FEBRUARY

2/15- PTO Trivia Night 6PM Baker Community Center

2/17- Presidents' Day (NO SCHOOL)

2/18- School Improvement Day (NO SCHOOL)

2/21 - CUSD303 2025-26 Kindergarten Enrollment Window Closes

2/21- End of T2

2/26- Early Release 2:35 Dismissal

2/27- NOON DISMISSSAL, NO LUNCH SERVED Half Day AM ONLY for K-5

2/27- Parent/Teacher Conferences in PM (NO SCHOOL IN PM)

2/28- Institute Day (NO SCHOOL)

2/28- Urban Air PTO Fundraiser 12-8PM

On Thursday, February 27th, all elementary students in D303 will have a half-day of school due to our Spring parent-teacher conferences. These conferences serve a different purpose than our Fall goal-setting conferences. Spring conferences provide teachers the opportunity to connect with families of students to discuss progress towards goals and areas for growth. The February 27 conferences have a much shorter time frame of 1:05 to 3:25. This means that teachers will only be able to meet with a few families that afternoon. Your child’s teacher will be sending a letter home with either a request to meet or a message stating that a conference is not necessary at this time. Should you feel that a conference is needed, parents are permitted to request a conference as well.

Due to the 12:00pm dismissal, students will not have lunch at school that day.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to reach out to either Mrs. Klueppel or your child’s teacher.

Bell Graham's 5th grade student ambassadors planned and led our Town Hall this past Friday. The theme was teamwork. Make sure to ask your child about the activity. It was a great success.

Click below for more information about HAC.

• Plan on your child have outdoor recess if the temperature, with windchill, is below 0

• Only students who are wearing snow pants and boots may play in the snow - LABEL AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE

• Students must wear coats at recess when the temperature is below 30 degrees

• Snow needs to stay on the ground: no throwing snow

As we start the second half of the school year, it's a good time to review procedures for the dismissal car line. We are noticing that students are not listening or looking for their rides resulting in long waits. It's cold out there for both students and staff! Working together can make this process more efficient for everyone. Please keep the following in mind.

• Pull off to the side past the car line to attend to any organizing or seatbelts.
• Remain in your vehicle. If your child needs assistance, wait for the dismissal staff.
• Do not enter the crosswalk.
• No cell-phones
• No honking
• Discuss dismissal expectations with your car rider. If we are calling for them multiple times, we may ask you to park or circle back around to keep the line moving.

We use a Visor Tag System. Each family has received a car tag that has the family last name and the class codes of students in the family. The use of this visor tag expedites our car rider line tremendously as staff members are able to get students ready for their cars as the cars pull up! Please display the tag on your passenger side visor, or passenger side window, so that it is visible to the BG staff as you pull through the pick-up line.

Be sure to send your child with appropriate outdoor clothing for recess. Students have outdoor recess daily unless the outside temperature is below 0. Don't forget to label your child's snow/cold gear (jacket, gloves, hat, etc.) whenever possible.

Our lost & found is conveniently located in the lunch room where every student has a daily opportunity to look for lost items. Please encourage your child to check for misplaced items. Don't forget to label as much as possible. We regularly donate unclaimed items at the end of each month

You can email your child's teacher directly from HAC. After logging in, click on the "classes" image on the top menu. You will be able to view your child's schedule. Each of your child's teachers are listed under "teacher." If you right click on a name, you are given a "copy email address" option.

Bell Graham is committed to supporting all students in showing their BG Best: Being respectful, responsible, and safe. In the past years we have focused on extrinsic rewards with having students purchase items from our BG Shop with their earned BG coins and Bucks. This year we are moving away from this system and looking to reward students with staff, parent, and community connections. In order to do this we are seeking your help. We are looking for parents to volunteer before school or during school to play a game or build legos with students, make a craft, teach students a new skill, such as sewing or crocheting, or anything else you would like to share with our Bobcats. Please sign up today and Dr. Dieckman will be reaching out to you to schedule a date and time for you to share your talents and time with our students.

Thank you for your continued support. We could not do this without you.

BG Monthly Parent Support Raffle

*Remember that you must have a liability waiver form on file before you volunteer. You are welcome to email completed forms to Mrs. Cloy kristin.cloy@d303.org.

If you are visiting the school, for any reason, you MUST have your ID with you. Your ID needs to be scanned before you are permitted to enter the building.

If you intend on volunteering at any point this school year, the office MUST have a liability waiver form on file for you. Please do not sign up for any volunteer opportunities unless you already have a form on file for this year. This is an annual form that needs to be completed every school year. You are welcome to email completed forms to Mrs. Cloy kristin.cloy@d303.org. Field Trip volunteers will have to follow additional steps to volunteer.

We appreciate our volunteers and value your time. When you are in the building for any reason, please be respectful of classroom instruction and do not make unexpected visits to your child's classroom. Thank you for helping us minimize classroom disruptions.

• Absences should be called in by 7:45 AM
• You can leave a message 24 hours a day
• State your child’s name, their teacher's name and the reason why your child is out.
• If they are ill, please list their symptoms.

You are also welcome to email Mrs. Cloy in the main office. kristin.cloy@d303.org

Please call the office when you are 5 minutes away and we will have your child ready and waiting for you at the office. You will have to press the buzzer to come inside the vestibule to sign them out on our iPad. 331-228-2100.

The following information is being provided as a reminder of District 303's attendance procedures and how information may be recorded and shared with a student's family throughout the school year.

Cold and flu season is upon us! Recently, the nurses at Bell Graham Elementary School have been caring for a number of students experiencing fevers and other cold-like symptoms. We are also aware that some students are absent from school because they have been diagnosed with the flu and other influenza-like symptoms. During the months of October through April, each school in District 303 tracks influenza activity in cooperation with the Kane County Health Department. We consult with their staff to determine whether influenza activity in a school warrants additional follow up, and at this time, there are no additional interventions needed. Preventative measures remain the most effective way to reduce the spread of influenza.

Students who present to the Health Office with a fever or are feeling poorly are sent home. To prevent widespread flu in the school, we recommend that your child stay home from school if experiencing flu or cold symptoms. To decide whether or not to send your child to school, please consider the following guidelines:

Consider keeping your child at home for an extra day of rest and observation if he or she has any of the following symptoms:

● Very stuffy or runny nose and/or cough

● Mild sore throat (no fever, no known exposure to strep)

● Headache

● Mild stomach ache

Definitely keep your child at home for treatment and observation if he or she has any of these symptoms:

● Fever (greater than 100 degrees)

● Vomiting (even once)

● Diarrhea

● Chills

● General malaise or feelings of fatigue

● Frequent congested or croupy (barky) cough

● Lots of nasal congestion with frequent blowing of nose

To help prevent the flu and other colds, teach your children good hygiene habits:

● Wash hands frequently

● Do not touch eyes, nose or mouth

● Cover mouth and nose when sneezing or coughing, use a paper tissue, throw it away and then wash hands

● Avoid close contact with people who are ill

Colds are the most contagious during the first 48 hours. A child who has a fever should remain at home until "fever free" for a minimum of 24 hours without medication. A child who has started antibiotics needs to be on medication for 24 hours before being considered non-contagious and able to return to school. Keeping your ill child at home will minimize the spread of infections and viruses in the classroom.

ALL MEDICATION, including any and all over the counter medications, vitamins and cough drops need a doctor’s authorization/order to be administered here at school. You can find the form(s) on the district website.

Thank you in advance for helping make this year at school as healthy as possible.

Nurse Kerisa (kerisa.espinosa@d303.org, 331-228-2104)

LeeAnna Anzaldi,MSN, RN, PEL-ILSN

STAFF APPRECIATION VALENTINE TREATS - 2/14

Please help us shower the BG staff with love by providing yummy treats for a Valentine’s buffet on Friday, February 14th! If you don't want to bake or buy sweet treats, there is an option to donate money towards the cheese fondue buffet also being provided. Please see the signup for more details HERE.

ASE - VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!

ASE is coming, and we need your help making these classes run smoothly. We need lots of help after school, so please consider joining us! SIGN-UP HERE!

TRIVIA NIGHT - 2/15

Trivia Night is Saturday February 15th and will be held at the Baker Community Center. Doors

open at 6:00 p.m. The night will include brain tingling trivia as well as amazing Silent Auction

and Raffle Baskets up for grabs.

Gather 6 - 10 people and create your team. Come up with a creative theme for your team and

decorate your table for additional prizes!!

This is a 21+ event. Tickets are $45 per person and include dinner and two drinks. Additional

drink tickets will be available for purchase. There are only 150 tickets available, so get yours

before they are gone. Click the link below to purchase tickets now!

Trivia Night - Cheddar Up

DONATIONS NEEDED - Are you a Cubs, Sox, Bears, Bulls, Blackhawks or any other sports

team season ticket holder? Do you own a local or small business or are part of a business that

invests back into our community? We are looking for donations for our Silent Auctions and

Raffle Baskets. If you or someone you know is interested in helping us out, please contact us at

bgeblast@gmail.com

SHOUT OUTS

Did your kiddo make an awesome play at their baseball game? Did they win an event in gymnastics? Is it their birthday? Do you just want to make a random day special for them? Send them a SHOUT OUT!! For $10 you can have 5 pictures along with a message displayed on the TV screen outside of the LRC for an entire day. After making your purchase in the Square Store, please send an email to Alicia Flint at aliciafulgencioflint@yahoo.com with your pictures, message and date to be displayed. Pictures MUST be sent 7 days prior to the desired display date or we cannot guarantee your message will be loaded in time. SHOUT OUTS PAYMENT

STAY CONNECTED

Check out these great ways to stay connected and find out more information on the PTO!

Bell Graham PTO Webpage

Bell Graham PTO Facebook page

Bell Graham Monthly Calendar

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Any questions or comments? Please email the PTO at bgeblast@gmail.com. All comments or questions will be discussed at our monthly Board meetings and responded to accordingly.

This week we spotlight JULIE DICHIARA who is co-chair of this year’s Trivia Night! This new committee chair has been a part of the Bell Graham family for three years and has taken on the task of creating a fun-filled night for BG parents. This popular 21+ event is sure to please all with Julie’s attention to detail and thoughtful planning. Thank you Julie for your willingness to co-chair this event and for all you do for BG!

• 1 lunch with a loved one per student per school year for bday (1 TOTAL, not 1 with grandma, 1 with aunt, 1 with mom )
• ONLY bring food for your child and/or yourself. No sharing food/treats with friends at the lunch table.
• Stay for lunch ONLY, recess is not included
• Bring your ID for check in. No ID, no entry
• You do not need to give advance notice, but are welcome to email the office the day of to speed along the check in process.

Click here to see what time your child eats lunch.

We are happy to report that we will have a therapy dogs visiting us again this year. Please reach out to Dr. Dieckman or Julianna Harmon if you have any questions.

The D303 Community Preschool has openings for the 2025-2026 school year. The Preschool Lottery will be held from January 21, 2025 - February 7, 2025. Names will be drawn on February 10, 2025 and you will be notified by end of day February 11, 2025 if you received a spot for the 2025-2026 school year. Those who are not selected in the lottery will be placed on a waitlist and will be notified if space becomes available.

If you are interested in D303 Community Preschool for the 25-26 school year please fill out the link below for your child to be added to the lottery.

25-26 Preschool Lottery Sign-up

Mrs. Amy Klueppel - Principal

Website: bellgraham.d303.org
Location: 4N505 Fox Mill Blvd St. Charles, IL 60175
Phone: 331-228-2100
Facebook: facebook.com/BellGrahamElementary
Twitter: @BellGrahamD303

• District 303 Safety and Security site
• ALICE Family Letters