General Information

School Hours & Daily Schedule

School hours are from 8:10 a.m. to 2:40 p.m. Students may arrive between 7:55 a.m. and 8:10 a.m.

Tardy Students

Any student arriving after 8:10 a.m. will be considered tardy. Students who are tardy must be accompanied by an adult who will sign the child into school. If a child arrives after 8:10 a.m., the parent/guardian must park and sign his/her child in at the main office. Cars cannot park or idle in the Fire Lane. 

Breakfast

Breakfast is available from 7:55 a.m. to 8:10 a.m. in the cafeteria.

Parent pick-up in the afternoon is two lanes once you get past the crosswalk and lower parking lot. There is one lane of traffic before that along the driveway. Please do not block the crosswalk, as we need to get staff members out of the lower lot. When your child arrives, please stay in your vehicle. Staff will walk students to their cars starting after 2:35 PM. You will receive a placard with your child’s name to display in your vehicle window.

• Should you need to pick up your child early, please sign him/her out in the main office. We ask that early dismissals be limited to doctor’s appointments
• To maintain the safest environment for your child, please be sure the school office has a current custody agreement on file if one is in place.
• Time of pick-up: 2:35-2:50 PM – the announcement is made at 2:35 PM
• All parents/guardians must use the pick-up line. Parking in the lots at dismissal is not permitted.
• Cars within the cones must turn their engines off, an important safety measure recommended by the Barnstable Police Department. Once the cars are loaded, the staff member on the crosswalk will signal when it is safe to exit.
• Cars waiting for stragglers who are not outside will be rerouted back into the parent line.

NOTE: No cell phone use in the pick-up line! 

Early Dismissals

We have seen an increase in early dismissals. Every time that we call into a classroom, we are interrupting the learning in that classroom. We understand that there are times that require a child to be dismissed early.  Please try to avoid this, if possible, so that we can continue to provide uninterrupted instruction for our students.

Dismissal Change

It is vitally important that you send in a note if you are changing the way in which your child gets home. Occasionally, children forget that you are picking them up and get onto the bus. In order for us to expedite the retrieval of your child from the bus, please provide the staff member assisting you with the name of your child’s bus. 

Time of drop-off: 7:55-8:10 AM

Parent drop-off in the morning is one lane of traffic. You can drop students off starting at 7:55 AM. Please pull all the way up as far as you can, and have students exit the car curbside so they are not crossing in front of your vehicle. Your child will then exit the car, but we ask the adult to stay in their vehicle. We try to empty 10 cars at a time, allowing us to move traffic as quickly as possible.

Children exit on the curb-side only and walk along the sidewalk to the main entrance.

All cars drop off and leave in the order that they arrive. This will maintain the single line of cars from the point of arrival to drop-off to exit, avoiding any accidents from passing stopped vehicles.

PLEASE NOTE: No cell phone use in the drop-off line! 

Students who are walking or riding a bike to school must wait in the main foyer until all of the buses have left the area. If your son or daughter is riding a bike, please be sure he or she wears a helmet. 

All students riding the bus must have a bus pass issued by the school district. As per the bus company rules, students may only ride the bus that they have been assigned to and exit at their designated stop. Bus routes and times are printed on individual passes.

To apply for a bus pass and for further information, visit the main BPS Transportation page

Our cafeteria provides nutritious breakfasts every day and tasty lunches each full day of school. Both breakfast and lunch are free for all students.

MENUS

For weekly menus and more information, visit the BPS Food Services page.

When you arrive at school please press the entrance buzzer and then go to the front desk to sign in and get your visitor badge.

Communication between parents and teachers is critical in fostering academic and social achievement. We set aside two days in December to hold parent-teacher conferences. During these two days, there will be a half-day of school for students with dismissal at 11:00 a.m.

NOTE: You may schedule an appointment to meet with a teacher at any time you find necessary.

BUES Parent Teacher Association meetings are generally held on the second Tuesday of every month, when possible. All are welcome and encouraged to attend and participate in events.

PTA Website

School address: 730 Osterville-West Barnstable Road, Marstons Mills, MA  02648
From Boston: Route 3 South to Sagamore Bridge. Cross the bridge and proceed on Route 6 to Exit 5. Bear right off Exit 5 and keep to the left at fork in the road, (Osterville W. Barnstable Road). At the red blinking light and stop sign, proceed straight ahead. Follow this road to school. The school will be on your left.

From Lower Cape: Mid-Cape highway heading off cape. Bear left off Exit 5 and keep to the left at fork in the road. (Osterville West Barnstable Road) At the blinking red light and stop sign, proceed straight across. Follow this road to school. The school will be on your left.

Our commitment to you is to maintain a safe and orderly learning environment for your child while providing the best academic program possible.  As partners in education, we need to all be aware of expectations. While the Student / Parent Handbook provides an in-depth look at the code of conduct, the following will give you some insight as to what is to come:

At the Barnstable United Elementary School, we will emphasize to every student the following:

• Check your child’s homework every night.
• Work with the school to deliver a consistent message regarding student responsibility.
• Encourage your child to read nightly.
• Make sure your child is on time for school.

We ask parents and guardians to act as partners in education in these areas:

• Do your homework each and every night.
• Do the best you can each day in your classwork.
• Treat others the way you want to be treated.
• Respect self, others, and your surroundings.
• Take responsibility for yourself and your actions.
• Take care of each other. 

Under the auspices of Section 1111 (h)(6) of the No Child Left Behind legislation, parents have the right to know the professional qualifications of their child’s teacher.  In order to meet this requirement, BUES alerts all parents / guardians of any staff member who does not meet professional standards.