GATEWAY Newsletter BUES Oct 2024

GATEWAY (Gifted and Talented Education With All Youth) Mission:

To support all students through talent development and to identify, challenge, and encourage academically advanced and creative learners.

Welcome to BUES GATEWAY!

Early in September, we had the opportunity to visit each grade 4 classroom to meet the students recommended for Tier 2 GATEWAY. During our visit we explained the structure and expectations of Tier 2. We were also able to walk students through the process of signing into and navigating the Tier 2 Google Classrooms. Students were encouraged to complete work when time and teachers allow - often during WIN block, and if work is completed early during any class. Students were also made aware that paper copies are available to bring home to work on and that Google Classroom can be accessed from a variety of personal devices. Should any questions arise, or to celebrate levels completed, students are welcome to stop by our classrooms first thing in the morning as they arrive at school. We have been impressed by the work many have completed so far! Keep it up!

Wow! These bright students have not missed a beat! We have hit the ground running right away in Advanced Math! Students are eager to learn, explore, and flex their skills and knowledge. We have begun our first unit which centers around fractions. As always, we will engage and grow our math minds by extending our understanding of numbers of all kinds and how they move and groove through our world. We are all still getting used to only having a ½ hour together as the time flies but is well-spent. This year, due to our short time together, students will often have work to complete outside of our weekly class. The expectation is that the work is completed by the time they enter class the following week. Thank you for supporting this! We are going to have a great year together!

Students in Tier 3 ELA have just started our first unit on the novel Lucky Broken Girl by Ruth Behar. Students prepared to engage with the novel by making predictions, discussing the author's background and purpose, and gaining familiarity with the setting. Additionally, students identified key events in the story and discussed the initial characterization of the main characters, Ruthie, Mami, and Papi, while also exploring the cultural backdrop of Cuba and the United States during the 1960s. Each week, students are assigned either independent reading homework or creative assignments in order to engage in weekly lessons and discussions about the novel. Please note the importance of completing the reading homework for the success of students and the entire class! Students are also encouraged to complete assignments in Tier 2 during their WIN blocks (What I Need Block), as they are enrichment activities directly related to the units they have in their general ELA class.

About Lucky Broken Girl:

Ruthie Mizrahi and her family recently emigrated from Castro's Cuba to New York City. Just when she's finally beginning to gain confidence in her mastery of English and enjoying her reign as her neighborhood's hopscotch queen, a horrific car accident leaves her in a body cast and confined her to her bed for a long recovery. As Ruthie's world shrinks because of her inability to move, her powers of observation and her heart grow larger. She comes to understand how fragile life is, how vulnerable we all are as human beings, and how friends, neighbors, and the power of the arts can sweeten even the worst of times.

These young engineers are amazing, impressing me right from the start! Their curiosity, willingness to try, resilience, background knowledge, and effort have all been outstanding! In both grades we have focused on the Engineering Design Process which, as engineers, we will follow to complete all projects and challenges! We have employed this process with fidelity to take on the following challenges so far.

4th grade STEM students have cooperated to build a cup pyramid without touching the cups and have created stands out of straws and tape that could support the weight of a pumpkin!

5th grade STEM students were tasked with building the tallest tower out of spaghetti and string that could support a marshmallow on top. They also had to design and build “Apple Annihilators” (wrecking balls) using limited materials that would knock down as many pins as possible! We did have some strikes!

FPS started Oct. 7th, and we've been having a blast! We are working on team building activities, to see who we work well with, and who we might be distracted by. We've also applied our brainstorming skills to silly scenarios, such as getting an elephant out of a tub!