Bear PTA News - October 25, 2018

All the news you need from the PTA… and there is a lot!

Spirit Night TONIGHT!

Don't forget to start out the long weekend by grabbing dinner at Moe's TONIGHT on Zelda Road in honor of our first Spirit Night of the year. Just place your receipt in the Bear bucket by the register & Moe's will donate 20% of the proceeds to our school! The next Spirit Night will be November 27 at the Peppertree Chappy’s Deli.

Red Ribbon Week

Next week is Red Ribbon Week at Bear. This is where we celebrate and encourage students to stay Drug-Free with a week of theme days.

Tuesday – “It’s COOL to be Drug-Free” – Students can wear sunglasses.
Wednesday – “Say BOO to Drugs” – regular uniform
Thursday – “TEAM UP Against Drugs” – Wear your favorite sports team shirt.
Friday – “I CAN, You CAN, We CAN Live Drug Free” – Friday attire. Bring in canned goods for the food pantry at Church of the Holy Comforter, our neighborhood church.

Garden Day on Monday

We will be a having a GEM day on Monday, October 29 during the Bear Open House. Children are welcome to hang out in the garden while parents visit their child’s teacher. We ask that if you drop your child off, please take 15-20 minutes to help pull some weeds before you leave. The garden is a wonderful teaching tool, but it takes a village to keep up the maintenance. If we can get parental help, then your children will be able to use it for a teaching tool instead of always having to do maintenance. Mrs.Sealy will be there from 9 am-3 pm. Garden Chair Ashleigh Livingston will be there from 11 am-3 pm. Looking forward to seeing some new friends on Monday!

Bear Brick Orders are Here

If you ordered a brick for the Bear garden, they have arrived. Come Monday or to a future GEM Day to install your own brick into our beautiful Outdoor Classroom. This is a great way to leave your permanent mark at Bear.

Reflections Art Contest

Across the nation, local PTAs compete in Reflections Art Contests. Bear has had several students compete and win awards at the county and state levels. There are cash prizes for students who compete and win at the school level. The submission deadline is November 15th. The (very important) theme is "Heroes Around Me." The six categories are art, music, dance, writing, film production, and photography. The competition is broken down into grades K-2 and 3-5. Students can enter multiple categories.

All entries must be turned in with an Entry Form. How to Enter and Official Rules can be found on the Bear Blog. All forms can be picked up from Mrs. Bonikowski, or you can email Joanna Kirkland who can send hard copies home with your student.

Bear Wear
Are your students getting chilly? Have they already lost their jacket and sweatshirt? Bear Wear will be available to purchase online starting tonight through next Friday. You can also download an order form and return it to school with cash or check. We have a limited quantity of short-sleeved and long-sleeved Fall Festival t-shirts left. First come, first served.

Specialist Spotlight

The Specialist Spotlight for October is Coach Reynolds – the PE teacher. Coach Reynolds has specifically requested Band-Aid brand bandages - large ones to fit elbows and knees. Other items on her wish list include Lysol wipes, paper towels, gallon Zip-Loc bags (for ice), instant ice packs and AA batteries. If your child brings in an item for Coach Reynolds, make sure that they sign the Gift Log so that they will be entered into a drawing for a prize. There is a collection box in the PE room. 

Summer Packet Prizes

Congratulations to all of the students who completed summer packets and turned them in at the beginning of the school year. The PTA was finally were able to deliver prizes to the students today. We are so thankful that they did not let their brains get “squishy” this summer.

Fall Festival

Thank you to all of the parents, grandparents and volunteers who assisted at Fall Festival this year. It was a HUGE success. This year’s Festival was lead by the amazing Traci Bludsworth Schell and Jennifer Parsons. Golden Bears were organized by Mindy Craymer and Toshia Martin. The beautiful gift baskets were made by Jennifer Henderson, and concessions were organized by Angie Heilman. It truly is a team effort that makes Bear such a wonderful school! 

Note to Golden Bears

Thanks so much to all who contributed to the baked goods sale. All of the yummy goodies looked and tasted wonderful! Thank you to all the volunteers that showed up and showed out. You guys were full of energy and fun. Everyone made this sale easy and successful!

Chuck E. Cheese’s Field Trip

Students who sold 25 or more discount cards will be invited to attend a field trip to Chuck E. Cheese. The date is Thursday, November 15. Parents can meet us at Chuck E. Cheese as we celebrate with games and pizza.

Bear PTA News - October 2, 1018

BASKET ITEMS NEEDED!
Fall Festival is right around the corner and we are all so excited!! Our basket raffle is one of the highlights of the Festival. In years past, we have had wonderful baskets due to the generosity of our amazing parents. The deadline for basket items is Friday, October 5th. Basket themes for each grade level are:

Kindergarten - Family Fun
First - Pamper Me
Second - Arts & Crafts
Third - Gourmet Chef
Fourth - Camping
Fifth - Gift Card

Please submit all basket donations by this Friday. Thank you all for your support!

SPECIALIST SPOTLIGHT
The Specialist Spotlight for October is Coach Reynolds – the PE teacher. Coach Reynolds has specifically requested Band-Aid brand bandages - large ones to fit elbows and knees. Other items on her wish list include Lysol wipes, paper towels, gallon Zip-Loc bags (for ice), instant ice packs and AA batteries. If your child brings in an item for Coach Reynolds, make sure that they sign the Gift Log so that they will be entered into a drawing for a prize. There is a collection box in the PE room.


Thank you to Banks and Blevins Henderson, Dylan Hines, and Amelia Johnson for bringing in gifts for Mr. Booker. DYLAN HINES is the winner of the prize for September.


NATIONAL PTA SURVEY
We are going to be sending home a survey to parents for their feedback on our PTA. Your participation will help us make improvements, as well as qualify our PTA for a national award. Your participation is appreciated. Surveys are due Oct. 19.


UPCOMING EVENTS
Oct. 4 – Picture Day

Oct. 15 – Deadline for prepaid FF wristbands

Oct. 16 – FALL FESTIVAL

Oct. 19 - PTA survey due

Oct. 24 – GLOW - The Teacher Appreciation committee will be contacting volunteers soon to provide a wonderful luncheon for our teachers.

Oct. 25 – Box Tops submission date for October. Be on the lookout for additional information about Box Tops coming home with your child this week.

Oct. 30 – Nov. 2 – Red Ribbon Week – Say No to Drugs. Information will be sent home after the Fall Festival.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS - NO SCHOOL – Oct. 8, 26, 29

Bear PTA News - September 27, 2018

REMIND TEXT MESSAGES

The Bear PTA will now send text messages to parents using Remind. If you would like to receive messages from us, there are two ways to join our group:

You can use this link. The group name is bearpt

OR

Text @bearpt to 81010

We look forward to having another avenue to share updates, notes and more with you.

FALL FESTIVAL T-SHIRTS
TOMORROW is the last day to order Fall Festival t-shirts. Send in your order form to school or order online. Keep in mind that the comfort colors run small, so order up a size. Please check out the attached picture to notice the size difference between a theme shirt small and a comfort color small. There will be a few additional t-shirts ordered, but a very small number, so order NOW!

SPECIALIST SPOTLIGHT
Last chance to buy Batteries for Booker! 

Stay tuned for October’s Specialist Spotlight and the winner of the September drawing.

 

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Bear PTA News - September 21, 2018

DISCOUNT CARD UPDATE
Amazing job, Bear Family! We have raised $45,156 with our Discount Card campaign. The PTA will be taking a record-breaking 98 STUDENTS to Chuck E. Cheese to celebrate selling 25 cards. Lynn Nguyen was the top seller, and Madi Kirk was the winner of the $100 gift card. Congratulations, girls!

FALL FESTIVAL
Fall Festival packets were sent home this week. Save the date - Tuesday, October 16. You can purchase what you need for Fall Festival online.

* T-shirts (Short- & Long-Sleeved)
* Wristbands
* Xtra Tickets
* S'more Kits 

BRAIN BRAWL
Calling all Brain-iacs for a good cause. We are looking for two teams to compete for Bear in the Brain Brawl sponsored by the Montgomery Education Foundation. The three top-scoring teams win cash prizes for our school. We are looking for parents, grandparents, siblings, friends… anyone who can win for Bear! No costs involved. The Brain Brawl is November 8 at 6 p.m. at AUM. If you love trivia and the thrill of competition, then email Kreg Sherbine or text (734) 604-1401.

PTA MEMBERSHIP UPDATE
Thank you to all that have joined the PTA. We have a total membership count of 834. We were short of our 1000 membership goal but did surpass last year’s memberships by over 100! ALL classes reached 100% again for the 16th year. Instead of a popsicle party for each class, we want to reward the school with Nancy’s Italian Ice! Students will get the sweet treat during lunch on September 25th.

Congratulations, Donovan Patton for winning overall memberships with 50 memberships!!! He will be getting $50!

Mrs. Geesey’s class won with most memberships. Her class will be receiving a pizza party, and Mrs. Geesey will be getting a ½ day teacher pass!

Grade level winners are as follow and they will each get $20:
Kindergarten-Will Vines 11 memberships (Mrs. Grant)
1st- Madi Kirk-5 memberships (Ms. Harden)
2nd- Virginia Henley-8 memberships (Mrs. Bear)
3rd - McKinney Simmons-10 memberships (Mrs. Stallworth)
4th- Joy Taylor-12 memberships (Mrs. Gulsby)
5th-Jada Scott-7 memberships (Mr. Brown)

BOX TOPS
Box Tops submission date for this month is September 27th. For every 50 Box Tops submitted your child will earn one Bear Buck! Don’t forget to put your child’s and teacher’s name on all submissions.

BEAR WEAR
Bear Wear has arrived and was delivered to your student this week.

Have you seen our new Ladies Bear shirts this year? Check out the attached pictures. We still have the lavender shirts ($15), a new aqua/blue soft T-shirt ($12), and a new comfort color seafoam/green shirt ($15 for short sleeve and $20 for long sleeve). We have a limited supply at the school and do not plan to re-order the aqua or seafoam. If you would like one of these for yourself, contact Mindy Cramer.

Limited Quantities – First Come, First Served

Small-2
Medium-18
Large-20
XL-10
2X-1
3X-1

SPECIALIST SPOTLIGHT
Just one more week to get Batteries for Booker!

 

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Bear PTA - September 13, 2018

DISCOUNT CARDS
Thank you for an awesome Discount Card campaign! The official deadline to turn in money was today, and we received A LOT of money. It was better than Christmas for the PTA!!

Because we ran out of cards, we allowed people who requested extra cards last week (and were not able to get them) to have until next Thursday, Sept 20 to turn in their money. Everyone else should have turned in their money today.

We understand that this confused a lot of people, so we will allow all students who turn in money through the 20th to be eligible for prizes. If you have money to turn in, please send it in as soon as possible, as well as any unsold cards you don’t plan to sell. 

There is no need for anyone to worry. Everyone selling 25 cards goes to Chuck E. Cheese’s!

PIZZA ORDERS – MATH NIGHT
Pizza orders for Math Night are due today. We will not be selling pizzas at Math Night. Pizzas must be pre-ordered. The online store will be open through tonight. Paper order forms will be accepted tomorrow before 9 a.m. $12 for a Domino’s Pizza and four drinks. Online Order Form

PTA MEMBERSHIPS
The PTA Membership drive ends tomorrow at 9 a.m. PTA Memberships can be purchased online or on paper. So far, we have 742 memberships, which is 258 members away from our goal of 1,000. The competition is fierce this year, so keep selling!

Don’t miss this opportunity to show your support to our school. It only costs $7 per member. The Bear PTA puts forth a lot of effort to provide programs and support for our school. Your membership keeps our organization strong so that we can make Bear the best it can be!

Only one class has not reached 100% - Mrs. Norred’s class. If you have a student in that class, please do your part!

CURRENT STANDINGS:

The winning class gets a pizza party, and the teacher gets Half-Day Pass!Brown-47
Gulsby-42
Grant-38
Bear-38
White-35
Gunn-34
Phillips-32
Stallworth-32
Forster-32
Geesey-31
Roy-31
Harden-28
Graves-27
Davenport-27
Franklin-27
Hill-27
Pharr-26
Barton-25
Scogann-23
Gills-23
Taite-22
Carnes-22
Norred-22
Carroll-21

The student who sells the most memberships wins $50.That number is currently 11.

The student who sells the most memberships in his/her grade wins $20.
Kindergarten-11 memberships
1st-4 memberships
2nd-4 memberships
3rd-10 memberships
4th-4 memberships
5th-9 memberships

SPECIALIST SPOTLIGHT
Don’t forget about our Specialist Spotlight – Mr. Booker. He let us know that he would LOVE some AA batteries. If you see any at the store this month, pick up a pack for him. He would really get a CHARGE out of that!

VOLUNTEER NEEDEDThe PTA is looking for a volunteer to organize 6 Spirit Nights for Bear this year. This would be a great opportunity for a new parent who wanted to become more involved in the PTA. We will help you know exactly what to do! Email Edris Davis if you are interested.

Discount Card Update - Sept 5, 2018

The Bear PTA has found itself in a wonderful/not-wonderful situation. We have run out of discount cards to distribute at this time. We ordered 6,000 cards - same as last year. Our parents and students are AMAZING!! If we sell all of them, it will be our best year ever.

So what do we do?

* If we order cards today, they won’t arrive until after the discount card deadline. The deadline is Sept 13 at 9 AM.

* Every year on the discount card deadline, we receive hundreds and hundreds of cards back. 

* The PTA has decided NOT to order additional cards at this time.

* We want to accommodate the kids who are selling for prizes, such as the iPad Mini and the Chuck E. Cheese’s field trip.

* Therefore, if you want to request more cards so that your child can win a prize, then the PTA must receive your request by September 13 at 9 AM.

* We will fill requests as we are able before Sept 13. However, please know that most additional cards will come home with your child on Sept 13 or 14.

* In order to be eligible for the prizes (iPad Mini & Chuck E. Cheese’s), all money must be turned in by Sept 20.

* If you know you aren’t going to sell your cards (We really want you to sell your cards!), then return them to us ASAP so that we can share with the kids who are selling. BUT please buy at least 1-2 cards before you send them in. Support Bear!

Let Traci Schell know if you have any questions! 

Thanks!

Bear PTA News - Sept 4, 2018

Welcome to September!

DISCOUNT CARDS

It’s our biggest fundraiser, and we have lots of work to do!!! We have nearly 6,000 cards distributed to our students – the most ever! Please feel free to start sending in the money that you are collecting. Also, if you know that you aren’t going to sell all of the cards in your possession, please send some of them back to us. Of course, we would love to have all 6,000 cards sold, so do your very best to sell EVERY CARD that you have checked out! Sell, sell, sell……… it’s for OUR students, OUR teachers, OUR school! If we don’t do it, who will?

PTA MEMBERSHIP UPDATE

We are at 700 total PTA memberships. The top 3 classes are Brown, Gulsby and White. Our goal is to have 1,000 memberships so that the entire school can win a Chill Out Day with Kona Ice. We can do it!

PTA MEETING

Escape the Ordinary (Tuesday Night) and come to our first PTA Meeting on Tuesday, September 11 at 6:00 p.m.

It will feature an Extracurricular Extravaganza. Parents will have an opportunity to learn about the various after school programs/clubs offered at Bear. The PTA will offer several drawings for giveaways. You must be a PTA member to be eligible for prizes.

• 2 Fall Festival packages which include 4 wristbands and 2 t-shirts
• $25 Bear Wear Gift certificate
• (3) $5 Bear Bucks prizes for students (good at the Book Fair and the school supply cart)

 We will discuss how to earn Free Money for the school, upcoming garden activities, Fall Festival and the Reflections art contest. We will also sell the remaining clothes from the Uniform Sale at deep discounts.

BEAR WEAR

Bear Wear orders should arrive mid-September. We don’t keep a lot of extra sizes in stock, but occasionally we will, so let us know if you need something. If you want to find out if we have the item you need, feel free to email Mindy Craymer or contact via FB message. 

We will be selling some in-stock items at the PTA Meeting including theme shirts and adult t-shirts - perfect for field trips. Cash, check and credit card accepted.

GARDEN BRICK ORDER
Bear Bricks orders are due September 14th. Bricks are a great way to leave your mark forever at Bear. 

GOLDEN BEARS (GRANDPARENTS CLUB)

We love our Golden Bears! Grandparents have a wonderful opportunity to help sponsor the outdoor classroom, and in return enjoy a wonderful breakfast with their grandchild in April. Become a Golden Bear today! Membership forms due September 14th. 

FREE MONEY

Box Tops – The submission deadline for the month of September is Wednesday, September 26.  We will send home submission forms this week. We will NOT send home a submission form each month. Please find them located on our blog.  Also, remember for every 50 Box Tops submitted, your child will receive a "Bear Buck."  Bear Bucks can be used at the supply cart or at the Book Fair (March).  We will have monthly submission dates (typically, the last Wednesday of the month).  We will distribute Bear Bucks no later than the second week of each month. In addition, the class with the most Box Tops by April 24, 2019, will receive a pizza party.

Reminders for submission 

Make sure the Box Top has NOT expired.

You can submit Box Tops two ways:

1. Affix Box Tops on the sheet, but do NOT staple
2. Place Box Tops in a resealable plastic bag

Include the number of Box Tops, your child's name, and teacher's name.

Publix - Effective October 1^st, Publix will no longer honor the Publix key tags.  In an effort to go "green" they are going paperless.  SO, we are asking each person to sign-up through Publix Partners and select Bear Exploration Center as your school choice.  The link is http://corporate.publix.com/community/corporate-campaigns/publix-partners.  Please ask friends and family members to do the same.  If you have an established account, go back into your account and select Bear. Once you establish your account, do not forget to enter your phone number at the register for your purchase.

Coke Rewards - Coke has reestablished their rewards program.  Please send in your coke product tops in a zip lock bag. 

MATH NIGHT
Mark your calendars for Math Night on Tuesday, September 18. We are SO lucky to have a fabulous staff who plan an amazing night of educational activities for our students. The PTA supports Math Night by providing a low-cost pizza dinner for families ahead of the event. Stay tuned for more details.

SPECIALIST SPOTLIGHT

For each month of the school year, we will choose a Bear Specialist to shower with some extra love. Please have your child bring in items from this teacher’s wish list. When your child brings in an item, make sure that he/she signs the Gift Log. At the end of the month, one student from the Gift Log (chosen at random) will win a Nancy’s gift card and a Bear Buck (good at the school supply cart and the Book Fair).

The Specialist of the Month for September is our school counselor – Mr. Papa Bear , himself… Mr. Booker!

Some items on his wish list include:

• Washable markers
• Lysol spray
• Gallon zipper bags
• Batteries – AA or AAA
• Incentive stickers
• Air spray for computers
• Office Depot gift cards
• 32 GB flash drives

Thank you, Fellow Campers! Come out and see us next Tuesday, so we can help you navigate all of this information. As you can see, there is a way for every parent and grandparent to help out at Bear. So glad we are on this adventure together!

Bear News - August 20, 2018

Happy Back to School, everyone!

BACK-TO-SCHOOL PICNIC

Join us for the Back-to-School Picnic TOMORROW at Vaughn Road Park. Come at 5:30 with your picnic dinner and a blanket/chairs. Don’t forget a couple extra dollars for some delicious Nancy’s Italian Ice. We plan to meet RAIN or SHINE, though obviously we are hoping for SHINE!

DISCOUNT CARDS

Discount Cards are coming home this Thursday. If you have not requested cards, it is not too late. Please contact Traci Schell or fill out this form and turn it in.

SUPER SILENT AUCTION

You know you want those good parking spaces at school. It would make afternoon carpool such a breeze! The Super Silent Auction ends this Thursday. You can learn more about it here. Fill out this form or simply write your name, number and bid amount on a piece of paper. Return your entry to the front office. Bidding starts at $200.

BEAR WEAR

The Bear Wear deadline has been extended tonight through midnight. You can purchase online or by using this form and turning it in to the office by 8:40 tomorrow morning. If you want to order the theme t-shirt, we encourage you to purchase it at this time as supplies will be limited after this order.

SUMMER PACKETS

Thank you to the 104 students who turned in Summer Skills Review Packets. You guys did awesome work this summer. Prizes will be distributed to these superstar students next week.

BOOKER T. WASHINGTON 

The Bear PTA is heartbroken over the devastating fire that occurred at BTW this past weekend. The magnet schools in town have come together to serve meals to BTW teachers and staff this week while they are transitioning to a  new location. Bear PTA will be providing the meal for them on Thursday. We are working with the BTW PTSA and the Bear administration to determine how our school can best show support to our fellow MPS magnet school. Stay tuned!

Back to School - July 30, 2018

Welcome Back!

We hope that you have been able to make it to the Back to School Nights at Bear. It's so fun to meet the teachers, but then it's not so much fun when you are facing a mountain of paperwork from the PTA and the school.

The PTA has eliminated the convenience fee on the Bear PTA website, so you can purchase PTA memberships, Bear Wear, Golden Bear memberships and Partners in Education (Fall Festival) sponsorships online - NO checks, NO paperwork for those items. Easy breezy!

You will find information on our PTA blog to help you throughout the school year. At this time the following information is available on the blog:

• PDF versions of the Back to School packet
• Summer Skills packets (for grades 1-5)
• Bear Uniform Logo (in various formats)
• Upcoming Events
• Free Money Information

Can't wait to start this ADVENTUROUS school year!

Bear News - May 16, 2018

Parents – Here we are at the end of the school year. Don’t give up on us now… there is one last batch of important announcements, so grab that last bit of energy and let’s push over that finish line together!

Summer Packets
On Thursday, May 24 students at Bear will saddle up their horses for the last time for the 2017-18 school year. To make sure that the foundation built over the last nine months remains firm, the PTA, with guidance from our wonderful teachers, have put together Summer Skills review packets.

1. Choose the grade level that your child was in THIS year (the 2017-18 school year).
2. Print off both the English and Math sections for your student.
3. Have the student complete the work.
4. Return the packets to your child's new teacher during the first week of school, no later than Friday, August, 10.

Participation is OPTIONAL. Students (Rising 1st-5th graders) who complete both the English and Match sections of their packet and return it to school by August 10 will be rewarded with a prize from the PTA.

Bear Wear Prices
It has been about a decade since Bear Wear prices have increased. To keep up with the cost of doing business, prices on most items will increase at the beginning of the 2018-19 school year. Bear short-sleeved field trip t-shirts will remain at $10. Order forms are due Thursday, May 17. Merchandise will be sent home with students on Friday, May 18.

City-Wide School Clean Up Project
Our school is one of a few MPS school to be chosen by the Montgomery Clean City Commission for the Packed to A.C.T. program. This is a 3-phase project that will consist of mural painting, indoor painting, and outdoor landscaping. None of which we would be able to accomplish without A LOT of volunteer assistance. Gather your friends, family, and coworkers and sign up for this event here. Open this informational PDF to learn more information.

Click or Call to volunteer in one or more of the phases:
PHASE 1: Mural Painting, June 23
PHASE 2: Indoor Painting, July 21
PHASE 3: Outdoor Landscaping, between July 23- August 3 - Call 334.625.2175 

PTA Survey

Please fill out and return the PTA survey that was sent home last week. We want to hear from you so that we will know how to improve!

Donate Uniforms
Donate your school uniforms now through the end of the school year. There is a Uniform Drop container in the front lobby of the school. Uniforms will be sold, and profits will benefit the PTA.

Uniform Re-Sale
Come get a deal on gently-used uniforms this summer - July 12-13 in the Bear Cafeteria.

Specialist Spotlight
Thank you for a great year of supporting our Specialists one month at a time. This past month the following people brought in gifts for Mrs. Lanier: Bryson and Rhett Lazenby, Audrey Kate, Anne Perry and Addie Wamsted, Jaden Whiting, McKenzie Kim and Carson Shambray. The winner of the drawing is Jaden Whiting. Congratulations, Jaden!

Papa Bear of the Year
Congratulations to Daniel Livingston who was awarded the Papa Bear award at the PTA Meeting last night. Daniel has spent many hours working in our Outdoor Classroom, volunteering at Field Day and going on field trips. He is a wonderful and hardworking dad, and we are proud to name him our Papa Bear of the Year!

Report of PTA Gifts to the School – 2017-18
$15,789 – teacher grants
$10,000 – ADDITIONAL funds set aside for Technology
$10,060 – 3 Sharp Aquos Interactive Display Systems
$  7,912 – blacktop overlay
$  5,625 – class set of Chromebooks
$  4,641 – outdoor classroom/garden maintenance
$  2,325 – 2 benches in the 3-5 grade waiting area
$  1,500 – walkway in front of school
$     730 – Chromebook charging cart
$58,582 – GRAND TOTAL

Back to School Nights
Kindergarten Orientation – Wednesday, August 1 @ 6:15
1st grade – Wednesday, August 1 @ 5:00
2nd grade – Thursday, August 2 @ 5:00
3rd grade – Thursday, August 2 @ 6:15
4th grade – Tuesday, July 31 @ 5:00
5th grade – Tuesday, July 31 @ 6:15

Have a wonderful and safe summer!

Bear News - May 8, 2018

 It's the Last Month of School!

Teachers = Appreciated
THANK YOU, Parents for an AMAZING Teacher Appreciation Week at Bear last week. Our teachers, administration and staff felt very LOVED. Thank you to everyone who brought in a gift or note, watched a class for a teacher, or sent in a gift or gift card for the Luncheon. The Luncheon was a BIG success because of you!

Bear Wear SPRING SALE
It has been about a decade since Bear Wear prices have increased. To keep up with the cost of doing business, prices on most items (e.g., sweatshirts, jackets, polos) will increase at the beginning of the next school year. Bear short-sleeve field trip T-shirts will remain at $10.

We have a modest inventory of Bear Wear (adult & youth sizes) on hand. The PTA will start selling what we have on Thursday, May 10 from 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. in the cafeteria. If you aren’t able to come, then you can turn in the SPRING SALE Bear Wear form Friday, May 11 - Thursday, May 17. Orders will be sent home with students on Friday, May 18.

You must use this order form as we do not have all BW items in stock. Orders will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis until our inventory is depleted. No special orders will be made at this time.

Uniform Resale
Bear will host a Uniform Resale this summer on July 12-13. We will be accepting donations from now until the end of school. Uniforms must be in GOOD condition. No rips, tears, frays, stains, etc. Look for our specially-designed Uniform Container in the front foyer. You can also use the Bear Exploration Uniform & Clothing Exchange Facebook group to buy and sell uniforms.

Specialist Spotlight
Concluding our year of Specialist Spotlights is our Technology teacher, Mrs. Lanier. Mrs. Lanier has requested INK - gift cards for ink (e.g., Amazon, Walmart, Office Depot) or HP63 ink cartridges (black or multicolored). She also would like silver Sharpie pens, colored paper, and Lysol wipes. We will conclude collecting for Mrs. Lanier on Friday, May 18.

From the PTA President…
Thank you, Parents, for your support of the PTA this 2017-18 school year. Because of your hard work and dedication, we have been able to support the needs of individual classrooms by providing teacher grants and making lasting improvements in the areas of technology, our garden, and outdoor spaces. 

I hope to see you at our last PTA meeting of the school year on May 15th at 6:00 PM.  We will install our 2018-2019 PTA Officers, reveal our Papa Bear Award winner, and bid farewell to our awesome fifth grader students. They will treat us to a final performance on the Bear stage under the direction of Miss Fell. 

Lastly, I wish each of you a safe and happy summer filled with lots of fun! See you next year!

--Edris Davis

UPCOMING DATES:

Field Day – Thursday, May 10
Bear Wear Sale – Thursday, May 10
Bear Wear Order by Form – Friday, May 11 – Thursday, May 17
PTA Meeting – Tuesday, May 15
Specialist Spotlight deadline – Friday, May 18
Uniform Resale – July 12-13
First Day of School – Monday, August 6

Bear Wear Spring Sale

Don't Miss the
Bear Wear
SPRING SALE!

Download your order form today!

Parents - It has been about a decade since Bear Wear prices have increased. To keep up with the cost of doing business, prices on most items will increase at the beginning of the 2018-19 school year. Bear short-sleeved field trip t-shirts will remain at $10. 

The existing inventory of Bear Wear will be sold on (Field Day) Thursday, May 10 from 8:00 - 4:00 p.m. in the Bear Cafeteria. Supplies are limited. 

Paper orders will be accepted on Friday, May 11 and will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. We will not be making any special orders at this time. We are only selling what we have on hand.

Order forms are due Thursday, May 17. Merchandise will be sent home with students on Friday, May 18.

Teacher Appreciation Week

Teacher Appreciation Week

April 30- May 4, 2018

Let’s show the LOVE to our teachers and specialists this week.  
Mmm, Mmm Monday is up first.

Daily Reminders of What to Bring!

Contact your Room Mom if you need your teacher’s list of favorites. 
Specialists Favorites can be found on this PTA website. 

Also - we are still a little slim on gift card door prizes for the teacher luncheon, 
so PLEASE send them in on Monday.

Remember participation in TAW is optional. It’s always the thought that counts, 
so don’t feel obligated to spend a lot of money. 

Thank you for all you do to show appreciation to our outstanding Bear teachers!

Bear News - April 16, 2018

Howdy Partners!

Spring has sprung... and things are really taking off at Bear. There's A LOT going on, and we need all our parents saddled up and ready to ride this week.

ART SHOW
The Bear Art Show is this WEDNESDAY, April 18! Please come to the Art Show and check out all of the fabulous pieces that our little artists have worked on all year. It is truly amazing the work that Mrs. Bonikowski does with our kids. Support the Art Room by purchasing your child’s artwork and making a GOOD donation to the arts at Bear. Don’t forget to purchase raffle tickets for the class projects.

EARTH DAY EXTRAVAGANZA
Bear will celebrate Earth Day with an Extravaganza, on Friday, April 20. Each child will be able to plant a flower in honor of Earth Day. We have five large flower beds to fill up, so we are asking each child to bring one potted plant or flower by Wednesday, April 18.

Perennials are preferred as they are the gift that keeps on giving, but annuals are still awesome! Full sun plants will work best in our garden, and most of the beds get 4 to 8 hours of full sun. If you have any questions, please email Ashleigh Livingston at ajoyliving@gmail.com.

SPECIALIST SPOTLIGHT
This month’s Specialist Spotlight is our Technology teacher, Mrs. Lanier. We want our Tech teacher to have the very best. Mrs. Lanier has requested INK - gift cards for ink (e.g., Amazon, Walmart, Office Depot) or HP63 ink cartridges (black or multicolored). She also would like silver Sharpie pens, colored paper, and Lysol wipes.

Thank you to everyone who brought in gifts for Mrs. Fell: Walter Collier, McKenzie Kim, Jillian Anderson, Addison Sexton, Carson French, Stewart Roy, Amelia Johnson and Lulu Gunnels.

The winner of the door prize is Amelia Johnson! Congratulations, Amelia!

TEACHER APPRECIATION WEEK
Donations Needed!

Every year we show our teachers how much we love them during Teacher Appreciation Week (TAW). This year we are celebrating April 30 – May 4. The PTA plans something special for the teachers every day in the workroom. On Thursday of TAW we serve them a beautiful luncheon in the Library. We would love for each teacher to be able to leave with a door prize – even small gift cards are much-appreciated. We request that students bring in new gifts or gift cards to be used as door prizes at the luncheon. Many businesses will donate if asked.

Please send new gifts or gift cards to school with your child labelled PTA – TEACHER APPRECIATION.

Please send in your donation by Friday, April 27th. We thank you for all your support and for making this week EXTRA special for our EXTRA special teachers!

Be on the Lookout – The PTA will be sending home a sheet soon with how children can honor their teachers daily during Teacher Appreciation Week!

SPIRIT NIGHT

Thursday, April 19, 2018
3:30 pm - 9:00 pm
Bruster’s Real Ice Cream
3011 Carter Hill Road
Montgomery, AL 36111 

FIELD DAY
Field Day is Thursday, May 10. Parent volunteers are always welcome, so mark your calendars now!

Bear News - March 26, 2018

**PTA MEETING REMINDER**
Tuesday, March 27 at 6:00 p.m.
Bear Lunchroom

Some of the cool events planned for the PTA Meeting:

• Kumon: What it is and its benefits
• Performances by the Bear Jump Rope Team and Honor Chorus
• FREE Hot Dog Supper (All-beef hot dogs, chips and sodas will be served.)

NOMINATING COMMITTEE
The nominating committee submits the following slate of names for the 2018-2019 PTA Officers:

                President – Edris Davis
                1st Vice President – Jill Sexton
                2nd Vice President – Traci Schell
                Treasurer – Victoria Little
                Secretary – Kelly Stanton
                Communications Coordinator – Lisa Stevens 

PTA officer elections will be held Tuesday, March 27 at 6:00 p.m. Any further nominations will be accepted at that time. 

THANK YOU FROM THE LIBRARY
Thank you to all the students who donated items to Mrs. Houlditch and our Library:  McKenzie Pickett, Kaylee Taite, Dakota Hernandez, Carson Shambray, McKenzie Kim, Korey Thomas, Bryson Lazenby, Rhett Lazenby, Olivia Patrick, Luke Jones-Collum, Robert M., Andy and Millie DeLoach. The winner of the drawing was Kaylee Taite. Congrats, Kaylee! 

SPECIALIST SPOTLIGHT - MS. FELL
Don’t forget that you can bring in items for Ms. Fell through April 13. Ms. Fell has requested Amazon Gift Cards, Hand sanitizer, Incentives for Treasure Box (CANDY!), Blank CD/DVD-RWs, CD sleeves, Stage tape/electrical tape, and Swiffer Sweeper for keyboards. 

SPIRIT NIGHT

Mark your calendars for our next Spirit Night on April 19 at Bruster’s on Carter Hill Road.

YEARBOOKS
Buy your Bear Exploration Center yearbook online for only $22.00! Order by March 31, 2018.
To purchase your yearbook go to: www.YearbookOrderCenter.com and use order number: 1875.

SCHOOL SUPPLIES
The Pre-Paid School Supplies order form will be sent home in April. PTA Volunteers carefully shop all year-long and use discounts so that every student and teacher has everything they need on the first day of school at the lowest possible cost. Awesome job, School Supply Team! We appreciate you!

Bear News - March 19, 2018

Welcome back to school! It’s time to get to work on the last quarter of the school year!

GEM DAY - GARDEN EDUCATION MAINTENANCE
Spring has sprung, and it is a great time to get to get DIRT-y in our garden. Come hang out with Ashleigh Livingston this Saturday, March 24 at 9:30 a.m. as she gives a brief educational talk for the kids on SOIL! Then we will spend a little time working in the garden. We really need our Papa Bears to help us install a new greenhouse. The hours are 9:30 - 11 a.m.

PTA MEETING
Join us for our next PTA Meeting on Tuesday, March 27 at 6:00 p.m. in the Bear Cafeteria. We will be showcasing some of the great activities at Bear and serving a yummy hot dog supper! Reservations aren’t required but would be helpful. A notice will be coming home later this week.

BLACKTOP
The PTA recently paid to have the blacktop resurfaced on the basketball court. It looks awesome and is a much-improved space for our children to play. Be sure to check it out!

SPECIALIST SPOTLIGHT – MS. FELL
The Specialist Spotlight this month is our musically magnificent Ms. Fell! Ms. Fell has requested Amazon Gift Cards, Hand sanitizer, Incentives for Treasure Box (CANDY!), Blank CD/DVD-RWs, CD sleeves, Stage tape/electrical tape, and Swiffer Sweeper for keyboards. The deadline to get things to Ms. Fell is April 13th. Be sure to have your child sign the log so that we can put his or her name into a drawing for a prize!

SPIRIT NIGHT
Mark your calendars for our next Spirit Night on April 19 at Bruster’s on Carter Hill Road.

YEARBOOKS
Buy your Bear Exploration Center yearbook online for only $22.00! Order by March 31, 2018. To purchase your yearbook go to: www.YearbookOrderCenter.com and use order number: 1875.

SCHOOL SUPPLIES
The Pre-Paid School Supplies order form will be sent home in April. PTA Volunteers carefully shop all year-long and use discounts so that every student and teacher has everything they need on the first day of school at the lowest possible cost. Awesome job, School Supply Team! We appreciate you!

REFLECTIONS
We are so proud of all of the children who participated in the Reflections Art contest. Bear had THREE students who were recognized at the state level. Congratulations, Olivia, Melody and Chandler! We had a large number of our students who were recognized at the county competition too.

State Reflections Winners

Visual Arts – Intermediate
3rd – Olivia Hoit

Photography – Intermediate
1st – Melody Noriega Leon

Dance – Intermediate
3rd – Chandler Davis

Montgomery County Council Reflections Winners

Visual Arts – Primary (Grades K-2)
1st – Sarah Cate Gulsby
2nd – Audrey Kim

Visual Arts – Intermediate (Grades 3-5)
1st – Jennifer Stanton

Photography – Primary
2nd – Jackson Sexton

Photography – Intermediate
1st – Melody Noriega Leon
3rd (tie) – Ellis O’Connor
3rd (tie) – Hannah Morris

Literature – Intermediate
1st – Ana Clark
3rd – Mason Hatch

Dance – Intermediate
1st – Anna Gleason
2nd – Cameron Norred
3rd – Chandler Davis

Film – Intermediate
2nd (tie) – Lily Baker

Music – Intermediate
1st - Grace Jackson
2nd (tie) – Jayden Whiting
2nd (tie) – Ariyana Simon