Dear Bates Families,
I hope that you are enjoying your summer. I have been enjoying time to slow down, spend time with family and friends, read many books and also to plan for the upcoming school year. In July I attended the annual retreat for Wellesley administrators at Babson College. It was a great time to reconnect with colleagues (in person!) and plan for the upcoming year together.
We are excited to welcome students back to school on September 1. Although the start of school is still several weeks away, I am writing to share some information that may be helpful for you now.
Safety Guidelines for the Fall
On Friday the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and MA Department of Public Health issued guidance for the upcoming school year. The Wellesley Public Schools is now working with our local Board of Health to review the new guidelines and finalize our plans for a full return to in-person learning for all students. I will share the elementary guidelines with you as soon as I can.
PowerSchool Parent Portal & Teacher Assignments
You will receive a letter via email on August 11 with information about how to access the PowerSchool Parent Portal to confirm important family information. Your child’s teacher assignment for the upcoming school year will be available after you complete the parent portal forms for each student in your family. The portal will be open August 18 – September 3. Please look for a welcome email from your child’s classroom teacher on August 25.
Back to School Information
The Bates Back to School Packet is available online through our website in the Quick Links section of the Bates home webpage. If you need a printed copy of any document, please contact the Bates office. In this packet you can find the following information:
- Recommended Supply Lists by grade level
- Before School Program flyer
- The Bates Insider Guide 2021-2022
- School Calendar 2021-2022
- School Council letter
- WCCC after school application
- Information about the Bates PTO and other organizations
Please note we are looking for one parent to serve a two-year term on our Bates School Council. If you would like to learn more about this leadership opportunity, please read the School Council letter or reach out to me directly.
Summer Learning
All WPS families are invited to access the WPS 2021 Summer Learning website.
New Family Coffee & Kindergarten Visit
We are very excited to welcome new families to Bates. All new families are invited to the New Family Coffee and Orientation on August 31 from 9:00 – 9:45 a.m. in the Bates cafeteria. In addition, all kindergarten students are invited to visit their classrooms on August 31 from 9:45 – 10:15 am. Following the classroom visit the PTO will host a popsicle party for kindergartners and their parents or guardians on the front playground.
Please note that while in recent years all students were invited to drop-in to visit on the day before school, for a number of reasons this year we are reserving this opportunity for new students and families.
Important Dates
Please save the date for the Bates Back to School Night on Wednesday, September 22 starting at 6:30 p.m. More details will follow.
Wednesday, August 18 at 12 noon PowerSchool Parent Portal opens
Tuesday, August 31 at 9:00 – 9:45 am New Family Coffee and Orientation
Tuesday, August 31 at 9:45 – 10:15 Kindergarten visit followed by PTO popsicle party
Wednesday, September 1 The first day of school
Wednesday, September 22 6:30 p.m. Back to School Night
I will be in touch again soon as we finalize plans for school this fall. In the meantime, if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to Bates secretary Melanie Friedman or me at (781) 446-6260 or batesoffice@wellesleyps.org. I hope you enjoy the rest of your summer!
Warm regards,
Toni Jolley