September 08, 2020

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Fall 2020: What Students and Families Need to Know about Attendance

We are very excited to see your student back at school this year. While we cannot see them in person, we will connect with them virtually through online distance learning. It is very important that students attend and participate in classes. We want to provide multiple ways for our teachers to account for your child’s attendance in school. You can find several ways listed below. Please review them with your student and please stress the importance of their participation and engagement in school this year. Thank you in advance for your partnership with us during online learning. Students will have 24 hours (from 12:01 a.m. until 11:59 p.m.) to participate in one of the following ways:

• Participating in a video class.
• Communication from the student to the teacher via chat, text message, communication app, or email.
• A phone call between the teacher or EA/Paraprofessional with the student, or, for younger students, with the parent.
• Posting completed coursework to a learning management system or web-based platform or via email.
• Turning in complete coursework on a given day.

To understand the difference between synchronous and asynchronous learning, please check out our Instructional Delivery model document. For the most current information about the beginning of the school year, visit the Fall 2020 website https://www.pps.net/fall2020

Inside This Week's Mailer

Fall 2020: What Students and Families Need to Know about Attendance
Comprehensive Distance Learning Instructional Schedules
Chromebooks
K-12 Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Soft Start Activities
Monday Mailer is changing to Abernethy Announcements
Student Belongings Pick Up
Yearly Verification Form - Now Online!
PPS Technology Help Desk

CALENDAR

9/8		First Day of School! Kindergarten
9/14		Online classes begin
9/16		Conversations about Race Welcome Meeting
9/21-22		Pastini Pastathon
9/23		Back to School Night!
9/24		PTA Community Meeting followed Board Meeting
9/21-22		Pastini Pastathon
9/24		Student Recognition Day - Spirit Day

LUNCH

Meal service restarted on the first day of the new school year, Wednesday, September 2:

Where: Meals will be available for pickup outside 38 schools. Click here to see the full list of schools/sites.
When: Mondays and Wednesdays, 3 to 5 p.m.
Other details: Students will receive five days’ worth of meals each week. On Monday, they will get breakfast and lunch for Monday and Tuesday; on Wednesday, they will get meals for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

Please be advised that the eligibility requirements have changed for the application for Free and Reduced Lunch Benefits and more families will qualify. Here is the link https://www.pps.net/Page/2464. If you have questions, please contact nutritionservices@pps.net or call 503-916-3399.

Comprehensive Distance Learning Instructional Schedules

The Comprehensive Distance Learning Instructional Schedules have arrived! Click here for the schedules for all grades - be sure to find the spreadsheet that applies to your student's grade at the bottom of the document.

Chromebooks

We have a few chromebooks left onsite that have not been reserved. If you still need a chromebook for your student and can pick up this week, you can come to the school during pick up times until our onsite supplies are gone. These will be first come first serve. They can also be picked up from the district office.

Instructions for Computer distribution, exchanges, service, and returns can be found at https://www.pps.net/devices.

K-12 Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Soft Start Activities

In collaboration with the Office of Teaching and Learning, Student Success & Health, and teacher leads from the middle and high schools, the MTSS Department has created SEL activities to be used during Soft Start from September 2-11. The intention of these activities is to lay the foundation for building trusting relationships with students and cultivate a welcoming and inclusive classroom community during distance learning. The activities are part of the required scope of instruction that occur during the Soft Start.

The Soft Start SEL lessons are built using the Three Signature Practices from the Collaborative for Academic Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL). Each activity includes the three Signature Practices:

Warm Welcome
Engaging Activity
Optimistic Closure

To support school-wide implementation of SEL, educators and administrators are encouraged to use the Three Signature Practices to frame all lessons as well as staff and department meetings. It’s an easy way to lay the foundation for building community and connection among students and staff.

Monday Mailer is changing to Abernethy Announcements

Have you noticed that the Monday Mailer doesn't always come out on Mondays? Sometimes it's a holiday (today!), sometimes there are special announcements and updates that come out on random days. This made us wonder whether another name would better fit.

Abernethy Announcements will soon be replacing Monday Mailer! The weekly emails will remain the same, just with a new name to better reflect the purpose of the newsletter. Look for Abernethy Announcements soon!

Student Belongings Pick Up

Students belongings not picked up last spring will be available for pick up 9/8-9/11 from 10:30am-2:30pm in the back of the building by the covered area.

Yearly Verification Form - Now Online!

(Formerly our annual paper verification process.)

Each year parents and/or guardians are asked to review and update the information on file for their children (students). This information can be reviewed, edited and submitted online via PPS ParentVUE. https://www.pps.net/Page/2341

PPS Technology Help Desk

Dear PPS Families,

At Portland Public Schools, we are continuing to work to ensure students and families have the support they need to start the 2020-21 school year online. We want to share a number of resources available to you:

Parent Facing Page on Atlas

Please share with families the opportunity to view PPS curriculum in Atlas by visiting https://pps-public.rubiconatlas.org/Atlas/Public/View/Default

PPS Fall 2020 Resource Page

We continue to update our Fall 2020 webpage, pps.net/Fall2020. This week we added a section that lays out the web platforms and tools that students will need as we begin the school year with online learning until at least November 5. The section includes guides and videos for our main platforms and apps: Seesaw, Canvas, Remind, Google Meet and Clever. The resources for families are presented in the six PPS-supported languages.

PPS Technology Help Desk

The PPS Technology Help Desk operates from 7:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. on school days to provide support to parents, guardians, students and families about navigating school online. We will answer your questions and share information and helpful tips about our distance learning technology platforms, apps, internet connection and other important resources for your student.

· Call 503-916-3375 or email support@pps.net

PPS Multilingual Family Line

The PPS Multilingual Family Line is a service for parents or guardians (in all PPS-supported languages) to communicate with schools regarding meals, tech help for online classes, special instruction, talking to your teacher, COVID resources and information, etc. Please call these numbers:

· Español: 503-916-3582
· 中文：503-916-3585
· Tiếng Việt: 503-916-3584
· Soomaali: 503-916-3586
· Русский: 503-916-3583

We hope you take advantage of the resources above if you have any questions about the learning technology your student will soon be using. We are here to help!

Link your Fred Meyer Rewards Card to help Abernethy earn a donation! (non-profit number 94049).

GET YOUR PASS! All 4th graders and their families get a year long pass to National Parks for FREE!

Need Childcare?

If you need of childcare for your student, please contact Child Resources:
503-548-4400 x 9

Do You Have News for the Monday Mailer?

Email your content here by Friday noon for it to be included in the next Monday Mailer.

Support Abernethy

Amazon Smile will give the PTA 0.5% of each purchase. Sign up here.

Lost and Found

The Lost & Found is located outside of the office. All clearly labeled items will be returned. Items not collected by the end of the month will be donated to the PPS Closet.

Abernethy Elementary Website

Abernethy Homeroom