September 7, 2018

 

Dear Parents and Guardians-

 

We are delighted to have our students back at school with us! We have enjoyed a wonderful, productive week of team building and learning. We are impressed with your children’s curious minds, and we value their kind hearts.

 

The HMS staff returned last week. We spent time catching up on summer adventures and summer learning, familiarizing ourselves with our students’ needs, and preparing for the upcoming school year. Our faculty shared their thinking and experiences about the benefits of laughter, humor, and perspective, and the importance of talking about these ideas with our students and each other. Perspective taking, and being able to find humor in our daily routines, supports students to learn about how they can respond to situations that turn out differently than they had hoped for. This is a lifelong skill, and one that we discuss often with our middle school students.   

 

We want to share this research on cell phone use with you as we continue to remind our students that their cell phones have to be off and away during the school day. Students can keep their phones in their backpacks or laptop cases. They may not keep them in their pockets.

 

Please note that students staying after school must be in supervised settings to ensure their safety. Students can spend time in a classroom with their teacher, in the library, which closes at 3:15, or the computer lab, which closes at 4:00. Students can also attend supervised extracurricular activities and athletics. They must be in supervised settings until these activities begin.

 

Thank you for your vigilance about safety when dropping off and picking up students from school: Busses and cars now use the same, large loop. The short loop (which is the cut through to the front of the building) is blocked off to vehicular traffic. Given this change, it will be important to keep traffic moving as safely and efficiently as possible to avoid a backup. Please help us to facilitate this process by making any plans with your child well before drop off.

Drop Off: Use the large loop to pull around to the front of the school for drop off. If there is a bus in the loop at the time you are dropping off, it will have its lights on. Please allow the bus to drop off all students and pull away from school before proceeding around the loop.                                    

Pick Up: The buses will be lined up for pickup; do not pass them or enter the circle while they are lined up. Please remain in the upper parking lot. Once all of the busses have departed, pull into the large loop in order to pick up your child. Students should be dropped off and picked up in the designated zone. Please do not stop or park in the basketball court or delivery area for this purpose.

We are excited to remind you about the Hannaford Helps Schools program. Hannaford Supermarkets is once again offering this program in support of our schools.  It’s as easy as 1-2-3 to help raise funds for our students here at HMS.

1. While shopping for your regular groceries, look for the more than 1500 products that will earn money for our school. Products will be identified with the “helps schools tags” in the store.  A list of all the items will soon be sent home with your child.

2. As you check out your groceries, you will receive a receipt for 3 school dollars for every 4 participating products that you purchase.  

3.  Simply deposit your school dollars in the collection tower at the front of the Yarmouth Hannaford store and insert it into the Harrison Middle School slot.  

 

This program runs from September 2 through December 1, 2018.  Let’s all work together to help raise funds for HMS! Please see the attached flier for more information.

 

DATES TO REMEMBER:

 

6th gr. play-parent information night

Sep 10 from 5:45 PM to 6:15 PM

HMS Library

 

Music Booster Meeting

Sep 10 from 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM

Band Room

 

7th Grade Laptop Take Home Meeting

Sep 11 from 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM

HMS Cafe

 

6th Gr. Play Auditions

Sep 11  from 3:30 PM to 5:00 PM

HMS Band Room

 

5th Grade Technology Review

Sep 11 from -5:30-6:00

 

5th Grade Open House

Sep 11 from 6:00-6:45 with 5th grade teachers

6:45-7:15 with unified arts teachers

 

6th Grade Play Auditions

Sep 12 from 3:30 PM to 5:00 PM

HMS Cafe

 

7th Grade Laptop Take Home Meeting

Sep 12 from 5:30 PM to 6:30 PM

Cafe

 

7th Grade Open House

Sep 12 from 6:30 PM to 7:45 PM

 

7th Grade Laptop Take Home Meeting

Sep 13 from 5:30 PM to 6:30 PM Cafe

 

7th Grade Laptop Take Home Meeting

Sep 14 from 9:00 AM to 10:00 AM

HMS Cafe

 

PTO Meeting

Sep 20 from 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM

YES library

 

Please note the attached information about an upcoming presentation by Dr. Mark Gold, author and professor, regarding advances in substance prevention. This will be held on Wednesday, September 12, from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM at Yarmouth High School.

 

We have attached the Blue/White Calendar for those of you who have asked for a copy

 

Thank you for your ongoing support and for sharing your children with us!

 

Joan Adler and Tom McDowell