There will be NO MORNING BASE on Thursday, Oct. 6, due to a mandatory training for the entire BFA staff. Please plan accordingly.

Now that school is underway, it is time to update and add new families to the BFA directory! 

This year, the BFA PTO will be using DirectorySpot for our online school directory. It's an incredibly handy resource that contains each family's class roster(s) and contact information, as well as the entire BFA directory.  

DirectorySpot is an app-based online directory. The free app is available for download through the App Store and Google Play, simply search for DirectorySpot. Once this year’s directory is ready, you will receive an email from DirectorySpot with your one-time password. This year's directory will be available Oct. 15.

If you would like to update your family's information for the directory or opt out, you need to act today! You have until Thursday, Oct. 13, to do the following:

1. If your child goes by a nickname or shortened name, contact ptovp@bfacademy.org.
2. If you have recently moved or changed an email address or cell number, update your information in the Infinite Campus database AND email the school registrar at registrar@bfacademy.org.
3. If you DO NOT want any or all of your personal information listed in the directory, contact ptovp@bfacademy.org. You may OPT OUT completely or partially. If you take no action, your information will be included in the BFA Directory.

If you have questions, please contact Alissa Motazedi, PTO vice-president.

Ben Franklin Academy is excited to announce that we are a recipient of the Collaborative SCFD Grant for the 2022-23 school year! Thanks to some of our specials teachers, Ali Hinkle, Jaime Johnson, and Laura Tickle, our school will receive $10,000 worth of workshops, field trips, assemblies, an in-school exhibit, and other learning opportunities from various arts, culture and science organizations. These are all funded by the SCFD, a sales and use tax, in the 7-county Denver Metro area. All students will benefit from one or more programs!

We’ll be working with Arvada Center, Butterfly Pavilion, Central City Opera, CherryArts, Children’s Museum of Denver at Marsico Campus, Colorado Ballet, Colorado Children’s Chorale, Colorado Symphony, Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Lakewood Cultural Center, Swallow Hill Music, Town of Parker, Parker Arts, and Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum, among others!

Your tax dollars fund these programs, but we want to give a shout out to our specials teachers who applied for this grant on behalf of our students! Thank you and we hope all our students enjoy these programs.

Middle school students, this is your chance to perform in "The Little Mermaid!" In a magical underwater kingdom, the young mermaid, Ariel, longs to leave her ocean home—and her fins— behind and live in the world above. But first, she'll have to defy her father, King Triton, make a deal with the evil sea witch, Ursula, and convince Prince Eric that she's the girl whose enchanting voice he's been seeking.

Please fill out this form, if your student would like to be in the cast of "The Little Mermaid." There are roles for performers who want to sing solos and performers who do not! Space in this second trimester performing arts elective is limited to 40 spots. The deadline to fill this form out is Thursday, Oct. 13. After the deadline, we will let you know who is in the class and register you. Everyone in the class will be in the show (no cuts).

This class meets on B DAY elective. You must be available after school for performances on March 2, 3 and 4, 2023.

The boys basketball season is right around the corner! However, due to Outdoor Ed, field trips and gym availability, tryouts will run a little differently this year. In order to try out, players must be registered and complete waivers through MySchoolBucks, which is now open. Any players not registered, cannot try out.

After teams are finalized, a payment of $200 will be invoiced for the season through MySchoolBucks and includes a sweatshirt, warm-up and locker sticker. The C team will be $100 and includes the same package as A and B team. 

On tryout days, players should bring water and athletic clothes/shoes to wear during tryouts. On tryout days, students will stay in carpool until All Call, then meet their coaches in the Thunder gym. 

• 6th and 8th Grade Tryouts: 4 - 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 5, and Thursday, Oct. 6
• 7th Grade Tryouts: 4 - 5:30 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 24 
• Callbacks (if needed): 7 - 8 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 25

The new school year means another opportunity to promote your business while supporting BFA. Each year, sponsorships allow the BFA PTO to continue to grow and to meet the needs of our school, as well as our teachers, staff and students. 

Sponsorships are on sale NOW! They are limited in quantity, and will be offered on a first come, first served basis. The last day to secure a 2022-23 PTO sponsorship is TOMORROW, Sept. 30. For details on the various sponsorship options and pricing, click here to view the flier.

If you have questions, please contact Cassie Roberts, sponsor committee manager. 

It's time to celebrate veterans and active duty service members in our families! There are many ways you can participate, so please read below and help us celebrate our veterans this year.

BFA will hold a Veterans Day Celebration on Friday, Nov. 11. Please see the attached Invitation with additional information below. BFA parents are welcome to join!

Veterans Video - Deadline: Wednesday, Oct. 19

The Community Events Committee (CEC) is collecting digital pictures for our annual BFA Veterans Day video. If you have photos or videos of veterans or current service members you would like included in the video, please complete this Google form. Videos must be no longer than 30 seconds. Please contact Heather Kimball at hkimball23@gmail.com with any questions. Thank you in advance for your assistance!

*No late entries will be accepted due to the time intensive nature of producing this video. 

Veterans Wall of Honor Forms - Deadline: Friday, Oct. 28

It is a BFA tradition to have our halls reflect the respect and admiration of our Veterans through decorations, grade-level art projects, flags and Wall of Honor Forms. We invite BFA families to complete a Wall of Honor Form for loved ones who are veterans or active duty service members. Forms can be downloaded and printed here. Please return all Wall of Honor Forms to the front office no later than Friday, Oct. 28. Note: Do not use original pictures.

Attention Veterans and Service Members - RSVP by Thursday, Nov. 3.

We invite all BFA family members who are active duty service members or veterans to be honored guests at our Veteran's Day Celebration. If your family member is planning to join us, please RSVP to cec@bfacademy.org no later than 3 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 3, so the CEC committee can plan accordingly. 

At 5 p.m. next Monday, Oct. 3, we will be hosting our first parent seminar of the year. This seminar, Bully-proofing for Parents, will be facilitated by our school psychologist, Mr. Redford. He will address bullying and how parents can help their children if they are experiencing it. He'll also provide strategies for parents that may be useful when speaking to their children about bullying. This meeting will be held on campus; please RSVP HERE, so we can be sure we have enough space.

There is a continued need for blood donations within our community. In fact, you've probably heard, "every two seconds, someone in the U.S. needs blood." The Community Events Committee (CEC) is organizing a blood drive from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 26, in the BFA parking lot. (Look for the bloodmobile!)

Signing up to participate is easy! Just visit donors.vitalant.org, select the radio button "Blood Drive Code" (below the field to enter your zip code), enter BFA’s code (10485), and select "Find Location." Please select the time you are interested in donating at BFA, and follow the prompts to secure your appointment. 

If you cannot attend the blood drive at BFA, you can always schedule an appointment at a Vitalant blood donor center and provide our code (10485) so BFA will receive credit. 

Unfortunately, walk-ins CANNOT be accepted. Thank you for your cooperation. If you have any questions please contact Amy Marks at amymm630@gmail.com.

The PTO is hosting TRUNK OR TREAT again this year on Friday, Oct. 28! It's going to be a fun day for ALL preschool through eighth grade BFA students! Throughout the day, classes will be invited to step outside with their class and participate in Trunk or Treat where volunteers will be distributing trinkets, candy, popcorn and/or fruit snacks from the trunk of their own vehicle parked in an assigned spot. This year ALL parents are invited to come and watch your children at Trunk or Treat! A schedule will be sent out as we get closer to the date.

We need parent support for the individually wrapped snacks and candy as we’ll have almost 1,000 kids trunk-or-treating from 25 cars. We're requesting bulk items (200+ pieces) as well as standard sized bags (50+ pieces). Please see the SignUpGenius and consider supporting by donating treats for our students! All donations can be dropped off in the BFA front office from Monday, Oct. 3, through Friday, Oct. 13. We are also looking for volunteers to help organize the give-a-way items, as well as distribute items during Trunk or Treat. If you’re interested in helping organize or distribute items, please see the volunteer SignUpGenius.

If you have any questions about the Trunk or Treat, please reach out to Erin Wiley, PTO Trunk or Treat committee manager. Thanks in advance for all of your support!

K-5 Halloween Classroom Parties will also take place from 1:45-2:45 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 28. Party volunteers will be limited to a max of three per classroom. As much as we love welcoming our families into the school, we also ask that no additional siblings come with you if you are volunteering in one of our classroom parties. Instead, please make plans to attend the Trunk or Treat if you would like to participate in our Halloween festivities.

If you have any questions about the elementary party coordination, please reach out to 

Anne Chacon, PTO room parent coordinator.

Are you creative? Do you like science? Then we have a volunteer role for you! We’re looking for volunteers to decorate the bulletin board right outside of the Sanders Science Lab. We’d like to have a new board every month, similar to classroom bulletin boards, but we're looking for a science twist to the themes. Please sign up today, and thanks in advance for your willingness to help!

We're excited to host another book fair from Monday, Oct. 10, through Thursday, Oct. 13, with a preview day on Friday, Oct. 7. Book Fairs are a fun way for kids to explore new offerings by their favorite authors and discover new books. In addition, the school is able to purchase new books for our library based on Book Fair Sales. Click here for our school's homepage, and be sure to check out the book trailers.

Please consider volunteering! All Volunteers receive a 15 percent discount.

Dates and Hours

• Friday, Oct. 7: Wishlist Day for K-5 students, NO SALES 
• Monday, Oct. 10: Book Fair open for sales 8 a.m to 3 p.m.
• Tuesday, Oct. 11: Book Fair open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Closed during carpool
• Wednesday, Oct. 12: Book Fair open 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Thursday, Oct. 13: Last day of Book Fair 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Closed during carpool

Sales Tax will now be charged on all sales. This is a big change so please remember this when sending students with money and/or setting up an e-Wallet.

National Junior Honor Society (NJHS) will offer Parent-Teacher conference babysitting services for children who are no longer in diapers. You will need to take them to the Makerspace Room located around the corner from the Dana Library and sign them in. Parents may not drop off children and then leave the building. 

No child, regardless of age, may be left in the Dana Library without adult supervision during the Parent-Teacher conferences. This is a very busy and crowded time for us, and we hope you'll understand. This includes older students; they may not bring their younger siblings into the library to wait. 

Once again, Scholastic will offer e-Wallet so that your child does not have to bring cash to the Book Fair. 

Students bringing a parent's credit card will need to send in a note of permission specifically stating that the student is approved to use the credit card and what the limit should be. You also can email Ms. Williams, our librarian, at  dwilliams@bfacademy.org.

The 2022-23 yearbook sales will open next Monday, Oct. 3. Be sure to order yours early for the best pricing! Right now, yearbooks cost $30 per book, but the price will go up to $35 after Winter Break, and $45 after Spring Break. 



You may also order a yearbook dedication (ad) for your student. Dedications are $15 for 1/16 of page and $30 for 1/8 of a page. What a fun way to help commemorate a great school year!

Order and pay for your 2022-23 yearbook and dedication today!

Join us for our monthly PTO meetings to find out more about what’s going on at BFA and get connected with other parents. The October meeting will be at 6:30 p.m. next Wednesday, Oct. 5, and will be held via Zoom. To join the Zoom meeting, click here (Meeting ID: 886 9597 5021, Passcode: s3Qa1p).

All BFA community members are welcome! Attendance at meetings counts toward your family’s volunteer hours. We look forward to seeing you there.

For more information about the BFA PTO, visit their webpage.

If you are a new family to BFA this year and haven’t received your welcome gift, please contact Kristin Clark-Bretch, PTO welcoming committee manager, by TOMORROW, Sept. 30. We hope your first year at BFA is off to a great start!

National Junior Honor Society (NJHS) is open to all students in seventh and eighth grade who are interested in volunteering within their community, have a history of excellent academic standing, and are interested in leadership opportunities at Ben Franklin Academy. All students interested in joining NJHS as a new member need to complete a full application as well as the NJHS policy form. Eighth grade students who participated in NJHS during their seventh grade year only need to sign and return the NJHS policy form. 

All applications and policy forms need to be turned in to Mrs. Murphy no later than the end of the day TOMORROW, Sept. 30. Late applications and policy forms will not be accepted. 

There is a small fee associated with joining NJHS:

• New Members - $45 
• Returning Members - $35
• Returning Member with t-shirt - $55

If your child is interested in joining NJHS and has any questions, they can email Mrs. Murphy at kmurphy@bfacademy.org or meet with her either before school or during advisory in room 276. 

DCSD Community Night with the Colorado Avalanche is at 7 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 14, at Ball Arena. Click here to see the flier. The event is sponsored by the Foundation for Douglas County Schools. 

Do you know anyone interested in learning more about BFA? We’ve set up our K-8 grade tour schedule for the school year, and are looking forward to meeting prospective parents. Tours are scheduled from September through April, 2023. If you know someone who is interested in BFA but cannot make a tour, please share this video link to listen to what current and former students, teachers, parents, our Principal, and our Board president have to say about BFA!

Questions about K-8 enrollment can be directed to Colleen Bobbin, BFA's director of admissions and records. If you know parents interested in BFA's preschool, they can go to our webpage or reach out to Lori Hafner, BFA's preschool director.

The Discovery Program Application process is now open for the 2023-24 school year. 

The DCSD Elementary Discovery Program is a center-based gifted program designed to meet the needs of highly advanced gifted elementary school students (grades 2 - 6) who require an intensity of instruction and acceleration beyond what can reasonably be expected from gifted programming and services provided through their school.

In an effort to ensure equitable opportunity for families to learn about this program there are three Discovery Program Information Sessions coming up. Please see the linked fliers for more information.

• Discovery Program Information Nights Flyer (English)
• Discovery Program Information Nights Flyer (Spanish)