Summer Bulldog Bulletin

Hello Bulldog Families,

We are moving quickly towards the start of the 2023-24 school year! Over the last few weeks, we have been carefully planning our various beginning-of-year events for students and families, and I'm excited to now share that information with you.

Within this newsletter you will find information that is separated into four main categories:

1. Upcoming Dates and Events
2. Kindergarten Information--Please read if you have a rising kindergarten student
3. Grades 1-5 Information--Please read if you have a child(ren) in grades 1-5.
4. General School Information--Information that everyone should read.

Please note at the top you can click translate to any language that you need.

8/10- Kindergarten Popsicles on the Playground 4:00-5:00

8/24- 1st thru 5th Grade Meet the Teacher 4:30-6:00

8/28- 1st thru 5th Grade First Day of School

- Staggered Entry for Kindergartners last Names A-D

8/29- Staggered Entry for Kindergartners last Names E-N

8/30- Staggered Entry for Kindergartners last Names O-Z

8/31- Kindergarten Meet the Teacher 5:00-6:00

9/4- NO SCHOOL

9/5- ALL KINDERGARTNERS START SCHOOL

9/15- Instructional Assistant Appreciation Day

- First Day of Hispanic Heritage Month

9/21- Parent Curriculum Night

9/25- NO SCHOOL

9/26- Interims Go Home

Kindergarten Staggered Entry:

All kindergarten students will participate in staggered entry. This means they will only attend school on one day during the first week of school between August 28th and August 30th. Your child's assigned date for staggered entry date is based on last name:

August 28th- Last Names A thru D

August 29th- Last Names E thru N

August 30th- Last Names O thru Z

August 31s- No students. Meet the Teacher 5:00-6:00

September 1st- Kindergarten Teacher Workday

September 4th- No SCHOOL

September 5th- ALL Kindergartners start school

Kindergarten Class Lists:

Class lists for Kindergarten will not be finalized until we have completed Staggered Entry. Teachers will call you on Thursday, August 31st to introduce themselves prior to the start of Open House that evening. As a gentle reminder, I do not accept parent requests for specific teachers.

Kindergarten Meet the Teacher:

Our Meet the Teacher event for kindergarten students and families will be held on Thursday, August 31st from 5:00 - 6:00 PM.

Vaccination/Health Forms:

Per state law, we are required to collect vaccination records and student health forms for each kindergarten student. Student vaccine records and health forms are due no later than the first day of school. Forms may be scanned and emailed to Cecilia Sanchez at csanchezguerrero@wcpss.net or they can be dropped off directly at the school.

Class Lists:

1st-5th grade class lists will be finalized by Tuesday, August 23rd and classroom teachers will send a welcome email to each family on his/her classroom roster. Be advised: I do not accept requests for specific teachers. Once published, class lists are considered final and I will not accept requests for changes.

1st-5th Grade Meet the Teacher:

Meet the Teacher for students in 1st-5th grade will be held on Thursday, August 24th from 4:30-6:00 pm. This is a floating event but will end at 6:00.

School Devices

If your student left their device at school it will be in their new classroom when they return. If they took the device home they need to return the device with the charger during Meet the Teacher. Please make sure the device is cleaned and prepared to return. As a reminder student devices that are lost are not replaced and students are placed on day use only.

Addresses and Phone Numbers

​​If you have had a change in address, email address, or phone number please contact Cecilia Sanchez via email csanchezguerrero@wcpss.net at or call the school at 919-460-3443

Talking Points

​​TalkingPoints allows teachers to communicate with parents via text messages easily - including parents who don't speak English. TalkingPoints is a two-way multi-lingual platform that allows teachers and parents to communicate in over 100 languages. Teachers use a web or mobile application to send messages to parents who receive them in their home languages as text messages or through the parent mobile app. Parents can reply in their own languages because TalkingPoints will automatically translate it to English for teachers. The software will sync directly to parent contact information in PowerSchool. Please sign up here: Talking Points

School Supplies:

School Supplies are being provide by the school. Teachers will have a small list of materials they may need for their classroom. This will be provided at Meet the Teacher. Students only need to have a backpack, water bottle, and lunch box. Please clearly label all items.

2023-24 Transportation Requests:

If you are not currently registered for transportation but would like service next school year, register for service immediately. Please only request service if you plan for your student to be a regular bus rider. Students who don’t ride consistently will be removed from bus rosters. To register, go to www.wcpss.net/busrider.

Bus routes for traditional calendar students will be posted online (https://www.wcpss.net/Page/174) on August 18th. Once posted, families should confirm the location of their student’s bus stop. Bus stops change each year based on actual ridership.

Notice--Bus Driver Shortage:

Please be advised: WCPSS is continuing to face a significant shortage of bus drivers, which is already creating delays in morning and afternoon service for students and families across the district. These delays will likely get worse as traditional-calendar students resume school in August. As such, families are encouraged to provide their own transportation this school year if they are able to do so. If you would like to provide your own transportation this school year, please visit wcpss.net/declinebus and complete the form to decline bus service as soon as possible, preferably by Friday, July 21.

2023-24 School Meal Prices:

Meal prices for the 2023-24 school are noted below. If your family is in need of meal assistance, I strongly encourage you to complete and submit an application for Free/Reduced Cost Meals. Applications will be mailed out to all WCPSS families in the coming weeks and will also be available during our Meet the Teacher event at the start of the year.

• Breakfast Cost--$1.50
• Lunch Cost--$3.25

Pre-Pay for Meals Online:

The easiest way to pay for school meals is to create an online account at www.MySchoolBucks.com. Please remember, you will need your child's student ID number to register. Once registered, parents may load money, set spending limits, and set-up auto-loading so that your child never runs out of lunch money.

Free/Reduced Price Meal Application:

Families in need of meal assistance must reapply every school year if they are interested in receiving meal benefits. Applications may be submitted online at https://www.wcpss.net/Page/1849. Paper copies are also available at the school.

Student Medications:

Please remember that students cannot receive medication (prescription or over-the-counter) at school without a signed 1702 form. The 1702 form is linked below and must be signed by a licensed medical doctor before being submitted to the school.

• Form 1702--Parent's Request and Physician's Order Form for Medication

All prescription medication must be in original packaging with a pharmacy label. OTC medications must be in the original packaging and labeled with the student's name. Medications may be dropped off at school at our Meet the Teacher event in August.

Before & After-School Care Options:

Before and after-school care will be available for students onsite at Briarcliff for the 22-23 school year. Applications and registration information for the before and after-school care programs can be found on our website at: https://www.wcpss.net/domain/11295.

Carpool Tags:

Please save your old carpool tags! Student will use the same tags they had last year. If you have a kindergartner coming they will use the same number heir sibling had last year. If you are new to Briarcliff and will be using carpool regularly tags may be picked up in the cafeteria during our Meet the Teacher event on August 25th. Please remember, carpool tags are not required for families who only use carpool for morning drop-off.

BES Parent/Student Handbook:

Our parent/student handbook (linked below) contains a list of our school-based policies and procedures. Please take several minutes to thoroughly read through the handbook to ensure that you are knowledgeable about our established policies.