HOD Family Newsletter

Monday, October 12th

No School

Tuesday, October 13

🚒 🚒 Kindergarten Fire Safety Lessons 🚒 🚒

Tuesday, October 13

School Committee Meeting

HOD School Improvement Plan Presentation

F/K Library at 7:00 pm

Tuesday, October 20th

🚒 🚒 Grade 1 Fire Safety Lessons 🚒 🚒

Friday, October 23rd

🚒 🚒 Grade 2 Fire Safety Lessons 🚒 🚒

Friday, October 23rd

🎃 🎃 Trunk or Treat 🎃 🎃

5:30 - 7:00 pm

H.Olive Day School

Rear Parking Lot

More Information below

Tuesday, October 27th

Absentee Photos

Tuesday, October 27th

HOD School Council Meeting

HOD Conference Room ~ 3:30

Friday, October 30th

🎃 🎃 Kindergarten ~ Grade 2 Halloween/Storybook Parade 🎃 🎃

More info to follow

NCTV will film

Tuesday, November 3rd

Teacher/Staff Professional Day

No School for Students

Please take a moment to review our HOD arrival and dismissal procedures. These routines are essential to keeping everyone safe and ensuring a smooth start and end to each school day.

A friendly reminder for our preschool families dropping off in the back: the bus circle must remain clear of cars at all times.

Drivers in the carline (during arrival and/or dismissal) MUST remain in their car. Students should exit and enter through the passenger side of the vehicle.

During dismissal, the front circle is reserved for preschool families only until 3:00. Kindergarten through second grade cars should stop at the side of the building by the library and wait to be welcomed into the front circle by a staff member.

***Please display the dismissal sign with the student’s name and teacher in the passenger side window of your vehicle.

Thank you for your review and support as we all work together to make arrival and dismissal safe, smooth, and efficient for every student.

Arrival and Dismissal Details are attached below:

HOD Families,

We’re excited to share the Halloween & Storybook Costume Parade plans for this year!

In the spirit of our theme—What’s the Buzz… BEE Responsible, BEE Safe, BEE Kind—we’ll celebrate together on:

Friday, October 30, 2026

Costume Options
Students will have the opportunity to join in the parade by choosing one of two fun ways to dress up:

• Halloween Costume
  Children are welcome to wear a traditional Halloween costume of their choice. We encourage families to select costumes that are fun, lighthearted, and school-appropriate. Please avoid costumes with scary or gory elements, weapons (real or toy), or masks/face paint that fully cover the face.
  
  

• Storybook Character Costume
  Another wonderful option is to dress up as a favorite character from a book. This could be a beloved character from a picture book, chapter book, or even a fairy tale. Students are welcome to bring the book along to carry in the parade (bringing the book is a fun bonus, but optional!). This is a wonderful way to highlight the joy of reading while still participating in the fun of dressing up.

Both options are equally celebrated, and the goal is to make the day festive, creative, and enjoyable for all of our students. Costumes for the parade are optional for students.

Helpful Guidelines

• Safe & simple: shoes suitable for walking; avoid items that drag on the ground.

• Easy on/easy off: please send any costume and accessories labeled in a bag.

• Weather-ready: plan for outdoor walking; we’ll move indoors if needed.

• Respectful choices: please choose costumes that are kind and school appropriate.

While this is a school-day event for students, our friends at NCTV will be filming the parade so that families can enjoy watching it at home.

Thank you for helping us make this a joyful, inclusive celebration for our youngest learners. We can’t wait to see the creativity buzzing through our halls!

Mrs. Giffune……and all of us at HOD!

Each month, our teachers are on the lookout for students who are showing what it means to BEE Responsible, BEE Safe, and BEE Kind throughout their school day. At the end of each month, we create quite the buzz by drawing two students from each grade level to be recognized as our BEEs of the Month!

These special students are celebrated over the loudspeaker, receive their very own BEE of the Month certificate, and are invited to a small celebration in the office. It’s a wonderful way to recognize the responsibility, safety, kindness, and positive choices that help make HOD such a special hive!

Click the yellow bars below for more details.

Click on the Pumpkin for October Lunch Menu

Click on the Muffin for Breakfast Menu

If your child is not feeling well, your pediatrician is the best person to consult about whether they can go to school. Common sense, con­cern for your child's well-being, and the possibility of infecting classmates should all contribute to the decision about whether your child should stay home. As a general guideline, keep your child home if:

• They have a fever of 100 degrees F or higher. They should remain at home until fever-free for 24 hours without using fever reducing medications such as Tylenol or Ibuprofen.
• They have had episodes of vomiting or diarrhea within the past 24 hours.
• They have been diagnosed with conjunctivitis(Pink Eye). They may return 24 hours after the first dose of prescribed medication.

Below is a list of common health issues for your reference

Fever

A temperature of 100 degrees or higher is a fever. Children should remain at home fever-free for 24 ours without takeng Tylenol or Ibuprofen.

Vomiting/Diarrhea

Children should remain at home symptom free for 24 hours and are able to ingest fluids and food comfortably.

Coughs/Cold

If your child has discomfort from their cold symptoms, consider keeping them home. A continuous cough and/or continuous or green nasal drainage may need to be evaluated by your child's physician.

Conjunctivitis

Your child may need to be on an antibiotic for 24 hours after the first dose before returning to school or a note from your student's physician with other guidance.

Strep Throat

Children cannot return to school until 24 hours after the first dose of antibiotic is taken. They should feel well enough to return to school.

Suspicious Rash

Children with rashes that are suspicious should have them evaluated by a physician and be cleared to return to school.

Thank you, Norfolk PTO Business Sponsors!

Announcing our 2026-2027 PTO Business Sponsors

Sonic Boom Flag Football, Norfolk Recreation, Cronin Oil, Penny Investments LLC, Wrentham Cooperative Bank, Handymax Kitchen and Baths, Heritage Smart Technologies, C&C Ice Cream, Chris Corbett Electric LLC, Panepinto Realty Group, Ivy Music Academy, Kate Carlson, The Fred Center, Menchie's Patriot Place, Chris Rao, Polaris Family Medicine, Well-Minded Healthcare, PLLC, PCS Detailing, Platinum Physical Therapy, Y. Nayyer CPA, LLC, Simply Organized, Honey Bean Café, Pinch Runners, and Chestnut Dental

Order a Friend Directory by October 9!

• Lunch and Recess Duty:
• Please see the volunteer resources and sign-up for lunch and recess duty.

• Open Roles:
• If you’re interested in the following roles, please reach out to the Norfolk PTO to learn more!
• BINGO Night Coordinator - event scheduled for December 4
• Ziti w/my Sweetie Coordinator (2nd grade parent) for February 5
• HOD Movie Night Coordinator (K-2 parent) for March 19
• HOD Yearbook Coordinator (pK-2 parent) – Year-long role

Childcare During Parent/Teacher Conferences

The PTO will offer childcare services for your parent/teacher conference time slot in November.

More details to come!