October Nursing Family Newsletter

Dear HMLS Families,

We want to thank you for helping to make the beginning of this school year a success. Staff and students have been resilient in their daily efforts in working together to keep everyone healthy and learning. We truly do have an amazing community. There are continuously changing factors that impact us on a daily basis and as a district we look at these routinely to make the best decisions for our students, their families, and our staff. On that note, here are some reminders and updates we would like to share with you:

Face Masks:
All students are required to wear masks for the entirety of the school day per SPS policies. Please remember to send a mask with your child every day. 
Although the majority of our students are doing a fantastic job wearing masks, recently we are seeing more and more students taking their masks either off or down below their nose both in class and in the hallways. 

• Please talk with your children about how to wear masks properly (covering both the nose and mouth) while in class, in the hallways, standing in the lunch line, and on the bus. Students get mask breaks by going outside between classes and while eating at lunch. Many teachers give a mask break by taking the class outside when the weather permits. If a student is having a hard time, they can ask the teacher for a break outside their classroom to remove their mask. Students must wear masks properly while in the building at all times. 
• We are also getting a large number of students who are not bringing their own mask to school and are coming to the office daily (sometimes multiple times per day) to get a mask. We are running very low on supplies. Please ensure that your student comes to school with a mask. I understand that a student will forget to bring a mask occasionally, and we will help in that situation, but it is not the responsibility of the school to provide a new mask on a daily basis. 

Sick Day Protocols:  
If your child develops COVID-19-like symptoms, please keep them home from school and notify the school nurse. They may return to school with:

1. A negative test result for COVID-19, have improvement in symptoms, and have been without fever for at least 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medications
2. A medical note from a healthcare provider
3. Without a test, they may return to school 10 days from start of symptoms, symptom improvement and they have been fever free for at least 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medication

Absent Line:
If your child will be out sick from school, needs to quarantine, or has a medical appointment, we are asking that you please call the nursing extension (66555) which will be the new absentee line. All other absences should be directed to the main office extension. Please leave a message with your child(ren)’s name, grade and teacher along with the reason for their absence. If your child is sick with any symptoms of Covid-19, please keep them home. They can return to school with a negative Covid test result or doctor’s note and have been fever free without the use of fever-reducing medication for 24 hours with improvement in symptoms.  

COVID Testing Consent: https://www.parentsquare.com/feeds/8231069

Physical Exam Requirement:
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts State Law requires every child attending public school to have a physical examination on file upon entry into school and at intervals of every three years thereafter. The Salem School Department requires physical examinations for every pre-school, kindergarten, third, sixth and ninth grade pupil. If your child has had a recent physical examination or is scheduled to have an examination during the next several months, please obtain a copy of your child’s exam from your Primary Care Provider and return it immediately to your school nurse.

Healthy Food: 
Please note that each school in the district provides a free, well balanced breakfast that meets the guidelines for the district’s wellness policy for any student who may want it. Staff have noticed an uptick in Dunkin Donuts as a preferred breakfast option and we are asking that you avoid sending your child in with donuts, muffins and sugary drinks in the morning. Breakfast is one of the most important meals of the day. After a long night of sleeping, children’s bellies awake empty and breakfast is the fuel that is going to get them going for the day!  Students who have a high carbohydrate and sugary breakfast tend to crash midway through the morning and become tired/sluggish making it difficult to fully participate in school work. In addition, we encourage healthy foods for snack and lunchtime as well. Please keep in mind that candy and soda are NOT ALLOWED at school.

Celebrations:   
The Salem Public School District developed a Wellness Policy that states that all schools will meet the nutritional guidelines of the USDA during school hours. At the HMLS, we are asking that you assist us in presenting good nutrition to the students and be mindful of various student allergies. We request that you DO NOT SEND in high calorie sweet treats to the classrooms, such as cakes, cookies, candy, pizza or cupcakes for birthday celebrations or classroom holiday parties.  

Thank you,
Nurse Jade
jbachmann@salemk12.org
978-740-1290 x66555