September starts with a pretty great reason to be excited about coming to school.
On Wednesday, our 2nd–6th graders will have the rare opportunity to hear directly from author Shannon Hale during a special visit to Bountiful Elementary.
And while that may be the headline of the week, there are also a few things families can do now to make sure students are ready for everything happening at school.
A little paperwork. A few important dates. And a whole lot to look forward to.
For complete details and the most current updates, please use the links below to see what's happening at Bountiful Elementary this week and to plan ahead for next week.
This Week at a Glance
Check myDSD: Make sure required guardian documents have been acknowledged, especially the Acceptable Use Agreement.
Tuesday: Fall Musical Theater Workshop begins for registered 3rd & 4th grade students.
Wednesday: Shannon Hale visits our 2nd–6th graders.
Thursday: Free & Reduced Lunch applications are due. Fall Musical Theater Workshop begins for registered 5th & 6th grade students.
Friday: Robotics applications are due and school dismisses at 1:30 p.m.
Monday, September 7: No school for Labor Day.
As always, check Bountiful Elementary Events for current times, links, locations, and updates.
Before the Week Gets Away: Two Quick Family To-Dos
Check Your myDSD Documents
Please take a few minutes to log in to myDSD and make sure all required guardian documents have been reviewed and acknowledged.
Pay particular attention to the Acceptable Use Agreement (AUA).
If a student’s AUA has not been acknowledged by a guardian, that student cannot use school technology.
Free & Reduced Lunch Applications Due September 3
If there is a chance your family may qualify for Free & Reduced Lunch, please submit an application by Thursday, September 3.
We know families in our community have different financial needs, and support is available for those who qualify. The important first step is completing the application so eligibility can be determined.
We want families who qualify to receive the support available to them—we just need the form completed to make that possible.
Forms are submitted via myDSD. Click on "Tools" and then select "Apply for Lunch Assistance"
A Pretty Special Wednesday
There is reading a book. And then there is getting to meet someone who actually writes them.
On Wednesday, Bountiful Elementary has the rare opportunity to welcome Shannon Hale for a special author assembly, made possible through The King’s English bookstore. Students in grades 2–6 will spend part of their morning hearing directly from the person behind the stories.
That matters because books usually arrive in students’ hands looking finished.
They don’t see the ideas that changed.
The pages that were rewritten.
The questions an author had to answer.
Or how something that once existed only in someone’s imagination eventually became a book another person could hold.
An author visit gives students a peek behind all of that—and sometimes meeting the person behind a book is exactly what makes a young reader or writer look at stories a little differently.
For security purposes, the assembly is limited to students and school staff. Families interested in purchasing Shannon Hale books through The King’s English can find ordering information in the assembly Event listing.
One Number We Can’t Ignore
We have talked about why attendance matters. Now we need to share what we are seeing.
On Friday, nearly 9% of our Bobcats were missing from school in a single day.
Chronic absenteeism is a significant concern at Bountiful Elementary, and the district has assigned an attendance specialist to work with our school and families.
Of course, students get sick. Emergencies and circumstances outside a family’s control happen. This is not about expecting students to attend when they genuinely need to be home.
It is about recognizing how quickly absences can add up.
If something is beginning to make regular attendance difficult for your family, please reach out early. We would much rather work together on a barrier before missed days begin piling up.
Be here. Be on time. Be ready to learn.
PAWS in Practice: Show Respect
This week gives our Bobcats plenty of opportunities to practice Showing Respect.
Respect can look like listening while someone else is speaking, giving others space to share their ideas, taking care of the places we use together, and remembering that our choices affect the people around us.
Wednesday’s author visit gives our 2nd–6th graders an especially good chance to show what a respectful audience looks and sounds like.
At home, ask:
“How can someone tell that you are listening—even when you aren’t saying anything?”
Practice Kindness. Act Responsibly. Work & Play Safely. Show Respect.
Three Quick Things
Modern Manners: Be a Problem Solver
Something went wrong. Now what? Before immediately asking someone else to fix it, our Bobcats are practicing a quick pause:
What is the problem?
What have I tried?
What could I try next?
Being a problem solver does not mean doing everything alone. Sometimes asking for help is the solution. The important part is learning to think before immediately handing the problem to someone else.
Try it at home: When a small problem comes up, ask, “What do you think you could try?”
Digital Citizenship: Finding Balance
Technology helps us learn, create, communicate, and have fun. But healthy technology use also means noticing how it fits alongside everything else in our lives.
Common Sense Education calls this Media Balance & Well-Being.
A simple family check-in: “What is something technology helped you do today—and what is something you enjoyed away from a screen?”
The goal is not to decide that screens are good or bad. It is to help children notice when technology is helping, interrupting, or replacing something else that matters.
Pause. Think. Does this feel balanced?
Policy Highlight: Safe & Orderly Schools
Our students participated in a Safe Schools assembly on Friday, making this a good time to continue the conversation at home.
Bountiful Elementary and Davis School District are committed to maintaining a safe and orderly school environment for every student and employee.
The handbook makes clear that threats, weapons or explosives, fighting, criminal behavior, false emergency reports, and behavior that substantially disrupts school are taken seriously and may result in significant consequences.
For our Bobcats, the everyday message is simpler: Help keep school safe. Make choices that allow others to learn. Tell a trusted adult when something does not feel right.
Ask at home: “What did you learn at the Safe Schools assembly that you think our family should know?”
Don’t Miss These This Week
Robotics Applications Close Friday
Applications for our 2026–27 Bobcat Robotics programs are due Friday, September 4:
Davis Robotics League — 4th & 5th grade
VEX IQ Competition — 6th grade
Late applications will not be considered.
Use the Robotics article or Event listing for applications, program information, tryout dates, fees, and schedules.
Musical Theater Gets Started
The PTA-sponsored Fall Musical Theater Workshop begins on Tuesday for registered students in 3rd & 4th grade while 5th & 6th grade students will start on Thursday.
Students may enter at 7:30 a.m., and the workshop begins promptly at 7:40 a.m. and will go until 8:50 a.m..
Registered families: the $40 workshop fee is due September 1.
And Before You Make Weekend Plans...
Friday is our regular 1:30 p.m. early dismissal. Then comes a three-day weekend:
No school Monday, September 7 for Labor Day. Students return Tuesday, September 8.
Know Where to Look
What Matters This Week → what deserves your attention
Events → dates, times, locations, links, and updates
myDSD → student-specific information, forms, and acknowledgements
Bell Schedule & Policies → everyday school information and expectations
The newsletter helps you know what matters. The website helps you find what you need.
Keep the Strong Start Going
The first-day nerves are fading. Students know where their classrooms are. Routines are beginning to feel familiar. That does not mean the strong start is over.
Now it looks like showing up again tomorrow. Solving a problem that used to require help. Remembering something without another reminder. Listening a little more carefully. Trying something new.
And, every once in a while, it looks like sitting in the gym and hearing from the person who wrote a book you recognize.
Those are the moments we want our Bobcats here for.
Start Strong. Show your PAWS. Make It Matter.