Hanlon School

Principal's Message

September 11, 2017

Dear Hanlon Families,

I am thrilled to welcome all of you back to school! We had a great first week.  As I visited classrooms, it was fun to watch children getting to know one another, participating in team building activities, and generating classroom rules.  

Safety Drills

On Thursday, we practiced our first fire drill.  Students were well prepared by their teachers, and the entire building was evacuated safely and quickly.  We will practice fire drills and lockdown drills for all K-5 students several times this year.  

Early Release Wednesdays

Next week we will have our first Early Release Wednesday.  All students will be dismissed at 11:50AM.  Early Release Wednesdays are an essential part of ensuring that Westwood teachers are kept up to date on the latest educational practices and resources.  This year the district’s Professional Development Goals will focus primarily on Social and Emotional Learning, and Earth and Space Science.   Hanlon teachers will spend this first afternoon learning about Cultural Proficiency and engaging in conversations about race and diversity.  Our presenter will be Dr. Carroll Blake, Executive Director of the Achievement Gap for the Boston Public Schools Central Administration.  He’s been a principal in Wellesley and Roxbury, the METCO director in Lincoln and he is  the co-founder of Empowering Multicultural Initiatives.  Hanlon Staff is looking forward to learning with Dr. Blake.  

All School Meetings

On Friday, students and staff will gather for our first All School Meeting.  All School Meetings are a chance for us to gather together together to build our sense of community and celebrate what is happening at Hanlon.  We sing our school song, hear updates from Student Council, and enjoy short presentations from classrooms.  This year our theme connects to the book Only One You by Linda Kranz: There is only one you, so how will you make the world a better place?  Children have already begun painting their rocks for our Hanlon Rock Garden which should be finished in the next few weeks!  

Hanlon Information

If you are new to Hanlon, many of your questions may be answered in the Hanlon 411. This resource serves as a quick and easy guide to "how we do things" here at school. Click here to read the 411.

Lunch Cards

All students are provided with a lunch card beginning in Kindergarten.  Families who choose to use the school lunch program can set up their child’s lunch account using the MySchoolBucks website linked through the district page.  For students who don’t regularly purchase lunch, the cards can be used “in a pinch” on days that they forget to bring a lunch, and a bill will appear on a monthly statement. Parents and guardians are responsible for communicating lunch plans to their children.  There have been occasions when the school lunch looks more enticing than what was sent from home, and children decide on their own to use their card buy lunch.  Teachers do not eat with students and the lunch staff does not usually know about individual family preferences as to whether or not they want their child to buy lunch.  This can lead to a surprise charge when the bill arrives at home!  Some families may decide that they do not want their children to have access to the lunch card at all, so that their children do not make unapproved lunch purchases.  If this is the case, please email your child’s teacher and ask them to remove your child’s card from circulation.  We cannot remove cards on a day by day basis, so removal of the card is an “all or nothing” option.  Feel free to contact Mrs. Cronin at scronin@westwood.k12.ma.us if you have any questions.  

PTO

Thank you to the parents who were able to attend the Welcome Principal’s Coffee on Wednesday morning.  We talked about our hopes and dreams for our children, and the importance of a strong home-school partnership.  We heard from PTO Co-President Mary Kate Ferreira, about some of the exciting plans for this year.  Along with Mary Kate, the PTO Board includes Lynn Weston, Katie Roche, Allison Gustie, and Liz Collins.  They’ve planned our first event, Family Fun Night, for this Tuesday, September 12th from 5:30-6:30PM, on the Hanlon playground.  Bring a picnic or a pizza and join us!  Tables will be set up where you can sign up for PTO committees and pay your $50 dues.  Please mark your calendar for an Open PTO Meeting on October 16th at 7:30PM.  Superintendent Parks will join us!

Hanlon School Site Council

One of the many ways to be involved this year is to join our Site Council.  The Hanlon School Site Council meets several times throughout the year as mandated by the Education Reform Act of 1993.  Our Site Council is designed as an advisory group consisting of parents, school staff, and community members.  The Site Council assists in developing goals for school improvement and other school initiatives.  Hanlon’s Site Council will meet from 3:15-4:15PM on several Mondays throughout the year.  We would like to encourage new and returning parents/guardians.  By law, the ratio of parents to teachers must be equal.  If more than four parents express interest in serving on Site Council, the Hanlon PTO will organize an election.  If you are interested in serving on Hanlon’s Site Council, please respond to this short survey.   

A Note From the Library:

Library Greetings!

Calling all potential LIBRARY VOLUNTEERS! Your assistance is needed with book check-out for the following library classes. You don’t need to be available for the entire class, and you do not need to have a child in the class to help. Training will be provided.   I will also need some ‘special projects’ volunteers to help with re-shelving books, processing new books, and other tasks. Again, training will be provided.

You can email me at: bsilverstein@westwood.k12.ma.us with your contact information or click here to see the class schedule and click here to download the Volunteer Form.  

Your child will soon be checking out library materials. Please remind them to return their books, magazines, and audiobooks each week. They can always renew if they haven’t finished something, but they should still bring it in to renew. Please help them keep school library materials in a designated place at home so they don’t get lost, chewed by a pet, or scribbled in by a younger sibling.

Thanks so much - and happy reading!

Ms. Silverstein Library Teacher

Seeking School Committee Secretary

The Westwood Schools seeks a School Committee Secretary to attend the monthly meetings and record the minutes. Meetings are generally held Thursday evenings for 1-1/2 to 2 hours. The minutes then need to be typed and sent to the Superintendent's Office. This is a stipend position of $75.00 per meeting. If you are interested, please contact John Cianciarulo at jcianciarulo@westwood.k12.ma.us or at 781-326-7500, x1341.

Scouts

Did you know that boys in grades 1-5 are invited to join the Islington Scouts?  Many Hanlon boys are members!  Drop-in registration will take place on Wed. Sept. 13th from 6-7:30PM at the Westwood First Baptist Church.  Click here to see the flyer.

September 4, 2017

On behalf of the Hanlon School community, I would like to welcome you and your family to another great year at Hanlon School!  If you are new to Hanlon, welcome!  You are joining a fantastic school community.  If you are returning, welcome back!  I'm looking forward to hearing about your summer adventures!  

As summer comes to a close and we prepare for a new school year, I hope you are able to savor your summer memories. Now that the air is getting cooler and the leaves are just starting to change, it is starting to feel like the right time to get back to school. In the Cronin household, the hockey season has already started for Jack, and dance will begin for Abby next week. We've recommitted to updating the family calendar hanging in the kitchen, as we gear up for the fall season. My kids are starting to adjust to an earlier bedtime, but it will take a few weeks to get back into the swing of things.

Below, you will find the September calendar and important information regarding the start of school.  The faculty and I are ready for a productive, fun, and safe new school year!

• Tuesday, September 5- School begins for students in grades 1-5, Open House for Kindergartners 9-11AM.  Extended Day Open House 10AM-12PM

• September 6-Welcome Coffee for all Hanlon parents. Come join us in the cafeteria for an informal parent coffee at 8:50 after you drop your child(ren) off!  

• September 13- Early Release, dismissal at 11:50.  

• September 25- Picture Day- Information on school pictures will be sent home in backpacks.

• September 27 -Early Release, dismissal at 11:50.  Please refer to the district calendar for additional early release days for the remainder of the year.

• September 28- Hanlon School Curriculum Night:  This is always an exciting night for parents, as teachers will provide an overview of the curriculum, routines, expectations, and learning experiences your children will have this year. Classroom presentations for parents of students in grades K-2 will be 6:30-7:15; the Principal Welcome and PTO meeting for all parents will begin at 7:15 in the gymnasium, immediately followed by classroom presentations for parents of students in grades 3-5. Hanlon PTO sponsors childcare for a limited number of school-aged children on Curriculum Night.  An electronic sign up will be sent out a few weeks before.

School Committee

Did you know that Carol Lewis is Hanlon’s School Committee Representative?  If you have questions, contact Ms. Lewis at cswjlewis@gmail.com.