Dear Parents and Caregivers,
I want to extend a warm welcome to our new families and welcome back our returning families! We wrapped up a robust summer program and are now looking forward to the school year full of new experiences, new friendships, and new learning.
It will be a pleasure to see many of you at the back to school events that will take place on August 18, when you and your child(ren) can see classroom spaces, meet teachers, and say hello to new and old friends. Families new to Wellington will gather in the Gard Gym at 2 p.m., and returning families will head to their homerooms at 3 p.m. There will be frozen treats at the end of the event to help us celebrate the upcoming school year!
We are ready to share your child’s class placement for the school year. A great deal of time, effort, and thought has gone into the process of student placement for this year. Input from all faculty was considered when creating homeroom classes. Classrooms have been balanced academically and socially and include returning students and students new to Wellington. As of today, at noon, you may now log into your family’s Veracross portal to view your child’s homeroom teacher. Thank you for being positive with your child and helping them understand that it is impossible to place all students with a preferred friend or teacher. All our teachers work hard to make school a positive experience for students, and I am certain your child will have a successful year!
While you are in the Veracross portal, it is also a great time to ensure you have completed registration for Aftercare, if needed, and reviewed and completed all school policies. Please complete the policies by August 16. Aftercare and school policies are linked in an orange button on the right-hand side of the Veracross portal.
As your family prepares for the first day of school, I encourage you to check out Back to School resources for everything you need to know, including drop-off and pick-up times, daily schedules, and dress code details. I would like to draw your attention to a change in the school-wide student handbook regarding technology for students. Early childhood and lower school students will be asked to not wear smartwatches or use personal phones during the school day. We seek to establish a culture of learning and human connection, and devices such as cellphones and smartwatches impact a student’s ability to self-regulate, relate to others, and attend to their academics. If a device comes to school, it must remain powered down in the student’s backpack.
We greatly value the partnership between home and school, and we begin the year by meeting with parents and caregivers during an intake conference on August 19. Intake conferences are a time for you to share important information about your child with your child’s teacher(s). You may register for intake conferences starting on August 5, at noon, using a link on your child’s Veracross portal. Registration for intake conferences will close on August 16, at noon.
Enjoy the last few summer days before the exciting start of the school year!
Best,
Shelley Brown
Head of Early Childhood and Lower School