Baldwin Blast
January 15, 2021
A Message From The Principal
Monday, January 18, 2021 - MLK Day Observance
As we observe the birthday and contributions of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to our nation, I challenge the Baldwin community to engage in acts of service to our community. We all have gifts and talents to share and opportunities to support others - so I encourage you to give of yourself and your time to someone in need on Monday. Small acts of kindness will go a long way to improving our community. So get creative!
Some examples for our Baldwin Rockets:
- Take care of your space without being asked! Organize your learning-from-home area, your room, and put away toys and games
- Ask if there are tasks around the house that need some attention
- Draw a picture for your family, neighbor, or mail carrier
- Read a book to your younger sibling
- Offer to help cook a meal or clean up the dishes
- Collect recyclable materials from around the house, yard, or neighborhood
- Collect items needed by the Animal Shelter
Here are some resources for you to learn more about the national day of service:
Washington Post Teacher of the Year Nominee
VFW Virginia Teacher of the Year
Counselors Corner
For the month of January, all students will receive counseling lessons about growth mindset and how that relates to goal setting.
- All students will learn that having a growth mindset means that even if you fail at something or making a mistake, you learn from it, keep trying, and don’t give up. We will discuss the power of “yet,” which means instead of saying, “I can’t do this,” students can say, “I can’t do this YET but I will keep trying.” All students will also learn that goals are things that we want to achieve or get better at, and will learn the importance of making a plan to achieve our goals.
- Kindergarten and first grade students will learn that it’s important to identify things we are good at and things that we want to get better at, and will practice repeating sentences that show a growth mindset using the power of “yet.” They will also learn about the difference between home goals and school goals. Students will then pick a goal (i.e. being kind, being responsible) and will be able to describe what that goal will look like and sound like.
- Second and third grade students will learn about the difference between having a growth mindset and a fixed mindset, and will learn how to change a fixed mindset to a growth mindset. They will also learn how to create SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timely) goals and will practice making their own goals SMART.
- Third and fourth grade students will learn that having a growth mindset also helps raise our self-esteem. We will discuss the difference between high and low self-esteem and ways that we can raise our self-esteem. They will also look at how to make a plan to achieve a goal they have, which includes choosing your big goal, having a purpose, breaking it into small steps, and thinking about obstacles. They will each come up with an academic goal and a social/emotional goal.
Here are some online resources to aid in your discussion with your child on how to develop a growth mindset and set goals:
- “How Parents Can Instill a Growth Mindset at Home”
- “Self-Esteem and Children: Your Ultimate Guide (incl. Activities)”
- “Setting Goals With Kids”
Please reach out to your school counselors if you would like more information about resources and activities used in counseling lessons.
Heather Hartman: hhartman@mcpsva.org, 571-377-6127 (English)
Carmen Perez: cperez@mcpsva.org, 571-377-6129 (English & Spanish)
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Box Tops For Education
Totino's! Old El Paso! Nature Valley! Annie's! General Mills Cereal! It's Free CASH for our school! Since you're on a device, take a quick look at Box Tops For Education Online - Simply download the Box Tops app and scan your receipt. That's all! Do you have any cut Box Tops you've saved from past products? Drop them off at Baldwin's front office any time and our fantastic parent volunteers will take care of the rest. Let's do some good for our children by doing just a little.