Dear Putnam Valley Community:
It is hard to believe that we are just over two weeks away from welcoming students back into our buildings.
We will be making some changes to our school calendar to provide extra planning and preparation time for our staff and students to meet the challenges of a very atypical return to school.
Please note the following calendar changes:
Tuesday, September 1 – Additional Superintendent’s Conference Day for staff (9/2 and 9/3 remain conference days)
Wednesday, November 25 – Schools will now be closed
Friday, March 12 – Instructional Day – Schools open for students (changed from Superintendent’s Conference Day)
The primary focus of our conference days will be planning, preparation, and professional development for the upcoming school year.
Opening of School Schedule:
Schools will open for students on Tuesday, September 8. Please review the details below in addition to our Reopening Presentation here and our Reopening Plan here, both shared originally, via email on July 31.
We are planning to open schools within the Hybrid Model as outlined in our reopening plan (slide 4 and 13 of the presentation). The school days will be shortened, with the Middle and High School dismissing at 1:50 pm and the Elementary School dismissing between 2:30 pm and 2:45 pm.
We will be staggering our reopening at each building for the first week to provide additional flexibility as we implement a variety of health and safety precautions and procedures. Buildings will be provided an opportunity to implement new arrival and dismissal procedures, manage transitions between classes, supervise lunch and recess, and implement health and safety practices with smaller groups of students in the building. Staff will be provided additional time to connect with families, utilize new technology and programs, plan with colleagues, and prepare their physical and virtual classrooms. The anticipated schedule for the first week of school is below. Each building will be sending additional and more specific details about the school day and scheduling. Please review those communications carefully.
Elementary School:
Tuesday, September 8:
Grades 3 and 4 will attend school and participate in in-person instruction.
Grades 1 and 2 will NOT attend school and will participate in virtual class meetings, parents will also be invited to schedule meetings with their child’s teacher.
All remote learners will receive additional information from Dr. Podesta and classroom teachers.
Kindergarten – Screening day
Wednesday, September 9:
Grades 1 and 2 will attend school and participate in in-person instruction.
Grades 3 and 4 will NOT attend school and will participate in virtual class meetings, parents will also be invited to schedule meetings with their child’s teacher.
All remote learners will receive additional information from Dr. Podesta and classroom teachers.
Kindergarten – Screening day
Thursday, September 10:
Grades 1, 2, 3, 4 will attend school and participate in in-person instruction
Remote learners will participate in distance learning.
Kindergarten-Screening day.
Friday, September 11:
Grades K, 1, 2, 3, 4 will attend school and participate in in-person instruction
Remote learners will participate in distance learning.
Middle School
Tuesday, September 8:
Grades 5 and 6 (Last Name A-K) will attend school for in-person instruction.
Grades 5 and 6 (Last Name L-Z ) will NOT attend school and will virtually participate in some class activities.
Grades 7 and 8 will NOT attend school and will participate in distance learning.
All remote learners will participate in distance learning
Wednesday, September 9:
Grades 5 and 6 (Last Name L-Z ) will attend school for in-person instruction.
Grades 5 and 6 (Last Name A-K ) will NOT attend school and will virtually participate in some class activities.
Grades 7 and 8 will NOT attend school and will participate in distance learning.
All remote learners will participate in distance learning
Thursday, September 10:
Grades 7 and 8 (Last Name A-K) will attend school for in-person instruction.
Grades 7 and 8 (Last Name L-Z ) will NOT attend school and will virtually participate in some class activities.
Grades 5 and 6 will NOT attend school and will participate in distance learning.
All remote learners will participate in distance learning
Friday, September 11:
Grades 7,8 (Last Name L-Z) – will attend school for in-person instruction.
Grades 7 and 8 (Last Name A-K) will NOT attend school and will virtually participate in some class activities.
Grades 5 and 6 will NOT attend school and will participate in distance learning.
All remote learners will participate in distance learning
High School:
Tuesday, September 8:
Grades 9 and 10 (Last Name A-K) will attend school for in-person instruction.
Grades 9 and 10 (Last Name L-Z ) will NOT attend school and will virtually participate in some class activities.
Grades 11 and 12 will NOT attend school and will participate in distance learning.
All remote learners will participate in distance learning
Wednesday, September 9:
Grades 9 and 10 (Last Name L-Z) will attend school for in-person instruction.
Grades 9 and 10 (Last Name A-K) will NOT attend school and will virtually participate in some class activities.
Grades 11 and 12 will NOT attend school and will participate in distance learning.
All remote learners will participate in distance learning
Thursday, September 10:
Grades 11 and 12 (Last Name A-K) will attend school for in-person instruction.
Grades 11 and 12 (Last Name L-Z ) will NOT attend school and will virtually participate in some class activities.
Grades 9 and 10 will NOT attend school and will participate in distance learning.
All remote learners will participate in distance learning
Friday, September 11:
Grades 11 and 12 (Last Name L-Z) will attend school for in-person instruction.
Grades 11 and 12 (Last Name A-K ) will NOT attend school and will virtually participate in some class activities.
Grades 9 and 10 will NOT attend school and will participate in distance learning.
All remote learners will participate in distance learning
Please review additional information that will help you prepare for the start of the school year.
Pediatricians Answer Top 10 Questions Regarding Masks for Children – https://drive.google.com/file/d/12VOg9DIPHmzlxdmF_AfPQnQ6FVtJ1AVi/view?usp=sharing
Travel Restrictions: Information from NYS Department of Health: The travel advisory requires all New Yorkers, as well as those visiting from out of state, to take personal responsibility for complying with the advisory in the best interest of public health and safety. Restricted States: https://coronavirus.health.ny.gov/covid-19-travel-advisory
Upcoming Communications and Activities:
Parent/Student Expectations Document – Additional information will be shared early next week.
Teacher Technology Resources, Trainings, and Professional Development – Scheduled for next week
Parent Technology Information and Training Sessions – see email sent 8/21 for details. RSVP to join meeting virtually or to attend in-person at links below:
Thursday, August 27 – 10am (English)
Thursday, August 27 – 12pm (Spanish)
Please know there has been a tremendous amount of thought, planning, and preparation dedicated to the safe reopening of our schools. We are in almost daily communication with our local health department, school physician, and other districts from around our region discussing the most recent information, guidance, and best practices. Our buildings have been thoroughly cleaned and disinfected and our instructional spaces are currently being arranged to allow for social distancing. Supplies and cleaning materials have been ordered and deployed to meet all CDC and NYSDOH recommendations. Our technology systems have been upgraded, tested, and resources are being distributed to our students. Processes and procedures are being finalized to ensure safety during arrival and dismissal, transitions between classes, and lunchtimes. We increased our health office staffing and our nurses have committed a great deal of time preparing for staff and students to return to our buildings. I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge all the hard work of our office staff, nurses, buildings and grounds crews, building and district administrators, and our technology and transportation departments for the many hours of work they have completed to ensure that our buildings and buses are ready to safely welcome back our students and staff. As a result of the planning, preparation, and hard work of our administrators and staff members, we are ready to welcome back our students and staff. The current positivity rate for COVID-19 remains below one percent for our region. We continue to encourage all members of our school community to be vigilant in adhering to the safety measures that are proven to help contain the spread of the virus both inside and outside of our school buildings. We are ready to reopen our buildings, support our students and staff, and get back to the business of teaching and learning. The Putnam Valley School District is ready to rise to the challenge, as we have done many times before, and we will come together to support our students during these challenging times.
Thank you for your support and partnership.
Dr. Jeremy Luft
Superintendent of Schools