TIME PERIOD – School begins at 9:15 AM

9:00-9:15 AM: General drop-off period 

School doors open at 9:00 AM. Breakfast is served. 

Students wait in their classrooms until the homeroom bell rings at 9:15 AM.

Students who enter the building after 9:15 AM must report to the office for a late pass

Traffic pattern

( planning a change—follow current guidelines and updates to come.)
Entrance and exits are one-way. Enter on the EAST side of the school. When entering during drop-off, stay to the left to allow buses and authorized cars to pass on the right and go around the building.  

Students Arriving by Bus: 
Buses will pull into the horseshoe driveway and drop off at the back of the school at the west end back top. There will be many adults stationed outside for morning duty to welcome students and help get them safely into the building.
 

Students Arriving by Car: 
For parent drop off, students will be dropped at one of the following locations:
● Main Entrance Horseshoe Driveway
● Rear Door (Eastside) near pathway coming from Walsh parking lot 
● Rear Door (Westside) near Cornell Street entrance. Cornell Street can be used as a rolling dropoff point, please be respectful to neighbors and do not park and leave your car on the residential street. A staff member will be stationed at this location to help students walk across, as there will be buses driving through this area.
 

There are three options for parking: 
● Frost Street 
● Walsh parking lot  
● Dunning main front parking lot. Please note that parking in the Dunning front parking lot will take longer as the first priority will be to allow for buses and vans to drop students off. Staff will be stationed outside of this parking lot to direct traffic during this time. 

Bicycles 
Older children, with parent permission, are allowed to ride bicycles to/from school. Bicycles need to be secured in the bike rack in the WEST SIDE of the school.  At the end of the day, children riding a bike will be dismissed with “walkers” and they will walk their bike across the crosswalk escorted by the crossing guard. Parents must contact the Principal or Assistant Principal and request a meeting to review these rules before a student begins riding his/her bike to school.
 

Crosswalks
Always use the crosswalks when walking to and from school. There is a crossing guard stationed at the entrance of Dunning. If crossing over to Cornell or to Walsh out the back doors, all students must cross the parking lot with a staff member.
 

 TIME PERIOD – Dismissal is 3:30 PM 

( planning a change—follow current guidelines and updates to come)

The front building doors will be locked until the bell rings and students are dismissed.  

For students going home by bus or van: 

At dismissal time, students riding a bus or van will be called to line up at their designated bus/van location. Once lined up, students will be lined up while they await their bus to be called for loading. Each bus location will have staff members to take attendance of students riding the bus on that day and escort them to the bus. 

For students who will be Parent Pick Up or Walking home: 

There will be four dismissal locations for walkers or parent pick ups. At 3:30, we will begin calling students by their dismissal location one at a time. Parents should meet their child at that location at 3:30. Once students have been picked up, we ask that you leave school property promptly to keep the flow of dismissal moving quickly. Please note that all playground areas are closed until 5:30 PM daily as our after school program Explorers is using the playground areas.

● East Rear Door (Eastside Door #14) - Parents can park on Frost or in the front parking lot. 

● Walsh Door (Eastside Door #12) - Back east wing door (room 18) parents can park in the Walsh parking lot. There will be a staff member on duty to release students to parents or escort walkers to the walking path to Walsh. 

● Cornell Door(Westside Door# 7) - Back west wing door (room 33) parents can park (stay in your vehicle) at Cornell cul-de-sac and your student can meet you. There will be a staff member on duty to release students.

Reporting an Absence or Tardy 

Absence line:  508-626-9155

Call between 4:00 P. M. and 8:30 A.M. if your child is to be absent OR tardy.  

Late students must report directly to the office upon arrival.

Dismissing a Student Early 

A written request from a parent is necessary for ANY dismissal changes. Requests should be emailed or brought into the school office before the start of the school day. No requests will be taken after 12:30 PM unless it is an emergency. 

Parent Teacher Conferences 

Teachers hold parent teacher conferences twice a year. These are usually held during school hours on early release day. Teachers will communicate directly with parents for date/time slots.  The fall conference is a progress report. The spring conference is a summary of the year and an assessment of your child’s progress. 

Report Cards 

Report cards are shared twice a year. Report Cards can be found on the SIS (Aspen X2) portal. 

Curriculum Nights 

In the early fall, the school hosts Curriculum Nights. Teachers and administration will discuss the general curriculum for the year and the expectations in each grade.  Parents will also see classrooms and have time to ask questions to the staff and teachers. It is recommended that children do not attend.

The lost and found is located in the front lobby near the main entrance door (outside the library). Items not claimed (after a certain period of time and with notification) are donated to goodwill.
 

CORI Forms

CORI,  Massachusetts Criminal Offender Record Information, is good for 3 years.  It is required if you are going to be working or volunteering in the school or on a field trip. Please check in with the office to confirm your CORI hasn’t expired before signing up for an event this year. An online CORI form can be found here: CORI Form

Volunteer Opportunities

Helping with events 

The PTO is excited to host fun activities and events each year. Information about these events is posted on the lobby bulletin board and in our weekly PTO newsletter. There is always a need for volunteers and chaperones for events and field trips – we cannot do it without your help!  Please be sure that you have a processed CORI prior to volunteering in school or field trip.   

Notes From The Office is Dunning’s weekly school newsletter, sent to parents through ParentSquare. It includes messages from the principal and important announcements from school staff. It’s an informative resource and a great way for families to stay connected to what’s happening at school.