Lurgio News for April 2, 2021

 

LURGIO NEWS April 2, 2021

Dear Lurgio Families,

It’s hard to believe that today is the last day of quarter three. I encourage you to continue to read these Friday updates as we head into the last stretch of the school year; they are chock full of information regarding current happenings, end of the year events, athletics, activities, and more.  As you plan your spring and summer schedules, it will be helpful for you to know what’s ahead in the coming weeks.

Be well,

Ed

Parent Resources

Daily Health Screening for Students Quarantine Protocols/Flowchart

RAL Remote Parent Guide RAL Welcome & Orientation Video

Bedford Reopening Plan COVID-19 Schools Dashboard 

Important Dates

Apr 2 (Fri)	Quarter 3 Ends
Apr 5 (Mon) - Apr 9 (Fri)	Spring Parent Conferences (7th grade only)
Apr 26 (Mon) - Apr 30 (Fri)	Spring Vacation (NO SCHOOL)
May 11 (Tue) - May 13 (Thurs)	NH-SAS Testing (Grade 7 & 8)

New News

Updated Travel Guidelines Reminders

We wanted to update you all regarding the new travel guidelines that have been released from NH DHHS.  Any travel increases a person’s risk of getting infected and spreading Covid.  DHHS continues to discourage travel, and encourages post travel testing.  Here is the detailed information regarding DHHS travel guidance and here is the full NH COVID-19 Travel Guidance. Below are the highlights:

-Domestic travel within the US no longer requires quarantine upon return to NH (this includes domestic travel to US territories)

-Even though a person may not be required to quarantine after Domestic travel, the CDC does suggest that people seek testing 3-5 days after travel for asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection;  testing is recommended and helpful to identify positive cases- testing by  PCR is recommended. Your child may attend school while awaiting their PCR test for domestic travel if asymptomatic.

-International travel continues to require a 10 day quarantine, or a 7 day quarantine with a PCR test on day 6-7 with a negative test result. 

-Travel on a cruise ship also requires a 10 day quarantine, or a 7 day quarantine with a PCR test on day 6-7 with a negative test result. 

-Everyone who chooses to travel, regardless of vaccination status or prior immunity, should wear a well fitted, multi-layer face mask, physically distance (i.e. maintain at least 6 feet from other people), avoid large groups and gatherings, frequently sanitize hands, and self monitor for symptoms.

-If  your child is symptomatic after travel your child should isolate and get tested, and parents inform the school nurse.

 

7th Graders: 8th Grade Course Registration

It is time to register your student for their 8th-grade classes. We have created a presentation to help you navigate the registration process. Click [HERE] to view our step-by-step directions. Over the next two weeks, please take a moment with your child to visit the class registration page in PowerSchool to officially select your courses.

Today, we will open the parent portal. Class registrations can be edited or changed until Friday, April 16, 2021.  After that time, any changes will need to go through the Lurgio Guidance Office.  

If you have any questions or concerns, you may speak to your child’s teachers and/or school counselor.

Spring Sport Schedule

Please see our Weekly Athletic Schedule for updated information about practices and games for our spring teams. In the event of inclement weather, a call will be made by 1:00PM on the day of the event. The weekly schedule will be updated, coaches will communicate with families, 

Reminders

CUB Road Club Spring Event Saturday April 17TH 9-3

1st Annual “CUB” Clean UP Bedford day will be a day to clean up Bedford roads. This day is open to every Bedford resident. Take  time to clean up your road or neighborhood. Many organizations plus students from Bedford schools will be out picking up the  roads. Please be safe when you are working that day. Wear gloves and highly reflective clothing. When cleaning, always be  aware of the road traffic and always walk towards traffic. Safety is our first priority. 

Simply leave the tied up BLUE bag on the roadside and staff from Bedford DPW will pick up the bags. The “CUB” Program will give everyone an opportunity to spend the day outdoors and a great way to make our community a cleaner place. Need more information on “CUB” clean up day, contact Bill Carter @ wcarter@bedfornh.org. 

Let’s make Bedford a cleaner place on April 17th. Thank you for your support!

In Writing Summer - 8th Grade Students

Eighth graders intending to take In Writing Enrichment or In Writing Hybrid Enrichment at BHS this summer need to register and pay for the course through the Summer Opportunities Website. Course dates, times, and fees are listed on the website and the registration form is linked on the left side of the site. If you have questions, please email Tara Cloutier, the BHS Summer School Coordinator, at cloutiert@sau25.ne

Lurgio Yearbook Now on Sale!

The 2020-2021 Lurgio Yearbook is on sale!! Online sales will be open until Thursday, May 20th. To Order Visit: http://jostensyearbooks.com/?REF=A01102488. Questions? Contact Donna Dennis dennisd@sau25.net or Jennifer Manley manleyj@sau25.net.

Updated DHHS Contact Tracing Guidelines

Per Superintendent Fournier, from DHHS

-A new study published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases is the first to show that in the setting of universal face mask use in classrooms, COVID-19 infection rates were equivalent for schools that implemented either a minimum of 3 feet or 6 feet of physical distancing. Therefore, NH DPHS will not recommend quarantine for students or staff if a COVID-19 exposure occurs in the classroom setting where students and staff are seated and spaced at least 3 feet apart with consistent and correct face mask use.

This is for in school contact tracing only. Outside organizations will still conduct their own contact tracing: 3 feet of distancing applies to controlled areas only (i.e. classrooms). It does not apply to recess, lunch and bus. Those areas will still be contact traced based on 6 feet of distancing.

New Hampshire State Testing

This spring, Bedford students will participate in the New Hampshire state-wide assessments. Throughout the state, students in grades 3-8 and 11 take mathematics and English language arts exams. A science test is also given to students in grades 5, 8, and 11. For more information, please click this link. 

School Attendance

This is just a reminder that parents can email their student’s school attendance to ralattendance@bedfordnhk12.net. Parents of hybrid and remote students should report absences through this email address or by calling the school at 603.310.9100.

RAL Co-curriculars Update

Are you looking to get involved in something here at Lurgio? Then be sure to listen to the daily announcements (print version), check out the Lurgio News, and check the RAL Extracurriculars Calendar. 

 

Weekly Features

Music Corner

BAND:  Here is the weekly band schedule for next week 4/5/21-4/9/21

Monday (4/5) - no rehearsals

Tuesday (4/6) 2:40-3:15- Flute/Oboe/Strings

Wednesday (4/7) 2:40-3:15- Percussion Sectional

Thursday (4/8) 2:40-3:15- Clarinets

Friday (4/9) 2:40-3:15- Brass

Friday (4/9) 3:30-4:30- Jazz Band

CHORUS:  Chorus rehearsals will resume again on Monday, April 5.  All rehearsals will now take place during WIN, from 2:40 - 3:15 p.m. If you are in school, you will meet for rehearsal in the Cafeteria where we can space ourselves according to CDC guidelines.   If you are remote, you can join your sectional rehearsal on google meet.  If you are in school, please make sure you have your chromebook with you and, of course, wear your mask. Here is what our six day rotation will be:

Day 1 - 7th grade sopranos

Day 2 - STEPS

Day 3 - 7th and 8th grade altos

Day 4 - STEPS

Day 5 - A Capella

Day 6 - 8th grade sopranos

Enrichment Corner

Are you looking for a challenge? Do you have an interest or hobby you would like to explore in more depth? Let Ms. Rockwell, our enrichment coordinator, help! Check out her website below for more information about the enrichment opportunities offered at Lurgio. Just click on the “enrichment opportunities” tab and fill out the application to get started. 

Note: If you are interested in exploring some things on your own, check out the “resources” tab on the website.

All information can be found at the Lurgio Enrichment Corner

 

Guidance Corner

 

10 Effective Study Skills for Middle Schoolers

The Lurgio Guidance Department reached out to parents, asking for their most successful ideas at supporting their hybrid and remote students academically. Click here to access a short video highlighting study skills ideas for your student.

 

Weekend Lunch Bags

The Food Pantry at Bedford Presbyterian Church provides our school with free weekend lunch bags for students who are facing hunger or food insecurity. Please contact our Guidance Secretary, Lisa Mullen, for this confidential aid.

Teen Suicide Prevention Video

In this video created by Mayo Clinic, teens describe common signs that a teen is considering suicide and provide encouragement for communicating directly and immediately for support and safety. It also Includes suggestions for what to say to a teen who may be at risk for suicide and ways to keep them safe. Things can get better.

Library Corner

Happy Spring!  We are looking for your ideas and feedback.  What new books would you like to see available in the library?  Share your ideas here on this google form. This form is also available on the library website!

 

Join us for Booked for Breakfast Thursday, April 15th at 8am for a virtual Cartooning lesson with the California artist, Khalid Birdsong. All students are welcome!

 

The Writing Panel would like to congratulate our 2021 Writing Contest Winners below!

Thank you to all Lurgio lions that entered the contest and shared their creative ideas.

-Short Story Winner: Arwyn Chen 

-Personal Narrative Winner:  Alyssa Shoals 

-Poetry Winner:  Annabelle Jurus 

-Comic Winner: Sarah Kapetan 

Tech Corner

As students begin to come back to school daily, it is important they remember to charge their chromebooks nightly and bring them to school daily!!  Please remember there are no loaners for students to use if they forget their chromebook at home.

Students are reminded to come to the Tech Corner in the back of the Media Center if they are having issues with their chromebooks when they are in school. Any technical issues that occur for remote students or those students who are quarantined, we ask you to fill out the BSD Help Desk Ticket.

Book Buzz

Wonderful to have Booked for Breakfast in person Thursdays in the Media Center 8:00-8:30 in addition to our remote offerings.We were all about thrillers, mystery and suspense at Books for Breakfast today. 

Here is a non-fiction book to check out: Big Top Burning: The True Story of an Arsonist, a Missing Girl, and the Greatest Show on Earth by Laura Woolett.

With primary source documents and survivor interviews, “Big Top Burning” recounts the true story of the 1944 Hartford circus fire—one of the worst fire disasters in US history. Its remarkable characters include: Robert Segee, the fifteen-year-old circus roustabout and known pyromaniac; and the Cook children, Donald, Eleanor, and Edward, who were in the audience when the circus tent caught fire. Guiding readers through the investigations of the mysteries that make this moment in history so fascinating, this book asks: Was the unidentified body of a little girl nicknamed “Little Miss 1565” Eleanor Cook? Was the fire itself an act of arson—and did Robert Segee set it? “Big Top Burning” combines a gripping disaster story, an ongoing detective and forensics saga, and World War II–era American history, inviting middle-grade readers to take part in a critical evaluation of the evidence and draw their own conclusions.

Agatha Christie is known for her famous mysteries and a favorite of ours is And Then There Were None.

Ten strangers are lured to an isolated island mansion off the Devon coast by a mysterious "U. N. Owen." "Nine . . ." At dinner a recorded message accuses each of them in turn of having a guilty secret, and by the end of the night one of the guests is dead. "Eight . . ." Stranded by a violent storm, and haunted by a nursery rhyme counting down one by one . . . as one by one . . . they begin to die. "Seven . . ."Which among them is the killer and will any of them survive?

And we can't talk about Agatha Christie and not mention Sherlock Holmes. Check out A Question of Holmes by Brittany Cavallaro.

Charlotte Holmes and Jamie Watson finally have a chance to start over. With all the freedom their pre-college summer program provides and no one on their tail, the only mystery they need to solve, once and for all, is what they are to each other.  But upon their arrival at Oxford, Charlotte is immediately drawn into a new case: a series of accidents befell the theater program at Oxford last year, culminating in a young woman going missing on the night of a major performance. The mystery has gone unsolved; the case is cold. And no one—least of all the girl’s peculiar, close-knit group of friends—is talking. When Watson and Holmes join the theater program, the “accidents” start anew, giving them no choice but to throw themselves into the case. But as the complicated lines of friendship, love, and loyalty blur, time is running out—and tragedy waits in the wings.

We also discussed All Fall Down by Ally Carter. 

Grace Blakely is absolutely certain of three things: 1. She is not crazy. 2. Her mother was murdered. 3. Someday she is going to find the killer and make him pay. As certain as Grace is about these facts, nobody else believes her -- so there's no one she can completely trust. Not her grandfather, a powerful ambassador. Not her new friends, who all live on Embassy Row. Not Alexei, the Russian boy next door, who is keeping his eye on Grace for reasons she neither likes nor understands. Everybody wants Grace to put on a pretty dress and a pretty smile, blocking out all her unpretty thoughts. But they can't control Grace -- no more than Grace can control what she knows or what she needs to do. Her past has come back to haunt her . . . and if she doesn't stop it, Grace isn't the only one who will get hurt. Because on Embassy Row, the countries of the world stand like dominoes, and one wrong move can make them all fall down.

Are you interested in trying to write your own novel? Ally Carter is here to help you out with Dear Ally, How Do You Write a Book?

Have you always wanted to write a book, but don't know where to start? Or maybe you're really great at writing the first few chapters . . . but you never quite make it to the end? Or do you finally have a finished manuscript, but you're not sure what to do next? Fear not―if you have writing-related questions, this book has answers!  Whether you're writing for fun or to build a career, bestselling author Ally Carter is ready to help you make your work shine. With honesty, encouragement, and humor, Ally's here to answer the questions that writers struggle with the most. Filled with practical tips and helpful advice, Dear Ally is a treasure for aspiring writers at any stage of their careers. It offers a behind-the-scenes look at how books get made, from idea to publication, and gives you insight into the writing processes of some of the biggest and most talented YA authors today.  With contributions from Jesse Andrews, Jennifer Lynn Barnes, Holly Black, Sarah Rees Brennan, Z Brewer, Rachel Caine, Soman Chainani, Cassandra Clare, Dhonielle Clayton, Jay Coles, Zoraida Córdova, Melissa de la Cruz, Elizabeth Eulberg, Christina Diaz Gonzalez, Alan Gratz, Shannon Hale, Kody Keplinger, Gordon Korman, David Levithan, Alex London, Marie Lu, Marissa Meyer, Julie Murphy, Daniel José Older, Stephanie Perkins, Carrie Ryan, Eliot Schrefer, Maggie Stiefvater, and Kiersten White, “Dear Ally” is a must-read for anyone who has ever asked the question "How do you write a book?"

See you next Thursday. April 8 for an in depth look at mythology.

PTG Corner

Virtual Color Blast Fun Run/Walk

CLICK HERE to register. COLOR BLAST PROMO VIDEO for more details.

All registrations come with a Color Packet. Plus, register by April 23rd for the opportunity to purchase a Color Bucket (to make your celebrations even more colorful) and an Event T-shirt (the perfect tee to get colorful in)!

**The first 150 registrants will be entered in a raffle for a chance to win a $50 Copper Door Gift Card, so register today (those that have already registered are automatically entered)!**

Participate in our Virtual Color Blast Fun Run/Walk any time between May 22nd and May 31st. You set the distance and course; get out for a run, jog, skip, walk or hop and celebrate with a COLOR PARTY in your backyard. 

Visit our COLOR BLAST webpage for more information. Share your fun on social media with #ColorBlast2021

Mental Health and Wellness Discussion Series

The PTG is partnering with the Bedford School District to bring this series. Mark your calendars to join us for the second session on Thursday, April 8th! Limited seating at the BHS Theater (mask required) at 7 p.m. BCTV will also be live streaming this session.

This event will be an informal presentation and will incorporate community questions and feedback. Questions can be emailed in advance to bedfordnhptg@gmail.com or submitted at the event. The panelist(s) will do their best to address as many questions/concerns as they can related to the topic.

April 8: Parents of High Schoolers: A Deeper Dive - How to Best Support Your Teens’ Wellness. During COVID and non-COVID times.

To see the first session, please click on this link:

Psychological First Aid: Parents, Kids and Mental Health Sponsored by the PTG and Bedford School District 3-18-21

Volunteer Opportunities for the 2021/2022 School Year

The PTG is looking for volunteers on the District and School level. If you are interested or would like more information please email bedfordnhptg@gmail.com. 

District Gift Card Coordinator

Help the schools and local businesses! Work with the Gift card coordinators at each school, as well as the VP of Fundraising to coordinate and execute the PTG Gift Card fundraising event. Help secure and collect gift cards from local participating businesses. The Gift Card fundraiser runs mid-October until late December.