Ben Franklin Newsletter

Dear Ben Franklin Families,

I hope this finds you well. It was a great week at Ben Franklin as we closed out the month of February. The week ended with our monthly Spirit Assembly where students were recognized for their character, birthdays were acknowledged, we introduced the new Social Skill of the Month (Fair Listening) while the 2nd grade team modeled the skill, and we honored our bus drivers! Check out the pictures in this newsletter of our assembly.

We are very excited to be celebrating reading in this upcoming week during the National Read Across America Week! There are many activities scheduled and we have a them for each day set as a way that all students and staff can participate. See the day-by-day themes broken out below. Students will experience guest readers, buddy up with other classes to read together, track their reading, and participate in a reading train this week!

Lastly, please know that there has been a last minute change to the March lunch menu. Monday, March 3rd and Monday, March 10th are being swapped... lunch will be a cheese quesadilla on 3/3 and will be grilled cheese and tomato soup on 3/10.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend! Looking forward to seeing students in their PJs on Monday as our first themed day of Read Across America Week on Monday, "Cozy Up With A Good Book"!

Sincerely,

Geoff Hewitt
Principal

Calling ALL Readers!

Help us celebrate National Reading Month and Read Across America week by keeping track of the books you read at home.

It's as easy as 1, 2, 3.

1. Choose a book and read it. (Listening to a read aloud counts!)

2. Write the title of each book you read on the paper sent home (with the dotted lines).

3. Bring it back to school once it is full.

Let's see how many books this community of readers can read!!!!

EXAMPLE:

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THE SMART COOKIE

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Reading BINGO!

Looking for fun ways to bring reading into the home in the upcoming week? See if your child can get BINGO using the activity ideas on this Reading BINGO Board!

This flyer went home in student backpacks recently inviting all students, family members, and staff members to join our BF Team this year! St. Baldrick's Foundation works to fight kids' cancer and everyone within the BF community is welcome to help in the battle by being a participant who shaves their head, by advertising, and by donating to the foundation through our BF Team. All of the details are on the flyer. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to Mr. Rude (our BF Team organizer) or Mr. Hewitt. Although the shaving event will take place in mid-March, please be sure to join the team now if you would like to be involved!

Interested in making a donation to one of our BF Team Members? Visit this page - https://www.stbaldricks.org/teams/teambenfranklin2025

All students have the opportunity to participate in fundraising through purchasing tickets to be entered in a staff member's bucket with the chance to have their ticket drawn and the opportunity to throw a pie in the face of that staff member. Yes, you heard that right, throw a pie in the staff member's face during an all school assembly on Friday, March 14th! Click here or on the image to see the details of this event!

This year's Super Fun Color Run will take place on Saturday, March 15th at Ben Franklin. There is a $10 fee to register for the run and $1 for face painting. All proceeds go to St. Baldrick's fight against childhood cancer!! If you are interested in participating, please click on this link to the registration form. You can also click on the image to also access the registration form.

The 3rd Grade Party Committee is holding a popcorn fundraiser to help raise funds for their end of year celebration!

The fundraiser is running all of this upcoming week, March 3rd-7th! Here is a link to participate - https://popup.doublegood.com/s/3eeh9p32

Thank you for your support of our 3rd Grade Class!!

As spring approaches and our 3rd graders are preparing for 4th grade, we know that there may be many questions and a little bit of nervousness about the move to a new building, LIS. Our goal as a district is to make this transition as smooth as possible for students and families. In an effort to do this, LIS has scheduled a variety of transition events that will be taking place this year. Please visit this link to see dates and information about each event scheduled - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1g1jANjEOTJlpV9WiLMBuedAzd7oWRfhn/view?usp=sharing

The PTO Directory has been updated this past month. If you would like to obtain the link to the updated directory, please reach out to bfptorocks@gmail.com and they will be happy to share the link with you. We have opted not to post the link here as this newsletter is often posted publicly on our website and we do not want to share out our families' confidential information.

If you would like your information added or updated, please reach out to the school's Main Office ((609)671-5540) or to Mr. Hewitt (ghewitt@ltps.org).

Book Exchange - Friday, March 7, 2025 during the school day. Students will get to bring home “new to them” books. Please see the attached flyer (below) for details.

Holidays in Harmony - Check out the link to learn more about how you and your family can create and share out family traditions in the form of a poster. All posters will be on display during the Multicultural Night. Please be sure to submit posters to the Main Office by Monday, March 10th.

Multicultural Night - On Wednesday, March 12th, the second annual Multicultural Night will be held from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. The event will take place in the BF multi-purpose room (the "airport") and gymnasium (the "Global Marketplace"). All BF families and staff are welcome to attend! We are excited for the BF community to come together to celebrate all the wonderful cultures and traditions within our school. Children will be given passports and boarding passes as they travel to the various activity tables! To join in on the fun, RSVP at: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0F4BABAF2AA4F5C52-54337023-multicultural?useFullSite=true#/

• If you would like to join the event, please sign up in at least one of 3 ways (this counts as admission for your family to the event):
1. Showcase an activity or interactive display! We would love to see what reflects your culture, heritage, nationality, the area you are from in the US, and/or how you celebrate holidays! After visiting your table, children will be given a sticker stamp to go in their passports! Stamps will be provided by the PTO.
2. Bring a potluck item to share! Families/staff can contribute their favorite family dishes (even if it’s chocolate chip cookies), special or secret family recipes, dishes from around the world, where you are from in America, and/or dishes that are from their culture/heritage. Food can be either homemade or store-bought. Please note that the portion size is up to you. We will also need people to sign up for some staple items such as drinks and fruit trays. Items should be delivered by 6/6:15pm.
3. Volunteer to help! You can do so during the event by checking in guests and/or helping to clean-up at the end of the event
• If you have any questions, please send an email to Petra and Ilana at BFPTOrocks@gmail.com. RSVP for a slot by March 8, 2025: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0F4BABAF2AA4F5C52-54337023-multicultural?useFullSite=true#
• **Inclement weather reschedule date: March 13, 2025.
• We will also have raffles, cultural performances and international music this year!

Spring Teacher Clubs (click here for the offerings) -

• It’s time to enroll students in teacher clubs! Registration opened on February 27th this past week. Click here to sign up for a Spring Teacher Club. The offerings are attached. Review the club descriptions as dates, club exclusions and costs vary by club. If your child is ineligible to sign up for a club (grade level exclusion etc.), we will have to remove your child from the club and refund your payment, less fees. Enrollments are first-come, first-served. Additional information on payment is in the description in the Signup Genius. Please note that no refunds will be given after the enrollment period ends.
• A club volunteer is required for every club. Click here to sign up as a club volunteer. As the club volunteer, your child will be GUARANTEED a spot in that club AND you will be refunded $10 at the end of the club after successfully completing your club volunteer duties. The club volunteer takes attendance and supervises the club students in the gym after the school dismissal until the club teacher finishes their dismissal duties and arrives at the gym to collect the children at 3:45pm. If a club does not get a volunteer, we will have to cancel that club.
• All the teacher clubs take place at Ben Franklin school. At the end of each session, the club students must be picked up at the school on time. Transportation home is not provided. If a child attends the YMCA after school program at the school, they can be dismissed to aftercare at the conclusion of the club.
• The enrollment period ends on Sunday, March 16th. If you have any questions, please reply to this email.

PTO Meeting: Monday, March 24, 2025 at 7:00 pm on Google Meet (Link - https://meet.google.com/emf-gjsn-vkn)

1st Grade Sponsored Teacher Appreciation Luncheon - Our next teacher & staff appreciation luncheon of the year is on Wednesday, March 26th and sponsored by 1st grade families. This luncheon will have a brunch theme with entrees and sides such as chicken and waffles, bagels, sandwiches, salads, etc.

• Please see the link to sign up to bring in a food item or supplies:[goog_85664487] https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0548A5AA22ABFD0-55382294-1stgrade#/
• Monetary donations are also greatly appreciated and will be used to purchase hot food trays and any remaining items on the SignUp Genius.

BF PTO Website: www.bfpto.org

Email: bfptorocks@gmail.com

A Ben Franklin alumni, Kate Moog, is fundraising to support the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. One fundraiser even she is hosting is the BF After Hours Parent Night Out event on Tuesday, March 11th from 6:00-8:30 pm at Ben Franklin in the All Purpose Room/Cafeteria. See the flyer for details by clicking here or clicking on the image to the side of this announcement. Please know that this is NOT a BF or PTO event. If you are interested in registering for the event, please do so by clicking here.

Registration Link - https://forms.gle/7AahdmnNtnRkXGpA8

You may have noticed that BF has begun to store non-perishable foods in the front foyer of the school. We have partnered with Mercer Street Friends to assist in supporting our community. If you would benefit from receiving support from our school in the form of care packages of food, please feel free to reach out to Mrs. Umbach (mumbach@ltps.org), Mr. Hewitt (ghewitt@ltps.org), Mrs. Delgado (ddelgado@ltps.org), or Mrs. Tennant (ltennant@ltps.org). You can also call the main office at (609)671-5540.

The 3rd grade yearbook committee is working hard to complete the yearbook for this year's 3rd grade class. They are asking all 3rd grade families to complete this survey. They have 33 responses so far and would really like information from all 3rd grade families! Please take a moment to complete the survey for each of your 3rd grade students as soon as possible.

Link to survey - https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1zwGvkqwzA6-3lzEBb4pO3d-pRR-CkW-U5o_BHjsuzPA/edit

In addition, here is an email address that can be used for all communication regarding the yearbook - benfranklinyearbook2025@gmail.com This is the email address that all communication to families will come from and that can be used to send photos (class photos, students photos at school events, etc.) to Felissa Szold and Amanda Taglairino.

The LTEF is excited to announce the addition of an Art Contest to our Lawrence Has Talent event. Please see the flyer attached and share with an artist you may know! I will have physical flyers in the schools by Friday. Thank you!

Visit here for more info: https://givebutter.com/LHTartcontest

All entries are due by March 20th.

Attention families of three and four-year-old children that live in Lawrence - LTPS's preschool application is now available on our website and will remain open until April 11, 2025. See this flyer for more details. Please note that this is a lottery system and not "first come first served." Tell your friends!

We have opened the feature in Genesis that allows you (as the parent/guardian) to mark your child absent. This allows you to use the app or the website to simply go into the system and mark an absence for the day or for a day in the future that you know your child(ren) will be absent. Here are the directions for utilizing this system.

Please know that the Ben Franklin Attendance email and phone line do remain active, however, we encourage you to take advantage of this "Notify Attendance Office" feature for a more direct and immediate response. Should you need any assistance or have questions about your parent portal account (link to parent portal), do not hesitate to contact our front office staff at (609)671-5540.

In an effort to continually improve safety and security within our district of all members, the district has set up a Tip Line. Please check out this brief (1 minute) video to learn more about the purpose of the Tip Line and how to access it: Tip Line Video

Link to LTPS District Calendar (2024-2025)

February 28th - March 29th - Ramadan... click here for information about Ramadan!

March:

3-7 - Read Across America Week!

3 - 1st Grade Campfire Lessons

4 - Mardi Gras

5 - 2nd Grade Concert at BF in the APR, 2:00 pm

7 - PTO Book Exchange (during school day)

9 - Daylight Savings Begins - Set clocks forward 1 hour!

10 -

• 1st Grade Campfire Lessons
• Holidays in Harmony (PTO) posters DUE

11 -

• Referendum Vote
• After Hours Parent Night Out, 6:00-8:30 pm

12 - PTO Multicultural Night, 6:00-8:00 pm at BF

14 - St. Baldrick's Fundraising & Shaving Event & St. Baldrick's Pi Day Event, (Schoolwide Assembly at BF)

15 -

• BF's Super Fun Color Run (Registration & Face Painting), 10:15-11:00 am at BF
• BF's Super Fun Color Run, 11:00 am at BF
• St. Baldrick's Fundraising & Shaving Event at Amalfi's, 11:00-1:00

18 - K to see LMS Musical, Moana, Jr. (during school day)

19 - BOE Mtg., 7:00 pm at LHS

24 - PTO Mtg., 7:00 pm on Google Meet (link to follow)

25 - Class Photos with Photo Haven

26 -

• Schoolwide Assembly - The Illusion Maker’s Brand New “POP QUIZ” Environmental Quiz Show
• Staff Luncheon hosted by 1st grade families (PTO sponsored)

31 - No School for Students, Staff Development