THE LIONS DEN

Email: aorlando@neshaminy.org
Website: www.neshaminy.org
Location: 30 Harmony Road, Levittown, PA, USA
Phone: 215-809-6380
Facebook: facebook.com/Schweitzeres

We are excited to begin our 2020-2021 school year at Albert Schweitzer and throughout the Neshaminy School District. It has been a long six months since we've been in school with children, and we're looking forward to returning to teaching and learning online and in our classrooms.

At Schweitzer we are doing everything we can to prepare for our school opening. We are carefully following the NSD Health & Safety Plan to ensure that first and foremost we are putting routines and procedures in place to help us stay safe and healthy in our school community. Please familiarize yourself with the district Health & Safety Plan as well as the re-opening calendar that Dr. McGee sent out to assist with planning for your family. The link for the re-opening September calendar is below. Please also review emails sent from Michelle Burkholder, Directory of Elementary Education, with any important updates.

I'm confident that as we continue to work together with administration, staff, and families that we will make Albert Schweitzer Elementary a safe and welcoming school environment for everyone.

I look forward to seeing the children's smiling faces soon!

Stay Safe and Healthy,

Dr. Amy Orlando

Principal

Click the button above to access the September calendar that outlines the schedule we will follow for online learning for the first month. Students will be online for instruction beginning September 8th through October 2nd. The weekly student schedule consists of:

Monday through Thursday (Asynchronous-On Your Time)
Students will be asynchronous Monday through Thursday. This means they will be expected to complete their assignments on their own schedule as we did in the spring. Teachers have added videos to make lessons more rigorous and engaging, and students will be assessed as they would during in-person instruction.

Friday (Synchronous-LIVE)
Teachers and students will follow the typical school day schedule LIVE via Zoom on Fridays. Everything will be accessed through Canvas including the Zoom live sessions. There may be some components throughout the day on Friday where students are expected to apply skills being learned through independent work along with lessons they have live with the teacher. The daily schedule students are expected to follow on Fridays will come from the homeroom teacher. Attendance will be taken at the LIVE sessions, and students are expected to participate each day throughout the week.

Students in Specialized Learning Support Programs throughout the district will be attending school in-person Monday through Thursday. At Schweitzer, this includes our Specialized Learning Support and Life Skills classrooms.

Log into the Home Access Center (HAC) to find out your homeroom teacher for the 2020-2021 school year beginning Wednesday, August 26th at 3:00 pm. New families to the Neshaminy School District should have received their HAC log-in information during the registration process. If you need assistance with your HAC log-in, please contact Mindy Anderson at manderson@neshaminy.org or call 215.809.6380.

Parent walkthrough tours are scheduled in the buildings for September 3rd and 4th. More information about the expectations for these building tours will be forthcoming from Dr. McGee. The goal is to allow parents to come in and view the school environment and review the safety measures that are in place prior to the grade-level orientation days. A parent sign-up will be sent to parents from the principal. You will need to schedule a time to tour the building in order to ensure social distancing requirements. This tour is not meant for students. We will also be creating videos to assist in showing families common areas of our buildings and how they are set up so students know what to expect if you're unable to attend on September 3rd and 4th.

Student Orientation Day schedules can be found on the September Calendar. The goal is to allow the children to come in to review the new procedures and protocols that will now be in place aligned with the Health & Safety Plan. It will allow teachers to follow the daily schedule and review expectations, and it will allow students to meet with peers in their classroom to get comfortable with what school will look and feel like once the Hybrid (Blue/Red) model is in place.

Grade-level Orientation Day dates are also highlighted below:

• Grade K-September 14th (Blue)/September 15th (Red)
• Grade 1-September 16th (Blue)/September 17th (Red)
• Grade 2-September 21st (Blue)/September 22nd (Red)
• Grade 3-September 23rd(Blue)/September 24th (Red)
• Grade 4-September 29th (Blue)/September 30th (Red)

An email was sent from Michelle Burkholder, Director of Elementary Education, outlining where and when to pick up a device for your child. Students in K-1 have the choice of an iPad or Chromebook. Students in grades 2-4 will receive a Chromebook. All students should receive a district device for the 20-21 school year. Please review the information emailed on August 19th:

Dear Neshaminy Families:

In preparation for the new school year, our Technology Department will begin distributing devices on August 24, 2020. All Neshaminy students will either receive a device this year or continue to use the device that was issued last year. Even if your child has his/her own device, we are asking that you take a District device to allow for a consistent learning platform for our students.

Our overall goal is for all students (K-12) to receive a Chromebook. We have ordered additional Chromebooks to meet this goal, but the new devices are still in production. Until the new devices arrive, below is a chart that lists the device that will be issued by grade level. For incoming first grade students that received a Chromebook last year, you can continue to use that device. If you would prefer your first grader receives an iPad, please return the Chromebook from last year at the same time you plan to pick up and iPad (your choice).

Distribution (August 24-September 4, 2020)

Beginning, Monday August 24, 2020, parents/guardians can pick up devices for Neshaminy students. Devices can be picked up anytime Monday, Wednesday, Friday between 8:00 AM-4:00 PM or Tuesday and Thursday evenings from 4:00-8:00 PM at Neshaminy High School. Appointments are not necessary. Staff will be available during the times outlined for parents to drive up to the distribution site at the High School and request a device.

Parents will not need to leave their car for pick-up. A representative from the Technology Department will meet each family at their car.

Parents/guardians will be asked to provide the following information for their child/children:

1. First and Last Name
2. Name of School
3. Grade
   
   

Once the information above is provided, a device (with power cord and bag) will be scanned and provided for each child. Parents will receive a notification receipt of the specific device received via email.

For any family that has a District device that is broken, please complete the forms link below to request a new device.

Please click on this link to fill out Device Repair Form

Please join me in welcoming our new staff members for the 20-21 school year:

Rosemarie Clarke will be our Schweitzer Librarian

Danielle DiCampello is joining our Recess Aide team

Grade-Level Changes:

Christine Janaski is joining the Grade 1 team

Meghan Cahill is joining the Grade 2 team

With the Back-to-School sales happening, please be sure to review the supply lists for your child's grade level. Though we are beginning online, students will need the supplies listed to support their child's learning.

Our gym and music teacher, Mr. Pete Curtin and Mrs. Elizabeth Agger, wrote a mini-grant through the Neshaminy Education Foundation that was approved last year to purchase Sensory Walk paths in our school. With the help of our custodians, the Sensory Walk paths were installed in the hallways at Schweitzer to help students take brain breaks and provide additional movement breaks throughout the day. The kids will love marching and hopping in our new hallway spaces!

Please Welcome Our New PTO Board

President: Ashley Smith

Vice Presidents/Fundraising Coordinators : Kate Hennessey, Cynthia Ritchie & Kate Doherty

Correspondence Secretaries: Krysta Szymanik and Brooke Buttari

Recording Secretaries: Stacy Pruner and Melanie Panichelle

Treasurer: Krysten Howard

Parliamentarian: Victoria Lee

Kindergarten registration for the 2020-2021 School Year is now open. Please register online and make sure to enter 2020-2021 as the school year. REGISTER BY MARCH 1, 2020 TO GUARANTEE PLACEMENT IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOL.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER ONLINE: https://hac.neshaminy.org/eo_parent/User/Login.aspx

• To be eligible for Kindergarten, children must be five (5) years of age on or before September 1st.
• To be eligible for First Grade, children must be six (6) years of age on or before September 1st.

All registrations are by appointment only. No walk-in registrations are accepted.

• Prior to an appointment being scheduled you must register online and complete an onlineapplication.
• After your application has been reviewed, you will be contacted to schedule an appointment.

All registration appointments are conducted at the Pupil Services Office located at:
Maple Point Middle School
2250 Langhorne-Yardley Road
Langhorne, PA 19047

You may email any questions to registrar@neshaminy.org or contact the Central Registration Office at 215-809-6547.

We are working hard to keep our Albert Schweitzer Facebook page updated with lots of photos from school events. Please be sure to visit our site often and 'Like' our page!

https://www.facebook.com/schweitzeres/

August 31st - Teachers and Staff Back (PD 8/31 thru 9/4)
September 7th - SCHOOLS CLOSED (Labor Day)
September 8 - First Day of Online Learning for Students
September 28 - SCHOOLS CLOSED (Yom Kippur)
September 14th thru September 30th - Student Orientation Days

• Grade K-September 14th (Blue)/September 15th (Red)
• Grade 1-September 16th (Blue)/September 17th (Red)
• Grade 2-September 21st (Blue)/September 22nd (Red)
• Grade 3-September 23rd(Blue)/September 24th (Red)
• Grade 4-September 29th (Blue)/September 30th (Red)

~~ WE BUILD FUTURES ~~