Dear Thacher Families,

It was so nice to see so many of you this afternoon. Hearing the hustle and bustle and happy conversations makes the school feel right again after a summer of vacant classrooms. Much of what is included in this newsletter is a repeat of the update we sent a few weeks ago but there are a few important things to be aware of:

Buses: If you child rides a bus to school, you can see the bus stop location and pickup time by logging into the Aspen Family Portal and clicking, "Transportation." You can also view all of the stops by visiting the Distict's Transportation Page. As a reminder, please be out 15 minutes early for the first two weeks as drivers are learning their routes and routes change which can cause the buses to be earlier or later than expected.

Car/Walker: Please see below for our Car Dropoff/pickup and walker procedures.

Recommended classroom supply lists can be found on on the school's website: Thacher Elementary School.

Warm regards,

Frank Rich, Principal

Sarah Desautel, Asst. Principal

Similar to last year, breakfast and lunch is provided free of charge to ALL students. You can find food menus on the website at: https://www.fdmealplanner.com/#Attleboro.

Breakfast:

For those students who need to eat breakfast, we ask that you drop them off at 8:30AM. We try to get them back to class for the start of school at 8:45AM. This helps them start the day on time with all their classmates.

Lunch:

Please review lunch choices with your child, and make sure there is something they will like. For younger students, talk to them about which choice they want, so making the choice in the classroom is easier for them.

Breakfast and lunch will continue to be served at no cost to all students. Please note that even though meals will be free for all, it remains essential for families who believe they might qualify to complete the household Application for Free and Reduced Price Meals for the 2025-2026 school year. We strongly encourage ALL families to submit this form as it allows us to determine eligibility for P-EBT benefits and waive or reduce transportation, athletics, and other fees. Documenting qualifying families also significantly impacts state funding for our district, so completing the form is a direct way to support our schools.

Walkers/Car Drop-off

The James Street doors open at 8:30 am.

Families can either choose to go through the active drop-off loop or park in the main lot and walk their children to the door. We strongly encourage families who live close by to walk to school and families who transport their children to utilize the active drop-off loop.

• We understand it can feel like an eternity waiting in the active drop-off line, especially if you have to get to work or some other appointment, but we have timed it and on an average day, it only takes 5-10 minutes from entering the line to pulling away from the school.

Active drop-off loop: (see image below)

• The first car in line should always be at the “drop-off” sign.

• All of the other cars should be lined up along the curb by the sidewalk in front of the school.

• Make sure you DO NOT block the crosswalks.

• Make sure your child has all of their belongings and is ready to exit the car when you reach the sidewalk.

• Students MUST exit the car on the right-hand side.

• Parents MUST stay in their car.

• Please do not pass cars in line in front of you. Wait for them to complete their drop-off and pull away when they do.

• Once it is safe to do so, pull forward and exit the parking lot.

• There will be no parents/visitors entering the building at Car Line Drop-Off.

Walkers

Students who walk should use the sidewalks to arrive at the main door (same door as car riders - see above). Doors open for students at 8:30. Please note that families are responsible for supervising students who arrive before this time.

Our goal is to ensure a safe, orderly, and efficient car rider pickup process. Following the procedures at all times will help us achieve our goal. We appreciate your patience and cooperation.

CAR PICKUP:

• Cars should remain in a single file line while waiting in the pick-up line.

• Dismissal begins at 3:25. The first car in line should be at the “drop off” sign.

• Guardians MUST STAY IN THEIR CAR

• Display your family car sign clearly on your dashboard or passenger side window so staff can read your child’s name.

• If you are carpooling, please display BOTH students’ names on the car sign. You may add the additional child’s/children’s name(s) on a separate piece of paper, but please write large enough for the staff members to see it.

• Stop your car at the curb behind the car in front of you.

• Students will be called out to the cars as they pull up to the front of the line.

• Children MUST be loaded on the right side of the car.

• A staff member will assist your child into the car if needed.

• Children will be responsible for buckling themselves in.

• Please safely exit the line when the child(ren) is buckled in. Wait for the car in front of you to go.

WALKERS:

• Walker dismissal will start at 3:20, and end at approximately 3:30 pm

• Staff will be at the door, checking/asking parents for students’ names; students will be called out of line and sent out the door with their parent(s)/guardian. Students will not be released to others without permission.

  • Parents/Guardians will meet their children at Door 3 near the gym.

Tardy

If you are running late (arriving after 8:45), you will need to park in the main lot, walk to the main office doors, ring the buzzer to be let into the building and sign your child in. The main office is located at the set of doors on the bus loop.

Dismissing Your Student

If you need to change your student's dismissal routine (e.g. change from taking the bus to getting picked up, dismissing early for a doctor's appointment, etc.), you must send in a note. We recognize that much of our world now communicates digitally, and it's tempting and logical that you would think to email your student's teacher. However, we run into issues when either the teacher is out that day and unable to alert the office, or if the email comes in while the teacher is in front of the class and isn't able to check their email. With all of that in mind, please send in a paper copy of the dismissal note.

Bus stops/times will be posted on the district website soon. Most answers to questions about transportation including bus stops, the fee for service program, or routes can be found on the APS Transportation Home Page. Should you have a specific question that you cannot find the answer to, please contact the transportation office at 508-222-0012. A reminder that for the first 2 weeks of school, times may be off by 5-15 minutes as everyone adjusts to more traffic on the roads when school begins as well as those families who take that extra minute to give a goodbye hug or words of encouragement. Please be at your stop at least 10 minutes before the estimated time of pick up/drop off. Once two full weeks have gone by, you will have a more realistic, regular time that the bus or van arrives/drops off at the designated bus stop. Thank you for your patience at the beginning of the year.

If your child(ren) will need medication in school next year, please see your doctor for medication orders. These need to be renewed at the beginning of each school year.

Please make sure we have the most up-to-date vaccination records for your child. If your child has any allergies (e.g., food, bees, etc.), please reach out to me to make sure we have that in our records to help us keep your child safe.

Looking forward to seeing you all again soon!

Lisa Kilfoyle lkilfoyle@attleboroschools.com

Stephanie Rosario srosario@attleboroschools.com

School Nurses

Thacher Elementary School

2025-2026 District Calendar of Events (click to view)

September 2: First Day of School - Grades 1-12

September 9: Kindergarten Orientation (more info to come)

September 10: First Day of School - Kindergarten

September 25: Welcome Back Night