Principal Chat
One more week of school and then we get a week off to eat pie for breakfast, lunch and dinner and nine days (counting the weekends) to hike it off in the mountains, through the neighborhood, or along a river. Fall and Thanksgiving breaks are my FAVORITE times of the year! I am heading a little bit south to hopefully garner a lottery spot to hike "The Wave". All of my attempts to draw out thus far to hike this magical place have been defeated. But, since I am a Bullfrog I know all about DETERMINATION and my friends and I will spend four days there hoping for a day-of lottery selection.
BOOK FAIR - The book fair is next week. The hours are M - Th, 3:30 - 5:00 pm and Friday, 1:30 - 2:30 pm. Bridge earns points for each item sold and we use these points to buy more books for the library and to buy books for our Bridge Hop Shop for the Watch Me Learn winners.
STAFF HIGHLIGHTS - Further in the newsletter we highlight a individuals at Bridge and the important role they play in creating a positive, supportive and engaging learning environment our students. This week we highlight our amazing office staff.
ROAD TO SUCCESS READING - Students can now log their own road to Success reading minutes! Log into Beanstack at: siebridge.beanstack.org/users/sign_in
Information about your student's login was sent in an email to you.
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 to use SPECIFIC positive praise to help enhance that positive child/adult connection through genuine respect and appreciation.
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
- 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
- Book Fair - November 18 - 22 (M-Th 3:30 - 5:00 and F 1:30 - 2:30)
- Fire Drill - November 19
- December 18 - "EllaMental" play for 4th - 6th grade
- FREE Skate Night at Classic - February 27, 5 - 8 pm
- Roy FD Assembly - March 3, 9 - 10 am
- Parent Teacher Conferences - March 6 & 7
- Road to Success reading program ends - March 24
- Yearbooks on Sale - April 1 thru April 30
- Field Day (yearbooks, last day of school, short day) - May 29
As the graphic shows, their are five PCBL competencies. Bridge's writing program, Bridge to Writing developed by Heggerty, is used for grades K-4. In 5th grade teachers use a resource called Four Square and in 6th grade the writing specialist delivers instruction through collaboration with teachers. Writing is a key part of Culture of Learning, Learner Agency, and Demonstrated Competency and Assessment.
Becoming a proficient writer is one of the most important higher level skills a child can acquire to engage them in their journey towards college, career and life readiness. Writing also provides students with voice and choice in their learning and ability to share their learning. Writing also provides students with timely and effective feedback to help them reflect and change their thinking.
Utah is at the forefront of providing lots of educational options for families. Charter schools, like Bridge, are just one of the choices. For students with special needs, Utah has the Carson Smith Scholarship available. The Carson Smith Opportunity Scholarship Program allows a parent of a special needs child to apply for a scholarship to help cover the cost of private schools and special programs. Information about this program and the list of approved private schools and programs can be found on the state's website at:
The first Tuesday of the month, starting in October, we will meet in the gym as a school community, 2:15 - 3:00. 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.
Social Emotional Learning (SEL) 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!
This week our students got to try baby cucumbers, hot house cucumbers, heirloom tomatoes and FRESH coconut!
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!
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 ENTHUSIASM - "TAKING CARE OF DETAILS AND DOING MY BEST."
I Will -
- Be an energy-giver.
- Smile.
- Encourage others.
- Treat every job as important.
- Don't be discouraged by failure.
Please discuss these traits at home and help empower your children to take personal ownership and accountability for their own academic performance.
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.
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. All absence are reported through our state system, Aspire. 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
Weber Human Services - Stabilization and Mobile Response (SMR)
Title I at Bridge
Title I was initially passed in 1965 under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). It is the largest federal assistance program for public schools. These supplemental funds provide students the opportunity to receive a fair, equitable and high-quality education to help close achievement gaps.
Bridge Elementary receives our Title I funding based on the percentage of students that qualify for free or reduced lunch. For this reason we encourage ALL families to apply for Free/Reduced lunch through Aspire to ensure every single student receives the services needed, including access to free or reduced meals if appropriate.
Title I provides avenues for parent input and participation. We do this through our surveys and the link to the form on our website which allows parents to submit questions and suggestions.
You can find more information about Title I as well as a form to ask questions or provide suggestions regarding Title I, on our website at:
Schools cannot do this alone! We can provide students with instruction on how to read and provide them with some practice, but in order to become proficient readers, students MUST practice reading at home.
The recommendation is 20 minutes daily outside of school. This can include a student reading aloud, an adult or independent reader reading to a younger reader, or an independent reader reading silently with the child being provided an opportunity to discuss their reading. Kids can read to their dog, cat, guinea pig, siblings, parents, grandparents, etc. They can record themselves reading and then listen to it again. They can re-read a paragraph or page to improve their fluency and decoding skills. Visit the link below to find ways to help your child improve their reading and develop a love for reading.
As an added bonus, minutes can be tracked for the Road to Success reading incentive program!
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