Bush Elementary students, faculty, and staff will dress up on Monday, October 31 to celebrate reading and careers. All are invited to dress up as a favorite book character or a profession/career goal. This costume/outfit will be worn all day so make sure it's comfortable and safe to wear at recess, lunch, and during specialists' class time.

We will celebrate our favorite book characters or careers with a parade on Monday, October 31 at 8:00 a.m. The parade will start indoors and then exit out the building to the track. All students will walk around the track showcasing their book character or career goal.

Parents are invited to view the parade at 8:00 a.m. and line the outside or inside of the track, but not on the track as the students need to safely pass by. Parents will enter the track area through the gates at the end of the bus lane. Parents will not be in the building for the parade as we will be unable to safely process the entrance to the building via our Raptor background check system for so many people. Therefore, for the safety of all students, faculty, and staff, parents will not be allowed in the building for the building portion of the parade, or before or after the parade.

In the event of rain, the parade will still happen in the building for the students. In case of rainy weather the outside portion of the parade will be canceled, and parents will not be allowed inside the building. Parents will not be able to view the parade inside the building because we can't safely check in a large group of parents. Most likely this won't happen as at this time the weather forecast looks great for outside at the track parade viewing.

HISD's Family and Community Engagement (FACE) department will be at Bush Elementary on Tuesday, November 1 at 8:30 a.m. to provide a training titled "HISD 101". This training is for parents to learn about and understand how to navigate all the opportunities and resources within HISD. Parents will get an overview of HISD’s key resources and tools available to aid in student achievement.

Parents will need to bring a government issued photo identification to enter the building for this training.

Now that cooler weather is finally in Houston, students need to continue to follow our dress code guidelines. Please review the highlights shown below from our Dress Code in the Bush Uniform Policy.

All items worn in the building must follow our dress code colors stated in our dress code policy.

Sweaters

Solid colored sweaters

Solid Khaki, navy, red, white

Solid colors with no embroidery.

Jackets worn in the classroom

Jacket, sweater, or sweatshirts

Solid red, white, or navy

Official Bush logo fleece jackets are permitted.

Tights, leggings, and Pants

Tights, leggings, pants worn under skirts, shorts, or jumpers

Solid red, white, navy, blue denim or khaki

Leggings are permitted only under skirts, shorts, or jumpers, and cannot be worn by themselves as pants.

Here are a few more reminders:

● Only solid red, white, or navy long sleeved shirts will be permitted under uniform tops on cold days.

● Sweatpants, athletic pants, athleisure pants are not part of dress code even if they are following our dress code colors.

● Only plain headbands or headbands with bows are allowed.

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A friendly reminder, Physical Education is required by the State of Texas and if your child cannot participate in P.E., they must bring a note excusing them from class. They cannot verbally tell Coach Pham they cannot participate. It must be in written form from a parent if they need to sit out for less than a week. If the child must be out for more than one week, they must have a doctor’s note. Thank you for ensuring all documentation is on file so all children can be safe in P.E. class.

Thank you to Ms. Miller and all the parents, faculty, and staff who helped make the book fair a great experience for all!!!

The book fair is available online through TODAY.

Visit the scholastic link to preview books and shop online: https://bookfairs.scholastic.com/bf/barbarabushelementaryschool

Key Points:

• Diesel’s Readers began Saturday, October 1st and runs through Monday, October 31st

• The program is open to elementary and middle school students

• Each participant who reads five books in the month of October will receive a free ticket to a Houston Dynamo or Houston Dash home game via email on Wednesday, November 2nd

• The top three schools with the most books read will win exclusive prizes and will be contacted on Friday, November 4th

Description:

Diesel’s Readers is a month long program that encourages students to read five (5) age-appropriate books approved by their librarian or parent/guardian. Once all five books are read, a parent or guardian will complete the form online to document their student's participation in the program. Each participating student will receive a certificate of completion via email. This certificate contains a QR Code where the student and parents can redeem their free ticket. This program will be hosted multiple times throughout the year, so check back later for more dates!

Prizes:

All participants who read five books in the month of October will receive a free ticket to a Houston Dynamo or Houston Dash home game

The top three schools with the most books read at the end of the program may choose one of the following prizes

• A behind the scenes tour of PNC Stadium and a pizza party for up to 50 students.

• A school assembly with Diesel, the Houston Dynamo FC and Houston Dash mascot

• A personalized jersey with the name of the school on the back.

Links:

• Website - https://www.houstondynamofc.com/community/reading

• Registration - https://houstondynamo.formstack.com/forms/readin

Thank you to all the parents who have been regularly volunteering in the cafeteria to support our hard-working staff! We can always use volunteers in the cafeteria, so if you haven't already completed your VIPS approval and attended the training, there's always time to get approved.

Volunteers are needed to help supervise and assist students in the cafeteria at lunch. This is an active volunteer time and not a time to sit with or stand by your child. Parents will be supervising and helping all students in the cafeteria. Only the parent, and no younger or older siblings, may take part in the cafeteria supervision.

There are 2 requirements that must occur before parents may volunteer in the cafeteria.

1. VIPS approved - online approval process

2. Attend training that happens on Mondays at 10:30 a.m.

Please use the link below to sign up to volunteer once you're VIPS approved and have attended the training. This is not a once a month time to volunteer, but rather we need consistent volunteers showing up on a a regular basis at lunch time.

Please make sure you bring your driver's license to sign in to enter the building. Also, be prepared to show a copy of the certificate/email that shows that you're VIPS approved at your first time volunteering.

We look forward to having cafeteria volunteers at lunch time.

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E0C4CACAA2EA0FB6-bbelunchroom

The Student Annual Verification is now available on the HISD Connect Parent Portal and must be completed by Friday, October 28.

The Student Annual Verification allows parents and caregivers the opportunity to verify or update their information—such as home addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, and emergency contacts—to stay connected to their student’s school.

If a parent or caregiver indicates that their home address has changed, the campus will contact them to obtain an updated statement of residence.

Parents and caregivers who have not set up their HISD Connect Parent Portal account and do not have their access code may contact their student’s school to obtain their student’s access ID.

As a reminder, the HISD Connect Parent Portal is a tool to track information related to students’ schedules, grades, attendance, academic history, and more.

Please be advised that walker numbers are finished being inputted at 3:10 p.m. Walker parents will need to go to the front office to pick up their child starting at 3:10 p.m.

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.

Vacations

Please remember to plan your family vacations and trips during regular school holidays like Thanksgiving, 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 May 31, 2023.

Early Pick Ups

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.

Nurse's Rule

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.

Safety is our number one core value. We must be safe before we can teach, learn, and grow. Safety

policies and procedures are constantly reviewed and revised as needed. ALL adults entering

the building MUST show a government issued photo identification at the front office every time entering the building.

The identification will be run through a background check device before an adult may receive a visitor’s

pass. If parents are coming into school to volunteer and/or to attend field trips, then they must be VIPS approved. Information about being VIPS approved is available on the HISD website and in the Parent Handbook.

View the 2022-2023 Back To School Guidelines

The Spectacular Science Word for the week of October 24th is properties.

Ms. Rose would like to wish a very special birthday to:

Camila E. who turned 9 years old on October 21 and is a third grader in Ms. Babers' class.

Liam R. who turned 8 years old on October 24 and is a second grader in Ms. Carlin's class.

Zander R. who turned 8 years old on October 24 and is a second grader in Ms. Carlin's class.

Rivan G. who turns 7 years old on October 26 and is a first grader in Ms. Fox's class.

Emilio P. who turns 8 years old on October 27 and is a second grader in Ms. Sheth's class.

Temisola O. who turns 8 years old on October 28 and is a grader in Ms. Pham's class.

Aiden C. who turns 6 years old on October 30 and is a kindergartner grader in Ms. Bracken's class.

Aaditya Ram P. who turns 8 years old on October 30 and is a second grader in Ms. Carlin's class.

Happy Birthday and Welcome to the Bush Birthday Book Club!

...​

Our namesake, Ms. Barbara Bush, was an advocate for blood donations. She personally answered the call when blood donations were requested. In an effort to honor her legacy, Bush Elementary is hosting a blood drive!

Commit for Life Donor Link

Monday, November 14th

MP Room

8:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

FREE BLANKETS FOR DONORS!

Contact Zonia Flores @ zonia.flores@houstonisd.org if you have any questions.

Wrap Around is in need of donations for the following items:

Food:

Snacks for students

Hygiene:

Girls/boys deodorant

Small make pouches

Pads/wipes

Toothbrushes

Toothpaste

Thank you in advance for your generosity!

Positive Parenting Program works one-on-one with parents and caregivers to look at why children misbehave, how to get children to behave, what to do when children misbehave and how to parent positively in real-world, everyday situations.

Every parent needs a little help sometimes. Maybe your child doesn’t listen to you. Maybe he throws tantrums at the drop of a hat. Or maybe she just won’t go to bed when asked to. Well, you aren’t alone. The truth is, while there are many kinds of families, they all have one thing in common: raising children can be tough sometimes.

This training won't tell you how to be a parent. Instead, it will offer simple and proven ideas to help you deal with problem behavior, making raising your children easier and your whole family happier.

Go from timeouts to time together.

Interested? Please email maria.quevedo@houstonisd.org to sign up for this free event.

Date: November 17th

Time: 12:30 - 1:30 p.m.

Location: Bush Elementary Rm. T505

Make plans to join us at the BBE PTO Let's Glow Wild! Party and Silent Auction on Friday, November 11, from 5-8 pm!

Join us under the black lights and groove to awesome music from our DJ, play fun glow games, enjoy food, drinks, and treats at the concession stand, and bid on our fantastic silent auction items and experiences!

Entry wristbands are available for purchase at a discount now through November 9th - $5 presale, $7 at the door.

Entry bands are required for all adults and children age three and older. All children must be

accompanied by an adult.

Buy tickets for glow games and pizza, popcorn, candy and drinks from our concession stand.

Glow Party Bundles of four (4) entry bands, 25 tickets, and a large glow party kit or two (2) entry bands, 12 tickets and a small glow party kit are available now!

Please contact bbeptofundraising@gmail.com with any questions.

We had such a great time at the Book Fair Dinner last night! It was wonderful to see so many Bobcat Families together again– thank you to all who came and dined, shopped, and/or volunteered their time to make the evening a big success, and a HUGE thank you to our generous sponsors, Rose Yannakis with Energy Realty and Kroger.

School Store On The Go will continue on October 28th for Fifth grade. See below for more dates. Prices range from $0.10- $5. Please help teach your child how to be responsible with their money and to also be kind to students who did not bring money.

10/28- 5th Grade

11/4- 4th Grade

11/18- 3rd Grade

12/2- 2nd grade

12/9- 1st, Kinder and Pre-K

Fleece jackets are back in stock!!

NEW: Add a custom name label to your child's jacket for $1. We will write the child's name on an iron-on label before we deliver to your child’s classroom. Any purchases with a label will be non-refundable and no exchanges.

Families can shop our school store online or visit us in person every Wednesday morning from 7:30 to 8:30am.

Purchase apparel and select school supplies such as agendas, zipper pouches, notebooks etc. Items purchased online by Thursday at 5:00pm will be delivered to your child’s classroom on Friday.

Be sure to follow @bbepto on Facebook or Instagram for the latest updates when we get new stock!

Anyone entering the building will need to present a photo ID at the main office.

If you missed our inaugural First Fridays and Second Saturdays Social Hours, don’t worry– come chat and relax with us in November! We would love to get to know fellow BBE parents and guardians, and it’s time to rectify our lack of connection with one another after the forced isolation of the last few years. There are two opportunities each month, so please attend whichever fits your schedule– or come to both!

First Friday: November 4th, 4:30pm @ Briarhills Park - Children welcome, of course! Bring your own snacks and beverages.

Second Saturday: November 12th, 8:00am @ Terry Hershey Parkrun - Parkrun is a free 5K walk/run along the trail in Terry Hershey Park. You must pre-register at https://www.parkrun.us/terryhershey/ but there is no commitment to attend, and you only need to register one time. Children, strollers, and pets are welcome, and you can be a spectator if you aren't up for walking.

Wear your BBE spirit t-shirt and look for others to spot our group!

Please contact presidentbbepto@gmail.com with any questions about our Social Hours.

There is still time to make your 5th grade fee contribution on the BBE PTO website! This fee covers the 5th Grade t-shirt (dress code approved), holiday party contributions, the End-of-the-Year Celebration and gift bags. There is also the option to “Help a Friend’ if you would like to donate to help cover the cost for families who do not have the means.

This year, we have also added the option of donating to the holiday teacher gift in advance. Donations for this are available in $5 increments. This donation is entirely voluntary.

Please purchase your 5th grade fee and any add-ons HERE.

Thanks to everyone who participated in our pumpkin painting and scavenger hunts at the Nature Center this month!

Stay tuned for additional events coming this fall. If you’re interested in helping plan events at the Nature Center, please feel free to email bushnaturecenter@gmail.com.

Join the Birthday Book Club and make your student’s day extra special! Your student will receive a personal birthday greeting from Ms. Rose during the morning announcements, and have their name printed in the weekly Paw Prints newsletter, in a book for the library, AND on the electronic marquee during the week of their birthday.

We would love for families to send in any photos that are school-related, such as pajama day, astros day, or any grade-specific event/project that we can include in the yearbook!

Please send no more than 3 photos to bushptoyearbook@gmail.com and label the pictures with your child's grade.

The BBE PTO would like to extend a special thank you to OXXO Care Cleaners at 1275 Eldridge Parkway, Suite 110, for their help with dry cleaning a very important item with great care and in an amazingly fast time frame!

Subscribe to the PTO Events Calendar through iCal or Google

For any questions related to PTO please contact Amy Gnau, presidentbbepto@gmail.com

22-23 Faculty and Staff

Counselor - Jewell Quinonez

(P) 281-368-2150 (ext: 275212)

Jewell.Quinonez@houstonisd.org

Click here to visit the BBE Counselor Corner

FOR RESOURCES AND COMMUNITY OUTREACH -

Wraparound - Maria Quevedo

(P) 281-368-2150 (ext. 275105)

maria.quevedo@houstonisd.org

FOR ATTENDANCE -

Registrar - Adriana Rosales

(P) 281-368-2150 (ext. 275104)

arosale3@houstonisd.org