Putnam Valley Elementary School

Dear PVES Families,

Happy Valentine’s Day, Happy President’s Day, and Happy February break! We have all worked so hard together this year, and this winter break comes just at the right time to enjoy some more winter weather and some cozy family time. I hope you all enjoy the week ahead. If you are traveling out of state, please refer to Dr. Luft’s earlier email regarding NYS guidelines and safety/quarantine regulations. Thank you so much for your cooperation. We are so proud to say that our school has been open, healthy, and busy with lots of learning. We are looking forward to more successful months throughout the remainder of this school year.

If your in-school learner has borrowed a school laptop and has not yet returned it, please make sure the laptop is returned when schools reopen on Monday, February 22nd. Our elementary students sometimes need their laptops for in-school learning activities, and we do not want them to be without them.

Kindergarten Registration continues to take place! If you have a child turning 5 years old by December 1, 2021, please call our main office at 845-528-8092. You can also email Liz Tavares at ltavares@pvcsd.org. Thank you for reminding your friends and neighbors to contact us if they have children this age. We look forward to welcoming our new Kindergarten class in September!

Thank you for keeping your children home if they have any symptoms of illness. Children who are absent can join the classroom google meetings throughout the day that are shared by the teacher. (This is also true for our special class, Technology, but not for other specials…art, music, physical education). Good attendance makes such a difference for school success, but this year, we are being extra cautious about children with symptoms staying home, just to be safe. Thank you so much for your help with this!

Our Kindergarten and First Grade classes continue to enjoy their Mandarin language program, brought to us by the Putnam Valley Education Foundation and PNW BOCES. February 12th marked the beginning of the Chinese New Year, the Year of the Ox. Thank you to our Mandarin teachers for the red envelopes for students in these K & 1 classes!

Our elementary students continue to celebrate Black History Month with wonderful literature, artwork, music, and research projects. Be sure to keep reading lots of books over the winter break. Students should be reading on a daily basis, as this makes such a difference with decoding skills, comprehension, vocabulary building, and learning in general!

Stay safe on these snowy days. We look forward to seeing all of our students (in the classroom and on the screens) on Monday, February 22nd!

Fondly,
Dr. Podesta
Principal