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News and Views January 17, 2008
Issue
9 FROM THE PRINCIPALÕS DESK: Important Reminders: School will NOT be in session: Monday,
January 21st in honor of Martin Luther King. BUS #1 reverses its route beginning Tuesday morning, January
22nd. Upcoming TES events: School Board Meeting: January 22nd at 7:00 Jeh Kulu Dance and Drum Theater: Two day residency Monday,
January 28nd and Tuesday, January 29th Kids Connection: snow sculpting February 4th School Announcements: The TES Health Team will
be launching a program of scheduled hand-washing starting next week. Although
plans had been made to integrate personal and public hygiene lessons into gym
classes in February, the persistence of gastrointestinal illnesses in the
school (13 students have vomited IN TES in the last 32 school days, and there
were 23 additional visits to the HO for stomach distress) inspires us to jump
start our efforts now. We especially want to take advantage of the long
weekend ahead, which will give our custodial staff a chance to undertake an
extra-thorough cleaning of the whole building.
Thereafter, meeting school hygiene standards will become the
responsibility of all TES staff and students. We are asking every teacher to
supervise student hand-washing before eating, including snack, and to remind
students to wash their hands after using the restroom. Because computer
keyboards have been identified as a major source of spreading
gastrointestinal viruses in elementary schools, students will also be asked
to wash hands before using computers.
No one knows the long-range consequences resulting from the wide
spread use of hand sanitizers; therefore, we encourage teachers and students
to use soap and running water whenever possible. In situations where soap and
water are not available or too unwieldy for certain activities, it is
perfectly acceptable to use hand sanitizer.
Washing hands in a way that is both efficient and effective is another
challenge. In the next couple of weeks we will train every student and staff
member to use the same technique practiced in health care settings. It is
easy and logical, and we assume that even the youngest children can master it
with pride.
Ultimately, we expect the extra time and attention required by
scheduled school-wide hand-washing will be more than worth the effort. There
has been considerable research studying the effects of schools and
hand-washing; all report reductions of absenteeism from 13% to 50%. Because
hand-washing is a critical element of the TES Òpeanut allergyÓ protocol, we
are optimistic that this added vigilance will be taken in stride and with the
same sense of community responsibility demonstrated in the past. As always,
anything families can do to reinforce our efforts will be much
appreciated. Good health to all. Community Calendar and
Announcements: The Lyme Nursery School is accepting
applications for its pre-school (3- and 4-year-old) and after-K
programs. The deadline for New
Family Registration is Monday, January 28th. There will be an Open House at
the school on Thursday, January 24th from 4-6 PM. Applications can also be submitted at this time. For more
information please call (603) 795-4567 or www.lymenurseryschool.com. Thetford Energy Committee's Warmth in the Winter Energy
Education Series continues Sunday, Jan. 20 at the First Congregational Church
on Thetford Hill Double Feature! 5:00 p.m. Film The End of Suburbia (2004) 6:30 p.m. Intermission featuring Soup and Bread 7:00 p.m. Film Escape from Suburbia (2007) The End of Suburbia is a now classic treatise on the coming peak
in world oil production and what it means for the American Dream. Escape from
Suburbia examines the response of individuals and whole communities as
they take on this challenge and change their lives. Sunday, Jan. 27, 7 p.m., at the First Congregational Church on
Thetford Hill Film, King Corn and presentation and discussion by TA students.
King Corn follows two college friends who grow a bumper crop of America's
most productive, most subsidized grain on one acre of Iowa soil. But when
they try to follow their pile of corn into the food system, what they find
raises troubling questions about how we eat, how we farm, and the stuff we
are really made of. Includes conversations with Michael Pollan, the author of
An Omnivore's Dilemma. Following the film, Thetford Academy students will present their
recent analysis of food for sale in Thetford and Strafford. In the
discussion that follows, local farmers will help us think about the connections
between our food choices and energy consumption. Both events are free and open to all. Refreshments will be served. Donations appreciated. The First Congregational Church on Thetford Hill is handicapped
accessible. Please park at the rear of church parking lot and take the
elevator to upper floor. There is a
handicapped accessible bathroom on the upper floor as well as an area for wheelchair seating. Contact Scot Zens at 785-4012 for more information. |