Viking Family Update
April 2022
Principal Update
Viking Friends and Families,
Can you believe that it is already April? We are hard at work at BLE. Spring brings a wonderful time of year to watch our students grow. Many of our Vikings have been deeply engrossed in what we educators call "productive struggle". It is a natural and essential part of the learning process. All students should experience the struggle associated with tackling challenging content. They should practice persistence in learning, and then master that difficult content. The result is that they learn a very important life lesson...growth comes from hard work rather than "natural talent". You see, there is a distinct difference between growth and achievement.
We all have natural abilities and areas where we achieve with minimal effort. As parents, it is often these talents that we celebrate in our children. I often praised my daughter Hannah at a young age, "You are so good at math!" She would beam with pride. However, when she started struggling in math as a middle schooler she showed a lack of resilience and persistance. "I am supposed to be good at this!" she would proclaim. My husband and I quickly realized that we were better off to praise effort in the areas that our girls struggled. In this way we encouraged growth and persistence rather than talent. We immediately saw positive returns as our children adapted and embraced the change in our language.
"That may seem hard because you haven't learned it yet."
"I can't wait to see how much you have grown by the end of the unit."
"Wow, your writing is getting better each day that you practice."
"I am proud of your hard work to learn new things."
As a parent it is often tempting to jump in and help/fix things when we see our student struggling. I am here to cheer you on as you step back and allow the productive struggle. It is one of the best gifts you can give your student.
At the end of this week we will celebrate your student's GROWTH at our first annual growth parade. I encourage you to celebrate that growth - no matter how small it may seem.
I hope to see each of you on Friday! (If you can't make it we will post a video on Facebook of each parade. Or, you can email me and I will personally capture a picture of your child).
Thank you for your continued partnership.
LeeAnn Alfano
Proud Principal at Bonney Lake Elementary
Help Us Reach Our Goal of Providing a Yearbook for Each Student!
The Bonney Lake Elementary PTA has set a goal of providing a yearbook for each and every student. Can you help us reach our goal?
Make a donation to the yearbook fund at our PTA website. Each yearbook is $15 - go to the bottom of the page (see sample image below). Thank you for your support!
Visit
https://www.memberplanet.com/s/bonneylakepta/yearbookorderform2022
Register for Kindergarten!
Kindergarten enrollment for the 2022-23 school year is open! Our online enrollment process allows you to complete the process from anywhere at any time. Visit our enrollment page to begin. Families can learn more by visiting the Kindergarten page on the SBLSD website.
Purposefull People
This month we’re talking about Honesty! The dictionary defines it as: “fairness and straightforwardness of conduct; adherence to the facts.” The definition we are using in class is:
Honesty: living truthfully in your words and actions and thoughts!
Honesty is more than just truth-telling! It is about living a life that is thoughtful and clear about what we believe is good and just. It’s about making sure that what we think is kind and worthwhile lines up with what we say and what we do. Over the course of the month, we will talk about people from Albert Einstein to Virginia Woolf who lived the idea of Honesty in inspiring ways. We will talk about the cost of lying and what it does to our body and mind. We will connect how Honesty and Kindness are closely related traits. It’s going to be a powerful time -- truly!
Bonney Lake Elementary
Email: BLE@sumnersd.org
Website: sumnersd.org/ble
Location: 18715 80th Street East, Bonney Lake, WA, USA
Phone: (253) 891-4450
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