Brookside Bulletin

• 8/7 - Style Drop - 5:00-8:00PM | Worthington Operations Center - 6465 Busch Blvd, Columbus
• 8/8 - 1st Time Bus Riders Event at the WEC (Saturday 12:00-1:00 for Brookside Kdg students)
• 8/8 - Style Drop - 9:00 - 1:00 | Worthington Operations Center - 6465 Busch Blvd, Columbus
• 8/12 - Kdg & DLS Curriculum Night 5:00-5:40 & 6:00-6:40 (Identical sessions)
• 8/14 - Elementary buildings share class placement via Infinite Campus Portal
• 8/17 - Meet the Teacher / Ice Cream Social 4:40 (sensory needs & Kdg) & 5:00-6:30 (1st -5th grades)
• 8/19 - 1st Day of School: Grades 1- 5
• 8/19 - Kindergarten Assessment Day 1
• 8/20 - Kindergarten Assessments Day 2
• 8/21- 1st Day of School Kindergarten

Happy July, Brookside Families!

I hope you are enjoying summer with family and friends. Stores are starting to stock up on back to school supplies so that means....school is right around the corner! For all things "Back to School" please reference Worthington's District website; it is a great resource for back-to-school information! For upcoming events before school starts and much more -- CLICK HERE. You will find:

In the meantime, enjoy these summer days with your family and be sure to continue learning together through enjoyable and meaningful ways. Read together, do some journaling, explore the outdoors, practice some mathematical problem solving, and review/practice some math facts together. I wish you all a safe, relaxing, and joyful summer break! Look for more back to school information

The sun always shines on Brookside! 🌞

Warmly,

Dr. Jenny Wielinski

Parents and Guardians,

For the 26-27 school year, please be aware there is a change for how parents and guardians will access their Infinite Campus (IC) Parent Portal. You should have received an email on July 10 from the district. Keep an eye out for more emails so you know how to access Infinite Campus. This is also how you will view your child's homeroom teacher on August 14 after 4:00pm - so you will definitely want access by then. 🙂

Practice Accessing Infinite Campus Parent Guide log in to INFINITE CAMPUS.

Subject: Important Update: Changes to Your Infinite Campus Login (1st email to parents - July 10)

Dear Worthington Schools Families,

To provide you with better security and more control over your student’s information, Worthington Schools is updating how parents and guardians log into the Infinite Campus Parent Portal.

Starting for the 2026/27 school year, the district will no longer create accounts or manage credentials for parents and guardians. Instead, you will now have the power to create your own account and manage your own password securely.

What is changing?

• Self-Service Accounts: You will now create your own username and password.

• Easy Password Resets: If you forget your password in the future, you can reset it yourself instantly via email

• Enhanced Security: Managing your own credentials keeps your family’s data safer.

What do you need to do?

• Starting July 13, your current Infinite Campus account will no longer work.

• On July 20, you should receive a separate email containing a unique Activation Key and a link. Simply click the link, enter your key, and follow the prompts to create your new username and password. Once logged in, it will look the same as before.

• You can complete this setup on a computer or mobile device in a couple minutes

• If you use the Infinite Campus Mobile App, you will need to sign in again with your new account.

Key Items

• This change only impacts parent accounts. Student accounts will continue to be established by the district

• To ensure you receive the email, please review our Parent Guide: Email Safe Senders guide

• Please complete this process promptly to have access to next year's classroom and schedule information in August

Additional Changes in the Infinite Campus Portal

• Annual Information Update: You will complete your annual information update with a new look this year. In order to attend field trips, your emergency data must be updated.

• New Backpack: we are implementing a new Backpack option and we plan to share additional information soon.

Monday, August 17th from 5:00-6:30pm.

*For students who have sensory and/or medical needs and need a more quiet setting, and for all new kindergarten students, we are reserving 4:40-5:00 just for them. Please let the office know you will be attending slightly earlier.

• NEW this year, take individual school pictures if time permits

• Drop off school supplies. If you ordered through PTA they’ll be in the cafeteria

• Meet your teacher

• Complete Emergency Data and other important information

• Learn about our great PTA and how you can get involved

• There will be a food truck on site to purchase dinner

• Enjoy a treat compliments of Dairy Queen (FREE)

• Visit with old friends and make new friends

Columbus Public Health will be hosting a number of free vaccine clinics for families.

- Free for families
- Families will receive a $50 VISA gift card for each child that receives a vaccine
- Language services will be available at all these events

To find out more, check out the flyer HERE.

Look for more information coming soon and be sure to check out the PTA table the evening of the Ice Cream Social on August 17.

Student Lunch Accounts

Families can add money to their lunch account through My Payments Plus. You can also use MPP to track your student's account and see much money remains on it. My Payments Plus is also used to pay other fees, like high school parking permits and AP testing fees.

Free & Reduced School Meals for Students

Worthington Schools has eligibility-based pricing of meals (Free/Reduced/Paid).

All Worthington School families are required to complete the online Free/Reduced Lunch Eligibility Form. All students use their Lunch ID for meals. The student's number can be found in the Parent Portal. Select the Student ID tab and look for your Lunch PIN.

Dear Worthington Schools Families,

Instructions for accessing your Infinite Campus Parent account can be found at our Family FAQ page.

If you know about a planned absence, please share that information prior to the absence. It is important that your child arrives on time as school attendance is calculated by the minute and accumulates quickly when tardy.

We also have a new attendance email address for the Brookside office. If your child will be absent for any reason, please call (614-450-5300) or email (broattend@wscloud.org) attendance.

Arrival occurs between 7:30am and 7:40am. The tardy bell rings at 7:40am.

Electronic Backpack

Dear Worthington School Families: Circle of Grandparents (COG) is a character education program that operates in the Worthington School District, having been established in the year 2000. With the support of Worthington Schools and the nonprofit Partners for Community and Character, senior volunteers use community-chosen qualities to teach students the importance of good character. We’re looking for volunteers! Our goal is to have a grandparent in each Worthington School elementary classroom. As a “Grandparent”, you can draw from your own life experiences and individual talents to teach concepts of character to your “adopted” class. No classroom or teaching experience is required, COG will provide support and materials to you through monthly, optional meetings. You do not have to be an actual grandparent to participate, however, if you are a grandparent to a child in the Worthington Schools, you may request your grandchild’s class. Any “Grandparent” has the option to choose the school and grade level they wish to assist. This is a wonderful opportunity that benefits all who are involved. Interested in learning more? Please contact Jim McElligott at jamestmcelligott53@gmail.com.

Please read this INFORMATION SHEET to understand what we look for in volunteers.

View our Lost and Found items HERE, it is growing again. Simply call, email or have your student stop by the office if you see an item that belongs to them. Please label all of your student’s belongings so that they are easily reunited.

Brookside uses a car loop for parents who choose to drop their children off in the morning. Please be sure your child is ready to exit the car in a quick, but safe manner on the passenger side only. We do this for safety puproses. Please keep your speed to a crawl. Now and then we have family members who are not familiar with our process or are simply new to our school community so your patience is appreciated. Feel free to park in the front parking spaces to drop your child off should you not use the car loop.

Thank you in advance for adhering to our guidelines. 🙂

Dear Elementary Parents,

Worthington Schools is excited to announce its growing partnership with Securly in safeguarding students. Securly is used to monitor students’ online content, blocking access to inappropriate websites and materials on our school network and school-owned devices. Starting with the 2025/26 school year, Worthington Schools will make the Securly Home app available to elementary families.

Chromebook Content Filtering

District-owned Chromebooks will now have similar content filtering whether they are at school or away. This means that Chromebooks will have a base level of filtering no matter what network they are on. Content filtering is an uphill challenge and a very fine line to ensure students have access to the content and resources needed for effective learning while keeping harmful material at bay. While Internet content is ever-changing, our goal is to ensure a safe online experience.

Parental Control

Parents will have access to a website and mobile app, through Securly, to adjust their student’s district-provided Chromebook filtering levels when the device is away from the district network. You can determine the appropriate categories and sites your student has access to. More details can be found at our Parent Securly Information.

Activity Alerts

Worthington Schools' building leadership receives alerts when activity, such as searches or sites visited, indicates a student may be considering self-harm, harming others, or other inappropriate behaviour. This service was implemented so that school administrators are able to partner with you to provide a safer online experience. While these alerts are not perfect, we feel it is an important tool in ensuring your student’s safety

We take student safety very seriously, and online safety is part of the overall approach. If you have questions or comments, please feel free to reach out to your principal. Or if you need specific support from Securly, you can contact them at homesupport@securly.com.

Additional resources can also be viewed below.

Securly Getting Started Video

Securly Home App Walkthrough (English).pdf

Sincerely,

Worthington Schools

Worthington Connects is a community-driven organization dedicated to supporting local families in need year-round. We partner closely with schools to identify families who could benefit from assistance and rely on generous donations from the community to make our efforts possible. Every contribution helps us provide meaningful support to those in need.

If you would like to donate or get involved, please visit https://www.worthingtonconnects.org Families seeking assistance are encouraged to reach out to their school counselors, who work with us to connect resources to those who need them most. Together, we can make a lasting impact in our Worthington community!

Direct donation: https://www.worthingtonconnects.org/giving-page-3

For the safety of children, do not send any nut or peanut items to school in your child's lunch, snack, or school party item as we are a nut and peanut free school. It could literally mean life or death to another child. Thank you in advance for your understanding and compliance.

Please be sure you are observing road safety laws and educating your student(s) as well. Please always stay vigilant.

• Pedestrians: Where neither sidewalk nor shoulder is available, pedestrians shall walk as near to the outside edge of the roadway and only on the left side of the roadway, facing traffic. Any pedestrian upon a roadway shall yield the right-of-way to all vehicles upon the roadway. Cross streets at crosswalks or intersections.
• Cyclists: Cyclists should ride on the right half of the roadway, riding with traffic instead of against it. Please wear a helmet!
• Drivers: Yield the right-of-way to pedestrians at intersections and crosswalks.

Field Trip volunteers/chaperones must have their volunteer badges. If you are interested in volunteering in our school or for a field trip. Please go to the district website and follow the instructions HERE.

CONTACT INFORMATION: Parents, if you have not done so this year, please make sure to verify/update information in the Emergency Data Review through the parent portal. You can access the portal* on the WCS website. This process must be completed every year in case of an emergency and in order for your child(ren) to participate in class field trips. Instructions for using the parent portal appear here.

The Special Education Road Map has been translated into 21 different languages!!

This roadmap is helpful to all families, especially families who are just beginning the special education process.

Worthington’s Special Education Key Communicator Committee strives to build positive, productive and collaborative relationships and partnerships amongst the educators and community of families whose children receive special education and related services. We will engage in two-way communication, with the goal being to provide a circle of influence where we can share out and learn from and with each other.

The key communicators will convey information from their building to the committee, as well as information from the committee to their buildings.

The Key Communicators for Brookside are Sandra Sell at snsell74@gmail.com and Emily Smith at lightseekerem@hotmail.com 614-563-3687. Please reach out to either of our communicators if you have questions or topics to discuss.

Title I, Part A (Title I) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESEA), provides financial assistance to local educational agencies (LEAs) and schools with high numbers or high percentages of children from low-income families to help ensure that all children meet challenging state academic standards. Our school receives Title IA funding.

Parents/families of students in our building have a right to know about teacher qualifications and state-mandated assessments. All teachers providing Title I interventions are properly licensed for their positions and anyone can search licensure information on any educator at https://core.ode.state.oh.us/Core4/ODE.CORE.Lic.Profile.Public.UI/ . In addition to being linked here, these documents are available on the Title IA page of our school website.

We are thrilled your child will be attending Brookside and we have many things planned to help ensure a happy transition to school. Please read the information below.

FIRST TIME RIDERS 🚌

Will your child ride the bus this year? If so, please come to our First Time Riders event to help familiarize students with the school bus and many of the drivers. This popular event has helped hundreds of students feel comfortable with riding the school bus before those first few days of school.

Kindergarten students are invited to attend this event on Saturday, August 8 from 12:00 - 1:00 at the district office; 200 E Wilson Bridge Rd, Worthington, OH 43085. See you there!

• 9 AM – 10 AM Worthington Hills, Colonial Hills, Liberty, Sutter Park
• 10 AM – 11 AM Wilson Hill, Evening Street, Bluffsview, Sutter Park
• 11 AM – 12 PM Granby, Worthington Park, Slate Hill
• 12 PM – 1 PM Worthington Estates, Brookside

To help with the new transition to school, Worthington is now hosting kindergarten curriculum night for parents/guardians before school begins. We will offer two identical sessions for parents on August 12 from 5:00-5:40 and 6:00-6:40. Come to Brookside and hear more from our kindergarten teachers about what to expect academically, socially, and emotionally. You'll also learn more about your child's schedule, expectations, etc.

ICE CREAM SOCIAL 🍦

Monday, August 17th from 4:40-6:30pm.

• NEW this year, option to take school pictures if time permits!

• Meet your teacher

• Drop off school supplies. If you ordered through PTA they’ll be in the cafeteria

• Complete Emergency Data and other important information

• Learn about PTA and how you can get involved

• There will be a food truck on site to purchase dinner

• Enjoy a treat compliments of Dairy Queen (FREE)

• Visit with old friends and make new friends

KINDERGARTEN ASSESSMENTS

Kindergarten students will be assessed by teachers on Wednesday, August 19th and Thursday, August 20th. The purpose of these assessments is to help with the transition to kindergarten by allowing children the opportunity to meet teachers in a one-on-one setting, see classrooms, and for teachers to gain an understanding of each child’s academic starting point. All kindergarten students will then begin the school year on Friday, August 21. On Friday, students will have a variety of opportunities to work with both teachers and all students. After school on Friday teachers will create class lists. We will email families with instructions on how to access Infinite Campus. This is how you view your child's new kindergarten teacher for the 26-27 school year.

Please be sure you have signed up HERE for a time slot and that you arrive 5 minutes early.

BACK-TO-SCHOOL FROM THE DISTRICT

SCHOOL SUPPLIES

Use this LINK for a list of school supplies.

TRANSPORTATION

Please complete our TRANSPORTATION FORM by August 18th to help us know how each child is getting home each day. You will temporarily select Mrs. Sayre as your student’s teacher and once we know who their homeroom teacher is I will update it. Bussing information will come from the district and they will send this information out soon. It will come directly from BusRight.

Start and End Times

7:30 AM - Students may enter

7:40 AM - Tardy bell rings

2:20 PM - School is dismissed

• Please remember to have your child exit on the passenger side of the vehicle
• Staff will assist with exiting; parents must stay in the car for safety purposes
• Do not leave your car unattended at anytime

Lunch at School - Lunch Tips That Work

• Please practice opening containers, packages, lunch boxes, bottles, etc. before school starts
  
• Encourage your child to eat in a timely manner; lunch lasts about 20 minutes at school