Newsletters

Mason Families,

Happy New Year! I hope that everyone had a wonderful Winter Break!  Here at Mason, teaching and learning is in full swing!  We are all so happy to welcome our students back to campus!

You may have heard that there is a nationwide substitute teacher shortage; there is! Given our current situation with this new COVID variant, districts across the country are facing substitute teacher shortages, which may result in your child's classrooms being impacted.  Our school, Mason Elementary, is committed to ensuring consistency for our children!  If your child’s teacher is absent and we do not have a substitute teacher, there are a few options we can use:

- All Hands on Deck: Any staff that have an opening in their schedule may act as a substitute teacher. 

- Disbursing Students: A classroom of students who does not have a substitute teacher is split up to attend another teacher's class for the day. 

In the upcoming weeks, your child may come home and tell you he/she had our intervention teacher, Ed Specialist, Counselor, etc. as their teacher.  This is thanks to the commitment of staff members across our site stepping in to support and taking an "all hands on deck” approach.

In addition, our district has enacted an emergency coverage plan and will be deploying qualified central office staff to support school sites. We appreciate your understanding, and please know we are working hard to create the least amount of disruption to classroom learning.

We thank you for your ongoing efforts to ensure the health and safety of our community. Please continue to monitor your child's daily health and keep him/her home if they are exhibiting any COVID related symptoms (can be found later in the newsletter). Our health office and staff are available to support and provide guidance with any questions you may have.

We believe that all students should be in school. That is why we are working to create the safest possible learning environments for all students, despite the rapid rise in COVID-19 cases in the nation. Here are a few of the steps we are taking:

-Tight fitting masks for all students and staff (No gators or vents)

-Increased hand washing

-Student spacing while eating

-In addition to regular cleaning, if a classroom has a student/staff test positive for COVID-19, the classroom will have a deep clean provided by SDUSD staff.

We are committed to a robust testing program to stop the spread of the virus within our school communities. In the event your student becomes ill, please get your student tested either here at Mason Elementary (Thursdays), at the SDUSD Education Center or any other testing location. If your student is positive for COVID, please do not send them to school. Students will be excused for any illness, including COVID. 

Please take every precaution to prevent contracting COVID, such as wearing a mask, getting tested frequently, not attending large gatherings where others are not wearing masks, and of course, getting vaccinated.

The Vaccination Van will be providing first- and second-dose shots of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, Johnson & Johnson vaccines, booster shots, and vaccines for children aged five to 18. No appointments are necessary. Click here for dates and location

All children under the age of 18 will need parental consent. Students at the hosting school can receive a vaccine with a signed parental consent form; all other students will need to have a parent present.

We are continuing our Covid-19 testing on Thursday mornings for the remainder of the school year. If you would like your child to participate in weekly Covid Testing, please see the information below.

https://sandiegounified.org/covid-19_status/c_o_v_i_d-19_testing/opt-_in_to_testing

1. You can fill out the paperwork online. Covid-19 Testing Acknowledgement Form to opt-in for testing for your child, please complete the COVID-19 Testing Acknowledgement Form on PowerSchool. Please Note: A PowerSchool Username and Password will be required to complete this form. If you do not have the Access ID and Password for your student, please contact the front office.

2. You can fill out a hard copy (paper) in the Mason office. If you prefer filling the form out on paper, please complete and turn it into your school's front office: English | Spanish | Tagalog | Vietnamese | Arabic | Somali | Swahili

• Does your child have a new cough that cannot be attributed to another health condition?

• Does your child have shortness of breath that cannot be attributed to another health condition?

• Does your child have a headache that cannot be attributed to another health condition?

• After taking the temperature today, does your student have a temperature greater than 100.0F?

• In the last 24 hours has your child had any of the following symptoms: chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or new loss of taste or smell?

• Has your child come into close contact (within 6 feet, for longer than 15 minutes) with someone who has a laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis in the past 14 days?

• Has a health provider or public health official asked your student to quarantine (i.e., stay home) during this period?

If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, please keep your child home and call our office for support and guidance (619) 605-8900.