FUTURE FAMILIES
For families preparing to leap into kindergarten & beyond
The purpose of this newsletter is to bring you stories, suggestions and important information from across Hillsborough County Public Schools to help your child and family prepare for a successful transition into our schools!
IN THIS EDITION
Ready Freddy wants you to register for kindergarten. Why you should do it NOW
Free books, crazy creatures and FUN! Our Literacy Fair was a huge success!
How a Comfort Room is providing a safe space for children who need a little break from the day
Florida Prepaid Scholarship—Specifically for a family JUST ENTERING Kindergarten!
Do you have a child entering kindergarten this year? Don't miss this opportunity!
Each entrant must:
- Attend a Ready for Kindergarten event OR start the kindergarten registration process for the 2020-2021 academic year by April 30, 2020
- The winner must provide documentation as a Florida resident and citizen
One winner will be randomly chosen from the attendees of Ready for Kindergarten events and kindergarten applications through April 30, 2020.
Click HERE for more information about this scholarship.
Find out more about Florida Prepaid College Savings Plans. Be sure to use promo code Hills1920
RIGHT NOW is the RIGHT TIME to register for kindergarten
It’s ONLY February. But NOW is the time to act if you have a child heading into kindergarten this fall.
From February 18–21, all across Hillsborough County, elementary schools are holding Ready for Kindergarten events. These events offer students and families a firsthand look at kindergarten life.
Each school’s Ready for Kindergarten program is unique—they often include a one-on-one conversation with a staff member to answer your questions, a tour of the school, time to meet the principal and administration, a pop into a kindergarten classroom and a packet with all the necessary information about the school.
You’ll find the date and details for each school’s Ready for Kindergarten event at SignUpForKindergarten.com.
To find your neighborhood school, head to HillsboroughSchools.org and enter your address in our School Locator. We also have Magnet and Choice schools that are open to students from anywhere in our county. Look for them online at HillsboroughSchools.org/choice. All our schools and award-winning programs are tuition-free.
This is also a great time to register your child for school. Why register now? You’ll become part of your new school family right away, learning about upcoming events and more. You’ll avoid the extra stress of signing up in the days right around the start of school. Plus, schools determine their number of teachers based on the number of expected students—registering now helps them create the best plan for the year ahead.
What if you can’t make your school’s Ready for Kindergarten event? Don’t panic! Hillsborough County Public Schools campuses LOVE giving tours and showing off our schools. All you have to do is contact the school and set up a tour time. Explain that your child is an incoming kindergarten student and you would like to see the school, ask some questions and possibly register at that time.
Your caring teachers can’t wait to see you this fall!
FREE BOOKS! Yes, we said FREE BOOKS!
Hundreds of students have a new home library thanks to the Literacy Fair held this past Saturday at SouthShore Regional Public Library.
School Board Member, Dr. Stacy Hahn, is making literacy her top priority and says getting books into the hands of our youngest readers is most important.
Families showed up to the library and were able to choose five FREE books to take home with them.
There were also free vision and dental screenings, crafts, a petting zoo, face-painting, free breakfast provided by McDonald's and Bess the Book Bus.
Students from Lennard High School performed Aladdin and dressed up as fairy tale characters to read books to our young ones.
It was a wonderful day filled with reading and fun and family!
AND... dozens of students went home with brand new library cards as well!
Thank you to our partners from Caspers Company, Feeding America, Pepin, MyON, and the YMCA for making this day possible.
We are planning more Literacy Fairs in the future... We'll be sure to let you know when and where.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT OUR SCHOOLS
All 7 of our School Board members, plus our current and incoming superintendents, traveled to Tallahassee recently to advocate for students and schools.
We are proud & excited that 21 of our Magnet Schools have been recognized by the Magnet Schools of Merit Award program. The dedication of the Magnet Lead Teachers, as well as administrators, teachers, students and families is truly exceptional.
Hillsborough Schools will be working with the U.S. Census Bureau to raise awareness of the 2020 Census. Our district feels it's important to work with the Census Bureau to make sure everyone in our area is counted, so we get our share of the $675 million that comes to Hillsborough Schools from funds based on census data.
OUR INCREDIBLE STUDENTS AND PROGRAMS
Meet Landric. He is an 8 year old at Lomax Magnet Elementary School in Tampa. Landric received $100 from his great-grandmother for Christmas. He used the $$ to start his own charity, Landric's Read and Share, where he reads to preschoolers & gives them the books!
The "Comfort Room" at Hunter's Green Elementary is a spot where students with sensory issues and anxiety can feel calm. It was paid for by two generous community partners and is already impacting students' lives.
Seven of our high school cheerleading squads made it to Nationals this year! Congratulations to these hard-working athletes!
The student displays and performances at the Florida State Fair are a huge success. Thank you to Tony & Lauren Dungy for signing their new books for students
OUR INCOMING SUPERINTENDENT, ADDISON DAVIS
Mr. Davis is a lifelong educator. He began his career more than twenty years ago as a Physical Education and Earth Space Science Teacher in Duval County. He rose up through the ranks as a Vice-Principal and Principal in Duval County and was appointed to numerous leadership positions there.
In 2016, he was elected Superintendent of Clay County Public Schools where, under his leadership, the county made tremendous gains in grad rates and the number of "A" and "B" schools.
Read more about Mr. Davis and the process to name him superintendent
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Email: newsletter@sdhc.k12.fl.us
Website: HillsboroughSchools.org
Location: 901 East Kennedy Boulevard, Tampa, FL, USA
Phone: (813)272-4000
Facebook: facebook.com/HillsboroughSch
Twitter: @HillsboroughSCh