Bobcat Blast

Dear Bethany Families,

It was wonderful to see increased engagement in our first PTO meeting of the year last night on Zoom. I especially love when new-to-the-school and Kindergarten parents and guardians get involved right away. It is our hope for ALL children and families to feel a deep sense of belonging in the Bethany School community. Attending meetings is just one of the many ways to be connected. If you haven't seen all of the opportunities to get involved and volunteer, I highly encourage you to see if there are things that interest you in this Bobcat Blast and on the BSPTO website at BSPTO.org. 🙂

I'm looking forward to our Jog-a-thon Kick-off Assembly tomorrow. A big shout out to Melissa Lasiw and team for their work in preparing for the "LAUNCH" of our biggest fundraiser of the year! 🚀 🏃‍♂️ Please look for materials that will go home with your children on Friday and mark your calendars for September 27th so you can be part of the fun (whether helping or cheering on the kids)!

With appreciation,

Ms. Rosenquist 🌹

September

• 12 - Vision Screening, All School
• 17 - Ali-Oli Performance
• 27 - Jog-A-Thon

October

• 2 - Walk & Bike To School
• 9 - PTO Meeting, 7:00 pm
• 11 - No School: Staff Development
• 15 - Picture Day
• 24 - World Dwarfism Awareness, Wear Green
• 24 - Haunted Hallway, 5:30pm
• 25 - No School: Grading Day

Click on the Link Below for the full school year calendar

Kids in 1st-5th will have an assembly tomorrow to learn about this year’s theme and prizes. The Kindergarten classes will each get individual classroom visits so they can learn more about what a Jog-a-thon is and this amazing Bethany event!

There will be Jog-a-thon poster making on September 18th (more info below), and we are excited again this year to have weekly raffle prizes. To be eligible to be entered into the raffle all you need to do is set up a Pledgestar page! (Setting up a Pledgestar page also gets your child/ren the first level prize automatically!). More instructions on how to set up a page will be included in the flyers going home tomorrow.

The first raffle winners will be announced on Monday!

IMPORTANT NOTE: The QR code on the flyers for how to donate to Boomer the Bobcat leads you to last year’s page. If you are interested in donating to Boomer (any funds donated will be used to randomly “boost” kids to get them closer to their fundraising goals) please use this QR code:

Also, a big thank you to everyone who has volunteered to help! We can still use more volunteers to help with our school’s largest fundraiser. If you are interested please reach out to Melissa at Bobcatsmom32@gmail.com.

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Poster Making Party for 3rd-5th grade students!

Students will be making posters for our upcoming Jog-A-Thon that will be displayed all around the school. This is a free event and does not require parents to attend, however you do need a plan of how your child will be getting home.

This event will take place after school on Wednesday, September 18, 2024 from 2:20pm-3:45pm.

We have limited spots available so make sure you click on the link below to get your student signed-up. (If you have more than 1 child who wants to participate, you must fill out a sign-up form for each child.)

If you have any questions please email Olivia at livzinn@gmail.com

Thank you!

Sign-up Form for Poster Making

We will be celebrating National Hispanic Heritage Month with a special performance next Tuesday, September 17th.

Cultures of Spain, Mexico, and Latin America are explored in this exciting program of world music and dance which traces the origins of these are forms from China, the Middle East, and Africa

In October or November, all 3rd grade students in Beaverton will be administered the Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT) Screener. This 30-minute test measures students’ learned reasoning abilities through verbal/picture analogies, number analogies and figure matrices. Families whose student scores in the 90th percentile or above on the CogAT screener will be notified and invited to give permission for their students to take the remainder of the test. There will be post-screener testing and full CogAT testing happening in elementary schools up until winter break. For more information about testing, please contact your school’s TAG facilitator. If you would like to read more about the CogAT for students older than 2nd grade, click here.

If your student is on vacation or ill during the 3rd grade screener, we will not be able to accommodate a testing session in advance. When you return, check in with the building TAG Facilitators to see if there is an easy way to add your student to a future testing session.

If your 4th or 5th grade student did not attend a Beaverton school in 3rd grade, or missed the screener for whatever reason, you can tell your student’s classroom teacher that you would like your child to be tested. Students cannot be tested with the CogAT in consecutive years. For example, a 4th grader cannot take the CogAT if they took the screener in 3rd grade.

Parents of 5th grade students, whose students did not take the CogAT as 4th graders, who would like to request their children take the CogAT again can fill out this google form. Parents need to sign up on the google form at least 5 days before the testing is scheduled to happen at their specific school.

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En octubre, a todos los estudiantes de tercero, y quinto grado del Distrito Escolar de Beavertón se les administrará el Examen de Detección de Habilidades Cognitivas (CogAT). Esta prueba de 30 minutos mide las habilidades de razonamiento aprendidas de los estudiantes a través de analogías verbales / ilustradas, analogías numéricas y matrices de figuras. Si desea leer más sobre el CogAT para estudiantes mayores de segundo grado, haga clic aquí.

Actualmente, el objetivo principal de administrar CogAT es identificar a los estudiantes para TAG en el área de la capacidad intelectual. Se invitará a los estudiantes que obtengan puntajes del percentil 90 o superior en la evaluación CogAT a que tomen la prueba con la versión completa de CogAT que se usa para la identificación potencial de TAG. La versión completa de CogAT se entregará en noviembre. Para obtener más información, comuníquese con (su Facilitador de TAG para la construcción).

Las familias de 5th grado pueden solicitar que sus estudiantes tomen el examen CogAT completando este enlace.

Here are the minutes from the PTO Meeting last night.

September 11th PTO Meeting

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It’s time to show your school spirit! ⏰ September 17th is the final day of the Bethany Back-To-School Spirit Wear Sale! Save 30% off the entire site before it’s too late. Don’t miss out! 🎒🛒 https://1stplace.sale/77425.

During the year we will have different outside organizations offer classes after school at Bethany. We will put a link to their fliers in the Bobcat Blast. You can also find them on the Bethany website.

Please click on the banner below for more information on Play Fit Fun.

September 5, 2024

Dear Parent/Guardian:

As part of the Beaverton School District’s promise of Belong. Believe. Achieve. we aim to create an environment in which all students feel a deep sense of belonging to their school community — where they are accepted, supported and encouraged to be their authentic selves. As part of this commitment, our school will be administering the SAEBRS universal screener this school year. This tool is intended to build student awareness and help school staff know which students might need additional Social Emotional Learning (SEL) support. There are two kinds of SAEBRS assessments: student self-rating assessments and teacher rating assessments. Staff will administer the following assessments up to three times per year at the corresponding grade levels listed:

• Kindergarten-12th grade: SAEBRS teacher rating tool

• 2nd-12th grade: mySAEBRS student self-rating tool

We believe this survey is a valuable tool because the SAEBRS screener can help identify risk factors in students. The tool also informs the selection of SEL lessons and other instructional practices in classrooms.

Other Important information:

• 1. Participation is voluntary and your student may decline to participate.
• 2. The mySAEBRS is done using a computer or tablet and takes students approximately 5 minutes to complete.
• 3. If you would like to see the exact questions asked on the survey you may contact the counselor at your student’s school.
• 4. Please contact Toni Rosenquist at Bethany Elementary no later than Friday, September 12th if you do not want your student to participate in the SAEBRS or mySABERS during the 2023-2024 school year. (Parent Square Message or email: toni_rosenquist@beaverton.k12.or.us)

More information can be found at: https://www.illuminateed.com/products/fastbridge/social-emotional-behavior-assessment/mysaebrs/

Thank you,

Ms. Rosenquist

We want to thank all of our parents who have signed up in the new volunteer system. If you still need to sign-up please use the link below.

Volunteer Information and Application

You will not find a school supply list for Bethany. Rather than every family having to do their own shopping, we collect money for supplies. We began this a few years ago and it has worked well. This year we are asking for a donation of $35.00 per student.

These donations are flexible, and confidential--only the office knows who donates and how much.

We understand that some families are not able to afford the cost of supplies. All children will receive the same supplies, regardless if they are able to contribute towards the cost. Some families may be in the position to make an extra donation towards helping others. If you would like to help by giving extra money, please click on the "Donations" tab that appears on your child's grade level page.

Instructions for Online Payment System

Free Meals for All

Starting this school year, all BSD students will be eligible to receive one free breakfast and one free lunch at school daily.

Families do not have to apply, and there are no income requirements. This change is due, in part, to more generous eligibility requirements at the federal level and more funding through the state’s Student Success Act. Research indicates that universal free meals improve student health and attendance in addition to reducing bullying and behavioral issues.

Student meals include an entree, sides and a milk. Students must take the entire meal to be eligible for the no-cost option; students who only opt for milk do not qualify for free milk. This is a federal requirement meant to encourage students to eat a well-balanced, school-made meal.

The district will continue to charge for à la carte items such as milk, second entrees and snack items.

Bethany Elementary

Email: BTHY-Communications@beaverton.k12.or.us

• School Office Hours: 7:15am - 3:30pm

School Hours: 7:45am - 2:20pm

Phone: 503-356-2030

Attendance Line: Call the school number and push 1 when prompted for Attendance
Website: https://bethany.beaverton.k12.or.us/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bethanyBSD

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bethanyelementarybsd/