Principal's Weekly
Principal Beth N. Choquette, Bridge Street School
Bridge Street School
2 Parsons Street
Northampton, Massachusetts 01060
413-587-1460 (phone) 413-587-1484 (fax)
Beth N. Choquette, Principal bchoquette@northamtpon-k12.us
Elizabeth Peterson, Administrative Assistant epeterson@northampton-k12.us
Nicole Soutra, Senior Clerk nsoutra@northampton-k12.us
Nora DeJasu, Head Teacher ndejasu@northampton-k12.us
A Message From Principal Choquette 10/12/18
Good Afternoon! I hope you all had a nice 4-day week. These weeks can feel longer and like you never know what day of the week it actually is.
Last night the School Council presented our 2018-2019 School Improvement Plan. I've attached it below so you can take a look at it. Our goals this year focus on training for faculty and staff on targeted teaching practices, communication, social-emotional-behavioral learning, and our instructional leadership team. Thank you to our School Council for their dedication to help make BSS a model school. The school improvement plan is attached below.
We did not need to have an election for School Council this year as we had four nominees, with one telling me she couldn't make the time commitment this year. One of the nominees, Roni Gold, is currently already serving his 2nd of a 2 year seat. Our two new members are Sam Hopper for the 3 year seat (who's seat just ended and was nominated again), and Lindsay Doak for the one-year seat. Congratulations to Sam and Lindsay. Our school council members for the 2018-2019 school-year are: Beth Choquette, Principal; Carol Ruyffelaert, teacher; John Zyskowski, teacher; Brittany Kelly, special education teacher; Becky Shannon, community representative; Roni Gold, parent; Sam Hopper, parent; and Lindsay Schauf, parent. The school council meets on the third Wednesday of each month from 3:30-5:00 p.m. at BSS. All meetings are open to the public.
Thank you all for filling out the vision and action surveys for the forum on November 7th. If you haven't turned in your RSVP for the forum, please do so as soon as possible. We need to have a head count for childcare as well as for food. This is an exciting opportunity to let your voice be heard in helping to make BSS a model school.
Finally, the 3rd grade class is planning ahead for their 5th grade Nature's Classroom Trip in a couple of years. On October 18th right after school, the 3rd grade class will be having a bake sale outside. Please look for them after school on the 18th and help support their fundraising efforts for their future NC trip. Thank you!
Have a wonderful weekend.
Reminder
The week of October 22nd is half days every day for parent/teacher conferences.. Dismissal will be at 12:20 everyday. A bag lunch form will be going home. Please indicate on it what days your child will need bag lunches.
PTO
Also, it is that time of the year again for the Lyman Orchard pies and Otis Spunkmeyer cookies fundraiser! Order deadline is 10/23 and the pie and cookie dough delivery date is 11/5. Order forms will go home this week. Please contact Dina with any questions at dinakochanek@gmail.com.
November 7th Vision and Action Forum
Volunteers in Northampton
What is VINS? VINS is a non-profit founded in 1981, and our mission is to provide volunteers in the Northampton public schools. VINS volunteers are community members, students, parents, and grandparents. We encourage people of all ages to volunteer! Volunteer participation enriches the offerings of our Northampton teachers and significantly increases the quality of education in our schools.
Candice Tauscher, Coordinator
Volunteers in Northampton Schools, Inc.
c/o RK Finn Ryan Road School
498 Ryan Road Florence, MA 01062
Office Hours are M-Th 8:30am-2:00pm
413.587.1332
5th Grade Trip to Nature's Classroom
Please remind your students that as with any field trip, it is a privilege to be able to go, it is not a right. I have already spoken to several fifth graders about the possibility of not being able to attend due to their behavior. Nature's Classroom has a strict policy around behavior. It is much different than school. They will not tolerate it and will send students home, regardless of the time of day. There have been years when I've had to call parents at 11:00 at night to let them know they have to go pick up their child due to behavior. It is the parent's responsibility to get there child if Nature's Classroom decides to send them home. We want all students to be able to participate, it is a great learning experience and an opportunity to build relationships with each other while exploring the outdoors. However, being able to adhere to the 4 R's at school and at Nature's Classroom is a requirement of this trip.
Thank you in advance for speaking to your children.
Principal's Chats
K-5 Celebration 10/15/18
Late Orders for School Pictures
LATE ORDERS FOR SCHOOL PICTURES
The photo company left an envelope in the office for late orders. If anyone forgot to bring their pictures in on picture day, please feel free to drop them off to Ms. Nicole in the main office!
Important Dates
Oct. 22-26 Half Days everyday for parent/teacher conferences. Dismissal is at 12:20 p.m.
*Day conference times and dates are Mon, Wed, Fri, from 1:00pm-3:00pm. Evening conference times and dates are Tue, Thur, from 6:00pm-8:00pm. All appointments are 20 minutes long.