Bryant Newsletter

Families,

We had a wonderful week of learning and connection at Bryant! Our first graders enjoyed the Fabulous First Book event, where each student received a new book to take home—an exciting way to nurture a love of reading. Several of our classes have also partnered with Helena High buddy classes, creating opportunities for mentoring and shared activities that build meaningful relationships across grade levels.

Students are showing strong leadership by applying for roles in our student jobs program, and they continue to shine in character as they write “tootle notes”—kind messages that highlight positive moments and actions of their peers. It has also been encouraging to see students settling into routines, supporting one another, and embracing the rhythm of the school year.

We are deeply grateful to our families for their ongoing partnership and for ensuring students arrive at school on time, ready to learn each day. Your support helps make these positive experiences possible, and together we are building a strong foundation for a successful year ahead.

Warmly,

Mrs. Wilkins

Lwilkins@heleanschools.org

First day of School: Wednesday, August 27 for grades 1-5. classroom. KinderSprouts and Kindergarten students start on Tuesday, September 2rd.

School start: 8:25

Playground coverage begins at 8:00, K Sprouts 8:30-8:45

Dismissal: 3:15 for grades K-5, 3:00-3:15 for KinderSprouts (Tuesday-Friday), 2:30 for grades K-5 and 2:15-2:30 for KinderSprouts (Monday)

We are committed to having strong attendance (Above 90% school-wide). Please help your child/ren be on time, ready to learn for the full school day.

Starting in October, we invite volunteers to come support our classrooms/ other school-wide needs. All volunteers need to go through a background check. Please call our front office (406.324.1200) and we can walk you through the process. The background check does not cost money.

You are invited to eat lunch with your child/children once a month starting in October. K-2 lunch is @ 12:00 and 3-5 lunch is @ 12:25. All visitors need to check in at the front office. We ask that lunch visitors do not go outside on the playground.

The first Symphony Kids concert of the season is Saturday, Sept. 27 at 10 am at St. Paul's United Methodist Church, featuring the music of Beethoven. This is a free concert for children put on by the Helena Symphony. It's designed for children of all ages with an interactive story to introduce them to classical music. Performances are about 30 minutes long.

Security: You are always welcome at Bryant but please remember you must sign in and be buzzed through the security doors at the front entry (entry 1). Look for the flagpole.

Attendance: The school day begins at 8:30 a.m., and ends at 3:15 p.m (Tuesday- Friday) and 2:30 on Monday's. Please be aware the District policy is if a student arrives between 8:30- 9:00am they will be marked tardy; between 9 am- noon they will be absent in the morning; and if they check out before 2:45 pm they will be marked absent for the afternoon. If your child will be absent for a full day or any portion of the day, please call the main office. If we cannot verify a child's absence, then you will receive an automated phone call letting you know your child has an unverified absence. There is a sign in/ out sheet if you bring your child late or take them out early. A parent/ guardian must be present when signing their child into the building. An attendance meeting or discussion will occur after 7 absences. We ask that you do not pick up your children early as teaching and learning goes until 3:15.

Monday's Early Out: Every Monday the school day ends at 2:30 pm. The busses run at that time. If you child does not ride the bus please make note of the early out and plan accordingly.

Playground Coverage: The Bryant playground opens @ 8:00 and closes at 3:30 ( 2:45 Monday's). We do not have adult supervision on the playground prior to this time, so please plan accordingly if you need to arrange transportation. If you bring your child to school or pick them up after school, please stress to your child the importance of being careful! Students must be accompanied by an adult to play on the playground after-school. If students are still on the playground at 3:30 without an adult they will be brought to the office. For student safety animals are not permitted on the playground during school hours, pick-up, and drop off.

Medications: The School District Medication Policy is available upon request. If a student is unable to complete a school day without a medication (prescription or non-prescription), parents should contact the school nurse. Medication will not be administered in school without proper authorization from the student’s physician. Self-administration by students is not allowed. Under no circumstances shall school personnel administer any medication without proper authorization. Please note it can take up to 24 hours for the school nurse to approve meds. A parent has the option of coming to school to administer medication to their child.

Emergencies: Should a student become ill or injured during school, the parents will be notified. If the parent cannot be contacted, the person(s) indicated on the student’s Emergency Information Card will be notified. Please contact the school office to update any contact information. Please make sure to save the Bryant school office number to your phones (406.324.1200).

Dressing for School: When dressing your child for school, remember that they will be doing such things as painting, sitting on the floor, using the bathroom, and playing outdoors every day. Clothing should be comfortable, washable and easy to manage for your child. Tennis shoes are recommended. Heavy boots, sandals, clogs, and shoes with slippery soles can make our activities difficult and even hazardous. Your child should be able to take care of his/her own clothing (including zippers, buttons, tying laces, etc.). With some clothing, this may mean practice at home. Clothing with alcohol, tobacco or drug advertisements or statements are not allowed. PLEASE LABEL all coats, sweaters, hats, boots, mittens, and backpacks with your child’s name. Pre-K and K students please send a change of clothing in the backpacks every day. Bathroom accidents as well as spills are common as students adjust to a new school routine.

Cold Weather/ Unhealthy Air: Our students go outside to play in all kinds of weather. All students are outside before school, after school, and during recess times whenever the temperature (with or without the wind chill) is above zero degrees. Students do not go outside when the air quality is in the unhealthy range (https://gis.mtdeq.us/portal/apps/experiencebuilder/experience/?id=000f42b119c44c7f9c3b4336470c721e) Exceptions are only granted with a note from a doctor. Please make sure your child is dressed for the colder temperatures each day.

Volunteers and lunch visitation: Volunteers are welcome! All volunteers need to be background checked through Helena School District's Human Resources office at Lincoln Center (1335 Poplar Street). Please let the Bryant office know when you have gone to get your background check completed. Background check's are free of cost and last five years. Parents are invited to eat lunch with their child/children once a month. Volunteers and parent lunches will begin in October. We use the first month of school to build routines and review school-wide expectations.

Birthdays: Children may celebrate their birthdays in school. Cupcakes, cookies, or other treats may be sent as a special treat. Due to the large amount of students with food allergies, please check with your child’s teacher prior to sending birthday treats. Balloons are not permitted as we have students with latex allergies.

Greetings, Bryant Families! Welcome to the 2025-2026 school year! I am so excited to see our hallways filled with the energy, curiosity, and joy that our students bring each day. My name is Colette Ozburn, and this is my 19th year in the Helena School District; my ninth year as an elementary school counselor (my second year here at Bryant). I feel so incredibly fortunate to be part of this awesome Bryant community!

In my role, I’ll be visiting classrooms regularly to teach Second Step lessons, which focus on important life skills of:

• Problem Solving

• Bullying Prevention

• Emotion Management

• Kindness and Empathy

• Goal Setting

• 
  

My goal is to help every student feel supported, valued, and equipped with tools to navigate both the ups and downs of school and life. I am also here to support families! Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me if you have any questions, concerns, or just want to connect. My office phone number is (406) 324-1195, and my email address is cozburn@helenaschools.org.

Here's to a great year, Bryant Panthers!

October 8- Bryant Walk-to-School Day

October 21 and 23- Parent Teacher Conferences