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Principal's Page - September 2009

Dear Haynes Families,

We are busily putting on the finishing touches for a new school year. Our custodians have the school looking clean and shiny. Classroom and specialist teachers have been preparing their rooms, planning curriculum, and working on new initiatives. Our school secretaries have kept the administrative wheels rolling. Our school nurse has updated student health information. Over the summer, I have been working with district and school teams to refine curriculum, support best teaching practices, analyze student performance data and implement initiatives to better support and challenge students. We are ready to go. All that is missing are the smiling faces of the students.

In order to help the school year start smoothly, please take a moment to read through the following school updates and some very important procedural reminders regarding arrival and dismissal from school.

Staffing News

We welcome the following new and/or returning staff members.

In addition, several "old" staff members are taking on new responsibilities and/or assignments this year. We are fortunate as well to expand the administrative leadership team through the addition of a second Lead Teacher

We are also lucky enough to have several interns and student teachers.

I am impressed by the dedication and professionalism of the new additions to our staff and have confidence in those who are embracing new challenges.

Communication

Communication between home and school is critical for student success. If you haven't done so, visit the redesigned HOP website, the Haynes Connection, http://www.haynespto.org. It is very user-friendly and helpful. Please make it a practice to routinely check the Haynes Connection and the district site for notices and calendars.

The Sudbury Public Schools and the Haynes School use Constant Contact to communicate time sensitive information by email with families. Please be sure to register your email address if you are a new family or check your information if you have registered previously. You can access the registration through the district sites or on the Connection. Look for the Constant Contact button.

Your child's teachers will let you know the best way to communicate with them individually. Please know that during the school day, teachers are busy working with students. If you have time sensitive information, please contact the front office.

Back-to-School Forms

In our continued effort to reduce paper waste, the 09-10 Back-to-School forms have been posted to the Connection. Some can be filled out on-line; others should be downloaded and sent in with your student on the first day of school.

Back-to-School Night

Mark your calendars for our Open House Night, Thursday, September 24 at 7:00 PM.

School Council

In accordance with Massachusetts state law, Haynes has a School Improvement Council which serves as an advisory body to the principal. Three elected parents, two elected teachers, two community members, and the principal serve on the Council. Meetings take place monthly on a Wednesday afternoon, after school. Further information about the School Improvement Council can be found on the Haynes Connection.

Parking

Parking is scarce at Haynes School, particularly during special events. This year, the front circle will be reserved for parent and guest parking. In addition, parents may park in the available spaces in the side lot. For safety reasons, there are several places where parents may not park:

1. along the yellow painted curb in the front circle,
2. crossing the crosswalks at the mouths of the front and side driveways,
3. in the back bus circle by the kindergarten classroom (except for Pre-K pick-up).

There are three marked spaces for handicapped parking: two in the front circle and one in the side lot. Cars may not park in these spots unless a handicapped sticker is visible. In addition, there are two 15-minute parking spots in the front circle. Use these spots to unload students at drop-off if they have unwieldy items (instruments, projects) to retrieve from your car. Please, never walk or allow your student to walk between buses or vans, as the drivers may not see you clearly.

Dismissal

In order to ensure the safe conduct of students from school to home, parents/guardians are required to fill out a Permanent Dismissal Schedule (posted on the Haynes Connection) for each of their students. Changes to a student's dismissal schedule must be communicated to school via a note to the student's classroom teacher or a call to the front office before 1 PM.

Pick-ups: Pick-ups are children whose parents are picking them up at the end of the school day, 3:25 PM on non ILAP days, 12:45 PM on ILAP days. All children must be picked up within the school, not outside on the sidewalk or within the parking lot. If you are picking up, please park and enter through the main entrance. Proceed to the auditorium. Teachers escort students being picked-up to the auditorium and match them with an adult. Students may not be picked up in the hallway. If your child is going home with another student's parent/guardian, you must send a note notifying the teacher of the change.

Morning kindergarten pick-up at 11:40 takes place in the rear of the school, near the kindergarten rooms. Parent/guardian cars may not pull into the circle until all buses have left the circle.

Bicycle/Scooter Riders: Students in grades 1-5 may ride bicycles or scooters to school with written permission from the parent/guardian. Helmets must be worn. Bikes and scooters must be walked in front of the school building on the sidewalk and parked in the bike racks on the side of the school. Students must ride responsibly or will lose the privilege of riding to school.

Walkers: Students in grades 1-5 may walk to and from school with written permission from their parent/guardian. Walkers are dismissed at 3:23 PM, just before bus dismissal (early release Wednesday dismissal occurs at 12:43 PM). On the Permanent Dismissal Schedule, you must indicate to which of the four drop-off sites you want your student taken:

Site 1: playground gate at the front of the school, heading out towards Julian' Way,

Site 2: end of Haynes driveway, towards Hadley Road,

Site 3: the intersection of Haynes Road and Wadsworth,

Site 4: the intersection of Haynes Road and Julian's Way.

If you plan to meet your child at any one of these drop-off sites in order to walk home with him or her, you must arrive in a timely manner. School personnel will not be able to wait and your child will proceed to walk home by him/herself.

Students who walk must stay with school personnel. Students who do not or who cross the street in an unsafe manner will lose their privilege to walk to school.

Bus Riders: Students may get off at a different stop on their same route provided they have a note from a parent/guardian granting permission. In addition, students may ride a different bus to a friend's home if the bus has sufficient space and a note has been submitted to the teacher identifying a change in bus for the day. Students who do not have a bus pass may purchase a single ride coupon from the front office in order to ride. Students engaging in unsafe behavior on the bus will lose the privilege of riding.

Arrival

The school day starts at 8:55 AM. The doors open at 8:45 AM. The building is not open before 8:45 AM to students who are not participating in SED, the breakfast program, MAST, or some other school sponsored activity. Please do not drop off or allow your walkers/bikers/scooter riders to arrive before 8:45 AM, as there is no supervision and their safety cannot be ensured.

Drop-Off: Parents dropping off students by vehicle must enter the front circle and wait in line. When it is your turn, pull all the way up to the end of the yellow curb and discharge passengers from the right-hand side of the vehicle. Should your students require extra time to unload, please park in one of the 15-minute spots so as not to hold up traffic. Students may not be discharged on Haynes Road. Students arriving after 8:55 AM will be marked tardy.

Walkers: the Crossing Guard will meet Students walking to school at one of three crossing sites.

Sites 2: 8:40 AM

Sites 3 and 4: 8:35 AM

Bus Riders: Buses will unload at 8:45 AM. In the rare instance that a bus is late causing students to arrive after 8:55 AM, they will not be marked tardy.

In closing, I want to take this opportunity to recognize that it takes the time, talents, and commitment of the whole Haynes community to provide a quality education for students. I thank the parents for their generosity and positive involvement. I thank the teachers for their dedication and commitment to excellence. I thank the support staff for their professionalism and efficiency. Most importantly, I thank the students for their enthusiasm and love of learning, and for inspiring us to strive everyday to make the Haynes School exemplary.

Best Regards,
Kim Swain