Teacher assignments and classroom configurations

We know that new families have a lot of questions leading up to the first day of school. Please let us know if we can help answer any of those burning questions! Send us an email or leave a comment.

Many people want to know who their child's teacher will be. Note that teacher assignments are not finalized until a few weeks before school starts. You will receive a letter by mail with your classroom assignment about a week before classes start. 

For those families on the waitlist, changes are made continuously, right through the end of September. You could be offered a spot in your first choice program a few weeks after school has begun. Check your student's status at Seattle Schools Student Assignment and/or Waitlist Status.

Ms. Ayer, the principal at Daniel Bagley, recently announced some planning updates for the upcoming school year. Enrollment has increased by 25 students, predominantly in the Contemporary program. The enrollment numbers shift constantly, so the following classroom configurations are subject to change.

Contemporary:

• Kindergarten: Ms. Stone
• Kindergarten: Ms. Steele
• First: Ms. Tamura
• First: Ms. Sams (Ms. Beisel will be teaching 1.5 days for Ms. Sams while she completes her administrative internship)
• Second: Ms. Filep
• Second/Third: Ms. Scordas
• Third: Ms. Adriance
• Fourth/Fifth: Ms. Outhouse
• Fourth/Fifth: Ms. Manley

Montessori:

• Kindergarten: Ms. Richards
• Kindergarten/First: Ms. Norton
• First/Second/Third: Ms. Messom
• First/Second/Third: Ms. Green (Ms. Beisel will be teaching 1 day for Ms. Green)
• First/Second/Third: TBD
• Second/Third: Ms. Forselius
• Fourth/Fifth: Ms. Manley
• Fourth/Fifth: TBD
• Fourth/Fifth: Mr. Vonderlage

To stay connected to the Bagley community, be sure to sign up for the Daniel Bagley Families Email List (most people call it the "V-List"): http://vlists.net/mailman/listinfo/daniel-bagley-families.

One more week until school!

A few reminders:

* Check older posts for anything that might be concerning you... take a look at the labels in the sidebar for help.

* The final new family playground meetup is this Wednesday at 5:30 (bring a picnic, meet PTA reps and our principal, Ms. Ayer).

* Kindergarten Welcome Night is Thursday 6pm-7:15pm.  Meet your teacher, find your desk, and get ready for the first day of school!

Playdates, portables, and websites

First, don't forget to check the blog for answers to all your 'new Bagley family' questions - most of the posts from last summer are still relevant.  Search by the labels on the sidebar.  There is info on lunches, recess, afterschool activities, the PTA, class sizes, curriculum night, and much, much more.

Websites:  You might have noticed that we have two websites - the PTA one (danielbagley.com) and the brand new SPS one (bagleyes.seattleschools.org).  Volunteers are hard at work transitioning to the SPS site, but meanwhile, you will probably notice some outdated information, or might have some trouble navigating to the pages you want.  For now, your best sources of information about Bagley are probably:

Bit and bites from this morning's playdate (waitlist, teachers, after-school classes, etc.)

Thank you to all the families who came out to our New Family playdates!  It was wonderful to see all the new (and older) students making friends over the last two weekends.  We estimate that there were about 25 families who came out today, and about 25 last weekend as well.  That's a pretty good representation of the new Bees.

Here are a few thoughts on some of the items that came up this morning:

New Bagley parents: what are your concerns?

Seriously, let me know!  What interests you?  I'm trying to remember what it was like to be a kindergarten parent last summer, and then jotting down ideas as they occur to me.  If there is something that you don't understand, please use the form at the side, or just email: lexyrelph at gmail dot com.

Meanwhile, best ways to get connected before school starts:

• Join the vlist, the Bagley family listserve: http://www.danielbagley.com/happening_vlist.htm
• New Family/Kindergarten Playdates at Greenwood Park:
  87th and Fremont Ave. Saturdays August 20 and 27 from 10:30-12. 
• New Family/Kindergarten Welcome Night:
  Tuesday, September 6, 5:30 pm. BYO picnic social in the playground. At 6:30 pm, meet your teachers, principal and PTA.

Details on all of these were previously posted - look for the links on the sidebar.

Topics I might try to address include:

• volunteering/getting involved with the PTA and at the school
• more about the greenfield project
• where to buy cool Bagley t-shirts, and scrip cards
• how you can help fundraise without having to ask anyone for money, sell anything, or shell out cash ('Free Money'!)
• afterschool programs and extracurricular activities
• how to help your child adjust to kindergarten; what is MAP testing?
• how to deal with the incredible frequency of early dismissals and days off, and whether we will get thanksgiving week off again this year
• help me fill out my forms; and 
• what does the PTA actually do?

Staying in touch with Bagley happenings

The PTA & Daniel Bagley staff communicate with parents using several different methods, and the fastest is by email - join the vlist to stay up-to-date!

The vlist is an email forum for Daniel Bagley parents that is sponsored by the PTA. It’s an easy way to stay connected and keep informed of what’s happening in and around Daniel Bagley. Join via: www.danielbagley.com/happening_vlist.htm.

Other means of communication you'll see:

• mailings from the Seattle School Board
• the Buzz - weekly Bagley newsletters (http://www.danielbagley.com/happening.htm)
• kid mail - information from the principal, teachers and the PTA sent home in your child's backpack
• Daniel Bagley's website (http://www.danielbagley.com/)
• The Bagley google calendar (http://www.danielbagley.com/happening_calendar.htm) - you can add it to your gcal
• SPS website (http://www.seattleschools.org/) - procedures, waitlist, school year calendar including early dismissals, professional development days, holidays, etc.
• The Source (https://source.seattleschools.org/pub/login/index.html) - your child's school records will be available here once you register
• Bulletin boards by the front doors
• Emails from your class parent liaison
• The reader board at the corner of 80th & Stone Ave N

You can also email the PTA officers with questions; their addresses are at http://www.danielbagley.com/pta.htm

Don't forget to join the PTA and support our fantastic community! You will receive membership information just before school starts. We have reached 100 percent PTA membership for the past four years, meaning that we have had at least as many adult members of the PTA as there are students in the school. Thanks to our incredible, tireless PTA and parent volunteers, Daniel Bagley is able to offer an enhanced educational experience through programs such as classroom tutors (aides), vocal music, health and fitness, art, family fun nights, and much more. This is even more important now, in light of the recent budget cuts.