Colonial Park Weekly News

Dear Colonial Park Families -

The start of the school year is right around the corner, and we are so excited to welcome your child to Colonial Park on Wednesday, September 2! Whether you are a new family joining us for the first time, or your child is returning for another school year, the CP staff cannot wait to kick off the 2026-2027 school year.

Some important upcoming dates for your calendar:

1. Kindergarten Meet and Greet/PTO Sponsored Playdate, Tuesday, September 1 - Kindergarten families are invited to meet their teacher at 1:30, immediately followed by a PTO sponsored playdate in our playground area. Parents and caregivers please feel free to bring your child's supplies at this time.
2. K-4 First Day of School, Wednesday, September 2 - All students K-4 will gather in the recess area, outside of Door 7, and line up with their new class. Staff will be outside beginning at 8:15 to welcome our students.
3. Preschool Visit Day, Thursday, September 3 - Preschool families will meet their new teacher and classmates from 1:00 to 1:45 before their first day of school. Please enter the building through the main entrance.
4. Preschool First Day of School, Tuesday, September 8 - Preschool students line up outside of Door 10 and will be greeted by staff at 8:40.
5. Back to School Night, Thursday, September 17, 6:15 to 7:30 - This event is for parents and guardians only and provides the opportunity to visit your child's classroom and receive information about the upcoming school year from their teacher.
6. PTO Meeting, Tuesday, September 22 - The first PTO Meeting will be held in the library from 7:00 to 8:00pm. There will be a virtual option available.
7. PTO Back to School Picnic, Friday, September 25 - All Colonial Park School families are invited to gather outside between 5:00 and 7:00 for the annual Back to School Picnic.

Our most important job as educators is to keep your child safe, and we take that job extremely seriously. When you visit the building and ring the bell for entrance, Ms. Faughnan, our school secretary, will ask you your name and reason for visit through the intercom before buzzing you into the building. All visitors will then sign in at the office, and on the first visit, will supply a driver's license to be run through RAPTOR, our Visitor Management System. Please note that all visitors, regardless of whether or not you are new to Colonial Park, must provide a driver's license when volunteering or attending a meeting for the first time.

I am also asking that our community makes a conscious effort to drive slowly when on or around school property. Students are in the parking lot and crossing the street, and while I recognize how valuable everyone's time is, nothing is more important than the safety of our families. Thank you in advance for driving slowly and undistracted during arrival and dismissal.

We will manage arrival the same way we did last year.

1. If you are walking with your child (in K-4) to the recess area for morning line-up, please feel free to park in the parking lot or in the surrounding neighborhood. There is no parking along the curbs that surround the building.
2. If you are dropping off your child, please remember to pull your vehicle all the way up to the end of the sidewalk in front of the building and do not exit your vehicle. Staff will be outside each morning to assist with morning drop off.
3. If there is indoor arrival, a flag will be displayed outside of Door 8 and at the main entrance. All students will enter through the main entrance for indoor arrival beginning at 8:15.

I truly cannot wait to see your child on Wednesday morning. Happy almost first day of school!

Best,

Rosa Flynn

facebook.com/CPStoneham

This school year, all Stoneham Public Schools will be sharing a One Stop Back to School Form.

The form contains questions and confirmations about:

• Demographics
• Photo Release
• Directory Notification
• Free and Reduced Meal Application
• Current contact information in our records system sign off (from the PDF attached to this email)
• Military Status
• Bullying Prevention and Response Acknowledgement
• Technology Acceptable Use Policy
• Chromebook Insurance Option
• Chromebook Policy
• Medical Information Link (This information goes to our Nurses only!)

Colonial Park One Stop Back to School Form

Kindergarten through Grade 4

The school hours for students in grades K-4 are 8:30am to 2:40pm. All students will line up in the recess area outside of Door 7, and staff will be outside to supervise beginning at 8:15. Please note the dismissal procedure for each grade:

Kindergarten - Dismiss through Door 10

Grade 1 - Dismiss through Door 8

Grades 2-4 - Dismiss through Door 7

Preschool

The school hours for our preschool classrooms are:

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday - 8:40am to 2:10pm

Wednesday (and all early release days) - 8:40am to 11:40am

All students will gather outside Door 10 in the morning, and a staff member will lead them into the building at 8:40. Dismissal will also be through Door 10 at 2:10.

We are excited to welcome new staff, and staff in new positions, for the upcoming school year!

Cindy Constantino - ESP Rise

John Mahoney - ESP Rise

Meghann McCarthy - Assistant Principal

Madison McLaughlin - ABA Tech

Paige Spurr - ESP Rise

Jared Wickham - Special Education Coordinator

We are always looking for Daily Substitutes. If anyone in our Colonial Park community is interested in learning more about working as a substitute, please reach out to Meghann McCarthy, Assistant Principal, at memccarthy@stonehamschools.org. We would love to welcome you to our CP team!

Please review the message from Mrs. Lapery for important Back to School information.

Back to School Information from Nurse Lapery

Hello Colonial Park Families:
The high-top seating in our library could use some help! Over the past two years, our supply of chairs has dwindled from 10 to just 3 remaining chairs.

Our current chairs have 30-inch-tall seats for our high-top tables that are 40 inches tall. As the school year gets underway, please keep an eye out in the community for tall stools or chairs that might be a good fit for our library. Our upper-grade students and faculty use these tables as workspaces throughout the year, so any help finding additional seating would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you for keeping an eye out and supporting our school library!

Warmly,

Alyssa Desmond

Colonial Park Librarian

Universal Free School Meals has been made permanent in Massachusetts, and there is no cost to families for any student in Massachusetts to receive school lunch, milk and breakfast. Our district is beginning its second year with Chartwells, and Kelsey Lockhead is the Director of Dining Services for

Stoneham Public Schools.

Classroom teachers will take lunch orders in the morning during attendance. This year, lunch is scheduled for 25 minutes to accommodate an additional five minutes of recess. Any child who needs more time to enjoy their lunch will be welcome to remain in the cafeteria until they are done. Breakfast will be available in the cafeteria beginning at 8:15. Please have a conversation with your child regarding if you would like them to take a breakfast or if they will be having breakfast at home.

11:10 to 11:35 - Preschool and Kindergarten

11:45 to 12:10 - Grades 1 and 2

12:20 to 12:45 - Grades 3 and 4

Below please find the link to our September Lunch Menu. If you have any questions regarding the menu, or if your child has any dietary restrictions you'd like to share with regard to lunch, please email Ms. Lockhead at klockhead@stonehamschools.org.

September Lunch Menu with Translations

*Welcome to the 2026-2027 school year! We are so excited to be serving on the PTO Board for the 2026-2027 school year and to plan fun events and enrichment opportunities for your kids all year. This year's board:

Sue Palmacci - Co-President

Linsey George - Co-President

Jenn Khodush - Secretary

Joanna Foley - Treasurer

Please feel free to join our facebook page if you haven't already! - https://www.facebook.com/groups/676844002344382

*PTO Meetings - The first PTO meeting of the year will be on Tuesday, September 22nd at 7 pm. We will meet in person in the Colonial Park library and there is also a virtual option!

*Chalk the Walk - Tuesday, September 1st at 5:45 pm - Welcome back students and staff with some fun chalk artwork! We will be meeting at 5:45 at the Colonial Park entrance to draw and color the sidewalks around the school with chalk ahead of the first day on September 2nd!

Stoneham Public Schools provides families with the option to travel to and from school by bus if your family lives two or more miles from your child's school. Families have already been contacted, and if you have any questions, please reach out to Assistant Superintendent Castonguay at kcastonguay@stonehamschools.org.

For our families who are using the bus, the district will be following a "no play dates" protocol this year. Students who do not ride the bus will only be permitted to ride home with a bus student for essential child care, meaning another family is caring for the student after school. This request will need to be submitted in writing.

If you haven't contacted Ms. Faughnan, efaughnan@stonehamschools.org, to let her know which afternoons your child will be riding the bus, please do so before Wednesday.

Let's build excitement for the new school year! On 9.1.26, the night before school, the CP Bike Bus will be hosting a family ride at 5:30 pm! You can join us to practice our weekly route, celebrate moving & growing together. Join the What's App group to learn about the route and other details. The PTO will be hosting their annual Chalk the Walk at 5:45 pm! You can join us to create art & welcoming messages on the sidewalks around CP for students to see in the morning. Email colonialparkpto@gmail.com with questions about the chalk walk.

Each week, I will include a link to Preschool Director Danielle Tucker's weekly newsletter, as well as any additional information specific to our preschool students. Please see the Back to School Family Communication from Danielle Tucker HERE.

We cannot wait to get our year started with our youngest learners, and we look forward to meeting you at the Meet and Greet on Thursday, September 3rd at 1:00!

We always welcome the following donations:

Office and Non-Classroom Teachers

Disinfectant Wipes

Paper Towels

Tissues

Nurse's Office

Single Serving Snacks - Pirate's Booty, popcorn, Popcorners, pretzels (Mrs. Lapery provides snack to students who need one.)

Thank you in advance if you are able to donate any of the above items.