Hello Bear families! We have pretty successfully navigated the first 8 days of school! Has it really only been 8 days?! Our classrooms have been busy building their classroom communities and teaching classroom routines and expectations. This will continue in the coming weeks as well. As of today we have 596 students in our building! We had some changes in sections from last spring to this fall so here is an updated look at our sections:
Preschool--2 sections
Kindergarten--5 sections
1st grade--5 sections
2nd grade--5 sections
3rd grade--4 sections
4th grade--4 sections
5th grade--4 sections
Our school continues to be considered a Community Eligible site which means that all meals are free to our students. We are very fortunate to have this designation! Thank you to everyone who has turned in their Blue Income Survey sheet. This helps us to maintain this designation as we have a threshold we have to meet each year that is set by the state. If you haven't completed it yet, please fill it out ASAP and send it back to school with your child. We have to have them all entered by Oct. 1st and we don't want to lose this free designation.
We know that morning arrival and dismissal can be difficult to navigate. We have procedures in place to help make sure that things go as smoothly and safely as possible for all our students and families. While we know that not every procedure is as efficient as everyone would like, we ask for your help in following the procedures to ensure everyone's safety.
Arrival:
Please remember that adult supervision in the morning is not available until 7:50 each day, so students should not be dropped off earlier than that. In the morning students can enter the front doors between 8:00 am and 8:20 am for breakfast. They should be eating breakfast every morning if they are arriving between these times. School starts 5 minutes earlier this year at 8:30 and the tardy bell rings at 8:35 so if your student arrives later than 8:20 it will be really tough for them to get through the breakfast line and eat before they go to their classrooms.
If students are not eating in the morning, an adult will be at the doors at our lower level parking lot doors starting at 8:25. Students will be directed to their classrooms at that time.
DISMISSAL:
Students will be dismissed out of their assigned doors and line up according to the map below. This is an updated version from the earlier map we sent out. We were having some traffic jams and had to adjust our dismissal locations for two grade levels. Please notice that 4th and 5th grade has flipped dismissal locations. All other classes remain the same. Families are encouraged to park in the lot and walk to the assigned area to retrieve their students. The right lane in the parking lot is utilized for pick-up. The left lane is to stay moving at all times unless stopped by the crossing guard. Here is a link to a video explanation.
Bryant Pick Up Video
Students will not be permitted to enter cars in the left (moving) lane for their safety.
Please make a plan for pick-up with your student(s) that is consistent so that they know each and every day what they are supposed to do.
If you are exiting your car for any reason, you will need to park in the parking lot. Families waiting in the drop-off and pick-up lane along the curb should remain in their car at all times. Once your student(s) have gotten in the car, please continue on to exit the parking lot.
Please remember that our staff parking lot is not an option for parents to pick up their students after school. When students are dismissed, the kids can't see the cars coming out of the lot because of all the parked cars. We have staff working the cross walk, but their focus is on the street in front of them and not the parking lot behind them.
We are thankful for our O & M staff and Mr. Lawrenson that have been here to help support our families in learning the procedures for a safe arrival and dismissal. If you haven't noticed, the curb in front of our building has been painted red and is a no parking zone. Thank you to everyone for keeping this area open.
Are you looking to volunteer at Bryant?
We would love to have you! Your first step would be to talk to your child's teacher to see if there is a need within the classroom. Second, you would ask them or the office for the volunteer form. Once the form is complete, we send it down to the District office as a background check is required. The District will let us know when you have been approved to volunteer at Bryant.
Our MTSS (Multi Tiered System of Supports) team works to address need at all levels--Tier 1, 2 and 3. This team has worked hard over the summer to revamp our lunchroom structures and routines. They looked at student, staff, and parent data as well as completed observations to identify our areas of need. Some of our new supports include:
- Only 1 grade level at lunch at a time instead of classes coming in every 15 minutes.
- Different set up of the lunchroom tables to facilitate easier supervision.
- Specific CHAMPS expectations to be taught for entering the lunchroom, being seated in the lunchroom, and exiting for recess.
- Color coded system which includes tables, line up lines, and recess line up lines.
- Switching of locations for line up after lunch to help facilitate easier supervision.
- Recesses after lunch instead of before so that each class coming into the lunchroom is brought by their teacher.
- New video and lesson plans for teachers to teach the expectations to their classrooms.
We have been pleased with the changes and the results we have been seeing in the first 8 days.
Thank you for partnering with us in your child's education. We are excited to continue our learning with you this year!
Dr. Holcomb
