Welcome Back Upham and Hunnewell,
Welcome to the 2023-24 School Year! I trust that you have had a wonderful summer break with your children. I do not doubt that many of you are more excited than your children about beginning the new school year.
I am very excited to get back to the routine of the school day, and more importantly, I missed my Upham friends and cannot wait to see everyone on Wednesday, August 30.
The custodians have diligently worked over the summer break to clean and prepare the building for the upcoming school year. Everything looks bright, shiny, and ready to go. When you see Mr. Jim or Mr. Carlos, please thank them for their efforts.
Please, please read the entire message. You will see essential dates and information for the Parent Portal and Pick-Up Patrol. Thank you for being so patient.
I wanted to share with you some vital information for the start-up of the new school year. On Monday, August 28th, the Upham faculty will return. On Tuesday, August 29th, our kindergarten families will meet and greet the teacher from 9:30-10 a.m. We will have our New Family Orientation in the gym from 9:00-9:30 a.m. This is for families that are brand new to Upham. This informational meeting is designed to give new families a complete description of Upham. Please join us.
2023-24 Classrooms
K- Mrs. Bresnahan (TA- Ms. Powers)
1st– Mrs. Leung
2nd- Ms. Chartier/Mrs. Maggipinto
3rd- Mrs. Cohen
4th– Mrs. Garry
5th– Mrs. Eccher/Ms. O’Reilly
The First day of school is Wednesday, August 30. Please remember that it is a regular Wednesday, and everyone will dismiss at noon.
Please use the center blacktop area, Wynnewood, and Lowell roads for parking on Wednesday, August 30 (First Day of School, Yahoo!). We will have our live drop-off as well. You can begin dropping off your children at 8:15 a.m. Each classroom teacher will have a sign indicating where to line up. The bell will ring at 8:30 a.m. Then, the teachers will take the children into their respective classrooms. Parents are not allowed to accompany their children to the classroom. If your child is experiencing separation anxiety, please seek our Mr. Dees or Dr. Hoitash (our outstanding psychologist). We will be available to help with any situation.
I want to remind kindergarten parents that the first eight days of school (Aug. 30- Sept. 8) are ½ days for students. We use the second half of the day to assess reading and math skills. The assessments allow the teachers to properly place each child in the correct reading group and design the instruction to meet the needs of each child. You will receive an email from Mrs. Bresnahan for an assessment time. WCCC (Wellesley Community Children’s Center) will provide after-school programs for 8 half days. If you are interested, don’t hesitate to get in touch with Dan Finucane (director, 781-645-8199) at afterschool@wcccwellesley.org
Important Dates
Wednesday, August 16- Parent Portal Opening
Monday, August 28- First Day for Teachers
Tuesday, August 29-Kindergarten Meet/Greet 9:30-10:00
New Families Orientation 9:00-9:30
Wednesday, August 30- FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL- YAHOO!!!
Monday, September 4- NO SCHOOL-Labor Day
Monday, September 11- Full Day K
Wednesday, September 20- Back-To-School Night
6:00-6:30- Grades 3-4-5
6:35-6:50- Principal’s Message (Gym)
6:55-7:25- Grades K-1-2
Monday, September 25- No School-Yom Kippur
Monday, October 2- Picture Day
We are so excited about the hope and promise of a new school year. It is an honor and a privilege to serve you and your children. Enjoy the remaining days of your summer vacation…see you Wednesday, August 30!!
Dare to Dream,
Mr. Dees
PowerSchool Portal Opening
The PowerSchool Parent Portal will be open from August 16 at noon through September 6, 2023. All parents/guardians must log in to confirm this critical information for their children. Home Room information for Grades K-8 will be available.
As in prior years, you will not receive a class list due to security and privacy laws (see MGL 603 CMR 23.00 for more information).
The PowerSchool Parent Portal will open starting at noon on August 16, 2023. To access the PowerSchool Parent Portal, you will need to log in with the following username and email on file with WPS:
Parent Username:
Parent Email Address:
Login Instructions:
· Go to https://wellesley.powerschool.
· Use the same password from previous years or that you used during the enrollment process.
· If you have forgotten your password, click “Forgot Username or Password?” and enter the Username and Email Address displayed above.
· Check your email for a unique link to set your password.
· See additional troubleshooting information at the bottom of this email.
Parent Portal Training for Parents (optional)
If you would like assistance setting up your account or updating your annual permissions, please join us on Zoom for a live session at the time listed below. We also have a selection of short video tutorials on our website that you can view at your convenience.
· Monday, August 28, 2023, at 8:30 AM – 9:00 AM https://wellesleyps.zoom.us/j/
· WPS Parent Portal Training Videos
· Or email portal@wellesleyps.org for help at another time
PowerSchool Parent Portal Info
More information about the PowerSchool Parent Portal is available on our website at https://wellesleyps.org/
Pick Up Patrol
To help us better manage student dismissal changes, we are now using PickUp Patrol. PickUp Patrol, our online dismissal program, saves us a great deal of time here in the office and reduces classroom interruptions while giving you the flexibility you need to make changes to your children’s plans. Most importantly, it helps us get your children safely to their correct after-school destinations.
How it works: All families are sent a registration email at the start of the school year. If you have not registered yet, don’t hesitate to contact the school so we can email you a registration link. Changes can be entered from a smartphone or computer days, weeks, or months in advance and at any time up until 1 hour before dismissal on the day of the change. After this time, changes will not be accepted except in the case of an emergency. Such changes can be made via phone directly to the main office. The end of the school day is a busy time, so to ensure the safety of all students, please plan accordingly and limit these exceptions to emergencies ONLY.
Parent Login: https://app.pickuppatrol.net/parents
Add PickUp Patrol to your home screen: How to add PickUp Patrol App to your phone