October 7, 2016 with the Fire and Police Chiefs to begin creating protocols for reunifying parents and students in an Monday, October 10 emergency. If we had a fire or a gas leak, or had to Columbus Day- NO SCHOOL evacuate the school for a serious emergency, Tuesday-Friday, October 11-15 Montague Road would be closed down. The Chiefs Clothing Swap and I identified places in different parts of town that Thursday, October 13 could serve as reunification sites. These are locations Brushy Mt. Hike- grade 5 where there is space for everyone from the school, and PTO Meeting- 6:00pm there would sufficient parking to serve as a place that Friday, October 14 parents could pick up their children. These sites could Book Fair 8:00-4:00 change, depending upon the exact situation, weather conditions, etc. For the purposes of our drill on the Saturday, October 15 th Harvest Festival 9:30-1:30 20 , our bus ride will take us to a nearby public Book Fair 9:30-1:30 building, children will get off and on the bus, and then Spaghetti Supper 5:30-7:00 will return to school. All of these activities will have us back at school well before lunch. ~~~~~~~~~~ Teacher-student conversations about these drills will be developmentally appropriate. These drills are planned to be low-key and calm. We will refrain from IN THE SCHOOLHOUSE discussions of calamitous events, and will be watching Another Great Evening at LES children closely for any kind of distress. The reunification planning process is quite complex, What a wonderful evening! Those Open House and involves many different agencies. There is now an scavenger hunts kept everyone smiling and very busy! expectation that every school will have such a plan in This engaging way of doing Open House was new to place. Having all parent emergency numbers on our me when I arrived here in Leverett, but I quickly automated calling system is a key element in an became enamored of the way that it draws in all of the emergency situation. Every time we practice safety attendees. Instead of the customary ‘come and meet procedures, we learn from the experience, and use that your child’s teacher’, our Open House embraces a ‘let knowledge to make the school and our children as safe us get to know all of the people who are part of the as possible. LES journey.’ Thank you, everyone, for making it such I am confident that the LES staff will be thoughtful a terrific gathering! and supportive throughout the day, but please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions On a More Serious Note: Important Information between now and the 20th.

Thursday, October 20th has been designated as Safety - Margot Lacey Day at Leverett Elementary School. Over the next couple of weeks, teachers will be talking with children about different things we all need to do to be safe. At the beginning of the day, every child will practice Leverett Harvest Festival safety procedures and using the emergency exit on a bus. While some children may not ride the bus to and from school, virtually every child rides the bus on a field trip. Teachers will be getting on the buses to help children with this practice. Later, we will have one of our quarterly fire drills. This one will be a bit different. We are going to practice what might happen if we needed to evacuate October 15, 2016 in really cold or rainy weather. We will walk across the Around the Leverett Elementary School Playground field to take shelter in the library. From the library, we 9:30-1:30 will all get on buses for a short bus ride for the next phase of our safety practice. This summer, I worked A Note from Nurse's Office COFFE TIME, DEANS BEANS IS BACK! Vaccination skepticism is in the air as flu season The order form was attached to last week’s Post and is approaches. Here are five popular myths: available on the school website. 1. The vaccine causes the influenza virus-this is false, First order due by 10/11/16. but it does take about 2 weeks to acquire immunity Coffee delivery date is 10/14/15. which means you can still contract the flu from an Support your KIDS, our TEACHERS, and your infected person within two weeks of getting the LOCAL ECONOMY! This year, delivery will be the vaccine. 2nd Friday of each month. 2. If you’re healthy you do not need the vaccine- this is false. By getting the flu shot you can prevent your loved ones from getting the flu virus. Current guidelines suggest that children ages 6 months and There's something spOOky going on...... older, pregnant women, and anyone over age 49 be Looking for help in the Haunted House for this year's vaccinated each year. LES Halloween Party! 3. The flu is just a “bad cold”- this is false. Did you know that approximately 36,000 people die each year If you like to scare the pants off of kids we've got just from the influenza virus and approximately 200,000 the job for you! We need volunteer/actors and special people are hospitalized each year? effects support inside the haunted house on Friday 4. You can tell when you have the flu because you feel Oct. 28th. sick- this is false. It is estimated that 30% of people infection with the influenza virus are symptom free. Also we are looking to borrow some spooky supplies This means you can spread the virus! for the night, if you are able to loan us any of the 5. Antibiotics will cure the flu-this is also false. following items, please let us know. Antibiotics work against bacterial infections, not viral - Scarry masks of all kinds infections such as the influenza virus. - Fog machines Be smart, be prepared, be safe-vaccinate! At the very - Black lights or other colored lights least, avoid people who are ill and wash your hands - bubble machine frequently. For additional information visit the CDC - large fake spiders website: https://www.cdc.gov/flu/ - old white sheets

Coming Soon- Mobile dentistry. We, Jai (Amardas's mother) and Siri Om (Dayal's This program is offered by the Community Health mother), are coodinating this addition to the Center of Franklin County. Sometimes it is Halloween Party! challenging to set up dental appointments during the Email Jai Fuller if you want to volunteer or loan any of school year, but now the dentist's office can come to these items, [email protected] your child's school. The community Health Center offers free visual cavity screenings, if you choose to have your child's teeth cleaned-they will bill your dental insurance, and they will assist you with obtaining dental insurance if you don't already have Shop online for Tea kids clothing collection, and find, it! Please stay tuned for registration paper work and globally inspired, stylish, comfy, cotton clothing for kids the mobile dentistry event date. ages 0 -12. You will receive 15% off your purchase, and free shipping, while LES will get 15% of all sales. Clothing Swap- This year we will have a clothing Maybe find a few holiday gifts while supporting our swap outside the nurse's office from October 11th school at the same time! through October 14th. Please send in washed clothing, boots, snowsuits, and other clothing items that your Go to TeaSchoolDays.com to shop only during the children have outgrown. If you are in need of winter week of October 12 -19th and use promo clothing, please come by and take a look- donations code SDF16LEVERETT to get the discount! are not required to participate. Items will be displayed on tables outside the nurse's office- come by at drop- off, pick-up, or throughout the day. All left over items will be donated to shelters and local families in need.

Thank you, Leverett! COMMUNITY BULLETIN BOARD (Items listed here are not school sponsored) Big George, the Curious Giraffe, had a wonderful time with his old and new friends at Leverett School this A Quabbin National Park: Protecting Nature, Climate and week. Through songs we made a “Friendship ARC” Health for Future Generations with Michael Kellett of RESTORE the North Woods (Be Aware, Respond with Care). Ask your children (in Date of Event: Thursday, October 13, 2016 pre-K through 2nd grade) what that looks like. Time: 6-9 PM Thank you to the Leverett Cultural Arts Council for Location: Shutesbury Elementary School, 23 W Pelham Rd, Shutesbury, MA 01072 sponsoring this visit. George and Jeanette and Dorothy Contacts: Beth Adams, Mass. Forest Rescue Campaign LOVE their friends in (413)522-7505 [email protected] Leverett! Thank you, Michael Kellett Office: (978) 392-0404 Email: [email protected] to Kathy and all the th On Thursday, October 13 , 6-9 PM at Shutesbury Elementary teachers for School, 23 West Pelham Road, Mass Forest Rescue Campaign and participating, and RESTORE the North Woods will team up to sponsor Michael thank you, Mr. Kellett, Executive Director of RESTORE. Michael Kellett has been working for 30 years to restore and permanently protect Trowell, for bringing wilderness and wildlife, benefitting the health and well-being Big George out to of nature, people and climate. RESTORE played a critical role in laying the groundwork for President Obama’s recent designation of the Katahdin Woodlands and Waters National Monument, protecting over 87,000 acres next to Baxter State Park in northern Maine.

Michael will help the audience understand why the creation of a Quabbin National Park is a good idea and what it would involve. The Quabbin Reservoir watershed is the largest tract of public land in southern New England. Established in the 1930s to supply water to greater Boston, the Quabbin and lands around it the car. became an “accidental wilderness” of recovering forests, watersheds, and wildlife. Instead of preserving the Quabbin watershed, the state is degrading the area with industrial logging, subsidized by Massachusetts taxpayers. Citizens are proposing the creation of a 120,000-acre Quabbin National Park, which would protect the entire watershed from logging and other development, allow the recovery of native wildlife, store vast amounts of carbon to mitigate climate change, educate the public about natural and historic values, offer unique wilderness recreation, and attract increased tourism and business to local towns. As with the recently designated National Monument in Maine, a Quabbin National Park or Monument can happen if concerned citizens join together to build overwhelming pressure on the Legislature, the U.S. Congress, and the President