Bear Bulletin
Week of January 3, 2022
From the Principal
Dear BES families,
Happy New Year! I hope your holidays were full of family, time for making memories, and good health! As we welcome 2022, I am filled with all of the excitement, hope, and anticipation that a new year brings. Thank you for your continued support of BES! Here are a few quick notes to help get us up and running this week -
The return to school after a significant break always provides a good opportunity to re-establish a focus on learning and procedures. Not only are they good reminders for existing BES families, but they will support families who are new to BES. We have included info below regarding the cafeteria, the car line, the bell schedule, and health protocols.
If your child or an immediate family member has tested positive for Covid-19 over the holiday break, please let your teacher, the principal, or the school nurse know as soon as possible. We are working diligently to ensure that we have a healthy, safe transition back to school after the holidays.
- Last call for the Lost & Found! If your child is missing a jacket, coat, sweater, lunchbox, etc - the week of Jan 3 - Jan 7 is the last week to come by to see if it might be in the Lost & Found, located by the Safari door near the cafeteria. You may come by between 3:00 - 6:00pm daily. Any items remaining after this week will be donated to charity.
For Your Calendar
- Fri, Jan 7 - PTO Meeting (virtual) 9:00am
- Thurs, Jan 13 - End of 2nd quarter
- Mon, Jan 17 - Schools & offices closed in observance of MLK Day
- Wed, Jan 26 - SIC Meeting (virtual) 7:00am
BES & Other D5 Schools Continue at Orange
Unfortunately, this means we continue with no visitors or volunteers in the building at this time. We appreciate your understanding as we keep the focus on the safety of our students.
We will continue to implement safety protocols such assigned seats to minimize the mixing of peers and to facilitate contact tracing, physical distancing to the extent possible, frequent handwashing and hand sanitizer throughout the day, and although we cannot require them, facial coverings are always encouraged.
Click HERE to see the D5 Covid-19 Dashboard. Shaded colors on the chart reflect the mitigation levels through January 7th.
Don't be Tardy to the Party!
Car Line Traffic Flow
This traffic pattern has been developed to assure maximum safety for your child and provide plenty of space for cars to line up while waiting for arrival/dismissal of car riders. Please pull as far forward as possible so that we may load/unload multiple cars at once. Also, to ensure the safety of all, please remain in your car at all times. Students should have all items gathered and be ready to exit the vehicle when it stops. If parents need to get out of the car for any reason, please park in a designated parking place to do so.
Using the image below, the blue/green dotted line shows the entrance/exit for car riders. Please note that this is a one-lane entrance. If accessing the parking lot, you will need to wait on Bickley Road until you are able to fully enter the driveway. Cars should use both lanes of the car line to double-stack cars entering BES. Cars should be double stacked all the way down the driveway until you approach the student drop off area. There is not a passing lane, so drivers needing to access the parking lot may be required to wait until traffic is moving. As cars approach the student drop off area, the two lines of traffic will merge into one line. At this point, anyone needing to park will turn left into the upper parking lot. Drivers needing to access handicap parking in the lower lot should have parking placards clearly displayed. Families using the drop off area will follow the traffic flow to the right. The exit onto Bickley Road is one lane and is RIGHT TURN ONLY. When cars exiting BES do not follow this pattern and attempt to turn left, this creates a very dangerous situation for everyone.
***SEAT BELTS: If your child needs assistance with the seat belt, please use one of the parking lots so you are able to park and safely get out to help.***
Cafeteria Menu Changes
***Please note that salads will not be a daily option.
MONDAY:
Chicken Chunks
Chicken Bowl
Wow sandwich
Yogurt & cheese
Fruit & vegetable served with all meals
TUESDAY:
Sausage Biscuit & grits
Italian pull apart
Wow sandwich
Yogurt & cheese
Fruit & vegetable served with all meals
WEDNESDAY:
Supreme chicken bites
Corn dogs
Wow sandwich
Yogurt & cheese
Fruit & vegetable served with all meals
THURSDAY:
Spaghetti w/ sauce
Mini-corn dogs
Wow sandwich
Yogurt & cheese
Fruit & vegetable served with all meals
FRIDAY:
TBA
Wow sandwich
Yogurt & cheese
Fruit & vegetable served with all meals
How to Reach Us
Parent input and feedback are always appreciated as we work through new routines and procedures. Whether through a phone call or an email, we welcome your thoughts and ideas. The Administrative Team at BES is always available to help in any way we can! You can contact us by calling the main office at 476-4500 or emailing us directly.
Principal Robin Bright rbright@lexrich5.org
Assistant Principal Zach Keister zkeister@lexrich5.org
Assistant Administrator Allison Babb ababb@lexrich5.org
Follow us on social media as well!
Facebook @BallentineElementarySchool
Twitter @BallentineElem
Thank you for your continued support as we work together to make this our BESt year yet!
Our Mission…
The mission of Ballentine Elementary School is to join together community, staff, students, and families to ensure that all students are provided a world-class, rigorous education.
Our Vision…
In partnership with the community, staff, students, and families, Ballentine Elementary School will exemplify excellence in education in a positive, safe and nurturing environment in order to prepare our students to be fully participating citizens and leaders. We will foster the development of creative thinking, encourage curiosity and problem solving, promote respect for individual differences and uphold high ethical standards.