We are looking forward to seeing your children Tuesday morning.
Every child’s safety is important to us and we need your help. It remains our highest priority to ensure that students are dropped off and picked up daily in a safe and organized manner. We are reminding everyone to follow the pick-up, drop-off procedures. Failure to do so creates chaos, and unsafe conditions for our students, parents, and staff. Please be kind to our staff and community members that may be directing traffic and guiding students.
Schoolwide Arrival
Please have your child come to school the way he/she will come to school every day. We will have staff boarding buses and placing bus number tags on backpacks. All bus riders will be escorted into the building. Our walkers and car riders will enter through the rear entrance doors. Doors will open at 9:00 a.m. Any student arriving after 9:15 a.m. must be accompanied by an adult to the front office.
Kindergarten students should wear the nametags they received during Kindergarten Orientation. Do not worry, kindergarteners of families who were unable to attend the Kindergarten Orientation or Open House will receive a nametag. Staff will guide the kindergarteners off the bus. Kindergarten staff will also meet walkers and car riders at the back of the school. Students in grades 1-5 will be directed to their classrooms. Staff will be available throughout the building to assist all students. We ask parents/guardians to say goodbye at home and at the front or rear door of the school. Thank you for understanding.
During arrival, between 8:50 a.m. and 9:15 a.m. orange cones will be placed along the crosswalk at the back of the school. During this time cars cannot enter or exit the rear parking lot. Persons that enter the parking lot prior to 8:50 a.m. will be asked to remain in the parking lot until 9:15 a.m.
Please do not leave your child without supervision. There is no supervision for students until 9:00 a.m.
AM Drop Off
Parents/guardians driving children to school should use the Atholton Park or park along Donleigh Drive. Please do not park along the entrance or exit to the Atholton Park. NO PARKING signs will be posted along the park entrance as a reminder. Please be courteous of our neighbors and only park on one side of the street in the neighborhood.
Parents may also park on Groveleigh Drive and use the crosswalk to escort children across the street. Please do not drop off children along Seneca Drive. This is dangerous. STOP NO STUDENT DROP OFF OR PICK UP signs will be posted as a reminder.
After all buses have dropped off students, cars will be permitted to enter the bus loop, after 9:15 a.m.
Dismissal
All car riders, walkers, and students that participate in after school programs or attend after care centers will be dismissed at 3:37 p.m. All bus riders will be dismissed at 3:45 p.m.
Please inform your child’s teacher in writing if dismissal is different than arrival. During dismissal, our staff will ensure students get on the correct bus based on the bus they rode to school in the morning, or other information obtained in writing from the parent/guardian. All walkers will be escorted to the back of the school to meet their parent/guardian, or be escorted to the parent/guardian selected after care provider or program. All walker/car rider kindergarten students will be dismissed from the rear kindergarten doors and be released to the parent/guardian, or designated adult for pick up.
Parents/guardians of walkers and car riders should park in the Atholton Park and walk to the back of the school to meet their children. If the Atholton Park lot is full, please do not park along the entrance to the park. Please park along Donleigh.
To ensure a safe dismissal, cars are not able to park in the school lot during dismissal.
Bus Information
If your child rides a bus, please arrive at the bus stop 5-10 minutes before your bus is due to arrive in the morning. Please allow some flexibility in AM and PM arrival times the first week or two of school.
It is very important to put your child on the bus on the first day. Students who ride buses will have their bus number tagged on their backpack with a wristband strip. Please leave the bus tag on their backpack. This will help staff escort students to the correct bus in the afternoon and throughout the school year.
Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS)
We will continue to use PBIS and the 3Rs – Respectful, Ready and Responsible to highlight positive behavior. Teachers will spend time the first few weeks of school getting to know each learner and building community to create a positive learning environment that ensures equity in the classroom. This year we will enhance PBIS with 123 Magic. This program will support all staff with establishing and maintaining good discipline habits and encouraging courteous classroom behavior and constructive work habits. We look forward to scheduling a parent/guardian information night to share more information about how the program will be implemented at AES as well as ways the program can be implemented at home.
Food Services
Our Food and Nutrition Services web page has information parents/guardians may find helpful, including meal prices, how to pay for meals, where to view menus, nutritional and allergen information, and more.
Student Breakfast - $2.00 Student Lunch - $2.75
Reduced Breakfast - $.30 Reduced Lunch - $.40
Milk - $.50
Parents/guardians of students who qualify for Free and Reduced Meals (FARMS) must submit a new application every school year. Students that qualified for free or reduced meals last school year will receive free or reduced lunch prices during the first 30 days of school. Details on the HCPSS FARMs program is online including how to apply. Please call the school if you have questions or need assistance.
At Atholton, we serve breakfast each morning from 9:00 a.m. to 9:15 a.m. Students who wish to purchase breakfast simply need to go to the cafeteria when they arrive in the morning.
Lunches are scheduled between 10:50 a.m. and 2:05 p.m.
Snack
Only kindergarten and grades 5 students will have a classroom snack this year due to the time of our scheduled lunches. Kindergarten and grade 5 families will receive a list of acceptable snacks.
Update Emergency Information
If you have not updated/completed your Family File, please take care of this as soon as possible at HCPSS Connect. There are several resources to assist you in completing the emergency contact information.
Pets
We love our pets here at Atholton, however for the safety of our students we ask that you not bring your pets to school with you to drop off or pick up students. Effective August 29, 2017 animals in schools or offices, leashed or not, present safety, environmental, and liability issues. Students and staff may be exposed to potential physical hazards, such as bites, and/or allergy related health problems. As a result, animals are prohibited within HCPSS buildings. Animals are also prohibited on school system property during arrival, dismissal, recess or other HCPSS sponsored outdoor activities. Service animals or service animals in training per MD Annotated Code Section 7-705 (Service Animals) and the American Disabilities Act (ADA) as well as animals approved for instructional purposes are exempt from this prohibition.
Thank you for your continued support. Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns. We are looking forward to a positive and enriching school year with our students!
Dr. Holden, Principal
Mrs. Krablin, Assistant Principal