes only. Phones are turned off in the backpacks, no exceptions. Smart devices (tablets, ipads, etc) should not be brought to school unless explicitly stated or approved by the teacher or school, and smart watches should be placed in school mode (i.e. watch feature and maybe fitness tracker ONLY), during the day, if and only if they are to be worn at all. Any and all devices being used for texting, cameras, video, games, timers, scrolling, etc. without explicit permission will be confiscated as is our policy. We thank you for respecting the policy and reinforcing it with your children. Tech, though a useful tool, is also something that can be highly detrimental to the learning environment and focus of our students, especially if not monitored. If there is any kind of emergency or need for us to contact families, we will do that directly from the school. Thank you for your understanding, and for reviewing the policy with your children.
Inclement Weather: Snow & Ice
Snow is in the forecast beginning next week. Living at the highest point in Seattle, there are times when our weather differs from down the hill, or even just a few blocks away. If it is too icy, or too snowy to safely open school for our teachers, staff, families and students, a closure or late start may need to occur. If that is the case, we will give you as much notice as possible, so that you can plan accordingly as a family. While we do not wish to have to close school, we must do what is best for our entire community. If school is closed or there is a late start, there will not be morning care for ELC or EDC, and if the weather is turning suddenly mid-day, after care could be canceled or shortened, depending on the needs of our staff and safety of all.
In the next few days, we will be testing our emergency communication system via phone, text and email. We will send a separate email letting you know when this test has been sent. If you do not receive the emergency notification test, please respond accordingly.
Please remind your students to dress accordingly and appropriately if there is snow. Boots may be worn for recess only (please bring regular shoes for classroom/ PE), and coats should come to school daily.
Wishing you all a wonderful rest of your week. Enjoy your weekend.
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