Family Newsletter | August 27, 2024
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Dear HES Families,
We are sending our family newsletter a day early because tomorrow is the first day of school! Everyone here at HES has been hard at work getting classrooms and all our learning spaces ready for a great year. Here are some reminders and information to ensure a smooth start:
School Hours
- The school day begins at 9:00 am and students are welcome to enter the building starting at 8:45 am. We encourage everyone to arrive on time, but if you do arrive after 9:00, please bring your child into the building and sign them in.
- The school day ends at 3:30 pm.
- Morning half-day PreK students should be dropped off using our school-wide arrival procedures (see below). They will be dismissed at 11:45 am from the front entrance. Please come into the building to pick up your child.
- Afternoon half-day PreK students should be brought into the building through the front entrance at 12:45 pm. They will be dismissed using our school-wide dismissal procedures at 3:30 (see below).
- Morning K students are dismissed at 12:00 pm from the front entrance. Please come into the building to pick up your child.
Arrival
- Car drop off starts at 8:45 am. Students should stay in their cars until our staff members are present. Please note that cars should only enter our parking lot from Mass Ave. Other entrances are closed to traffic during arrival and dismissal (see map below).
- Please wait in the car line until you are directed to pull up along our front sidewalk (see map below). Once your child exits the car, stay in the car line until the car in front of you leaves. Do not pull out of line or attempt to pass cars in front of you.
- Walkers may enter through our main door or door C-2 on the Mass Ave side of the building.
- If your child takes the bus, please note the time that the bus route begins and plan to be at your stop a few minutes early for the first few days.
- We always have lots of friendly faces outside and inside the building ready to help your child find their way no matter how they arrive at school!
Dismissal
- Thank you to everyone who filled out our dismissal form. If you have not, please fill it out as soon as possible! Any time you need to make a change to your child's dismissal plan, email hesabsence@psharvard.org and your child's teacher before 2:30 pm.
- We begin dismissal at 3:30 pm. If you are in the car line, a staff member will come by to write down your child's name. We call students' names in the building and then bring students to their cars. We will be sending home a placard with your child's name for you to put in your car window.
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Walkers in grades 3-5 and their accompanying younger siblings are dismissed from door C-2 or the main office door. Walkers in grades PreK-2 without an older sibling are only dismissed from our main office door to an adult. If you are picking up a walker at our front door, please stand to the side and we will bring your child out to you.
- If your child takes the bus, they will leave school as soon as the busses are fully loaded. If your child is in Kindergarten or first grade, please be sure an adult is waiting for them at their bus stop.
Arrival and Dismissal Map
Lunch and Snack
- We welcome your child to bring a healthy snack to school each day. All our classrooms are nut-free. Please do not send foods containing nuts or nut products for snack.
- Your child may bring their own lunch or receive a free lunch each day. Second servings of lunch are $4.00 and charged to your child's MySchoolBucks account. We have a hot entree every day as well as options for sandwiches, salads, and bagels. Nuts and nut products may be eaten in our cafeteria away from our allergy table.
 Over the past few weeks we have introduced you to our new staff members. Now, we are thrilled to provide a way to get to know ALL our staff members. Click HERE to meet all of us!
Here is one last episode of Storytime with Dr. K and Mrs. Sturgis to get you ready for the school year! Please enjoy our reading of Stick and Stone by Beth Ferry.
We can't wait to see you!
Rebecca and Hilary
Dr. Rebecca Katsh-Singer, Principal
Mrs. Hilary Sturgis, Assistant Principal
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Upcoming Dates
Wednesday, August 28: First Day of School for Grades 1-5 and Half of Kindergarten
Thursday, August 29: First Day of School for PreK and Half of Kindergarten
Monday, September 2: NO SCHOOL
Tuesday, September 10: Picture Day (more information coming soon!)
Wednesday, September 18: Half Day, Dismissal at 12:15 pm
Monday, September 23-Friday, September 27: Grade 5 at Nature's Classroom
Monday, September 30-Friday, October 4: PTO Book Fair
Tuesday, October 1: Curriculum Night, 6:00 pm
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School Announcements
Bus Routes
Bus routes for the upcoming school year are now available on our website or by clicking HERE. Start times for each bus route are listed along with the address of each stop. If you do not see your exact house number or if your stop is missing, please know that stops are often consolidated to provide more efficient transportation. If you have any questions regarding the bus routes please contact Dee Bus by phone (978-425-4706 ext 3190) or email (sandram68@comcast.net).
Updating/Verifying Student Information for 2024-2025Dear Families,
Over the past couple of years we have transitioned from paper medical emergency and permissions forms to digital electronic versions. These forms are in our PowerSchool Student Information System and parents/guardians are required to review, confirm, and make any necessary changes at the beginning of each school year. (You can log in and make changes at any time after that.)
We currently have 4 forms to be reviewed/updated:
Demographic Verification Health Information Update Permissions/Agreements Parent/Guardian/Emergency Contact Verification
Directions:
Log into your PowerSchool Parent Portal. (If you do not know your log in information there are resources on the login page to assist in account recovery and setup.) Select a student in the top blue menu bar. Choose "FORMS" on the left-side menu. Select a form to review, edit if necessary, consent and sign at the bottom. Hit SUBMIT. Repeat process for additional students
Here is a guide with these steps: Submitting Forms via Parent Portal
For new accounts, please see this guide: New Parent/Guardian PowerSchool Account Guide
During the account creation process you can link to your student at the same time.
To link another student to your account please see this guide: Add Student to Account Guide
If you have any questions, or need further assistance, please email Chris Boyle at cboyle@psharvard.org
Thank you and have a great week.
Christopher Boyle
Director of Technology
Thank You PTO
Thank you to the PTO, and especially School Supply Committee Chair Rachel Kopay, for organizing another successful year of bulk school supply ordering. PTO volunteers just distributed 254 orders to our classrooms!
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Community Announcements
Harvard Youth Lacrosse
Registration for Fall 2024 Skills and Drills Clinic is open 9/15-10/25. Come reconnect with your lacrosse teammates & friends after the summer! This six week lacrosse clinic is for girls entering grades 1-6. These FUN clinics will introduce and/or reinforce many of the basic skills and game concepts required to play women’s lacrosse. This is also a great opportunity for players to try lacrosse before the spring 2025 season. Register here: https://harvardlax.org/registration/
Superstar Fall Show
Superstar Productions is excited to present our fall show for grades 3-5: Space Pirates! Registration opened Wednesday, August 7 at 7:45 pm. Go to https://superstarproductions.org and click on registration.
Registration Fee: $445
Please email superstarproductionsma@gmail.com with any questions!
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HILDRETH ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Dr. Rebecca Katsh-Singer, Principal
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| 27 Massachusetts Avenue, Harvard MA, 01451 | (978) 456 - 4145 |
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