Hathaway Happenings - Home
November 4, 2022
Dear Hathaway Families,
What a wonderful week in our Hathaway community!
Thank you to all who volunteered at our fall celebrations. It is wonderful to have these times back! A great time was had by all.
Our Fun Walk was a huge success! Thank you to Dana Squires for organizing and to all who donated and cheered us on. Thank you also to Mr. Sheldon Franck, the Freeman's grandfather, for the drone photo! What a beautiful day it was! Stay tuned for the final results.
Thank you for all of the food donations. We are making many families very happy this holiday season!
Be sure to let your voice be heard through our Student Services Program Review Family Survey. See below for details.
Please note that there is no school on Tuesday, November 8th and Friday, November 11th.
As always, thank you for your partnership in education!
Consider joining the elementary equity team
Food Drive Donations!
Class Golden Apple Winner!
Kindergarten in the Garden!
Grade 4 K buddies!
Little/Huntoon Pumpkin Races!
Book Fair Message
Hello Families,
Our Scholastic Book Fair will begin on Monday November 7th, and students will have the opportunity to preview the books with their classes on Friday November 4th. We will help them fill out wish lists with the titles and prices of books they are interested in and they will bring these home. Please note a 7% state tax will apply to all purchases. You are under no obligation to buy anything on the wish lists!
All for Books is a Scholastic program to collect money from families to help purchase a book for kids who would otherwise not be able to buy from the book fair. If you are able to donate to this effort, please send cash only in a sealed envelope or baggie with your child and label it “All for Books – Scholastic Book Fair Donation”. We will work with classroom teachers to fairly distribute it to those who may need a helping hand.
Lastly, please consider volunteering for a shift at the book fair if you are able. We just need a couple more volunteers for tomorrow, Friday November 4th, to help the kids fill out wishlists. You must be VIS approved already. The link to the sign-up is https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090548acab28a6fc1-hathaway
We appreciate everyone for their support and help in making our book fair a success!
Kindest Regards,
Ashley Billings
Fun Walk Update
Hello Hathaway Families,
The 3rd Annual Fun Walk was a huge success! We had beautiful weather, awesome signs, and lots of smiles. Thanks so much for cheering us on!
So far, we have raised almost $20,000 for the school through our Fun Walk fundraiser. Donations will be collected through November 8th, so there is plenty of time to reach our goal! Please check out our Fun Walk website and review this flyer for more information and other payment methods available. We'll be announcing the winners next week.
Thank you so much for your support of such a fun event for our kids!
Dressing for Recess
HPTA Hullabaloo
Hello Hathaway Families!
The time has come to start preparing for our annual Hullabaloo! The HPTA hosts a Hullabaloo event that has been going strong for over 30 years. This is a special event where Hathaway students are able to shop for their friends and families with the assistance of our shopping helpers so they can keep their gifts a surprise. This event is also fun for the whole family! There will be a morning performance from the 4th grade chorus, a visit from Santa, kids raffle, Feinstein Giving Tree, arts and crafts, snacks/treats and hot chocolate, and more! We will hold the Hullabaloo on December 3rd, 2022 from 9-1 in the Cafetorium and Gymnasium, with setup on Friday December 2nd from 6-8:30pm.
We are forming a planning committee to ensure this event is a success! The committee is responsible for all of the wonderful details that go into this event and the planning work will be divided amongst members. If you are on the committee, it does not mean that you have to volunteer to be there on December 2nd & 3rd unless you want to as well!
The first Hullabaloo Planning Committee Meeting will be on Wednesday November 2nd at 6pm on zoom. Please sign up to join the committee here.
To Volunteer on December 2nd & 3rd at the Hullabaloo and/or set up the night before, please sign up here. *Please note that some volunteer positions require VIS approval*
We would also love to have more contributions sharing your families cultural traditions for this time of year. Please email Hullabaloo HPTA Coordinator if you would like to contribute or if you have questions at all regarding Hullabaloo at marie@stefanowicz.com.
Thank you for helping our school and being part of this special event for the Hathaway community! We could not do these events without volunteers like you!
Hathaway Garden Group
Hello Hathaway Families -
There is one more Hathaway Fall Garden Day this year in the Hathaway Habitat and Gardens, this Sunday, November 6, from 1-3pm!
We had a great turn out for the two garden days so far, and with our quickly growing group of gardeners, we are now ready to finish up our fall work - harvesting and pulling some of the vegetable beds, and finishing some mulching and landscaping around the Habitat. Refreshments and tools will be provided, the weather looks perfect, and all ages are welcome. Please join us! RSVP to Marie Stefanowicz marie@stefanowicz.com
*Have a truck?? We are looking for someone with a truck who would be willing to come an hour or so in advance and help us haul mulch from Melville Park - please email Marie Stefanowicz: marie@stefanowicz.com
*Have a wheelbarrow? While not required, if you have a wheelbarrow, wagon, rakes, or shovels that you can bring for the afternoon, they will be put to good use!
***Keep reading for more information about our school garden, habitat, and ways to get involved!
Did you know Hathaway has its own Audubon-certified garden habitat to support important local wildlife?
The Habitat at Hathaway was designed by our teachers to allow for year-round research, quiet reflection, reading and writing and unstructured play or exploration. Recently, the Hathaway Garden Group has been working hard to keep the Habitat and its adjacent small garden beds a living resource for our students and staff. With the help of several Hathaway families, we were able to do some maintenance on the Habitat, to support the growth of our summer native pollinator plants for all to enjoy throughout the fall. This spring, Hathaway Garden Group planted the six raised beds with vegetables, herbs, and flowers for the students to experience with all of their senses. We hope to continue this maintenance so the Habitat and the garden beds can grow as a beloved space for the entire community.
Join us in the gardening work!
Do you love gardening, or want to do more gardening, learn about gardening, or just want to meet some other Hathaway families and join folks to do good work for the Hathaway community? Help us! Join us!
The Hathaway Garden Group has done a lot of work this year to enhance the Habitat and nearby gardens, so that kids of Hathaway can enjoy the winding paths among the native pollinators, and so the gardens will be there as a teaching resource and as a space to enjoy! We welcome more volunteers (families, students, staff!) to join in the fun.
How you can get involved:
1. Join the Hathaway Garden Group: we are coordinating year-round maintenance on the Habitat and on the small garden beds, which includes seasonal planting, watering, and harvesting. Join the group to receive regular updates, and to be part of that regular maintenance team - many hands make light work! Join our email list by emailing your name to Koty Sharp, kotysharp@gmail.com; please put "Hathaway Garden" in the subject line.
2. Come to a Garden Day: this season, we have planned three family gardening days (dates below), and we'd love to have folks volunteer to join us - you need only bring yourselves - we can provide tools and guidelines for the projects. The goal of our Fall Garden Days is to re-establish and re-shape the paths in the Habitat.
HPTA News
Thank you to everyone who joined us for our October meeting! We learned all about our Wonders curriculum. Here are the minutes. Stay tuned for more information on Abound Parenting in the near future. Our next meeting is November 16th at 6:00 PM in the library. Nurse Krissy is our Featured Speaker!
The HPTA needs your help to run the many events we arrange
throughout the year. All volunteers DO need to be VIS
approved. The VIS application form can be found on the
Hathaway website.
The HPTA is once again collecting Clement’s Market receipts.
The receipts can be placed in your child’s folder. We recently received a check for nearly $1,300.00! Thank you to all who turned in their receipts!
HPTA Board
HPTA - Hathaway School Volunteering
Welcome to a new year at Hathaway School! Volunteers in Schools (VIS) is the volunteer program in the Portsmouth schools. We hope that the VIS program will provide you an opportunity to become involved in our schools’ activities. In order to participate in any school activity with children including being a room parent, attending class parties, field trips, volunteering at HPTA events, and in the classroom, the following two steps must be completed and completed EVERY year:
Online Application - Step One:
Found here or online at www.portsmouthschoolsri.org under the ‘For Parents’ tab. Then select ‘Volunteers’ and ‘Volunteers Home Page’ from the drop down menu. On the left, click the link for ‘Google Form.’ This must be completed at the start of each new school year. It will put your name on Hathaway’s Volunteer Master List, alerting the VIS Coordinator that you plan to become a volunteer.
* EVERYONE who wants to volunteer must complete this step, even if you received a Volunteer Authorization Form at orientation or have submitted it already
Volunteer Authorization Form - Step Two:
A background check must be completed annually, by law in Rhode Island. You must fill out the authorization form for the background check and have it notarized. It also needs to include a copy of the front and back of your driver’s license, and a $5 check made out to ‘BCI’. Please use a paper clip to secure all documents together, no staples, and return to any Portsmouth School Department Office. The form can be found here as well as in the school office and online at www.portsmouthschoolsri.org under the ‘For Parents’ tab. Then select ‘Volunteers’ and ‘Volunteers Home Page’ from the drop down menu. On the left, click the link for ‘VIS Authorization Form’. It can take up to 2-3 weeks to process once you submit the form.
THESE TWO STEPS MUST BE COMPLETED AND APPROVED BEFORE YOU ARE ABLE TO VOLUNTEER IN THE SCHOOL.
Your school VIS & Room Parent coordinator, Marie Stefanowicz, is your liaison with the school. If you have any questions, or any problems as a volunteer, the coordinator is your first point of contact and can be reached at hathawayvis@gmail.com.School Meals Program
School meals are no longer free to all students for the 2022-2023 school year. Breakfast, lunch, and milk are available to purchase for all Hathaway School students. Students order lunch each morning through their teacher that day. Breakfast can be picked up by students in the cafeteria as they arrive at school.
Full price Breakfast is $1.00 and Lunch is $2.60. If your family qualifies for reduced prices, breakfast is $ 0.30 and lunch is $0.40. Milk is offered for $0.55 as a stand alone item.
Please apply for free or reduced lunch online by visiting this site: https://www.myschoolapps.com. Or, paper applications will be sent home the first week of school.
Payment for breakfast, lunch and/or milk can be made online at www.myschoolbucks.com. A student LASID number will be needed to create and make payments online using your “My School Bucks” account. Here is how you can access your student’s LASID number in ASPEN:
Payment can also be made by sending cash or a check in an envelope to school labeled with your student’s name, teacher’s name, LASID number and amount included. If paying by check, please make it payable to Portsmouth School Department with your child’s LASID number noted on the memo line. Send a separate check for each child in your family as payments cannot be split between accounts. KEEPING YOUR BALANCE PAID IN FULL IS VERY IMPORTANT.
Please refer to the family portal navigation below to access your child's LASID number.
Abound Parenting Newsletter
Hathaway Notification Form
Please complete the Hathaway Notification Form.
Thank you in advance for helping us to keep things organized and safe in our Hathaway community.
Nut Free Facility
Thank you for your support in keeping all of our students safe in our Hathaway community.
Securly Home
Securly Home is an app that allows parents to monitor their child’s Chromebook activity at home and add rules for home use. Please take some time to review the slideshow and recording of the parent meeting that took place on 9/16.
We encourage you to sign up now for Securly Home!
Accessing Aspen
If you are having issues accessing Aspen, you will have to email familyportal@portsmouthschoolsri.org with your child's name, date of birth, grade level, and your name. The system administrators will be able to restore access to your account and make sure that you can login.
Where Can I Find Past Parent Newsletters?
Important Dates
Important Dates
2022-2023
November 8th - Staff PD Day/No School
November 11th - Veterans' Day/No School
November 16th - HPTA Meeting, 6:00 PM, Library, Nurse Krissy, Featured Speaker
November 21st - School Picture Make Up Day
November 23rd-November 25th - Thanksgiving Recess/No School
December 14th - Early Release for Students/PD for Staff
December 15th - HPTA Meeting, 6:00 PM, Library
December 23rd - December 31st - Holiday Recess/No School
January 18th - HPTA Meeting, 6:00 PM, Library
January 27th - Bruins Night, Chorus Sings
February 15th - HPTA Meeting, 6:00 PM, Library
March 15th - HPTA Meeting, 6:00 PM, Library
April 19th - HPTA Meeting, 6:00 PM, Library
May 17th - HPTA Meeting, 6:00 PM, Library
June 14th - HPTA Meeting, 6:00 PM, Library
Howard Hathaway Elementary School
Email: littlel@portsmouthschoolsri.org
Website: https://www.portsmouthschoolsri.org/Domain/10
Location: 53 Tallman Avenue, Portsmouth, RI, USA
Phone: (401)683-0500
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hathaway.principal/
Twitter: @HathawaySchool