We're excited that all students are back to in-person learning at Bush Elementary. Our teachers, faculty, and staff are working hard and providing an outstanding learning experience for all students.

Morning arrival is going very smoothly as parents drop off their students in the carpool lane on Westerloch. The bus lane on Parkway Plaza is for buses, day cares, and specially tagged cars for Safety Patrols and Ms. Busse and Ms. Greco's students. Starting tomorrow, Thursday, August 26, students will be marked tardy if they're not inside the building by 7:40 a.m. On Tuesday all cars had finished the carpool lane drop off before 7:40 a.m.

Please use this year's dismissal number. Throw away any dismissal number from last school year as this is causing confusion at dismissal as someone else has that number this school year.

Work Hard. Be Kind. Dream Big! is our motto for this school year. Our teachers are working with the boys and girls to instill these values. We also need parents' help in modeling these values at arrival and dismissal. It's not appropriate to yell at another person and especially not with your children or other children around. This applies to in-person or telephone conversations.

Everyone deserves to be treated respectfully. The Bush faculty and staff and our dedicated PTO Board members are working hard to provide a safe arrival and dismissal process for all students. Please respect the rules and don't crowd the areas where students are entering or exiting the building. Our procedures and rules are for the safety of all students.

Previously, only the PK and kindergarten students needed to learn the dismissal system as a new system. This year, almost half the students have never taken part in our arrival and dismissal process because they were virtual last year. The carpool lane is already empty by 7:40 a.m. for morning arrival. It takes time to learn the system and every day dismissal will be quicker.

Our Parents' Nights will be virtual this year. There will be a brief virtual PTO informational session followed by the teachers' live Parents' Night sessions on TEAMS. The classroom teachers will send out a link to the Microsoft TEAMS events.

September 9, 2021 is the third - fifth grade Parents' Night starting at 5:00 p.m. via TEAMS

September 14, 2021 is the PK - second grade Parents' Night starting at 5:00 p.m. via TEAMS

Every student brought home a large manilla envelope on Monday. This envelope contains homework for the parents. Parents need to complete the forms for each child that attends Bush Elementary. Please return the completed forms to your child's teacher at your earliest convenience.

Throughout the school year, this section of the newsletter will highlight key points from the Bush Parent Handbook. School begins at 7:30 a.m. Students arriving after 7:40 a.m. are tardy. Students arriving after 9:00 a.m., without a doctor's excuse, are marked absent.

• Rolling backpacks will not be allowed this school year.
• No water bottle drop offs, bottled water is available upon request.
• No lunch drop offs, lunch is provided free of charge to all HISD students.
• No backpack, sweaters, or technology drop offs.

Please ensure your child is prepared to start their day. Bush ES strives to keep our faculty and staff healthy, therefore we will only allow glasses to be dropped off at the front office.

Please remember to plan your family vacations and trips during regular school holidays like, Thankskgiving, Winter and Spring Break. Family vacations cannot be considered excused absences by the State of Texas. As a result, they are recorded as unexcused absences. All students must have a 98% attendance rate. Every day at school is important. All students must attend school up to and including the last day on

Please do not plan to pick up your child after 2:30 p.m. from the office. To ensure a safe dismissal, students will not be called to the office to be picked up after 2:30 p.m. Thank you for helping to make dismissal safe for all our students.

Please do not send your sick child to school. If your child has a fever, pink eye, or upset stomach, please keep him/her at home. We have lots of folks under our roof every day. For the health and safety of ALL students, it is very important that children stay home when they are ill. Students who have thrown up during the night or who are running a fever cannot be sent to school. Students must be fever free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medication before returning to school. When your child returns to school, please send a signed note stating the days your child was absent and the reason for the absence.

When dropping off or picking up your child, please be considerate of the homes neighboring bush. Be a good neighbor and remember the following parking rules:

• Do not block driveways
• Park at least 20ft. from an intersection.
• Don't park in front of a fire hydrant.

As HISD prepares for a return to in-person instruction on August 23rd, the district has launched a COVID-19 dashboard to keep the community informed about the impact of the pandemic.

Within this section, parents have access to multiple resources such as:

• 2021-2022 Ready, Set, Go Plan
• COVID19 Dashboard

Help your child celebrate their birthday and support the library and other programs that enhance the educational experience of Bush students by joining the Birthday Book Club.

Your child will be given a personal "Happy Birthday" greeting during the morning announcements and PawPrint shout out from Ms. Rose! The donation will be recognized with a nameplate in a new book from the library. A group photo of all the other BBC members with the same birth month will also be displayed in the library display case.

It only costs $20 for a Birthday Book Club Membership (Add Electronic Marquee display for $10 more). Please visit www.BBEPTO.com for more details or to make your purchase.

Enrollment Schedule

August Birthdays: Enroll during August

September – February Birthdays: Enroll during August/September

February – July Birthdays: Enroll during January/May

Welcome Back Bobcats! We are looking forward to a wonderful year ahead and what better way to get started than signing up for PTO membership. We have new options this year. See below for more details and visit our membership page on www.bbepto.com to sign up now.

This year we are offering 3 levels of membership to choose from:

Cub Level $20

Receive a school directory - distributed late fall

*This level and above contributes to your child receiving a free dress day (if their class reaches 60% membership)*

Paw Level $30

Receive a school directory, PTO pals donation, and luggage tag

Bobcat Level $50

Receive a school directory, PTO pals donation, luggage tag, and 1 adult spirit t-shirt* (additional adult t-shirt available $15)

*wear adult spirit t-shirt to school events for more rewards

Contact Michelle Jackson for more information at bushpto.vp@gmail.com

Room Parents are needed for each class. If you are interested in becoming a Room Parent please contact your child’s Teacher. It is a great way to be involved in your child’s class and PTO.

For more Information about being a Room Parent please contact your VIPS Coordinators: Rachel Ajayi and Jana Howe at bushpto.vips@gmail.com

Check out our new spirit shirt, polo shirts and fleece sweaters! Or how about a BBE umbrella for those rainy Houston days? At this time the school store is only open ONLINE - www.BBEPTO.com. Shop from the comfort of your home and items will be delivered every Friday directly to your child’s classroom. New stock will be arriving periodically. Follow us on Facebook to learn when new stock arrives.

All School Store proceeds directly benefit the Barbara Bush Elementary PTO. Happy shopping!

Stay up to date on the latest PTO information including events, fundraisers, and volunteering opportunities by signing up for our eblast and following us on Facebook!

Click here to sign up for the eblast: www.BBEPTO.com

Follow us on facebook at BBEPTO.

Boys and girls in grades K through 5th grade are invited! Come meet the Pack Tuesday, August 31, 2021 at 6:30p for a pizza party at Ashford United Methodist Church to find out more information about Cub Scouts and do some activities for the community!

Cub Scout Pack 73 regularly meets every second Tuesday of the month. At the meetings, the Scouts meet as a Pack (all grades) and do fun activities as Dens (individual grades). Scouts are looking for energetic boys and girls who love to explore, exercise their curiosity and "Do Your Best"!