Mustang Minute

Phew! We've made it through the snow and ICE! We were glad to see all of our students back in school and SMILING today after a two day inclement weather hiatus. The coming weeks are projected to be quite chilly as we make our way through the end of winter time. Please continue to encourage your child to dress appropriately for the conditions as always. Also, we have accumulated a considerable amount of items in our Lost and Found at both schools. If your child is missing that one random mitten - please remind him/her to check out the items at school!

Next week Thursday is Parent Teacher Conferences. Conference request forms have been sent home with all students. If you have not yet done so, please return your form to your child's homeroom teacher on MONDAY so that we can get you a firm appointment time on the books for you if you wish to have a conference or if a teacher has requested one. We have lost some time to collect these from students on account of the weather, so your prompt attention to returning these asap is appreciated. Feel free to also simply call the main office if you'd like to request a conference and we'll get one one the books for you.

It's Read Across America week next week! Teachers at both buildings will be doing a variety of activities to celebrate and encourage READING! Read on for more information regarding our upcoming Book Fair at BMS and some fun dress up days at both schools!

Lastly - don't forget that tonight is the Read S'More Books Night, from 5-7pm at BES! We hope to see you all there for some cozy reading and delicious smores! Don't forget to bring a gently used book for the book exchange!

Have a fantastic weekend, Mustangs!

Mrs. Franz

Principal, BMS &

Mr. Braden

Principal, BES

• 2/24 - Yearbook Club Planning, 6-8th grade @ BES, 2:45-4:15pm

• 2/24 - Read S’More Books Family Engagement Night @ BES, 5-7pm

• 2/25 - Science on Saturdays, grades 3-5 @ BMS, 8:30-9:30am

• 2/25 - Saturday Morning Basketball, K-2nd grade @ BMS, 10:00-10:50am

• 2/25 - Saturday Morning Basketball, 3rd-5th grade @ BMS, 11:00-11:50am

• 2/27 - BMS Musical Rehearsal - All Attend, 2:45-4:30pm

• 2/27 - BMS Volleyball AWAY game @Wheatland

• 2/27 - Scholastic Book Fair @ BMS

• 2/28 - GCJ2 Fitness Room @ BMS, 6-8pm

• 2/28 - BMS Musical Rehearsal - All Attend, 2:45-4:30pm

• 2/28 - BMS Volleyball HOME game vs Lakewood

• 2/28 - Scholastic Book Fair @ BMS

SAVE THE DATE! Feb 24th 5-7pm at BES!

The Brookwood Family Engagement Team invites you to Read S'more Books Night! Families are invited to come in and visit various classrooms where teachers will host different reading strategies. As you visit rooms you will have to check off your "Bingo" sheet so you can then be admitted to the gym where we will have lights dimmed and families can come in with their sleeping bags, tents, and pillows to read s'more books together while enjoying yummy s'mores!

Join in the fun with community guest speakers and a free book exchange (bring a gently used book exchange for another book to bring home)

Questions or interested in being a guest speaker? email: Helen.Xiong@gcj2.k12.wi.us

The week of February 27 through March 2, BMS and BES will be celebrating Read Across America! Classroom teachers will be facilitating a number of activities to celebrate READING! Read on for some fun dress up days happening next week and information about the Book Fair at BMS.

Monday Feb. 27

Dress like your favorite book character to celebrate the opening day of the book fair at BMS! The Book Fair will run from Mon-Wed. during school hours -4pm and Thurs. during school hours-7pm.

Tuesday Feb. 28

Dress in athletic clothes to celebrate the ongoing Book March Madness at the elementary school and the start of Book March Madness at the middle school.

Wednesday Mar. 1

Dress like a tourist or like you're on vacation for the Read Across America Challenge.

Thursday Mar. 2

Wear Brookwood gear or cozy clothes for "Mustangs cozy up with a good book" to celebrate Read Across America Day.

Thanks again for your help and supporting our students' reading!

This year, our district adopted a new literacy curriculum in grades K-5 called American Reading Company [ARC]. Students have been enjoying getting to write a LOT more as a way to process information and to convey their comprehension of what they are reading. Amara B., Kaliam B., and Tristan and Dylan P. (pictured below) presented at our Monday School Board meeting to share out their most recent works: nonfiction books about animal adaptations! Students read aloud their self-authored and self-illustrated books, complete with "About the Author" sections, a Table of Contents, picture captions and more. This was an excellent showcase of these young authors' talent. Way to go, Mustangs!

Ms. Bullock has passed along the Golden Horseshoe to our new Business Manager, Mrs. Kim Disalvo! Ms. Bullock reports that Mrs. Disalvo does a terrific job explaining school financing to the Employee Compensation/Retention Committee. She also put all of our benefits information in a place that makes sense and is easy to navigate and read. Thanks for making it EASY to understand our own finances, Mrs. Disalvo. Congrats!

The 7th and 8th grade band had a fantastic morning last week, making music at Badger High School! Working with Mr. Bunge, they played and performed with the LGMS 8th grade band and the BHS Wind Ensemble. It was great to see some familiar Brookwood Band alumni faces in the BHS band! What a wonderful morning of music!

4K PM students enjoyed celebrating friendship day. They exchanged valentines, made Love Bug Mat Man, and enjoyed a candy counting game. Students also learned what it means to be a good friend and how to solve problems using the Fair Ways to Play (play together, trade, take turns).

Congratulations to our volleyball teams for winning their first games against Randall! Way to work hard, Mustangs!

Rescheduled Game: On Monday, February 27th, the Mustangs will travel to Wheatland to make up this Thursday’s game that was canceled due to weather. We also play at home on Tuesday, February 28th. Come out and support your Mustangs!

Basketball players, please return your clean uniforms to Ms. Metcalf. Cheerleaders, please return your clean uniforms, warmups, and poms to Ms. Cottrell.

Saturday Morning Basketball continues tomorrow! Can’t wait to see you in the gym! Mustangs in kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd grade will meet from 10am - 10:50am, and Mustangs in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade will meet from 11am - 11:50am. Shout out to our 6th, 7th, and 8th grade helpers!

Go Mustangs!

Coach Metcalf

Please be advised that moving forward, all parent pickups from after school sports, activities, and Academic Lab will take place outside of Door 5, near the gym entrance. With the number of students participating in after school activities, we feel that this will be a safer and more efficient procedure for students and families. The Late Bus will continue to pick up students at the front door entrance.

Explore new STEM activities with Miss Bartucci, Miss Stanislawski, and Mrs. Kanthack! It's time to register for Science on Saturday at BMS, for 3rd through 5th grade. Interested students should email Mrs. Kanthack at maryellen.kanthack@gcj2.k12.wi.us. You can register for one Saturday or all three. The dates are Feb.18th, 25th and March 4th from 8:30-9:30am. Drop off and pick up is Door 5, where students enter for ball games.

We need your help to get more families to support the Box Tops program. The more people that participate, the more our school can earn to help get the supplies it needs!

PLUS, you can earn a bonus for our school by inviting your friends, family, and other parents to sign up and participate in Box Tops.

To refer friends to sign up, go to the Invite Friends section of the Box Tops app. (You can get there by tapping on the person icon in the upper-right corner of the app home screen.) You'll get a referral code that you can send to a friend. You'll BOTH earn Bonus Box Tops for our school when they scan their first receipt — that's extra cash that counts towards our Box Tops earnings goal of $1,000 this year.

Thanks for your help!

Email the BFO at brookwoodfamily19@gmail.com with any questions regarding box tops.

For Brookwood schools use referral code WY7S80A1

https://btfe.smart.link/c2jjdifkw?referral_code=WY7S80A1

Academic Lab will be open on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays when school is in session.

• Students will begin their study time with one of their teachers, right after school in that teacher’s classroom.

• At 3:20pm, students will then report to the Academic Lab in the library. A team of Academic Lab teachers will continue to help students in working on the tasks of focus, as assigned by their teacher.

• Academic Lab teachers will also assist students with putting any unfinished assignments needing to be completed into their assignment notebooks, so that families are in the loop of tasks that still need attention at home.

• Academic Lab will end at 4:25pm. Students will not be allowed to leave early unless a parent needs to pick them up sooner.

• The Late Bus will continue to be offered as afternoon transportation home from the Academic Lab, and will depart promptly at 4:30pm. (Note: The Late Bus will also still be available on Tuesdays for students in athletics).

Families: We need your help in giving our students the attention they need and deserve. We hope that you will take full advantage of this resource when your student is in need of additional support.

Throughout the school year Brookwood has many opportunities for parents to partner with the school through volunteering. Some of these will include, but not limited to, chaperoning field trips, assisting during classroom activities, large school or district wide events, etc. To ensure the safety of all our students, all volunteers need to submit and pass a background check. These forms can be completed ahead of time and individuals will be added to the approved volunteer list. This is good for the school year. If you intend to volunteer, feel free to complete the attached forms and send the forms to your child's school office. Thank you for your cooperation and involvement.