There are many exciting events coming up at Boyertown Elementary School. We are looking forward to them!

December 5 & 6: BES PTO Holiday Shop

December 12: BES PTO Meeting in BES library at 6:30

Please do not park out front in the main entrance parking lot, where the buses pull in. We have had cars driving around our buses while our students were loading, and cars pulling out in between the buses while they are trying to leave. Also, please do not pull up in the bus loop and line up behind the buses. This is a NO CAR ZONE during student arrival and dismissals.

Fundraising links are coming soon from your teachers! Keep an eye out and check out the challenge that was presented to our school! We are raising money for a new playground! There has been an offer for an amazing donation, but we have been challenged before we can earn this donation! Let's come together and earn a new playground for our school!

Dear BES Parents and Guardians,

We are looking to fill some additional support roles at our school. If you are looking for a position that has the same hours as your children, this is a great opportunity for you.

If you are interested in working within the school setting, please call our CCRES representative, Ashley Burke at 484-593-5040. More information and an application can also be found at https://apply.workable.com/ccres/j/41ADE4D96D/

This will help us connect you with job opportunities at BES or other buildings within the school district. We hope you can join us for the 2024-2025 school year.

For ABSENCES that are for reasons other than illness as a vacation, a day trip, or a family visit, an EDUCATIONAL TRIP FORM must be completed and submitted to the school prior to the absence. Please do not use the online absence slip to report this type of absence. The form can be found here: BES EDUCATIONAL TRIP FORM.

**PHONE CALLS ARE NOT ACCEPTED FOR ABSENCES. PLEASE PROVIDE BOTH FIRST AND LAST NAMES OF STUDENTS WHEN SUBMITTING AN ABSENCE.**

For a LATE ARRIVAL, please email your student’s teacher and email the attendance mailbox directly at attendanceBES@boyertownasd.org.

For an EARLY PICK-UP, please either send in a note to the teacher(s) or email attendance at attendanceBES@boyertownasd.org. Please include the following: student’s name, teacher’s name, time of the pick-up, and name of the adult picking the student up (*they must show ID at the door).

For a FULL-DAY ABSENCE, please use the online slip (BES ONLINE ABSENCE SLIP ) or send in a note to the school that your child will be absent (please state the reason why).

***If a student is sent home by the nurse, an excuse is still mandatory if the student is absent the next school day. The nurse sending a student home does not excuse the child for the next day.***

UNLAWFUL ABSENCES: *If the school does not receive an email (or a written note) concerning an absence within three (3) school days of that absence, it will be coded as unlawful, and the Unlawful Absences letter will be sent to the parents/guardians. It will also be added to the student's file. *NOTE: We cannot remove an Unlawful absence after the three (3) school days have passed.

Each student may have a total of ten (10) excused absences per school year. Every absence after those ten absences will all require a Doctor’s Note.

There are new policies and procedures for clearances this year. Clearances must be uploaded into the new Raptor system in order to be in the school district's volunteer system. Volunteers who previously submitted clearances were grandfathered in until November 17, 2023. Once submitted, clearances will be take 10 days to be verified. Paper copies of clearances will no longer be accepted. Clearances are mandatory to volunteer in Boyertown Area School District. Please view the links below for more information and access to the Raptor site.

BASD Volunteer Process: NEW: BASD Volunteer Process | Smore Newsletters for Business

BASD Website/HR Department: Human Resources / Volunteer Information - Using Raptor (boyertownasd.org)

If you need to reach the Transportation Department, please email transportation@boyertownasd.org for assistance. If you need assistance determining the location of a bus, reporting a bus problem, etc., please dial 610-369-7684. If you need help with a deviation to daycare within your school's sending area, with non-public school transportation, etc., please call 610-473-3473.

For safety purposes and efficient dismissals, we ask all parents utilizing the car rider line, to please always remain in their vehicles. Getting out of your vehicle and/or pulling outside the cones is not allowed and may pose a safety hazard if not adhered to.

Please be aware of any parent(s), child/children or staff member(s) who may be walking throughout our parking areas and crosswalks. In addition, please continue to be mindful of our surrounding families who live in the area and the children who are walking to and from school. There are NO U-TURNS ALLOWED on Second Street.

If your child/children will need assistance during dismissal for any reason, please do not use the car rider line. Instead, please park in the side lot or in the back lot and walk to the school's front entrance to sign out your child/children for parent pick-up. Use crosswalks where applicable.

If using the parent pick-up at the end of the school day, please make sure to park in the school’s side parking lot, park in a parking spot, and walk around to the main entrance.

Please make sure to have your ID out and ready, sign out your student(s) in the sign-out binder, which will be located at (or just inside) the front door. The students’ names will then be announced over the loudspeaker and will be instructed to report to the main entrance, once all the bus numbers have been announced. Please do not call the office at dismissal time to have your student(s) report to parent pick-up.

⛔✋Please do not park out front in the main entrance parking lot, where the buses pull in. We have had cars driving around our buses while our students were loading, and cars pulling out in between the buses while they are trying to leave. Also, please do not pull up in the bus loop and line up behind the buses.✋⛔

IF YOU NEED TO PICK UP YOUR CHILD(REN) EARLY (before dismissal time) please SEND IN A NOTE to school or please EMAIL the teacher(s). Please include the student(s) full name, teacher/grade, the time of pick-up, the reason, and the name of the adult doing the pick-up (please make sure that they bring along their ID for verification purposes. This is for your child’s safety.

If your child’s transportation home (at regular dismissal time) is different than their usual mode of transportation, please send a note (or email) to their teacher so that they can make sure the student is reporting to the correct area at dismissal time. Thank you!

Hello everyone!

I just wanted to let you know about some information regarding our upcoming Chorus Concert!
All families are invited to our Winter Concert on Monday, December 9th, 7pm at Middle School West!

Any students that are involved in the concert should arrive to Middle School West by 6:30pm to prepare for the concert!

Students that are involved in the concert are expected to wear their red chorus t-shirts and black pants (dark shoes as well). Students will receive the Chorus T-shirts shortly. Please message me if you have any questions about that.

There will also be a dress rehearsal at Middle School West earlier on December 9th, during school hours. The dress rehearsal will be at 9 am - 10 am for 4th grade Chorus,

10 am - 11 am for 5th grade Chorus, and 11 am -12 pm for Vocal Ensemble.

For students involved in the concert, you should be a part of a Google Classroom specific to your choir(s). Please join the classroom to practice our songs at home (especially over Thanksgiving break)!

We are SO excited to share this music with you! I cannot wait for this concert and I hope many will be able to come and enjoy the wonderful music we have planned!

Blessings,

Anna Claire Vallette| K-5 General Music & Choral

Thank you, parents, for attending the Title I Parent Meeting. Below you will find the resources that were shared at the meeting. You will also find the forms that we would like all parents to complete. Please take a few moments to complete the forms. We appreciate all your support, and we look forward to a productive school year.

Please complete these 2 Google forms:

1. School Parent Family Compact

1. Parent and Family Survey

Title One Resources:

1. Title I Parent and Family Engagement Policy

1. Title I Parent Meeting Slides

1. Parent Resources/Handouts

Happy Reading!

Mrs. Graff and Mrs. McCaw

At various points throughout the year, the intervention team, Reading Specialists, and classroom teachers get together to review student data and discuss specific needs. Through this collaborative process we determine which students are in need of additional reading support through our WIN (What I Need) program. Students in WIN will work with an intervention teacher, Title 1 Paraprofessional, or Reading Specialist for 30 minutes each day to target specific areas of need. Occasionally, the WIN teachers may be unavailable to see their groups in which case those students would remain in their classrooms during that time and work on various reading activities. Should you have any questions about the program please don’t hesitate to reach out to our Reading Specialists, Mrs. Graff and Mrs. McCaw.

Mrs. Graff: jgraff@boyertownasd.org

Mrs. McCaw: lmccaw@boyertownasd.org

Title I Programs in the Boyertown Area School District:

Boyertown, Colebrookdale, Earl and Washington are the identified Title I elementary schools in our district. Middle School West is also identified as a Title I school. These schools receive Title I funding based on the percentage of low-income eligible students.

Title I is a federally funded program purposed with ensuring all children have a fair and equal opportunity to learn and grow. Boyertown has transitioned to a Schoolwide Title I program. A Schoolwide program is designed to serve all students in a Title I building and improve all structures to help support student learning. Our Schoolwide plan was developed with the help of parents, community members, teachers, and administrators. Our plan is evaluated annually to determine the impact that these supports have on student achievement.

As a Schoolwide Title I building, the staff is reviewing all students' data to determine needs. Students are identified for intervention if in need of academic support, primarily in the area of reading. All students receiving additional support must qualify through our district assessments. Support is provided to the students individually or in small groups both in class and as a pullout program. Schools set a goal for academic progress that will be measured through mid-year and end-of-the-year assessments. The Reading Specialists, Intervention teachers, paraprofessionals, and classroom teachers partner together to support students.

Our district works diligently to use the Title I funds as required and to provide these additional services to enhance the educational program of our Title I students. If you have any questions about the Title I program, please reach out to your building's reading specialist or call the Title I office at (610) 369-7414.

Title I Programs Website Link

Each month our Reading Specialists, Mrs. Graff and Mrs. McCaw, will share some resources to support your student’s learning at home. Please enjoy the December editions of the Daily Planner and Newsletter.

Please welcome our new staff nurse Valerie Bennett to BES!

Reminders

Please email both health room nurses and your child’s first initial and last name when sending an email. Our contact information is listed on the BASD website and at the end of the newsletter.

All 3rd grade students are required to have a Pennsylvania Required Dental Exam Form completed by your child’s dentist. If you have any questions regarding this requirement, please contact the BES school nurses.

All Kindergarten students, and students who are new to the elementary school, must have the Pennsylvania Required Dental Exam Form and the Pennsylvania Required Physical Exam Form completed by your child’s physician/dentist. If you have any questions regarding this requirement, please contact the BES school nurses.

⭐Please send your child to school with a refillable water bottle every day!

⭐Please send weather-appropriate change of clothing in your child’s bookbag

Our Health Room needs boy’s underwear sizes 6-10 and girl’s underwear size 4. If you can donate new underwear, it would be greatly appreciated!

Important reminders for cold and flu season…

1. Cover your cough!

2. Wash your hands before and after eating; after blowing your nose; and after using the bathroom. If you do not have soap and water available, use hand sanitizer.

3. Please read our guidelines on keeping your child home when they are ill.

BES Nurses

Valerie Bennett, staff nurse-vbennett@boyertownasd.org

Victoria Monts, certified school nurse-vmonts@boyertownasd.org

Volunteers are VERY important for all our PTO events and activities to run smoothly. We are in need of volunteers this year more than ever. We have many exciting opportunities to help out! If the event is outside of school hours, you will not need clearances. If it is during the school day, then you will. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us!

**Please be aware, this year if we do not have sufficient volunteers to run the event, the event will be cancelled. This is needed due to the lack of help in previous years, and the events not running as expected.**

BASD has the ability to utilize one snow day and 5 flexible instruction days throughout the school year in the event that inclement weather or other emergency school closing. Your child’s teacher will review these directions with your child early next week. In the event of an unexpected school closing, the district message will define what type of day is being used. Digital and paper/pencil options will be provided. If a student cannot access the Internet or paper copies of the learning activities, he/she will have three (3) school days to complete the assignments. Any student who fails to complete their FID assignment within three school days will be marked as absent.

BASD hosts an online Community Bulletin Board. The electronic bulletin board features district and community activities, events, clubs, resources, and more. The board is updated regularly and is an excellent source of information regarding things happening throughout our community and beyond. Be sure to check it out regularly!

Canva is also used in the creation of this newsletter.

Any additional applicable copyright information for items used throughout the newsletter will be provided on a use-by-use basis.

Boyertown Elementary
641 East Second Street
Boyertown, PA 19512
(610) 369-7462