Bobcat Families,
The staff of Hamlin PK-8 hopes everyone has had a great summer break and is excited about returning to school! We are including some pertinent information about start/end times, traffic patterns for drop-offs and pick-ups, Open House, sixth-grade orientation, cell-phone policy for students, and locker usage.
Our drop-off will be the same as last year. All students, with the exception of PK students, will be dropped off at the middle school gym. Parents/Guardians should turn onto Bobcat Lane from Route 3. There will be staff members there to assist your child from exiting the vehicle. We will have blue cones out that you should pull up to so staff members can assist students. Please pull to the farthest cone available. We will begin drop-offs at 7:20 this year to alleviate long lines on Route 3. You will need to stay to the left of the road so teachers and staff members can park since their report time is 7:30. Please have students prepared to exit the vehicle. We will assist with car seats. Buses will begin drop-offs at 7:35 and continue to approximately 7:45. PK teachers will send information out about drop-offs for PK.
Students are expected to be at school by 7:45 so they can attend the Morning Meeting. We will be in the middle school gym until 7:55. Students arriving at 8:00 should report to the office in the building that their homeroom is located. Evening pick-ups will be the same as last year. Elementary students will be coming out the end door where the blacktop playground is located. Parents may pick up their students from their teacher as they exit the building. Dismissal times are staggered about 1-2 minutes between grade levels. PK will be dismissed at 3:00, Kindergarten at 3:01, and so forth until all students have exited the buildings. Buses will depart from Hamlin at 3:10 to go to the high school.
Students are not allowed to have cell-phones during the school day. They are to be kept in their backpacks and turned off. We have found discipline referrals increase tremendously with the use of cell-phones. Students may use their cell-phone at the end of the day to contact parents/guardians about pick-up or sports-related travel. They should wait until they have exited the building to call. Please do not encourage your child to carry their cell-phone or to call from their phone during the school day. We will be glad to let them call from a school phone. Elementary students should not bring cell-phones to school. Air-Pods are only allowed for educational purposes and with the permission of the teacher.
Our middle school students will be using lockers this year. There will be a $5.00 service charge if a lock is destroyed or lost. In the past we charged for lockers, but we will only charge for lost or destroyed locks this year.
Sixth-grade orientation will be Tuesday, August 20, from 4:30-5:00 in the cafeteria. Students and parents will meet with core subject teachers in the cafeteria to receive pertinent information and to have questions answered. Schedules will be available and we hope to provide tours of the middle school for new students.
Open House will be on Tuesday, August 20, from 5-7, in the middle school gym. Come out and meet your teachers and enjoy some refreshments! We will have sign-ups for Schoology as well. It is very important to utilize Schoology to keep abreast of your child’s progress in school. We look forward to seeing everyone at Open House.
Hamlin PK-8 is a Leader in Me school! Leadership skills are taught and encouraged so your child can find success in all endeavors throughout life. We are up for renewal as a Lighthouse School, which is a huge accomplishment.
Over the summer, we have had updates to the playground, new HVAC units installed, and our kitchen updated. We hope our students will enjoy the new playground equipment and that everyone will help keep our playground looking nice. New HVAC units will help with heating/cooling for our students and staff. Crews will continue to work on this project during the evenings once school begins for students. AC will be provided to all classrooms that have not been completed by the first day for students via portable units.
Working together we can make your child’s school year very successful. We are working diligently to provide a great education for your child/children. Please make contact with the school if you have any questions or concerns throughout the school year!
Thank you,
Mrs. Huffman
Mrs. Bates