Principal's Message

Principal's Message August 18, 2021

Dear Gates Parents,
We are so excited to be welcoming everyone back to Gates School! It is hard to believe that the summer is coming to an end and that the new school year is just a few weeks away! I am very pleased to share that families do not need to purchase student school supplies. The following classroom donations continue to be appreciated: facial tissue and extra snacks. Please wait to hear from your child’s teacher first before you purchase any donations as it may vary by teacher and grade level.
All parents will be able to login into Powerschool on Monday, August 16th at noon to update the online emergency card and to find out the name of their child’s classroom teacher. On Monday, August 23rd at noon a complete class list for each classroom will be posted on Powerschool. Please take this time to thoroughly update all contact numbers so that you can be reached in case there is an emergency. If this is your first time logging into Powerschool or if you have forgotten your username or password there are detailed directions on the parent portal at https://powerschool.abschools.org/public. If you need further assistance, feel free to contact the main office at 978-266-2570 and we will be happy to help you.
This year we have scheduled the following Student Orientations on Monday, August 23rd:
New Student Orientation: 10:00 - 11:00
Kindergarten Orientation: 11:30 - 12:30
Returning RLP Students gr. 1-3: 1:00 - 1:30
Returning RLP Students gr. 4-6: 1:30 - 2:00
The official first day of school is Monday, Aug. 30th. The Gates staff will be participating in 2 days of professional development, which takes place on Aug 25th– Aug 26th. The school day begins at 8:50 a.m. and dismissal is at 3:20 p.m. We will officially open our doors 15 minutes before the start of the school day, which is at 8:35. Students who arrive prior to 8:35 will be asked to wait outside, unless we have stormy weather. Please note that students are not supervised until the bell rings at 8:35. All Wednesdays are early dismissal days at 12:50 p.m. I would ask that you make sure that all of your child’s extra curricular activities are scheduled either before or after the school day. One of the keys to academic success is good attendance with consistent participation in school. Early dismissal and/or late arrival to school due to extra curricular activities is highly discouraged and will continue to be recorded on student report cards. For additional planning purposes you may click here for the 2021 - 2022 District Calendar.
In terms of transportation, the Gates School and Douglas School will once again be sharing buses both to and from school each day. Parents that decide they DO NOT need transportation will have the opportunity to inform the transportation department in Powerschool on August 16th, otherwise all students that require transportation will be scheduled to ride the bus. We are once again planning to follow our morning drop off and parent pick up plans that were implemented last year for families who have decided to drive their child, which is located all the way to the back of the school. Please note that the Arlington St. entrance is limited to buses and construction vehicles only. Parents need to follow the signs that direct cars to the left of the Gates School. In the afternoon, parents will remain in their car for student pick up and staff will be escorting children to their parents' cars. To make this plan work, all families are assigned a family number. Parents must display their last name and family number on the passenger side window. For example: Newman - 153. We will have one staff member at the corner of Spruce St using a walkie-talkie to relay the family numbers to the parent pick up staff located outside and in the cafeteria. Students that are being picked up will be waiting in the cafeteria for their parents to arrive outside at the parent pick up location.

Cars that do not have the family name and pick up number displayed on their passenger side window will be asked to park their car. This will allow the extra time needed to find out the student's name and family number without causing a delay to the parent pick up line. Families that were assigned a family number last year will continue to use their same number. New families will be assigned a family number, which the Gates Office will be sharing the week of August 26th. Please don't hesitate to email the Gates Office at [email protected] or call us at 978-266-2570 if you have any questions.

Our Back to School Evenings for parents have been scheduled on September 28th & 29th. For more details check out the Fall Back to School Schedule. The Gates website has been updated with lots of important information and dates, so please be sure to check it out! It is important to note that at this time there have been no final decisions made in terms of having students wear a mask to school this year. I will be sure to communicate any and all covid safety precautions to you as they become available to me. We look forward to seeing you on Monday, August 30th to begin an exciting school year at Gates!

Lynne Newman, Principal

principal
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