Bridge Point of View

January 12, 2018

Bridge Point Elementary

MRS. MEEK'S WEEKLY MESSAGE

Dear BPE Families,

Happy New Year! We are almost one week into this new semester and the students are thoughtfully and thoroughly back in the flow. Please remember there is no school on Monday, January 15 due to the observance of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Yesterday, your child's report card was released on Skyward. Each nine weeks, teachers provide information that summarizes your child's progress on summative and formative measures. I expect Bridge Point teachers to add narrative comments, specific to your child, to bring more meaning to the reported grades. I believe the above-and-beyond effort they apply for each of their students is worth the time and care that it takes to make sure you have a full understanding of your child's performance. It is a lot of work and is another reflection of the professionalism and commitment of Bridge Point teachers. Sheri Bryant and I have read each report card. We appreciate and admire the teachers' efforts and the information provided on your child's behalf. If clarification is needed after you have reviewed the report card, please do not hesitate to contact your child's teacher. I believe it takes a partnership between home and school to ensure growth and success for our children.

Lastly, I would like to let you know about a staff change in our PE department. Linda Rose has made the decision to stay home to spend time with her family. On Monday, she asked that I include a letter to the community. As most of you know, Linda Rose and Tricia Pate job shared one of the 2 full-time PE positions here at BPE. There is no doubt in my mind that this will be a smooth transition because with the loss of Mrs. Rose, Mrs. Pate has agreed to teach PE full time.

All My Best,

Heather Meek

Click here to read Mrs. Rose's letter.

BPE NEWS

Counselor's Corner

The District's SEL Focus for the third 9 weeks is Social Awareness and Empathy. At BPE we are reinforcing the development of social awareness and empathy through our January Life Skill. On Wednesday, we watched a video recorded by a group of 3rd graders to introduce what it means to show empathy and how students can earn a heart to put on the life skills board. Students learned that empathy means figuratively putting ourselves in others' shoes to understand how they may be feeling. Watch the video here.

One of our greatest tools for teaching empathy as educators and parents is to model empathy ourselves. Other tips for teaching empathy at home are included below. For more in depth information, take a look at these articles from Harvard and Parenting Science.

Use literature, TV, movies and role play as an opportunity to practice empathizing and discuss how one might feel in a given situation.
Improve and practice face reading skills and have student practice making faces, too.
Help kids to see what they have in common with others.
Help your child to develop self-regulation and emotion management skills.

Parent Coffee Reminder

Friday, January 19, join us in the library for a parent coffee to learn how to support and empower your child to have successful peer relationships. We will cover information on how to help students better understand the different type of conflicts: from teasing to mean moments or ongoing conflict and bullying. We will also address some problem solving and conflict resolution strategies.

Sincerely,

Addie Edwards and Amy Ashorn

The Shelf Life: Library Updates

The month of December coincides with Hour of Code each year. We celebrated in the BPE library with programming tutorials, a coding-themed Breakout EDU, and Ozobot experimentation.

First graders worked their way through Code.org's Course 1, which teaches students how to use the blockly programming language. Second graders took it a step further, learning how to program loops with a Moana activity. They also participated in a coding-themed Breakout EDU, during which they had to use computer programming skills to solve clues and break open locks.

Third and fourth graders were the first to test out our brand new set of Ozobot Evos. Ozobots are tiny robots that follow lines and can be coded using different color combinations. Everyone had a blast teaching their Ozobots to dance and creating customized tracks. Many students were reluctant to leave the library and there was an audible "Awwww..." when our lesson ended!

For photos and videos of the Breakout EDU and Ozobot lessons, check out the library blog.

Sincerely,

Kate Ricter