Good Evening, Warriors!

We hope you're enjoying a wonderful weekend!

A huge shoutout to our amazing PTA and dedicated volunteers for all their hard work in making the Fall Party such a fantastic event. The kids had an absolute blast! One parent summed it up perfectly:

“This is amazing! You guys know how to have fun. The party was done right.”

We couldn’t agree more!

From fun games to festive treats, everything came together beautifully thanks to your generosity and time. Whether you volunteered in person or donated candy, your support made a big difference. We truly couldn’t have done it without you—thank you!

Just a friendly reminder:

There will be no school on Tuesday due to Teacher Professional Development/Election Day.

Below are the updates for the upcoming week. Please take a moment to review them, and feel free to reach out if you have any questions.

Warmly,

Mrs. Casey Brownsberger

·       November 10th-14th—JWE Hearing Screenings for K, 1st, and 3rd graders.

·       November 10th-14th—World Kindness Spirit Week at JWE

·        November 11th—Veteran’s Day Parade at 9:45am

·        November 13th—JWE Picture Retake Day

·        November 13th—PTA’s Fundraiser Pick Up from 4-5:30pm

·        November 13th—Title I Parent Planning Meeting for JWE at 5:40pm in the art room

·        November 13th—PTA Meeting at 6pm in the art room

·        November 13th- Reflections Showcase at JWE before/after the 4th grade performance

·        November 13th—4th Grade Performance at 7pm, doors open at 6:45pm. 4th grade students are to report to the cafeteria when they arrive. After the performance, we will have our annual plate auction!

·        November 14th—PTA’s Reflections Breakfast at 8:30am in the cafeteria

·        November 17th—PTA’s Zarda’s BBQ Night from 5-8pm

·        November 18th—MidTerm

·        November 24th—PTA’s Skate Night from 6-8pm. Students are encouraged to wear JWE Spirit Wear to get a free drink.

·        November 26-28th—Thanksgiving Break-No School

·        December 1st -5th—PTA’s Santa Shop

·        December 2nd—Mayor’s Christmas Tree Lighting at 6pm

·        December 4th—PTA’s Santa Shop Open Late for Families to Shop from 4-6pm

·        December 5th—Attendance Awards

·        December 5th—BHMS Choir Performance at JWE

·        December 5th—Growth and Development for 5th graders

·        December 8th—PTA’s Skate Night at Rink Ratz 6-8pm

·        December 9th—BSSD’s Spelling Bee at 6pm

·        December 11th—5th Grade Performance at 7pm at JWE

·        December 18th—Student Holiday Luncheon

·        December 19th—End of 2nd Quarter

·        December 22nd-January 5th—No School

·        January 6th—Students Return

·        January 8th-District Reflections Showcase at Blue Springs High School from 5:30pm-7:00pm

Dear Parents,

In today’s digital age, screens are an integral part of our daily lives. From educational tools to entertainment, screens offer numerous benefits. However, it’s crucial to strike a balance, especially for our young children. Here’s why limiting screen time is essential for their development:

Excessive screen time can lead to a sedentary lifestyle, which is associated with various health issues such as obesity, poor posture, and eye strain. Encouraging children to engage in physical activities helps them develop strong muscles and bones, improves cardiovascular health, and promotes better sleep.

Children who spend too much time on screens may experience increased anxiety, depression, and mood swings. Limiting screen time allows children to engage in activities that boost their mental health, such as playing outdoors, reading, and spending quality time with family and friends.

Face-to-face interactions are crucial for developing social skills. When children spend less time on screens, they have more opportunities to engage in conversations, play with peers, and learn important social cues. These interactions help them build empathy, communication skills, and strong relationships.

Excessive screen time can interfere with a child’s ability to focus and think critically. Engaging in hands-on activities, such as puzzles, building blocks, and creative play, stimulates cognitive development and problem-solving skills. It also encourages imagination and creativity.

While educational apps and programs can be beneficial, too much screen time can negatively impact academic performance. Children need a balanced routine that includes homework, reading, and other educational activities without the constant distraction of screens.

By setting healthy boundaries around screen time, we can help our children develop into well-rounded, healthy individuals. Let’s work together to create a balanced environment t

·        Lynch Creek Farms Fundraiser… We’re thrilled to kick off our holiday fundraiser in partnership with the beautiful Vermont-based Lynch Creek Farms! From now through the season, you can order gorgeous, fresh wreaths to brighten your home or send as thoughtful gifts to loved ones. These handcrafted wreaths are not only stunning—they’re also a wonderful way to support our school, with 10% of every purchase going directly back to JWE! These wreaths make the perfect gift for those hard-to-shop-for family members and friends, and they’re ideal as hostess gifts too! Plus, you can schedule your delivery to arrive closer to the holidays or your next special event. Feel free to share this fundraiser with friends and family—every order helps! Don’t miss out on this festive opportunity to spread holiday cheer and give back. Click the link below to shop now, and thank you for your continued support! https://lynchcreekwreaths.com/?campaign_id=4927304

·        JWE’s Veteran’s Day Parade… JWE would like to invite all moms, dads, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and siblings who have served or are currently serving in the military to participate in a special event on Tuesday, November 11th. We will be honoring them in a drive through parade in JWE’s Parking Lot. Students will be lined up on our sidewalks outside honoring our Veteran’s as they drive though our parking lot. Veteran’s need to line up at the north entrance driving south on Sunnyside School Road. We encourage our Veteran’s to decorate their cars in patriotic attire that includes a sign with their name and branch of service.

9:30—Veterans Can Line up on Sunnyside School Road starting at the car rider entrance.

o   9:45—The Parade Starts

If you are interested in participating, please fill out the attached form to RSVP. We look forward to honoring our countries and families heroes!

·        World Kindness Week…We are celebrating World Kindness Week 11/10-11/14 by having a spirit week at JWE. We would love for your kiddos to participate. Check out the attached flyer for more information.

·       Hearing Screenings at JWE...ATTENTION PARENTS: A routine hearing screening will be conducted at school for all Kindergarteners, 1st graders, 3rd graders, and students who are new to the Blue Springs School District. These screenings will be conducted the week of November 10th. You will receive notification if there are any concerns with your child’s hearing. If you do not wish for your child to participate in the hearing screening, please contact the school. Thank you!

Heather Crump, Speech-Language Pathologist

James Walker Elementary

hcrump@bssd.net   816-874-3660

Be sure you talk with your child before they go to school if they need to eat breakfast at school or not. 

To put money on your child's lunch account please visit: www.schoolcafe.com.

To apply for free or reduced meals, please complete the appropriate forms ASAP on www.schoolcafe.com. The grace period for free/ reduced lunches is approaching. If you had free or reduced lunches last year and have not yet re-applied, you could be dropped from the program after 10/1/25. 

The following link is a tutorial of how to enroll: https://vimeo.com/280726060/a627865334. Please remember to include everyone in your household, even if they are not students as this can impact the application being accepted. 

Elementary Breakfast        $1.85

Elementary Lunch             $2.95

Milk Price                           $0.70

*Reduced Breakfast           $0.00 (must qualify)

*Reduced Lunch                $0.40 (must qualify)

·      School hours are 9:15am - 4:05pm. Doors open at 9am. Please do not send/drop off your student any sooner since we do not have supervision outside until then. The earliest that you can drop off your student(s) is 9:00am. 

·      Attendance- Please make sure your child is on time to school each day. Attendance matters and is important! Check out this attached article on attendance and how you can help improve this.

·      Parent Pick Up and Drop Off-If you are a car rider, please make sure you are going through the car rider line. Student may not be dropped off on Sunnyside School Road. Lastly, please remember that we need you to mindful of our neighbors and please do not block their driveways. Thank you very much for your help with these.

·      Dismissal-If your plans change on your pick up procedures, please notify your child's teacher and the office prior to 3:30pm.

·      Walking to School…Love the wonderful weather outside and seeing so many families walking to school. Just a reminder that pets are not allowed on school grounds. We appreciate your help with this.

·      Parent Square… Be sure to download this app. It is the best way to receive communication from your child’s teacher and our school.

·      PTA…Be sure to join PTA! The PTA consists of parents and teachers working together to support and best serve all students, the needs of James Walker Elementary and our community. PTA is a team effort and we would love to have your involvement anytime! We also have business memberships available as well. To sign up, click on this link https://linktr.ee/jameswalkerpta

·        Water bottles: We highly encourage you to send your child with a water bottle filled with WATER only, every day. We have water filling stations to refill their water bottles as needed. 

·        Food Delivery: We cannot deliver food orders sent to students at our school (ex. Door Dash, Grub Hub, etc). So please do not order them and send them to school unless they are addressed to Mrs. Brownsberger.

·        Birthday Treats: If you would like to provide treats for your child’s birthday, this must be pre-arranged with your child’s teacher at least 24 hours in advance. Also, all treats must be store-bought, individual (not whole cakes), and packaged.

·        Volunteer/Background Check Information:  Each year we need an updated background check if you plan on volunteering up at school. The Blue Springs School District uses DataSource to enhance and strengthen our current background screening process for Volunteer Guests. It is FREE, SECURE, and SIMPLE to register. Please visit: https://bssd.quickapp.pro to fill out an application. Once there you will see all Blue Springs School District schools will be listed. Click on the building in which you are planning to volunteer. (If you have students attending multiple buildings, you will only need to complete one application. After completing the application, please contact the Building School Resource Officer for the school you applied at and let them know you have students at additional locations). Volunteer applications MUST be submitted at least five (5) days before the event for which you are volunteering. After submission, please wait for an email from DataSource. The email will let you know whether you have been approved or denied.

·       Lunch Visitors… To eat lunch with your child, you will need to complete a background check prior to coming. To complete a free background check click here: https://bssd.quickapp.pro. Then you will need to sign up for a day to be a lunch guest https://jwelunchvisitors.youcanbook.me/. We need at least 24 hours notice when signing up. That means you cannot sign up on the same day you want to eat lunch. We appreciate your help and planning with this.

·       Family Resources or Assistance - If your family is in need of any assistance, please click this link to see what resources the school currently has available: https://forms.office.com/r/n6pLZdgVr2. If you don’t see what you’re looking for, please reach out to our school counselor at mburkhart@bssd.net — we’re here to help!

·       Lunch Accounts/Free and Reduced Lunch Applications- To apply login to school café, click here https://www.schoolcafe.com/. The following link is a tutorial of how to enroll: https://vimeo.com/280726060/a627865334. Please remember to include everyone in your household, even if they are not students as this can impact the application being accepted. 

·       Ronald McDonald House…Student Council is asking for your help! As part of a service project to help the families who belong to the Ronald McDonald House of Kansas City we are collecting pop tabs. These pop tabs support families with children in the hospital that stay at RMHC-KC or visit the Family Room. Advantage Metals, a local Kansas City recycler, buys the tabs at market rate and makes an additional charitable contribution to the Ronald McDonald House. They generously donate their pick-up and handling services, so the income from pop tabs is pure profit. Last year, this program brought in $20,000. We want to help them raise even more this year! WHAT CAN YOU DO? Collect pop tabs in zip-lock bags, cardboard boxes, coffee cans or plastic trash bags. Student Council will have a container set up in the office to collect the tabs. Your teacher will also have a collection “house” to keep the tabs collected. If you have a workplace that would be interested in collecting pop tabs for JWE’s Student Council please email Mrs. Hartstack at khartstack@bssd.net or Mrs. Horton ahorton@bssd.net and they will send some cardboard houses home with your child. Please do not use plastic soda bottles or milk jugs because they’re hard to empty! Thank you! 

Click on the link below to learn more about our school, available resources, and grade-level information. Inside, you'll find curriculum details that outline what your child will be learning this year, along with insights into their classroom experience. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to your child’s teacher or contact our office at 816-874-3660. We’re here to support you and your child every step of the way!