Principal's Letter

Dear Parents,

COVID TESTING CONSENT: Have you completed the consent for COVID testing for the 2021-2022 school year? Even if you did it last year, you must do it again. Please see the email I sent earlier in the week. You can fill out the testing consent form online using your New York City Schools Account. We have weekly testing here at school, and it will help us identify students who do not show symptoms. If your children are completing the health screener by themselves, please take a moment to review it with them. Students are answering the questions by rote, which is negating its accuracy and use.  
 
STUDENT TRANSITIONS: Since we have been back, we have noticed that a lot of the students are having a bumpy transition as they return to school. On the academic side, the students find writing in their notebooks onerous. Their ability to focus for more than a brief amount of time has decreased dramatically. The handwriting of many of them has deteriorated. And, their stamina has most definitely decreased. They have been mostly passive learners over the last year— watching a screen, googling for answers, listening while multi-tasking. Their student-like-skills are rusty. Their educational muscles have atrophied. As they begin to use these muscles again, it is a tough workout. They feel it! We have been taking it slow, and have also taken many steps back to help them learn to follow a schedule, routines, and rules and to focus on their responsibilities. It is a challenging process, but a vital one.  

SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL INTERACTIONS: On the social and emotional side of things, the students’ interactions with one another are more intense. Small issues are being blown-up as the students learn to navigate social settings again. They are relearning how to interact with their peers and with a variety of adults. Overall, this has created many more discipline problems than before. Conflicts, slights, what may have been a small matter in the past escalate into big problems very quickly. As we reinforce our expectations, we are seeing a fair amount of pushback. For some, it has been a long time since authority figures held them accountable. We are continuously reinforcing our expectations, talking to students, listening to them, and mediating conflicts. We are helping them learn to pause before jumping to react, to seek help from an adult, to speak to others in a respectful manner, and to resist getting involved in a situation that does not involve them. When necessary, we are also giving more serious consequences. These range from detentions to suspensions. Our team is working to help your children develop these skills, but it will not happen overnight.  

MENTAL HEALTH CONVERSATIONS: Justine Fonte spoke to the sixth and seventh graders yesterday. Her topic was Mental Health, Allyship, and Coping. She distinguished between acute and clinical anxiety and depression. She talked about strategies students can use when they are feeling anxious, in addition to how they can recognize signs that their friends might need to talk with a trusted adult. In the seventh-grade assembly, she discussed self-harm and cutting with the students. She left the students with some strategies they can use if they know of someone who is harming themselves or who needs support. This topic will continue to be covered in health classes in the next few weeks. 

MASKS: Talk to your child about their mask and the importance of keeping it on their nose and mouth. Many are finding it uncomfortable to wear it all day. Experiment with different kinds of masks and help them find one that fits well and is comfortable.  

CHECK JUPITER: We are at the mid-point of the first marking period. Please take some time this weekend to check Jupiter to see how your child is doing in their classes. Early Academy is a great time for students to get help from their teachers. 

Volunteer to Be a Class Parent!

​Thanks so much to everyone who has signed up to be a class parent!

We still need class parents for the following homerooms:
7th grade: 702, 706, 707, and 709
8th grade: 804, 805, 809, and 810

If you are a parent or guardian in one of these homerooms, please JOIN our Class Parent network! MS54 relies on its Class Parents to communicate and help build community in our school. Find out what is involved and sign up!

Virtual Turkey Trot 2021

So far we have 23 sign-ups for Booker T.'s 2nd Annual Turkey Trot — a fun event that helps raise funds for our school. You still have time to sign up, but the deadline to purchase the cool Turkey Trot tech shirts is fast approaching. 

To get the new 2021 Turkey Trot tech shirts — on sale for $15 in men's, women's, and youth sizes — you need to place your order by October 25th. You can order your shirts when you register. We'll place the order and deliver your shirts in November via your kid's homeroom (unless you choose to pay to ship elsewhere).

The Turkey Trot takes place between November 13th - 30th where you can run or walk 5K (3.1 miles) any place on your own time. The suggested fee to register is $20 for adults; participants under 18 are free! In order to encourage as many participants as possible, there is also a "Pay as You Wish" option.  Come join the fun!

          

 

• Common Sense Media’s, Wide Open Schools, has a wealth of learning activities covering a variety of topics, as well as guides to help parents support their learners.
• Check out Google’s Arts & Culture hub, "Latino Cultures in the US,"  focusing on the contributions and experiences of Latinos in the United States.

• ms54.org
• MS54 PTA @ Facebook
• MS54 @ Instagram
• The Well at 54