Berkeley Lake ES
"Bear Essentials" Weekly e-Newsletter, May 21, 2021
Principal's Message
Dear Parents,
As the year draws to a close, I want to thank you for your support, patience, and flexibility during this challenging school year. Making instructional decisions for your children, sometimes with limited information, must have been difficult and I appreciate all you did to help us keep everyone at BLES healthy and safe.
The district is offering a digital Summer Enrichment and Acceleration opportunity for all students this year. Information about that was sent to you in an email this week and a flyer will also be included in your child's report card. Report cards will be mailed directly to you from the district this year.
On Tuesday, May 25th, we will celebrate our 5th graders with our traditional walk at 2:00PM. If you would like to see the students walk, you may do so by parking in one of our three parking lots and then lining up in the bus lane. Many thanks to our friends at Duluth High School for providing members of the drumline to lead our walk. Any student who is graduating from High School this year, and attended BLES, is also welcome to join the walk. (Please note that if you are facing the front of the school and you park in the lower right lot, you may get stuck in the afternoon dismissal car rider lane.)
Your Principal and Partner,
Dr. Pendleton
A Look Ahead...
***Specials Rotation Schedule for Digital Learning Students for Week of May 24th - 26th:
- K-2nd: Have Art and Music
- 3rd-5th: Have Science and P.E.
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Monday, May 24
10:30am Chang - 5th Grade Promotion Ceremony
Tuesday, May 25
10:30am Redner/Schilling - 5th Grade Promotion Ceremony
10:00am - 12:00PM "Playground Detectives" for children ages 3-8 at Pickneyville Park
2:00 PM - 2:30 PM 5th grade walk (parents interested in attending should arrive at 1:45)
Wednesday, May 26
Last Day of School
3:00pm Duluth HS graduation
Thursday, May 27
No events
Friday, May 28
Students with borrowed digital equipment (chromebooks, laptops, hotspots) should return items
Monday, May 31
Memorial Day
PTO Items:
Congratulations to Our 5th Graders
Order Your School Supplies for Next Year Now!
To see the school supply lists for the fall, click here.
Tupperware Sale is Still Running
A Special Thanks to Our PTO Board
A special thanks to our incredible PTO Board for driving us through this year. To all of our PTO volunteers and financial donors that carried us forward, thank you. Together, we've navigated the challenges and still managed to provide these activities for the school in 2020-2021:
- Online Grandparent's Day and Valentine's Day photo frames for students to share with their families - Thank you Monique Somervell!
- Helping Hands raised over $442.18 for food that went directly to our Berkeley Lake families - Thank you Kori Dickins and Sarah Yang and to those who joined the counselors at local-area food banks on chilly Saturday mornings!
- Provided lunches for teachers during spring conference days.
- Monique Somervell, thank you for reaching out to Wal-Mart to get popsicles donated for the scaled-down field day activities Ms. Birozes was able to host this year.
- Supported the rebuilding of the butterfly garden - Thank you to community members and BLES families for pitching in! (And to Mrs. Bentley who keeps up this beautiful addition to our campus!)
- Purchased a ball rack for the playground, and we're in the process of re-painting games - Thank you to Pam Bloch, Jason Ouimette, Ms. Birozes and Tammie and Stephen Wagner!
- Held our first-ever online capital campaign to cater lunch and provide gifts for teacher and staff during Teacher Appreciation Week in lieu of our normal potluck - Thank you to Monique Somervell for continuing her work for teacher appreciation activities for the last few years. We thank Lateisha Hardy, Jessica Porter, and Megan Schaap that helped set up and the many families that donated $1311.76 in March to this cause!
- Turkey Trot lived on thanks to Michelle Hammond who proactively reached out to us to keep it alive with an online version!
- Monique Somervell picked up Charleston Wrap and took it online this year and was able to raise a few hundred dollars more than we would have had if we'd had to cancel completely. We appreciate you doing that!
- Amy Rodriguez and Kim Sheehan - thank you for the passion you guys have for providing spirit wear for our families. A big, big thanks for continuing to chair this committee for us!
- Amy, thanks too, for offering a new Tupperware fundraiser - and a chance to clean out our food storage containers!
- We said thank you to our custodial staff in November as the pandemic found us extraordinarily dependent on their expertise and care - Thanks to Monique Somervell and Tammie Wagner for putting that together!
- Sarah Yang, thank you for updating our online shopping options this year so we can raise money when we do our normal shopping!
- The Teacher Favorites guide to shopping for our teachers and staff has been put together by Monique Somervell for the last few years. Thank you for helping us get the gifts teachers really want!
- Even though we couldn't meet in person at local restaurants for spirit nights this year, Kori Dickens helped us find a pizza night to help us raise funds.
- And now, another group of our BLES 5th graders are on their way to middle school next week! Your support of our fundraisers helped us provide each 5th grade student with a special promotion-themed gift bag, and we were able to provide decorations for the events.
Thank you from the PTO Executive Board! We'll see you next year!
School News:
Correction to Last Week's Virtual Talent Show Winners List
GCPS Meal Service
As we prepare for the last day of school on Wednesday, May 26, Gwinnett County Public Schools would like to remind families about the last days of meal service for this school year.
Elementary and Middle Schools
- At GCPS elementary and middle schools, meals for in-person learners and curbside pickup will continue through the last day of school (May 26).
- Limited distribution of meals to digital learners by bus will end on Friday, May 21.
High Schools
- Curbside pickup of meals at high schools will end on Friday, May 21.
- Limited distribution of meals to digital learners by bus will end on Friday, May 21.
- High school cafeterias will provide breakfast only on high school exam days, May 24–26.
Summer Food Resources and Assistance
- Gwinnett County Public Schools: Information regarding meals during summer school and the K-8 Summer Enrichment and Acceleration program will be communicated with participating families. However, all GCPS families can take advantage of the curbside pickup service for children ages 18 and younger. The meals—both breakfast and lunch—will be provided at 27 middle schools from June 14 to July 2 between 11 a.m. to noon on weekdays. (All middle schools will participate except Five Forks MS and Jones MS, which are undergoing construction.)
- Gwinnett County Community Services is offering free grab-and-go breakfasts and lunches at 25 locations. Curbside pick-up of nutritious meals is for 18 years or younger or those 19 years of age or older with a physical or mental impairment. Click here for a list of county locations and additional information. (https://www.gwinnettcounty.com/web/gwinnett/departments/communityservices/parksandrecreation/gwinnettsummermeals)
- Gwinnett Cares is another resource for families seeking food resources and assistance this summer, available at https://gwinnettcares.org/need-help/individual/food/.
- Families also can find food resources and help with housing and utilities through United Way’s 2-1-1 Contact Center. Learn more at https://www.unitedwayatlanta.org/need-help/.
If Your Child Borrowed a Laptop or Hotspot from the School This Year
- Monday, May 24th - devices will be collected from in-person students in KG and 1st
- Tuesday, May 25th - devices will be collected from in-person students in 2nd and 3rd
- Wednesday, May 26th - devices will be collected from in-person students in 4th and 5th
- Friday, May 28th - digital student devices should be returned to the school at the designated time sent by an email from Jessica Hill (Craig). You may also reach out to the teacher if you do not receive an email telling you what your drop time will be.
Is Your Child Going to Be in Kindergarten Next Year?
If you were unable to watch the informational Zoom meeting about kindergarten next year click here to watch a video recording of the meeting.
Did Your Child Participate in the National Student Poetry Contest in April?
Report Cards
To view the GCPS Promotion/Retention criteria for the current school year, please click here.
Opportunity for Discounted Portable WiFi Hotspot for Families
Free Vision Care Opportunity
This summer, the Gwinnett County Public Library System, in coordination with Vision To Learn, will offer vision screenings, eye exams, and, if necessary, glasses for your child. These services are free and will be provided at NO COST to you. Quality vision care is an important component of education; students that cannot see often struggle to learn to read, to see the board, and to succeed academically.
See the flyer below for more information.
Transportation for Next School Year
Please note: The form will not be fillable if you downloaded it on your cell phone. It must be downloaded on a computer.
Media Center Book Returns
Students should be returning books they have checked out from the BLES Media Center now that the school year is ending.
If your child has a lost or overdue Media Center book, please have him/her search for these books at home and in the classrooms at school. Digital students and families of BLES students are welcome to return BLES Media Center books to the Drop Off Bin at the front of the school building.
Students who are issued a fine for their lost Media Center books are welcome to bring in money to school to pay for their library fines. We accept payment in the form of cash or check. Families can also pay for these fines via MyPaymentsPlus.
Fines for Media Center Books:
Paperback Books - $5.00
Hard Cover Books - $15.00
Please note that we cannot accept replacement books. Our Media Center books are purchased from county-approved book vendors.
Thank you,
Niki Norby (Vanden Hoek)
Media Specialist
Berkeley Lake Elementary School
5th Grade Information Page on Our Website
Parents of 5th graders, remember to frequently check the 5th Grade Information page on our website for up-to-date information.
Yearbooks Still Available
It's not too late to order a yearbook! Order today and it will be delivered to your student's class. If your child is digital, it will be left in the front office the next day for pick up. The yearbook will be soft-bound and will cost $20.00.
Applications That Will Be Available to Students Over the Summer
- Imagine Learning Literacy (20 minute recommendation per sitting)
- Imagine Learning Math (20 minute recommendation per sitting)
- Typing Club (10 - 15 minute recommendation per sitting)
- Brainpop
- Brainpop Jr.
Children will have access to their current teachers' eClass course pages until July 17th but content may not be updated by the teacher during the summer.
Digital textbooks will be available on the My eClass home screen until July 7th.
Summer Reading Challenge
Please click the link below to learn about Gwinnett County Public Library's Summer Reading Challenge! We would like to encourage all BLES students to participate!
Summer Reading 2021 Presentation (in English)
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1w5LlFEKrZ51XkfuQhWVgtH2H4mCD7Ek8RbStp4_Z_zA/edit?usp=sharing
Summer Reading 2021 Presentation (in Spanish)
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1DDIF_PlnrAAJkuOdDnCritXg1COVNtFoMvYhWvA_3lU/edit?usp=sharing
Parent Involvement Survey for Parents of Special Needs Students
AKS at Home
For Parents of Kids Ages 3 - 8: "Playground Detectives" is Coming to Pickneyville Park on May 25th
Camp Invention
Camp Invention will now be offered in-person and online! See the flyer below for details. Space is limited so that we can proper all Covid guidelines and stay safe.
Camp Scholarships: We also have a few $100 scholarships that will bring the camp price to $150. Please email or drop the form at school by May 24th or email it to Trina Ashadele.
i9 Sports Summer Camp:
Georgia After School Program (GASP) Will Return Next Fall
We thank The Tutoring Center in Duluth for Being a Business Partner of Our School
Food Finder
Visit the FoodFinder website or download the app to find places nearby where you can get free food and meal assistance.
Did You Know BLES is Now on Instagram?
Do You Have a Parent Portal Account?
If you need to register with the portal, please print and complete this registration form and turn it in to the main office. Along with the completed form, you are required to show a photo I.D. for verification.
Berkeley Lake Recycles
Berkeley Lake recycles aluminum cans and old clothes and shoes (in any condition) in the two bins in the upper parking lot. The Green Team receives 10¢ per pound of donations, which helps pay the fee for the weekly paper and cardboard pick-up. The aluminum cans are recycled at Progressive Recycling on Simpson Circle. Please support our Green Team by recycling these items here at Berkeley Lake. Thank you!
We Collect Box Tops (Online)
Our Parent Center
The Berkeley Lake Parent Center is located across from the front office and it's providing services by appointment. For Parent Center support please call Ms. Sandra Orci, Parent Liaison, at 678-291-4232 or email her at Sandra.Orci@gcpsk12.org
Our Mission
To provide learning experiences in a secure and stimulating environment where every child can develop to his/her fullest potential academically, socially, and emotionally.
Our Vision
BLES is a positive safe, nurturing environment that fosters respect among all students, teachers, parents and community members, while forwarding world-class achievement that successfully maximizes each student's individual potential through engaging instruction.
We Thank Our Business Partners
Contact Us:
Berkeley Lake Elementary
4300 S. Berkeley Lake Rd.
Duluth, Georgia 30096
P: (770)446-0947
F: (770)582-7514