Bushy Bear Tales
Volume 16 - May 24, 2019
Bushy Park Elementary
Terri Via, Assistant Principal
Email: molly_ketterer@hcpss.org
Website: bpes.hcpss.org
Location: 14601 Carrs Mill Road, Glenwood, MD, United States
Phone: (410) 313-5500
Twitter: @hcpss_bpes
From Mrs. Ketterer:
We are enjoying these final weeks with our students and are meeting to determine instructional placements for next year. So many celebrations of growth have occurred as we meet to ensure our students will be both encouraged and challenged! The photo above shows our fifth graders who are preparing to move on to middle school!
Thank you for sharing your input using our Parent Consideration Forms for next school year 2019-2020. We continue to welcome them and ask that they are handed in by June 1st. We hope to reach our goal of 50% return this year!
Please Return 2019 Parent Consideration Cards by JUNE 1st
As the end of this school year approaches, we are beginning to look toward the next school year. We focus on sharing information and what we’ve learned about our students in order to promote continuous progress.
Last week, we sent home special blue copies of a Consideration Card for you to use. We will also be offering reminders, with a blank form attached, via HCPSS Messenger to help us have a larger return.
This Consideration Card is for you, as parents, to relate specific student information or observations about your child that you feel would be beneficial as our teachers meet to determine next year’s placements. For example:
- “My child seems to work much better in a classroom space with opportunity for movement, a teacher who has a structured routine that involves the personalities and interests of the students.”
- “My child is shy and often knows the answer yet may be afraid to raise his/her hand and would work best with a teacher who gently encourages participation and risk taking.”
It is helpful to focus on your child’s learning characteristics. Your feedback as a parent is valuable. There are certain concerns that we cannot consider as part of this Consideration Form: therefore, we ask that you NOT use the form to propose the following:
- Do not request grouping based on siblings’ experiences
- Do not request grouping with friends
- Do not request grouping based on hearsay
Your child’s current and future teachers will read your Parent Consideration Card. We consider what you share as valuable information to get to know them as learners, as well as, input for their future instructional groups.
Last year we reached the milestone of over 40% of our families returning a Parent Consideration Form for their child(ren). This year we reach for 50% and thank you ahead of time for taking the time to share your input!
We currently have 14%...keep them coming!!
May
- 24 PARCC Testing: 3rd Grade- Day 2 Math @ 10:30-12:30
- 27 SCHOOLS CLOSED: Memorial Day
- 28 PARCC Testing: 3rd Grade- Day 3 Math @ 10:30-12:30
- 29 PARCC Testing: 3rd Grade- Day 4 Math @ 10:30-12:30
June
- 3 5th Grade In-School Field Trip: Owls @ 9:30-11:30 in the Mini-Auditorium
- 3 1st Grade Field Trip to Balt. Museum of Industry 10:00-3:00 p.m.
- 4 EARLY DISMISSAL: Schools Close 3 Hours Early for End of 4th Quarter
- 5 Field Day 9:25 Flagpole Opening / 9:45 1st Rotation Begins
- 6 4th Grade Concert @ 2:45-3:35 p.m. in the Cafeteria
- 6 4th Grade Evening Concert @ 7:00 p.m. in the Cafeteria
- 7 PTA Cultural Arts Program: Author Visit 9:25 Primary / 10:25 Intermediate
- 10 Junior Achievement in a Day 9:30-3:30 p.m.
- 11 2nd Grade Field Trip to MD Science Center @ 9:30-3:15
- 13 3rd Grade Concert @ 9:30-10:15 in the Cafeteria
- 13 2nd Grade Picnic at Western Regional Park @ 11:30-2:30 p.m.
- 13 3rd Grade Concert @ 7:00 p.m. in the Cafeteria
- 14 Flag Day Ceremony @ 9:25-10:00 a.m. at the Flagpole
- 14 Kindergarten In-School Field Trip: Scales and Tales @ 12:30 p.m. in the Mini-Auditorium
- 14 4th Grade Picnic at Western Regional Park @ 12:30-3:30 p.m.
- 17 1st Grade Picnic at Western Regional Park @ 11:15-2:00 p.m.
- 17 5th Grade Picnic on BPES Blacktop/Playground @ 1:30-3:30 p.m.
- 18 5th Grade Farewell Ceremony @ 9:30-11:00 in the Cafeteria
- 19 Kindergarten Picnic at Western Regional Park @ 10:45-12:30 p.m.
SAVE-THE-DATES
August
- 27 Back-to-School: PTA/Admin Meeting I @ 4:30-5:00 p.m. in the Cafeteria
- 27 Back-to-School: Grades 3-5 Back-to-School Presentation @ 5:00-5:30 p.m.
- 27 Back-to-School: Grades 1-2 Back-to-School Presentation @ 5:45-6:15 p.m.
- 27 Back-to-School: PTA/Admin Meeting II @ 6:30-7:00 p.m. in the Cafeteria
- 29 Kindergarten Orientation & Open House @ 2:30-3:30 p.m.
- 30 RECC & Pre-K Orientation & Open House @ 10:30-11:30 a.m. in the Classrooms
- 30 New Families Orientation @ 1:00-2:00 p.m. in the Media Center
- 30 Open House for Grades 1-5 @ 2:00-3:00 p.m.
Leo Club Invites our Veterans to our June 14th BPES Flag Day Celebration @ 9:30 a.m.
Please e-mail our Leo Club Advisor, Mrs. Cole, at angela_cole@hcpss.org to share you are attending. Please also include a brief military bio so that Mrs. Cole can introduce you during our special program. It would be our honor to have you celebrate with us!
Spotlighting Classroom DOJO Students
The following students were recognized for May 17th. Congratulations to:
- KINDERGARTEN
- Mrs. Bohn's Class- Logan Phelps
- Mrs. O'Leary's Class- Nishadhi Tennakoon
- Mrs. Powell's Class- Clarissa Stein
- Mrs. Wilson's Class- Logan Tedrow
- 1st GRADE
- Mrs. Bruner's Class- Hope Grimmel
- Mrs. Hintz' Class- Tommy Furlong
- Ms. Huyetts' Class- Paige Bynaker
- Mrs. Lambros' Class- Dominic Coffman
- Mrs. Payne's Class- Sophia Joseph
- 2ND GRADE
- Mrs. Follmer's Class- Patrick Berne
- Mrs. Hogan's Class- Sophie Makhlouf
- Mrs. Keats' Class- Neeva Patel
- Mrs. Stumpfl's Class- Hailey Riggleman
- 3RD GRADE
- Ms. Griffin's Class- Yusuf Mehmood
- Ms. Hewitt's Class- Kara Liang
- Mrs. Hovis' Class- Muhammad Hassanein
- Mrs. Pickett's Class- Sabrea Mitchner
- 4TH GRADE
- Ms. Lyter's Class- Ava Discepolo
- Mrs. Perry's Class- Caleb Lease
- Mrs. Richmond's Class- Evan Baehr
- Mr. Wilson's Class- Shown in Photo
- 5TH GRADE
- Mrs. Cole's Class- Nathan Witt
- Ms. Landry's Class- Aminah Malik
- Mrs. Little's Class- Lilly Frankton
- Mrs. Stanton's Class- Addison Shumate
- Mrs. Yakscoe-Markle Class- Jacob Hwu
We have been collaborating with parents, students and staff to reflect how we can ensure our school is a place where students are valued, respected and loved for who they are.
This section of our newsletter will highlight actions that connect to this goal. In the coming weeks and months, we will continue dialoguing with all stakeholder groups to move forward with responsive action.
FEATURE: BPES Family Hosts Interfaith Dinner
The Hassanein Family offered the opportunity to experience a part of the commemoration of Ramadan last week by hosting an Interfaith Dinner.
Ramadan is a holy month of fasting, introspection and prayer for Muslims, the followers of Islam. Fasting is one of the five fundamental principles of Islam. Each day during Ramadan, Muslims do not eat or drink from sunrise to sunset.
Iftar (or Fatoor) (Arabic: إفطار ʾifṭār 'break fast') is the evening meal with which Muslims end their daily Ramadan fast at sunset.
Our students who participate in fasting may sit with friends in the cafeteria and other volunteer in the Media Center. Our Staff looks in on them and supports their commemoration.
Traci Duvall and Molly Ketterer attended from BPES along with GMS past administrators, We met dozens of friends of the Hassanein Family, enjoyed amazing food and fellowship! The Hassanein Family continues to extend this celebration in the hopes of sharing their culture and faith. They extended appreciation for the work the BPES Staff is doing to honor diversity.
NEWS from the HEALTH ROOM
All medication currently in the health room must be picked up by the parent / guardian by the end of staff hours on the last day of school (4:05 p.m. on Friday, 06/21/2019).
Any medication not picked up will be destroyed. Please contact the health room staff at 410-313-5500 with any questions.
FOCUS: Ensuring Student Safety during Outside Events
- Students are encouraged to bring hats, water bottles and to apply suncreen before coming to school.
- All adults who volunteer on Field Day will need to check-in the Front Office through Lobby Guard. Please allow enough time to do that before supporting your Field Day activity.
- Students will be rotating to seven different activities and supervised to remain in the area of those activities for the full rotation.
- If a student needs to use the restroom, they will go with a partner and be supervised by an adult leaving the area and reporting back to that same area.
- There will be multiple walkie-talkies outside so that staff can report voice to voice with the Front Office and each other.
- Anyone who is not wearing a badge or visitor's identification needs to be asked to go to the Front Office. Please report this to a staff member with a walkie-talkie.
During Field Day, we emphasize teamwork and good sportsmanship. All students in Kindergarten through Fifth grade will participate in Field Day. Field Day will be a full day event for all students with over 50 different activities for students to choose from. Remember, there will be stations where students have the option to get a little wet so please have students dress accordingly.
To build a sense of team spirit in each grade level, your child will be assigned a team color to wear. This also helps us identify the grade level groups of students as they rotate through their activities. See below for the color each grade will wear.
We ask students to wear a solid colored t-shirt with their assigned color on Field Day. The grade level colors are the following:
- RECC/PreK- Purple
- Kindergarten- Red
- 1st Grade- Yellow
- 2nd Grade- Blue
- 3rd Grade- Orange
- 4th Grade- Green
- 5th Grade- Red
We are using SignUp.com to organize our upcoming Field Day Sign-ups. Here's how it works:
- Go to this link to see our Sign-up: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60b0b44afa92aa0fb6-bushy
- Review the options listed and choose the spot(s) you like. Please note that sign-up spots differ in duration based on the schedule for Field Day.
- Please ensure that you can work for the ENTIRETY of the spot you sign up for. Of course, if you plan to volunteer all day you may sign up for multiple spots as long as they do not overlap!
Note: Sign Up does not share your email address with anyone. If you prefer not to use your email address, please contact us and we can sign you up manually.
If you haven’t taken the online parent volunteer training this year, please visit bpes.hcpss.org and complete that training. Parent volunteer training is required.
You will receive your specific station assignment upon arrival on Field Day.
If you have any questions, please email either Mr. Csajko or Mr. Cruz and we can further explain the process of volunteering for Field Day.
From Dr. Via
You may have heard the news that I am retiring after 16 wonderful years at Bushy Park and 34 amazing years with the Howard County Public School System. Bushy Park has been such a great place to work! I am grateful every day to be a part of such a special school! I thank you for sharing your children with me and for all of the support through the years.
I want to especially thank you for creating pages for my booklet to celebrate Assistant Principal’s Day this year and for all of the gifts, cards, and treats you and your children sent! I am truly blessed! Thank you, as well, for treating me and the whole staff to a fabulous Staff Appreciation Week. I have been overwhelmed by your thoughtfulness and want you to know how much it has meant to me! Although I will be leaving BPES in June, I take many special memories with me into my retirement!
From Mrs. Ketterer
I am also retiring after 4 wonderful years at Bushy Park with 36 years as an educator and 32 of them with HCPSS! Dr. Via and I began our teaching careers in Howard County at the same school over 30 years ago. Now we came to the same time of stepping away.
It has been an amazing experience serving the students, parents, and staff at Bushy Park! It truly takes a special partnership to support our children, and I appreciate ours over these years. It has been my joy to get to know all of the wonderful families that make Bushy Park, the unique school community that it is. Your dedication and involvement have been uplifting and inspiring to me. The staff I have had the privilege to work beside, and the administrative partner I have been so fortunate to work with, are a part of me now, as are each of you. I hope you invite me to future events, as I would be honored to remain a part of your life.
Dr. Via and I are working closely with our HCPSS Leadership to assure a smooth transition for our students, staff, and families. Again, thank you for your care, support, and partnership over the past four years! I am now a person who will live our mantra: Once a Bear, Always a Bear!
JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT IN A DAY 2019
Parent Volunteer Sign-Up Coming Soon!
Bushy Park will once again host “JA in a Day” for Grades K-5 on Monday, June 10, 2019.
We need your help!! The day long program offers classrooms a turnkey solution for age appropriate financial education, college preparation and work readiness skills.
Each classroom’s ability to participate in the JA program is dependent upon parent and community volunteers to lead students in the fun, interactive, grade specific curriculum. We welcome you to join us in this rewarding opportunity! One to two volunteers are needed for each and every classroom. All materials and step by step instructions are provided. The curriculum is easy to follow, and is very engaging to students. A volunteer training session is also provided.
Look for volunteer sign ups and more details regarding training in mid May. For now, research the program at www.juniorachievement.org, contact Kina Morton at kinammoroton@gmail.com for early bird sign up and/or questions, and save the date for this extraordinary program!!