BESTeam Tidbits
February 11, 2018
Celebrations!
Fabulous 100th day celebrations around the building!Thank you for making the day extra special for our Texans!
Happy National Counselors Week! Thank you Abbey for all you do for Texans!!!!
Thank you Delana for representing pre-k at the personalized program expo!
Superb STAAR training! Thank you Tonya!
Thank you to the teachers training for TELPAS! Your time and effort are appreciated!
Thank you for everyone who made it possible for us to have successful benchmarks!!
Big Rocks
Volunteer Appreciation: If you get a chance, please take a minute Monday, to have your class or team make a poster, card, etc. to display for Volunteer Appreciation Day, Tues. Feb. 13. When done, if you want to send them to the Library, I'll keep them until we decorate the workroom Mon. after school. We have some amazing volunteers who help us. Not every school is so blessed. We need to take a little time to show them how much we appreciate their time and effort.
Staff Meeting: This Tuesday's staff meeting is differentiated to meet several objectives. First many of you are engaging in TELPAS calibration. Thank you for taking time to do this so we can accurately measure the growth of our learners. Second, we need one representative from each grade-level to meet in the library to talk about possible scheduling ideas for next school year. Thank you for sending one representative.
Share the Love: The new year is the perfect time to remove excess and organize! We will be purchasing literacy resources to make sure the needs of all students can be met. In order to do this, we need to reorganize and inventory what we currently have on campus. Please take some time this week to clean out your instructional resources. Bring any books purchased with school and/or PTA funds that students aren't currently using to the literacy library. Once we have an inventory we will be seeking your input on needs and titles to add to the literacy library.
Pre-K: In the 2018-2019 school year, GCISD will offer a tuition-based pre-k program at Bransford Elementary, Colleyville Elementary, O.C. Taylor Elementary, Grapevine Elementary, Heritage Elementary and Bear Creek Elementary. There will be limited availability at Timberline and Silver Lake Elementary for a blended program that includes English and Spanish (an option if you are considering Dual Language in Kindergarten).
The district will offer a 10% discount to current employees for the campus based pre-k program. Before and after school care will also be available in our KidzU program for employees with children enrolled in pre-k at no additional cost. The total cost of the program will be $5,650 including a $100 registration fee and $150 supply fee both due in the spring to reserve the seat. The first monthly payment of $540 will be due July 30.
GCISD employees will have priority placement on the requested campus for their pre-k student. Simply fill out this Google Form to provide us with information we need at this time. Forms must be complete by March 9. Additional registration information will be collected once the class placement is confirmed.
Monthly tidbits from the PTA Meeting:
- Grants Funded: High Functioning Autism Conference and Headphones for Pre-K
- K, 2nd, 3rd, and 5th have their $250 budget remaining
- Library, Art, and Choir still have funds remaining
- BEST Party is coming April 6th! The PTA would love to offer some "Bransford Experiences" from each grade level! Let's get those creative juices flowing and develop some great auction items for our amazing PTA! Click here to put ideas.
Small Rocks
Open House: Thank you for sharing your input on Open House! Save the date for Thursday, March 1. Open House will be from 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Book fair will be open that entire time. We will have a schedule of events that parents can take part in throughout the evening, starting with the second grade program at 5:30 p.m. More details coming soon
Bus Info: We will be conducting emergency evacuation drills on the morning of February 15 when they arrive to Bransford ES. It will cause a momentary delay with your students getting in to the building. Our safety coordinator, Lynora Lewis will be on site. This will only be for the three general education buses.
Future Planning: In your boxes later this week you will find a copy of your job description as well as a portrait of a BES Arts Integration Staff Member. These two items are for you to review and reflect upon as we begin planning for next school year. In next week's Smore you will find a planning sheet for you to share thoughts and ideas about next year. Looking forward to starting conversations on how we can all work together to meet the needs of our Texans.
Science Blog: Our district has a science blog that you can check out to find ideas and connect with other science teachers in the district. Please check it out when you have time!
PD PADLET: Our February 19th Professional Learning day will be Ed Camp style, similar to the experience we had with the learning institute. Later this week you will be receiving an email with all the details for this awesome opportunity to get the learning you want! Please revisit the Padlet we began during L.I.F.E Time to add ideas for topics you'd like covered, and vote for ideas others have posted. If you are interested in facilitating a session, please let Cathy know!
Retirement: Save the date for the 2017-1018 Retiree Dinner on Thursday, May 3, 2018. If you are considering retirement, make some time to visit with Jamie or Tonya.
Watch D.O.G.S.: This is the live link for our awesome Watch D.O.G.S.
Arts Resources
- All points of arts integration -- from benefits and implementation to linking the arts with core curriculum -- are covered in this roundup of useful Edutopia blog posts, articles, and videos. https://www.edutopia.org/arts-integration-resources
How do you spell love and kindness?
This week we celebrate our volunteers, celebrate the holiday of love, and highlight kindness at BES and across the district. To honor this wonderful week of celebrations, please enjoy wearing jeans all week. Thank you for all you do to show love and kindness to our students and families!
American Heart Month
Week at a Glance
What's going on around BES this week?
KC Club Val-A-Gram Sales AM & PM
Pre-K Lottery Applications available on GCISD website until March 9th
Jan’s birthday
Tonya @ ARD 8:00 and 9:50
Sandy out
Girls On The Run 2:55-4:25pm
Choir 3-4:00pm
Tuesday
KC Club Val-A-Gram Sales AM & PM
4th Grade Benchmark
Tonya ARD at 9:50
Tonya Staffing at 2:00
BES Blood Drive
Volunteer Appreciation
Staff Mtg./TELPAS Calibration Opportunity 3:15-4:30pm
Scheduling Meeting ~ 2018-2019 Planning 3:15-4:15pm
Chick-Fil-A Spirit Night 5-7:00pm Hwy 26 & Precinct
Wednesday
Staff-Trio Heart Match Game
Val-A-Grams delivered
Jamie at principals' meeting a.m.
Class Valentine Parties 2-2:55pm
Fitness Force 2:55-3:45pm
Thursday
GCISD Kindness Day~Jeans & Rachel's Challenge Shirts
RtI Tier II & Tier III Progress Monitoring Meeting
TELPAS Practice Sessions PM
Scoliosis Screening-5th grade during Specials
Denise H. @ mtg. 1:30pm
Friday
Ashley’s birthday
Katrina out
Jamie at training
Progress reports
Girls On The Run 2:55-4:25pm
Choir-5th grade 3-4:30pm
Be Proactive ~ A look ahead!
- February 13: BES Blood Drive, Chick-fil-A Night, Volunteer appreciation
- February 14: Valentine's Day Parties at 2:00 p.m.
- February 19: Student Holiday & Staff Professional Learning Day
- February 20: Spring Picture Day
- March 6: Website Training ***NO L.I.F.E. Time****
- March 20: L.I.F.E. Time
- Spirit Events ~
Chick-Fil-A Spirit Night February 13th 5-7:00 pm Hwy. 26 & Precinct
- Spring Creek BBQ Spirit Night March 20th 5-9:00pm
- Snuffer's Spirit Night April 10th 5-8:00pm
- Calendar 2018-2019
2/13 TELPAS Calibration Opportunity (staff with students engaged in TELPAS)
BES Forms
- Field Trip Request Form
- PTA Grant Request: All PTA grant requests are due the Wednesday before the executive board meets.
Jamie Halliburton
Email: jamie.halliburton@gcisd.net
Phone: 806-441-6518
Twitter: @BESHalliburton