Bike Safety
Last week, several bikes were stolen from Bush Elementary. It appears the stolen bikes were not secured to the bike rack or did not have locks. Please make sure your child has a lock for his/her bike and knows how to use it.
Harris County Precinct 5 was able to recover most of the students' bikes. If you haven't retrieved your child's bike, please contact Precinct 5, 17423 Katy Fwy, Houston, TX 77094. Thank you to the Bush Elementary parents who helped out with sharing information about this event to help others get their bikes back.
Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Art
Ms. Orta, our Art teacher, is happy to announce that all Bush students who entered a piece of art work into the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Art contest were selected as winners! Congratulations to the following Rodeo Contest Winners:
HISD Finalist
Adhithi Arvind
Blue Ribbons
Samanta Camacho
Valentina Cedeno
Red Ribbons
Ziva Priyono
Laura Stephens
Evey Mendoza
Karl Munguia
Monneli Mojarrad
Mishika Srivastava
Teresa Mayces
Autreyee Ozah
White Ribbons
Avani Patil
Rhainnon Rislami
Congratulations Ms. Orta and all of our Rodeo Art Contest ribbon winners!
Jewell Quinonez, M.Ed
School Counselor
Barbara Bush Elementary School
Phone: (281) 368-2150 (ext: 275212)
Email: Jewell.Quinonez@houstonisd.org
Click here to visit the BBE Counselor Corner
Bush Families/Guardians,
First and foremost, I would like to say how excited I am to be joining the Bush family! I have heard such wonderful things about our community. I feel extremely lucky to be part of this team! I would like to take the opportunity to introduce myself. My name is Jewell Quinonez, and I am the new school counselor here at Barbara Bush Elementary School. While this will be my first year as a school counselor, this will be my 8th year working in education. I have taught 2nd and 3rd grade and have worked with all youth PK-5 to promote social-emotional learning.
I have linked my BBE Counselor Corner above, (below my email). It has information about my role/services, background about myself, and some great SEL resources that you can utilize with your littles at home, with a simple click. You will notice as you hover over visuals many of them are linked to SEL resources and Bush Elementary information. You can also find the “School Counselor Request Form” on my BBE Counselor Corner.
Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns, I am here to help. I look forward to working alongside you and our staff to provide solid support for our students in social and emotional development, and to create a positive impact on student learning!
Social and Emotional Learning with Ms. Jones
This Week: Validating Emotions
Our children need validation for their entire range of emotions — especially when those feelings are “inconvenient” or tough to watch.
Allowing your child to experience both pleasant emotions (joyful, curious, happy) AND unpleasant emotions (angry, resentful, sad) is their foundation for developing emotional regulation, self-compassion, and resilience.
This week’s printable: “All My Feelings are Okay" by Big Life Journal
This a fun way for your child to explore identifying and validating ALL their emotions.
Save The Date!
Date: Friday, February 11
Photo Texas Photography Houston is coming back to campus on Friday, February 11, for Class Group Photos. All orders are Prepay and Photo Texas does not email proofs. During the Prepay period, you can choose Ship to School for FREE or Ship to Home. Shipping charges will apply. Order Class Group Photo NOW! The Prepay Link for Class Group Photos remains active for 1 WEEK after Picture Day. Any order received after the Prepay period is considered a late order and is shipped to the address provided. Shipping charges will apply. Please contact Customer Service for assistance placing late orders.
Students must be in dress code for class picture day.
Westside Feeder
In partnership with the Houston Food Bank, the Westside Feeder will host a food distribution event at Ashford Elementary.
Date: February 18
Time: 10:00 a.m. - NOON
A Roadmap to Success - Connecting Schools, Parents, and the Community
The Multilingual Programs Department is hosting A Roadmap to Success Connecting Schools, Parents, and the Community district wide virtual parent event on Saturday, February 19, 2022. (see attached flyer). The event offers our district’s parents, families, and communities an opportunity to hear and learn the multiple stops of a roadmap to success for our Emergent Bilinguals. Each stop will explain its importance and critical role in a student’s pathway to academic achievement.
COVID-19 vaccines are now available for children ages 5-11. If you choose to vaccinate your child, please email a copy of the vaccination record card to
dguider@houstonisd.org or send documentation to Nurse Guider so she can update your child's immunization record.
Double Vaccinated?
Please make sure Nurse Guider
dguider@houstonisd.org has a copy of your child's proof of 2 doses of an approved COVID vaccination if you choose to vaccinate your child. Any student who has received 2 doses of the vaccine will no longer need to quarantine if the student is considered an exposure via contract tracing.
If your child does test COVID positive, then he/she must quarantine for at least 5 days regardless of vaccination status. If your child is COVID positive and showing symptoms, then he/she must stay home at least 5 days and until symptom free.
Health and Safety Above All
Children that are sick, regardless of a temperature, need to stay home. Previously, the nurse’s message was if there’s no fever, but sniffles and a sore throat, the child could be at school. Now, those symptoms qualify as a presumed positive COVID case.
Please do not send your child to school if exhibiting any of the symptoms below.
COVID-19 symptoms:
- Feeling feverish or a measured temperature greater than or equal to 100.00 F
- Loss of taste or smell
- Cough
- Difficulty breathing
- Shortness of breath
- Fatigue
- Headache
- Chills
- Sore throat
- Congestion or runny nose
- Shaking or exaggerated shivering
- Significant muscle pain or ache
- Diarrhea
- Nausea or vomiting
For the health and safety of ALL students, faculty, and staff, it is very important that children stay home when they are ill. Students who have thrown up during the night or who are running a fever cannot be sent to school. If your student complains of and exhibits any COVID19 related symptoms, they will be sent home.
Throughout the school year, this section of the newsletter will highlight key points from the
Bush Parent Handbook. School begins at 7:30 a.m. Students arriving after 7:40 a.m. are tardy. Students arriving after 9:00 a.m., without a doctor's excuse, are marked absent.
Dress Code Reminders
Here are some quick reminders about our Bush Elementary dress code. Shirts must be solid colored red, white, or navy. The only t-shirts allowed are Bush Elementary t-shirts. Dress code pants are navy, khaki, or blue jeans. The pants must not have any holes, rips, tears, or designs on them, just simple plain blue jeans, navy pants, or khaki pants. Exercise pants, sweatpants, and yoga pants are NOT part of the Bush dress code. Leggings can not be worn as pants, only under skirts or jumpers. Please click on the link below for the complete dress code guidelines.
2021-2022 Dress Code Guidelines
Morning Arrival Reminders
Morning supervision of students starts at 7:20 a.m. At that time students are brought into the building and are seated in grade level lines. Morning bus lane drop off is reserved for our 5th Grade Safety Patrols and our students in our self-contained special education classes. These families have a special printed pass to enter the bus lane for morning drop off. All other students arriving by car must be dropped off in the carpool lane. The first bell rings at 7:30 a.m. and the students are tardy at 7:40 a.m. when the morning announcements begin.
We have started a new year so let's start the year by following our morning arrival procedures and being on time for school every day.
Dismissal Reminders
Please plan to pick up your carpool and walker students before 3:15. Our students are dismissed at 3:00 and our walker area has been finishing before 3:10 on most days. If you arrive after 3:15, please come to the front office to sign your child out as a late pick up.
Please abide by the No Parking signs on the streets around our school and our neighboring schools. Several parents have received parking tickets from HPD in the past because they were parking in a No Parking zone. When cars park in No Parking zones, it is difficult for our busses and vans to turn into our bus lane.
We're asking for the parents of walkers that park their cars on the other side of Westerloch across from the school to NOT u-turn by the carpool lane entrance once they've picked up their child(ren) and are heading home.
We have seen many students and some parents walking across the street not using the crosswalks. This is extremely dangerous and we ask that all walkers and bike riders use the crosswalks. Westerloch Dr. and Parkway Plaza Dr. are very busy streets during morning arrival and dismissal. If you cross between parked cars, ongoing traffic cannot see you.
We are so happy to see so many of our students riding their bikes to school. Please remember that all students are required to wear a bicycle helmet when riding their bikes to and from school. We want to keep all of our Bobcats safe.
Absence Notification
If your child is absent from school, please make sure you send in a note explaining the absence date(s) and reason for the absence upon return to school. We will need this note even if you're at home quarantining or a Positive COVID-19 case. Please email your absence excuse note to the homeroom teacher and our registrar, Ms. Rosales at
arosale3@houstonisd.org
If a note is not received within 3 days, then the absence is recorded as unexcused.
Bush PK Lottery 2022 - 2023
On September 10, HISD School Choice opened up the system to apply for the PK lottery for next school year. The Bush PK program is only for families that are already enrolled at Bush Elementary and have another child who will be 4 on or before September 1, 2022. Students must meet PK eligibility requirements such as being economically disadvantaged or qualifying as English as a Second Language.
The site will accept applications from September 10, 2021 - March 10, 2022. Families will be notified by HISD School Choice on April 7, 2022 if their child was accepted into Bush Elementary's PK program or if their child is on the waitlist. Go to HISDChoice.com to apply. Bush Elementary's PK program is only one class with 22 students that must be comprised of siblings of currently enrolled Bush students. The only way to apply for and be part of the lottery for Bush Elementary's PK program is to apply online at the address shared above.
Pets at Bush
Safety continues to be our top priority, and while we love our furry visitors, we ask that you keep them at home during arrival and dismissal. We have several students, faculty and staff members who are allergic to dogs and cats and students who are very afraid of dogs. Please keep them at home.
Early Pick Ups
Please do not plan to pick up your child after 2:30 p.m. from the office. To ensure a safe dismissal, students will not be called to the office to be picked up after 2:30 p.m. Thank you for helping to make dismissal safe for all our students.
Spectacular Science!
The Spectacular Science Words for the week of January 31 is water cycle.
Bobcat Birthdays!
Ms. Rose would like to wish a very special birthday to:
Aiman T. who turned 7 years old on January 27, and is a first grader in Ms. Baldwin's class.
Amaya M. who turned 6 years old on January 28, and is a kindergartener in Ms. Bracken's class.
Ahava V. who turned 10 years old on January 30 and is a fourth grader in Ms. Diller's class.
Omobolade A. who turned 9 years old on January 31, and is a third grader in Ms. Goodwin's class.
Jameel R. who turned 8 years old on February 1, and is a second grader in Ms. Carlin's class.
Ari L. who turned 10 years old on February 2, and is a fourth grader in Ms. Munk's class.
Carolina V. who turned 7 years old on February 4, and is a first grader in Ms. Mi's.
Happy Birthday and Welcome to the Bush Birthday Book Club
Birthday Book Club
Help your child celebrate their birthday and support the library and other programs that enhance the educational experience of Bush students by joining the Birthday Book Club.
Your child will be given a personal "Happy Birthday" greeting during the morning announcements and Paw Prints shout out from Ms. Rose! The donation will be recognized with a nameplate in a new book from the library. A group photo of all the other BBC members with the same birth month will also be displayed in the library display case.
It only costs $20 for a Birthday Book Club Membership (Add Electronic Marquee display for $10 more). Please visit www.BBEPTO.com for more details or to make your purchase.
Enrollment Schedule:
February – July Birthdays: Enroll through January
PTO NOMINATIONS
The PTO Board wants you! The PTO is looking for volunteers for next school year. The PTO Board consists of over 20 different positions, all with a focus on the quality of education at Bush Elementary. We welcome working and non-working parents and guardians from all different grade levels and backgrounds. We encourage you to find a position which sounds interesting to you and one in which you feel you can contribute your unique talents and skills towards the betterment of Bush Elementary. If you would like more information about any of the positions you can read about them on the Job Descriptions page of our website, or email our PTO President at presidentbbepto@gmail.com .
If you are ready to submit your application for a position on the PTO Board for the 2022-2023 school year, please complete this form.
NOTHING BUNDT LOVE!
We will be partnering again with our local Nothing Bundt Cakes shop to bring you a Valentine’s Day Fundraiser. We will be selling individually wrapped mini bundt cakes which will be delivered to your students. Students will enjoy their cakes at home; they will not be eaten in class. Purchase bundts for your students or their classmates. You can also order for non-Bush siblings, yourself or other friends and family members! You have the option to include a short personalized note with each bundt. We will also be collecting donations for our staff to ensure that ALL of our wonderful Bush staff members are able to take home some cakes as well. The bundts will be sold for $5 and they will be delivered February 10.
Order your cakes by February 4 at www.BBEpto.com.
YEARBOOK SALES
Order your 2021 - 2022 Yearbook Today!
$30 (Price will increase to $35 on March 12th)
CLICK HERE TO ORDER
Yearbooks will be NOT be sold after March 20th, so please order now!
5TH GRADE YEARBOOK DEDICATIONS
Do you have a graduating 5th grader? Give them a shout-out in the yearbook! Dedications are $20 for 25 words or less. Order on the website at
www.bbepto.com before March 5th. (Dedications are available for 5th graders only.)
YEARBOOK PHOTOS
We are looking for some pictures for the yearbook. If you have any, please share them with us! Please send no more than 5 photos for all events to bushptoyearbook@gmail.com and label pictures with your child's grade.
SCHOOL STORE
Unfortunately due to some new restrictions in place, the School Store On-The-Go will not be available until further notice. At this time our online school store is still open and items will be delivered to the classrooms on Fridays. Visit the store at www.BBEpto.com
PTO CHANGES
The PTO will be reviewing their constitution and making some changes. If you are a dues paying member and would like to be involved in this process, please fill out this form.
For any questions related to PTO please contact Val Shaikh,
presidentbbepto@gmail.com.
We are now on Instagram! Follow us for the latest updates @bbepto. And Don’t forget to sign up for our Weekly E-Blast!
On Campus COVID Testing Every Thursday
Bush Elementary will have COVID testing available every Thursday for students, faculty, and staff. Parents must pre-register their child by 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday in order to be tested on campus. This testing is completely voluntary and free and requires the student's parent/guardian to first provide a one-time digital consent at
https://bit.ly/HISDC19Test .
Once a parent has registered their child, then the child will be tested each time Fulgent comes to campus to provide COVID testing.
Continued Focus on Safety 2022
COVID-19 Updates, News, and Resources
The Houston Independent School District is closely monitoring COVID-19 pandemic and is in contact with the Centers for Disease Control, Texas Department of State Health Services and Houston Health Department to ensure all students and staff members are safe and updated with the latest information. For more information please visit,
https://www.houstonisd.org/healthalerts Update to COVID-19 Positive Notification
HISD's COVID-19 protocol has been updated in regards to terminology use and reporting. At all HISD campuses, this means that when there is a positive case in your child's homeroom class you will be notified in writing by the principal. The message you will receive is below. Please note that this message will be sent after the nurse has worked to identify close contacts, is simply for notification, and does not require further action (i.e. quarantine). I want to thank you all for your diligence in ensuring that students are wearing their masks and that we are all remaining healthy.
Sample Message: This message is to inform you that an individual in your child's homeroom has reported testing positive for COVID-19. Your child has not been identified as a close contact and there is no action required of you at this time. This notification is for your awareness only. Due to privacy requirements, we cannot release the name of the COVID-positive individual or details that may identify them; however, it is important for you to know this individual is self- isolating until they are cleared to return to our campus. As a reminder, HISD has health and safety protocols in place to help prevent the spread of illness. We are asking our staff and families to do their part by adhering to these protocols, and not reporting to their worksite or sending their student(s) to school when they are ill. We appreciate your continued support as we work together to ensure the safety of our students and staff.
