The Bark Community Edition 12/05/2025

Dec 5 2025

Dear Bennett Families,

I hope you all enjoyed the Thanksgiving holiday weekend and had a chance to relax and spend time with loves ones, in ways that were meaningful to you.

As we head into this shorter month filled with winter break and holiday festivities, we’re thrilled to see our students reaping the rewards of earning their Pawsitive Paws! Just this week, we celebrated with a couple of fun dance parties and a special “Sit Where You Want” prize, where students chose their seats and tablemates during lunch time. It was a wonderful opportunity for them to connect with friends outside their own classrooms and mix and mingle in a new way.

More rewards are on the horizon as classes continue working hard by showing respect, solving problems, and making great choices. Their motivation to reach the next level is inspiring and so exciting!

Looking ahead, we’re also gearing up for plans for the next school year. As the new year approaches, so does our Open House, where incoming kindergarten and preschool families can learn all about our school. On December 15, the language program application period opens, giving families interested in our Japanese Dual Language Program the chance to enter the lottery.

We’re especially thrilled to announce that next year, in partnership with our district preschool leadership team, we will open a Japanese preschool classroom in addition to the three classrooms we currently have. This new classroom will align with our Japanese elementary program and provide a wonderful opportunity to further support families interested in our Japanese language offerings.

Thank you for you for being such an important part of our Bennett community. We look forward to making these next two weeks joyful and memorable for our students and families.

In partnership,

Jessica Strazzulla

Principal

Upcoming Dates

Save these dates on your calendar!

12/9 - Shelter in Place Monthly Drill,
12/9-12/13- Candy Grams (details below)
12/10 - BSD Language Fair Night (details below)
12/11 - Student Lighthouse Team Meeting 8am
12/15 - Language Program Application period begins 9am
12/20-1/4- Winter Break- No School
1/19- MLK Holiday - No School
1/26- Non-Student Day- required certificated staff workday (No School)

Open House for Incoming Preschool/Kindergarten families for 2026-2027 -January 8, 2026 5-6pm Bennett Library/Preschool

Student Lighthouse Leadership Team - Community Project

Thank You for Your Generosity!
A heartfelt thank you to all the families who contributed to our Lend a Hoping Hand food drive in partnership with our PTSA. Together, we donated 571 pounds of food and 46 pounds of diapers, wipes, and hygiene supplies to Hopelink!

This incredible effort is a wonderful way to celebrate the holiday season and nurture a culture of togetherness among students and families. Your kindness makes a real difference thank you for helping us spread hope and care!

Candy Gram Season is Here! ❄️✨

🎄✨ Candy Gram Alert! ✨🎄What better way to spread the season spirit than with a candy cane?
🎅🍬Send a sweet surprise to your friends and teachers and make their day extra festive!

📅 Sales: Dec 9 – Dec 13
✅ Pre-order NOW!
🎁 Delivery: Dec 18–19 (just before winter break!)

All profits will go toward 5th grade camp, graduation party, and more!

Let’s make this season sweet and memorable! ❄️

PTSA News

We need your help! PTSA is looking for volunteers to serve in the following positions:

🗳 Board Nominating Committee (urgent need)
♻️ Green Team Parent Chaperones - every other Wednesday 1:15-2:15 beginning in December (urgent need)
🐾 Positive Paw Counting Volunteers - Wednesdays 10:30-11:00 or 11:30 am (urgent need)
🔍 Science Week (April) / STEAM Challenge Chair/Co-Chairs
🏅Field Day (June) Chair or Co-Chairs

CLICK HERE TO VOLUNTEER WITH PTSA

District News and Resources

Language Programs Information Night

Join the BSD Multilingual Learners (MLL) Department for the Language Programs Information Night! This event is intended to help families learn about the district’s language programs in advance of the open transfer, choice school and choice program application period.

Event Details

Date: Wednesday, December 10, 2025

Time: 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Location: BSD Welcome Center

Address: 12011 NE 1st Street, Bellevue, WA 98005

Families with students in all grade levels are invited to join us for information and presentations to:

Understand which schools offer which languages (Spanish, Mandarin, Japanese, Arabic, Korean, and more!)
Discover different programs: Dual Language Immersion, Bilingual and World Language
See student work
Ask questions
Talk to students about their experiences

Learn about all of BSD’s open houses and information nights this December and January.

School Board Vacancy and Nomination Process – District 4

The Bellevue School District is filling a School Board Director vacancy for Director District 4 due to Director Monica Webster’s resignation on November 6, 2025.

In accordance with Board Policy 1114 and Procedure 1114P (Board Member Resignation and Vacancy) and RCW 28A.343.370, members of the community are invited to nominate candidates for the position or apply for the position. Nominees and applicants must be registered voters who reside in Director District 4.

Applications and nominations must be received by Wednesday, January 7, 2026, at 12:00 p.m.

Nominate a School Board Director Candidate

Apply to be a School Board Director Candidate

Special Education Family Resource Session: Becoming Nate’s Legal Guardian

Please join us for a family-focused resource session. This session is hosted by BSD’s Special Education Department in partnership with the Bellevue PTSA Council Special Services Committee. The session will be presented by Rachel Nemhauser from the ARC of King County. Learn about the process of applying for guardianship by hearing her story of becoming her son’s legal guardian once he turned 18.

This session will cover the following topics:

Is guardianship appropriate?
Is conservatorship appropriate?
How to file for guardianship and/or conservatorship yourself
Before the court hearing
The court hearing
After the court hearing
Reporting

Date: Tuesday, December 9, 2025

Time: 6:00-7:00 p.m.

Location: Online via Microsoft Teams

Healthy Habits During Holiday Breaks

For kids (and adults!), returning to school on a regular schedule is hard following a break. In this edition of the Attendance Matters series, we share some things that families can do to help ease their student’s transition, including:

Sleep tips
Travel tips
Emotional support tips

School Funding Town Hall

This event will bring together 10 school districts, PTSA leaders, educator groups, and superintendents to discuss long-term school funding needs. Legislators and OSPI Superintendent Reykdal are invited, and students will help lead the discussion.

Date: Wednesday, January 7, 2026

Time: 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.

Location: Newport High School

Address: 4333 Factoria Blvd. SE, Bellevue, WA 98006