THE PRESCHOOL ACADEMY AT WHITMAN HANSON
August 19, 2021
Dear Preschool families,
I would like to welcome you to the Whitman-Hanson Preschool Academy. I know the first day of school is close because the floors are shiny and the teachers are setting up their classrooms. There is always so much excitement for the first day. To help you and your child get ready for the first day of school I would like to share the following:
Teacher Assignments will be posted in the Parent Portal on August 20that 11:00 AM. If you should have difficulty accessing the portal please contact the help desk at 781-618-8100.
Masks are encouraged but not required. This may change as guidance is updated, I will keep you informed of any changes.
School supplies in preschool are minimal. Students are asked to bring a full-size backpack, a change of clothes in their backpack and any supplies they may need if they’re not toilet trained.
Snack this year will be provided. If your child stays full day we would like to remind you we are peanut and tree nut free. More information will be provided by your teacher for those students who are full day and would like a hot lunch through the cafeteria.
Open House will be live and in person this year on August 31st from 4:00 to 5:30PM. We have adjusted the time by 30 minutes to help those families who have other schools to visit. At Open House each family will be given a colored name placket to display on their dashboard when picking up their child. You will also be provided with the most up to date calendar to help you plan for early release and professional development days. If you are unable to attend open house the placket and calendar will be provided upon drop off the first day of school. Please follow the drop off and pick up directions provided below or click on the link and watch a video that will walk you through the process.
First day of School will be September 1st or 2nd depending on your child’s schedule. Please note it is a short week with no afternoon sessions on Friday September 3rd. All students will have a 12:00 PM pick up on early release days.
Start and end times:
AM students attend school 9:30 to 12:00
PM students attend school 12:45 to 3:15
Full day students attend school 9:30 to 3:15
Drop off and Pick up Procedure: The following link will walk you through the drop off and pick up procedure https://drive.google.com/file/d/1kfIpIA95zGpvQ9L7gvmRhQlAlNH8gjLG/view?usp=sharing
The preschool students will be dropped off and picked up from the preschool door located in the back of the building. Please follow the procedure outlined to allow for a smooth drop-off and pick-up.
As you come down the high school driveway you will take the second left into the senior student parking lot. Follow the signs to the end of the parking lot, the building will be in front of you. Take a left heading towards the back of the building keeping the building on your right. After turn, watch for the sign indicating preschool waiting area. You will be met by a preschool staff member who will direct you further.
After you are directed to proceed, continue until you reach the fence opening by the preschool playground. Please bring your child to the waiting staff member. When picking up you will follow the same procedure to the preschool waiting area. You will also be asked to clearly display your colored name card in your passenger windshield during pick up. The name tag will help staff expedite the dismissal process. Parents are asked to please put their child in the car and buckle them to ensure the safety of the children.
Please be patient the first few days of school as the teachers get to know the children and the children get to know their teachers. If your child is having difficulty at drop off please follow the lead of the teacher. If she feels it necessary she may ask you to pull over to allow your child for additional time to make the transition into school.
Please use extreme caution when dropping off and picking up your child and at no time may parents pass any live parked cars/vans. We appreciate your help in keeping all students and staff safe.
I will continue to send you updates as they become available. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Tricia Poirier-Collins
[email protected]
Principal
781-618-7018
Weather Event Guidance
In anticipation of a weather event please read the following:
If we should have a significant weather event the superintendent has voiced he may call a remote learning day rather than cancelling school. If we should have a remote learning day your child’s teacher will post asynchronous (remote/online learning) opportunities for your child to access on their google classroom. The teacher has set up learning opportunities for: speech and language, English language arts, math, science, gross and fine motor; along with links to videos and songs. I hope you can take the time to visit your child’s google classroom in the event we have a remote learning day; even if you don’t have time to access all the modules the page will make you SMILE.
If there is a remote learning day or delay you will receive a phone call and or an email from the school. If we should have a two-hour delay: any full day student would arrive two hours after their designated start time; afternoon students would arrive at their designated start time and all half day morning preschool would be cancelled.
Any school closures or delays are also posted on the Whitman-Hanson home page. Please let me know if you have any questions. I can always be reached via email phone. 781-618-7018 [email protected]
OPEN HOUSE INFORMATION VIDEOS
Ms. Galewski Open House Video
Ms. Graham Open House Video
Ms. Pierce Open House Video
Ms. Valachovics Open House Video
Ms. Richardson Open House Video
IMPORTANT UPDATE
DROP OFF PROCEDURE: Drop Off Video - Preschool
PICK UP PROCEDURE: Pick Up Video - Preschool
We’re getting so excited as we get closer to the first day of school. Yesterday teacher assignments were posted in the parent portal. Tomorrow the 11th, we’ll have a drive through meet your teacher, please see your teacher’s assigned time. We were hoping to follow the drop off procedure during this time but due to construction we will not be able to go around the building. Please follow the sign that will bring you in front of the gym where your teacher will be waiting and you will be asked to exit through the guest parking lot. We will also have a video posted with the open house video showing the drop off and pickup procedure. Orientation packets will be handed out at the drive through specific to your child. Please note the following times to meet your teacher: 9:30-10:00- Mrs. Galewski /10:00-11:00 - Mrs. Pierce and Mrs. Richardson / 11:00-12:00 – Mrs. Graham and Mrs. Valachovic.
We have also had several staff changes for the upcoming school year. Mrs. Woolf and Mrs. Connolly will both be spending the year with their new babies. We have hired Ms. Danielle Sullivan as a full year speech pathologist and hope to have a second speech pathologist hired shortly. Mrs. Galewski will be teaching the Preschool Learning Center and Mrs. Valachovic will be our integrated preschool teacher. She may be familiar to many students as she subbed for us and knows our preschool very well.
Tuesday the 14th is our first day of school. Please see teacher start times below.
Mrs. Pierce and Mrs. Richardson - Arrival 9:20AM Dismissal 11:50AM
Mrs. Graham, Mrs. Galewski and Mrs. Valachovic - Arrival 9:30AM Dismissal 12:00
All Afternoon sessions will start at 12:45 PM and end at 3:15PM
As always please let me know if you have any questions.
Tricia Collins
Principal
Preschool Academy of W-H
[email protected]
781-618-7018
IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL........
So much has been happening and we are so excited to have children back in the classrooms and on the playground. I have several exciting updates for you. We have been preparing the classroom by setting up centers to allow for social distancing, all toys are being washed and sanitized and the teachers are being trained on best practices during COVID. Students who are full day have been assigned to only one cohort, teachers have assigned times on the playground, and we have staggered start times to reduce the number of children in the hall at one time. We are working closely with the school nurse and the maintenance department to ensure daily sanitizing and health and safety protocols are in place. I’m excited to share some important dates with you:
September 9th Teacher Assignments will be posted please log onto your parent portal.
September 11th Drive through meet your teacher, please see your teacher’s assigned time. We will follow the drop off procedure as outlined below to get to the preschool door where the teachers will be waiting for you. Orientation packets will be handed out at this time. Please note the following times to meet your teacher: 9:30-10:00- Mrs. Galewski /10:00-11:00 - Mrs. Pierce and Mrs. Richardson / 11:00-12:00 – Mrs. Graham and Mrs. Valachovic.
September 14th Orientation. The teacher will introduce themselves and the para professional, and give a tour of the classroom through a video. Information on how to access the video will be provided in the orientation packet and posted on the preschool website. A video will also be provided on the drop off and pick up procedure.
September 15th SCHOOL STARTS!!
Start time
Mrs. Pierce and Mrs. Richardson - Arrival 9:20AM Dismissal 11:50AM Mrs. Graham, Mrs. Galewski and Mrs. Valachovic - Arrival 9:30AM Dismissal 12:00 All Afternoon sessions will start at 12:45 PM and end at 3:15PM
School Supplies: We are asking families to provide a plastic shoe box size box with a cover, a hard plastic pencil box and an 8pk of Crayola markers.
Drop off and Pick up Procedure
The preschool students will be dropped off and picked up from the preschool door located in the back of the building. Please follow the procedure outlined to allow for a smooth drop-off and pick-up.
As you come down the high school driveway you will take the second left into the senior student parking lot. Follow the signs to the end of the parking lot, the building will be in front of you. Take a left heading towards the back of the building keeping the building on your right. After turn, watch for the sign indicating preschool waiting area. You will be met by a preschool staff member who will direct you further.
After you are directed to proceed, continue until you reach the fence opening by the preschool playground. Please bring your child to the waiting staff member. When picking up you will follow the same procedure to the preschool waiting area. You will also be asked to clearly display your colored name card in your passenger windshield during pick up. The name tag will help staff expedite the dismissal process. Parents are asked to please put their child in the car and buckle them to ensure the safety of the children.
Please use extreme caution when dropping off and picking up your child and at no time may parents pass any live parked cars/vans. To ensure the process runs smoothly, parents are asked to adhere to their child’s arrival and dismissal times. We appreciate your help in keeping all students and staff safe.
Please remember mask are required by adult during drop-off and pick-up.
I will continue to send you updates as they become available. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me.
Have a nice day,
Tricia