Banks Road Elementary School Jan Hargrove, Interim Principal 10225 Chambers Road Raleigh, N.C. 27603 www.wcpss.net/banksroades www.twitter.com/BRESPrincipal

The Trailblazer Times  1-25-2020

Greetings Trailblazer Families,

We have had a busy week. Track 3 tracked out on Friday and we are excited to welcome back track 4 on Monday. Half of our teachers in grades 3-5 went for a school visit to Buckhorn Creek Elementary to observe their Professional Learning Teams (PLT's) planning in action, as we continue to learn and grow with the new EL reading program. We also welcomed some new staff members.  In addition we are continuing to register students at BRES for this school year and the next. Read on for more information. 

• Kindergarten Registration | Many of the schools in our area are conducting a Kindergarten Roundup to register K students for the upcoming school year. Fliers went to the local day cares in the area and to some of our apartment communities. January 29 from 9-3:30 we will be registering families in the K Roundup at Banks Road ES for students who turn 5 on or before August 31, 2020. Parents must first register online, and then bring the following documents to school: child's original birth certificate, parent/guardian's driver's license, proof of residence (electric bill, rental agreement, closing statement, etc.) and immunization records if you have them. Thanks for spreading the word! Registering students early helps with planning for the upcoming school year. 

• Spring Musical. | Get ready for our annual “Music in our Schools” performance. Our theme this year is “Broadway and Stage.”  The students are studying music through the years and Ms. LaPlace is very excited about this musical. The students are working extremely hard on their parts in music class. All students will receive a shirt for their grade level. Information about the t-shirts and the cost  ($3.79) went home with students last week and the deadline for ordering is February 7. If you need another form, please contact your child's teacher or Ms. LaPlace. Many thanks to PTA for helping collect money, order and distribute these shirts.

• PTA news. | As some of you may know by now, Allison Wood, our current PTA president and her family, are moving to the Charlotte, NC area soon. This is very sad news for the Banks Road family as Allison has done an outstanding job promoting BRES and we will miss her leadership, but we know that having the family together is best for them. Join me in thanking Allison for her service to the Banks Road community. We wish all the best for her and her family.
  • On another note, the PTA has installed a mailbox in the main office for parents who need to drop off money for the PTA or other correspondence. Parents can still use the PTA mail slot, but having this mailbox will save you some steps! 
  • Please mark your calendars for the Family Fancy Dance on Feb. 7 from 5:00 - 7:15 pm. This is not a drop off event. Come and have a "fun-raising" time with other families from the BRES community. 

• Requests for track changes online  | We hope to have our track change request form online this week. The form will be accessible to families through February 28, 2020. Remember: completing the form does not guarantee a track change will be made. There are many factors such as class size mandates, current families with rising siblings, and student assignment which affect these decisions. If you are requesting a track change for your child and there are middle school siblings on a year round schedule, we will have to coordinate any track change requests with the middle school before making a decision about whether or not we can honor the request. Families will receive a post card in the mail in early May about whether or not we could honor the request. 

• Report Cards for Track 4.  | Report cards go home with track 4 students on Friday, January 31, 2020. IEP progress reports and parent letters about IStation (grades K-3) will also be included as appropriate. If you have questions, please contact your child's teacher. 

• Positivity Project | Finally, we are beginning to learn about the Positivity Project (P2) which focuses on identifying positive character strengths (gifts) in ourselves and others. Our new counselor, Mr. Brody is spearheading this effort along with Mr. Day as part of our School Improvement Plan. We will begin on February 10. We will send out more information in our next edition of The Trailblazer Times.

We also want to introduce you to several new staff members. Ms. Eriksen, is a new Instructional Assistant in Ms. Hughes classroom. Ms. Barrows joins us as a special education Instructional Assistant in Ms. Knight's room and Ms. Laura Williams joins us as our new CCR Instructional Assistant. We have a new receptionist, Ms. Aaron, who will join us on February 3 and will assist in the front office with Ms. Abidally. Please join me in welcoming these new staff members to BRES. 

Yours,

Jan Hargrove, Interim Principal