Principal Chat
Week #2 came to a screeching halt today - for me, it flew by almost as quickly as a week in the summer.
Students spent the week in rotations in the classroom, practicing procedures they learned the week before, and completing some assessments for reading and math. As mentioned last week, the data from these assessments is vital to teacher's ability to create lessons and activities that align with student needs. Additionally, the data from the assessments will show on your student's progress report by September 27. Progress reports are delivered digitally, via email, as part of the Kindergarten or Personalized Learning Plan. (PLP).
A super happy note - the 3:30 parking lot pick up seems to be going really well! This week the last car has rolled through the pick up line between 3:45 - 3:48. That means pick up is less than 20 minutes. Thank you to everyone who are patient, kind and observant. Not only does this help the pick up run more smoothly and quickly, it also helps keep everyone safe.
OUTDOOR LUNCH
Outdoor lunch is now under full swing. We also have a row of tables in the gym for students who prefer not to eat outside. Although we have had the exterminator come and scour our campus for wasps and hornets, there are still a few of these pesky bugs around - at lunch, in the parking lot, on the playground. The exterminator explained that this has been an overly active year for them - apparently they LOVE the heat - and completely extinguishing them is not possible.
COMMUNITY CONNECTION - Ms. Chelsea, our social worker, provides a fabulous Community Connection every other week to help support kids and families. See below in the newsletter for ideas on Building Healthy Relationships.
ICYMI - this is the link to our website for all previous news bulletins:
https://www.bridgecharter.org/bridge-bulletinb
Please keep reading for more information about this past week and events for the upcoming weeks.
As always, thank you for CHOOSING Bridge and sharing your kids with us! We know you have lots of options in education and we are honored that you have made the choice to have your students attend our awesome school!
Lani Rounds
Principal
NO SCHOOL
- Monday, September 2 (Labor Day)
- October 14 - 18 (Fall Break)
- Friday, November 1 (teacher workday)
- November 25 - 29 (Thanksgiving Break)
- December 19 - January 3 (Winter Break)
- Monday, January 20 (Martin Luther)
- February 14 and 17 (teacher workday and President's Day)
- March 6 & 7 (parent teacher conferences)
- April 14 - 18 (Spring Break)
- May 26 (Memorial Day)
UPCOMING EVENTS
- Schoolwide Testing - August 19 - September 16
- Schoolwide Vision Screening - August 26
- School Pictures - August 28 (MUST be in school uniform)
- FREE Family Skate Night Classic Fun Center - October 23, 5-8 pm
Webcode: BridgeESFall24
ALL students will have their pictures taken on August 28 for their name badge as well as for any pictures you wish to order. Students MUST wear a school uniform shirt. We will offer additional pictures in the spring where students can dress down and wear their own choice of clothing.
Makeup pictures will be on October 23.
Each year we look for individuals who want to be part of the School Land Trust committee. The committee is responsible for determining how the land trust funds are used, creating goals and actions steps, and looking at the data to determine progress. The committee meets a couple times each year. To learn more about Utah's school land trust please visit https://schools.utah.gov/schoollandtrust
If we have more individuals than spots we will have an election.
To apply to be part of the committee, please use this link:
We are super lucky to hav been awarded the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable program (FFVP) for another school year! This program is funded by the USDA and allows us to provide our students with a fresh fruit or vegetable three days each week (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) throughout the school year. This is separate from school lunch. The purpose of the program is to introduce students to fresh produce that they may not have tried before. We can't wait for our kiddos to get their first FFVP starting next week. Please ask your child's teacher for information regarding the time of day students will receive their FFVP.
Web Site Updates
Our webmaster has reorganized our website to be more streamlined. Instead of 50 tabs at the top of the menu, we now only have a couple of tabs. Although it's a pain when things get moved, the new navigation is really more intuitive.
Some important changes to note:
BASE is now under PROGRAMS -
https://www.bridgecharter.org/b-a-s-e
Jobs are now named "Careers" and under RESOURCES - https://www.bridgecharter.org/careers
The Bridge Bulletin, Policies and Procedures and Daily Schedules are also under RESOURCES.
The 2024-2025 CALENDAR and the even calendar are both accessible using the CALENDAR icon on the home page https://www.bridgecharter.org/calendars
Fire Drill
Every month schools are required to have some type of drill. - fire, lock down, "bad guy", earthquake, etc. Within the first 10 days of school we must have a fire drill. Our first fire drill was Thursday. This allows students and staff the ability to practice exiting from the school and lining up in the assigned location. Teachers take attendance after students have exited the school and lined up. If all students are accounted for they hold up a green sign. If they think they are missing someone they hold up a red sign and a runner provides assistance. We also verify all staff are accounted for. In addition, assigned employees observe the evacuation and walk through the school to ensure the proper procedures were followed and any infractions are noted, shared with staff, and corrected.
We use a stop watch to determine how long it takes to exit the building and account for everyone. Our kids and staff did awesome! For our first fire drill our time was 6:29. We typically improve on this time with every fire drill. We will have another drill next week to fine tune some of the issues we found and to improve this time.
"Invasion" is an exaggeration, but, probably like you have noticed at your own your home, the wasps are plentiful this year. We have had pest control out to ensure all the nests are neutralized and our custodians also play a mean game of "kill the little buggers". Although we are doing everything possible to keep the area free of these annoying insects, we can't eliminate them completely. Mr. Pest Guy said when it cools down these demonic creatures will become more docile. So far we have had three students and one adult stung. Ice and a phone call home are our only medical intervention.
Most students still love to eat lunch outside. There are also tables in the lunchroom for those students who are apprehensive about eating outside because a wasp or bee may be flying around. Recess is outside - the only way to avoid the wasps is to have recess inside. If this is something you need to happen for your child, please let their teachers know.
We need YOUR help keeping our kids and families safe! Please be observant, patient and kind when navigating the parking lot. For your safety, and the safety of your kiddos, do NOT park across the street on Midland Drive and attempt to cross through the middle of the road - especially do NOT drop your kids off or expect them to navigate this road without an adult holding their hand. Please do not park in the pharmacy parking lot - it is private property and they are very unhappy with folks who take up the spaces they have for paying customers. The neighborhood to the south of us is undergoing construction and is not a safe place to park. Owners claim it is "private property" and will call law enforcement to have cars moved.
Roy City will not provide us a crosswalk nor allow us to stop traffic on our own. Our school entrance is too close to the corner to allow traffic to stop safely. It is up to ALL of us to make sure our kids are safe! Patience is the key! If you cannot be patient during pick up then please, park your car, come into the school and check your students out a few minutes early. While we hate kids to miss school time, we prefer that they are safe. Another idea is to sign your child up for BASE, then come in at 4:00, after the parking lot is empty, and check your child out of BASE early. They will not get free dinner as they must be present in the gym at 4:15 for dinner, but you will not need to navigate the parking lot during the busiest times.
DAY CARE VANS - Please allow day care vans ALL of the space along the north fence! They cannot navigate the parking lot and get to their next school on time. They NEED this space.
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE be patient, observant and kind. This is the only way we can make sure all our kiddos and families are safe during drop off and pick up.
STUDENT ATTENDANCE
Attendance is taken every morning by 8:45 am. The computer identifies all students who are marked "absent" and then, sends a message to all parents if the student is not marked "EXCUSED". This is done for safety reasons as well as to remind parents students must be excused from school if they are absent. PLEASE BE PATIENT - WE ARE USING A NEW SYSTEM.
Absences MUST be excused within 24 hours of the absence, otherwise it is considered "unexcused". Once a child has 7 unexcused absences parents are sent a Notice of Compulsory Education Violation and are required to meet with administration regarding the absences. Once a child has 10 unexcused absences the school can contact the Division of Child and Family Services for educational neglect.
It is super easy to excuse an absence. Either call the office (801)499-5180 and listen for the prompts or use the EXCUSE ABSENCE icon on the front page of our website.
Friends for Sight - Schoolwide Vision Screening
Friends for Sight will be at Bridge on Monday, August 26 to complete a schoolwide vision screening. You can find more information on our website under PROGRAMS at:
New this year! The first Tuesday of the month, starting in October, we will meet in the gym as a school community, 2:30 - 3:15. During this time one grade will showcase something amazing they have completed and our Frog Squad will provide a message about kindness or one of our Visible Learning Traits. Additionally, students will get to showcase their own talent via a pre-submitted video.
Student talent can showcase any type of talent - singing, sports, dancing, stand up comedy, magic, etc.. The video must be less than one minute long and the content must be school appropriate - for example, if the student is singing the lyrics must be kid-friendly.
Use the link below to complete the Tuesday Talk & Talent form. Mrs. Rounds will notify you once the form is submitted, the video is verified, and a date is selected for the video to be shown during Tuesday Talk.
Safe UT - See Something? Say Something?
Bridge is a member of Utah's Safe UT. SafeUT is a crisis chat and tip line that provides real-time crisis intervention for students, parents/guardians, and educators through live chat and a confidential tip line—right from your smartphone. This also allows students or parents to report potentially violent or concerning issues they see or hear about that may impact the staff or students at Bridge.
You can access the information from our website under RESOURCES at:
https://www.bridgecharter.org/safeut-see-something-say-something
or directly at https://safeut.org/students
Social Emotional Learning and Visible Learning - Family Connection
Social Emotional Learning resources for families and students to promote a stronger sense of self identity, mental health, and create a safer school environment. Our Visible Learning Traits (flexibility, determination, reflection, taking initiative, thoroughness, and enthusiasm) tie into Social Emotional Learning at Bridge!
Each week students attend a Visible Learning class where they learn about six traits of a good learner - Reflection - Initiative - Flexibility - Thoroughness - Enthusiasm - Determination (RIFTED). Teaching these traits is one way we help students learn to take accountability and ownership of their learning.
Next week students will learn about REFLECTION - "Reviewing my learning to see what works and ways I can improve."
I will:
- Look back.
- Listen to feedback.
- Learn about myself.
- Plan my next steps.
- Reflect often.
Please discuss these traits at home and help empower your children to take personal ownership and accountability for their own academic performance.
Weber Human Services - Stabilization and Mobile Response (SMR)
About Bridge Elementary Charter
Email: info@bridgecharter.org
Website: bridgecharter.org
Location: 4824 Midland Drive, Roy, UT
Phone: (801)499-5180
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BridgeCharter