From Your Home & School Club President's Desk |
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Welcome to the Blossom Hill Elementary 2021-2022 school year. Campus is buzzing as teachers, staff, and the Home & School Club are preparing to welcome students on August 12. I am honored to lead the Home & School Club (H&SC) this year, alongside Kristin Hutchinson, Ellen Feichtmeir, Nika Esfahani, Jean Choi, Widya Junus, and Jennifer Shapiro. The H&SC is Blossom Hill’s Parent-Teacher Organization. Together with families, students, and staff, the H&SC provides student and teacher supplies, classroom technology, music instruments, community building events, student enrichment programs, campus support, safety programs, and more.
During my family’s time at Blossom Hill, I have learned it truly takes a “hive to thrive.” The H&SC welcomes volunteers throughout the year. Look for a link to our volunteer sign ups soon. We are excited to host a variety of community events this year. Mark your calendars for grade level meetups, including our Kindergarten, 1st Grade, and 2nd Grade meetups (details below). We will also host a “Welcome Back Coffee” just after the bell rings on the first day of school. You can keep up to date on activities and events in the H&SC’s weekly newsletter, The Beehive.
Our school hive cannot thrive without funding from our families. Parents can participate in two major funding initiatives this year – One Community Los Gatos (OCLG) and the Parcel Tax Renewal. The One Community Los Gatos campaign combines the Fall fundraising efforts of the campus H&SCs, Los Gatos Education Foundation and the Los Gatos Music Boosters. OCLG hopes to simplify the donation process for families. In addition to categories listed above, your contribution pays for staff salaries, innovation grants, music and art programs, and district STEAM initiatives. This year’s One Community ask is $1,500, with $350 going to the Blossom Hill H&SC and $1,150 going to LGEF. Many employers will double your donation through corporate matching programs like Benevity. You can learn more about OCLG and employer matching at www.onecommunitylg.org. The local school funding measure that supports salaries for 23 core teachers is set to expire - the rough equivalent of staff for one elementary school. We encourage you to become informed and learn more about renewing our local school funding measure before voting this Fall.
Again, welcome to Blossom Hill Elementary. I look forward to seeing you around our hive.
Melissa Crow
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August
- 8/5 - Family Data Update for Returning Students Due*
- 8/9 - Back to School COVID Testing, 11:30am-3:30pm (District Office Parking Lot)
- 8/10 - TK/Kinder Playdate in the Park, 10am-noon (Blossom Hill Park)*
- 8/10 - First Grade Playdate in the Park, 1-3pm (Blossom Hill Park)*
- 8/12 - First Day of School
- AM Kinders: 8:10-11:30am
- PM Kinders: 11am-2:20pm
- 1st-5th Graders: 8:10am-2:33pm
- 8/12 - Welcome Coffee, 8:15-9:15am (in front of the school)*
- 8/18 - H&SC Board Meeting, 8:15-9:30am
- 8/19 - Early Release Day (Back to School Night)
- All Kinders: 8:10-11:30am
- 1st-5th Graders: 8:10am-12:10pm
- 8/19 - Back to School Night (Adults Only), 6-7:40pm*
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*Scroll down for more details on these events. |
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IMPORTANT SCHOOL CONTACT INFORMATION |
Office:
408-335-2100
Attendance:
408-335-2145
Office Hours:
7:30 am - 4 pm
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LGUSD Family Data Update for Returning Students
Deadline - August 5th
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On Monday, August 2nd, LGUSD sent out an email with "Family Data Update for Returning Students" instructions. The online form replaces the Emergency Update Card. Please follow the instructions listed in the email to update your information by Thursday, August 5th. Los Gatos Union School District requires that returning families update all emergency contacts and health information for each student, annually. Some required information has been pre-populated with the information contained in our LGUSD Student Information System. Home and mailing addresses can not be edited through the family data form. Please indicate if there is an error in your student's primary address or mailing address in the address verification field and contact the school office to update this information.
VERY IMPORTANT! All parent information must be updated for our records – any field left blank will overwrite the information on file at your school with a blank. The deadline to complete your student's family data form is Thursday, August 5th!
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Back to School COVID Testing |
All students in grades TK-8 are invited to participate in Back to School COVID Testing on Monday, August 9, 2021. We strongly encourage all students to be tested to help us all begin as healthy as we can. While not a limited window, we are targeting groups of students to help manage the lines and reduce waiting times for students and families. Please register at the link above for your individual school site(s).
Last names A - F 11:30 - 12:30 suggested window
Last names G - L 12:30 - 1:30 suggested window
Last names M - Q 1:30 - 2:30 suggested window
Last names R - Z 2:30 - 3:30 suggested window
ALL TESTING WILL TAKE PLACE IN THE
DISTRICT OFFICE PARKING LOT
17010 Roberts Road
Los Gatos, CA 95032
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TK/Kinder Playdate in the Park |
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TUESDAY, AUGUST 10TH
BLOSSOM HILL PARK
16300 Blossom Hill Road
(on the playground by the tennis courts)
10am-noon
The Blossom Hill Home & School Club invites all TK/kinders and their parents to join us for a "Playdate in the Park." We are excited to welcome you to our school and would like to give you the opportunity to meet your new TK/kinder friends before school starts. Home & School Club representatives will be on hand to provide you with some helpful information as you start your journey at Blossom Hill while your children get to know each other playing on the playground. Snacks and water will also be provided. We can't wait to meet you! (Please note that our beloved Kindergarten teachers will not be present as they are busy in their classrooms preparing for the new year.)
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First Grade Playdate in the Park |
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TUESDAY, AUGUST 10TH
BLOSSOM HILL PARK
16300 Blossom Hill Road
(on the playground by the tennis courts)
1pm-3pm
The Blossom Hill Home & School Club invites all first graders and their parents to join us for a "Playdate in the Park." We are excited for your return to our school and would like to give you the opportunity to reconnect with all of your first grade friends before school starts. Home & School Club representatives will be on hand to provide you with some helpful information about this school year at Blossom Hill while your children are playing on the playground. Snacks and water will also be provided. We can't wait to see you! (Please note that our beloved first teachers will not be present as they are busy in their classrooms preparing for the new year.)
To reach out with any questions, just click on the H&SC representative's name below.
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Back to School Buzz - Check out These Events! |
H&SC Welcome Coffee
August 12th, 8:15am
In Front of the School
All parents are welcome to join us, meet our wonderful Principal, Lisa Reynolds, and learn about all the great events and programs that the Home & School Club is busy planning for this year. Representatives from many of our committees will be on-hand to share what they are working on and how you can get involved.
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Back to School Night
August 19th, 6pm-7:40pm
Back-to-School Night is an important evening for parents to get an overview of what students will be learning, classroom expectations and procedures, as well as important information about Home & School Club activities. An email will be sent home prior to the evening with further details. This event is not for children, so we ask that you sign-up with Clubhouse or make other arrangements for childcare.
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AtoZ Connect Directory Moving to a New Platform |
Our online directory, AtoZ Connect is moving platforms and will now be powered by Membership Toolkit. For existing users of last year's directory at AtoZ Connect, you will be able to continue to access your account until we make the transition to the new platform in the next couple of weeks. Information on how to join the new Membership Toolkit will be coming soon!
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Los Gatos Union School District Parcel Tax
That Funds 23 Teachers Is Set To Expire
There are many ways California schools receive funding but only two are under local control: donations and parcel taxes.
For over 30 years, Los Gatos has renewed Measure B, our district’s local parcel tax. While the “purchasing power” has declined over time (due to inflation), the measure still funds 23 teachers.
Measure B is set to expire next year.
The LGUSD Board of Trustees has voted to place a renewal measure on a November 2021 ballot. To learn more about this process, visit www.lgusd.org/renewalmeasure.
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Thank You to Our Community Sponsors! |
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Interested in becoming a Community Sponsor? Sponsorships are available at all levels. Please visit our H&SC website for more information on the benefits of sponsorship. Questions, please contact Melissa Crow.
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Blossom Hill Masks for Sale |
Need more masks? We've got you covered. Please be sure to write your child's name and classroom number on the label inside the mask, as all masks do look alike. Let's all "bee" safe and "bee" healthy. |
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Blossom Hill Vision Statement
(Abilities and skills we expect our students to acquire and take-out into the world)
All students will have the necessary skills to become enthusiastic, life-long learners and productive, empathetic, respectful members of society.
Blossom Hill Mission Statement
(What we need to do as a school community to ensure this happens)
The Blossom Hill School community takes pride in providing an enriched standards-based curriculum in a safe, nurturing environment. We strive to appreciate an awareness of students’ developmental needs to help them progress towards independence.
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Blossom Hill Elementary School
16400 Blossom Hill Road, Los Gatos, CA 95032
Phone: 408-335-2100 | Fax: 408-356-0887
Attendance Line: 408-335-2145
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Blossom Hill Home & School Club
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*The Beehive newsletter is approved by Principal Lisa Reynolds and the H&SC Board and is written exclusively to provide the Blossom Hill community with pertinent, weekly school information. Articles, information, calendars, etc. may not be duplicated or re-printed in any manner without the permission of the Home & School Club or the Blossom Hill school administration. |
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Submissions can be made to The Beehive editor, Jennifer Shapiro,
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