BES Weekly Update

Sunday, May 11, 2025

Bransford Elementary Mission Statement

To create a positive learning environment for all students that integrates the Arts into Education.

* School Hours are 7:40-3:00 * Doors open at 7:20 *

Greetings from Ms. Gerdes

Howdy Bransford Families!

Happy Mother's Day to all our BES moms, grandmothers, and people in the role of moms! I hope you have all enjoyed your day to celebrate ALL you do. My day is quiet with one at work and one heading over later. I am grateful my mom lives 2 miles away so I can go visit with her. Wishing you all well.

Speaking of celebrations... WOW! This week at Bransford has overflown with celebrations which is such a blessing. We began the week by celebrating our performers in two nights of Moana Jr shows. My heart is still so full from watching their talent, bravery, and personalities shine on stage! It was CRAB-ulous! Next, it was time to appreciate our staff, which continued all week long. A tremendous THANK YOU to Denise Kapler for organizing and facilitating an incredible week for our staff, as well as so many families that dropped off sweet and treats for all. In addition, I had the honor of joining Ms. Phelps and Mrs. Hill at the GCISD Retirement Dinner to thank them both for all their dedication and years of serving the students at Bransford. The following day, our BES Special Olympians were celebrated at the GCISD Special Olympics Luncheon. Way to go, guys! On Thursday evening, we held our last PTA meeting of the school year. Our 24-25 PTA President, Bria Smith, reviewed all the ways our PTA has supported our students, staff, and school this year. Awards were presented, including three scholarships to Bransford alumni. It is such a treat to have former students visit and reminisce on their elementary memories. We wrapped up the week with an amazing Career Day! Mrs. Perkins provided a full, informational, and FUN day for our students, staff, and visitors.Thank you, Mrs. Perkins, for all of your hard work! Phew! What a week! This week we have Studio Showcases on Tuesday and Thursday evenings for grades 3-5. I recently read May is just December busy in a tank top. HA! So true. Hang in there families. Summer is coming!

Below you will see a button for student considerations for the 25-26 school year. I invite you to complete this form if you have special information to share for us to best place your child in a class for next year. This is a request form and I cannot guarantee that your request will be met. When we create classes, there are many factors we must consider such as Special Services, GT clusters, Math telescopers, Dyslexia groups, balance of class dynamics, etc. This is not a teacher request form or a placement request for friends to be together. Please note this form will only be open for one more weeks.

Please be sure to register your child/ren for the 25-26 school year. Currently, I am working on staffing for the new year. In order to staff accordingly, registration has to be in line with our number of staff. Currently, 238 students are registered out of our projected 450 children. We have 134 current students that have not yet registered. Please help out by registering this week to ensure our staffing is accurate for the new year. I appreciate your help in this matter.

There are a few spaces available for Pre-K next year! Learn more about GCISD Pre-K on our Website or secure your spot by completing the Pre-K application [Linked Here].

If you have any questions, concerns, or topics to discuss please do not hesitate to contact me at erin.gerdes@gcisd.net or 817-305-4920.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

All My BESt,

Ms. Gerdes

Student Considerations for the 25-26 School Year

A Peek at our Week

This Week's Student Spotlights

Things To Do

-Register your child/children for the 25-26 school year. Prompt registration ensures we have proper staffing for the upcoming school year. *See district information below for details*

-Order a School Supply Pac (see below) for the 25-26 school year!

Shout-Outs to our BESt Staff and School

Upcoming Dates

5/12-21 - Kindness for Kennels (see above)

5/13 - Studio Showcase and Choir for 5th Grade (6-8 pm)

5/15 - Studio Showcase for Grades 3-4 (6-8 pm)

5/19 - Campus Excellence Committee at 3:30 pm

5/20 - Field Day (Information Below) *Please note all guests must Raptor in. We invite you to Raptor in on Monday, 5/19*

5/21 - Hop & Pop

5/22 - Last Day of School / Early Release at 11:45 am

5/23 - Summer begins for our Texans

~

8/11 - Meet the Teacher

8/13 - First Day of School

Field Day Information - Tuesday, May 20th

Dear Bransford Families,

We are so excited about the last week of school and FIELD DAY!!!! If you plan to attend Field

Day, you must Raptor in as a visitor and wear your badge all day. To speed up the process, you

can drop by the day before, on Monday, May 19th from 7:15 am to 3:00 pm, to print your badge

for Tuesday. If your badge is missing or not seen, you will be sent to the front to Raptor in. In

addition, restrooms are available inside for visitors by entering the front door only.

Field Day is scheduled for Tuesday, May 20th. We will begin promptly at 7:50am with our

amazing choir singing the National Anthem. After, we have a fun surprise for our students, then

we will transition into the events and rotations.

Lunch is scheduled from 11:40am-12:40pm. (Sack lunches will be available for purchase in the

cafeteria) Your child needs to be prepared to eat at 11:40 am. We are giving our Texans a

full hour so they can come inside, eat, rest, and cool off for the remainder of the events. We ask

that you allow your student to come inside, rest, and recoup in their classroom with their

teacher and classmates.

Please consider packing your child a sack lunch. Because this day is so busy and the schedule is

different, we can't guarantee that a lunch you bring to them will be delivered in time for their

lunch break. We certainly do not want them to miss their next event waiting for their lunch.

Due to space and safety, we ask that you stay out of the building during lunch/break. We

appreciate your support in allowing our Texans to take a break with their teacher and class. Go

have some lunch yourself and cool off! At 12:40pm, 2nd-5th grades will return for the remainder of their Field Day!

All of our Texans need to wear the new Field Trip shirts on Field Day. We are so grateful to our

PTA for providing these shirts! Additionally, there are a few things our Texans should make sure

they bring with them:

1. A water bottle w/student’s name on it (we will have refill stations around the field).

2. Sunscreen (please apply before school)

3. Sack lunch from home (or purchase one in the cafeteria)

4. Cash for concessions (this is a fundraiser for 4th grade!)

5. Towel (we have a few water games!)

THE GOLDEN CLEAT has returned!!! This is a sportsmanship award that goes to the BEST

leaders, and helpers during Field Day! ONE class in each grade will receive the award, so be sure

to let your Texans know we will be on the lookout!

Please let me know if you have questions! We are excited!

Coach Smith

GCISD District Information

Pre-K Registration

There are a few spaces available for Pre-K next year! Learn more about GCISD Pre-K on our Website or secure your spot by completing the Pre-K application [Linked Here].

All Student Registration:

Register Before May 16
Registering your student for the 2025-2026 school year before May 16. The earlier you register, the better we can plan as campuses are staffed based on registration numbers. Registering now helps GCISD avoid last-minute hiring or staff relocations when the school year begins.
- Returning students: Register via Skyward Family Access
- New families: Request a Skyward Family Access account first
- Pre-K: Complete the pre-K online application first
- New siblings: Log in to Skyward Family Access and add a new student by selecting the “New Student Online Enrollment” tab.
Regístrense antes del 16 de mayo
Registre a su estudiante para el ciclo escolar 2025-2026 antes del 16 de mayo. Cuanto antes se inscriban, mejor podremos planear, ya que el personal de los planteles se asigna según el número de inscripciones. Inscribirse ahora ayuda a GCISD evitar contrataciones de última hora o reubicaciones de personal cuando comience el año escolar.
- Estudiantes que regresan: Regístrense a través de Skyward Family Access
- Nuevas familias: Soliciten primero una cuenta de Skyward Family Access
- Pre-Kínder: Completen primero la solicitud en línea para pre-kínder
- Hermanos nuevos: Inicien sesión en Skyward Family Access y agreguen a un nuevo estudiante seleccionando la pestaña “New Student Online Enrollment” (Inscripción en línea para nuevos estudiantes)
Families Can Access State Assessment Results on Scheduled Dates
Families can access their children’s state assessment scores through Skyward Family Portal on the Texas Education Agency's scheduled release dates:
- Monday, April 28, 2025 - TELPAS Alternate Score Release for Listening/Speaking and Reading/Writing for grades K-2 Emergent Bilingual
- Tuesday, June 10, 2025 - STAAR End of Course English I, English II, Biology, Algebra I, U.S. History Score Release
- Thursday, June 12, 2025 - TELPAS Score Release for Listening/Speaking and Reading/Writing for grades K-12 Emergent Bilingual
- Tuesday, June 17, 2025 - STAAR grades 3-8 Reading/Language Arts, Math, Science, and Social Studies Score Release
- Tuesday, June 24, 2025 - STAAR Alternate 2 grades 3-8 and End of Course Score Release
- Thursday, July 31, 2025 - June STAAR End of Course Score Release
Instructions on how to access scores in Skyward are here. If for any reason, your child’s results are not in Skyward, they can be accessed through the Texas Education Agency’s Family Portal, which will require an access code. Instructions on how to obtain the access code for your child can be found here. To learn more about the exams and what grade levels or students take the respective tests, visit TEA’s website.

Las familias pueden acceder a los resultados de los exámenes estatales en las fechas programadas
Las familias pueden acceder a los resultados de las evaluaciones estatales de sus hijos a través del Portal Familiar de Skyward en las fechas de publicación programadas por la Agencia de Educación de Texas (TEA):
- Lunes, 28 de abril de 2025 -Publicación de resultados de TELPAS Alternate de habilidades de escucha, expresión oral, lectura y escritura para estudiantes bilingües emergentes de grados K-2
- Martes, 10 de junio de 2025-Publicación de resultados de STAAR de Fin de Curso de Inglés I, Inglés II, Biología, Álgebra I e Historia de EE. UU.
- Jueves, 12 de junio de 2025 – Publicación de resultados de TELPAS de habilidades de escucha, expresión oral, lectura y escritura para estudiantes bilingües emergentes de grados K-12
- Martes, 17 de junio de 2025 – Publicación de resultados de STAAR de grados 3-8 de Lectura/Artes del Lenguaje, Matemáticas, Ciencias y Estudios Sociales
- Martes, 24 de junio de 2025 – Publicación de resultados de STAAR Alternate 2 de grados 3-8 y resultados de Fin de Curso
- Jueves, 31 de julio de 2025 – Publicación de resultados de STAAR de Fin de Curso de junio
Las instrucciones sobre cómo acceder a los resultados en Skyward están disponibles aquí. Si por alguna razón los resultados de su hijo(a) no están disponibles en Skyward, también se pueden acceder a través del Portal Familiar de la Agencia de Educación de Texas (TEA), donde se requerirá un código de acceso. Las instrucciones sobre cómo obtener el código de acceso de su hijo(a) se pueden encontrar aquí. Para obtener más información sobre los exámenes y qué niveles de grado o estudiantes presentan cada evaluación, visite el sitio web de la TEA.