News for the Week of April 23rd- 27th
Congratulations on announcing your retirement, Jo Ann! You've touched the heats of over 300 students and countless others in your 18 years of service! Though you will be missed tremendously, we are so happy for you and wish you all the best.
This Week at Brown School
4/23 PTO meeting - 12:00pm in M.C. Barron, Danapilis
4/24 Staff/SI meeting 4-4:30pm in the M.C. - we will process chapters 6 & 9
4/25 Administrative Professionals' Day!
Late start day
Principal's Breakfast #13 - please send #14 if #13 has already attended
Tornado drill 11:30am
4/26 Parents as Teachers playgroup 8:45-11:00am in the gym
Danapilis to Calling All Colors 9:05-11:15am
Coming Up...
4/30 Mileage Club begins at lunch recess today!
Portfolio entries and contributions lists due in iObservation
3rd and 4th grade M-STEP testing begins
NWEA spring testing begins
5/1 Third grades to Charlton Park 7:45am-3:00pm
5/3 Schueneman to the planetarium 1:30-2:45pm
5/9 Late start day
5th grade program - time TBD
5/10 Barron to Calling All Colors 9:05-11:15am
5/11 Track meet day for 3rd-5th graders
Ren Baldwin Technology Showcase SJHS 6pm
5/14 Board of Education meeting at Central Office 6pm
2nd graders to the Heritage Center and historical walk 9am-1:30pm
4th graders to Lansing
5/15 Muffins with Moms!
Hearing and Vision Screening - Young 5s only
5/16 Late start day
5/17 5th grade visit to Upton
Girls on the Run 5K in Berrien Springs
5/21-5/25 Third grade swimming week
5/21 Track meet rain date
PTO meeting in the Media Center 7pm
5/22 First graders to Sarett 9-11:30am
5/23 Late start day
Young 5s to Sarett 12:30-2:30pm
5/24 Danapilis to Calling All Colors 9:05am-11:15am
5/25 Fifth graders to the Air Zoo 8:45am-2:25 pm
5/28 No school - Memorial Day
5/29 Fifth graders to Health Works 10:30am-1:00pm
5/30 Health Works coming for fourth grade session
6/1 Flip Flop Friday - Student Council Fun Friday
6/6 School Picnic! (more information to come)
6/7 1/2 of school - dismissal at 12:05 pm - teacher workday pm
6/8 Last day of school! 1/2 day - dismissal at 12:05 pm
Welcome to Brown School, Kim Kuriata! Kent's students are lucky to have you while he heals from his surgery.
Professional Portfolios Due 4/30
Professional portfolio entries are due in iObservation by midnight on April 30th. This includes your reflection paragraph detailing “what, so what, and now what” related to your personal growth goal for the year and a list of your Significant & Relevant Contributions from the year. If you’ve done participated in voluntary professional development that is above and beyond what is required for everyone, you may also want to include that with your contributions list so that you have a permanent record of the events.
Spring NWEA Tests
Our spring NWEA test window is April 30 - May 18. This overlaps with the combined M-STEP window for 3rd and 4th graders. As a result, 2nd-5th grade students will take the NWEA tests on grade level Chromebooks or cart devices. Kdg and 1st graders will do their NWEA tests in the lab (scheduling via the regular google calendar around the M-STEP schedule). This will limit your classroom access to the computer lab for a couple of weeks. Please remember that testing sessions have priority, but carts can be checked out via the shared calendar.
Lexia: Celebrations & Food for Thought
Our Lexia pilot has been an overall huge success! Thank you for the time and energy you’ve invested in getting to know the program and for making it work with our kids. Our percentage of students who meet their weekly targets at each grade level continues to be strong at many grade levels - a clear contributor to the amazing growth we’re seeing! Please take some time to check in on your teacher reports this week to see how your class is doing. It may be time for a few reminders to kids or reaching out to select parents to remind them about this if you find it is happening at home. We’d rather have their child reading a book than trying to level up like mad!
Summer Book Kits for EVERYONE!
That’s right! Through creative planning and coordination of grant funding, we’re able to provide every elementary student in SJPS with summer reading materials at our May 23rd Book Bonanza. Volunteers are needed for this event! We’ll host the “Book Bonanza” for our students and their families in the SJHS student center. Each student will be invited to come to the event to select six brand new books for summer reading. They’ll choose two to take home and pack four in envelopes to receive via U.S. Mail in July and August. Volunteers are needed to help at the 4:00-6:30 p.m. event! If you can spare an hour or two that evening, we’d love to have your help in our efforts to overcome the summer slide! Please let us know if you can come and reserve your spot via this survey. Camp Invention is a fee-based STEM experience camp making its debut here in SW Michigan at Upton Middle School in June. Information was sent home with week with K-5th grade students. Registration is online and space is limited.
Learning Lasts Summer Experience Camp
The “Learning Lasts” summer experience planned for this summer is funded by the SJPS Foundation and designed for under-resourced students entering 2nd-5th grade who may benefit from additional life experiences. Three fun-filled learning experiences are planned: Binder Park Zoo (June 19), South Bend Cubs Game (July 16), and Warner Camp (August 16). Volunteer “camp counselors” (a.k.a. chaperones) are needed! Please let Kristen know if you may be interested in going along on one of these trips.
Don’t forget to enter your curriculum release day in Skyward!
