News for the Week of September 20, 2021

This Week at Brown School

NWEA testing begins this week in class on student Chromebooks - runs through Oct. 1st

Homecoming Spirit Week - see details below

9/20  NWEA fall testing begins (9/20-10/1)
         P2 Character Strength: Teamwork
         SEL Visits Begin this week!
         Back to School Night 

ECDD, 1st & 2nd grade: 5:45 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.

3rd, 4th & 5th grade: 6:45 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.

9/21    PTO Meeting @ 12:15 - Hassenger, DeVore

9/22   Late Start Day

          Lunch with Friends Submission Due 

          (1-5 grades only - see information below) 
          Virtual Math Training (8:15-9:15 a.m.)

K-2 Link: https://zoom.us/j/92529431219?pwd=L253RUVmeW91bmYzdGJxUHpSS3RmZz09

3-5 Link: https://zoom.us/j/99161364244?pwd=YTE1dmJvZDFZYUF6UTFISm4wOG9nZz09

9/23  Staff/SI Meeting in Media Center 4-5 p.m.

9/24   Bucks for Brown information sent home

          Kindness Club @ lunchtime in art room

          Football Readers @ 3:15 p.m.

Coming Up...

9/27      BTS Night Makeup Day (if necessary)

9/28      Staff/SI Meeting @ 7:15 a.m. in M.C.

9/29       School Picture Day!  

              SJVS pictures from 8-9:30 a.m.

              Late Start Day - PLC time

10/1       School Custodians Day!

              Fire Drill 3:00 p.m.

District Homecoming Spirit Week

We want to show our SJPS spirit all week long with the following dress-up days being celebrated at all five our district's buildings. Thanks for spreading the cheer all week long!

Classroom Microphone Use
As a reminder, it is expected that you use your microphones as you instruct throughout the day. It is vital to ensure active engagement, especially with noise buffers like masks and fans. Thank you!

Classroom Blog Posts

Please be sure to update your classroom blogs weekly. I will share the post with families on Sundays of each week. There is no need to send me a new link each week, it will update with the same url. Thank you!

I am ...

kind.

a mathematician.

a great teammate.

ready to learn.

Thank you for all that you are doing to prepare for BTS Night 2021. In the event that Monday is a 1/2 day due to excessive heat, Back to School Night will be held on Monday, September 27th using the same schedule. 

Back to School Night Information to Share

Please be sure to send home/share the following forms:

*Bear Packs Letters

*M-STEP Parent Reports (grades 4-5 only)

*Collect field trip money by sharing this link:

https://sjschools.revtrak.net/brown-elementary/brown-elementary-field-trips/ 

*Prepackaged snacks/birthday treats this year

*Like in past years, there will not an information session in the gym for families during BTS Night this year. 

* As in past years, we are planning on three parties. We will share the themes, dates, and times with families soon. If you plan to elicit volunteers, please ask that they sign up to lead/plan understanding that more details are to come. 

*There is no need to print student/family/school compacts or COPPA compliance froms this year. That information will be presented in the student handbook. 

Creating a Culture of Book Love in our School

It’s been so exciting to have kids back in the library spaces again this year! Every class has now had an opportunity to check out books at least one time. We will continue to work on the procedures for this checkout time with your class each week. Please note the following:

• Research supports student choice in book selection. Students will have the opportunity to choose books of their choice based upon their interest.

• Graphic novels are available and allowed to be checked out by any student who would like one. Due to the limited number we have in our collection, only one graphic novel will be allowed per student each week.

• Feel free to request any books you’d like to use in your classroom. We would be happy to check books out to you and bring them to your room for a week, a month, or however long you need. 

• Students may use Destiny Discover and the BookHub form (found on the Symbaloo) to order books in between library classes. We are working on a plan for students to come to the library in between classes as well and will share those details at a later date.

Here are a couple of articles you may want to read to learn more.

Student Choice is the Key to Turning Students into Readers

Top 5 Reasons to Let Kids Choose Their Own Books

Here is a fantastic infographic to show the value graphic novels can have on ALL students.

BookFlix 

BookFlix is a digital literacy resource that pairs animated fiction stories with non-fiction e-books on a similar topic. Each selection also features activities and author/illustrator information. Lessons plans and other resources can also be found. In addition, you can now also link BookFlix with Google Classroom. 

Students should be able to access BookFlix at school without logging in by using the link on the Media Center Symbaloo. The following usernames and passwords will work if they choose to use this resource at home.

Brown Elementary

Username: sjpsb

Password: bears

Clarke Elementary

Username: sjpsep

Password: bears

Lincoln Elementary

Username: sjpsl

Password: bears

Additional Resources:

Best Practice Guide

A video to explain how to link BookFlix to Google Classroom

A BookFlix video tutorial to help guide users through the program 

Flu Vaccine Clinic is Coming!
Sara the Great is working to get a flu vaccination clinic scheduled here at Brown this fall. Stay tuned for details. Thank you, Sara!


Lunch with Friends
The Inter-Richment Team is planning to launch a new lunch opportunity for students starting Monday, September 27th. One Inter-Richment staff member will have lunch with up to 3 students of each grade level (1-5) everyday outside in the courtyard (weather permitting). This time will include conversation and possibly a short game, if time permits. Groups will meet on a rotating basis, so the number of student participants will determine the frequency of meeting with the groups. Students grades 2nd-5th are invited to participate in this option through this Google Form. This might work well if posted in your Google Classroom. 

First grade teachers, please add interested students to this spreadsheet. 

Please submit names of all interested students by Wednesday, September 22nd, so we can have groups put together by Friday. We look forward to getting to know your students!

Be sure to share encouraging words with your Swim Buddy this week! #ONE