NO SCHOOL ON MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 4TH TO CELEBRATE LABOR DAY.
MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL: I would like to thank everyone for a great first week of school! It was great to see all of our students back in the classrooms and around the building! I appreciate all of our families for continuing to have patience with us as we iron out a safe and timely dismissal plan for all students. We very much appreciate your support with that.
Finally, I want to WELCOME ALL OF OUR NEW KINDERGARTEN STUDENTS who will be starting their school journey with us on Tuesday, September 5th! I am so excited to take part in your school adventure!!
HUNKING’S 2nd ANNUAL BLOCK PARTY: Mark your calendars! Next Thursday, September 7th from 5-7pm we will be hosting our 2nd Annual Hunking Block Party. We will have free dinner for all families (cookout style), as well as some free games and activities for all students. This year’s block party will also include some ticketed items to include: Inflatable obstacle course, Soak-N-Wet station, face painting, popcorn & cotton candy. We will also have the ice cream truck (cash only) at the event. We hope to see everyone there!! (See detailed flyer below)
Please be sure to be mindful of parking. We are asking families who are able to please walk and/or carpool.
Parking will be in the lower school lot and gravel overflow lot. Parking can also be done in the connected neighborhoods.
We are looking for parents and family members who are willing to volunteer to facilitate games & activities. Please click the link below to sign up!
Sign up link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0A4EA5A823A5FD0-volunteers1
HUNKING THEME OF THE MONTH: It is September 1st and The theme of the month is back! We will continue to carry on this new tradition throughout this school year. We will embrace a different theme together as a school community each month, and each month teachers will be asked to nominate one student from their class that has personified the theme for the month. Each nominated student will be recognized in a small grade level assembly. Out of each of the grade level nominees each month, one lucky student will win a Hunking Heroes t-shirt!
The theme we will begin with this school year, is one that is the Pillar to everything else that we do here at Hunking, and that is….Kindness! Being kind means being selfless, caring, compassionate, and treating others the way that you would like to be treated. Kind acts include a smile, a nice word or compliment, an unexpected deed, or selfless act. Hunking staff will be on the lookout this month for the students who are personifying this theme of kindness!
FAMILY ENGAGEMENT SURVEY RESULTS: As promised, we are sharing results from last spring’s family engagement survey. A special thank you to our school’s Site Council for helping to analyze and share the data out to our community. Please see below:
Parent communication / executive summary
With over 400 families responding to our first Hunking Family Engagement Survey, we are so grateful for your feedback and suggestions. Our site council, which includes representative parents, teachers, administration, and staff, has gone through the results in detail and would like to share some of the main findings with you today.
Areas of strength
- Welcoming community: 90% of families that responded feel they are treated with respect, and their student or students’ cultural heritage is respected
- School communication: Many of you cited the frequency of communication from the school to families as a positive
- Relationship building: Another positive theme was your appreciation of community events, such as our block party, and the relationships you’ve been able to build with teachers, staff, and other families
Areas of opportunity
- Student progress communication: Many families felt that there could be more communication regarding their specific student’s progress, and information on how to help improve their progress.
- Making connections: There is a clear desire for more family events, student showcases, and other opportunities for families to get more involved and engaged with the school and their students. You are also interested in more ways to connect with other parents and families.
- Clarity around curriculum: Many of you mentioned that you’d like increased clarity around the curriculum, classroom tools, and academic expectations for students each year
Our next step is to take action, quickly addressing some of the themes that came out most clearly. Many of you provided excellent suggestions for how we might go about this, so we appreciate you for making our job here easier!
There is more to come – as we make progress, we will continue to communicate back to you. Thank you once again for making your voices heard.
SITE COUNCIL: Are you interested in improving the student experience at Hunking school? Would you like your ideas and voice to be heard? Can you commit one hour per month on a Thursday night from 5-6pm? We are looking for parents and community members who are interested in joining the Hunking school Site Council.
If you are interested, you can email Mr. Betty @ tbetty@haverhill-ps.org
Please add into the subject line “Site Council” and state your interests in becoming involved.
Depending on how many volunteers are interested will then determine how the selection process is determined.
Thank you.
COMMUNITY HAPPENINGS:
Fall Caregiver Series:
A Message From The JGW Drama Club to all HPS Students in grades 3-8, their teachers, and their families:
Thanks again for a great year last season!! The JGW Drama Club was able to gross profit over $10,000, and we’ve earned an additional $10,000 grant to pursue theatrical performance opportunities for our g. 3-8 kids in Haverhill.
We will begin the 2023/2024 season with a social event at JGW from 2:45pm – 3:45pm on Thursday, September 7th 2023 in the Cafeteria (256 Concord Street), snacks provided, for ANYONE interested in joining our family this year.
There, we will discuss many upcoming events and exciting opportunities that are on our radar. There are many ways to participate in our program this season, so please make sure you set aside some time to visit if this interests you.
***One of the most important points of order this fall is that, due to timing and scheduling reasons, our upcoming fall production of The Addams Family will be limited to JGW and PLS students at the first round of auditions.***
From there, if additional cast help is needed, we will reach out to all other elementary/middle schools in Haverhill like we always do every spring, to hold an additional casting call.
HOWEVER, ALL STUDENTS FROM ALL SCHOOLS g. 3-8 ARE INVITED TO PERFORM IN The Addams Family Choir (AFC) FOR OUR PERFORMANCES IN NOVEMBER!! You WILL need permission from your chorus/choir teacher at your home school, if there is a chorus/choir program at your school, to participate in our club, so please be prepared for this.
Information on all of these exciting things, including permission slips for the AFC and posters for auditions, will be available at the September 7th meeting at JGW. You may also speak to your music teacher at your school, who will have more information for you, if you need it. We look forward to seeing you!!
Mr. Bobby Gariepy, Exec. Director & JGW Music Teacher
Ms. Maddie Hanson, co-Director of Student Social & Emotional Support
ALL SCHOOLS FINAL Addams Family Choir
PTO NEWS: The first PTO Meeting of the year is scheduled for Thursday, September 21st at 6:30pm in the Hunking Conference Room (through the office). We’d love to see some new faces and hear your ideas! These meetings typically last an hour and we will have babysitters available…stay tuned for more information!
Gear up for the school year with Hunking spirit wear! Enjoy a 30% discount across our entire website with hundreds of designs and garment styles waiting for you! Orders ship direct to your home! Shop Now! [Image attached]
NEWS FROM GUIDANCE:
Meet your school counselors!
Grades 5 and 7
Sarah Petrick sarah.petrick@haverhill-ps.org
Grades 6 and 8
Terri Carney terri.carney@haverhill-ps-org
Grade 8: Are you thinking about High School? Where would you like to apply? If a school other than HHS, begin your research!! Check the school of your choice’s website so you know when deadlines are, if there is an open house or to have your questions answered!!!
HHS Loop Program Information for students already registered. (Registrations no longer accepted for the 23/24 school year).
- Program starts on Wednesday September 6th
- Full year classes will end on June 3rd*
- Semester classes will end on January 19th*
- Classes begin at 7:25am and end at 8:10am. Transported back to Hunking
- Loop classes do not run in the event of a delayed start
EDUCATIONAL HAPPENINGS:
We are excited to share that Hunking School will again be using the program i-Ready.
What is i-Ready?
i-Ready is an online program that will help us determine your child’s strengths and areas for growth, personalize their learning, and monitor their progress throughout the school year. i-Ready allows us to meet your child where they are and provides us with data to inform instruction.
The i-Ready Diagnostic is an adaptive assessment that adjusts its questions based on student responses. Each item a student receives is based on their answer to the previous question. For example, a series of correct answers will result in slightly harder questions, while a series of incorrect answers will yield slightly easier ones. The purpose of this is not to give your child a score or grade but to determine how to best support their learning.
The fall diagnostic window opens up on Wednesday, September 6, 2023. Please encourage your student(s) to give their best effort!
i-Ready Instruction provides students with lessons based on their individual strengths and areas for growth. These lessons are interactive and provide strategic supports to keep your child engaged as they learn.
Our math goal is for our students to pass approximately two lessons per week. Students will be given time to work on their i-Ready instruction pathway during the WIN blocks or in guided math centers. Please reach out with any questions. Tiffany Corcoran tcorcoran@haverhill-ps.org
Week 1 Celebrations in Grade 8. The team is very pleased with our first week with our 8th graders therefore we ended the week with a family style pancake breakfast and famous grade level scavenger hunt! Math iReady will take place next week starting on 9/6/23. Chromebooks will need to be charged daily. Thank you!
NEWS FROM OUR NURSES:
Welcome back to the Hunking! If your child has any medications that are needed at school, please drop off the medication and forms in the health office. The Health Office needs an order from the student’s provider and parental consent for medication administration and the medication should be in the original bottle with a pharmacy label. Health forms have been sent home so please complete and send back to school with your child. If you have any questions or concerns. Also, next week will be warm, so please make sure to send your child in with a water bottle. Please call the Health Office (978-420-1913) if you have any questions or concerns. Enjoy the long weekend!
ATHLETIC NEWS:
HHS Cross Country: Due to the low participation numbers at HHS, they received a waiver this fall to allow 8th graders in the school district to participate on the girls’ cross country team.
Anyone interested can contact the Athletic Director, Tom O’Brien, or email athletics@haverhill-ps.org for more information.
CLUB NEWS:
Advanced Band students will have a meeting on Wednesday, 9/6 at 9:20 in the band room. Advanced Band lessons will begin on Friday, 9/8. We will start the year preparing for performances at an HHS football game, the Haverhill Santa Parade and our Hunking winter concert.
5th grade students will have a Beginning Band presentation on Wednesday, 9/13. Signup paperwork and program information will be distributed at that time. Beginning Band will start at the end of September.
Drama Club: Welcome back bobcats! Our first drama club meeting will be September 12th from 2:45 to 4:45 in room 216. Students interested in Drama Club should see Mr. K or Mrs. Fairbrother for a permission slip before September 12. Drama club is open to grades 5 through 8.
ODDS & ENDS:
-Please make sure that your student(s) are coming to school daily with a fully charged chromebook.
-All students in grades 5-8 have been issued school IDs. It is required that they bring and wear their ID badges each day. These badges are also utilized for breakfast & lunch, as well as swiping on and off of our buses.
-Please make sure that you are sending your student(s) with a water bottle. We have a limited supply of cups and we do not have access to water fountains, only water bottle filling stations.
SCHOOL POLICIES:
MORNING DROP OFF: To all families that drop their students off in the morning, please remember to drop your students off at the proper end of the building. All K-4 students should be dropped on the lower school side of the building. All 5-8 students should be dropped off on the upper school side of the building. Please be aware that there should be NO DROP OFFS AT THE FRONT OF THE BUILDING BETWEEN 8:00AM-8:30AM. This is for safety reasons. We appreciate everyone’s support and cooperation with this procedure. Thank you!
UPPER SCHOOL DROP OFF: Parents and Guardians, please be aware that the safety and security of our students is the number one priority. We kindly ask that all parents/guardians who drop students off in the morning on the upper school side of the building, please follow the proper traffic pattern to ensure everyone’s safety. Please do not cut across the parking lot. We ask that you drive slow while on school grounds, and we appreciate your patience as we are aware that many people have places to be after dropping off. Again, we appreciate you prioritizing the safety of our students. Thank you!
CAR PICK UP & DROP OFF: Safety and Security of our students, staff, and families is our number one priority, so we would like to ask that those families who utilize car pick up and drop off be cognizant of our security guards directing traffic. Security would like to emphasize the use of turn signals when picking-up or dropping-off your student. If you are not turning, please flash your headlights so that they are aware that you are continuing straight. We want to make sure everyone remains safe. We greatly appreciate your attention and support with this matter.
Lower school pick up: If you are walking to pick up your K student please wait near the kindergarten doors and if you are walking to pick up your grade 1-4 student please wait at the lower school walker pick up door. DO NOT come to the lower school playground to pick up your child. The students in the playground area are waiting for car pick up only.
CELL PHONE POLICY:
-Cell phones are not allowed to be used throughout the school day. The expectation is that the phone is turned off and put away.
-If students are found to be using their cell phone for any purpose the following policy will be followed:
-1st offense: Cell phone will be confiscated and submitted to the main office where the student can get the phone back at the end of the day with a warning.
-2nd offense: Cell phones will be confiscated and submitted to the main office where a parent/guardian will need to pick up the phone.
-3rd offense: Cell phone will be confiscated and submitted to the main office where a parent/guardian will need to pick up the phone and the student will be issued an office detention.
-4th offense: Cell phone will be confiscated and submitted to the main office where a parent/guardian will need to pick up the phone and a meeting will need to take place in order to establish a contract where phone can either be dropped off at arrival time and picked up at dismissal, or the phone is not allowed in school.
-Students will not be allowed to have cell phones in the bathroom. Students will need to leave their phones face down on their desk when leaving for the bathroom.
-We recognize the importance for students to have cell phones, but we respectfully ask for your support in reinforcing the cell phone rules. If there is ever a reason for a student to call home, I am happy to allow them to utilize my office phone. Also, if you have to get in touch with your student, we would ask that you please contact the main office during school hours.
Student Dress Code: The student dress code is always a “hot button” topic. We recognize that this is a sensitive topic and one that includes a lot of “gray area”, so I have attached the dress code policy that can be found on page 23 of the HPS student handbook for all families to review:
“The responsibility for the dress and appearance of the students will rest with individual students and parents.
They have the right to determine how the student will dress providing that attire is not destructive to school property, complies with requirements for health and safety, and does not cause disorder or disruption. The administration is authorized to take action in instances where individual dress does not meet the stated requirements.
This does not mean that student, faculty, or parent groups may not recommend appropriate dress for school or special occasions. It means that students will not be prevented from attending school or a school function, or otherwise be discriminated against, so long as their dress and appearance meet the requirements set forth above.
Students are not permitted to dress in any manner that is distracting to teaching or learning, to other students or disrupting the educational process or environment of the school. Clothing that is considered to be distracting includes but may not be limited to the following:
- Extremely short skirts or shorts rising more than 7″ above the knee.
- Shirts or blouses bearing midriffs.
- See-through clothing.
- Halters or tank tops with less than 1″ straps, tube-tops, or blouses with excessively low cut tops.
- Low rider pants and pants that do not cover underwear.
- Clothing or jewelry that advertises or promotes products or activities that are illegal.
- Clothing containing inappropriate or suggestive language or pictures.
- Clothing that identifies students as members of a gang or an imitation of gang paraphernalia will not be permitted. This includes but is not limited to bandanas, pins, insignias, colors, jewelry, emblems, wave caps, etc.
- Studded accessories such as belt buckles, bracelets, chains, etc. are not permitted.
- Any other dress that distracts, disrupts, intimidates or provokes can be deemed inappropriate by the Principal or Assistant Principal.
The Principal and Assistant Principal have the final decision in making the determination that there has been a violation of the dress code policy. In the event that the Principal is unavailable, the Assistant Principal has the full authority to make the final determination on whether a student’s clothing is in violation of the dress code policy.”