As part of our HPE Student Council, we have a news team that has a weekly report for our students. Thank you to Mrs. Chaves for producing this work! Our reporters are working hard this year and love delivering the news to you and our students. Here is this week's news report.
This is a reminder that the High Plain Road entrance is closed to cars at dismissal. It is the access entrance for buses only. The Cross Street entrance is how cars enter for car pickup. This is a safety concern. We have seen cars try to sneak in daily and it's simply not fair to those who are following the dismissal procedures. We ask you to be respectful of your fellow HPE community members and abide by this rule.
Our High Plain school theme this year is Name, Story, Dream. We are excited to be sharing this piece of our school year with our families and we hope you had an opportunity during the Back to School Night to read some of our staff member’s name, story, and dreams on the bulletin board in our main hallway. We chose this theme as a way to explore our district-wide focus on belonging. We want all our students to feel seen, heard, and valued in our walls and recognize themselves as part of our school community. We have a rich tapestry of learners, traditions, family backgrounds, and languages in our school. We speak over 22 languages at High Plain which is truly incredible and makes us a diverse community rich with learning moments.
Research supports that a student's sense of belonging is directly linked to academic achievement. Belonging also fosters a healthy sense of confidence and helps our children feel connected to their school. Our work is to support students in feeling their authentic selves and we want our day-to-day experience to reflect our students. We do this in a variety of ways at HPE. As with previous year’s themes, we are using a book to ground our discussions with students. This year’s book is You Are a Story by Bob Raczka. Another way to foster belonging is through buddy classrooms, which allow students to feel connected with one another, supporting relationships across grade levels and classrooms. It is often a joyous moment in learning as our students make a deep connection with another. It shows that our community is built upon relationships and consistency, meaning what you see in one classroom looks similar in others.
We also support belonging, particularly at the beginning of school, through various activities that allow the child to get to know one another in their classroom. It culminates in the writing of a shared charter which sets the expectations for how we want our students to feel and be their best selves while at school. Class charters deepen the class rules by creating a shared understanding of why these expectations matter. While these are just a few examples, we are consciously working to help our children know that they belong at HPE. We thank you for supporting the same message and for being a valuable piece in our HPE tapestry!
We are fortunate to have 5 parents who are interested in joining the HPE School Council. There are two spots available. Please take a moment to read through their introductions and vote. You can choose 2 individuals and submit your votes. Voting will stay open until Friday, September 20th. Thank you in advance!
A school council is a representative, school building-based committee composed of the principal, parents, teachers, community members and, at the secondary level, students, required to be established by each school pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 71, Section 59C. While not a governing body, the School Council meets in an advisory capacity to review and discuss the four following areas:
Adopting educational goals for the school that are consistent with local educational policies and statewide student performance standards
Identifying the educational needs of students attending the school
Reviewing the annual school building budget
Formulating a school improvement plan
This week, we reviewed the bus behavior expectations and rules with all bus riders. This is what we are expecting, and we appreciate you reinforcing this message. These are put in place to keep our students safe.
These are the rules we discussed:
1. The school bus is another classroom, and the bus driver is the teacher in charge.
2. Like a classroom, we use indoor voices.
3. We pick one seat for the ride and stay in that seat for the whole ride.
4. Kindergarteners sit in the front, and we sit by grade with fifth graders in the back.
5. We can have 2-3 students per seat.
6. We only stand up when we are getting on or off the bus.
7. Backpacks and instruments go on your laps or the floor between your legs.
8. We can talk with the friends around us, staying seated the whole time.
9. Electronics stay in the backpacks, just like a school classroom.
10. If we follow these rules, the bus driver can drive safely and we show kindness to one another.
Thank you for reminding the students of these expectations. We appreciate your help as we all know that the ride to and from school sets the tone for how the rest of our day goes.
We are all working to manage the age of technology and are looking for support between school and home. Many children have new smart devices and the elementary schools have some guidance.
A kind reminder to our families that cell phones must be turned off and in students’ backpacks at the start of the school day. Smartwatches may be worn as regular watches, however, students are not allowed to text, communicate with others, use applications, take pictures or videos, or access social media services and websites.
Should parents/guardians urgently need to reach their child during the school day, we ask that you call the main office. Students are also allowed to come to the main office if they need to contact someone at home. If a cell phone or watch becomes a significant distraction, school administrators will reach out to parents/guardians. The Andover Public Schools is not responsible for lost, stolen, damaged, or broken devices.
To promote healthy digital habits during the school day, the resources below may be helpful to use. We appreciate your partnership as we work to keep interruptions to the school day at a minimum.
Resource for Apple Watches:
How to set a School Time schedule
Open the Watch app on your iPhone. Tap All Watches, then tap your child's watch.
Tap Done, then tap Schooltime.
Turn on Schooltime, then tap Edit Schedule.
Choose the days and times when you want Schooltime to be active.
Tap Add Time if you want to set up more than one schedule in a day.
Resource for Gizmo Watches:
How to set up School mode
Open the. Gizmo Hub app.
Tap the. School mode switch. turn on or off. If necessary, set up a School Mode schedule.
In School Devices
K-3 Devices will stay in school.
4-5 Devices can be brought home if directed by the classroom teacher to complete an assignment. Otherwise, they will remain in school.
We are fortunate to have Ginny the therapy dog on campus a few days a week. Ginny was certified as a therapy dog back in the fall of 2022 and has dual-certification with both Mrs. McLaughlin, her owner, and Mrs. Celata, our school social worker. Ginny spends some of her time with Mrs. McLaughlin who is an instructional assistant in fourth grade, but she spends most of her time with Mrs. Celata in her office and visiting classrooms around the school.
Ginny is a 7-year-old Australian Labradoodle. She is non-shedding and considered hypoallergenic to most people with dog allergies. When Ginny is around students, she is under the direct supervision of Mrs. McLaughlin or Mrs. Celata. We take the health and safety of our students seriously and know that while Ginny may be supportive to some students, we understand that some students are not comfortable around dogs. Before entering a new classroom, Mrs. Celata and Mrs. McLaughlin always ask first if there are any students who would like to have Ginny stay away from them. No student will have to be close to Ginny if they do not want to be.
We wanted to share the video we have shown to the students about how to approach a therapy dog and to explain the difference between a therapy dog and a pet. When Ginny is in school, she is working and takes her role seriously. She has provided great comfort for many students. You can view the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axLBd_4IKdE
Ginny is a well-known and beloved member of our community, and we hope that your children are enjoying their interactions with her. Please let us know if you have any concerns or questions by emailing me at Sarah.Leveque@andoverma.us.
NAME/BUS TAGS (For Kindergarten and Grade 1 Students)
Your child’s teacher will give you a name tag necklace on the first day. Please have your kindergartner or first grader wear the nametag until further notice.
SCHOOL BUS
Bus transportation to and from school is provided free of charge to elementary students. Kindergarten students must be met by a known adult at the bus stop. Bus routes are available for families in the Aspen portal. This will state your drop-off and pick-up times. As the year begins, please know that your bus could arrive 10 minutes early or later than what is stated in Aspen. We appreciate your patience.
CAR PICKUP/DROPOFF
Please note that there are differences in morning arrival and afternoon car pick up. In the morning, you may arrive by using the High Plain Rd. entrance or the Cross St. entrance. In the afternoon, you can only arrive through the Cross St. entrance. The High Plain Rd. entrance is closed to allow buses. Both morning and afternoon arrival, all vehicles must turn right when leaving the drop off/pick up line.
Morning Arrival: 8:45-9:00
· Morning car drop-off begins at 8:45 at the High Plain main entrance sidewalk. You may use the High Plain Rd. and Cross St. entrances.
· The staff will supervise the children as they exit the car in the HPE Circle area.
· Please follow the staff’s direction as they will have a series of cars pull up for children to exit.
· All vehicles must turn right when leaving the drop off lane in the AM.
· There is no supervision before 8:45 AM and students should not be dropped off before that time.
· The children will have supervised play on the playground until 8:55 AM.
· If you arrive after 9:00, please park and walk your child/children into the building. You will need to sign your child into school. You will find the sign-in book in our school foyer.
Afternoon Car Pick Up: 3:30
· Any student being picked up by car should be picked up via the pick-up line.
· This line moves quickly and has the support of assigned assistant staff to escort students safely to their cars.
· Please enter only through the Cross St. entrance and join the line and stay to the right. The High Plain Rd. entrance is not available for the afternoon.
· Please leave an opening at all intersections for buses to pass the waiting car line and negotiate turns into the bus drop off area.
· If you arrive before the car line is in motion, please be aware of the Massachusetts Anti Idling Law (MGL Chapter 90 16B, 540 SMR 27.00), as posted.
· Drivers should have a visor card with their child’s last name on it, displayed on the rearview mirror.
· Visor cards may be picked up at the school office any day and we will have extra for you during the first few weeks of school.
· Please turn right after picking up your student and exit through Cross St. so traffic flow will be one way.
· Please make your child’s teacher aware, via the PickUp Patrol app, when there are any changes to the default dismissal plan.
WALKERS & BIKE RIDERS:
· For morning arrival, a school crossing guard will be at the Cross Street/Brady Loop entrance.
· All AM walkers and bike riders should use the Cross St. entrance and the sidewalks that follow the front side of the school.
· Bike Riders: Only students in grades 3, 4, and 5 may ride a bike to and from school. A permission form must be completed with the main office.
· At dismissal, there are 2 groups of walker students and 1 group of bike riders. All Kindergarten students must be released to an adult.
· Walker line 1 and bike riders will be escorted from the Wood Hill cafeteria to the Cross Street/Brady Loop entrance and crossed by the crossing guard.
· Walker line 2 will be escorted to the end of the High Plain driveway.
· No adult should attempt to pick up a walker or bike rider at the Wood Hill circle or parking lot.
Breakfast and lunch are once again free to all students. Breakfast is served from 8:45-8:55 each morning and no advanced ordering is needed.
Lunches will need be preordered. Lunch requires families to order in advance to ensure we have the correct allergy-friendly lunch for all our students. It is very important that our cafeteria has an accurate lunch count each day. Please review with your children each morning what you have ordered for them.
Information about the Andover Public Schools lunch program, as well as menus and instructions for online ordering, may be found on the website here: http://www.andoverschoolnutrition.com/
School Hours of Operation
8:30 am: School office opens
8:45 am: School drop off
9:00 am: School day begins
After 9:00 am: Children are tardy and must be accompanied by a parent into the office
After 2:00 pm: Unless it's an emergency, no dismissal changes
Students must be dismissed before 3:00
3:30 pm: School ends
Ms. Sarah Leveque, Principal
Email: sarah.leveque@andoverma.us
Website: https://aps1.net/212/High-Plain-Elementary-School
Location: 333 High Plain Road, Andover, MA, USA
Phone: 978-247-8600