THE BURR BUZZ

Burr Food Table Update

Community | Compassion | Collective

We wanted to give you all and update on the Burr Food Table. Over the past few weeks the families in need have grown from 11 to over 30+. The Church of Redeemers in Chestnut Hill usually provide backpacks full of non-perishable items, although last week we were notified that the Church had to take a pause because their food bank supplies are gone and Wegmans, who donates the food, is unable to keep up at this time.

Earlier this year the Burr Chinese Community decided to cancel their Lunar New Year celebration at Burr and with the money they had put aside and other donations from their community they were able to provide $270 dollars in grocery store gift cards, WOW, We are all so thankful for their contributions! Last week the Burr PTO donated $360 dollars in grocery store gift cards along with other food and gift card donations from all of us in the Burr community.

Our current supplies are dwindling, and we know that it might be difficult to get food deliveries and we are all uneasy going to the stores but now is the time our families need us the most. Please feel free to donate on the signup genius, go through your pantry one more time, drop off food and do what you can. This community has really pulled together and it means so much to our families because the local food banks are straining to keep up, lines are long, and supplies are limited.

Burr Food Table List – Please note bring anything on the list it doesn’t have be by last name.

Burr Grocery Store Gift Cards

Every Tuesday until school is back in session, we will be collecting goods between 8am-8pm at the following two locations:

Cristal and Jill Balis
15 Elm St
(Grey and white townhome off River Street)
(773) 520-0049 - Cristal’s cell

Spencer and Molly Poole
451 Wolcott St
(Two family house, left door)
(617) 824-0980 - Spencer’s cell

To maintain social distancing requirements, please place donations on the front porch and send a text to let us know.

Resources:

Newton COVID-19 Care Fund: NewtonCareFund

Centre Street Food Pantry: CentrestFoodPantry.

Newton Food Pantry: NewtonFoodPantry

Arabic Baptist Church Food Pantry: ArabicBaptistChurch

Thanks again for all your help and generosity. Feel free to email Spencer Poole with any questions at spencer@burrpto.org

- The Burr PTO

Principal's Newsletter

April 14, 2020

Dear Burr Families,

We are now into week five of being away from school, and you are hopefully settling into a routine that works for your family. The last weeks have been filled with adjustments as we’ve all tried to figure out how to navigate this “new normal.” Each day scary statistics are reported on the news, both nationally and close to home, and we’re all dealing in our own way with the worry that someone we know and love may become infected. In all of this, I know you are trying to ensure that your children feel safe and continue to thrive. I hope the connections with the Burr staff provide support for you and bring joy to your child’s day.

We have seen a high participation rate in our Zoom meetings, and we are grateful for your support in helping your children engage in these opportunities. We hope the weekly distance learning plans are clear and engaging. Children are encouraged to do the best they can at completing the activities. Our intention is not to replicate a school day, nor to overwhelm a student or family. The work we are providing for each grade level amounts to approximately 3 hours of daily learning, practice, and connection. It is okay if a child does not complete everything in a given week, we recognize there are complex factors that we are all trying to navigate. We will be reaching out to children and families who are not participating or completing assignments to see how we can be of assistance. Below I have included some resources that you may find helpful.

The Burr staff continues to miss the daily interactions with children and families. We are working hard to replicate some of them online. This week, the Burr fourth grade team, Ms. Bapat, Ms. Li, and Ms. Tice, invited staff members to share a message for Burr students and put it together in a Burr Staff Video to Families. I hope you will enjoy watching it. Our message is simple – we care, and we can’t wait for the day our community is back together again.

Take care, and please do reach out if you need anything.

Mindy

Additional Resources:

Guidance for Families on Virtual Play Dates from the Burr Mental Health Team
NPS Distance Learning Family Resources - Resources to assist families in supporting their children and creating routines
Self Care Tips for Parents

Mindy Johal, Principal

Burr Elementary School
171 Pine Street
Auburndale, MA 02466

Email: johalm@newton.k12.ma.us

Opportunity for Mentorship

The LigerBots, Newton's high school robotics team, know that there are thousands of bored and slowly-going-crazy elementary schoolers at home right now. So, the high schoolers decided to help frazzled parents by starting the "Awesome Mentorship Project 2877," which matches up high schoolers and younger kids by interests. The pair spends an hour a week together over a video call, doing whatever the kid needs: it could be doing science experiments together, tutoring on school subjects, or simply drawing and chatting, and more. All mentors are vetted and trained by the LigerBots and are excited to get to work! Parents, fill out this interest form to get your kid involved as a mentee! If you're interested in being a mentor, fill out this form.

THE BURR PTO PRESENTS

Please Help Support Burr Families—Burr Pantry

Dear Burr Community,

We are offering a new way to help! For those of you who don't want to donate food items we are offering the option to donate money and the Burr PTO will get grocery store gift cards for those families in need. https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0D4DAFAA23A0FB6-burr7

As we all prepare to be spending a lot more time at home, we want to make sure that all Burr families have the food and resources they need to stay healthy during this unusual time. Many of you have reached out to find out how you can help, and we are so grateful to be part of a community that truly looks after one another.

Therefore, we will be starting a food/household goods drop-off each week to support those families in our community who could use a little extra help right now. We are working with Burr Social Worker Nicki Eastburn (who is coordinating distribution directly with the families), in order to make sure she has food and supplies to pass along.

Starting March 17 (and every Tuesday until school is back in session), we will be collecting goods between 8am-8pm at the following two locations:

Cristal and Jill Balis

15 Elm St

(Grey and white townhome off River Street)

(773) 520-0049 - Cristal’s cell

Spencer and Molly Poole

451 Wolcott St

(Two family house, left door)

(617) 824-0980 - Spencer’s cell

To maintain social distancing requirements, please place donations on the front porch and send a text to let us know.

Please visit the following link to view a suggested list of donations: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-TXCrikDPppmj-lslZv6slMEkvTpQssd6LsV0K73Ydk

We have split the list up by last name to ensure a more even distribution. We realize some of these items may not be available, but just appreciate any and all contributions you are able to make. Please note that this list will be updated weekly as necessary to reflect current needs/requests!

We have also added a Donation page for those families that don't want to leave the house but would still like to donate money towards grocery store gift cards.
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0D4DAFAA23A0FB6-burr7

Thanks again for all your help and generosity. Feel free to email Cristal Balis with any questions at cbalis@me.com.

- The Burr PTO

Collecting Gloves and Masks for Local Healthcare Workers

Our friends and colleagues working on the front lines are in dire need of personal protective equipment to keep themselves safe from the coronavirus. We're looking for donations of gloves, surgical masks, N95 respirator masks, gowns, and face shields. Homemade products are welcome if you're able to sew or have access to a 3D printer.

If you have any of these materials and would be willing to donate them to local clinicians, or if you'd like more information about sewing or printing patterns, please contact Julia Marcus at juliamarcus@gmail.com (mother of Burr kindergartener)

Thank you so much for helping keep our community safe!

THE BURR PTO PRESENTS

Please Help Support Burr Families—Burr Pantry

Dear Burr Community,

We are offering a new way to help! For those of you who don't want to donate food items we are offering the option to donate money and the Burr PTO will get grocery store gift cards for those families in need.

As we all prepare to be spending a lot more time at home, we want to make sure that all Burr families have the food and resources they need to stay healthy during this unusual time. Many of you have reached out to find out how you can help, and we are so grateful to be part of a community that truly looks after one another.

Therefore, we will be starting a food/household goods drop-off each week to support those families in our community who could use a little extra help right now. We are working with Burr Social Worker Nicki Eastburn (who is coordinating distribution directly with the families), in order to make sure she has food and supplies to pass along.

NPS Learning from Home Launch

March 18, 2020

Dear NPS Families,

Thank you for your patience as we have worked with our NPS administrators and faculty to determine the best way to provide learning opportunities to our students during this extended school closure.

As many of you have quickly learned over the past few days, it is not possible to truly replicate the traditional PreK-12 school day at home. School is a place where learning is engaging, creative, and differentiated. It is a place where students receive academic, as well as social and emotional supports. And so, while we cannot re-create the school day at home, we can provide you with resources that will provide continuity of learning for our students during this uncertain time.

NPS Learning from Home

Below you will find links to resource pages our teachers and staff have compiled for families. The resources are divided by level (PreK-5, Middle, High) and many are further divided into “Review and Practice,” “Games and Activities,” and “Extend Your Thinking.” You can access the resources through the district COVID-19 resource website

Over the next three weeks, teachers will be reaching out through weekly communication to their classes with specific recommendations for learning activities that students and families complete each week. These activities are grade appropriate and can be completed by students independently or with support from their family. Special education staff, English language learning teachers, and counselors and other staff are also available to communicate with students and families.

Access to Internet and Technology

We are committed to helping families that may need access to devices at home in order to engage in online learning opportunities. If you do not have a web-capable device at home other than a cell phone (such as an iPad, Chromebook, PC, or Mac) please complete this request form (https://forms.gle/K3SgotNY38V1ncNe9) Our technology support team will be in touch with you to discuss next steps.

FAQs and Next Steps

We are aware of the stress that the closure of school has created for families and the need to provide structure and learning opportunities for students while school is closed. These resources, as well as additional supports found on our website, will help you navigate this difficult time. In addition, we have developed a Frequently Asked Questions document to answer questions you might have.

Please understand that what we have outlined is only in effect until April 3rd. Should schools be closed for a longer period, we will adjust our plan as necessary. Thank you again for your understanding as we transition to this new learning environment during the next few weeks.

Sincerely,

David Fleishman

Superintendent of Schools

Principal's Newsletter

March 19, 2020

Dear Families,

I hope that all of you are remaining safe and finding meaningful and engaging ways to spend your days during this uncertain time. As you heard from Dr. Fleishman, we are providing you with resources that will provide continuity for our students during this uncertain time. As you work to develop schedules and routines that work for your family, we encourage you to access the site below for grade-level appropriate activities that complement and reinforce our curriculum: www.newton.k12.ma.us/covid19.

We are committed to helping families that may need access to devices at home in order to engage in online learning opportunities. If you do not have a web-capable device at home other than a cell phone (such as an iPad, Chromebook, PC, or Mac) please complete this request form (https://forms.gle/K3SgotNY38V1ncNe9). Our technology support team will be in touch with you to discuss next steps.

You can expect to hear from your child’s teacher on a weekly basis starting on Monday, March 23 (end of day). Each week, teachers will be reaching out with a personal message for students and specific recommendations for activities that students and families can complete. These activities are grade-level appropriate and can be completed by students independently or with support from family. Special education staff, English language learning teachers, and counselors and other staff are also available to communicate with students and families through email. Please understand that we are all doing our best to support our students, while, like you, adjusting to the realities of our current situation and supporting our own families.

We recognize that with school closing, it may be difficult for some of our families to access adequate food. So many of you have already reached out to help and responded to the request sent out by our PTO. Spencer Poole and Cristal Balis have been working with our social worker, Nicki Eastburn, to collect and distribute donations. Moving forward, we will have a weekly Community Food Table at Burr. The table will include mostly nonperishable items, and from time to time, some fresh items and some hygiene supplies.

If you need to access this there will be no questions asked, no need to verify need, and it will be completely confidential. The Burr Community Food Table will be available on Wednesdays from 10:30-11 a.m. and be staffed by Nicki Eastburn. If you have any questions about food insecurity or other supports you might need, please feel free to reach out to Ms. Eastburn at eastburnn@newton.k12.ma.us.

Additionally, if you would like to donate items for our Community Food Table, please be in touch with PTO Co-President, Spencer Poole at burrschoolptonewton@gmail.com.

I hope that we will be able to resume life as we know it soon. I wish you all good health and invite you to contact me with any questions or concerns.

Best,

Mindy

johalm@newton.k12.ma.us

THE BURR PTO PRESENTS

Understanding Our Differences – Allergic Conditions & Diabetes

4th & 5th Grade Student Panelists needed
Parent Volunteers Needed

The Understanding Our Differences program is a terrific parent led program that teaches our 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade children about various disabilities. Its focus is on teaching children to be inclusive of and to be allies for persons with disabilities in their community. This program runs entirely with parent volunteers and we need your help!

The Understanding Our Differences Chronic Medical Conditions unit will take place in 4th grade classrooms on Thursday April 9th from 9:40-11:40am.

For each condition, the children will learn what happens in the body, common triggers, and how people monitor, prevent and control these medical conditions. Students learn that allergic conditions and diabetes are chronic, hidden, and not contagious, and that each person can be affected differently by these conditions. Through hands-on activities, students explore how to be a friend to those affected by allergic conditions or diabetes.

In place of an outside guest speaker, we plan a guest panel of two to four Burr 4th and 5th grade students who live with an allergic condition or diabetes. Children on the panel would sit together in the library in front of the fourth-grade class. Each will be asked to talk for two or three minutes about their medical condition: How long they have had it, what their triggers are, what medicine they take (if any), how they feel about having the medical condition, etc. These questions will be presented at the beginning, and then each student panelist will be able to talk about them for a few minutes without interruption. When they have all finished, we will open it up for questions, planning for about 20 to 30 minutes total for the panel. This format is typically a great success and enjoyed by both the panel speakers and their classmates.

If your child would like to participate in the panel, please contact Michael Grubb (mgrubb@gmail.com).

Finally, we desperately need at least 6 volunteers to run the activities. Volunteering is easy, fun and anyone can do it – you do not need any background knowledge about allergic conditions or diabetes to help. Please contact Michael Grubb (mgrubb@gmail.com) or sign-up via sign-up genius to volunteer!

Want to know more?
www.understandingourdifferences.org