Scotty Updates

Scotty Updates has been created to provide families and staff with information regarding upcoming events, happenings, and programs at Scotland Elementary School. Our newsletter will be sent several times monthly to share news and happenings at Scotland!

Dear Scotland families,

Our community spirit was on full display yesterday! The high-energy Scotty Sprint and the festive Pumpkin Blaze brought everyone together, while this week’s Book Fair continued to spark a passion for learning. We were also thrilled to launch our first-ever Trunk or Treat! A huge thank you to our devoted PTA members and parent volunteers. Your time, effort, and generosity made these memorable gatherings possible.

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The health office will be conducting CT State mandated hearing and vision screenings for grades 1,3,4 and 5 students over the next several months. If there are any concerns observed during the screenings, parents/guardians will be notified via a referral letter. Please reach out to Nurse Fry at nfry@ridgefieldps.net if you have questions or concerns.

Wishing you a wonderful week!

Jill

This year, we are going to be honoring Veterans on Tuesday, November 10th at Scotland. We will hold a Veterans Day ceremony in the cafeteria on this day at 9:00 a.m. If you have a family member or special friend who is a Veteran, we would love to meet them!

Veterans will have an opportunity to come to Scotland, meet other Veterans, and take part in our assembly. Space is limited, so we ask that only the Veteran attend. Unfortunately due to space limitations, we cannot accommodate other spectators.

The Scotland student associated with each Veteran will introduce their family member/special guest during the assembly. If more than one veteran is attending, please complete this form more than once.

As we continue working to support a focused, calm, and productive learning environment for all students at Scotland, we wanted to share an update regarding personal items brought to school.

Recently, we have seen an increase in students bringing squishies, stickers, trading cards, and other personal sensory/fidget-type toys (such as NeeDohs, Dumplings, and similar items) to school. While we understand that many students enjoy these items and may find them comforting or fun, they have increasingly become a source of distraction during instruction and have also contributed to social conflicts, trading/sharing issues, and concerns about lost or damaged items.

Because of this, we are asking that students not bring personal stickers, trading cards, squishies or fidget toys to school.

Importantly: We also want to emphasize that we recognize that some students benefit from sensory support or tools that help with regulation, attention, or access to learning. When sensory tools are needed as part of a student’s educational program or support plan, staff will continue to provide and support appropriate tools for use in the school setting. Teachers and staff are aware of student accommodations and support through 504 Plans and IEPs, and will continue to ensure those needs are met.

If a student brings one of these personal items to school, they will first be reminded to put it away for the remainder of the day and leave it at home moving forward. If the issue continues, staff may hold the item safely until the end of the school day or ask that a parent/guardian pick it up.

We appreciate your partnership and support in helping us maintain learning environments that are attentive, supportive, and focused for all students. If you have questions or believe your child has an individual sensory need that should be discussed further, please feel free to contact your child’s teacher.

Thank you for your continued collaboration and support.

It is hard to believe, but Halloween is going to be here soon! We are getting very excited for this festive day. We will celebrate at Scotland on Friday, October 30th. All students in grades K-5 are invited to wear Halloween costumes to school. If your child would prefer not to wear their costume to school, they are welcome to participate in a Scotty Spirit day instead. Each teacher will engage students in curriculum throughout the day. Our classroom based Halloween parties will take place throughout the day, at the teacher's discretion to ensure that students are engaged and learning throughout the day at school. We would like to ask the following to ensure safety of all students and staff:

• If students choose to dress up, please have them come dressed to school in their costume, as there will not be a space for them to change once here.
• Costumes must allow easy bathroom use so students can independently use the restroom.
• To ensure safety, costumes may not include props or masks, and please limit makeup to the eyes only.
• Kindly refrain from sending your child in an inflatable or any other distracting costume.
• Please encourage your child to choose a costume with a non-violent theme. Costumes should be “kindergarten friendly” (not scary or gory). Gentle storybook characters or heroes often lend themselves to fantastic costumes as they encourage reading for pleasure!

Our kindergarten students will parade outside of Scotland in the front parking lot on October 30th, beginning at 9:30am. Kindergarten families are invited to come watch. We hope to see you then!

SES is looking for student volunteers to participate in a small social/emotional skill development group where they can act as peer models. The groups occur once weekly for approximately thirty minutes. Groups generally take place during lunch or direct instruction block and are facilitated by a school psychologist or school social worker. If you have any questions, feel free to contact one of our school based clinicians mgaitho@ridgefieldps.net or dmelillo@ridgefieldps.net

In her September 11th newsletter, Dr. Da Silva shared the Technology Plan for 2026-27, which focuses on student wellness and community trust. As shared, the community can expect intentional technology use that favors creativity over consumption, strong partnerships, and continuous review of our tools and approach. All these resources, district policies, and information about data privacy are available on the Educational Technology and Information Services webpage,

What This Means for Your Elementary Child

Families received a letter from the district this week about our purposeful approach to educational technology. For elementary students, this means that technology will be used when it adds something meaningful to learning, not simply because it is available.

When teachers choose to use technology, they consider what it helps a child learn, create, or do. A student might record themselves reading aloud so they can hear their growth, illustrate a story they have written using a drawing tool, collaborate with classmates on a project, or use text-to-speech to access a book that might otherwise be out of reach.

One way we are thinking about this is consumption versus creation. Not all time using a device is the same. Watching something passively is different from using technology to write, design, communicate, solve a problem, or create something new. That is why our question is not simply, “How much time are students spending on technology?” Instead, we ask, “What is the technology being used for?”

Families can also expect elementary classrooms to continue to be places where teachers teach, children connect with their teachers and classmates, read print books, write by hand, use hands-on materials, create, play, and move. Technology will not replace these important experiences. Young children need them to build relationships, learn to work with others, solve problems, and persevere when something is difficult.

Student well-being is part of the decision from the beginning. When we consider a digital tool or practice, we think about its impact on students and learning before we focus on its features. We are designing with student well-being in mind from the start.

We will also continue to teach digital citizenship in age-appropriate ways. Just as children gradually learn how to be responsible members of a classroom and community, they need guidance in learning how to use technology safely, responsibly, and thoughtfully. These skills will build over time as students move from elementary school through graduation.

Finally, families can expect us to be thoughtful about the digital tools we put in front of children. The district is strengthening its process for reviewing digital tools so that student data privacy is considered before student information is entered into a tool. This gives our schools a consistent process for making sure digital resources meet our standards.

For our youngest learners, the goal is simple: technology should support childhood, not compete with it. We want students using technology with purpose, increasingly as creators rather than passive consumers, while protecting the relationships, books, conversation, hands-on learning, creativity, and movement that children need.

Friday, November 20 - Early Dismissal/Conferences

• Please note this is an early dismissal for elementary conferences only.
• This is reflected on the SES calendar located on the Scotland home page

• Please note this is an early dismissal for elementary conferences only.
• This is reflected on the SES calendar located on the Scotland home page

• Please note this is an early dismissal for elementary conferences only.
• This is reflected on the SES calendar located on the Scotland home page

Thursday, November 26 - 27 - No School/Thanksgiving Recess

The Scotland PTA is an amazing support to our school community - students, staff, and families! Joining the PTA helps you stay connected with the school community. You will receive information about family events, before & after school programs, school events, parties and much more! Get to know teachers & staff better with informational sessions throughout the year!

Stay up to date on all of the PTA happenings on the PTA website!

School pictures should be coming home soon.

Please note that "Retake day" is coming right up on 11/4/26. Contact the PTA if you wish to schedule retakes.

Any questions – please contact Customer Service Dept.

PHONE: 508-907-6633 ext "0"

EMAIL: Lifeguards@coffeepond.com

Please send your original package back on retake day. If you forget to return them on retake day your child will still get their picture taken. You will, however, need to mail the original package to Coffee Pond in order for the lab to print anything from the new picture.

• Each class will have one 45 minute essential per day (Art, Library, Music, or P.E.)
• We will continue to follow the six day A-F day schedule
• Please find the essentials rotation below

School Breakfast 🧇:

As you've learned, the district is now offering universal free breakfast for all students, beginning from the first day of school.

• All students will have an opportunity to grab a “breakfast to-go bag” as they enter the building.

• As all students enter through the main entrance, breakfast bags will be available in the cafeteria and then students will walk to their classrooms.

• All students will bring the breakfast bag to their classroom and will have time to eat in the classroom until school announcements begin at 8:45 am.

• Classroom teachers will teach students the routines of the breakfast process, including cleaning up and throwing away trash, during the first few days of school.

• Students are permitted to take a breakfast bag and save it for snack, if they choose. Teachers will instruct students where to keep the bag if it will be saved for later in the day.

• If a student arrives late to school, they may take a breakfast bag from the main office when they check in.

Please review these logistics with your child(ren) to help us with this new process. We anticipate that the “newness” of this opportunity will have many students choosing to take the breakfast bag, especially as they see others doing so. If your child has an allergy and you would like to discuss this process with our school nurse, Mrs. Fry, please reach out. Thank you in advance for your partnership as we introduce this at SES.

School Lunch 🥪

School lunch will be available from the first day of school. Aramark is the District-wide food service provider. The school lunch menu is available online on the RPS website; click Departments and click on Food Service. For all students, utilize MySchoolBucks for families to fund student lunches.

MySchoolBucks is available via the PowerSchool Parent Portal, and communication was sent to families in early August regarding adding funds for lunch. Any balances have been rolled over from LunchTime to MySchoolBucks. Additionally, the district sent a communication in early August regarding Reduced Lunch for eligible students.

Snacks for Purchase in the Cafeteria:

Students in grades 2-5 are permitted to purchase snacks during lunch (last 10 minutes). Please be sure you have set up MySchoolBucks if you would like your student to be able to purchase a snack.

• In short, students eligible for reduced lunch will be provided free lunches in grades K-8 for the 2025-26 school year.
• Should you have any questions or concerns regarding the Free School Meals for Children grant, please do not hesitate to contact the District Business Office.
• Questions in regard to school MySchoolBucks can be directed to Andrea McCurry, RPS Food Service Director at 203-894-5550 x2143 or amccurry@ridgefieldps.net

Website to set up an account.

MySchoolBucks

Some Support Links for Troubleshooting:

Updating Your Payment Method | MySchoolBucks

Setting up Automatic Payments | MySchoolBucks

Adding a New Student | MySchoolBucks

Setting Up Low Balance Alerts | MySchoolBucks

Reset Your Password Using Your Mobile Phone Number

Reset Your Password Using Your Email Address/Username

We will follow a similar drop off / pick up procedure that we did last year.

Arrival

• Drop off begins at 8:20am. Please do not drop off your child prior to 8:20am as there will be no supervision at this time.
• After 8:45am, you will need to walk your child into school, as they are late. The security officer will ensure they check-in at the Main Office. Please do not drop your child off without adult supervision.

Dismissal

• Pick up will begin at 3:15pm.
• As you arrive at SES, make sure you are logged into the School Dismissal Manager app on your phone in order to scan the QR code posted along the driveway.
• In your SDM app, click the blue button that says “Click to check in via QR Code” and we will be notified that you have arrived.
• Proceed forward and stay in the line of cars for parent pickup.

• For the safety of both students and staff, proceed carefully and slowly through the lot.
• Please have your child exit/enter the vehicle when your gear is in the park position and is one of the cars at the front of the line designated for drop off.
• Students must exit the vehicle on the passenger side (building side) of the vehicle. Multiple children must exit on the passenger side. It is dangerous to exit/enter on the driver's side of the vehicle!

• Students need to have all of their items ready in hand and will then exit the car immediately.
• Parents, please stay in your vehicle at all times so that the process will prevent backups on Barlow Mountain Road.
• If you miss the drop off time (after 8:45 a.m.), please park in the front lot and walk your child across the designated crosswalk to the main entrance of the building. If you arrive after the drop off window and must park in the parking lot, we kindly ask that you use the crosswalk.

We will continue to use School Dismissal Manager this year at Scotland. Please click below for information regarding this system. This system will be available to families in late August. A welcome letter will be emailed to families when the system is available. If you have any additional questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to us!

• For information on RPS chromebooks and policies click here.

• If you have further questions or concerns email: helpdesk@ridgefieldps.net

Under Board Policy 5131.8, students in grades Pre-K through 5 may not bring privately owned technological devices to school, to district facilities, or on district transportation. This includes cell phones, smart watches, fitness trackers, tablets, e-readers, personal gaming devices, Bluetooth speakers, and similar electronic devices. Personal devices should be left at home.

This restriction keeps the elementary school day focused on in-person learning, social interaction, and the development of foundational academic and interpersonal skills. If a staff member finds that a student has a personal device at school, the device will be stored in the main office and returned at the end of the day. The teacher or principal will contact the family.

Assistive technology. When a device or technology is identified as necessary for a student to access their education through an IEP, Section 504 plan, or other documented accommodation, the student will be permitted to use that technology as specified in the plan, whether the device is personally owned or provided by the district. Families with questions should contact their building principal or the Special Services office.

Reaching your child during the school day. Please call the main office. Office staff will get a message to your child.

Supporting your child's technology use at home Families often ask for guidance on smartphones, screen time, and parental controls. The district maintains current resources for families, including guidance on device options and setting up parental controls. See the Technology page on the district website.

E-readers, Nooks, and Kindles are only permitted to support reading in school or on the bus if a teacher determines it is helpful and has told a parent it is allowed.

Playdates and Riding the Bus:

We know how fun it is for our students to get together after school and enjoy time together! Due to safety and limited space on the buses, we are asking that students have no more than 2 guest riders with them at a time. Anytime there is a need for more than 2 additional students to ride, families will need to make arrangements for parent pick up that day. Thank you for understanding!

Hats & Hoodies:

Over the last several years there was no standard hat/hood procedure in the elementary schools, likely related to Covid, when classroom windows were kept open for air circulation and there was the potential for it to be cold in classrooms.

We will continue to only permitting hats to be worn outside the school building. Students may choose to wear a hat, but will be reminded to remove it upon entering the school building. Students will be permitted to wear hats for outdoor recess. Teachers have discussed this with students and I will remind our school community during the morning announcements on Tuesday.

On special occasions/spirit days, hats may be permitted and this will be communicated to students and families.

RPS distribution flyers for outside groups via a Digital Backpack.

Organizations that meet the RPS policy may submit their request for inclusion in the digital backpack. Please help us in our effort to go green by checking students' Digital Backpacks Organizations that meet the RPS policy may submit their request for inclusion to cmelagrano@ridgefieldps.net. Thank you!

Email: jkatkocin@ridgefieldps.net
Website: https://ses.ridgefield.org/
Location: 111 Barlow Mountain Road, Ridgefield, CT, USA
Phone: 203-894-5825