Good afternoon HBMS Families,

To clarify a few questions that have come up regarding traffic and our plans for drive-up graduation and send-off on Monday, June 15^th:

• We will begin promptly at 5PM recognizing students and their families at their vehicles, continuing through for all 8^th grade families that are able to attend. Please use our main entrance and follow protocol similar to our school dismissal, driving to our central office and turning around to return and cue-up infront of our school entrance, a shown in the picture attached (entrance plan #1)

• Beginning at 6PM, families of 5^th, 6^th, and 7^th grade students that arrive can use the Dudley Road entrance (located on the other side of our police station), taking a right at the sign with the arrow which reads “senior center,” and then joining the line of cars which turns around at our central office, as shown in the picture attached (entrance plan #2)

• Families are reminded to print out the attached template in order to write their student’s name and place it on display on the dashboard of their car so that we can identify them and have certificates and materials ready. If needed, families can call ahead to our school’s main office at 978-597-6914 to pick up a printed copy of the template.

• Please remember that, in respect of social distancing, students and families will remain in vehicles for this event. Your cooperation in this regard will ensure a safe and smooth experience as we celebrate the efforts of our students!

Thank you for your support,

Jason Webster

Principal, HBMS

Good evening HBMS Families,

As we are bringing our school year to a close and working to preserve traditions such as our 8^th grade graduation ceremonies and end-of-year faculty wave send-off for our students, there has been significant feedback from our families about the desire and importance of providing an opportunity for our students and families to connect with our teachers and staff before the school year ends.  

Though current health concerns and social distancing make these kinds of events challenging, our planning team and I revisited our plans for both 8^th grade graduation and end-of-year send-off. 

We are excited to have developed a plan that will recognize our students and facilitate a drive-up celebration for staff and families in a way that is safe and within the guidelines of social distancing.

Here is our plan:

• On Friday, June 12th at 5:30pm, we will post on our school website a video put together by our staff which recognizes each of our graduating 8th graders, as well as student awards.  This link will be available through the last day of school on June 16th.
• On Monday, June 15th, beginning at 5pm, we will host a drive-up celebration for our 8th grade students:  
  • They will remain in their vehicles with their family, as they cue up in front of our main entrance circle. 
  • Student families will use the approach similar to our end-of-school-day dismissal routine when they arrive, initially driving down towards our central office building and turning around to cue-up in front of our school, in order to minimize traffic back-up on Brookline Street. 
  • A template for parents to print-out and write their student's name and display it on their dashboard is attached to this message, so that we can identify who is in each vehicle. ***If you are not able to print out a template, please contact our school so that we can arrange for you to come in next week to pick up a template we can provide for you.
  • Families are encouraged to have fun and creatively decorate their vehicles in a safe and appropriate way!
  • Shepherd-Gay and I will approach each car to present students their graduation certificate and any award they may be receiving.
  • After receiving recognition, vehicles will then proceed around our driveway circle and our staff will wave and send you off for the summer as you leave our campus.  Our staff who are able to attend will be spread out on our front lawn, wearing masks as appropriate for social distancing, waving and thanking our students and families.
  • Students with last names A - M will begin arriving to school at 5 PM
  • Students with last names N - Z will begin arriving at 5:30 PM  
  • At 6:00 PM any families of students in current grades 5, 6, or 7 may then cue-up and drive through and we can wave/thank them.
  • Our rain date is Tuesday, June 16^th and it will start at the same time, following the same plan.
  • I have contacted the Board of Health, who is double checking to confirm that our plans are safe, as it is similar to the approved plans for other schools in our district.
  • 7:00 PM is when we will put a close to our event.

Yearbooks are still scheduled to be delivered to our school during the third week of June and we will update you on their dispersal/pick-up when they arrive.

On behalf of our staff at HBMS, thank you for being safe and respecting social distancing while we celebrate the accomplishments of our students!

Sincerely,

Jason Webster

Principal, HBMS

Template

Good morning HBMS Families,

First and foremost, our faculty and I are so very thankful for your continued support and patience throughout this new living and learning environment we are all working through.  Everyone's health and well-being are our top priority as we work to keep connections with our students and families.  

Phase 3 of our distance learning plan is well-underway.  With the end of our school year less than a month away, we are now planning for the transition our students will experience from the end of this school year into the next school year this coming fall--this includes assessing what our students have learned, recognizing accomplishments, recognizing our graduating 8th graders, and preparing them for the next grade.  Planning effectively for these important aspects of school will take time and I will be informing you, our HBMS community, as each aspect of our plan comes together.

An announcement for families of 8th grade students:

Yard signs celebrating and recognizing our graduating 8th grade students are in! 

These signs, along with their metal stands which anchor them into the ground, will be available this week on Wednesday and Thursday (May 27 & 28), from 8AM until 1PM each day. 

Sign materials will be available outside the front entrance to our school.  As you arrive to collect the sign, please add your student's name to the sheet provided.  This will help us see that all 8th grade families get a sign for each student.  There is a blank portion of the sign for families to use a marker and write a special message to their graduating child.

Yearbooks are scheduled to arrive during the third week of June.  Once they are in, I will update families on how they will be distributed. 

Please continue to encourage your student to stay in contact with their teachers.  We truly understand and appreciate the challenge of balancing family priorities with education in this unique and sheltered environment.  We will continue to work together and are thankful for your support.

Be well,

Jason Webster

Principal, HBMS

Good morning HBMS Families,

Recognizing our 8th grade students

As we endure the challenges that come with social distancing in our new environment for living and learning, we have to think creatively in our approach to how we recognize the efforts of others--in this case, our graduating 8th grade students.  Our 8th grade students are finishing their middle school careers and we want to congratulate them on all their hard work, perseverance, and accomplishments.  This rings particularly true in a year when experiences like a traditional graduation ceremony and the Washington DC trip were not possible.  Thankfully, with the creativity of my advisory team and the support of our PTO, we will be recognizing our 8th graders before school closes for the summer!

• Spirit Bags:  Ms. Shepherd-Gay sent an email to our 8th grade students to congratulate them on their graduation and recognize their persistance this spring, letting them know about the spirited "cheer bags," that were put together by PTO and placed in their lockers for them to find as they clean-out their lockers this week.
• Yard signs:  18" X 24" yard signs announcing the graduation of the class of 2024 have been ordered and are scheduled to arrive very soon--I will soon be announcing our plan for when and how we'll approach distributing these signs to the front yards/homes of our 8th grade families so that our community can notice and celebrate their accomplishments.  Along with a congratulatory message, there will also be room for a parent to write a personal message for their graduating student, as well!
• Yearbooks:  With the deadline for purchasing an HBMS yearbook recently passed, with the help of our PTO or school has decided to see that all 8th grade students get a yearbook, commemorating their experiences at HBMS.  These books are scheduled to be delivered to our school during the third week of June and I will update you with plans for how they will be available as soon as possible.
• Please visit our school website for more information, at:

https://ma50000503.schoolwires.net/Domain/9

Thank you for your continued support of your child's education.  We are aware that there are many challenges we are facing as a community and, by working together and staying in contact, we will join our students in persevering.

Take care and be well,

Jason Webster

Principal, HBMS

Good Afternoon HBMS Families,

I hope this message reaches you and your home in good health. 

We are two days into our new third phase of learning—how are things going for your student(s)?  Are they staying in contact with teachers during the week and checking email?  Are they reaching out with any questions or needs?  If not, are you?  Let us know so that we can support you!  We at HBMS understand that there is a great deal more going on in our homes and we’re thankful for your continued support as we work together to provide some learning over this tough stretch of time.  Continue encouraging your child to engage with their teachers and do their best to participate and stay connected with our school community.  We understand that families are working hard to achieve a balance between jobs, school work, wellness, and family needs and we support you.  With that said, it is the goal of our school that students are able to participate at a level that is best for them, trying their best to earn credit for their work during this unprecedented third term of our school year.  Thanks for your help!

Here are a couple other items of note:


From the Health Office:

Dear Parents/Guardians,
I will be at the school during locker clean-out for end of the year medication pick up, May 19-21 from 9am-12pm.  Please stop by to pick up any medication left in my office from this school year. Please make sure you are wearing a mask as mentioned by Mr. Webster and Mr. Morgan. There will be a sign-out for medications. If you have any questions, please contact me at lsheridan@nmrsd.org. See you then!
Mrs. Sheridan


Locker Clean-Outs Reminder:

Not on this week, but next week, on May 19, 20, and 21 we will be facilitating student locker clean-outs.  On each of those 3 days, we will be open from 9:00AM – 12:00PM for students to come in briefly, with a parent, to collect their belongings in a bag and then return home before opening their bags and going through their things to keep/throw away.
Here's the plan for May 19, 20, and 21 (Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday):
•    Students will be organized by last name on the following days:
o    Tuesday: students with last name beginning with letter A - F
o    Wednesday: students with last name beginning with letter G-N
o    Thursday: students with last name beginning with letter O – Z
•    Masks and sanitized hands or gloves are required for admission into the building.  Sanitizer will be available at the front sign-in of the building.
•    Students are asked to bring in a bag in which to gather their belongings.
•    Each of these days the building will be open to students from 9AM - 12PM
•    Students & their parent will be instructed to sign-in, go straight to their locker, empty out locker contents into bag, gather any belongings from their classroom desk, then leave.
•    Students are not to look through their things/throw things away until they get home.
•    Tables will be set up in each team area:  one for returned textbooks, one for student belongings to be collected (that were left in classrooms.)
•    Chromebooks are not to be returned at this time.
•    All student belongings have been gathered from the gymnasium, locker areas, auditorium, cafeteria, library, and other areas and added to the "lost & found" collection in our lobby.  Any Lost & Found items left after these three days will be donated to TEO.
•    To maintain safe environment for social distancing, staff will be at lobby entrance and in different areas to supervise & regulate how many people we have in the building.
•    Library books will be collected by the library
•    Honor Roll recognition materials will be available for students at the main office as they exit, once they are finished with locker clean-out.
Thank you for your help and patience in supporting our efforts to keep everyone safe for this effort.  For the sake of everyone’s well-being, this needs to be a brief and timely process so that we can move people reasonably quickly so they can return home safely before going through materials.

Sincerely,
Jason Webster
Principal, HBMS