Weekly Family Newsletter

October 16, 2022

It is certainly starting to look and feel like fall here in Ann Arbor!

We would like to announce another community event coming up for Burns Park. On October 28th, we invite all families to join us for an outdoor movie night! Bring popcorn, snacks, blankets, and whatever else makes you feel cozy. During this event, we will also be hosting an exhibit called "The Lost and Found of Burns Park". This exhibit of items discovered throughout the school showcases a variety shapes, sizes and colors. If you find an item in our exhibit that belongs to you, don't forget to take it home. Our goal is for all items to be claimed by the end of our movie night.

We will also have a Halloween Costume Roundup for any students in need. This will take place in the hallway outside of the auditorium during our movie night. More information can be found below!

Have a wonderful Sunday,

Heather & Leslee

Family Outdoor Movie Night

Please join us for another exciting community event. Our family movie night will be hosted on the Burns Park Playground from 6:30-8:00PM on October 28th. Bring snacks, blankets, pillows, comfy clothes and enjoy an evening of watching "Coco"! In the event of inclement weather, we will move our outdoor movie inside to the auditorium.

Transportation to and from Glencoe Hills will be provided. Bus transportation will begin at 6pm and go to the following locations:

Glencoe Clubhouse

Glencoe Tennis Court

Arbor Circle

Ainsley Road

The return bus will depart from Burns Park at 8pm.

Early Release Day

Thursday, October 20th, is an early release day for our students. Students will be dismissed at 1:18pm. Please make sure your student knows their end of the day plan if it will be different than usual.

Halloween at Burns Park

We know Halloween is one of the best times at Burns Park! We are excited to announce the plans for this special day. The Halloween Parade will start at 2:45 on Monday, October 31st. Students should not come to school in their costumes. They should bring them to school with them, but wear their normal school clothes until a time determined by their classroom teacher. Teachers will communicate with families about class parties. Do not forget, if you are volunteering in any classrooms, you must fill out a volunteer background check form.

Halloween Costume Roundup

Dear BPE families - We'd love every child who wants to dress up for Halloween to have a fun costume! Please consider donating new or gently used costumes to the PTO so that all of our penguins have a chance to participate. Costume should be free of gory and scary details, including weapons. Donations can be dropped off at school or at 2008 Morton Ave (Tijunelis house). Contact Viki Tijunelis if you have questions: vsusinskas@gmail.com. If you are in need of a costume, please fill out this form.

New & International Families

Calling all New & International Burns Park Families!

You are invited to join the principals of Burns Park for a conversation on October 18. Any school-related questions or topics are welcome. The principals would like to get to know you more and understand your needs.

Do you have questions about…

School activities? Schedules? Lunches? How to get involved? Learning resources for home?

Or maybe you would like to share about your family’s or your child’s experience at school.

What: Conversation with Burns Park Principals

Who: New to BP families

When: Tuesday, October 18, 2022 Come anytime between 5:30 - 7:00 pm

Where: Burns Park Elementary, 1414 Wells St. Ann Arbor, Michigan

Can't make it? Email your questions to Leslee, Heather or our EL Teacher Diana Nati at

natid@aaps.k12.mi.us

Safe Routes to School

Burns Park is re-starting its Safe Routes to School Committee and we need your help! The SRS Committee's purpose is to engage with local stakeholders to improve the safety around our school for walkers, bikers and drivers. All students, staff and families of Penguins are welcome to participate. There is no minimum time commitment, any involvement is appreciated. If you would like to attend the first meeting, please email Kate Flewelling at keraws@gmail.com. A doodle poll will be taken with interested participants to choose a day and time.

Conferences

Parent Teacher Conferences are a very important part of building partnerships and support between families and the staff at Burns Park Elementary. Information about conferences can be found in their weekly communication. Teachers are offering in person, zoom and phone conferences. If you have any questions, please reach out to your student's teacher.

AAPS Masking Policy

As of today, October 16th Washtenaw County is in the CDC MEDIUM/YELLOW Community Level. Masks are encouraged indoors. Link to CDC Community Level page here.

For more detailed information about the AAPS Fall 2022 COVID and Health Guidance, please click here.

Breakfast/Lunch

School meals will no longer be provided free of charge for all as they were in the 2021-2022 school year. Families will need to fill out free & reduced lunch forms to qualify: 2022-2023 Free & Reduced Lunch Application. Please note that families are responsible for the cost until the application is approved. If you need help, please refer to this document. Paper copies will be available in the main office once the school year begins.

For more information about this change and to learn how to load funds onto your child's account, please click here. Student ID information was sent home the first week of school. You may set up your meal magic account with that information.

Please have a conversation with your child if you would like them getting food from school or not. Families are responsible for the cost of food. We will ALWAYS feed children if they say they don’t have food. We will not question it. Make sure they know the plan.

Also, please make sure your child knows which item is their snack. This is helpful for the classroom teacher.

Items from Home

Personal belongings (i.e. toys, trading cards, etc.) need to remain at home. Burns Park staff will not be responsible for managing the care and safety of personal belongings. Students who bring sports items for recess have an understanding that they are agreeing to share with others. If this agreement is not the understanding, students should not bring personal sports items. Please check backpacks before your student comes to school.

Dear Fantastic BPE Families,

I hope that everyone had a stupendous seventh week of school. Thank you to everyone that was able to join us for last weeks PTO meeting, everyone is welcome to join our next meeting on Wednesday, November 9.

Fundraising: Thank you to everyone who has already donated to our Annual Fund! Just a reminder, our school's PTO also earns donations through the non-profit community rewards programs listed here. This includes:

Amazon Smile (needs to be changed on every computer and device you shop on)
Kroger Community Rewards
Busch's Community Giving
Arbor Farms

Please think of your PTO every time you go shopping; it's an easy and fun way to raise money for your Burns Park Elementary PTO. Please sign-up if you haven't already and contact Rachel.ufer@gmail.com with any questions!

Room Parents/Library Helpers/ Art Angels: Thanks to everyone who raised their hand to volunteer as room parents, library helpers or art angels, everyone should have received an introductory email this past week. There is a room parent introduction/training meeting this Monday (10/17) at 8pm (link via calendar) organized by our wonderful Volunteer and Technology Coordinators.

Hostapalooza 2022: It’s been three years since Burns Park parents and neighbors created the beautiful hosta/sedum garden on either side of our main entrance. Next Saturday (10/22), we’ll reconvene to replace a few plants that didn’t make it, turn our attention to the flowerbeds along the outdoor classrooms, and plant some cold-hardy annuals in the planters next to the front door. If you have hostas, sedum, or other low-maintenance and non-spreading plants to contribute, or if you’d just like to help weed and plant, please join us from 9-11am next Saturday at the flagpole. Here is the link for more information and to sign up: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0A4CADA822A31-hostapalooza1

Hope to see you there! From the Burns Park Grounds Committee

Your Burns Park PTO

Al Masias, President

info@bpepto.org