High Plain Elementary Corner
Ms. Leveque's and Mrs. Lyons' Weekly Newsletter
From the Desks of Ms. Leveque and Mrs. Lyons
Week of December 14, 2025
Dear HPE Families,
This fall, we dove headfirst into our theme of possibility, wonder, and joy, and we have had a lot of fun catching it in action! The students showed us possibility every time they tackled a tricky math problem or helped a friend learn a new skill—they showed us they can do anything they set their minds to! We explored wonder through our Arts and Letters ELA curriculum, focusing on questions that help us notice large and small details, and growing our world and literacy strategy knowledge. And the biggest part was the joy we shared during our energetic outdoor time, and all the teamwork in the classroom. It's not just our students who we think about when we talk about our school pride and community. Our staff got in on the action and engaged in a fun team building challenge where they were tasked with building the longest paper chain using 1 sheet of paper, 12 inches of tape, and 1 pair of scissors. A few fun photos are below. Keep an eye out for how much more amazing learning 2026 will bring!
As we enter our last few weeks of 2025 together, we know that students are in a very excited state as they prepare for December break. Just a friendly reminder that we aim to keep the structure and routines consistent, so students continue to follow the school norms and know what to expect when they walk through our doors. This doesn't mean that we don't recognize all that the winter season has to offer. Some classes may also be holding winter celebrations. This is a time in many families where traditions center around togetherness and the sharing of food. Per APS guidelines, there is no sharing of food items with students during any school day function. Thanks for keeping all our student's health and safety at the forefront.
Enjoy,
Ms. Leveque and Mrs. Lyons
-Monday, December 15: First night of Chanukah/Hanukkah
-Wednesday, December 24 - Sunday, January 4: Holiday Recess; No School
-Wednesday, December 24: Christmas Eve
-Thursday, December 25: Christmas Day
-Friday, December 26: First day of Kwanzaa
-Thursday, January 1: New Year's Day
-Monday, January 5: Welcome back students!
-Tuesday, January 6: Epiphany
-Wednesday, January 7: Orthodox Christmas
School Year Hours:
Monday-Friday, 8:45-3:30
Andover Public School 2025-2026 Calendar
As part of our HPE Student Council, we have a news team that has a weekly report for our students. Here is the latest news.
Supporting Neighbors in Need
We are collecting any fruit, vegetable or soup cans for the Neighbors in Need program. High Plain families have donated 180 pounds so far. Way to go! It would be amazing for every student to donate one can. The drive goes until next Friday, December 19th.
It's that time of year when we see an increase in student's visiting the health office. Below are some general reminders and guidelines about when students can return to school if they are home sick.
When to keep your child home:
· Fever
· Vomiting or diarrhea
· Contagious diseases- please call the clinic to discuss with the nurses if you have any questions
Criteria for a student returning to school following an illness:
· Fever free for 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medications.
· Vomiting or diarrhea free for 24 hours.
· If your child has a contagious illness – contact the school nurse before your child returns to school so that we can advise you regarding return to school protocols
· Andover Public Schools does not support a “no nit: policy. If you find your child has lice, please contact the school nurse so we can support and advise you. All students should be checked by the school nurse before returning to school.
Although we are not currently seeing a lot of head lice in the school, returning from vacation tends to be when we see an uptick in cases. As a preventive measure, please continue to perform head checks on your children monthly and call the clinic with any questions.
As we enter the cooler weather leading into winter, we want students to have a consistent outdoor experience between grades and classrooms. To support this, we have set guidelines for temperature/weather type when deciding outdoor vs. indoor recess for all classrooms. Below are guidelines for outdoor recess.
Students will be outdoors if the temperature (including wind chill) is 20 degrees or warmer and it’s not raining, sleeting, hailing, or blizzarding. We use Weatherbug.com to determine the temperature.
On questionable, cold days the office will make an announcement before the first recess announcing outdoor or indoor recess. If no announcement is made then it is outdoor recess.
If students want to play in snow, they must be wearing snow pants, boots, jackets, and gloves/mittens. If students do not wish to play in the snow, they will remain on the blacktop.
With a large amount of students out on the playground at each recess, we need to be extra vigilant about safety. There is no throwing of snowballs or ice. A behavior slip will be used to re-teach and discuss the safety concerns if a student does not follow this rule.
Label each article of clothing so that if something is misplaced, it can be returned to you as quickly as possible.
Please be aware that all students go outside when the weather meets these conditions.
Please send your child to school wearing appropriate outdoor clothing for the weather. We highly encourage you to practice getting dressed in the snow gear as quickly as possible- make a game of it and time it! The expectation is, if your child is well enough to come to school, they are well enough to go outdoors.
Thanks for taking the time to remind students of the winter expectations. Snow play is beloved by many and we want to make sure that everyone has an opportunity to safely enjoy their recess time during these months.
Our PTO plans lots of fun for our students and families. Please sign up for the PTO Newsletter at www.highplainpto.org so you don’t miss out on fun events. We will be at the Open House Curriculum Night so come say hello!
SCHOOL BUS
Bus transportation to and from school is provided free of charge to elementary students. Kindergarten students must be met by a known adult at the bus stop. Bus routes will be listed in the Aspen portal.
NAME/BUS TAGS (For Kindergarten and Grade 1 Students)
Your child’s teacher will give you a name tag necklace on the first day. Please have your kindergartner or first grader wear the nametag until further notice. The information on the tag is based on what families have entered on the back to school forms.
CAR PICKUP/DROPOFF
Please note that there are differences in morning arrival and afternoon car pick up. In the morning, you may arrive between 8:45-9:00 by using the High Plain Rd. entrance or the Cross St. entrance. In the afternoon, you can only arrive through the Cross St. entrance. The High Plain Rd. entrance is closed to allow buses. In the afternoon, dismissal begins at 3:30. Both morning and afternoon arrival, all vehicles must turn right when leaving the drop off/pick up line.
WALKERS & BIKE RIDERS:
· For morning arrival, a school crossing guard will be at the Cross Street/Brady Loop entrance.
· All AM walkers and bike riders should use the Cross St. entrance and the sidewalks that follow the front side of the school.
· Bike Riders: Only students in grades 3, 4, and 5 may ride a bike to and from school. A permission form must be completed with the main office.
Communication with our families is essential to the success and wellness of our students. To assist our families and help them connect with the appropriate staff who is best suited to answer questions, we have updated our “Who We Are” page on our website. The information will guide families to resources on how to reach staff with concerns and how to stay connected to news and events across the district.
This is a reminder that the High Plain Road entrance is closed to cars at dismissal. It is the access entrance for buses only. The Cross Street entrance is how cars enter for car pickup. This is a safety concern. We have seen cars try to sneak in daily and it's simply not fair to those who are following the dismissal procedures. We ask you to be respectful of your fellow HPE community members and abide by this rule.
Breakfast and lunch are once again free to all students. Breakfast is served from 8:45-8:55 each morning and no advanced ordering is needed.
Lunches will need be preordered. Lunch requires families to order in advance to ensure we have the correct allergy-friendly lunch for all our students. It is very important that our cafeteria has an accurate lunch count each day. Please review with your children each morning what you have ordered for them.
Information about the Andover Public Schools lunch program, as well as menus and instructions for online ordering, may be found on the website here: http://www.andoverschoolnutrition.com/
We are all working to manage the age of technology and are looking for support between school and home. Many children have new smart devices and the elementary schools have some guidance.
A kind reminder to our families that cell phones must be turned off and in students’ backpacks at the start of the school day. Smartwatches may be worn as regular watches, however, students are not allowed to text, communicate with others, use applications, take pictures or videos, or access social media services and websites.
Should parents/guardians urgently need to reach their child during the school day, we ask that you call the main office. Students are also allowed to come to the main office if they need to contact someone at home. If a cell phone or watch becomes a significant distraction, school administrators will reach out to parents/guardians. The Andover Public Schools is not responsible for lost, stolen, damaged, or broken devices.
To promote healthy digital habits during the school day, the resources below may be helpful to use. We appreciate your partnership as we work to keep interruptions to the school day at a minimum.
Resource for Apple Watches:
How to set a School Time schedule
Open the Watch app on your iPhone. Tap All Watches, then tap your child's watch.
Tap Done, then tap Schooltime.
Turn on Schooltime, then tap Edit Schedule.
Choose the days and times when you want Schooltime to be active.
Tap Add Time if you want to set up more than one schedule in a day.
Resource for Gizmo Watches:
How to set up School mode
Open the. Gizmo Hub app.
Tap the. School mode switch. turn on or off. If necessary, set up a School Mode schedule.
In School Devices
K-3 Devices will stay in school.
4-5 Devices can be brought home if directed by the classroom teacher to complete an assignment. Otherwise, they will remain in school.
Please make sure that you arrive with your license. We cannot check you in and let you enter without your license or state issued ID. You also need to have a valid CORI form on file. Please help us with these required safety steps.
School Hours of Operation
8:30 am: School office opens
8:45 am: School drop off
9:00 am: School day begins
After 9:00 am: Children are tardy and must be accompanied by a parent into the office
After 2:00 pm: Unless it's an emergency, no dismissal changes
Students must be dismissed before 3:00
3:30 pm: School ends
Ms. Sarah Leveque, Principal
Email: sarah.leveque@andoverma.us
Website: https://aps1.net/212/High-Plain-Elementary-School
Location: 333 High Plain Road, Andover, MA, USA
Phone: 978-247-8600