Author and illustrator John Hare will be visiting Heartland on April 4th for students in grades K-2. John Hare is from KC and has many widely acclaimed children’s books with creative and colorful pictures. If you want to order one of his for him to personalize, here is an order form. Book orders are due back on Monday, March 27th to the library.

As we begin the fourth quarter, the district has determined the last day of school for students for 2022-23. The last week of school will occur as published, assuming there are no unforeseen circumstances causing us to cancel school. This means staff and families can plan on the last day for students in grades K-11 will be a half-day on May 26. Students in the early childhood programs will have their last day on May 25.

Looking to add a little STEAM to your summer? Try out our “STEAMing into Summer” course. Are you interested in designing games? Sign up for “Game On” and challenge yourself to a new game. These are just a few examples of the array of opportunities available through Blue Valley’s Summer Explorations program, designed to engage students in learning through hands-on experiences and lots of fun. Enrollment for the one-week sessions will begin at 8 a.m. March 20 and remain open until 4 p.m. April 3. All summer programs take place in person unless otherwise noted. For more information about the Summer Explorations program, visit www.bluevalleyk12.org/summerprograms.

Blue Valley has again entered into a partnership with Greenbush Education Service Center’s Virtual Academy for the 2023-24 school year. Blue Valley students in grades K-8 have an opportunity to enroll in the Greenbush Virtual Academy (GVA) for the 2023-24 school year. GVA is fully accredited by the Kansas State Department of Education and has administered a virtual program for several years. Last year, GVA partnered with nearly 90 districts, including Blue Valley, across the state to offer an all-virtual option to Kansas students.

GVA is a full-time virtual alternative to in-person attendance where students remain enrolled as Blue Valley students, but all coursework and content is delivered by GVA. For the 2023-24 academic year, we are asking families to make a commitment to remain in GVA for the entire school year. There will not be an option to switch back and forth between GVA and in-person learning.

• Enrollment in GVA will be on a first come first serve basis. GVA has allocated a fixed number of spots to Blue Valley for our students. The GVA enrollment window will open on Monday, March 6th at 8:00 am and close on Friday, March 31st at 8:00 am.
  

• To enroll your student in GVA, please complete the GVA Application Form. This form will not be open to complete until 8:00 am on Monday, March 6th. If you are enrolling multiple students, please complete a separate form for each student. After the enrollment window has closed on March 31st, you will receive an email letting families know if your student(s) have a spot in GVA, as well as further enrollment information required by GVA.
  

Click here for a list of Heartland Family Owned Businesses. Click here to add to the list.

Thank you to all families who donated to Heartland Library’s Birthday Book Club. Your donation helps to library to purchase new library books for all students to read and enjoy. Not familiar with our program? Read below for more information.

Students at Heartland have a wonderful way to have their special day recognized for years to come. Our library’s Birthday Book Club is available to students in all grades. By donating $15 to the Library Media Center, your child will be able to choose a special book to be placed in our library collection and be the first student to read the new book.

Here’s how it works. Prior to your child’s birthday, he/she can come to the library and select a Birthday Book from our cart of brand new books in all different genres. A nameplate will be placed in the front of the book and your child’s picture will be taken and displayed with the book in the library. This program is optional but it does provide our library with exciting new titles throughout the school year. The average cost of a library bound book is $17.30!

You can make your donation anytime during the year by paying through this Heartland link: https://bvpo.bluevalleyk12.org or send in a check made payable to Heartland Elementary to the front office.

Daily Snacks: Thank you for your support of our nut-safer snack plan at HRT. As a reminder: we ask that ALL daily snacks (i.e. snack time) for ALL students must come from the nut-safer food list as we have a significant number of students with life-threatening nut allergies. (click below for the link) If a student’s snack is not from this approved list, it will be sent home (and an alternate snack will be provided the first time) so we can help increase the safety for our students as a whole. Our continued focus this year, as an entire school, is to remain consistent on the daily snacks for student snack time in the classrooms—following the nut-safer list.

Please click HERE to access the Nut-Safer food list.

Heartland Elementary’s policy for birthday treats prohibits students and parents from bringing birthdays treats from home—edible or non-edible. This is due to several factors including health, safety, and the preservation of instructional time. Birthdays are a special time for each child and as such, the school will provide recognition throughout the day and throughout the school through announcements, birthday book club from the library, classroom celebration routines, and more. If birthday treats are sent to school during the 2022-23 school year, they will not be distributed and will be sent home. Also, if you send it invitations to birthday parties, please include all students in the class, or they will not be distributed. Thank you for understanding and complying to this policy.

• Call the HRT office at 913-239-6300
• Email HeartlandElementary@bluevalleyk12.org