Principal Chat
Friday 13th - YIKES! Well, only if you believe in the superstition that it is unlucky. I researched the origins of WHEN "Friday the 13th" became a thing and Google is all over the place on the origins, but most sites seem to think it began in medieval times and had something to do with "Jesus and the Last Supper". Then, I Googled "good things that have happened on Friday 13" and it retuned a whole list of things that happened on Friday, 13th including:
- Super Mario Brothers was released.
- President Lyndon B. Johnson signed an executive order preventing gender discrimination in the government.
- Evelyn "Pinky" Kilgare-Brier became the first certified female pilot instructor.
- Black Sabbath released their debut album and invented heavy metal.
But, best of all, Friday 13th is ALWAYS the last day before the weekend. I hope this Friday 13th and the weekend is FANTASTIC for your family!
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 "Get Curious" as a way to connect with your child by finding out what interests and motivates them.
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
- 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
- Tuesday Talk & Talent October 1, 2:30 - 3:15 pm
- FREE Family Skate Night Classic Fun Center - October 23, 5-8 pm
- Halloween $5 Costume Donation Dress Up Day - October 31
- December 10 - "EllaMental" play for 4th - 6th grade
- Parent Teacher Conferences - March 6 & 7
PARTIES - At Bridge, teachers can choose to have two parties throughout the school year. A "party" is defined by the presence of food and non-academic activities. Teachers complete a form, administration provides approval, then if food is present, parents must complete a permission slip. With many holidays, teachers opt to include holiday-themed activities into the everyday curriculum rather than have a full blown party. The decision as to which holiday or event will be a party is in the hands of the classroom teachers and varies in every grade.
BIRTHDAYS - Students are not allowed to bring in treats or prizes to share for their birthdays. We have made this decision for two reasons:
- COST - Since we have large pods instead of individual classrooms, there can be up to 90 students in a "class". Many parents cannot afford treats or prizes for 90 students. Therefore, we made the determination when we opened our doors five years ago, we will not have birthday treats at school.
- SAFETY - We have many students with allergies and nutritional needs that are not congruent with cupcakes or other treats. We cannot risk a child receiving a treat that has the potential to cause an adverse reaction.
Instead, many classrooms have a birthday celebration with a song, birthday, crown, etc. and in our hallway we have a Happy Birthday board that recognizes students with birthdays each month.
HALLOWEEN - Bridge does NOT do a Halloween parade - never has and never will (at least while Mrs. Rounds is the principal 😀 ). Classrooms get to determine if they would like to have a Halloween party and then can follow the "Party in the Class" procedures. Ask you child's teacher for information about the activities in class on Halloween. NOTE - this year there is NO SCHOOL on Friday, November 1, after Halloween!!!!! Costumes - Bridge opts to use Halloween as a "donation dress down day" and for $5 students can wear their Halloween costume to school (no masks and nothing that includes a weapon - even a pretend one). This is our biggest fundraiser of the year. Students who do not donate can still wear their Halloween costume.
FREE martial arts offered by Master Jason of Joeson Martial Arts! Joeson Martial Arts rents space from Bridge Elementary for their martial arts program and have graciously offered to provide free lessons for Bridge Elementary students. Classes are NOT supervised by Bridge staff and are implemented and supervised by staff of Joeson Martial Arts.
Classes are for one month and a student can sign up for EITHER Tuesday or Thursday evening, 4:45 - 5:30 pm. The sign up is first come first served and in order to offer this to as many students as possible, students may not sign up for consecutive months. For example, a student can attend in October but cannot sign up for November. Classes begin in October. To learn more about Master Jason's program visit this link: https://jmafit.com/
This is the link to the sign up. Spots are limited to the first 20 students.
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. Videos, or links to videos if you use Vimeo or YouTube, must be emailed to Mrs. Rounds. 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.
Visible Learning - Traits of a Good Learner
Every student attends a Visible Learning class each week to learn about the six traits Bridge has identified as "traits of a good learner". By embracing and internalizing these traits, students can become life long learners who take ownership and accountability of their own learning.
Students are rewarded for showing these traits through our "Watch Me Learn" program where they earn tickets to use at Bridger's Hop Shop. The trait for the upcoming week is shared at the bottom of the weekly newsletter so you can use the same verbiage at home with your kiddos. Additionally, three times yearly students are scored on their ability to name the traits and provide a definition or an example. This score is shown on the progress report. The progress report is a tab at the bottom of the student's Personalized learning Plan (PLP).
529 plans are designed to encourage saving for future qualified education expenses. They are sponsored by states, state agencies, and educational institutions, are are authorized by Section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code. You can find more information at my529.org
You can find the my529 flyer on our website at: my529
This was our first week for Fresh Fruit and Vegetable program (FFVP). This week our students got to try sweet peppers, purple asparagus and pears. This program is designed to give students an opportunity to try a fresh fruit or vegetable they may not otherwise have exposure to. This is a grant from USDA that Bridge is SO fortunate to receive!
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.
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 THOROUGHNESS - "Taking care of details and doing my best."
I will:
- Plan my work.
- Pay attention to details.
- Make a list so I don't forget.
- Finish what I start.
- Clean up along the way.
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