Boulder Oaks Elementary School

The Alpine Union School District has become one of the first local school districts to begin mandatory testing for all staff members. https://www.10news.com/news/local-news/alpine-schools-begin-drive-thru-covid-19-testing-for-staff-members?fbclid=IwAR1yv6V5qCicQXB2xigFLyG4U1eNO-4QOYEgV4qRmTQQEmZ_wwm-8CKTWXQ

A HUGE thanks to our famous Alpine community artist, Jorge Estrada, for painting the welcome back banners and Claudia and the Alpine Taco Shop for graciously funding the banners. Each campus has a one of a kind original banner welcoming our staff and students back to campus.

HUGE thanks to CalFire for helping implement COVID-19 testing for all district staff. @CAL_FIRE @SanDiegoCOE #Alpine

Day two of face-to-face learning. Our students once again connecting with friends and other students and using our wonderful outdoor spaces for learning. #LearningTogether #Proud OfOurDistrict

So excited to have our students back on campus for face-to-face learning. Thank you staff for being here for our students! So grateful to to our #AlpineUnion staff! @SanDiegoCOE #HeroesWorkHere

Hello Boulder Oaks Families, I hope that you all had a nice weekend! I am sending our weekly update one day early so that everyone has one last reminder of all of our changes and protocols before the students in Cohort A arrive tomorrow morning. I still can’t believe it is REALLY HAPPENING!!!! I am so proud to work in a district that has made getting our students back into the classroom a priority while simultaneously doing everything possible to keep our staff and students safe. We worked very hard last week and over the weekend to get everything ready and in place for the students’ return. Some of this includes putting up our canopies for outdoor learning, adding more stickers for social distancing, beautifying the campus, delivering protective supplies to the classrooms, and triple checking our protocols to ensure that we are ready. With that being said, I am about 110% sure that we missed something!!! :))) Please bear with us next week as we continue to strengthen and change our routines. Thank you in advance for your patience and understanding. As we head into tomorrow, I would like to remind you of our protocols that we have in place: Please screen your child for COVID-19 symptoms before you leave home. If they have ANY of the symptoms - sore throat, runny nose, cough, congestion, temperature, fatigue, headache, nausea, etc., do not send your child to school and call the school office. The students will be screened again when they arrive at their classroom. If they have any of the symptoms, you will be called to pick-up your student. Staggered drop-off starts at 8:25 and is assigned by last name (see schedule). Staggered dismissal starts at 1:37 and is assigned by last name. NOTE TIME CHANGE FROM LAST YEAR (see schedule). Please display the last name of any students you are picking up clearly in your windshield. No visitors will be allowed on campus. Parents will not be allowed to walk their students to class on the first day. All classified staff at Boulder Oaks will be assisting our students getting to their rooms safely. All students will be required to wear facial coverings at all times except for at PE, recess, and lunch. Students need to bring the following items with them daily: Backpack CHARGED chromebook Headphones Beach towel (please label with your student's name and room number). Two water bottles (they cannot be refilled at school and all drinking fountains have been turned off). Lunch or plans for a cafeteria lunch (all lunches must be prepaid). At least one extra face covering. Any other supplies, books, or work your teacher requests. Schedules: 100% distance learning students will Zoom a minimum of twice a day with their teacher and class. Distance learning students also have access to Mrs. Kopotic, a guest teacher, to assist them with any assignments as needed. Each grade level has an assigned time of when they can log into Mrs. Kopotric’s Zoom to get extra assistance. Additionally, Mrs. Koptic has office hours when she will be available to all students. Zooming with Mrs. Koptric is NOT required as she is available for extra support and help as needed. Her Zoom link will be posted in your child’s Google Classroom and here is her schedule: Time Grade Level 9:00-9:30 Open Office Hours 9:30-10:15 1st Grade and Room 12 10:15-11:00 2nd Grade 11:00-11:45 3rd Grade 12:15-1:00 4th Grade 1:00-1:45 5th Grade 1:45-3:00 Open Office Hours All students will do asynchronous (independent in Google Classroom) learning on Wednesdays. Some teachers may decide to continue to do Zoom morning meetings. Face-to-Face students will go to school twice a week. They will have asynchronous learning on all three off days unless their teacher decides to do additional Zooms. Attendance will still be taken on “off days” by work completion. Our online Book Fair through Scholastic takes place for one more week. You can use the following link to shop: https://www.scholastic.com/bf/boes Other News: Every Tuesday FREE Grab and Go Meals are available for all children 18 and under. We will be handing out meal bags with 4 breakfasts and lunches @ JMMS from 11:00 - 12:00 pm. This program will remain active when we reopen to our hybrid schedule!! If you are having technology issues with your Chromebook, please email our technology department at helpdesk@alpineschools.net for assistance. I would like to send a HUGE shout out to all of our families that have dropped off canopies and pop-up tents. We were able to place them outside of most of our classrooms. If you have an extra that you can donate, we are still accepting them. Our goal is to eventually have two per classroom. We have also had water, sanitizing wipes, and sanitizing spray donated. We will continue to accept all of these types of donations all year long! Thank you SO MUCH for your support. As we head into our first days of face-to-face on Monday and Thursday, I just want to once again express my gratitude for each and everyone of you. For the past seven months, you have endured most likely one of the greatest challenges of our lifetime. Throughout this time, you have been nothing but supportive of myself and our school. I am overwhelmed with the amount of pride that I feel to be part of Alpine. By working together, we have proved that we are capable of the unimaginable. We preserved and are finally able to be back together again. While not being able to hug all of my little Eagles this week, might be MY greatest challenge yet, I already know that my heart will be bursting with happiness as soon as I see them. Looking forward to the best week ever! Jenna

Dear AUSD Families, You may have heard the news that the County of San Diego may be moved on Tuesday to the lowest tier of the state reopening system and wonder what it means for Alpine Union. Because our waiver to reopen campuses was approved by the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), we will be allowed to stay open if the county moves to the lowest tier on Tuesday. As we open on Monday it is imperative that everyone follow the protocols that we have designed. Over the last several months we have developed and adjusted our safe schools reopening plan to ensure that we adapt to the changing conditions. Additionally, I am pleased to share that we are one of the first school districts in the county to have implemented COVID-19 surveillance testing for all of our employees. We ask that you monitor your student for any signs of illness each day such as cough, shortness of breath, runny nose and fever at home before coming to school. Anyone with a fever of 100°F or more should not go to a school site. Those experiencing symptoms including persistent cough, shortness of breath, or runny nose should not attend school, even if no fever is present. All students will be required to wear a face covering, and student temperatures will be taken upon entering classes and buildings. Lastly, I ask for your patience and grace as we begin this new chapter of learning. Our staff have worked incredibly hard to make this opening as seamless as possible. Everything we do on Monday will be different from years past. We will all be learning together while we balance the need to reduce the spread of the coronavirus with the desire to get students into more productive learning environments. We look forward to seeing our students once again back on campus. Stay well and healthy, Dr. Newman Proudest Superintendent on Earth

Dear AUSD Families, We are excited to share that next Monday we will begin phase two of our reopening schools plan with students returning to our campuses for face-to-face learning. At each school site, one cohort of students have been assigned to attend school for face-to-face learning on Mondays and Tuesdays, and another cohort of students will attend school on Thursdays and Fridays. Distance learning will continue to occur online the days in which students are not on campus. Those students in a complete distance learning environment will also continue their learning online. CONNECTION Since schools closed on Friday, March 13, 2020 we have continued to be concerned about the social and emotional well-being of all of our students. We also realize that with the uncertainty created by the COVID-19 pandemic, parents may opt to move back and forth between face-to-face and distance learning during the year. In fact, one of the biggest concerns we have heard from families is the fear of losing their connection to their school and teacher this year if they choose to have their child participate in face-to-face or distance learning. We have intentionally designed our hybrid learning model around building and maintaining relationships and connections by having students remain in a class that is stable and consistent throughout the year and not have students switch back and forth between a different distance learning and face-to-face teacher. Each class will comprise both face-to-face and distance learning students. Since approximately 84% of our parents have chosen to have their child return to face-to face learning there is not a large number of students who prefer only distance learning. GRAB AND GO MEALS We will continue to provide free Grab and Go meals for all children 18 and under at JMMS each Monday. LUNCH Each school will continue to provide bagged or boxed lunches for students. We ask that you use our online portal to prepay for lunches, which is located on our website. BUSSING We will continue to provide bussing for students to school albeit will be slightly reduced this year. Similar to most districts, the Board has approved a transportation zone that would provide home to school transportation for students who live 1 ½ miles or more from school. All students will be required to wear face coverings on the bus and will be socially distanced as much as possible. Registration for bussing can be accessed via our district website. FACE COVERINGS When we return to school for face-to-face learning, all students will be required to wear a face covering (face mask or shield). Students may remove their face coverings during lunch, PE, and recess but will be required to have them on while in the classroom, even when sitting behind the plastic desk dividers. Only students that meet one of the exemptions outlined in the California Department of Public Health Guidelines and have the required medical documentation will be exempt. Previously, we shared that face coverings would only be required for students in grades three and above. We made the change requiring all students to wear face coverings for the following safety concerns. First, we set a goal of opening our schools for face-to-face learning and want to ensure we do everything in our power to keep our schools open and operating. Many of our staff have also shared concerns about contracting COVID-19 and want to be able to feel safe and comfortable so that they can focus on teaching and learning. Classroom schedules have also been designed to ensure students are not wearing a face covering for longer than two hours at a time without a break. WELLNESS We ask that you monitor your student for any signs of illness each day such as cough, shortness of breath, runny nose and fever at home before coming to school. Anyone with a fever of 100°F or more should not go to a school site. Those experiencing symptoms including persistent cough, shortness of breath, or runny nose should not attend school, even if no fever is present. We know next week will be filled with excitement and nervousness. We look forward to this next phase in reopening our schools, and as always, appreciate your continued support. Lastly, if you have additional questions, please feel free to reach out to your child’s principal. Stay well, Dr. Newman Proudest Superintendent on Earth

Hello Boulder Oaks Families, I hope that this weekly update finds each of you safe and healthy. As the events of last week unfolded, I was once again reminded of the strength and resilience of our community of Alpine. Alpine truly is a special place. It is hard to believe that in less than a week we will once again have students on the campus of Boulder Oaks. Over seven months ago we said good-bye thinking that we would be back in a few weeks. Never in our wildest dreams did we think it would take this long nor that we would be coming back with all of the restrictions in place. Next Monday, we will once again hear the sound of laughter in our halls and we could not be more excited!! As we prepare to welcome our students back, we are reminded that this is completely new territory for all of us. Hours and hours of planning and preparing have gone into getting us ready for students to be back on campus. But, as we are all aware, we are undoubtedly all going to have to be flexible, understanding, and ready to change and adapt as needed to keep our students and staff safe. I thank you in advance for your patience! Last Thursday I put out two forms of communication explaining what school would like on our return. Here are the BOES Reopening Plan Guidebook and video once again: BOES Reopening Guidebook BOES Reopening Video Included in the guidebook are schedules and protocols. I know it is asking a lot, but please read everything carefully before your students’ first day so that you are well aware of the changes. Listed below are some of the key points that you will hopefully find helpful: ALL students are placed in cohorts to allow our families the flexibility to toggle back and forth between distance learning and face-to-face depending on their levels of comfort. Cohorts are posted in each teacher’s Google Classroom. No changes can be made in cohorts unless there is an extreme circumstance. 100% distance learning students will Zoom a minimum of twice a day with their teacher and class. Distance learning students will also be provided with a guest teacher that will be available to them full-time for extra support on an as needed basis. All students will do asynchronous (independent in Google Classroom) learning on Wednesdays. Some teachers may decide to continue to do Zoom morning meetings. Face-to-Face students will go to school twice a week. They will have asynchronous learning on all three off days unless their teacher decides to do additional Zooms. Attendance will still be taken on “off days” by work completion and/or Zoom attendance. Staggered drop-of starts at 8:25 and is assigned by last name (see schedule). Staggered dismissal starts at 1:37 and is assigned by last name. NOTE TIME CHANGE FROM LAST YEAR (see schedule). Please display the last name of any students you are picking up clearly in your windshield. No visitors will be allowed on campus. Parents will not be allowed to walk their students to class on the first day. All classified staff at Boulder Oaks will be assisting our students getting to their rooms safely. (I know this is a hard one, I am sorry!!!!!!) All students will be required to wear facial coverings at all times except for at PE, recess, and lunch. Students need to bring the following items with them daily: Backpack CHARGED chromebook Headphones Beach towel (please label with your student's name and room number). Two water bottles (they cannot be refilled at school and all drinking fountains have been turned off). Lunch or plans for a cafeteria lunch (all lunches must be prepaid). At least one extra face covering. Any other supplies, books, or work your teacher requests. If your student needs a Chromebook, please stop by the office any day this week to check one out. The office will be open 8:30-3:30 daily. Schedules: Please reach out to either myself or Mrs. Darcey if you have any questions or concerns. We are still in great need of canopies and/or pop-up tents. If you have any that we could borrow, please drop it by the school this next week. We will take any shape or size. Thank you!! This Thursday our School Site Council will meet for the first time this school year at 7:30am. Congratulations to our new members - Amber McGuire, Eric Gregg, and Monika Brohamer. This meeting is open for all to attend. Please use the following Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/9386495394 Password: Principal BOES will be hosting an online Book Fair through Scholastic during the next two weeks. You can use the following link to shop: https://www.scholastic.com/bf/boes Other News: Every Tuesday FREE Grab and Go Meals are available for all children 18 and under. This program has recently been reinstated by the state and we are jumping at the chance to help our community. We will be handing out meal bags with 4 breakfasts and lunches @ JMMS from 11:00 - 12:00 pm. This program will remain active when we reopen to our hybrid schedule!! If you are having technology issues with your Chromebook, please email our technology department at helpdesk@alpineschools.net for assistance. Six more days until the students are FINALLY back!! We cannot wait!! Have a great week and see you soon! Jenna

We remember and honoring the victims of the #September11 attack. #UnitedWeStand

BOES Families, Here is a video detailing our reopening plan. It is just another way for you to learn what school will look like starting on September 21st. Thank you! Jenna https://youtu.be/z2w8Rj7SwcQ

Hello Boulder Oaks Families, I hope you are all safe and doing well. We are getting closer and closer to the 21st and I wanted to update you on our plan for reopening. In the guidebook attached, you will find information regarding our reopening plan. Hopefully, it answers all of your questions! Mrs. Darcey and I will also be posting a video later today explaining the reopening plan. Please let me know if you have any questions! Thank you! Jenna Please click here: https://5il.co/kvxl

Dear AUSD Families, We are continuing to monitor the Valley Fire situation very closely. Given the active nature of the fire, San Diego County Sheriff Gore and the Office of Emergency Services, are encouraging all of us to be prepared to evacuate with very little notice. The fire has tripled in the last four days, and Santa Ana winds are expected to impact our community beginning this evening. We realize that many of our students, families, and staff have been impacted by the Valley Fire. We are here to help and assist in any way possible. Please reach out to us if we can be of any assistance. Joan MacQueen remains an active temporary relocation center for community members and their pets. All District personnel, other than essential staff, will be working from home for the remainder of the week. Distance Learning will continue but our staff are mindful of what our students need at this time, and will be available to provide the support necessary. Lastly, I want to take a moment to remind each of you to review your evacuation plan, be prepared, stay informed and sign up for updates at www.readysandiego.org. We will get through this together united as one community. Stay safe, Dr. Newman Proudest Superintendent on Earth

Joan MacQueen Middle School remains open as a temporary evacuation center. We have A/C, food , water, restrooms, and wifi. Yes, animal friends ARE welcome! #AlpineStrong #United #OnwardandUpward

Tuesday (9/8) - AUSD will be providing FREE Grab and Go Meals for the week for all children 18 and under @ JMMS from 11:00 - 12:00 pm. #AlpineStrong #UnitedWeStand

Hello Boulder Oaks Families, I hope that this email finds all of our families safe and out of any danger. I have been thinking about you all weekend long! Once again, our community has proven how strong we are together. If you need anything, please do hesitate to ask. We had another great week of distance learning last week. I spent a lot of time Zooming with the classes and was impressed to see all of the excellent teaching and learning occurring. I know how incredibly hard everyone is working to make this happen - parents, teachers, and students and I could not be prouder of what we are all accomplishing together. We are getting closer and closer to September 21st and September 24th when our students will experience their first day at BOES since March 13th!!! We are getting soooo excited and are very busy preparing. Over the next two weeks, more information will become available as far as our reopening plan. This Wednesday night, all of the school principals will be presenting their reopening plans to the school board. Tomorrow, September 8th, the student cohorts will be posted in Google Classroom. If you have decided to have your child remain in 100% distance learning, your student has still been placed in a cohort. This gives us the flexibility to have your child resume face-to-face instruction at any point in which you feel comfortable. Please understand that a tremendous amount of time and effort has been put into creating the cohorts. The principals have all worked together to get siblings, learning pods, carpools, and other needs in the same cohorts. As I am sure you can imagine, just moving one student can cause a huge domino effect and impacts other students. So unless there is a great need, student cohorts will not be changed. Please also remember that the hybrid model is a phase to get us back fully face-to-face and we anticipate all of the students being back at one time very soon! As we get closer to the 21st, we are requesting that each child bring the following on daily basis: CHARGED Chromebook - If your child has been using their own, your child may bring it or check out a school one. We HIGHLY suggest that you check one out BEFORE the 21st as we may not have the time to do it on the 21st. Headphones Backpack Beach towel or bath towel TWO water bottles Lunch or free and reduced lunch application filled our or money deposited into your child’s lunch account At least two clean face coverings Last week, one of our families generously donated a pallet of water bottles from Costco and another family dropped off a shade structure. We are so appreciative. We still need as many shade structures as we can possibly get so that outdoor learning can occur. If you have an extra that you are willing to donate or let us borrow, please just drop it off. We will take any shape or size! Thank you! Last week we had about another 100 families fill out our school forms, but we still have quite a few more to go. Please fill these out if you have not already done so. Distance Learning Agreement: This outlines our commitment to providing your students with a high quality Distance Learning Program and lists the at home expectations to ensure success for all students. AUSD Technology/Network Acceptable Use Agreement: This form is an agreement that your student uses technology appropriately. BOES Media Release Form: This form gives us permission to post your students' photos on a variety of social media and in school publications such as our yearbook. Other News: This Friday is Virtual Fun Friday! This week it is - USA Day: wear red, white, and blue in remembrance of 9/11. Starting Tuesday, September 8th we will be resuming the FREE Grab and Go Meals for all children 18 and under. This program has recently been reinstated by the state and we are jumping at the chance to help our community. On Tuesday (9/8), we will be handing out meal bags with 4 breakfasts and lunches @ JMMS from 11:00 - 12:00 pm. This program will remain active when we reopen to our hybrid schedule!! If you are having technology issues with your Chromebook, please email our technology department at helpdesk@alpineschools.net for assistance. If you are not already, please follow us on Instagram and Facebook and download the AUSD app at the App store or Google play. Just like we did in the spring, please email me pictures of your students learning at home so I can post on Facebook and/or Instagram (only if you give permission). This is a great way for us all to stay connected until we are back on campus. Those of you that have been at Boulder Oaks in previous years, know our traditional ceremony of honoring our local heroes on 9/11. While it is extremely disappointing that we cannot do it this year, we have found another way to honor those who serve our country. Last year, Ms. Principe’s 4th grade class created a Charles Demuth inspired work with crayon, watercolor pencils, and watercolor paint. This is called “Figure 5 in Gold,” but they used the number 17 instead to honor our local Station 17. The original artwork was inspired by William Carlos Williams and his poem “The Great Figure,” which is about his impression of a fire truck passing by. In remembrance of September 11th, their artwork is displayed at our local fire station here in Alpine. I know we are all extra appreciative of them right now!! Thank you for continuing to support Boulder Oaks and for staying strong through distance learning. September 21st, will be here soon! Virtual hugs and safe thoughts to each of you! Jenna

We have opened up Joan MacQueen Middle School gym. The gym is air conditioned and we have wifi, food, restrooms and water. We also welcome your pets. Red Cross is on site setting up. #AlpineStrong

#ValleyFire Update: Overnight, the Red Cross team provided safe shelter for three families affected by the fire. The Temporary Evacuation Point at JMMS has closed. The Temporary Evacuation Point at Steele Canyon remains open.

We are excited to once again welcome our youngest students back on campus. Today, our preschool students began face to face learning. We look forward to all students returning in the near future. #onwardandupward #learningtogether #Alpine

Hello BOES Families! Well, we did it! Week one of distance learning is done and I couldn't be prouder of the amazing effort of everyone involved - students, teacher, and parents. I know that it has not been easy on anyone and I truly appreciate everyone working together for our students to have the best possible learning environment. As you heard from Dr. Newman last week, we are scheduled to begin Face-to-Face instruction on Monday, September 21st. We will begin with our hybrid model where half of our students are onsite on Mondays and Tuesdays and the other half are on site on Thursdays and Fridays. Wednesdays is a full day of Distance Learning for all students while classrooms are deep cleaned and teachers attend professional development and have time to prepare and plan. When your students are not attending school, they are expected to engage in distance learning from home. We are aware that there are some families who prefer to continue with distance learning and not return to campus as indicated on the survey you completed this summer. If you have changed your mind, since you filled out the survey, please call the school office and let us know your preferred learning model. The district is working to finalize the details of our 100% distance learning program and details will be forthcoming. As I am sure you can imagine, we are knee-deep in preparing for the students to be on campus. All students are being assigned to a cohort and we are working with the other sites to ensure that siblings are placed together. If you do NOT want your children in the same cohort please call the school office by this Wednesdays to let us know. The cohort's assignments will be posted in your student’s Google Classroom on the evening of September 8th. Some other tasks that we have been working on include placing directional arrows around campus to support social distancing and traffic flow, ordering recess equipment for each class, and getting plastic partitions set up in all classrooms. As we prepare for the students to physically return, we want to make you aware of a few requests in advance: Every student will need to bring TWO water bottles to school each day. Due to COVID, our drinking fountains have been disconnected and we want our students to stay well hydrated during the warm months of September and October. We are asking for donations of flats of water bottles to refill student water bottles and to provide to any student who forgets one for the day. We are still in need of donations of any type of shade structures so that our students can be outside as much as possible. We are also asking that each student bring a clean beach or bath towel to school on a daily basis. This will help pad your students’ Chromebook in their backpack and will give your child a comfy place to sit for outdoor learning. If you plan on your student receiving breakfast or lunch from the cafeteria, please make sure you have prepared their account and/or filled out the free and reduced lunch application. The cafetera will not be accepting any cash. You may find links for both of these on our district website under Child Nutrition: https://www.alpineschools.net/o/ausd/page/child-nutrition-services--15 There are still quite a few students who need to pick up their math books. These are available in the school office and you can stop by anytime between 8 and 4 to get one. Last week, we asked you to fill out a number of forms. I am reattaching the forms to this Weekly Update as we only had ¼ of our students fill them out. Please do this as soon as possible. They are quick and easy: Distance Learning Agreement: This outlines our commitment to providing your students with a high quality Distance Learning Program and lists the at home expectations to ensure success for all students. AUSD Technology/Network Acceptable Use Agreement: This form is an agreement that your student uses technology appropriately. BOES Media Release Form: This form gives us permission to post your students' photos on a variety of social media and in school publications such as our yearbook. Other News: This Friday is Virtual Fun Friday! This week it is - “Our Future is Bright”: wear sunglasses Grab and Go meals are being provided every Monday at JMMS from 11:00-12:00. It is now required that you show your student’s ID number. Please call the school office if you need help accessing this. If you are having technology issues with your Chromebook, please email our technology department at helpdesk@alpineschools.net for assistance. If you are not already, please follow us on Instagram and Facebook and download the AUSD app at the App store or Google play. Just like we did in the spring, please email me pictures of your students learning at home so I can post on Facebook and/or Instagram (only if you give permission). This is a great way for us all to stay connected until we are back on campus. I am counting down the days until September 21st! Keep up the amazing work with distance learning! Have a wonderful week! Jenna