2023-24 Parent Welcome Letter
(same information posted below)
Parent intro letter 2023
(learn more about Principal Morcone and his priorities for the school year)
August 10, 2023
Dear Big Cross Families:
I want to take this opportunity to welcome all of our new students and families to Big Cross Street School. If you attended Big Cross last year, welcome back! We are going to have an exciting year educating your child academically, socially and emotionally. There are a plethora of events planned this school year to foster student development. I would like to introduce a few staffing updates that we have this school year and to welcome new members to Big Cross:
Grade 2-Mrs. Jenna Callan (a previous assistant at BC)
AIS Math-Mrs. Pam Laurent (from KRS)
Grade 2 Co-Teacher-Mrs. Katy Cummings (from JH)
Kindergarten-Mrs. Shannon West
Reset Room/Behavioral Support-Mrs. Kim Lewis (previously grade 4 at BC)
Cafeteria Monitor-Ashley Caiazzo (from the MS)
Important Information:
- The school day runs from 8:30-2:45 p.m. with a breakfast option served in the cafeteria from 8:05-8:30 a.m.
- If your child is eating breakfast or needs to be dropped off before the start of the day (8:30 a.m.) students will enter only (door F) no earlier than 8:05 a.m. to ensure student safety.
- Pre K school day is held from 9:00-2:30 p.m. You can wait outside Door G (Big Cross Street) in front of the building for our friendly staff to assist your child in and out of the building daily.
- Breakfast and lunch will continue to be free this year.
Below, you will find the labeled door locations for regular drop off and pick-up times daily:
- Playground Door (E) in back of the building: 4-Burt/St. Clair, 4-Carpenter
- 2nd Street Door (F) right side of the building: K-Capozucca/Brennan and K-Diamond,
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- Girls Door (G) middle/right part of the building: 2-Taylor, Callan, 2-Anselment/Cummings, Pre K at 9:00 a.m. Fronhofer.
- Boys Door (B) middle/left part of the building: 3-Moynihan and 3-Sanders/Martineau
- Third Street (C) left side of the building: 1-Jenkins/Brennan and 1-Walajtys
- Please note that a photo ID can be required at any time during this process.
Events:
- New this year: Our Welcome Back PTA Ice Cream Social is on Thursday, August 31 from 4:00-5:30 p.m. at Big Cross!
- We will hold a Meet and Greet for students and families that have children in Pre K or Kindergarten only on Tuesday, September 5 from 2:00-3:00 p.m. at Big Cross. Staff will be there to answer any questions you may have.
Dates:
- First Day of School-Thursday, September 7
- Picture Day-Wednesday, September 27
- Open House-Thursday, September 28 from 6:30-7:30 p.m. (students are welcome to attend with families)
Attendance: Student attendance is a main priority of the district and we will be taking a proactive and progressive approach on this for the 2023-24 school year and beyond. It is a requirement of the New York State Education Department that the school keep a written record of each of your child’s absences from school. Please be sure to call the attendance office to notify us of your child’s absence and send a note when your child returns after an absence stating the reason for it with your signature.
Big Cross Character Strong Team: This year, we have created building-wide student expectations regarding appropriate behavior. By doing this, students will be able to earn paper “Bear Paws” that can be placed into a monthly drawing for rewards during our monthly school assemblies. Our goal is to maximize student learning time and create a seamless transition for all BC students by utilizing appropriate behaviors in and around school. We will be kicking this program off for students in September!
*Inside the envelope, your child will receive their first Bear Paw! They can bring it to school and keep it in a safe place for the assembly.
Please feel free to reach out to our office or myself directly if you have any questions. Wishing you a wonderful rest of your summer!
At Big Cross…We are Better Together!
Respectfully,
Paul Morcone
Principal