Bulldogs Newsletter October 2, 2023

Dear Basswood Families,

There is a lot to celebrate this month! To those that celebrate the Lunar New Year, I hope the Year of the Horse is wonderful for your families. In our community, we have many families that observe Ramadan this month as well. Please let your child's teacher know if your student is fasting, as we have a space for them while others are eating in the cafeteria. Wishing you a Blessed Ramadan.

I received a note of appreciation from the principal of Fair Oaks Elementary School this week. He was thankful for the donations that were made to support families in need. He is grateful for the tangible support. We will continue to provide for their needs through the Spring. To contribute, you can purchase needed items from this Amazon list and sending the items directly to Fair Oaks Elementary.

Steven Schwartz

Basswood Principal

#WeAreBasswood!

Classroom Picture Day will be on Tuesday, February 24. Within 7-10 days after picture day, you will receive an email with a link to your student's personal gallery from Kemmetmueller Photography. You can reach out to your student's teacher if you'd like to know their picture time on Tuesday, February 24.

This continues to be a very trying time in our community. Many of our families and colleagues are dealing with immense feelings of fear and anxiety due to Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) action taking place. Our foremost priority during this time, as always, is to create safe and secure learning environments, and to provide meaningful education to each and every student in our community.

Our district and school teams have put many plans into place to ensure the continuation of this opportunity for all of our students. Please refer to our dedicated website for the most up-to-date information, including on topics like learning options, meals and safety/security procedures.

Basswood Elementary School 2025-2026’s yearbook is available for sale! Order your yearbook by 04/09/2026.

On Tuesday, March 3, from 5pm to 9pm, Basswood PTO is having a fundraiser at Chipotle, 18800 70th Way N in Maple Grove. You can order online using the code E3R9AAD or mention Basswood Elementary when you dine in. Twenty-five percent of the event sales will be donated back to Basswood.

Community Education’s Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE) program is currently offering a Parenting Your Child with Special Needs online class through May for families with children from birth through grade 3, with a focus on supporting parents/caregivers raising children with special needs, delays, disabilities, or medical needs. Here is the registration link:[tce.me/jgNMsy]

Other details:

• While the online class has already started, continued enrollment is encouraged.
• No family will be turned away from participating due to inability to pay the sliding scale class fee.
• Any questions about the online class can be directed to Kari Sawyer, coordinator of ECFE or the main office staff at 763-391-8777.

• February 24 - Classroom Pictures
• February 25 - Hold Drill 10:05am

• March 3 - Chipotle Fundraiser 5-9pm
• March 6 - No School - Report Card Marking Day
• March 9 - First day of Trimester III
• March 23-27 - Spring Break

If you are planning a family vacation or just time away from school, please remember to call your student's absence into the attendance line. You can call 763-494-3858 and press 1 to leave a message with your student's name, student's teacher, reason for absence, and dates that your student will be gone. We really appreciate your assistance!

First bell rings at 8:40am letting students into the school. Second bell rings at 8:50am letting students know they should be in their classroom ready to start the day! At 8:50am, the front doors are shut and student will need to come through the office to get a late pass.

• 2nd grade: 10:45 - 11:10am
• 4th grade: 11:15 - 11:40am
• 1st grade: 11:45 - 12:10pm
• 3rd grade: 12:15 - 12:40pm
• 5th grade: 12:45 - 1:10pm
• Kindergarten: 1:15 - 1:40pm

Our district Community Education department offers a variety of after school classes. If you do sign your student up for one of these classes, please remember to let your student's teacher know about the class and when your student needs to stay after school.

We welcome and encourage volunteers at Basswood. You can complete an online volunteer form online at apps.raptortech.com/Apply/Nzg0OmVuLVVT and work with our volunteer coordinator, Lezlie Northagen. Volunteer information will go home the first week of school. Activities in a normal school year include being a classroom assistant, helping with classroom parties, helping with PTO sponsored activities (Carnival, Turkey Bingo, Book Fair, etc.) along with numerous other opportunities. We continue to follow state guidelines and adjust our volunteer program accordingly.

The District Transportation department only allows students to ride their assigned bus to and from school. If you have questions, you can reach out to the Transportation Department at 763-391-7244 or transportationreques@district279.org.

Yes! You will be able to follow us on Facebook. Please note that we are moving away from Twitter (@BWPrincipal279) for Basswood social media. Click here to follow us.

Every parent or guardian of enrolled students of Basswood Elementary is an automatic member of the PTO. We encourage you to join one of our next general meetings - or just send us a note if you have a question. You can find more information on our PTO website: https://sites.google.com/view/basswoodpto/home?authuser=1 or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BasswoodElementaryPto