Big Bend Elementary Newsletter

Phone: 262.363.4401 OFFICE: #0 / ATTENDANCE: #1 / HEALTH ROOM: #3

Fax: 262.662.1309

Office Hours: 7:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

School Hours: 8:30-3:35 Monday-Friday

• Halloween costume guidelines
• Volunteer application
• Attendance procedures

Thank you BBES families for all your support with our Bulldog Bolt! It was a fantastic event and I am so appreciative of all the money raised. Thank you to our PTO for all of their work with this fundraiser and everything they do for our students and staff. After my first month here at BBES, I just want to share how impressed I am with the students and families of our community. It's truly been a fantastic first month, so let's keep this rolling.

Thank you,

Greg Burton

Principal

Big Bend Elementry

burtogr@masd.k12.wi.us

.

Parent/Teacher Conferences are quickly approaching; October 17, 23 and 24. Our preferred method for conferences is in person. The online sign-up will open at 8:00 a.m. on Thursday, October 3, and can be accessed on the school’s web page for students in grades 4K-5th (6th grade families please read below for more information). Watch for a ShoutPoint on October 3 with the direct link to be used to sign up.

The school webpage link will include the links to all the classroom Parent/Teacher Conference sign-ups through midnight on Monday, October 14. Once on the page, click on your child’s teacher’s name to be directed to the appropriate sign-up. Please sign up for one 15-minute slot. If you are a family that has multiple households, you will sign up for one 15-minute conference time per child.

Be sure to provide your child’s first and last name in the comment area when signing up. Names will not appear on the site. When entering an email, make sure it is your contact email. If something is not working properly or if you have questions, please contact your child’s teacher.

NEW for 6th grade only….

Thursday, October 17

• 4pm - 7pm = Reserved for the families in which a conference is requested by the teachers. The sign-up link will be shared directly with the families.

Wednesday, October 23

• 4pm - 5:30p = Drop-in format for those families who do not receive a sign up link. Families will wait in line and not have a scheduled time.

• 5:30pm - 7:00pm = Reserved for the families in which a conference is requested by the teachers. The sign-up link will be shared directly with the families.

Thursday, October 24

• 8:00am - 9:30am = Reserved for the families in which a conference is requested by the teachers. The sign-up link will be shared directly with the families.

• 9:30am - 11:00am Drop-in format for those families who do not receive a sign up link. Families will wait in line and not have a scheduled time.

Feel free to contact your child’s teacher with any questions. We are looking forward to discussing your child’s progress!

November 4, 2024 from 8:15a-6:00p

Brooklife Church (857 S Rochester St, Mukwonago)

Do you have concerns about your child’s development?

The Mukwonago Area School District will conduct preschool screening for children between the ages of 3-5 years old, or children not attending 5 year old kindergarten. Children MUST be residents of Mukwonago. If you have concerns about your child's development, you are encouraged to register.

District staff will screen your child in the areas of cognitive development, personal/social skills, fine motor (small muscle), gross motor (large muscle), adaptive, speech/language, hearing, and vision.This screening is NOT 4K or 5K kindergarten screening. There is no cost, and takes approximately 45 minutes. To schedule a required appointment, please contact Gina Berka at

262.363.6300 x24201, or by email at berkagi@masd.k12.wi.us.

Parents are now able to submit absence requests via the Infinite Campus Parent Portal or Mobile App. School staff can review and process requests to automatically update attendance. Save time and make your absence requests via the Infinite Campus Parent Portal!

If you choose not to use this new feature, please call the school (262-363-4401) and choose option 1 for attendance. Please leave a message including your student's first and last name, the reason for absence or late arrival, if arriving late, and please include your child's lunch choice (cold lunch, hot lunch, choice 1, or choice 2.)

Any student who does not arrive at school by 8:30 a.m. must report to the office. This must be done before reporting to their class. The teacher will have already marked the student absent. Lunch will not have been ordered for them if taking hot lunch. (lunches are called into the district kitchen by 9:00 am if coming in later, please call the attendance line with your choice). The student reporting to the office will prevent the office from calling home to inquire about his/her absence as well. Please send a note or call ahead if the student will be late due to a medical or dental appointment, so that we do not consider it unexcused tardiness.

If your child's dismissal plan is going to be different than his/her usual way of getting home, you MUST SEND A BLUE NOTE informing the teacher of your expectations for that day. If your plans change during the day, you may call the office to give us this information. We ask that you make that call prior to 2:00 p.m. Contacting your child's classroom at the end of the day can be difficult to reach them with the message.

If we do not have notification of a change from a parent, we will have to send your child home following the plan we were given at the beginning of the year. Thank you for your cooperation.

The Mukwonago Area School District understands that it takes students, staff, and the community to build better schools. One way the community can support our schools is through their time. We are grateful for the help of volunteers at each of our schools.

To provide for the safety and well-being of our students, the Board of Education requires a background check for all volunteers. Background checks will be conducted before the individual’s first assignment in the District. Approval of volunteer applications are subject to District review.

If you are interested in volunteering, you will need to complete the online volunteer application no later than five school days before your first volunteer assignment in our schools or as a field trip chaperone. Your approved volunteer application will remain active for two years and is good for any school in the District.

Our first StuCo spirit day will be this Friday. It'll be Blue and Gold Day in honor of MHS Homecoming. Students are encouraged to wear school colors, BBES, and/or Muk gear. Go Mukwonago!

SCHOOL PARADE OF COSTUMES

Most classrooms will be having a brief Halloween celebration on Thursday, October 31st. Students have been invited to participate in the school-wide costume parade @ 2:15. Please note that if your child would like to participate, they should NOT wear their costume to school, and the costume must be one that…

• The student can put on independently
• The Costume does not have plastic or metal weapons (no blood or gore)
• Ask yourself if the costume is generally appropriate for school
• No face makeup
• No Colored Hairspray may be applied at school

PTO MEETING- OCTOBER 10th @ 7 PM- We encourage everyone to attend our monthly meetings. All are welcome! Meetings are held the second Thursday of the month in the library. You can also attend virtually using the zoom link below.

TEACHER CONFERENCE DINNER- OCTOBER 17th- Thank you Lindsey J. and Anelise J. for organizing this amazing PTO sponsored dinner for our staff.

HALLOWEEN PARTY- OCTOBER 18th- 6-8 PM- Join us for this spooktacular night! Party night help needed. Sign up below. Thank you!!

GIFT BAGS NEEDED- Our holiday shoppe is collecting any neutral gift bags for our December event. We are not asking you to purchase new. Looking for any used gift bags you have collected and are willing to share. Please send them to the office.

We are excited to announce that our Bulldog Bolt Fall Fundraiser was a HUGE success!! For the third year in a row we surpassed our goal! We have officially raised over $50,000 for our school. WOW!!! This money will be used for educational tools, classroom requests, teacher appreciation, events, playground upgrades and more! PLUS field trip funds for every classroom!. A portion of last year's funds were used for new updated AV equipment in the gym for our concerts , assemblies and teacher use. Some of the things we have purchased in previous years include basketball hoops on the playground, playground asphalt painting, benches in the gym, soccer goals, gaga ball pits, rock climbing wall, digital sign in front of school, a complete library makeover, classroom furniture and so much more!! THANK YOU for supporting our PTO! Everyone had a great time participating in our Bulldog Bolt Fun Run. Be sure to check out our PTO facebook page for run pictures. Classroom prize winners and individual prize winners will be announced next week. Who will be this year’s principal for the day?!?

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED for our upcoming events. Please sign up if you can help. THANKS!!

HALLOWEEN PARTY:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0E4EA5AB2DABFB6-bigbend1

SPRING DANCE BASKET RAFFLE CLASSROOM COORDINATOR:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0E4EA5AB2DABFB6-51865382-spring

What’s Coming Up…

GRANDPARENT/VIP LUNCH & FALL BOOK FAIR- 11/11-11/15

NOVEMBER PTO MEETING- 11/14

ELEGANT FARMER PIE SALE

PTO MEETING ZOOM LINK

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87433901291?pwd=KC1W5xCQFpn3jgSbV54aX1sah5ceIt.1

PASSCODE- 970099

LIKE us on Facebook: Big Bend PTO ~ JOIN our Instagram @BIGBENDPTO

Hello! I am so excited to be the ALP teacher at Big Bend this year. I love to learn and enjoy helping students learn in any and every way I can. One of my passions is helping extend students in their work and getting students to think deeply!

About Me - My name is Mrs. Melanie von Thun (pronounced von Toon). I live in Mukwonago with my husband, three boys (17 ½, 8 ½, 7), and our two dogs. It’s a loud house! ;) We also spend a lot of time on the baseball field (and all sports!) watching all the boys play! I’m excited to see what this year has in store for all of them!

This is my fifteenth year teaching. I have worked in several districts (West Allis-West Milwaukee, Merton, Franklin) and grade levels (K, 1st, 4th, 5th, intervention) prior to coming to Mukwonago. The last five years I have been at Big Bend Elementary. I also just finished getting my Master’s Degree in Education this past summer. I really think learning is a lifelong journey and I love to be right there with the students learning more everyday. Seeing how much growth they make over the course of the year is amazing!

Teaching Philosophy - Every child can and will learn. I will do everything in my power to help your child learn. In the classroom, I am committed to helping your child make academic, social, and emotional growth. My enthusiasm for learning and teaching becomes infectious and students can’t help but dive right in with me! I teach to help all learning styles. This way all students will have the same level of access to the material that we are learning in the classroom. I like to do a lot of hands-on and small group work to make sure I’m reaching students at their level.

Schedule - This year I will be at Clarendon Ave. all day Monday, all day Tuesday, and in the morning on Wednesdays. I will be at Big Bend Wednesday afternoon and all day Thursday and Friday.

Communication - Most communication about things we are doing during the week will come through email. I will also make phone calls throughout the year. If you ever want to meet, talk, or go through anything you have seen, heard, or are wondering about, please let me know. I am more than happy to help! You can reach me by email vonthme@masd.k12.wi.us or phone (262)-363-4401 ext. 21405 (BBES) or (262)-363-6286 ext. 24214 (CES). I look forward to getting to know all of you!

Big Bend Elementary's Crafty Corner & Club

The Community Education's after school craft classes with Ms. LeMaster and Ms. Teeters have been a big hit since they started. From candles, vases, ornaments, canvas pictures, bejeweled pumpkins, to beautiful bouquets, every class is a unique opportunity to create treasured holiday decorations and gifts that will be appreciated for years to come! Come for the first time or welcome back as we will be making new and unique crafts this school year.
Kindergarten-2nd Grade Session

Wednesday, October 9
Monday, December 9

Grades 3-6 Session

Thursday, Oct. 10

Tuesday, Dec. 10
For More information go to: mukwonago.cr3.rschooltoday.com/public/getclass/category_id/-1/program_id/4

Our school board approved a revised referendum resolution to address our needs at Park View Middle School. The solution would involve over 200,000 square feet of new construction and over 30,000 feet of renovated space in the existing school to create a 6th-8th grade school that meets our current and future space needs and provides improved and enhanced academic opportunities for our middle school students.

The revised plan is based on community feedback and has a reduced tax impact for our residents from the April referendum – $24 annually per $100,000 of fair market property value or $96 on a $400,000 home. This is about a third of the impact of the April proposal.

Join us at one of our upcoming Park View Middle School Tour and Open House sessions to view the school for yourself and to learn more. Morning sessions begin at 10:30 a.m. on September 17 and September 27 and evening sessions begin at 6 p.m. on October 8 and October 16.

Or, visit our Referendum website for more information!

As a service to our community, don't forget that MASD hosts a virtual Community Bulletin Board that is regularly updated with information from organizations providing services or activities. Be sure to bookmark the page and watch Key News for Families all year long for updates.