3/6-3/17: Packed with Pride Food Drive

3/12: Daylight Savings Time Begins

3/13: OSAS Testing begins (Grades 3-5)

3/14: PALA Meeting 6-7:30 p.m.

3/16: TTSD Job Fair 5-7:30 p.m.

3/21: PTA Meeting 7-8:00 p.m.

3/24-4/21- Roaring for Reading- Read-A-Thon

3/27-3/31: NO SCHOOL- Spring Break

• Message from the Principal
• TTSD Work Fair
• Packed with Pride Food Drive
• Den Leaders in Action
• PaLa Meeting
• Kindergarten Registration
• PTA Meeting and Volunteer Needs
• Memory Book Orders Due Soon
• Help Bridge the Gap
• Health Room Clothing Needed
• Parking Lot Expectations
• Lost and Found Overflow
• Roaring for Reading- Read-A-Thon
• Art Rutkin Elementary Open Enrollment
• Flu and Covid Information
• Volunteering at Tualatin Elementary
• Important Links

Black Bear Families,

Mrs. Harris, one of our fantastic ELD teachers, told me this week, “March goes in like a lion and out like a lamb”. Our weather on Wednesday proved that! As we opened the school, we were treated to a surprise snow shower that was quite pretty. By that afternoon, it was warm and sunny.

Speaking of opening school, we have noticed some of our students arriving earlier than 7:40, which is a safety concern. Our staff is outside the school starting at 7:40 but not any earlier, so we would ask that students don’t arrive before then. If you bring your student to school for drop off and you arrive earlier than that, please hold them in your car with you until 7:40.

I will also ask another favor. Every year, we conduct a “School Climate” survey. This survey gives us important feedback about our school. The students and the staff are taking their surveys this month, and we also need your feedback! Please take a few moments to fill out this anonymous survey. When you click the link, you will notice an option to select English or Spanish for the survey. Thank you in advance for helping us out.

School Climate Survey link

Finally, next Tuesday evening, March 14th from 6:00-7:00 p.m., we are having our first PALA meeting of the year. PALA is our Latinx parent group here at Tualatin Elementary. The group usually meets once a month and covers different topics based on parent request. Childcare and snacks are provided for free. Our first topic is talking about our día de los niños school event coming up on April 28th. If you have any questions, please contact our fabulous Family Partnership Advocate Ana Uriostegui at 503-431-4767.

Thanks again for everything you do for your students and our school.

Working with you for our students,

Jim

TTSD is looking for: Teachers, Counselors, Secretaries, Transportation, Nutrition Services, and Instructional Assistants.

HR will be available to do in-person interviews at the event for all positions. Licensed teachers, bring your resume.

Register here and check out the current TTSD career opportunities.

In-person PaLa meetings are back! PaLa is the Latino parent group here at Tualatin Elementary. We usually meet once a month with different topics based on parent requests. Childcare and snacks are provided free of charge. Our first meeting will be held on Tuesday, March 14, 6:00-7:00 PM. One of the themes will be the día de los niños/STREAM event that is coming up on April 28. If you have questions, contact Ana Uriostegui at 503-431-4767.

The PTA is also looking for volunteers to fill important board positions next year. This year, your PTA has brought you a variety of events and raised funds for our school that were used for field trips, supplies, our garden, and more. However at the end of this year some of our amazing committee heads are moving on, along with our PTA President and other board members. If we would like to continue to provide the same level of support to our students and teachers next year, we need parents to volunteer for these PTA Board and Committee positions. If the committee head positions are not filled, the events will not happen next year. If the board positions - especially President - are not filled, NO events will happen in the future at all. Please help us continue to support our students and teachers by volunteering just a few hours of your time. The more volunteers we have the stronger the next year will be!

Available positions include: President, Treasurer, VP Fundraising, and VP Communications. Open Committee Chair positions: Fun Run, Boo Hoo Woo Hoo, Harvest Festival, Back-to-School Night, Winter Holiday, Read-a-thon, Auction, 5th Grade Promotion Celebration, Art Lit Co-Chair, Membership and Child Care Coordinator.

The Foundation for Tigard Tualatin Schools (FTTS) annual Fund Drive is happening now! Donations from the drive help enrich our students' education. Your donations hire part-time teachers, support innovative teaching ideas and provide college scholarships.

The goal is to raise $75,000 during this year's Fund Drive! That will put the Foundation on track to give each school a $10,000 check for their School Grant, to be used to fund teacher hours that will bridge their most pressing instructional gap. More teachers, more learning!!

Check out all the ways that The Foundation for Tigard Tualatin Schools has helped Tualatin Elementary and donate today!

We are sad to report the passing of three year old Abraham Torres Hernandez over our Winter Break. The Torres Hernandez family has been a part of our community for the past decade. In order to assist the family, we’ve created a Go fund me for the family, and are sharing the link with our community to help cover expenses. Thank you for your consideration!

If your student is missing items or clothing, please have them check the lost and found in the gym, it's a great possibility its there! We are overflowing!

Also, Please feel free to stop by and look for your student's jackets, coats, water bottles and other misc lost items, we'd love to give them back!

We want ALL of our children to develop a love of reading for pleasure, for knowledge and for

adventure!

What is the read-a-thon?

The read-a-thon is an event that encourages children to become better readers and learners, by

nurturing a joy of reading. This will also be one of our largest fundraisers of the year! Students

will collect donations from sponsors and have 7 days to read as much as possible, while earning fun prizes for their achievements.

How does it work?

Students will set individual reading goals for the 7 days. Students can read to themselves or be

read to. They can read books, magazines, newspapers, comics, etc.

Suggested daily minimum read time: Pre-K-2nd: 20-30 minutes 3rd -5th grades: 40-60 minutes.

How do I get pledges?

1. Ask friends, family and neighbors! We have 2 options for collecting pledges: use the enclosed pledge form or use our easy online pledge system at https://pledgestar.com/tualatin/ to participate.
2. Register your child at PledgeStar and follow the simple registration steps. It takes 2 minutes to set-up your child’s own fundraising page. By registering online, students can get support from friends and family who live near or far away!
3. You can also collect money and record the names and pledge amounts on the enclosed Pledge Form. You can collect pledges using both online and the enclosed pledge sheet.

Why are we raising money?

• Your support allows the PTA to continue to fund many of the great programs and events at our school, such as: Art Literacy, Classroom supplies, OBOB, family events, field trips, Backpack program, and more.

What is our goal?

We hope to raise $10,000. If every student can raise at least $50, we can achieve our goal!

FAQ’s:

- Pledges are one-time flat donations, not per minute.

- Pledges are tax deductible.

- Record all in-person donations on your pledge sheet and put the money in your envelope right

away. - ALWAYS REMEMBER TO THANK THOSE WHO DONATE!

- Acceptable forms of payments are: Cash, Check (Payable to Tualatin PTA), Credit Card via

PledgeStar donation. - Students do not have to collect pledges to participate, although

encouraged, all kids can participate regardless of financial contributions.

If you have any questions email Tualatin Elementary School PTA at tualatinPTA@gmail.com

or visit our webpage: http://www.tualatinelementarypta.org/read-a-thon.html Look for more information in the next edition of the Black Bear Bits and in your student's backpack.

TTSD’s newest elementary school is almost complete. Enrollment for Art Rutkin Elementary is open for the 2023-2024 school year. Please direct any questions or needs for information to Jamie Kingery, Art Rutkin Elementary principal, jkingery@ttsd.k12.or.us, 503 431-3508.

Art Rutkin Elementary website

Art Rutkin Elementary School boundary map

Frequently Ask Questions

With colder weather, comes more opportunity to spread cold, flu, and Covid-19 germs. We are seeing all three at Tualatin Elementary and ask you to do your part by following these recommendations:

• Please monitor carefully for the following primary COVID and Flu symptoms, and keep your student home if they exhibit any of the following:

• • Cough

  • Temperature of 100.4 or higher

  • Shortness of breath

  • New loss of taste or smell

  • Fatigue

  • Muscle or body aches

  • Headache

  • Sore throat

  • Nasal congestion or runny nose

  • Nausea or vomiting

  • Diarrhea

• Please contact the school for assistance with the following:

• Information on testing – We have at-home tests available at the school

• If you test positive for COVID-19

• If you have questions regarding symptoms and exclusions

• Wash hands often, especially after coming in contact with body fluids. If soap and water are not readily available, use a hand sanitizer
• Cover coughs and sneezes
  

Where Can I Get a Flu Shot?

The Washington County website has a list of locations offering the Flu Shot and other Vaccinations.

Where Can I Get a Covid Vaccine or Booster?

https://getvaccinated.oregon.gov/