Burtonsville Elementary School

August 13, 2023

Dear Burtonsville Families,

Welcome to the 2023-2024 school year!  Burtonsville’s STAR staff is excited about the start of a new school year, and we invite you to assist us in creating a nurturing and equitable community that fosters high expectations for every student!

The first day of school for students grades K-5 is Monday, August 28th.  Burtonsville ES is unique in that we do not have walkers which can cause heavy traffic at times from buses and cars. If you drive your child to and from school, you should expect a wait as the car line for parent drop-off and pick-up will be long, especially during dismissal for the first few weeks of school. We appreciate your patience and understanding and thank you in advance for showing thoughtfulness and respect to each other, our students, staff, and volunteers.

If your child will be riding the bus, please allow them to begin riding on the first day of school to help them get used to the routine. If you are a kindergarten parent who plans to visit Burtonsville on the first day of school, please put your child on the bus; you can then follow the bus to school. This helps make the transition so much smoother for our students when they start the new routines on the first day.

On the first day of school, kindergarten students will report to the cafeteria. 

We know the first day of school is a memorable time for families, but unfortunately due to limited parking at Burtonsville, parents of students in grades 1-5 will not be able to park vehicles, enter the school building and walk their children to class. This is reserved for kindergarten parents only on the first day of school. We kindly ask that you take your first day of school pictures before your child reports to school. Thank you in advance for your cooperation. 

Teacher Reveal 

The night you have been waiting for, Teacher Reveal Night, at Squisito Burtonsville (15654 Old Columbia Pike, Burtonsville, MD 20866) will be held on Thursday, August 17, 2023, from 4:30-8:30 p.m. During this PTA event, families in grades 1-5 can find out who their child’s teacher is for the 2023-2024 school year and enjoy a fun night with food.  Kindergarten parents, you will find out your child’s “homeroom” teacher for the first week of school. Also remember, this is a fundraiser event, which means Squisito Burtonsville will donate a percentage of your purchase from 4:30-8:30 p.m. to our school. We look forward to seeing you there!

Kindergarten

Kindergarten parents - Welcome to Burtonsville Elementary School! We are so excited to begin the new 2023-2024 school year with all of you! The Burtonsville Kindergarten Team will be doing a “Switcheroo,”  Your child will be with their “homeroom” teacher for the start of each day for the first week of school and then switch classrooms during the day in order for us to get to know them a little better and to help us form classes.

The kindergarten team will be holding a Kindergarten Parent Meeting Night (Back to School Night) on Thursday, August 24th from 6:00-7:00 p.m. to inform you about the Switcheroo process, the first week of school, and provide a brief overview of kindergarten. Kindergarten Back to School Night is in person and a parent event. Childcare will not be provided.  

Kindergarten Parent Kiss & Cry Meeting: Monday, August 28th from 10:15-11:00 a.m. in the Media Center – Meet with the principal, Mrs. Lloyd, the Burtonsville PTA, and other staff members from Burtonsville Elementary. 

Open House 

Take a Peek at your Seat will take place on Friday, August 25th from 2:00-3:00 p.m. This is an in-person event. This is the time for all BES families to meet and greet teachers, visit classrooms, engage in casual conversations with staff, and reduce the first-day jitters for our students. This is also a great time to take a few pictures!

Transportation & Safety

Safety is our number one priority; therefore, we need every parent to exercise patience and respect, follow staff directions and adhere to the traffic flow pattern and drop-off/pick-up procedures. We have very limited parking at Burtonsville. Parents driving their children to school must adhere to the parent drop-off/pick-up carpool lane rules. Make sure your child is ready to get out of the car when you pull up. Please be a courteous driver on school grounds and please do not let students out of the car alone in the front of the building for any reason. If your child is late, you must park to come into the building to sign your child in. Please do not send late students into the building alone. 

School buses will be identified by bus route numbers but Burtonsville will assign an animal name to each route number to make it easier for your students to learn their bus.  Students will receive a sticker as they exit the bus on the first day of school.  Please note that Burtonsville is now part of West Farm UPPER Depot. All West Farm Upper routes begin with a “7”.  

Linked below are the bus schedules for the upcoming school year along with additional information for parents:

• Bus Arrival and Departure schedules
• Parent letters in English and Spanish
• "What you should know about Riding the Bus" in English and Spanish

Please carefully review the arrival and departure bus routes provided by the Department of Transportation to determine which bus your child will use to ride to and from school. Parents are responsible for making sure their child knows and understands which bus to ride and how they go home in the afternoon. 

Please make sure your child knows their dismissal plan (bus rider, car rider, Kids After Hours). If the dismissal plans change, please inform your child and the child’s teacher immediately.  

If you need to make a change to your child’s dismissal plan during the school day, please call the office at 240-740-5700, before 3:15 p.m. 

Transportation information including arrival and departure routes and an informative parent letter can also be found on our school website under the Back to School Information: https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/burtonsvillees/

Back to School Night (BTSN) 2023-2024 - Grades 1 - 5

Thank you to those of you who responded to our BTSN survey. We appreciate your input and will provide up-to-date details about this year's BTSN plans in next week's Burtonsville Beat. In the meantime, mark your calendars for Thursday, August 31st, from 6:00- 8:00 p.m. 

Communication

Every Sunday evening you will receive an e-mail from Burtonsville Elementary School about events, dates, important reminders, etc. Please read all communication from Burtonsville Elementary to stay informed. 

Meal Services

MCPS will resume regular meal services during the 2023-2024 school year. Students who qualify for reduced-price meals will not be charged for lunch. Students who do not qualify will have to pay for lunch. Lunch is $2.55 daily. (Division of Food & Nutrition Svcs.)

Free and/or Reduced Meals (FARMS)

Families can now apply online and avoid longer processing times in September. Online FARM applications are available now. Please visit www.MySchoolApps.com to complete and submit the 2023-2024 online application.  

Paper application forms will be distributed to all MCPS Schools the week of August 28th. Households that complete an online application DO NOT need to submit a paper application. The paper version of the 2023-24 Household Application for FARMS is designed to allow for electronic scanning. Due to this, only original applications can be processed. Please do not duplicate the paper applications. Again, while we will accept paper applications, online applications are strongly encouraged. 

Please complete the FARMS application, even if you think you do not qualify. We have had parents think they don’t qualify so they don't fill out the forms.  Even if it is not

Bell Time Schedule 2022-2023

9:10 a.m.– 9:20 a.m. Students Enter Building & Report Directly to Classrooms

9:25 a.m.           Tardy Bell Rings

3:50 p.m.            Dismissal

Student Day

9:20 a.m. – 3:50 p.m.

Teacher Duty Day

8:50 a.m. - 4:20 p.m.

Main Office Hours

8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Early Dismissal

Students dismiss at 1:10 p.m.

2-hour Delay

Students arrive at 11:20 a.m.

Welcome our New Staff to Burtonsville!

With a new school year comes change!  Please join us in welcoming the following staff to Burtonsville!

Naiani Sykes - Kindergarten Teacher

Xenia Oresky - Kindergarten Teacher

Sabah Naqvi - Grade 1 Classroom Teacher

Najet Mitton - Grade 3 Classroom Teacher

Hana Cho - Grade 4 Classroom Teacher

Joy Ruffa - Grade 4 Classroom Teacher

Kellye Townsend - Grade 4 Classroom Teacher

Stefanie Cansler - Special Education Teacher

Stephanie Louloudes - Special Education Teacher

Yasquel Alvarez - Special Education Teacher

Suzy Mabiala - Speech Language Therapist

Carl Gorr - Choral Music Teacher

Samuel Wright - Part-Time Physical Education Teacher

Burtonsville is still searching for the perfect art teacher! 

Upcoming Dates to Remember:

• Teacher Reveal: Thursday, August 17th at Squisito Pizza & Pasta from 4:30-8:30 p.m. (PTA Event) Kindergarten parents will find out the name of the kindergarten “homeroom” teacher for the first week of school. Grades 1-5 will find out who their classroom teacher will be for the school year. 
• Kindergarten Back to School Night: Thursday, August 24th from 6:00 - 7:00 pm. 
• Open House: Friday, August 25th  from 2:00-3:00 p.m. (Take A Peak At Your Seat) This is a drop-in event, you are not expected to stay the entire hour and you may come as late as 2:50 p.m.
• Kindergarten Parent Kiss & Cry Meeting: Monday, August 28th from 10:15- 11:00 a.m. in the Media Center – Meet with the principal, Mrs. Lloyd, the Burtonsville PTA, and other staff members from Burtonsville Elementary.
• Back to School Night: Thursday, August 31st from 6:00- 8:00 p.m. for 1st thru 5th grades. There is limited parking at Burtonsville Elementary so we will have a school bus shuttle from the Giant parking lot to and from the school throughout the evening. Kindergarten will have already had Back to School Night (8-24-23), so kindergarten teachers will not be present for this event.  
• Back to School Bash: Friday, September 8th from 5:00-7:00 p.m. (PTA Event) 
• Burtonsville Day Parade: Saturday, September 23rd. Make signs, wear your Burtonsville t-shirt, or our school colors (blue & yellow), and come out to show your school spirit and represent Burtonsville Elementary! More information to come!  If you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact the main office at (240) 740-5700 for additional information.  

 Yours In Service,

Kimberly Lloyd, Principal

Terry Gobourne, Assistant Principal