Hello Families,

As we all get ready for our spring break and hope for some sunshine, we write to share about a change to our arrival plans and spaces. We are sorry to share that we no longer have our DOT permit to close Rapelye St. for morning arrivals, such that we now only have the closed street for recess and dismissal (11:00 - 3:00).  This means that we need to adjust our morning arrival flow, as grades 3, 4, and 5 will no longer be able to gather on the street.  

Starting on Monday 4/21 when we return from break, all students in grades K-5 will be dropped off at the entry gate on Rapelye St. into our Big Yard.  This was our sole arrival space pre-2020, when the closed street became part of our program. 

As this now doubles the number of grade levels using the Big Yard space, we ask that families drop their children at the gate, so that we don’t have so many people in the yard as we make this change.  Our morning duty crew will be there throughout the yard to supervise, and at the gate if you have questions or needs on any given day.  We also need to make an adjustment such that children don’t play with sports equipment in the yard during this morning arrival time, as there will be many more children in the space.  

We ask that Pre-K families please enter through the main entrance on Henry Street, heading into the cafeteria from that door in order to meet your classroom teachers in the cafeteria at 8:10am.  We are going to work on distributing “Pre-K Family” ID cards, similar to our staff ID cards, so that you don’t need to sign in each day.  In the interim, we will have a brief sign-in sheet for each class that should make this smooth and easy until the cards are ready.  

We know that any kind of mid-year change is challenging as we have all grown into the comfort of our routine, and we appreciate your support and flexibility as we work through this revision. 

We hope you have a restful and fun spring break, and we will see you on Monday, April 21.