Bitterroot Bulletin

Thank you for your support as we adjust to our new routines. It has been a great start to the school year. I appreciate your shared commitment to making this a successful year for each of our learners and your willingness to engage in conversations when you have questions or concerns. Each day I am thankful to be a member of our Bitterroot Community as I know we are committed to moving our school forward - together.

As you have heard, one of the district-wide scheduling shifts is to maximize instructional hours to meet state required instructional minutes. As an elementary parent, I understand the concern for the adjustment to afternoon recess. As an elementary principal, I can share that our students are not sitting in their seats for long stretches of time. BPS classroom teachers are masters of engagement and our students are moving with purpose through instructional transitions between group work, content area shifts, and actively participating in required math and reading instruction as well as library, writing, science, social studies, music, art, health and physical education.

In addition to these required minutes, every BPS student is also engaged in thirty minutes of targeted reading intervention/extension (previously referred to as WIN - what I need time) now called IE. At Bitterroot, our classrooms are fortunate to also have the support of multiple instructional coaches and grant-funded support to provide high-level resources to our students.

Our students are building the foundational skills and strategies that will take them to the next level.

It is vital that we are able to contact you should an emergency occur. The email you provided on PowerSchool will be our primary form of school-wide communication. Please make sure your email address is correct and that it is the address you check on a regular basis. We also need to have your emergency contact and pick up contacts completed. You can access PowerSchool by opening the app on your personal device or navigating on a web browser to bit.ly/PSSTUDENT. The PowerSchool bulletin will also have an updated list of upcoming events and announcements courtesy of the amazing Mrs. Zimmerman.

For your Planning:

• School picture day is this Wednesday 9/25 Order online inter-state.com/order code 87089JB
• No School: October 17-October 18
• This year we will have a virtual open house. More information will be coming out soon. This change is to help provide a snapshot of our school to all families throughout the year as well as to ensure all families receive classroom information and school-wide expectations.
• Parent Teacher Conferences: 12:00 dismissal: November 22, November 25, November 26

Have a great start to your fall.

~Mrs. Tyree

This Saturday, I hope you will come out to volunteer or support our PTA at Saturday Live. This year the event will be at Metra Park. It is sure to be an exceptional event for the full family. If you are interested in volunteering, visiting this link to see volunteer opportunities. If you are interested in joining the Bitterroot PTA, check out the parent page of our website, follow them on Facebook, or scan/click on this QR code. You can also email them at bitterrootptamt@gmail.com for meeting dates and details.

Click on the photo below to be directed to the Education Foundation Website.

PEAK Cross Country will run until Thursday, Oct. 10. 4th and 5th graders are still able to join. Practices are Tuesday from 3:15-3:55 PM and Thursdays from 7:15-7:55 AM.

We have two PEAK Cross Country Meets this year.

- Friday, Sep. 27th @ 4:00 PM - Castle Rock Park

- Tuesday, Oct. 1st @ 4:00 PM - Rocky Mountain College

Visit https://billingsschools.nutrislice.com/menu/bitterroot for the updated breakfast and lunch menus or download the app. Click on the image below for more information or visit https://www.billingsschools.org/departments/nutrition-services

Free and Reduced school meal applications can be filled out online, or on paper. To apply online, click this link in a browser (mobile browsers do not work): https://www.mymealtime.com/Apps/SignIn.aspx?ReturnUrl=%2fapps

Available in English and Spanish, other languages available upon request. Disponible en inglés y español, otros idiomas disponibles bajo petición.

Paper applications can be obtained from Mrs. Zimmerman at the Bitterroot front office. For questions, please contact Nutrition Services at 406-281-5879. This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

• Harry Potter Book Club will be starting for interested 5th graders in October.
• The library’s annual Storybook Patch will be held over the week of October 21st - information will be coming home soon
• Bitterroot Library has received funding to support the development of a family book club - our first book will be “The Wild Robot” look for sign up information later this month

• Check out Pebble Go - https://login.pebblego.com/ a resource is for our K-3 students that is paid for every year with our Read a Thon funds, thank you Bitterroot families. Username: bitgo Password: bobcat
• We have a new resident in the library - Hingle is our library mouse who loves to read so very much. He loves to share what he is reading and to hear what the students enjoy reading as well.