This week at BCS

CLICK HERE FOR SURVEY

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdlTUdjPzCHs8xJl1iT8nHJT0zW4s-BI9f0cC6vAkNqAwi0rw/viewform

Bridport and Shoreham Staff,

In recent weeks, we have had many conversations about how best to set Bridport and Shoreham students up for academic success during the 2025-26 school year given where they are, what we hope to help them achieve, reasonable teaching assignments, and other factors that relate to where we are at this point in each school, in the district, and at the State level. At those meetings we have discussed the two primary class and school configuration options that are possible under the approved FY 2025-26 budget and ACSD's Class Size Policy D6:

• Option A: Students remain in their home school in combined classes of K/1, 2/3, 4/5
• Option B: Students learn in single grade classes with grades K, 1, and 2 in one building and grades 3, 4, & 5 in the other building. (Grade locations to be determined with final parent input).

This survey is designed for licensed and unlicensed staff to gauge your preference for the possible options for rising Shoreham and Bridport K-5 students during the 2025-2026 year. Please complete the survey by Monday, April 28th

Dr. Baker plans to meet with combined staff to share the results of this survey to ensure it provides an accurate representation of the staff’s perspectives on Monday April 28.

* Shoreham families are invited to meet together Monday, April 28 at 5pm Shoreham School to consider and confirm the results of their survey impact.
* Bridport families are invited to meet Tuesday, April 29 at 7:30am at Bridport School to do the same.

*Bridport Selectboard will host a community forum on the matter April 29 at 6:00pm at the Bridport community hall.

*Dr Baker will issue a report with a final recommendation to the ACSD Board April 30th - with a copy distributed to parents, staff, and municipal boards in both towns.

*IF the recommendation includes students attending a school in a different town, the ACSD Board will be asked to hold a special meeting during the week of May 5th to consider whether to approve the recommendation.

Thank you for the time you have invested in the process of considering next steps for Bridport and Shoreham students as we work together to design a plan to accelerate students’ academic success next year.

Dear Families,

Earlier this year, our district shared an overview of our ACSD safety practices and our efforts to keep our community safe. You can find that information here. At Bridport, we practice safety drills designed to ensure that our students and staff are familiar with how to be safe in an emergency. Some months, we practice what to do if we need to evacuate the building. Other months we practice what to do when unsafe people or hazards enter our school - the response to these events are called “Options-Based” responses.

We are required to practice two options-based drills - one in September and one in January. Options-based drills introduce students to various strategies in response to a threat, such as how to respond to cues and listen to and follow safety directions from a trusted adult at school. Please know that all options based drills are trauma informed and age appropriate. This means the drills are performed in a way that is sensitive to the emotional well-being of our students.

We will be holding a “relocation drill” on Wednesday April 30th at 8:15AM.

Classes will practice quickly relocating from their classroom, outside, and then to an alternate location. As a faculty, we spoke about this drill as a way to help students move from an unsafe or unhealthy space to another. Teachers felt confident in their ability to articulate the drill to their students in an age appropriate way, they identified a space they will move to in an emergency, and have thought about scenarios that may lead them to move from one space in the building to another, or outside to an alternative location.

We know that this is an emotional topic for parents and caregivers and want to assure you of a few things:

• The adults in our building work together to plan and ensure students feel safe and we remind them that the drill is practice.

• We talk with students in a developmentally appropriate way before and after each drill and our practice is developmentally aligned.

• We are available to support families. We will share resources below to help you talk with your child about these experiences and invite you to reach out at any time.

I want you to know about this safety exercise in advance so you can talk with your children about it when they come home. Here are a few resources to support those conversations:

1. Talking with Your Children about Safety Drills (Johns Hopkins)

2. Talking with Children about Violence: Tips for Parents and Educators (NASP)

If you have questions or would like to connect please reach out to me directly

This morning we had our kick-off of One School, One Book!

Ms. M got us so excited to start reading, by pretending to be the main character! We learned that he likes M & M's... but only the blue and green ones!

Check out the calendar to see which chapters to read tonight!

Happy Reading!

Join us on Thursday to talk about End of Year fun, and Teacher Appreciation Week.

See you there!