Bulldog Bulletin Weekly eNews

Good Evening Buena Vista Parents,

Okay....so it has started...out WCEF Read-a-thon is UNDERWAY and Buena Vista has to kick it up a notch. Currently as a school we have read 8,169 minutes and raised $5,423 dollars and this is just with 52 participant so far (out of 498 students). This is a good start but imagine of the support we could bring if every student just got one pledge and read 30 minutes a day for the next week and a half! We would be growing our brains, building our reading skills, and helping raise funds for our important school programs....art, science lab and music specials!

So I encourage each family to go on and sign-up. All students who complete a BINGO on their cards get an amazing Maze pen, when they get black out on their Bingo card they get can turn into their Bingo Card to the office for a raffle. It is so easy. There is a Pledgestar app!! Pledgestar is how you track reading minutes and funds raised, and they have an app to make it easy. You can also customize your child’s request, translate it into 50 languages, and more. To sign up visit pledgestar.com/wcef. Complete information can be found at wcefk12.org/readathon.

Mrs. Gramlick is a little bit competitive and right now Buena Vista is in second to the last place for minutes read and money raised. I KNOW we can reach our goals. As extra incentive to sign-up and log minutes tonight if we can get at least 250 students registered and logged minutes by Monday, I will dress up as the Bulldog and visit each classroom to say good morning and take a picture on Monday. There are also other great rewards we can earn:

• When the school reads 25,000 minutes we get a dress like a superhero day! Get your capes ready!
• When the school reads 100,000 minutes as a school we get hibernation day! (Get your PJs and stuffies ready)
• When we raise $15,000 we get extended recess with a dance party
• When we raise $20,000 (our school goal) you get to TP Mrs. Gramlick!
• WCEF is offering a $100 gift card to the student who gets the most sponsors, popsicle parties for the class with the most funds raised and most minutes read.
• Mrs. Gramlick is adding a pizza party with her for the top 5 readers of each grade level.

Right now, the top (minutes read and money raised) class is Ms. Yorkey's class with Mrs. Choy's and Mrs. Sumnicht's close on their heals. Jacob C. in third grade has logged 398 minutes of reading so far and Sophie A. in 5th grade has 365 minutes. With many other students ramping up too!

For up to date leaders, check out the District Leaderboard!

Let's go Bulldogs!!!

September continues to be Attendance Awareness Month

#ShowingUpTogether

DELAC Meeting:

The District English Language Advisory Committee (DELAC) is meeting virtually on Thursday, Sept 28th from 6-7 p.m. to celebrate our multilingual students and review the English Language Learner Program. See this flier for more information and the zoom link.

National Hispanic Heritage Month

National Hispanic Heritage Month is September 15-October 15 and teachers will be incorporating information into their classrooms and conversations. If you would like to learn more, here are some links as a resource.

Resources from PBS

Hispanic Heritage Month- Smithsonian

School Site Council

The first School Site Council (SSC) meeting of the year is scheduled for next Wednesday, September 27 from 3:00-4:00pm. Our SSC is a representative group of staff and parents that are responsible for developing and monitoring our BV Single Plan For Student Achievement. This plan identifies academic goals, strategies, actions and/or services to address the needs of our students. These meetings are open to the BV community.

It's a Great Day to Be a Bulldog!

Respectfully,

Angela Gramlick

Mrs. Thompson has just finished her third book this fall. Anything is Popsicle was just awarded a five star rating and the Literary Titan Award. Her new book send messages about perseverance. If you look closely, some of the characters depicted in her story might look familiar to you. I am so proud of her and the work that she has accomplished and the example she is setting for all of our students. Her other titles are Our 2020 Journey Back to School and Lucky the Leprechaun on the Loose.

We are so excited to have Amanda Minnich join our Buena Vista Bulldog Team this year. Amanda joins us with vast teaching and leading experiences in our WCSD district and in Kentucky with 19 years working in education. She will be operating as Administrative Support at Buena Vista and her primary role is to support students, families and teachers. Amanda will be on site a few day each week, so if you see her, be sure to give her a Bulldog hello!

Here are some fun fact she wanted to share!

Family: My family is spread out between California, Arizona, Kentucky and Indiana, but my favorite family member is my 5yr old niece, Remi.

Favorite color: Pink

Favorite Food: How does one choose between poke and tacos??

Favorite Hobby: Cheering on my Louisville Cardinals and Cincinnati Bengals!

• September 18th-September 29th-WCEF Read-a-thon
• Friday, September 22nd-PTA Outdoor Movie Night on the Field- 7:15 (when it is dark enough)
• Wednesday, September 27th-School Site Council Meeting -3:00pm
• October 2nd, 3rd, 5th, and 6th-Short Day Schedule-Parent/Teacher Conferences
• Wednesday, October 11th- Picture Retake Day
• October 11th- Campus & Gun Safety Event, 7-8:30pm at Las Lomas High School Theater

Our Contra Costa SELPA invites parents to attend the following information sessions: CAC Parent Trainings.

Odyssey of the Mind is an educational program that provides creative problem-solving opportunities for students. Team members apply their creativity and learn how to think divergently to solve open-ended problems that range from dramatic musical performances through interpretations of literary classics to building structures and mechanical devices.

• Teams of students will identify challenges and think creatively to solve a problem as a team over the next 4-5 months, and present their solution at the annual Odyssey of the Mind Regional Tournament in February.

• Students in grades K-2 are given a special Primary Problem. They also present their solutions in February but do not advance to the state level of competition.

If you think your child may be interested, please join me on a Zoom Meeting Thursday, September 21st from 5:00-5:30 PM. Feel free to talk to Kirsten Choy (First Grade teacher) kchoy@walnutcreeksd.org or visit the Odyssey of the Mind website at www.odysseyofthemind.com.

All Walnut Creek parents with students in grades K-12 are invited to join an important presentation and panel discussion on campus and gun safety on Wednesday, October 11, from 7-8:30pm in the Las Lomas High School Theater.

We will hear from Walnut Creek Mayor Cindy Silva, Police Chief Jamie Knox, AUHSD Superintendent John Nickerson, WCSD Superintendent Marie Morgan, WCSD Director of Operations/Safety Committee Ruben Fernandez, and Las Lomas Principal Heather Thorner about our city’s work to keep students and families safe from gun violence. Parents will learn how they can stay informed and do their part to keep our community safe.

Let's turn BV green and yellow every Friday, starting this week! Get creative, have some fun and show off your Bulldog spirit. There may be some surprises in store. Stay tuned for our upcoming Spirit Wear webstore this Fall.

Please take a look at the Sign Up Genius for ongoing volunteer opportunities. You are not required to be a PTA member to contribute. This is a great way to build community and support our students - we can't do it without you!

Our 4th annual Read-a-thon started strong on Monday with SO many readers and minutes logged! There’s still plenty of time to join in the fun and raise money to help WCEF ensure all students have access to a comprehensive education, open libraries, and a vast array of enrichment opportunities. Our goal is to raise $180,000! We can do this.

DID YOU KNOW? Only 9% of schools in California benefit from a credentialed librarian and 50% of library funding comes from the community. It's up to us to support our libraries!

Exciting prizes include gift cards to the students with the most sponsors, top readers per school, we even have principals willing to be silly stringed—all in the name of reading!!

WCEF’s annual Impact Report was published last week and showcases what an incredible difference your donations make at WCSD and Las Lomas. The report includes 2022-23 financials, programs funded, our Donor List, Business Partners, and WCEF's new Mission and Vision statements adopted in May of 2023. See how your gifts make a huge difference for 5,000 students in our community.

Parents, please remember to call the attendance line if you student will not be coming to school: (925) 944-6822 ext 3801

Thank you!

Email: agramlick@walnutcreeksd.org
Website: https://www.walnutcreeksd.org/Subsite001
Location: 2355 San Juan Avenue, Walnut Creek, CA, USA
Twitter: @BuenaVistaWCSD