Originally delivered on 8/13/2026 8:00 pm

SUBJECT: Weekly Whale - August 13th, 2026

WELCOME BACK!

We are so excited to welcome you to the first edition of the Weekly Whale for the 2026-2027 school year! Please note that starting this fall, the Weekly Whale will be swimming into your inbox on Thursdays instead of Sundays. We look forward to keeping you up to date with school happenings throughout the year! 


Spout Outs to our incredible teachers for all of their hard work preparing to welcome our Whales back to their classrooms!

UPCOMING EVENTS
  • Saturday, August 15 – Rising K Playdate (9:00–10:30 am)

  • Thursday, August 20 – Kindergarten Back-to-School Night (6:00–7:00 pm)

  • Monday, August 24 – Transition Day (Kindergarten students only)

  • Monday, August 24 – Kindergarten Caregiver Meeting (9:10–10:00 am, Media Center)

  • Monday, August 24 – Sneak-a-Peek (2:30–3:00 pm)

  • Tuesday, August 25 – First Day of School (all students)

  • Wednesday, September 2 – Back-to-School Night for grades 1-5 (6:00–7:30 pm)

  • Tuesday, September 8 – Picture Day
  • Thursday, September 10 – Volunteer and Safety Training (includes recess safety training- more details to follow!)
  • Wednesday, September 16 - PTA Parent Welcome Night (formerly 411)
  • Saturday, September 19 – Back-to-School Carnival (4:30-7:00 pm- details below)
  • Saturday, September 26 – BHEF Fall Social (6:00-8:00 pm- details below)
BACK TO SCHOOL CARNIVAL

COME JOIN NEW FRIENDS AND OLD TO CELEBRATE THE START OF THE 2026-2027 SCHOOL YEAR! 

Come join new friends and old to celebrate the start of the 2026 school year. The Bradley Hills PTA is hosting a back to school carnival on Saturday, September 19th from 4:30 - 7:00 pm. We'll have tons of fun activities such as inflatables, face painting, a dunk tank, food, Clayboys and more!

You must order pizza ahead of time.  No orders will be available on-site. 

  • 1 large cheese pizza plus 2 waters for $15
  • 1 large pepperoni pizza plus 2 waters for $18
  • 1 large gluten free cheese pizza plus 2 waters for $18

Skip the lines and purchase tickets ahead of time. Tickets will also be available at the carnival in other size bundles.  

  • 18 tickets bundle for = $20. 

Use this link to purchase pizza andtickets! https://bhespta.membershiptoolkit.com/store/24457

 All pizza orders and pre-sales tickets must be placed by September 16, 2026 at noon.  Tickets will be available at the event but you will not be able to order pizza on-site. 

We also need families to donate a cake for the cake walk!  This is such a fun part of the Carnival and the kids’ favorite activity!  Cakes/cupcakes must be store bought in closed containers.  

A Cake Walk is a lot like musical chairs!  Students walk in a circle around numbered spots on the blacktop and when the music stops, a number is drawn at random and whomever is standing on that number wins a cake!

Please sign up below to bring a cake/cupcakes!  Thank you for your support in making this a success!

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C4BADA623A6FC1-65131959-cake#/


We look forward to kicking the school year off with this fun afternoon! Please note this event is rain or shine.   

GETTING IN THE SWIM OF THINGS!


Join the Bradley Hills Parent Whatsapp group for all current BHES families. Join us today to stay connect with other BHES parents and stay up to date on key dates, events, and information! https://chat.whatsapp.com/EiI9JaEvH0BHpLsm2YyEGh?s=sh&p=i&mlu=4&amv=2


There are also grade level Whatsapp groups for grade specific information that we encourage you to join, if you haven't already:


2026-2027 VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES! ROOM PARENT & ADDITIONAL VOLUNTEER SIGN-UP

We are so excited for another school year to begin and as always, we are looking for 2-4 room parents per classroom to help make this year a success. Room parents provide support to teachers during the school year for PTA organized events, as well as teacher/classroom specific needs. Duties include collecting and managing class funds, organizing class parties, coordinating volunteer opportunities, and communicating information from the school, the PTA, and the Bradley Hills Education Foundation. 

 

We are also looking for additional volunteers who will be added to a list of parents/guardians who may be contacted in the case of additional volunteer needs in the classroom, at the grade-level, or for the school in general.

 

Keep a lookout for the room parent sign-up link in your children's teachers' welcome emails and look for a QR code in your children's classrooms at Sneak-a-Peek. If you have any questions, please email bradleyhillsvolunteer@gmail.com


PLEASE SUPPORT THE BHES PTA AND RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP FOR 2026-2027

Join and donate to the PTA through our directory membership toolkit which is also the main way to be able to communicate with your fellow BHES families. 

Renewing Your Annual Membership

Once you are logged into membership toolkit, select membership store from the main menu and then select 2026-27 Family Membership which is $50.00. You can also choose to donate an additional amount to the PTA on that same page.

Membership in the PTA is renewed annually with the new school year and helps support a variety of activities including the Back to School Picnic; Science Fair; Heritage Night; and Movie Night.

We will be starting the PTA membership drive soon where your children’s classes and grades will be competing to see who has the most family memberships.

 

To Create An Account

Go to the Register/Login page at https://bhespta.membershiptoolkit.com or download the Membership Toolkit app, then click create account, and enter your account information. You will receive a confirmation email and then once it has been confirmed you can enter your family information and set your preferences. Only parents can enter your family into membership toolkit and if you do not do so other families and the room parents will not have an avenue to get in touch with you. This is also the way room parents communicate.

If you have any questions or concerns please do not hesitate to reach out to your membership chairs Lauren Breitenother Clark and Laura Moulton at bhesptamembership@gmail.com

JOIN US AT THE BHEF FALL SOCIAL!

This year's BHEF Fall Social will be held on Saturday, September 26th from 6-8 pm (rain date October 3rd). This adults only event is hosted by the Klebanovs at their home (8605 Long Acre Court). We hope to see you there! 

TEACHER WISH LISTS


Teacher wish lists: Support our teachers by helping to purchase item they need for their classrooms at https://www.bhespta.com/teacher-wishlists 

RESOURCES

Bradley Hills Elementary School Websitehttps://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/bradleyhillses/

Bradley Hills PTA Websitehttp://www.bhespta.com

Bradley Hills Education Foundation Websitehttps://www.bradleyhillseducationfoundation.org/

BHES Membership Toolkit (for school directory & to join or donate to PTA) https://bhespta.membershiptoolkit.com/

Principal's Weekly Newsletter
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1E0O98E7ojszlPNmNv78tCorTfm_RmSc3ww4Yv2AtxeQ/edit?tab=t.0

CONTACT US

Questions, comments, suggestions for the PTA? Contact PTA President Sara Weiser at bradleyhillsptaprez@gmail.com

Have PTA news to share or Community Event Information? Contact Communications Chair Reena Samantaray at bhescommunications@gmail.com

Visit our website at www.bhespta.com

Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/bradleywhalespta/

BHES staff and PTA volunteers can post informational emails via AtoZ by sending the email to: BHESAtoZConnect@gmail.com. Please include PLEASE POST in the subject line.  Ads or announcements for non-school sponsored events can be sent to the community announcements moderator at BHEScommunityannouncements@gmail.com.

If you do NOT want to receive these informational emails in the future, you may click "unsubscribe" at the bottom of any AtoZConnect email.  Warning - by unsubscribing you will no longer receive updates about any PTA events.  

To access your AtoZConnect account anytime to update your directory/contact info and/or to pay your annual BHES PTA family membership dues of $40, go to https://bhespta.membershiptoolkit.com/home If you forgot your password, go to the link and click "Forgot password."  

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