Bridges Breeze
Friday, November 4, 2022
A Message from Mrs. Rittmiller
Greetings Families,
I want to personally thank you for your time and energy spent at Bridges. As we look at this next couple weeks, it will be great to celebrate and create goals with you for your child at our upcoming parent-teacher conferences. Children learn best when the significant adults in their lives -- parents, teachers, and other family and community members -- work together to encourage and support them. This basic fact should be a guiding principle as we think about how schools should be organized and how children should be taught. Schools alone cannot address all of a child's developmental needs: The meaningful involvement of parents and support from the community are essential.
The need for a strong partnership between schools and families to educate children may seem like common sense. In simpler times, this relationship was natural and easy to maintain. Teachers and parents were often neighbors and found many occasions to discuss a child's progress. Children heard the same messages from teachers and parents and understood that they were expected to uphold the same standards at home and at school.
Yet children don't stop learning about values and relationships when they enter a classroom, nor do they cease learning academics -- and attitudes about learning -- when they are at home or elsewhere in their community. They constantly observe how the significant adults in their lives treat one another, how decisions are made and executed, and how problems are solved. Let's continue to partner to raise amazing children into incredible adults. It DOES take a VILLAGE.
The lifeskills we have talked about so far this school year are: Be Safe, Be Responsible, Be Respectful, Truthfulness, Trustworthiness, Active Listening, No Put Downs, and Personal Best. Thank you for continuing to partner with us to ensure our awesome students are applying these skills at home and school.
Working together,
Jody Rittmiller, Principal
YOU MATTER! Oct. 24 & 31
Feature Teachers
Meet Mrs. Makela - Media
I am teaching K,1,2 Media at Bridges (except for KH) and K-5 Media at Eagle Lake.
I love the connections to the kids and those excited "Ah Ha" moments when they "get it" or are super excited about something that they have learned or that is new to them.
I have been teaching in the Mankato School District as a media specialist for 27 years. I am a graduate of both UMD and MSU, which makes attending college hockey games interesting. I have two daughters who have also attended UMD. Kylie is currently in grad school in Lincoln and Jadyn is a Junior at UMD. I love reading, staying current on new technology, and traveling. Exploring the North Shore and Colorado are currently some of my favorite places to spend my time. My husband and I enjoy taking care of our Cavapoos and Cavachons. We also spend a lot of time at sporting events. I especially enjoy watching my students compete. Send me a copy of your student's schedule. I'll do my best to get to one of their games.
Meet Mrs. Zarn - Media
I am a native of Mankato.
I am a fan of snarky t-shirts and The West Wing.
I teach grades 3-5 Media at Bridges and K-5 at Washington.
I enjoy teaching students the engineering process.
We have so many fun ways to learn about engineering-robots, coding, and building.
I appreciate when a student enjoys a book that I recommend, too!
Meet Mrs. Hagedorn - Kindergarten
When I'm not at school, I am busy being "mom" to 3 boys (Brody (12), Asher (10) and Laken (4). They keep me super busy with their football and basketball schedules. I also enjoy taking my dog, Nala, for a walk or making time for a date night with my husband. We enjoy going out to eat, hanging out with friends and attending music concerts.
Bridges playground/cafeteria still need you! Or, if you would like to join our guest teachers, please apply!
Backpack Food Program
The BackPack and Power Pack Food Programs are free programs providing students in grades K-8 with weekend food packs containing breakfast, lunch and a snack for each day off of school. As of right now, food packs will be delivered weekly directly to a students backpack while they are at lunch or on break. Sign up today to give your child an additional boost of nutrition.
Dates to Remember:
November:
7 - No School Students (Prep Day)
9 - 2 Hour Early Release
10 - Fall Conferences/Book Fair (3:20-8:30)
15 - Fall Conferences/Book Fair (3:20-8:30)
17 - Fall Conferences/Book Fair (3:20-7:00)
21 - Read & Feed
22-25 - No School/Happy Thanksgiving!
December:
1 - 5th Grade Field Trip Parent Meeting in the Cafeteria (6:00-7:00)
15 - Grade 3 Viking Age Presentation (12:30-2:30)
16 - Chamber Orchestra (1:00 pm)
19 - BAC Exec Meeting
Past Bridges Breeze Bulletins
Principal & Administrative Assistant
Amanda Robinson, Administrative Assistant
Email: jrittm1@isd77.org
Website: https://bcs.isd77.org/
Location: 320 Garfield Avenue, North Mankato, MN, USA
Phone: (507)387-2800