New Family Information - Sherman ES

The first day of school is Wednesday, August 16, 2023. School starts promptly at 7:50 a.m. with Morning Assembly in the Middle Yard (unless it is raining in which case go straight to your classroom). Parents and guardians are encouraged to join their children at Morning Assembly (which typically lasts about 5 minutes) all year long!

Sherman has a safe and efficient morning drop off system called Stop Drop & Go at the main (Union Street)
entrance to the school. Just drive up as far as possible in the white zone and Sherman parent/guardian volunteers will help your child out of the car. The white zone is designed for driving straight on Union across Franklin to keep traffic moving. Do not park or wait in your vehicle in the Union Street White Zone during drop-off/pick-up hours- this is a drive through zone. Also please do NOT drop off children on Green Street or at
the parking lots on Franklin. There is no one stationed there to ensure your child’s safe entry into school.
Please notice the no left turn sign at the intersection of Franklin and Union during certain times of the day.

A few days prior to the start of school you will receive a letter from the principal. IMPORTANT: The
address label on the envelope will state your child’s room number and the letter inside will provide the name of the teacher. Be sure to SAVE the envelope so you have your child’s homeroom number! Assignments will also likely be posted on SharkNet the Friday afternoon before school starts.

A backpack large enough for an 8.5 x 11 folder, a bottle of water, and a snack for recess. If your child will be using the meal service, you don't need to register, you can view the menu here https://www.schoolcafe.com. Children are welcome to bring their lunch some days and use the meal service other days. Please be sure to label all lunch boxes, water bottles, and clothing (Buy Mabel's Labels & raise money for Sherman). Kindergarten teachers also recommend an extra set of clothes for your child (underwear, socks, pants & shirt) in a bag to be left in the classroom (with name clearly labeled on the bag and each item). Your teacher may also distribute a list of recommended or requested school supplies during the first week of school. If possible, please try to bring these items within the first two weeks of school.

Yes, for the first week of school, Kindergarten parents and guardians may accompany their children to the classroom. You are always invited and encouraged to join the whole school in the middle yard for morning assembly on a daily basis. After the first week, however, you are encouraged to leave your child with their teacher in the middle yard after Morning Assembly or at Stop, Drop and Go on Union Street.

School ends at 2:05pm Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and every Wednesday, an early release day, ends at 12:50pm. Pick-up occurs outside of the main entry on Union Street. You may either find street parking (not in the white zone!) and come get your child, or drive through the white zone for pick up, similar to morning drop off (line wraps up Gough Street). Please inform your child’s classroom teacher if your child will attend Sherman’s afterschool program (Sharks Until Dark), another afterschool program off campus, or if you or another caregiver will be picking up your child on Union Street. For your safety, please do not jaywalk across Union Street to pick up your child. We have crossing guards on Gough and Franklin Streets to help you cross safely.

Please review, complete and promptly return all of the paperwork that you received when you registered your child at the school. If you are unsure of what is needed, please check with Ms. Agnes in the main office. Though the district changes the requirements from time to time, our understanding is that parents typically need to provide certain immunization records and a record of a California based pediatrician visit within 6 months prior to starting school. Additionally, we request that all families fill out a SharkNet Roster Form so that they can be included in our password-protected school roster and class directory, have access to all of the valuable information on SharkNet, and receive important school and PTA communications via email.

Sherman’s aftercare program, Sharks Until Dark (SUD) or “Sharks”, runs every day that school is in session. SUD is managed by Bay Area Community Resources and contracted annually with the district. Find out more and register online at Sharks Until Dark.

Please try to attend the summer playdates hosted by current Sherman families at local playgrounds in August. Fill out and return the roster form to make sure we have current contact info for you and can send you reminders when it gets closer! Additionally, the PTA will host informal morning coffees for parents and guardians after drop-off from 8-9 am on the first day of school and the next two Fridays after drop-off. During these coffees, you can mingle with other parents, become a PTA member, meet aftercare staff, and hopefully get all of your questions answered. You can also sign up for some of our volunteer committees (events! fundraising! communications! diversity & inclusion! garden! library! technology! art! room parents! auction! etc.). “Diving in” and getting involved from the start is the best way to feel connected to our wonderful community.

The Sherman community uses our password-protected intranet, SharkNet, for most parent communication. In early August (and not before), if you have provided us with your contact information/email address, you will receive an invitation to create a personalized login in August. Classroom assignment information will also likely be posted on SharkNet a few days before school starts. If you have trouble with SharkNet, please email sharknet@shermanschool.org.

Yes! Please contact pta@shermanschool.org and someone will get back to you as soon as possible.