Eagle News 1/4/2021

Happy New Year!  Hindsight is 20/20, as was the year in our rearview mirror. I can only speak for myself, but I am happy to see the calendar flip over to a new year, and I hope that 2021 enables us to not have “social distancing, quarantine protocols, contact tracing, Zoom meetings, and face masks in school” be a part of our everyday experience and vocabulary.

As we enter a new year, while still dealing with pandemic issues, the staff at Alpine Elementary will continue to make every effort to provide in-person learning opportunities for our students that are following all health and safety protocols, while at the same time giving each and every child an individualized and meaningful learning experience.

Thank you to all the parents who gave me a Christmas gift before the Holiday Break! I made every attempt to personally thank all parents who were kind enough to give me a gift, but I may have missed someone. And for future reference, though all treats, gift cards and gifts are very much appreciated, trusting Alpine Elementary to educate your children, is all I need in the way of holiday giving.

Tuesday, January 5, will be Acadience (formerly DIBELS) Reading Assessments for all K – 3 grade students. Our K – 3 students take the Acadience test three times during the school year, and

Tuesday’s test administration with be the second and middle-of-year reading assessment opportunity. Each K – 3 teacher has a scheduled time to bring students to the library where school district Acadience test administrators will give the reading assessment that measures student proficiency foundational reading skills. The assessment for each student will be brief in duration, lasting no longer that 3-5 minutes, and will give teachers middle-of-the-year feedback on grade level reading benchmarks. 4 – 6 grade students will receive their Acadience Reading Assessment between January 4 – 14 from Alpine Elementary teacher aides.

Alpine School District Nutrition Services has announced that free meals will be provided to all students through the end of the school year.

I have attached the testing schedule for parents who are interested in having their child (grades 3 – 8 in the 2021- 2022 school year) admitted into the Advanced Learning Lab program. Please contact Jamie James [email protected] in the Alpine School District Gifted Services Department if you have any questions.

Laura and I were able to spend a week, December 20 – 27, with our second daughter, Shayla, and her family, in Redmond, Oregon. We lived in Redmond for 27 years with our five children prior to moving to Utah seven years ago, so Christmas 2020 was spent in familiar surroundings. Having said that, the COVID protocols in Oregon are much more restrictive than here in Utah, so aside from a day hike at Smith Rock State Park, we pretty much stayed in our daughter’s home, enjoying the time with three of our grandchildren and their parents.  A BYU football victory in their December 22 bowl game was a nice early Christmas present, and a capstone to a great football season heavily impacted by COVID-19.

Over the Holiday Break, the governor of Oregon, announced that schools can resume in-person learning in 2021. Our three grandchildren in Redmond will step into a school for the first time in the 2020 – 21 school year in mid-February. I am so grateful that even with all of the COVID-19 logistical issues, our students at Alpine Elementary have had the option of face-to-face learning with teachers since August 18, 2020.

I am confident that the approaching new year will be one where we continue to say, “It is a great day to be an Eagle!”