Bensalem Cop Cards

"(The) 2009 Cop Card program provides children between the ages of 6 and 14 to meet officers, detectives and other support staff while collecting police trading cards. The current set is comprised of 90 cards. This is our biggest set ever! Individual and some special cards will be available from officers on patrol (Note: 7 PM is the general shift change). "

For more information, go to the Bensalem Police website (http://www.bensalempolice.org/copcards.html).

BHS Home and School

Need to keep up with what is going on at BHS? Sign up for the e-mail update and receive weekly reminders of what is going on at the High School. All you need to do is e-mail skutner@bensalemsd.org and request to be added to the list. Stacy does an incredible job keeping up with what is going on at BHS!

To visit the web page for the BHS Home & School Association, click here. On the left of the page there is a list of useful links.

School Board Meeting (August 26th, 2009)

Below are some items of interest from Wednesday night's meeting:
New Appointments:
Special Education Supervisor - Ed Sczesniak
High School Assistant Principal - Ken Napaver
High School Assistant Principal - Steve Louella

Just For The Kids:
Classroom applications have been sent out so teachers can apply for grants from Just For The Kids. To find out more about them, click here.
More importantly, on Saturday, September 26, 2009, the Bucks County Road Runners are teaming up with the Just For The Kids Education Foundation to present the 3rd Annual Robert Massaroni Memorial 5K Run and 1 Mile Fun Run/Walk. To download an application, or apply online, go to http://www.massaroni5k.com/.

E-mail from Gene DiGirolamo

To receive these informative e-mails, visit http://www.genedigirolamo.com/ and fill in the information under "Get E-mail Updates".

School Bus Safety Tips For Motorists and Parents

With classes beginning in the Bensalem School District on Sept. 8 and in the Neshaminy School District on Sept. 1 and 2 students, parents and motorists should be advised about school bus safety.

Ensuring our children have safe travel to and from school is of the utmost importance, especially in a very busy suburban area such as ours.

For Motorists

The following tips and reminders relate to motorists:

• When driving in neighborhoods with school zones, watch out for young people who may be thinking about getting to school, but may not be thinking of getting there safely.
  Slow down. Watch for children walking in the street, especially if there are no sidewalks, and children playing and congregating near bus stops.
• Obey school bus laws. Yellow flashing lights on a school bus signal the bus will soon be making a stop to load or unload children. Slow down and prepare to stop. Red flashing lights and extended stop arm signal that the bus has stopped and children are getting on or off. Stop at least 10 feet before reaching the school bus and wait until the bus has begun to move before starting to drive again. Never pass a bus while its red signal lights are flashing even on divided and/or multi-lane highways.
• Be alert. Children arriving late for the bus may dart into the street without looking for traffic.

For Parents

Parents should also teach children to follow these commonsense practices to make school bus transportation safer:

• Arrive at the bus stop at least five minutes before the bus is scheduled to arrive.
• Stand at least three giant steps away from the curb and line up away from the street while the bus is approaching. Wait until the bus stops, the door opens, and the driver says that it is okay before stepping onto the bus.
• Walk at least five giant steps ahead of the bus if crossing the street is necessary. Always be sure the bus driver can see you, and you can see the bus driver.
• Never walk behind the bus.
• If you drop something near the bus, tell the bus driver. Never try to pick it up because the driver may not be able to see you.

Follow these basic back to school safety tips to ensure Pennsylvania’s youths arrive to and from school safely. For additional safety information, please visit the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Web site at www.nhtsa.dot.gov.

Transportation & Class Assignments

TransportationTransportation postcards will be mailed to all students beginning September 2, 2009.

Class Assignments

• Elementary class assignments will be noted on the transportation postcard. Walkers will also receive a postcard with their class assignment.
• Individual student schedules will be mailed to all middle school students the week of August 31.
• High school course selection verification sheets will be mailed by August 28. Students will receive their schedules on the first day of school.

For information on Back To School Nights, click here.

PhillyBurbs.com: District makes cuts over state budget woes

PhillyBurbs.com: District makes cuts over state budget woes

*** Please keep in mind this in no way means Bensalem School District has any plans to cut the current Full Day Kindergarten Pilot Program! I am simply adding this to my blog for informational purposes. (Although we are currently expecting a $1.5 MILLION drop in the money we were expecting from the state.) ***

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BHS Cheerleader Fundraiser

I received the following in an e-mail this afternoon:

On Tuesday August 18th, 2009 the Bensalem Cheerleaders will be doing a fundraiser at the Sonic on Street Road. Sonic will donate 10% of all sales made that day during 12 pm and 8 pm back to the cheerleaders as long as you bring this flyer with you. During the same time, the Pennsbury cheerleaders will be doing the same thing at the Levittown location of Sonic. This is a friendly competition between the two schools to see who can raise the most money.

** You need a copy of the flyer for the 10% to go to the cheerleaders. Right click on the image and choose "save picture as" or "print picture". **

Back To School Nights

Back To School Nights are scheduled for each school and are designed to help parents obtain information about their student's schedules. Updates on school policies, expectations of the teachers, and academic programs will be discussed.

Bensalem Township Back to School Nights are as follows:

• Belmont Hills Elementary School - Thursday, September 24, 6:30 p.m.
• Cornwells Elementary School - Tuesday, September 22, 6:30 p.m.
• Samuel K. Faust Elementary School - Wednesday, September 16, 6:30 p.m.
• Benjamin Rush Elementary School - Thursday, September 10, 6:30 p.m.
• Russell C. Struble Elementary School - Monday, September 21, 6:30 p.m.
• Valley Elementary School - Thursday, September 17, 6:00 p.m.
• Robert K. Shafer Middle School - Monday September 14, 7:00 p.m.
• Cecelia Snyder Middle School - Tuesday September 15, 6:30 p.m.
• Bensalem High School - Wednesday, September 30, 6:30 p.m.

For a pdf version of the dates, click here or visit http://www.bensalemsd.org/.

PhillyBurbs.com: $2.1 million approved for building upgrades

PhillyBurbs.com: $2.1 million approved for building upgrades

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Sesame Place

I had no intentions of taking my kids there. Why spend $52 per person, plus parking ($15 min each visit) for a two day pass? (For a family of 4 that is $238 for a 2 day pass and general parking.) But I got pulled in anyway. I figured the season pass is not too bad of an idea. If you buy the season pass for next year you get the rest of the 2009 season for free. We got the passes last week .... and have gone 4 times already. It is a little painful at the beginning, but we now have stuff to do next summer that will not have to cost money. (If you order the passes on line they have an option to make payments over time)

Another good thing about the park, it is not just for kids. I will admit I have had fun. The water slides in the Count's Castle are big enough for adults. There are larger slides also. My youngest is just over 42 inches so he can even ride most of the rides without an adult. Next is the rollercoaster!

Last, but not least, is the fact that you can take in a cooler. It must be no larger than 10"x10"x12", that is all you need for drinks. We have taken in our lunch and packed the drinks in the cooler. Unless you want to buy lunch, pictures, or play games, there is really nothing you have to buy when you are there. Pack lightly though ... lockers, although large, are $20.

High School Schedule Change

There is a news show featuring Mr. Perry which explains the new schedule at BHS. The Show will air 9am and 9pm daily now through September 10th, 2009.

Remember to check the school district's website for information!

http://www.bensalemsd.org/

Back To Work - School Board Meeting 8/12/2009

Last night we had our first board meeting after the summer break. Items of note include the approval of the new schedule at the High School (See previous post) and we went over the PSSA results for the district. Bensalem School District as a whole made AYP again! I will post more on the scores a little later.

As for the new schedule at the high school, I asked about how we would handle snow days. Mr. Perry said they would just keep going on the regular schedule when the students return. For example, if Monday is an "A" day, and Tuesday is a snow day, then when the students return on Wednesday they should be prepared for "B" day classes.

PhillyBurbs.com: Parents air concerns about alternating block schedule plan

PhillyBurbs.com: Parents air concerns about alternating block schedule plan

Although I am glad the Courier sent someone to cover the meeting, there are a few things that were not explained fully. If there are any questions, please feel free to ask for clarifications:

• "Also, the new block schedule would have the same 82-minute classes, but at the half-way point, the teacher would stop and make sure everyone understood the day's lesson."
  This is partially true. Teachers check for learning during their lessons now, and that will not change. The new schedule will allow for teachers to stop their class every 7 school days to allow teachers to help those students who need it. (See image below)
  
  
  
The first day of the school year students will be attending periods 1, 3, 5, and 7. Since this is day one, they would have 41 minutes instruction and 41 minutes of extra help from the teacher. On the second day of the cycle, the split would happen in period 2, on the third day it would be period 3 and so on. The circles over the periods would show what days they have class time split. As you can see, at the end of the 8 day cycle, it starts over again with period one (see Thurs. above.)


• "Some parents argued the new system of taking a break for those who don't understand a lesson, will turn the rest of the class into a gabfest for students."
  Yes, this was a concern for parents. The Courier did not explain that Mr. Perry stated if a students does not need the help in that class they can work on enrichment for that class, work on a project for that class, or go to another teacher for help in another subject (with approval from their teacher.) For example, if a student is in the 9th grade Exploratory Science class, they may be able to work on their project during that time. Or, if the student is in English and does not need help with English but does need help with History, the students English teacher can give permission to go to the History teacher for the extra time. (I would expect this to be cleared with the History teacher ahead of time also.)