Cherry Crest Chronicler
January 31, 2020
Charger Families,
It’s hard to believe, but we are now more than halfway through the school year. While your students were home on Monday, many teachers worked on semester end progress reports. These progress reports are being finalized and will be sent home in student backpacks on Monday February 10th. Families can also access progress report information online with Synergy ParentVue beginning February 14th. Synergy ParentVUE provides parents and guardians the ability to view their student’s assignments, grades and attendance, as well as the ability to update crucial student information. Learn more about Synergy ParentVue and how to use it here.
Thank you for taking a few moments to read the important dates and announcements in the parent newsletter below.
Make it a great week!
Dusty Steere, Principal Cherry Crest Elementary
IMPORTANT DATES
January
1/31 – Family Movie Night @ 6 pm – cafe
February
1 – BSD Job Fair at Tillicum Middle School
7 – Variety Show @ 6 pm
10 – First Semester Progress Reports Sent Home with Students
12 – Spelling Bee Finals @ 6:30 pm cafe
17-21 – No School (Midwinter Break)
March
2- 6 Book Fair during school
4 – Book Fair Family Night & Art Show 5 – 7:30 pm
10 – PTSA General Meeting. Social @ 6:30 Meeting @ 7 pm
20 – Snow make up day (previously a no school day)
25 – Order deadline for discounted yearbook ($18): ybpay.lifetouch.com
Please remember to regularly visit the Cherry Crest & PTSA websites for the most current information.
https://bsd405.org/cherrycrest https://www.cherrycrest-ptsa.org/
Understanding and utilizing Report Cards. Below are three helpful tips or reminders to support families in discussing students’ performance in school:
1. Click here for a single page explanation of progress report scores in a more in-depth manner. Please contact your child’s teacher if you have any questions.
2. Based on a research study by Carol Dweck at Stanford, research suggests that when we praise students for their effort vs. their intelligence, they are more likely to continue to persevere and work hard at doing their best, when faced with a challenging task. Thus resulting in creating a growth mindset vs. a fixed mindset. (4 minute video overview)
3. Click here for a few great tips for parents on how discussing progress reports with your child.
Thank you for your continued partnership in helping to support your child’s social, emotional and academic growth at Cherry Crest Elementary.
February is Black History Month. The racial and cultural diversity of our student population is one of our strengths as a school and district. In February, some teachers and classrooms will be working together to do more to inspire and lead for racial equity—independently planning special events and learning activities aligned with Black History Month and Black Lives Matter Week.
As school principal, I endorse these efforts—not only in February but throughout the year—that engage students, staff, families and community organizations as advocates and partners for equity. I encourage parents and families to similarly get engaged in learning and leading. Let’s raise a generation of children who are thoughtful, informed and brave about race. Read and learn more at www.embracerace.org.
School Bond Fund – Remember to Vote by February 11th. The Bellevue School District 2020 Capital Projects Bond will ensure we continue to provide world-class education to our students by replacing aging buildings, renovating and expanding existing schools, and updating safety and security measures.
Our amazing Cherry Crest Elementary building was made possible by an earlier Capital Projects Bond and our PTSA has voted to endorse the School Bond that is on the ballot for February 11th.
Read more here.
Safety and Emergency Information. Last week, we had a Bellevue Police Officer visit our campus spontaneously. At times, Bellevue PD works closely with our District resource officers to provide periodic check-ins to ensure the safety of our staff and students. We understand that for many the presence of a police officer on campus may be unsettling, or cause confusion and concern. To eliminate worry, we will always notify our staff when a police officer is on campus so that teachers can field questions, or worries, as they arise.
Last Month’s Drill: Shelter-In-Place. Students and teachers practiced this drill in class on 1/22 utilizing a scenario where a tanker trucker crashed on I-405 resulting in a nearby chemical spill. Students practiced moving into common areas within grade levels while teachers simulated sealing window and door entrances with duct tape to remain safe from chemical fumes. Email was used by administration and staff to communicate attendance and other logistics. Additionally, the office staff practiced shutting down the school’s HVAC system. A PowerPoint presentation was shared with all students so that Cherry Crest Chargers received a common, kid-friendly message.
Our next drill will take place on February 27th during your child’s lunchtime. Students will engage in an Earthquake drill during the 5 minute transition from lunch to recess. We will guarantee all students receive adequate time to eat on this day by maintaining the 25 minute District requirement.
Driving to Cherry Crest. City of Bellevue is working on the water mains in the neighborhood around our school necessitating road closures and detours. There will be 6 additional closures at the intersection of 126th Ave NE and N.E. 29th street. Two of these closures will be February 3rd and February 4th , starting at 7:30 am. There are detour signs set up during these closures and drivers should follow all directions from flaggers and are requested to drive slowly and cautiously.
As with all other school days, we ask that you arrive at school using 32nd street, and leave the school using 124th Ave NE.
Huge Turnout for First Week of Running Club! Wow! 421 students joined in the first week of Recess Running Club in January! Even winter rain doesn’t hold back our Chargers. With 68% of the school participating, students ran a collective total of 804 miles and 85 students have already completed their first 5K! Running Club is made possible by parent volunteers and we need your help to scan laps. Please sign up for slots in February to keep our kids running.
Running Club Seeks Volunteer Leads. Due to overwhelming demand for the Recess Running Club, we need more parent volunteers to lead the program onsite! Commitment is two hours at the Cherry Crest Track at lunch recess one or two days a week.
Leads help with set-up, scanning running cards, packing away, and guiding volunteers as they flow in/out. Running Club is made possible by parent volunteers, so please join us so we can continue to offer it! No running or any experience is required. All are welcome!
Contact [email protected] to volunteer or learn more.
Proactively Report Absence, Illness, Appointments: When you child know your child will miss all or part of a school day due to illness or an appointment, please email Cherry Crest Attendance [email protected] or call 425-456-4902. When leaving a message, be sure to include your child’s first and last name and the reason for the absence.
For prearranged absences of three of more days, a prior approval form submitted to the teacher and principal must be completed two weeks prior to the absence. Prearranged absence forms can be picked up in the main office and accessed on our website here.
BSD Job Fair Saturday, Feb. 1. Bellevue School District will be hosting a Job Fair on February 1, 2020 at Tillicum Middle School from 9am-1pm. We are seeking to hire part-time and full-time positions for the 2020-21 school year. These positions include administrator, all teaching assignments, support staff, nurses, bus drivers, custodians, nutrition services, para educators, instructional assistants and many more! For more information, please visit our website: www.bsd405.org/jobfair.
PTSA Communications Team Seeks Writers. Are you an aspiring author? Delight in writing stories, website content, and news articles? Enjoy blogging and posting on Facebook? Dream of compiling a school directory? If you answered YES to any of these questions, then the PTSA Communications Team is perfect for you! We’re looking for writers of all sorts to join the team for the 2020/21 school year (or sooner). Whether website, newsletter or social media is your thing – or if you just want to learn – we’ll find a role that’s right for you! Contact us at [email protected] to learn more.
The 2020-21 Cherry Crest PTSA Nominating Committee asks all community members for help finding volunteers for PTSA leadership positions for next school year.
We have Co-President, VP, Chairs and other executive roles open. Please submit names and contact information (your own or others who may be interested!) by end of day, Feb 10th and we’ll be in touch to tell you more about them. Submit nominations here.
Please reach out to [email protected] if you have any questions.
“Our Virtue of the Month for February is ‘Commitment.’ Commitment is caring deeply about something or someone. It is the willingness to give your all to a friendship, a task or something you believe in. It is the ability to make decisions and follow through on them. It is keeping your promises.
Why practice it? Without commitment, we just drift along, with no idea where we are going. We change our minds. We give up easily if things get too hard. We break our word. We give up on people we care about if they disappoint us or make a mistake. When we are committed, people can count on us to keep our promises. With commitment we can achieve great things.
Reporting Safety Concerns. Bullying and safety concerns can always be reported to any staff member at school. The Elementary Level Harassment, Intimidation and Bullying Incident Reporting Form is available to all families in the office. Finally, Bellevue School District also utilizes an anonymous reporting tool called SafeSchools Alert through which anyone can make a verbal or written report of harassment, intimidation or bullying. Information on how to submit a report via any of these methods is available on the district website at www.bsd405.org/help/report.
Cherry Crest Elementary prepares all students to become life-long learners through inquiry, collaboration, and discovery. Each student will feel a sense of belonging in our Comm(UNITY) while learning social-emotional and academic skills to be successful in an ever-changing and diverse society.