August 20, 2021
Dear Rowe Families,
The summer has flown by and we are very excited to welcome the children back to school! We can’t say enough about the support we have been given from the community and our families as we have worked through the challenges of the past eighteen months. We appreciate your continued patience and flexibility as we head into the 2021-22 school year with the students back in school full-time.
We will still be implementing a variety of safety measures to keep everyone healthy as we come back to school. Among those are keeping a distance of at least three feet whenever possible and both adults and children wearing masks at all times when indoors. We are limiting the amount of time visitors are allowed in our school until further notice. Superintendent Dolloff has provided a variety of information on our protocols that you can access here: COVID-19 webpage
Please Note: I have attached the school calendar for your reference here. 2021-22 Yarmouth Schools calendar
Kindergarten Appointment Day information
If you have a kindergartener, please be sure to sign up for an appointment with your child’s teacher if you haven’t already done so. Please contact the classroom teacher if you need the signup link sent to you again. This is an opportunity for you and your child to meet the teacher, see the classroom, and for your child to spend some time with the teacher one on one before the first day of school. There will also be a couple of brief assessments given to help guide instruction. Parents will need to wait outside during the appointment. If you are unable to make the appointment for any reason, please contact your child’s teacher.
First Grade Drop-In
Our drop-in day for first grade is a brief visit for students and their parents to see the classroom and meet the teacher. Families can show up any time between 8:45 and 9:20. The drop-in ends promptly at 9:30.
Emergency Contacts
Please be sure to update your emergency contacts. Many people have grandparents, neighbors, or friends listed as emergency contacts. If any of this information has changed, please be sure to update it. You can make any necessary changes to your contact information by accessing your PowerSchool account. We will send home further instructions on this soon.
Here are a few items we would like for you to send with your child if you are able to do so:
- A small bottle of gel hand sanitizer labeled with their name
A hat to wear on sunny days - Classes will be having some instructional time outside in addition to time outside out for recesses. Some physical education classes with Mr. Lipman may be held outside as well.
Please apply sunscreen in the morning on warm days.
Three masks per day, including the one they wear to school, would be helpful. Please send two additional clean masks in their backpacks. Especially in warm weather, a mask change is often needed.
Arrival and Dismissal
Morning arrival begins at 8:25. All students must arrive at school no later than 8:40 to avoid being tardy. Arriving on time goes a long way in helping children to start the day out well. Thanks in advance for your cooperation!
Afternoon dismissal begins at 3:30. Pick-ups begin at 3:30 and end at 3:45.
Arrival and dismissal procedures if you are driving your child to and/or from school:
You will pull into the road that runs by the tennis courts just after the ball fields on your right. You will need to drive the access road that runs around the perimeter of the building and enter the car line located next to the parking lot, nearest to the school by bearing left instead of heading straight into the lot. There will be staff outside to direct you to the proper places for the first couple of weeks and there will always be people on duty to see students safely into the building from the carline and bus loop. NOTE: Please do not pull into the circle in front of the school. This area is reserved for buses only. In addition, the circle will be closed to traffic during the school day. If you need to come to the school during the instructional day, you will need to use the parking lot.
Dismissal only procedure:
PIKMYKID
In our ongoing efforts to enhance your children’s safety, we are using the PikMyKid Dismissal Application for car pickups after school. This app allows you to be in full control of your child’s dismissal and it gives us complete information regarding dismissal and to instantly check your child’s dismissal status should you have a question.
Whether you have an Android phone or an iPhone, you can visit the appropriate app store and download the PikMyKid app for free. Once downloaded, the registration process is very simple. You will receive three PikMyKid Car Tags from the teacher appointment days on September 1 or 2 for kindergarten and at the drop-in day on August 31st for first grade. As you register in the app, use the number on the car tag you receive from us. You will be the Primary Parent for your child and in control of their dismissal. You can delegate alternate individuals, but they should have the app also. It will send a matching number to the phone for us to validate the correct person is picking up the proper child. If you are part of a carpool, each child’s number will be sent to the phone for validation. You will be asked for the necessary information (Child Name, Grade, Teacher, Dismissal Mode, & Car Tag Number) upon registration. Please make sure that you have downloaded the app by September 1st.
Important Note! We will use car tags for the first two weeks of school. We would still like for you to announce your child in the app as well. After September 17th, you can switch over to only announcing your child in the app. Please save a tag for a grandparent or other adult who may only pick your child up occasionally.
Again, you will pull into the road that runs by the tennis courts just after the ball fields on your right. You will need to drive the access road that runs around the perimeter of the building and enter the car line located next to the parking lot, nearest to the school by bearing left instead of heading straight into the lot. Make sure that your car tag is prominently displayed on the right-hand side of the dashboard of your car. An adult on duty will need to see it in order to verify who you are picking up. We will radio for your child to be dismissed from a nearby cueing location and you will be on your way.
If the loop is full, pull along slowly and wait in your car.
Please do not enter the bus loop in front of the school for any reason. This is for bus access only. Thanks in advance for your help!
To learn a little more on your own you can view this link PikMyKid Parent FAQ and/or video: Parent Video. PLEASE NOTE: This is a comprehensive video of all the possible features that PikMyKid has. Please don’t be overwhelmed by all the information. We are using it only for children being picked up at the end of the day.
Pickups or drop-offs during the school day:
If you need to come to the school during the instructional day to drop off or pick up your child for any reason, you will be buzzed in by Miriam Epstein, our administrative assistant, or whoever is at the front desk. You will stay in the vestibule area, just inside the front door whether you are picking up or dropping off. Your child will be called down from the classroom and meet you there.
Important dates for the first two weeks of school and beyond:
Monday, August 23rd - 1:15-2:00 Welcome visit only for parents and students in first grade who are new to Rowe School.
Tuesday, August 31st, 8:45-9:30 - First-grade drop-in visit for all first-grade families
Wednesday, September 1st and Thursday, September 2nd - first days of school for first graders only
Wednesday, September 1st and Thursday, September 2nd - appointment days for kindergarten students only
Friday, September 3rd- No School
Monday, September 6th- No School, Labor Day holiday
Tuesday, September 7th - All students return to school
Thursday, September 30th - 6:00 PM - Rowe School Open House (details to follow)
Friday, October 8th- No School for students - Staff Professional Development Day
Monday, October 11th- No School, Indigenous People’s Day
I will be in touch with more information soon. We are so excited to welcome the children back to school! As always, your support is much appreciated. Please reach out at any time with questions.
Sincerely,
Susan Lobel, Rowe School Principal
