November 2023

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A huge THANK YOU to all of the volunteers who showed up to help in so many ways this past month!

October was a busy month and we had over 50 volunteers helping with the following programs (just to name a few!):

Walk to School Week
Popcorn Friday
Picture Day
The Harvest Party
Emergency Preparedness
Enrichment Classes
Fall Fundraiser
Reflections Arts Contest
WSPTA Legislative Assembly
Noetic Math Competition

And to top it off, you all helped to raise over $30,000 for our fall fundraiser.
What an amazing start to the school year!

Bell PTSA is thrilled to bring back in-school art enrichment for the 2023-24 school year. Kelly Affleck, this year's artist in residence, will be doing art lessons with all Bell students. Our first session of classes starts Nov 6th!

For each art lesson we would like to have a volunteer to assist. This is a fun way to volunteer and spend time with your child's class!

Lessons will take place in room 136 in the 1st grade pod.

If you can help, please sign-up below. Times include 10 minutes before the lesson to help with set-up and 10 minutes after to help with clean-up.

Click Here to Volunteer

All volunteers must be approved as a volunteer through LWSD. Visit LWSD's volunteer page for information on how to apply.

**This Makers-in-Action group is exclusive to 4th and 5th grade students**

ABOUT MAKERS-IN-ACTION
Makers-In-Action is a group for students that are passionate about art, crafting and making handmade items. We will work together to turn their creative skills into a business-like fundraiser to support their community.

For the first few weeks of this group we will explore different art processes and craft techniques to inspire the students to develop a product that they would like to create. Once they have decided on a product the students will learn to produce, market and sell their wares.

The wares will be available at the STEAM night event on February 1st. All proceeds will be donated to the 5th grade field trip fund (to be split between this year's and next year's 5th graders).

WHEN:
Mondays, November 6-January 29. (Excludes holidays and no-school days.)
3:20pm-5:20pm each week

WHERE:
Bell Elementary, First Grade Pod - Room 136

COST:
$315
Email scholarships@agbellptsa.org for scholarship information.

Did you know the Bell PTSA creates the yearbook each year? We sure do! In order to create a beautiful yearbook, we rely on the Bell community to upload photos. Please upload your pictures from the Bell PTSA Harvest Party. It's super easy to do!

Download the Treering app or visit Treering.com and log into your account. If this is your first time, create an account (Bell’s school code:1015269962362510)
From the front page (or from the Treering app), scroll down and click on Upload Photos
Select the Harvest Party folder and click upload.

Alternatively, you can email photos to yearbook@agbellptsa.org, but we encourage all families to use Treering since emailing photos has file size limitations. More information about ordering yearbooks and uploading photos can be found on our yearbook page.

Bell's Lost and Found is overflowing!
Please check the Lost and Found racks near the front entrance of the school or visit the digital Lost and Found here: https://bell.lwsd.org/lost-and-found and click on the categories to the left to view photos of the items.

We recommend labeling your student's clothing to help get lost items back to their owners.

If you'd like to purchase name stickers or stamps for your student's items AND support 5th grade fundraising at the same time, you can do so here: https://mabelslabels.com/en_US/fundraising/support/ type Bell Elementary PTSA (Kirkland) in the search and 20% of each sale will go to helping fund 5th grade field trips and graduation.

Your voice and vote matter! We have a number of LWSD School Board and City of Kirkland Council positions on the November ballot in addition to a number of other key positions, and Proposition 1. Please make sure to do your homework and educate yourself before you vote. Below are a few resources to help with the education process.

King County Voter’s Pamphlet
Proposition 1
Kirkland City Council candidate forums:
- 2023 KANdidate Forum - Kirkland Alliance of Neighborhoods
- 2023 Kirkland City Council Candidate Forum - Eastside Affordable Housing Coalition and Eastside Housing Equity Coalition

At this point, a LWSD School Board candidate forum has not been conducted. We encourage community members to reach out directly to the candidates and set up a time to talk — ask questions about their priorities, experience, and assess whether their values align with yours.

District 1 candidates: Eric Laliberte (eric@voteeric.org) and Andy Markert (andy.markert@gmail.com)
District 2 candidate: Lisa Guthrie (unopposed)
District 5 candidates: Lindsey Yocum and Janel Schermerhorn

Get your ballots in by November 7. There are multiple ways to return your ballot. Below are the two ballot drop boxes in Kirkland:

Kirkland City Hall
123 5th Avenue
Kirkland, WA 98033

Kingsgate Library
12315 NE 143rd Street
Kirkland, WA 98034

For complete election and voter information, visit King County Elections.

Bell's Pantry Packs cupboard needs restocking! Please help us fill the cupboard and kids’ tummies through our Pantry Pack program.

We are most in need of:

Oatmeal packets

Apple sauce pouches

Fruit cups

Fruit leathers or bars

Peanut butter pouches or cups

Individual milk cartons

Single serve microwave meals

You can drop off items in the office or check out our Amazon wish list and ship items directly to Bell.

Pantry Packs Amazon Wish List can be found HERE.

Thank you!

Popcorn Friday

November 3th & 17th PTSA volunteers will be handing out popcorn at all 3 lunches! Visit https://www.agbellptsa.org/popcorn for more info.

No School Days

There will be no school November 10th in observance of Veteran's Day.
November 22 is a half day and November 23 & 24 there will be no school for Thanksgiving holiday.

Holiday Gift Drive Begins

Each year the school counselor and Bell PTSA partner to make sure the holidays are bright for all students at Bell. Item wishlist signups will go out in mid-November for those who would like to help by donating gifts.

Pancake Breakfast

Save the date for a Pancake Feed hosted by Bell staff members on the morning of November 22nd before school. Look for more details to come in Parent Square communications.