The Latest from L'Etoile
9/18/2026
Dear FABB Families,
What another wonderful week at Franklin Academy Boynton Beach! As I walk through our campus each day, I continue to see so many examples of our students learning, leading, creating, and truly Growing Greatness Together.
We are excited to be celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month, a wonderful opportunity to recognize and celebrate the cultures, traditions, and contributions of our Hispanic community. We also extend our warmest wishes to our students, staff, and families who observe Yom Kippur.
A special thank you to the families who joined us last night for our Annual Title I Meeting! We truly appreciate your time, participation, and continued partnership in supporting our students and school community.
As we head into the weekend, please remember that there is NO SCHOOL on Monday, September 21st, and our offices will be closed. We hope our families enjoy the long weekend, and we look forward to welcoming everyone back on Tuesday!
There is certainly a lot to celebrate at Franklin! Our Girls Volleyball and Boys Flag Football teams are both off to a 2–0 start, showing tremendous grit, teamwork, and determination.
We also have many exciting things ahead, so please take some time to look through this week’s newsletter. You’ll find information about Hispanic Heritage Month activities, Fall Spirit Week, our Book Fair, Fall Festival, athletics, yearbooks, service-hour opportunities, upcoming events, and important campus reminders.
Cultural Dress-Up Day – Tuesday, 9/22!
Students may wear a shirt representing a Hispanic country with their regular uniform bottoms as we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month!
Thank you for your continued partnership and for being such an important part of our Franklin Family. I hope everyone has a wonderful, safe, and restful long weekend! 💚
All the Best,
Mrs. L'Etoile, Mrs. Yurick, Mrs. Francese, and Mrs. Tina
The No Sale Fundraising Event- Sponsored by our PTO
Morning Carline Tip 🚗💚
Our morning carline is running well, and we appreciate everyone’s cooperation in helping us keep things moving!
Want to get in and out even quicker? Consider arriving between 7:00–7:15 a.m. There is typically little to no line during this time. We usually begin seeing traffic back up around 7:20 a.m., just 10 minutes before school begins.
Drop off a little earlier and give your child time to enjoy breakfast, connect with friends, and start the day without feeling rushed!
Thank you for helping us keep mornings running smoothly! 💚
Upcoming Events:
Sep 16- Early Release
Sep 21- No School / Offices Closed
Sep 22- Dessert with Admin
Oct 05-Oct 09-FTE Week
Oct 12- No School/ Teacher Planning
Oct 13- Start of 2nd Quarter
Oct 14- Dress Down Day
Oct 19-Fall Pictures Day (Yearbook Picture)
Oct 23-Report Cards Issued
Oct 28Cofee with Admin
Quarter 2 Club Information
🏐🏈 Bolts Are Off to a 2–0 Start! ⚡
Our Bolts Volleyball and Flag Football teams have begun their seasons 2-0! Despite playing in a couple of competitive games this week, our boys and girls showed toughness, grit, and execution down the stretch which allowed them to continue the winning streaks! Both of our programs have practiced and competed hard to begin this season and we look forward to more successes down the road!
Sports By Quarter
YEARBOOKS ON SALE!!!
Pre-Order Spirit Shirts: Click the flyer to access the link
Upcoming Events
Curriculum Corner
✏️ Give Those Pencils Some Love!
In a world of keyboards and touchscreens, there’s still something special about putting pencil to paper! Research suggests that handwriting can support children’s learning by engaging fine-motor skills, attention, memory, and the brain processes involved in recognizing and producing letters. Writing by hand can also encourage children to slow down, process information, and put their own ideas into words.
The good news? Handwriting practice doesn’t have to feel like homework! Encourage your child to write a silly story, keep a mini journal, make a birthday card, label a drawing, or even create a handwritten grocery list. A little pencil power goes a long way toward building confident writers and thoughtful learners!
Building Vocabulary at Home
A strong vocabulary helps students become better readers, writers, speakers, and thinkers. Families can build vocabulary through simple everyday conversations and reading.
Primary | Grades K–2
Read together and talk about new or interesting words. Ask your child what a word means, use it in a new sentence, or act it out. Encourage your child to describe people, places, objects, and experiences using specific words.
Intermediate | Grades 3–5
Encourage your child to notice unfamiliar words while reading. Use clues from the sentence to predict the meaning, then check a dictionary if needed. Challenge your child to use new vocabulary during conversations or in their writing.
Middle School | Grades 6–8
Help your child pay attention to vocabulary across all subjects—not just ELA. Encourage them to break unfamiliar words into prefixes, roots, and suffixes and use context clues to determine meaning. Discuss interesting words from books, articles, science, social studies, and everyday life.
Quick Family Challenge: Choose a “Word of the Day” and see who can use it naturally in conversation the most!
🎓 Counselor’s Corner: 8th Grade Family Updates
It’s time for our 8th graders to start thinking about high school and future career opportunities! As you begin exploring options together, here are two important dates to put on your calendar.
🏫 Showcase of Schools | October 6, 2026
The annual Showcase of Schools will be held on Tuesday, October 6, from 4:00–8:00 PM at the South Florida Fairgrounds Expo Center. Families can meet representatives from Palm Beach County Choice schools, ask questions, and gather information about high school programs and opportunities. Admission and parking are FREE!
📝 Choice Program Applications | October 8–December 4, 2026
Applications for 2027–2028 Choice Programs will be open from October 8 through December 4, 2026. December 4 is the final deadline for ALL programs, so we encourage families to begin the process early.
To apply, visit My PB Choice Application and create your parent account. Applicants will need a Palm Beach County Student ID number to submit an application. Students residing in neighboring counties are also welcome to apply.
High school will be here before we know it—now is the perfect time to start exploring the possibilities!
New Florida Law Limits Student Phone Use During School Day
2026-2027 Academic Calendar
Important Safety Reminder: No Spray Products on Campus
For the health and safety of our students and staff, students should not bring or use spray products on campus, including body spray, perfume/cologne, body mist, spray hand sanitizer, aerosol products, or similar items.
These products can cause significant reactions for individuals with allergies, asthma, respiratory concerns, or other sensitivities. Please speak with your child and remind them that spray products should remain at home.
Students who do not follow this expectation may receive appropriate consequences in accordance with school procedures.
Thank you for partnering with us to keep Franklin Academy safe and healthy for everyone! 💚
Why wait until the end of the school year to stress about service hours?
Get an early start on your 2026–27 service hours right now and cross one more thing off your family’s to-do list!
Service hours for the new school year are already open. There are plenty of great ways to get involved, lend a hand, and support Franklin Academy today.
Ready to get started? Log in to the Raptor Volunteer portal to view upcoming opportunities.
https://apps.raptortech.com/.../MTMxMjpWb2x1bnRlZXI6ZW4tVVM=
Get your 8 hours done early! Future you will thank you!
Volleyball Schedule
Flag Football Schedule
How to Find Clever ID in PowerSchool
September: Growing Courageous IB Learners
Dear IB Families,
The International Baccalaureate (IB) Programme encourages students to become curious, reflective, open-minded, principled, and courageous learners. This September, we are focusing on the IB Learner Profile attribute Courageous.
What Does It Mean to Be Courageous?
Courageous learners are willing to step outside their comfort zones, try new things, ask questions, and persevere when learning becomes challenging. They understand that mistakes are a natural part of learning and are willing to take thoughtful, responsible risks.
Courage does not mean being fearless. It means moving forward even when we feel nervous or uncertain.
How Can Families Support IB at Home?
Families can help children develop courage through everyday experiences:
🌟 Try Something New: Encourage your child to explore a new activity, food, skill, or experience. Ask, “What did you learn from trying?”
💬 Celebrate Questions: Remind your child that asking questions is a strength. Encourage them to wonder, explore, and seek answers.
🧠 Embrace Mistakes: When something doesn't go as planned, ask, “What did you learn?” or “What could you try differently next time?”
❤️ Model Courage: Let your child see you try new things, admit mistakes, and face challenges with a positive attitude.
🌎 Encourage Responsible Risk-Taking: Give your child opportunities to make appropriate choices, solve problems, and become more independent.
September Family Courage Challenge
Choose one courageous action each week as a family. Try something new, ask for help, speak up respectfully, make a new friend, or try again after a mistake.
At the end of the week, ask:
What did you try? What did you learn? How did you feel?
A Message from Mrs. Kucine
I am thrilled to begin a new year of IB learning with our Franklin Academy Boynton Beach elementary community! Together, we will help our students grow as confident, thoughtful, and courageous learners who are ready to make a positive difference in their school and global community.
Thank you for partnering with us!
Leaders Today, Heroes Every Day!
A huge shoutout to our amazing Franklin Academy Safety Patrols! 🌟 These student leaders show up each day ready to help, lead by example, and keep our campus safe. We are so proud to see our students putting Kindness, Integrity, Tenacity, and Enthusiasm into action! 💚
🚀 Big ideas are taking off in 3rd Grade! ✈️🌎
Our students are learning, creating, and bringing their ideas to life through model making! 💚💙
Title l
Title I- Parents' Right to Know (PRTK) Letters
Title l FY 27 Family Engagement Plan
Every Minute Matters: Attendance & Dismissal Reminders
Attendance Matters! Beginning Monday, August 31, 2026, Franklin Academy will begin consistently entering tardies and late pickups.
Please review the following important times and expectations:
⏰ Tardies:
Students must be in their classroom by the designated time to be considered on time.
- Elementary (PYP): Students must be in their classroom by 7:30 AM. Students arriving after 7:30 AM will be marked tardy.
- Middle School: Students must be in their classroom by 8:30 AM. Students arriving after 8:30 AM will be marked tardy.
🚗 Late Pickup:
Students will be considered a late pickup if they are picked up after the designated dismissal time.
- Elementary (PYP): After 2:45 PM
- Middle School: After 3:45 PM
Parents/guardians will receive a warning for the first late pickup.
After the first warning, a late pickup fee of $1.00 per minute, per child will apply.
For example:
- 2:46 PM pickup = $1.00 per child
- 2:50 PM pickup = $5.00 per child
We understand that unexpected circumstances can happen. However, consistent attendance and timely arrival and dismissal are important to ensuring that our students receive every minute of instructional time and that dismissal procedures run smoothly.
Every tardy. Every early check-out. Every absence. Every minute counts.
Thank you for your continued partnership and for helping us Grow Greatness Together!
Carline Reminders
As we continue working together to keep dismissal safe and efficient, please remember that arriving as early as 1:00 PM creates a safety concern, particularly when vehicles begin double parking and blocking Miner Road. Please avoid arriving excessively early and never block or impede traffic while waiting for carline.
Please also remember that parking on the roadway near or around the Allstate building is not permitted. This property does not belong to Franklin Academy, and PBSO may issue citations to vehicles parked in these areas. Families may not park there and walk onto campus to pick up students, including registered walkers.
A few additional reminders: DashPass and a Franklin Academy carline placard are required for carline pickup. Students should enter and exit on the passenger side, parents should remain in their vehicles, and all directions from carline staff should be followed.
Please share these expectations with anyone who picks up your child. We appreciate your patience and cooperation as we work together to keep our students, staff, and families safe! 💚
Dress Code Reminders
Who to Contact
Please review the list below of who to contact when certain questions/concerns arise.
Dash Pass-:Please ensure that you have an active Dash Pass account and it is working upon arrival on campus. Any Dash pass questions, please contact Ms. Huelsman at huelsman.tina@franklin-academy.org
Service Hours: Please ensure that you have a Raptor account to log your parent volunteer hours. Any questions please contact Ms. Dowdell at dowdell.alexandria@franklin-academy.org
Transportation: All transportation inquires should be directed to Ms. Huelsman at huelsman.tina@franklin-academy.org
Clever Access: If you are experiencing difficulties with your Clever account, please contact
Power School/Clever: If you are experiencing difficulties with your Power School account or Clever, please contact Ms. I. Rodriguez at Rodriguez.Icelsa@franklin-academy.org
Did You Know You Can Translate Our Newsletter?
English:
Did you know you can translate this newsletter into many different languages? Simply scroll to the top of the newsletter and click the "Translate" button. Choose your preferred language from the drop-down menu, and the entire newsletter will be translated instantly!
Spanish:
¿Sabía que puede traducir este boletín a muchos idiomas diferentes? Simplemente, desplácese hasta la parte superior del boletín y haga clic en el botón "Translate" (Traducir). Elija su idioma preferido del menú desplegable, ¡y todo el boletín se traducirá al instante!
Creole:
Èske w te konnen ou ka tradui bilten sa a nan plizyè lang diferan? Senpleman, ale nan tèt bilten an epi klike sou bouton "Translate" (Tradui). Chwazi lang ou prefere a nan meni ki desann, epi tout bilten an ap tradui imedyatman!
Português:
Você sabia que pode traduzir este boletim informativo para vários idiomas? Basta rolar até o topo do boletim e clicar no botão "Traduzir". Escolha seu idioma preferido no menu suspenso, e todo o boletim será traduzido instantaneamente!
Franklin Academy Office Hours
Our office hours for in-person assistance are as follows:
Office Hours: 8:45 AM - 1:45 PM
Additionally, you can reach us by phone at any time during the following hours:
Phone Hours: 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Franklin Academy participates in the National School Lunch Program and free or reduced pricing will be available for those that meet the guidelines.
Apply Now for 2026-27 School Year!
If you already applied online for Free & Reduced Lunch Meal Benefits and have application status questions, please email lunch@franklin-academy.org
Franklin Academy participa en el programa nacional de almuerzos escolares y los precios gratuitos o reducidos estarán disponibles para aquellos que cumplan con las pautas.
¡Solicite ahora la inscripción para el año escolar 2026-27!
Si ya ha presentado su solicitud en línea para obtener beneficios de comidas gratis y reducidas y tiene preguntas sobre el estado de la solicitud, envíe un correoelectrónico a lunch@franklin-academy.org
SLA Food Service
Connecting to your online lunch account. for snacks and ice cream.
Franklin Academy, Boynton Beach Campus
Building Better People Every Day
7882 South Military Trail, Boynton Beach, FL 33463
561-767-4700