Kindness Assembly--Friday, April 8 (during school day--details below)

No School for Students--April 14 to April 18

American Red Cross Blood Drive at Tamanend--Thursday, April 14 3:00 pm to 8:00 pm

CB A Cappella Festival--Saturday, April 23

Tamanend UNICEF Unite Earth Day Event--Wednesday, April 20 at 2:45 (details below)

Kelly Anne Dolan Fund Dine & Donate at Moe's Southwest--Thursday, April 21 after 4:00 pm (details below)

PSSA English Language Arts Testing (7th & 8th Grade)--Tuesday, April 26 to Thursday, April 28 (details below)
Kelly Anne Dolan Memorial 3-on 3 Tournament--Saturday, April 30 (details below)

PSSA Math Testing (7th & 8th Grade)--Wednesday, May 4 and Thursday, May 5 (details below)

PSSA Science Testing (8th Grade)--Monday, May 9 (details below)

INFORMATION:

• Starting Friday April 1, the CB Titan wrestling program we will be hosting a FREE Friday night wrestle and play session for all interested student grades K thru 6 for 7 whole weeks. These sessions will combine wrestling-based drills along with gymnastic style games to not only introduce the sport to your child but begin forging the basic skills of our sport into our future wrestlers. Click HERE for details.
• If you and would like to receive immediate updates on game schedules, cancellations, etc., visit Tamanend Athletics web page and become a “fan” to get alerts for your child’s team.

FROM CB SOUTH:

• A CB South Girls' Soccer player/parent informational meeting will be held in the forum room at CB South on Wednesday, April 13, 2022, at 6:00pm for any student athlete interested in joining the team. During the meeting we will introduce the Head Coach for the 2022-2023 school year and review important information regarding the upcoming fall season.
• A CB South Boys' Soccer player/parent informational meeting will be held in the forum room at CB South on Wednesday, April 20, 2022, at 6:00pm for any student athlete interested in joining the team. During the meeting we will introduce the Head Coach for the 2022-2023 school year and review important information regarding the upcoming fall season.

• Please see below for ice hockey and cheerleading information.

On April 8 we will hold an assembly on encouraging our students to be kind and to take care of each other in our school community. Our guest speaker will be Preston Centuolo from the Youth Alliance. We will follow up the assembly with a discussion and activity in Advisory. To learn more about the presenter, please click here. If you have any questions, please contact your child’s guidance counselor.

Tamanend UNICEF Unite Club is Partnering with CB South's Operation Eternal Gratitude Club (OEG). We will be sending supplies to CB South for wrapping care packages being sent to military personnel overseas. We are asking the Tamanend community to please donate and advertise, so we can collect as much as we can! The full list of food, drink, clothing, and toiletries can be found in italics below. Please bring donations to the Main Office. If you have any questions about this drive, please email Madame Orinski at eorinski@cbsd.org. Thank you for your support! Food/Drink: coffee (1 lb. bag or less), sunflower seeds, ramen noodles, beef jerky, nuts/mixed nuts/trail mix, granola bars, power bars, boxed crackers/chips, cookies, gum/mints, hard candy, individual drink mix (Gatorade, etc.) Toiletries/Clothing/Misc.: Ziploc bags, Sharpies, Chapstick, sunscreen, foot powder (Gold Bond), boot socks, travel-sized, toiletries, baby wipes, recent magazines, playing cards

Join us for the Tamanend Parent Book Club. This year, we will be reading The Grown-Up’s Guide to Teenage Humans (2017) by Josh Shipp which may be purchased on a variety of websites or in bookstores. The book describes the optimal mindsets, conditions, and strategies that help teenagers succeed. This book club will follow a "no-pressure" format in which the facilitator will present a summary of the reading and open the floor for discussion. In addition, we will briefly cover items from our monthly Parent Council meeting for parents who are not able to make these meetings. We will share resources and ideas with the goal of helping the entire Tamanend parent community navigate the challenges and joys of raising adolescents. Parents are welcome to join the group at any time. It is not necessary to read all of the chapters to participate. Please email Dr. Brian Caughie at bcaughie@cbsd.org if you are interested in participating in all or some of the meetings so that we may prepare. Click here for further information.

The 22nd Annual KAD 3-on-3 Basketball Fundraiser will take place on Saturday, April 30 at Tamanend. We are very much looking forward to resuming our school-wide fundraiser, a community day/3-on-3 basketball tournament that benefits the Kelly Anne Dolan Memorial Fund. See information below for sign-ups.

On Saturday, April 30 the Tamanend student body and community will come together to celebrate the 22nd Annual Kelly Anne Dolan Memorial Fund Basketball Tournament. On this day we hold a 3-on-3 basketball tournament, karaoke, and you will have a chance to win one of our amazing prize baskets consisting of items donated from local vendors and staff. The last few years we offered the opportunity for our parents to sponsor a Parent Prize Basket and it was a huge success. We are offering that once again this year! If you would like to donate to the parent prize basket, you can now contribute through our MY PAYMENTS PLUS website. Just CLICK HERE, log in and you can donate to the Parent Prize Basket through our safe and secure website. Online donations will be accepted through Wednesday, April 27. If you prefer not to pay online, you can send money to school with your son/daughter by Wednesday, April 27. Please send money in with your son/daughter to Señora Murray in room 508. Please label the donation “parent prize basket!” No donation is too small. With the donations, we hope to get some big prizes for this year’s prize table, like an Ocean City Boardwalk-themed basket, Beats headphones, and a JBL Speaker. If you would like to learn more about KADMF, please visit www.dolanfund.org. We thank you in advance for your contributions and all your support as we come together for this important cause.

Click here to visit the CB South Program Planning page to learn about course offerings at CB South for the 2022-2023 school year.

It’s a great time to order your child’s 2021-2022 Tamanend Yearbook! If you order online prior to January 31, 2022 the cost of the full-color, hardback yearbook is on sale for $35 (plus tax). This is also the deadline if you’d like to add any additional personalization to your child’s yearbook. The price of the yearbook will increase to $40 (plus tax) from February 1st- April 30th. After this date, we unfortunately cannot guarantee your child will be able to purchase a yearbook at the end of the year. Please click the link here to take you to Jostens online ordering page. No preorders will be accepted in school – all orders must be done through Jostens. If you have any questions, please email Kristen Gerth at kgerth@cbsd.org.

April 13—Middle Bucks Institute of Technology Virtual Tour Tiger’s i Enrichment Activity for 7th & 8th Graders: If you are interested in a virtual tour of the Middle Bucks Institute of Technology, please sign up via the Form survey here. Your advisor will tell you what room the activity will take place in when they take attendance on April 13. This is open to 7th and 8th Graders only. A reminder that students must be in good academic standing (good grades, no make-up work) in order to attend enrichment activities during Tiger’s i.

May 11—Career Exploration with FBI Agent Tiger's i Enrichment Activity: If you are interested in coming to hear an FBI agent speak during Tiger’s i Enrichment on May 11, please sign up via this Form. A reminder that students must be in good academic standing (good grades, no make-up work) in order to attend enrichment activities during Tiger’s i.

Coming Soon—Career Exploration with Commercial Airline Pilot Tiger’s i Enrichment Activity: If you are interested in coming to hear a commercial airline pilot speak during an upcoming Tiger’s i Enrichment, please sign up via this Form. The exact date will be announced at a later time. A reminder that students must be in good academic standing (good grades, no make-up work) in order to attend enrichment activities during Tiger’s i.

Our SWPBIS initiative has been of to a great start! We recently cleared the Tiger 200 board and several students walked away with prizes. Students who appear on the Tiger 200 board are recognized by staff members for being respectful, taking ownership of their behavior, acting appropriately and remembering kindness. Congratulations to all those students who received Tiger Stripes in the 1st Marking Period. Keep up the good work!

We hope your year is off to a great start! We’d love to have your students join us for the 2022 Summer Camp Season at the Churchville Nature Center! This opportunity is open to students 14 years and older. We ask our volunteers to have been vaccinated against COVID.

Copy and paste this link to get the application: https://www.churchvillenaturecenter.org/user/9/downloads/u220106_1155_Counselorapplication2022FINAL.pdf

Did you know that the Doylestown YMCA offers free memberships for 7th Graders? Click here to read all about this great opportunity.

We have seen an increase in cracked laptop screens. Here are a few tips to help you properly take care of your laptop:

· Use your laptop bag when carrying your laptop in school and outside of school.

· If you have a small crack on your screen, please take it to the Library to get it fixed as soon as possible. Many times, students do not have small cracks repaired as soon as they occur. This sometimes results in the screen shattering completely.

· Please note that intentional laptop damage will result in potential disciplinary consequences and a bill for the repairs.

Currently, the Technology and Innovation Department blocks Microsoft Office 365 logins to Outlook, OneDrive, ClassLink, and Canvas from foreign countries. This aids in protecting our CBSD user accounts and organization from malicious computer attacks from outside of the United States.

Students who travel cannot assume their devices will work once they leave the United States. For student out-of-country access requests, please know that access to technology for vacations will not be approved at this time.

• Program Planning is the process by which students prepare to choose their courses for the next school year. Click here for an overview of the process for current 9th grade students.
• The CB South Curriculum Fair for next year's 10th Graders was held on Thursday, January 13. CB South's Program Planning & Curriculum page contains videos from across all of their various departments and can help give a sense of their offerings. Please note that the dates on their page are applicable to current sophomores and juniors. The Program Planning Timeline for current 9th grade students will continue to be shared by the Tamanend team. Verifications for current 9th Grade students will be posted for confirmation on March 18th.
• Verifications for current 8th Grade students were posted for confirmation on February 23rd. Click on this VIDEO for an overview of the course selection process.
• Verifications for current 7th Grade students were to be confirmed by Thursday, February 17th. Click on this VIDEO for an overview of the course selection process.
• Pertinent program planning dates can be found in this and subsequent editions of the Tamanend Connections newsletter.
• MBIT’s Open House was held virtually on Thursday, November 18th. If you were unable to attend and would still like to learn about all of the amazing programs that MBIT has to offer, please visit the MBIT web site or stop by the guidance for additional information.

In February, Tamanend held two presentations (one for students, and one for parents) related to adolescent mental health. As a follow-up, the district social workers created this resource to assist parents with connecting their children with mental health help. In addition to the resource at the link above, you can view the February 15 parent presentation here.

Below is a Sparks newsletter article we sent out almost two years ago. The topic is still very relevant. Please take the time to watch with your children for some interesting and needed discussion.

In today’s world we are all trying to know what is best for our children but it is difficult to see what lies ahead for them. The Sparks video below gives some economic insight into the past, present and future. Please share your reactions to this video with you children for their own understanding of future possibilities.

Success in the new economy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zs6nQpVI164

For comments or questions, please contact Ginny Barrett at vbarrett@cbsd.org.

In April 2021, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service extended the program that will provide for free meals for all students, regardless of income, for the 2021-22 school year. This has been made possible by nationwide waivers that provide for free meals for all students through June 2022.

All menus are available to be viewed online up to 2 weeks in advance by visiting cbsd.nutrislice.com.

Students are entitled to one complete reimbursable breakfast per day and one complete reimbursable lunch per day. Any second entrée or a la carte snack item will be charged to the students’ lunch account. We encourage all families to put money on their students account through MySchoolBucks.com as there will be no cash transactions this year to serve the students as safely and swiftly as possible.

We are thrilled to continue to safely serve students delicious, fresh, and nutritious meals at no charge, and we are equally excited to re-introduce our favorite programs to deliver fun, exciting, and tasty experiences to students throughout the coming year.

Please note: If your child has participated in the free and reduced meal program in the past, we encourage you to apply again as participation allows for eligibility in other programs. You can find the application here: Food Services / Free & Reduced Lunch Application (cbsd.org)

Any Central Bucks family who may need a little extra food assistance is welcome to join us on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of every month at Barclay Elementary School. Our drive-up food distributions run from 4:30 to 5:30 PM. We generally have free dry goods, fresh produce, milk, eggs, and bread, and often have some frozen meat and poultry. At each event we pass out an average of 12,000-15,000 pounds of food.

The CB Farmers Market started in 2019 as a monthly market that distributed free produce. At the start of the pandemic, we recognized a significant need in our community, with many families needing food assistance for the first time in their lives. As our operations grew, so did our network of amazing individuals and community organizations—all of whom are committed to addressing food insecurity in the Central Bucks School District. By our estimates, 1,500 CB children may experience temporary or chronic food insecurity—a statistic which should not exist in a community with our resources.

Our completely volunteer-run and managed organization was founded on two beliefs: 1) During times of need, which we all experience in one form or another, we should be able to count on the compassion and support of our neighbors; and 2) Our community’s collective commitment to our children is a bond much stronger than all of the other forces that might otherwise divide us.

If you are experiencing a financial hardship, please know that the staff members listed below can help you and your family. We can provide assistance with food, clothing, field trips, student fees, internet access, and other issues. Please don't hesitate to contact us:

Brian Caughie, Principal bcaughie@cbsd.org

Kyle Dudley, Assistant Principal kdudley@cbsd.org

Lauren Myrtetus, Certified School Nurse lmyrtetus@cbsd.org

Jeff Klein, Guidance Counselor jklein@cbsd.org

Mandy Cammann, Guidance Counselor mcammann@cbsd.org

All Central Bucks School District Volunteers play a vital role in supporting the staff, students, sports programs and other activities of our schools.

Thank you for your interest in volunteering! We are excited to introduce our NEW contactless application and paperwork submission process to our CBSD volunteers. You can now upload your clearances online through our Volunteer Tracker portal. Please click App Garden- Volunteer Tracker to sign-up and review the clearance requirements. Sign-up is required for both New and Returning Volunteers! The Volunteer Tracker will allow you to sign-up for volunteer opportunities specific to your building and/or classroom of choice. You will receive communication via email to update you on the latest upcoming event(s), clearance expiration, and to review your participation level. Clearances and Background Checks are valid for five (5) years. Click here for required documentation and further information.

When the weather is poor (heavy rain, low temperatures, etc.), more and more parents/guardians choose to drive their children to school. A reminder that students are expected to be in their 1st Period classes by 7:30 AM. If a child is late to school because of CBSD transportation, their tardiness will be excused. If a student is late to school because of car trouble, over-sleeping, or they are in the car drop-off line, their tardiness is unexcused. Typically, there are few cars in the drop off line from when the doors open at 7:10 until about 7:20. After 7:20, the line begins to get very long.

If you drive your child to school and the weather is poor, please consider leaving home earlier so that your child arrives to class on time.

Thanks for your assistance!

A reminder that students are not permitted to carry medication and/or self-administer medication. Per the medication policy, “All medication, both prescription and non-prescription must be kept in the school health office. Medication will be administered to student during school hours only when such medication is required and accompanied by a doctor’s order” (CBSD Medication Dispensing Form medication policy). “With parent permission, acetaminophen and ibuprofen may be administered according to the manufacturer’s suggested dosage. Administration of specific non-prescription medications is available to all students under the guidelines of the district’s chief medical director. These medications include cough drops, throat spray, antacid tablets, and antibiotic ointment. Parents may grant permission when student information is updated via the parent portal during the summer months. Students who have medications of any kind in their possession (purses, lunch boxes, school bags, etc.) may be considered in violation of the school drug and alcohol policy. However, with a doctor’s order, students requiring emergency medication (EpiPen, for example) may be permitted to carry and self-administer the medication” (2021-2022 CBSD Family Handbook).

Regarding field trips and medication:

“A nurse is not available for field trips. If a parent requests medication to be administered during the trip, this should be noted on the field trip permission form. Parents must package medications at home and hand deliver them in a sealed envelope to the teacher. The child will self-administer the medication under teacher supervision” (2021-2022 CBSD Family Handbook). Epi-pens and inhalers should be brought from home for field trips as long as the appropriate doctor’s order/competency check is on file.

Please contact Mrs. Lauren Myrtetus, Certified School Nurse, Tamanend Middle School with any questions at lmyrtetus@cbsd.org or 267-893-2915.

It's simple to drop off an item for your child! All you need to do is drop the item in the correct grade-level blue bin in the Lobby of our school. Please make sure your child's name is on the item.

If you bring your child in late to school, please follow this process:

• ring bell to come in to Lobby
• write note
• send student in to Main Office—parents don’t need to come in the Main Office

The Central Bucks School District will be changing the way in which absences are reported, beginning on the first day of school, August 30, 2021. The following items are some key points to be aware of.

• Parents and guardians will be able to submit absence requests via the Parent Portal. Parents can request a full day absence, early dismissal, or late arrival.
• Absence requests will be reviewed by school attendance staff and approved or denied.
• Requests made using the parent portal will also serve as the excuse for the absence. Parents will not be required to submit an excuse either electronic or written.
• Parents and guardians can also still call the school to report an absence, but emails will no longer be accepted.

In addition, when a student is absent from school, but the school did not receive communication from the parent or guardian, the following communication will be sent:

• A text message will be sent midmorning notifying the parent or guardian of the absence
• An email will also be sent at the end of the school day reminding the parent or guardian that the student was marked absent.

Information regarding how to use the Parent Portal to report an absence can be found here.

You may report your child's absence in any of the following ways:

• Through Parent Portal
• Phone (Attendance hotline): 267-893-2920

Here is a list of ways Tamanend communicates with students, families, and the community:

• Tamanend website: includes important information, resources, calendar of school events, and daily announcements
• Calendar of school events (posted on our website)
• Good Morning Tamanend daily announcements (emailed to parents* and students each morning, scrolling on TV screens during school day and posted on our website) *parents should email Mrs. Donna Kirkpatrick at dkirkpatrick@cbsd.org if they would like to have the daily announcements emailed to them directly
• TV show (weekly, during Advisory period)
• Email blasts from Tamanend administration regarding important news, new procedures, and reminders
• Parent Portal: student information, grades, and attendance
• Tamanend Connections newsletter: useful information, important reminders, and school highlights emailed weekly during school year and posted on Tamanend website
• Twitter: @CBTamanendMS highlights of activities, events, and daily life at Tamanend
• CBSD app: highlights of activities, events, and daily life in Central Bucks
  

If parent(s)/guardian(s) wish to receive the daily announcements via email blast, they should email Mrs. Donna Kirkpatrick. Daily announcements are always posted under the "Daily Announcements" Section of the Tamanend website for those who do not wish to receive the daily email.