Bulldogs Newsletter October 2, 2023

Dear Basswood Families,

As November comes to an end we also close the first trimester of school. Our teachers will be reporting on student progress in the next few weeks. Parents will be able to view the report cards on December 11th in ParentVUE.

Report cards are an important part of our communication with families, as teachers want to inform you of your child's or children's progress. As you review the report cards you may consider some of the following questions with your child(ren):

- What makes you proud about the work you have done this year?

- What did you work the hardest at this trimester?

- Is there something you want to work harder at in the future?

Providing feedback and praise to children about their effort may not come naturally to many of us. Many authors recommend the praise of effort and perseverance over affirming a the achievement of children. Providing praise for hard work and persevering through mistakes helps to foster personal growth and helps children to develop a outlook on their work that is likely lead to great achievements.

I am thankful to be part of the amazing Basswood community! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

In partnership,

Steven Schwartz
Basswood Principal
#WeAreBasswood!

Thank you to all who participated in the attendance boundary considerations Thought Exchange. A total of 2,989 participants shared 1,528 thoughts and had 36,832 ratings on these thoughts.

Parameters have been created using the feedback shared.

They are as follows:

• Center our core values: honor and integrity, belonging, inclusion, innovation and excellence, transparency and intrinsic value.
• Ensure scenarios can function in our system, including but not limited to: transportation; building utilization and capacity; enrollment (current and future); teaching/learning program offerings; and financial costs.
• Ensure scenarios have longevity in our system.
• Follow the teacher/student targets established by the school board.
• Consider the number of students impacted for each scenario.
• Consider the student demographics of each scenario.
• Consider connecting more schools from level to level.
• Keep neighborhoods intact as much as possible.
• Minimize non-contiguous/non-adjoining areas.
• Maintain 0.8 elementary and 1.0 secondary transportation service areas.
• Maintain safety standards in regard to bus routing (avoiding major roadways, etc.)
• Avoid lengthy travel time on buses.
• Comply with state laws, school board policy and negotiated agreements.

Timeline: The team is now utilizing these community-built parameters to create proposed attendance boundary scenarios. Staff, students, parents/caregivers and community members will be able to provide feedback on the scenarios in January. Edits may be made based on the January feedback, and again presented with the opportunity to share comments. The overall process is expected to wrap up in the spring. The new attendance boundaries will go into effect fall 2026.

Stay tuned: Detailed information will continue to be shared at district279.org/boundaries. Any questions or concerns should be directed to BetterFuture@district279.org or 763-391-8990.

• November 26: Last Day of Trimester I
  
• November 27-29: No School

• December 2: First Day of Trimester II
• December 2-6: School Supply Drive
• December 18-20: Moon Light Bowling in PE class
• Dec 23 - Jan 3: Winter Break - No School
  

First bell rings at 8:40am letting students into the school. Second bell rings at 8:50am letting students know they should be in their classroom ready to start the day! At 8:50am, the front doors are shut and student will need to come through the office to get a late pass.

• 2nd grade: 10:45 - 11:10am
• 4th grade: 11:15 - 11:40am
• 1st grade: 11:45 - 12:10pm
• 3rd grade: 12:15 - 12:40pm
• 5th grade: 12:45 - 1:10pm
• Kindergarten: 1:15 - 1:40pm

Yes! You will be able to follow us on Facebook. Our first posts went live on September 5th. Please note that we are moving away from Twitter (@BWPrincipal279) for Basswood social media. Click here below to follow us.

We welcome and encourage volunteers at Basswood. You can complete an online volunteer form online at apps.raptortech.com/Apply/Nzg0OmVuLVVT and work with our volunteer coordinator, Lezlie Northagen. Volunteer information will go home the first week of school. Activities in a normal school year include being a classroom assistant, helping with classroom parties, helping with PTO sponsored activities (Carnival, Turkey Bingo, Book Fair, etc.) along with numerous other opportunities. We continue to follow state guidelines and adjust our volunteer program accordingly.

Every parent or guardian of enrolled students of Basswood Elementary is an automatic member of the PTO. We encourage you to join one of our next general meetings - or just send us a note if you have a question. You can find more information on our PTO website: https://sites.google.com/view/basswoodpto/home?authuser=1 or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BasswoodElementaryPto

If you are planning a family vacation or just time away from school, please remember to call your student's absence into the attendance line. You can call 763-494-3858 and press 1 to leave a message with your student's name, student's teacher, reason for absence, and dates that your student will be gone. We really appreciate your assistance!

Our district Community Education department offers a variety of after school classes. If you do sign your student up for one of these classes, please remember to let your student's teacher know about the class and when your student needs to stay after school.

The District Transportation department only allows students to ride their assigned bus to and from school. If you have questions, you can reach out to the Transportation Department at 763-391-7244 or transportationreques@district279.org.