Bridport Community Newletter

Hello, BCS Community!

We started testing this past week for our 3rd-5th graders, and we are SO proud of their hard work and focused attention. We are finishing up this week, and are thankful for your support!

As many of you know, we are working this week and next to think about how we will best support all our learners next year. Please see below for more information, but I encourage families to fill out this feedback form to share your thinking, and attend our upcoming parent meetings to learn more and ask questions.

Tuesday 4/8- BCS Parent Meeting 7:30AM to 8:30 AM

Wednesday 4/16- Combined Bridport/Shoreham Parent Meeting @ MUMS 6-7:30PM

I am continually so thankful for the support of this community for our students and teachers at BCS.

Best,
Jenny

Bridport/Shoreham Exploration Process for Families

Background: This month, Shoreham and Bridport staff and community are coming together for several conversations about how to create the best learning environment for our students next year. The current 2025-2026 plan is for both Shoreham and Bridport to have combined classrooms of K/1, 2/3, and 4/5 students. This configuration is new for both buildings and has sparked discussions among our staff about how we can create grade configurations that ensure all students succeed. We brought this conversation to Superintendent Baker. She met with classroom teachers from both buildings and gave us permission to spend the next few weeks in a collaborative process with families and school staff to explore how to best structure our classrooms.

Shoreham & Bridport staff believe:

• Schools should feel safe, consistent and joyful

• Kids learn best when they have positive relationships with teachers and staff

• Students need thoughtful, well planned learning activities that give access to grade level instruction

• Teaching in a multi-grade classroom will be new for some, familiar for others, but with the increased focus on academic achievement we will need additional support and professional development

• Every child can be successful

Questions for our community:

1. What are the most effective ways we can work together to support accelerated student growth in academics and social emotional learning?

2. What do we believe is the best model to grow student learning and skills?

Upcoming Community Meeting Dates:

Date

4/2

4/4

4/8

4/8

4/16

4/28

Share your feedback:

• Feedback Form

This spring Bridport Central School will be working with local Middlebury artist Kate Gridley as our artist in residency. Our students will be learning the art of drawing from nature. Throughout our residency students will be going on 2 field trips to a nature trail to observe, interact, learn, and create art. The Otter Creek Audubon Society will also be supporting our residency field trips as they will have learning stations for students and their members will be sharing their knowledge. During the residency Kate will be coming to school to work directly with students 5 separate times to work on learning how to sketch, learn to draw from life, and create a piece of work based on nature. Our students will each create their own work of art as well as a culminating class mural on the last day. At the conclusion of the residency students will have their own sketchbook, art kit, and newly found skills to take home to continue practicing and exploring.

Tuesday 4/8- BCS Parent Meeting 7:30AM to 8:30 AM

Wednesday 4/9- Early Release

Wednesday 4/16- Combined Bridport/Shoreham Parent Meeting @ MUMS 6-7:30PM

Friday 4/18- Last Day before Break

Monday 4/21- Friday 4/26- April Vacation

Tuesday 4/29- First Day of Artist in Residency!

Wednesday 4/30- Relocation Drill (more info to come!)

Thursday 5/1- FOBCS Meeting 6:00-7:30PM

Friday 5/2- 5th grade Exhibition

When students Irene and Charles end up as partners for a poem-writing project, they slowly and bravely begin to explore how the issue of race affects their lives. Irene’s white perspective and Charles’s black perspective are inherent even when they begin by writing about a subject seemingly devoid of racial context—shoes. Their next topic, hair, opens a dialogue that includes the emotional effects of race-based conflicts at school.

Students at BCS will be exploring a few poems each week and exploring these complex themes.

1. Preschool Screening for 3 & 4 year olds

If you have a child who will be 3 or 4 before September 1st, 2025, they are invited to attend our free developmental screening days. You can attend any of the following screening dates:

• Friday, April 4, 2025 at Bridport Central School, 3442 VT 22A. Contact Linda Barrett with questions 802-758-2331. Or;

• April 4, 11, or 18, 2025 at Mary Hogan Elementary School, 201 Mary Hogan Drive, Middlebury. Contact Deb Martin with questions 802-382-1761.

What to expect: Come and play with the ACSD Early Education team! They will engage in activities to help observe your child’s physical, social-emotional, speech/language, and cognitive development. Observations will be shared with the family/caregiver.

1. ACSD Preschool Interest Survey

If you are interested in having your child attend one of our ACSD preschool programs, please read the informational letter and fill out our preschool interest survey.

Substitute teachers are crucial for our students, staff, staff, and schools! We are increasing our daily substitute teaching rate to $160/day for unlicensed subs and $200/day for licensed subs. This flat rate replaces our sliding rate of pay for subs depending on the number of days worked. To apply, email HR@acsdvt.org with subject: "Substitute Position". Or visit this listing.

Did you know Bridport School has an instagram!? Follow us- @bridportschoolvermont for pictures and videos :)