Mountaineer Monthly
January 2022
The Month Ahead
January 11th - BES PTO Meeting @ 6:30 pm in the Library
January 12th - 5th Grade After School Art Club
January 12, 19, 26 - Student Ambassadors @ 8:00 am in Room 111
January 17th - No School, Martin Luther King Holiday
January 18th - Board of Education Meeting @ 7:15 pm at the BMHS Library
January 21st - Break Out of A Book Night
January 26th - 4th Grade After School Art Club
BES Community Members Are Responsible Safe and Respectful Pet Owners
Mohawk and Hudson Humane Society
BES' Mrs. Heinrichs delivered the many donations made by BES students, families and staff to the Mohawk and Hudson Humane Society yesterday. Donations were collected during the month of December at BES, where the students participated in helping animals in communities as part of their character education program. Donations included: blankets, towels, shoe boxes, can/dry food, toys, treats, cleaning supplies, and cash. This is an annual event that takes place every holiday season at the school. Teacher/Organizer Tracie Heinrichs delivered the supplies with her daughter Jessica. Thank you to the BCSD community for supporting this cause each year!
Counseling Corner - Mr. James Taylor- Shaw
The Importance of Having a Routine at Home
Happy New Year!! We hope everyone had a fantastic holiday break and we are so excited to see all of our students again!
One of the hardest things for students and adults alike to do after an extended break is to readjust to routine. However, routine is so important, not only to keep things on schedule or create structure, but research actually shows that routines support healthy social emotional development in early childhood. Routines do this by having a particular set of characteristics that allow children to be most developmentally supported: predictability and accessibility. “When children live in organized and predictable environments, they learn to self-regulate in organized and predictable ways, leading to optimal mental health over time” (zerotothrive.org). Children who are able to self-regulate are less likely to feel overwhelmed as easily and are better able to adapt to everyday challenges, stressors, and new expectations.
“Children benefit from relationships and environments that are predictable to them: this includes important caregivers who behave in predictable ways, and events that occur at predictable times” (zerotothrive.org). Our classrooms have routines and structure that allow our students to know what is coming next and what is expected of them. They know who their teacher is (or teachers are) and they know what to expect from them based on the relationship they have developed with them. They know who other safe adults and peers are within the building if they need help. When things happen that are unexpected for our students (substitute teachers, assemblies, fire drills) the change in routine can cause stress that can cause some students to behave differently. The same is true for when our students go home. “Children can anchor their day according to expected interactions with their families” such as dinnertime and bedtime. If our students know that when they get home they’ll have dinner at 6pm and bedtime is at 8pm, they know what to expect (even if sometimes they don’t always like it).
Attending school is a very important part of that home routine as well. Students who regularly attend school know what routine to expect while they are in school, learn how to self-regulate away from their parents, learn how to trust other adults who are also in positions of teaching and caring for them, and also allow them to build friendships with their peers. Students who are not regularly attending school can become stressed - these students won’t know the routine of the classroom as well, they won’t know what to expect from their teacher, and they won’t be able to develop strong friendships with their peers because they won’t have the time to get to know them. These students are more likely to have academic, social, and behavioral issues related to the stress they may feel from not knowing what to expect.
However, we do know things happen - students get sick, they have to have appointments with outside providers, family emergencies happen - please, when these are happening, reach out to the school (nurse, main office, or Mr. Shaw (ext 3120)) to let us know your student will not be attending school. **
We know that our students learning how to manage their emotions is not only something that can be taught at home. Our Second Step classroom lessons are continuing with the topic of managing emotions. Our students will be learning different ways to handle different emotions relevant to their age and grade level (for example, our kindergarten students are learning that they can feel their feelings in their bodies, 2nd graders are learning how to manage embarrassment and handle making mistakes, and 5th graders will be learning about anxiety and resisting feelings of revenge). The student support team (counselors and school psychologist) are available to help students who may need more support as well and/or able to help with referrals to outside support for students and families who may need it. Remember, asking for/admitting you or your child may need help is a sign of strength - not weakness. Everyone needs a bit of help sometimes, even therapists & counselors see their own therapists & counselors!
**If your student is out with ANY COVID symptom they must be tested or cleared by a Doctor before they can return to school. Please let us know ASAP so we can make the proper learning arrangements for your student.**
Thank you!
Written by Mr. Shaw
Family Liaison & School Counselor - BES
(518) 658-1500 ext 3120
Research gathered from:
https://zerotothrive.org/routines-for-kids/
Holiday Shop was a success!
Thank you to Elaine Smith, Amy Ovitt, Carrie Minkler, Shannon Gardell, Nicole Radliff, Rachel Matthews, Tiffany Kiablick, Rebekkah Corbett, Meghan Demers, Cristy Healy, Kaiti Homiak, Laurie Honiker, Mike Zinna, Keri Alderman, Melanie Winters, Jen Bonesteel, Debbie Sweeney, and Rachel Turetsky.