Soundview School 2022-2023 Begins

**It’s a big leap and we are ready for it!**

Dear Soundview Family,

It’s back-to-school time! A big welcome to our whole Soundview family! The faculty, staff, and I are excited to see you all soon! We’ve been busy preparing the campus and curriculum for the upcoming school year. We’re looking forward to outdoor school and field trips, concert band, and a new art studio, and so much more.

The start of any school year is a big transition for children, parents, and teachers. Here are a few things, appropriate for all early childhood through eighth grade aged students to help with this transition:

Expect the full spectrum of emotions from yourself and your child. Remember that an emotion is not a problem to solve. Emotion does not always require explanation. Embrace our natural transition process. Practice holding space for emotions to come and go.
Start practicing an evening and a morning routine. Work together with your child to make a simple checklist for your routines. Reign in screen-time and write a set of screen-time agreements with time limits for the entire school year.
Remember that you don’t need to have all of the answers to your students' questions about, “what school will be like.” Write them down and bring them to Dolphin Day (see below). Or, use questions as a tool for processing and naming emotions that come with the start of school.

We have a few announcements and accomplishments to share:

This month, Soundview received its International Baccalaureate (IB) Primary Years Program authorization! Faculty, students, parents, and our board of trustees all contributed to this effort. Soundview is one of only three schools in Washington State with authorized Primary and Middle Years Programs. Soundview was the first authorized Middle Years IB Program In the state (2009).
Mr. Bill Good is retiring at the end of this month. Mr. Bill has been at Soundview for 15 years. In addition to facilities management at Soundview, in his other jobs Bill was a middle school Latin teacher and IT manager. He is an accomplished musician and a great friend to Soundview. Soundview students will give Mr. Bill a proper send-off at our first assembly of the school year. We’re sure Bill will remain available for Bob Dylan quotes, harmonica interludes, and good vibes. Thank you, Bill!
We have four new staff members to introduce:
- Fred Annett is our new Facilities Manager.
- Victoria Nunes is our new Director of Enrollment Management.
- Alexandra Allyn is our new and returning Spanish Teacher.
- Sarah Lalonde is our new Assistant Teacher.
Our beloved music/band teacher Mrs. Laura Higgins will start school this year later in September. We look forward to seeing her as soon as she’s ready to rejoin us.

Here are a few more important things you need to know to get the 2022-2023 school year started. More detailed information is available on some of these topics in the Soundview Parent Portal HERE.

COVID update: Soundview follows the instructions of Snohomish Health District and current K-12 school guidelines from the State of Washington. The important points are:
- All staff, visitors, and contract vendors on campus are required to be fully vaccinated or present an approved exemption.
- It is STRONGLY recommended that all eligible students be up-to-date on COVID vaccination.
- Currently, masks are optional indoors and outdoors at Soundview.
- When sick or symptomatic, stay home and notify the Soundview office. Soundview follows current isolation guidelines. We will walk you through it.
- Soundview will provide rapid testing for any student or staff member if symptoms are present.
- Rapid tests will be available for any staff or student who would like to test after an exposure. These tests will be available from the main office.
- Ventilation in classrooms and common spaces will be maximized. Regular cleaning, disinfection, and hand hygiene will also remain priorities.
- Other COVID mitigation strategies will shift with the latest risk level in Snohomish County.
- Soundview will send a notification of any COVID case on campus with any changes to mitigation.
- We respectfully request that all parents use a rapid test for themselves and their children before returning to school.
- For any questions about Soundview and COVID mitigation, contact the main office or administrator.
Dolphin Day is Tuesday, September 6, 2022. Dolphin Day is a, “meet-and-greet” for families and teachers. One hour of the day is assigned to each division of the school. Dolphin Day is an opportunity to work out any first-day-of-school jitters, meet your teachers, and see the campus. This is a recommended, but not required, event. Park in the Soundview parking lot and enter through the Performing Arts Center. We will be there to greet you and give instructions. If you have students in more than one division, bring your students to the time slot most convenient for your family. The times for the divisions are:
- Early Childhood and Kindergarten 9:00 AM to 10:00 AM
- First through fourth grade 11 AM to noon
- Fifth through eighth grade, 12:30 PM to 1:30 PM
The first day of school is Wednesday, September 7, 2022:
- Soundview has a rolling drop off and pick up. Use the west driveway to enter the campus and follow the directions from staff. There is a helpful map of drop-off behind the Parent Portal.
- Drop-off times:
  - Early Childhood and kindergarten: 8:30 AM to 9:00 AM
  - Grades 1 through 8: 8:20 AM to 8:40 AM
- Pick up times:
  - Early Childhood and kindergarten: 3:00 PM to 3:30 PM
  - Grades 1 through 5: 3:10 PM to 3:40 PM
  - Grades 6 through 8: 3:20 PM to 3:40 PM
- There are a lot of cars moving through the drop-off and pick-up lines. It’s important to arrive at your designated time and not early. Please stay in your cars and have your child’s gear ready to grab. Position your child on the driver’s side if possible. Pull as far forward in the line as possible.
In addition to this email, you will receive an email from your child’s teacher on Tuesday, August 30, at 5:00 PM. The email will contain all the start-of-school information from your teacher germane to your child’s classroom and your individual Toddle login information (“Toddle” is Soundview’s online classroom management system). All future classroom announcements (and other fun updates) from your teachers will come on Tuesdays via Toddle.
Curriculum Night will be held the evenings of September 12 for the Primary Years Program and September 13 for the Middle Years Program. Both begin at 6:00 PM. These are in-person and interactive events for parents and teachers. Details to follow.
Morning and after school care, as well as after school clubs and activities for the first semester begins Monday, September 19, 2022. Registration will be available on Friday, September 2, 2022. All first semester morning and after school programs will run from September 19 through December 15, 2022. Soundview will offer cross country running, chess, coding, and so much more! Details and sign-up will be our next letter.
There are no classroom supplies for you to shop for. Soundview provides all of your child’s classroom materials. Band instruments for 5th through 8th grades students are not included.
Information about band instruments will be sent to 5th through 8th grade families after the start of the school year.
We have sent all families a request for students information. If you have not returned these forms, please check your email and provide the information we must have to complete your students’ enrollment. If there is any question about this form or the information, please contact Richard Nelson at rnelson@soundview.org as soon as possible.