Hello Parkwood Families,

The countdown is nearing close to the first day of school and we only have one week left!  Your teachers have been working hard getting their classrooms ready to meet all of you on Thursday for Open House.  We cannot wait to see all of you and as always I want to highlight upcoming events and reminders to ensure you have them on your schedule.

Kindergarten Camp:  I would first like to thank all of our Kindergarten families that attended Kindergarten Camp this past week!  It was such a pleasure to see our new Panthers and speak with parents and families about what to expect as we move into the first day of school.  All Kindergarten families please remember that the first week of school, August 29^th will be staggered entry.  Please refer to the Kindergarten Staggered Entry Letter for more information on when your child should attend that week.

• Tuesday, August 30th: Last name starting with A-H
• Wednesday, August 31st: Last name starting with I-P
• Thursday, September 1st: Last name starting with Q-Z

Pre-K Staggered Entry:  Our newest Pre-K Panthers will have a staggered entry on Monday, August 29^th and Tuesday, August 30^th.  Students with the last name A-L will attend on Monday and L-Z will attend on Tuesday.  All Pre-K students will come back to school on Wednesday, August 31^st for the rest of the school year.  Pre-K families will receive any additional information at Open House.

Open House:  Please remember Our Meet the Teacher Open House event will take place at Parkwood on Thursday, August 25^th from 4:30pm to 6:30pm.  This will be an opportunity for families to have a brief meet and greet conversation with your child’s teacher, get important school information (i.e. bus assignments) and join our awesome PTA.  Masks are optional but highly recommended and Open House presentations will be shared on our website for those families who are unable to attend.

Teacher Assignments:  Teacher Assignments will be available via the PowerSchool Parent Portal on Thursday August 25th; with the exception of our Kindergarten, students (please review the Kindergarten Staggered Entry Letter for more information).  If you are unable to get into your parent portal, we will have class lists available to ensure you know your child’s teacher. 

Start Time:  You may have some questions about what time school starts at Parkwood.  Parkwood has always been an early start school with students arriving at 7:15am.  The instructional bell rings at 7:45am and all Panthers are expected to be in their classrooms ready to learn at that time.  It is important to note that any student who enters the building after 7:45am is considered tardy, however, we will not be counting any student tardy the first two weeks of school.  Dismissal begins at 2:15pm, so all transportation changes must be communicated to your child’s teacher or the front office by 1:30pm and early pick-up ends at 1:45pm.  This is to ensure that all staff are available to assist with dismissal procedures.

Dismissal:  A few notes about car rider dismissal to prepare families for what drop-off and pick-up will look like.  More detailed information about dismissal will be shared during Open House, but I wanted to make sure that and overview is shared before Thursday.  Parkwood has two lots for drop-off and pick-up.  The Upper lot is for Kindergarten and 5^th grade students and the Lower Lot is for 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, and 4^th grade students.  The Upper Lot is located off Revere Road and the Lower Lot is located off Clairmont Road.  Drop-off begins at 7:15am and pick-up begins at 2:15pm.  If you have multiple students that attend Parkwood in different grade level we require that if you have a Kindergartener, that all students in the family be dropped off and picked up in the Upper Lot.  The same will follow with the any family with a 5^th grade student.  This will minimize time and expedite the car rider process for all families.

There are many ways to stay connected to our community.  Please follow Parkwood Elementary on our Facebook page and website.

Please reach out to me at any time!  I am here to support you and make sure all of our Panthers have a great start to the year.  Please enjoy these last days of summer break and as always Parkwood Panthers…Show PRIDE!