Harrington Happenings

Here we are again, getting ready to kick our 2023/2024 school year into full swing! I hope that everyone had a wonderful Summer and had many opportunities to rest, recharge and travel! I was able to take some time and head to Montana for some time, what a beautiful area. I visited Yellowstone National Park and just had a wonderful time. The Summer was short and seemed to fly by, but I am excited to start our year and see everyone once again. We have a lot going on in the next few days, please read this newsletter carefully as there is some important information in it.

Again, welcome back! I am excited for a new school year with everyone again!

Upcoming Days:

August 27th from 4pm to 6pm, we have our Kindergarten and New Student Play Date on the Harrington Playground, sponsored by our amazing HPTO. This is great for incoming kindergarten and new students to Harrington to come and make some new friends, as well as, have a friendly face ready for them on the first day of school. Please be aware that due to the playground undergoing construction and renovations, this will be the only date available for us to have this event prior to school starting.

August 29th, The first full day of school for grades 1-4.

August 29th, kindergarten students will visit their teachers in two brief hour-long orientations. Session one is from 10 – 11:00 am session two is from 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. Kindergarten students have been assigned to either the a.m. or p.m. session via the Kindergarten placement letters that are being sent home by the end of this week.

August 30th Kindergarten attends all classes.

As always, thank you for your continued support of our Harrington community. Please reach out to me or Karen with any questions or concerns as always.

Once again, remember to…"Push through your day, Smile, Be Happy, Stay Positive!"

Be safe! Stay well!

Rob & Karen

Building Hours - The Harrington School and the Main Office will be open daily Monday-Friday from 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. You can also contact the office with any specific questions between these hours. The phone number is: 978-251-5166.

Building Access: Visitors to the school are only permitted with an appt. made through the main office. You must have a photo ID when you come to the school. The main office staff will verify your ID using the camera system on the door buzzer. If you are picking up your student(s) prior to dismissal, please call the main office ahead to inform them and and remain outside the building and the main office staff will dismiss your student.

Buses: f you have any bus questions concerning routes or bus stops, you can find the information on the Chelmsford Public Schools website or call 978-251-5100 (https://chelmsfordschools.org/departments/transportation/ ). Students will not be required to show a bus pass and bus pass checks will not be conducted over the first few weeks of school. By the middle of September when final adjustments have been incorporated into the transportation routes, we will distribute bus passes to students and begin bus pass checks. The bus passes this year will contain the bus number, bus stop, and approximate pick-up time for each rider. Please note that buses will run late for the first week or two of school as drivers take extra care in learning stops and students.

Arrival -

• Buses are the only vehicles allowed at the front of the building during arrival and dismissal. If you are dropping off your child, please proceed around the building using two lanes of traffic. Proceed through until a staff member has you stop. Students will be dropped off in waves with a staff member indicating when to drop off your student(s).
  
• Waves will be from crosswalk to crosswalk on the POD side of the building. Students will enter through the side door across from the PODs. DO NOT drop off your student(s) until an adult gives you the okay. Safety is paramount being that we have the largest drop off/pick up population for all the elementary schools. Again, you must wait for a staff member to let you know that it is okay to drop off your student(s).
  
• Please do not escort your student to the front doors at any point. There is a lot of vehicle, student and bus traffic occurring during these times in the day and we want to keep everyone safe.
  
• Please do not park in the main parking lot. Parking is available on Richardson Rd. for drop off and pick up.
  
• The front doors will not open until 8:47, please do not drop off your child any earlier than 8:47 as there is no supervision. K - 3 bus students will enter through the front doors of the school.
• Grade four students will use the crosswalk across the driveway separating the PODs and main building and then make their way to the side door across from the PODS where they will proceed to their classrooms. If a student is tardy for school, they will always enter through the front door and check in through the office.
  
• Tardy 4th Grade students MUST report to the Main Office before heading to the PODs, at no time should a student head immediately to the PODs without the knowledge of the Main Office.
  

Dismissal - In the continued efforts to ensure an efficient and safe school environment for all students please read carefully and familiarize yourself with Harrington’s pick-up system. We employ a number system for pick-up.

• Current students that will be continuing to be pick-up students will use the numbers assigned to them last year.
• New parents/guardians/students to Harrington will be picked up on a CONSISTENT basis and will be assigned and issued numbers. All numbers MUST be VISIBLE in order to pick up a child. For parents/guardians, the number on the car tag will correspond to the number given to their child(ren.) Students will be issued a corresponding numbered tag that will be placed on the students’ backpacks. This tag must be displayed at all times and students must carry their backpacks daily.
  
• The car pick up line is the driveway around the building. Drivers will use two lanes of traffic as they drive in. (Once you are in a lane please do not change lanes as this causes confusion with our number system and slows down the process)
• Students will be dismissed based on number identification from the side door across from the PODS..
  

The driveway in the front of the school is for buses only at all times. If, for some reason, a driver does not have a car tag, he or she will need to park the car in the parking lot, come to the school office to sign out their child, and wait in the office to pick up the child, a child WILL NOT be dismissed to an adult that does not have a number.

• Parents may also elect to walk up and pick up their child as “Supervised Walkers,” will need to pick up their student via the sidewalk near the Gazebo located near the PODS. Students will be held inside the school and delivered to parents/guardians who present the school-issued number.

DO NOT ESCORT YOUR STUDENT TO THE MAIN SCHOOL DOORS.

• If you carpool, it will be the parent(s)/guardian(s) responsibility to arrange collection of the numbers for the students they are picking up. For safety reasons, school-issued car tags must be presented for the multiple families each driver is picking up.
  
• Cell phone usage, smoking and vaping is prohibited while driving on school grounds! The safety of our kids and staff is our main priority. Please drive on our campus with your full attention - going slowly and watching for pedestrians which often include very young kids!
• The usage of the playground at the end of the day WILL NOT be available due to vehicle traffic. Once all traffic has moved, you are more than welcome to use the playground.

Following these guidelines and keeping a patient and positive demeanor means we are all doing our part to keep our students safe and our routines as efficient as possible. If done right by all drivers, we can move all 500 students from our school to their way home in 20 minutes or less. However, expect the process to take a bit longer during the first few weeks of school while new students and families become familiar with this process.

If you are planning on picking up your student(s) on a consistent basis for this coming year, or If you were assigned a number last year and still plan to consistently pick up your student(s) and lost your number tags you will need to contact Michelle Page or Kim Saart at 978-251-5166 by August 28.

Ride Changes: Your child will be dismissed via his/her normal routine UNLESS we receive written documentation from both students’ parent(s)/guardian(s). We understand that at times, it may be necessary for you to make changes to your child’s dismissal during the school day. For your child’s safety, parent(s)/guardian(s) must contact the school office at 978-251-5166 prior to 3:00p.m. This advance notice is necessary due to the high volume of families we serve.

Important Medical Information

• Important Medication Drop Off Information - Please drop off medication during the week of August 28 between the hours of 1-3. For your child’s safety during their first day of school; please DO NOT miss this window of time.

• Medication needed during the 2023-2024 school year must be supplied with a doctors’ order, parental consent, and two small pictures of your child. All medication must be delivered to the health office by a responsible adult. Medication forms can be found on the District CPS website: Click on District, then Health Services. On the left-hand side is a bullet that says, “Health Forms” and then click on relevant forms for your child’s medication(s).

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call Nurse Amanda: 978-251-5166 ext. 6113

This year Massachusetts is offering all school lunch and breakfast at no charge to students. This does not automatically make families eligible for any other benefits. We strongly encourage families that feel they are eligible for transportation or extended day reduced tuition to fill out the online free and reduced meal application. The links can be found below.

https://cpsnutrition.com/index.php?sid=1478035692058&page=lunchapps

If you do qualify for benefits you most likely will be eligible for SNAP benefits.

https://www.mass.gov/snap-benefits-formerly-food-stamps

Some examples of SNAP benefits are discounts on gas, electric utilities and internet services.

Hello Harrington families,

We hope you have had a wonderful summer and are getting excited for the return to school! Harrington PTO is excited to "Blast Into the New School Year" with our annual Color Run! If you aren't familiar with a color run, participants will walk/run the course and be doused in color dust at various blasting stations with one big color celebration at the end!

Our Color Run is scheduled for Saturday, September 16 from 1-3 pm with a rain date of September 23. We have two registration options this year:

- $25 per participant (includes a color run t-shirt, sunglasses, and 3 color packets)

or

- $5 "come for the fun" participation only: https://forms.gle/WgjDX625LhohiKfT8

Please sign up using one of the following links:

$25 registration: https://forms.gle/2NQkojn3PzucR3256

$5 "come for the fun" registration: https://forms.gle/WgjDX625LhohiKfT8

We can't wait for an incredible event and year ahead!

Harrington PTO

“Our mission is to cultivate inspired, creative, and well-rounded lifelong learners who possess the integrity and self-direction necessary to be contributing community members.”

Email: asselinr@chelmsford.k12.ma.us
Website: https://harrington.chelmsfordschools.org/
Location: 120 Richardson Road, North Chelmsford, MA, USA
Phone: 978-251-5166
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/harringtonelementarychelmsford/