Starkey Bear Necessities

• Elementary school students must keep wireless communications devices in the "off" position throughout the instructional school day and while participating in a school-sponsored activity on or off campus. ​Students are permitted to use their wireless communications device after the end of the instructional school day, if needed to communicate with parents regarding coordination of transportation.

• The district recognizes that some parents will provide their student with smartwatches for safety reasons, emergency communication purposes or location tracking. All of the rules applicable to wireless communications devices apply to smartwatches; however, student may wear smartwatches only in silent mode during the instructional day so there will not be disruption to the classroom, a smartwatch may not be worn during district and state assessments.

• Any student who chooses to bring a wireless communications device to school shall do so at their own risk and shall be personally responsible for the security of their wireless communications device(s).

  The School Board is not responsible for preventing theft, loss, damage or vandalism to wireless devices brought onto school property, or left on school-sponsored transportation, including any wireless communications device(s) confiscated due to inappropriate use.

Dearest Starkey Families,

This is the most wonderful, exciting time of the year! It is time for a fresh start to a new year, full of potential and bursting with opportunities for learning and growing together.

Please fill out your child's back to school forms now: https://www.pcsb.org/Page/33840

additional information about this is at the end of this newsletter.

There is information below regarding drop off/pick up and school safety, but here are some other Frequently Asked Questions:

Q: What are the school hours?

A: School hours are 8:45am-2:55pm. Students are permitted on campus at 8:15am. Students who are not in their seats, ready to learn at 8:45am are marked tardy. Students who are tardy and those who are picked up early not only miss learning (our instruction is bell to bell), but this disrupts the learning of others. Please make arrangements for your child to arrive on time and make any appointments outside of the school day hours.

Q: How does the car line work?

A: Please see the "Arrival and Dismissal Processes" toward the end of this newsletter.

Q: What supplies will my child need?

A: All students should bring a refillable water bottle (with their name clearly marked on it). Other than that, teachers have provided grade level specific supply lists that are available on our website. https://www.pcsb.org/starkey-es

Q: How will my child get to school?

A: Bus riders should have received a text/email with their stop information on August 2nd. Parents can also view this information in Focus. Please sign up for the Bus Bulletin to be alerted about any changes in transportation buses and times: Sign In (busbulletin.com) Additional bus information is available here: Transportation / Transportation (pcsb.org) Students who are walkers or car riders may arrive on campus as early as 8:15am.

Q: What about breakfast/lunch?

A: Breakfast is available 8:15-8:45am. Both breakfast and lunch are served at no charge to students. Please note that students are marked tardy if they are not in their seats, ready to learn at 8:45. If they are going to eat breakfast at school (which we would love), please plan to have them arrive right at 8:15 so they have plenty of time to eat and get to class on time. Breakfast will be served and eaten in the cafeteria; students who would like to eat breakfast will need to report directly to the cafeteria upon arrival. Students who arrive with not enough time to eat in the cafeteria will be provided with bagged breakfast to take to class.

Q: How can I be involved in my child's education?

A: Become a volunteer!

Level 1 volunteer registration is online:

https://asd.pcsb.org/schoolwiresforms/volunteer/

Level 2 volunteers are the most desirable and allows most opportunities for involvement. You must be a Level 1 volunteer prior to applying to be a Level 2 volunteer. All volunteers must update their information annually in order to be active.

Join PTA here!

Q: How does dismissal work?

A: Dismissal times are staggered for car riders in order to create a safe and efficient process. Our students are engaged in learning from arrival to dismissal. Please avoid picking up earlier than their scheduled dismissal time, as this causes students to miss learning and disrupts the learning environment in the classroom. Unless there is an emergency situation, early dismissal will not be permitted after 2:00pm.

Car rider dismissal times and locations:

Pre K (East Parking Lot) 2:30pm

Kindergarten (West Car Circle) 2:40pm

Pre K Siblings (East Parking Lot) 2:45pm

All Other Car Riders (West Car Circle) 2:55pm

We have a system that helps us dismiss in an effective, efficient, and safe way. Car riders will need to have their name displayed in the dashboard / windshield of the car that is coming to pick them up. Pre K car riders will be issued a parking pass for the East parking lot. All students will be coming home with a car tag at meet the teacher or the first day of school. Feel free to use your tag from last year if you have it! If you need additional tags, for different cars, please go ahead and create your own. It does not have to be anything fancy; we will just need to be able to clearly see your student's name displayed on your dashboard or windshield when you pull up. While we anticipate a bit of a learning curve the first week, it is sure to continue to be amazing! Thank you, in advance, for your patience.

If you need after care for your child; please contact the YMCA. While in car line, all parents and drivers need to stay in their cars. The staff member who is on dismissal duty in the West car line will be directing you to pull all the way up to the numbered spots. Your child will meet you there. Please do not park and walk up to get your students. Staying in your cars will help us be more organized and efficient, while maintaining the safety of students.

Students who ride the bus will come home with a wrist band on their backpacks. This helps us to identify which bus they ride to and from school. Please keep the wrist band on the backpack for at least the first week.

**Please keep your dismissal plans consistent in order to prevent confusion for your student and the teachers. If there is an emergency that arises and different arrangements need to be made, call the front office (727)547-7841. Teachers are not always able to check email during the instructional day and could miss a time-sensitive message about the dismissal change.

Q: How can I contact the YMCA?

A: Please call their phone number (727) 320-0319 or find them at Before & After School Care | YMCA of the Suncoast (ymcasuncoast.org)

Q: How can I contact the transportation department?

A: Please call (727)587-2020

Q: What is the dress code for Starkey?

A: Starkey Elementary operates under the guidelines of a mandatory uniform policy.

Find the details here Dress Code / School Dress Code (pcsb.org)

Teacher assignments are available in Focus. Log in to see who your student will be learning from this year. Pinellas County Schools (pcsb.org)

We are so excited to see everyone back at Starkey on Monday, August 12th,

for the First Day of School!

In accordance with the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act our staff has participated in safety training and we welcome back our School Security Officer.

All exterior school doors and gates will remain locked at all times. All visitors must be cleared to enter the secure area of the school through the Ident-A-Kid system, which requires a driver license or state photo id.

Visitors who do not have a Jessica Lunsford Act (JLA) Level 2 clearance and badge must be escorted by school personnel at all times while on campus. Those volunteers with a Level 2 badge will be granted access to campus for school scheduled volunteer opportunities. At Starkey we do not have supplemental staff to act as escorts on a regular basis.

Please note that you must complete the Level 1 volunteer screening in the front office prior to Level 2 fingerprinting. The application for Level 1 is available on our district website. This process can take up to 10 days so please complete it as soon as possible. It must be accompanied by a photocopy of your photo id.

If you have previously been a Level 1 or Level 2 volunteer, please sign in to the volunteer system and reactivate your account.

Pre K - 5th Grade: Parents will be allowed to walk their children to their classrooms on the first day of school only, Monday, August 12th.

Pre K-Kindergarten Only: On the second day of school (August 13th), parents will be allowed to walk their children to their classrooms.

Beginning, August 14th, students will be walking to their classrooms on their own, or with school-based assistance.

If you would like to have lunch with your child, you will need to come to the front office (a few minutes prior to their scheduled lunch time) to sign your child out. We have benches outside of the office and hope to get a few more for your comfort and convenience. Students must be signed back in at the conclusion of their scheduled lunchtime.

Implementing these safety measures will further ensure the security of all staff and students.

Starkey maintains positive relationships with all of our families and encourages on-going communication between home/school/parents and teachers. This can be accomplished in a variety of ways such as a telephone call, email, prearranged conferences and take-home folders.

There may be volunteer opportunities in your child’s class. Volunteers must be Jessica Lunsford Act (JLA), Level 2 screened and wear the badge. Please complete your level 1 volunteer application online at https://asd.pcsb.org/schoolwiresforms/volunteer/ prior to attempting to be Level 2 screened.

Thank you so much for your support and cooperation!

We all look forward to a most successful 2024-2025 school year.

Car rider dismissal times:

Pre K (East Parking Lot) 2:30pm

Kindergarten (West Car Circle) 2:40pm

Pre K Siblings (East Parking Lot) 2:45pm

All Other Car Riders (West Car Circle) 2:55pm

PreK parents will utilize the newly identified, PreK parking lot, which is the northeast parking lot (closest to Starkey Road), for pick up and drop off. Only PreK students and their siblings will be accepted and dismissed from this location during their designated times. Parents will need to park in a parking spot and walk their child(ren) to/from the staff member on duty. Please be mindful of your time in the parking spots, as they will need to be made available for the other families coming for pick up / drop off.

In order to allow room and maintain safety for the school buses and vans, please do not attempt to access or use the car circle closest to the building of the northeast (now Pre-K) parking lot.

All other students, who are car riders in grades K-5, must use the car circle on the northwest (office and cafeteria) side of campus. You may not make a left into the parking lot. The process is to go past the school (if you are heading west on 86th Ave) and turn around in one of the neighborhood streets so that you will be approaching the school from the west (heading east). Also, if you turn right onto 92nd St, then make a left on to 87th Ave, and then another left onto 94th St, this brings you to 86th Ave on the west side of our school. You will then be able to make a left onto 86th Ave and a right into the school.

When leaving the school, please do not make a left turn.

Students who walk to school are permitted to enter from the gate on the northeast side of campus, as well as the entrance near the front office.

YMCA students may be dropped off at the YMCA entrance, at the cafeteria, from 6:30am-8:10am and picked up at that same location from 3:15-6:00pm.

The locations listed above are the only available drop off and pick up locations for students. Students may be dropped off (between the #1 and the #7 sign). They may be dropped off and enter campus no earlier than 8:15am and must be picked up promptly at dismissal.

Students in any grade arriving after 8:45am or being picked up late, will require utilizing the main (northwest) parking lot entrance and signing in/out of the front office.

In closing, please remember that all of these processes are to keep your children safe and provide for the most efficient arrival and dismissal process possible. Also, it is required that whenever you are on campus, or picking up a child, you must have a government issued photo ID.

Thank you for understanding. While these requirements may seem to be an inconvenience, it is of utmost importance to keep your children safe.