The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo is back! Students are encouraged to wear their “Go Texan” Western clothes to school on Friday, February 24th in support of its return. Please make sure students leave their horses, spurs, and lassos at home!

Parents will be invited to come watch their child participate in Go Texan Day activities on Friday, February 24, during their child's enrichment time shown below.

5th Grade - 7:45 - 8:35 a.m.

PK/K - 8:35 - 9:25 a.m.

1st Grade/Pusparani, Martins, Phillips - 9:30 - 10:20 a.m.

2nd Grade - 10:30 - 11:20 a.m.

3rd Grade - 12:40 - 1:30 p.m.

4th Grade - 1:40 - 2:30 p.m.

Parents must bring a government issued photo identification to enter the building. Please be advised there will Also, parking will be difficult on this day. Do not park in any red painted curb areas in the carpool or bus lanes. You are highly encouraged to arrive early to clear our security check in process.

Has your child lost a jacket this semester? We have all of the jackets from the Lost and Found out on tables in the front hall for parents to check on their way to the festivities.

All adults entering the building at any time must have a government issued photo identification (preferably a US state issued driver's license or a passport from another country if the adult does not have a US issued driver's license). This document will be scanned before access is granted to any event or visit.

We will be testing our 2nd – 5th grade ESL students on the TELPAS test for the next three weeks. The TELPAS is a State test given once per year to assess English language proficiency for our students who are designated as ESL because they are learning English in addition to another language that is spoken at home. The students will be tested on the computer in the areas of Reading, Writing, Listening and Speaking. The test is given in small groups in two sessions. Students must score at the advanced high level in all 4 domains to be considered as proficient in English and able to exit the ESL program. We know all of our students will do their best!

Congratulations to our outstanding 3-5 Name That Book team! The students participated in a challenging competition and came in second place! We are so proud of these avid readers for their performance and team collaboration. Thank you to the following students and their parents for working hard to make the team a success: Niharika B., Advitha L., Tanvi M., Saanvi G., Ved W., Rustam Y., and Anna Z.

Our students participated in the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Coloring contest again this year. One of our students has been selected in this Coloring & Creativity Contest to have their art work displayed at the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo!

Congratulations Jameel R.!!!

His artwork has been selected in the Creativity Contest to be displayed at the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo! This is quite an accomplishment! Over 6,000 entries were submitted. Only 200 were selected to be displayed. That is just the top 3%!!

Our third - fifth grade students will take the Texas required STAAR Interim Assessments in March. The days are shown above in the calendar. These assessments are treated like the real STAAR meaning the campus is closed to all visitors in all grades on these days. There will be no parent conferences, lunchroom/cafeteria helpers, or birthday lunches on these days. Please mark your calendars for these important dates. Also, please try to avoid any early pickups, doctor, or dentist appointments on these days.

The Bush Elementary Family Picnic will be on Friday, March 10 from 10:45 a.m. - 11:45 a.m. on the school grounds. Next week, parents will receive a letter and 4 entry wristbands per child. Every person will need a wristband on to enter the school grounds. Young children will need the wristband on a stroller or a child carrying device. Pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, Ms. Pusparani, Ms. Martins, and Ms. Phillips classes will be eating around the primary playground along Westerloch street. Family members wearing wristbands will enter through the small gate at the visitors' parking lot along Westerloch. First - fifth grade families wearing wristbands will enter via the track gate along Parkway Plaza.

We ask that families eat with the younger child's class. Parents will notify the older child's teacher to go to the younger sibling's class for lunch. For example: A family has a kindergartner and a third grader. The parent will tell the third grade teacher to send the older sibling to the kindergartner's class for the picnic.

Next week the wristbands go home and if more are needed, then contact your child's teacher.

Zearn is partnering with Houston Independent School District to create the Zearn Brainy Challenge! Every student who completes their target number of lessons during the challenge will receive a $10 Walmart Gift Card!

• Kindergarten: Your students in Kindergarten can participate in the challenge by logging into their Zearn account through Clever and completing 24 Digital Activities between February 6-March 5th.

• Grades 1-5: Your students in Grades 1-5 can participate in the challenge by logging into their Zearn account through Clever and completing 16 Digital Lessons through their Next Up tab between February 6-March 5th.
  
  Winners will be announced the week of March 20th. For more information on the details of the challenge and how you can support your students, check out the flyer and resources below.

We're seeing some very unsafe and dangerous behaviors by parents during morning arrival.

• Parents walking through the small parking lot and then between the cars in the active carpool lane.
• Parents stopping their car on Westerloch Drive to let out their child in an active lane of traffic.
• Parents not using the sidewalks and crosswalks to get to school.

The carpool lane and Westerloch Drive are very busy in the morning. Please be a good role model for your child and all others watching you by taking a few extra minutes to be safe.

The Teacher Assistants are responsible for supervising the students in the cafeteria during lunch time. The Teacher Assistants are asking for parents' help in keeping the cafeteria calm and safe. Parents must follow these guidelines when visiting at lunch to pass out a birthday treat to their child's homeroom class and have lunch with their child.

• Only hand out the birthday treat to the students in your child’s homeroom class at the last 5 minutes of your child’s lunch.
• Birthday goodie bags are not handed out at lunch.
• Do not hand out any extra treats to any students in other class(es).
• Only take your child (no other students may go) to eat at the hallway birthday table or at the courtyard table and understand that you will not be able to eat lunch in the cafeteria.
• Do not take pictures or videos in the cafeteria during lunch.

Parents not following these guidelines directly affects student behaviors in the cafeteria.

Please make sure your child is following Bush Elementary's dress code guidelines. Bush Elementary's colors are red, navy, and white. Khaki pants, shorts, and skirts may also be worn. If a jacket, sweater, or sweatshirt are worn in the building throughout the day, then those items must follow dress code.

We're seeing many students wearing jeans with purposeful holes and/or tears and these type of jeans are not part of dress code. Only jeans that are a plain blue may be worn. Also, sweatpants or athletic pants are not part of the Bush dress code.

Please contact our Wrap Around Specialist, Maria Quevedo, if you're in need of dress code items. maria.quevedo@houstonisd.org

We are planning a big party to celebrate every student who has perfect attendance for the fourth six-week marking period! Students will be invited to this party if they are at school every day between Monday, January 9th through Friday, February 24th. Let’s see how many Bush Bobcats we will have at our party! It is so important to be at school each and every day and we want to recognize our students who come to school every day and have perfect attendance.

The Spectacular Science Word for the week of February 20 is deposition.

Ms. Rose would like to wish a very special birthday to:

Ana C. who turned 7 years old on February 11 and is a first grader in Ms. Mi's class.

Arya W. who turned 8 years old on February 21 and is a second grader in Ms. Brown's class.

Henley J. who turned 10 years old on February 20 and is a fourth grader in Ms. Munk's class.

Liana R. who turns 8 years old on February 23 and is a second grader in Ms. Brown's class.

Ian B. who turns 8 years old on February 27 and is a second grader in Ms. Brown's class.

Happy Birthday and Welcome to the Bush Birthday Book Club!

This week's focus: Family Relationships

Do you ever have those days where you look back and think about what you could have done differently as a parent?

You may try to incorporate connection time into your daily routine, like during dinner and bedtime. That's when you can remind yourself to slow down and be more present with your family.

Children feel secure and loved when they have strong and positive family relationships. Positive family relationships help families resolve conflict, work as a team and enjoy each other's company. Positive family relationships are built on quality time, communication, teamwork and appreciation of each other.

This week's activity:

GLAD Conversation Cards! By Big Life Journal

This is a heartwarming way to help your child develop self-awareness, positivity, and joy. Plus, they're a beautiful way to bring you and your family closer together.

At the end of the day, you and your family can use these GLAD Conversation Cards to name:

💛 Gratitude: One thing you’re grateful for.

💛 Learning: One thing you’ve learned.

💛 Accomplishment: One thing you’ve accomplished.

💛 Delighted: One thing that brought you joy.

You can add this ritual into your child's bedtime routine or share it at the dinner table as a family.

The PTO is looking for helpers for next school year, and we need YOU! Nominations for the 2023-2024 BBE PTO Board are now open.

The PTO Board consists of over 20 different roles, all with a focus on maintaining and enhancing 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 our school.

Please view the list of PTO Board positions and job descriptions, and then fill out this form to nominate yourself or someone else for a position on next school year’s PTO Board.

Please email presidentbbepto@gmail.com with any questions.

Purchase a plain white t-shirt, which is needed for ALL STUDENTS for Art class. The students will be working in class on tie-dying the shirts for Field Day.

Shirts purchased through the PTO website will be delivered directly to the Art classroom.

The deadline to purchase through the PTO is March 1st.

Check out our SALE items online! Shirts are all school dress code approved and are vintage spirit shirts from previous years. Prices for T- shirts range from $5 - $10. Limited sizes available and ALL SALES ARE FINAL! If you would like to see sizes in person visit us Wednesday mornings at school from 7:30 am- 8:30 am. Must be VIPS approved to enter. Shop www.BBEpto.com. You must have an account to shop

The School Store is open for students to shop on Fridays and some select Thursdays.

We offer pens, pencils, erasers, fidgets and more. Prices range from $0.10- $4. Please send money with your student on the correct week if they would like to shop. See below for the schedule.

3/3 - 1st Grade, Kinder, and Pre-K

3/24 - 4th and 5th Grades

3/30* - 2nd and 3rd Grades (THURSDAY)

4/6* - 1st Grade, Kinder, and Pre-K (THURSDAY)

Be sure to follow @bbepto on Facebook or Instagram for the latest updates when we get new stock!

Please contact mybushstore@gmail.com with any questions about the School Store.

Bobcat Families, order your 2022-2023 Yearbook now and enjoy the memories of this year at BBE. Please visit the BBE PTO website to purchase your yearbook at a discount of $30. On March 11th, the price will increase to $35, and yearbook sales will close on March 24th, so don’t delay!

Do you have a graduating 5th grader? Give them a shout-out in the yearbook! Dedications are $20 for 175 characters or less. Order on the website at www.bbepto.com by March 3rd. Log into the site, select the “My Account” menu, and choose “My Dashboard” from the drop down. (Dedications are available for 5th graders only.)

We would love for families to send in any photos that are school-related, such as photos you snapped at the Let’s Glow Wild Party on Friday, Pajama Day, Astros day, or any grade-specific event/project that we can include in the yearbook!

Please send no more than 3 photos to bushptoyearbook@gmail.com and label the pictures with your child's grade.

Planting in the Garden - Friday, February 24th, 3 - 4pm (RESCHEDULED DUE TO WEATHER)

Join us to plant in the tire garden area. We'll be getting our hands dirty! Students are encouraged to bring garden gloves if they have them. We'll also spend some time making a nature themed Valentine craft. All students must be accompanied by a parent or guardian for the duration of the event. Parents will need to pick up their child after school and enter the Nature Center through the track gate.

Rainbow Rock Garden (Part 2) - Friday, March 3rd, 3 - 4pm

Join us as we build our second rainbow rock garden in the Nature Center. Students will be spray painting rocks and assembling them around the bird bath in the garden. It is recommended that students change out of their uniform and into "painting" clothes prior to arrival. All students must be accompanied by a parent or guardian for the duration of the event. Parents will need to pick up their child after school and enter the Nature Center through the track gate.

If you are interested in attending these events, please sign up here.

Join the Birthday Book Club and make your student’s birthday extra special! Your student will receive a personal birthday greeting from Ms. Rose during the morning announcements, and have their name printed in the weekly Paw Prints newsletter, in a book for the library, AND on the electronic marquee during the week of their birthday.

22-23 Faculty and Staff

COUNSELOR

Jewell Quinonez

(P) 281-368-2150 (ext: 275212)

Jewell.Quinonez@houstonisd.org

Click here to visit the BBE Counselor Corner

FOR RESOURCES AND COMMUNITY OUTREACH -

Wraparound - Maria Quevedo

(P) 281-368-2150 (ext. 275105)

maria.quevedo@houstonisd.org

FOR ATTENDANCE -

Registrar - Adriana Rosales

(P) 281-368-2150 (ext. 275104)

arosale3@houstonisd.org