March Bowlesburg Newsletter
Staff Spotlight
This month, let’s shine our spotlight on our incredible school social worker, Mrs. Autumn Fahnestock. Bowlesburg staff has chosen Mrs. Autumn Fahnestock as our staff member of the month. This is Mrs. Fahnestock’s first year at Bowlesburg and she has already made quite an impact in our school community. Mrs. Fahnestock is a member of the Crisis Response Team at Bowlesburg and is responsible for delivering Social Emotional Lessons to our high needs students. She also serves on the SEL SIT. Mrs. Fahnestock goes above and beyond her job expectations every day. Below are a few areas in which Mrs. Fahnestock helps out and comments from staff who recognized her for her hard work and dedication:
Secured mats and bean bag chairs for the Calming Room
Provides extra support to Administration in duty areas beyond what is expected
Provides additional lessons in the SLC room for students
“Autumn goes above and beyond to provide support not only for the students she services but also her co-workers. She is a very attentive listener and is always willing to provide ideas and support for kiddos that may need it. We are fortunate to have her as a resource at Bowlesburg.”
“Autumn has built great relationships with students and is always willing to help out in any way that she can. She puts her all into her job.”
“Communication, collaboration, and dedicated”
“Autumn is very helpful and supportive when it comes to students and staff. She is someone I can always open up and talk to about anything. She interacts with our children every chance she gets.”
“Our student’s are always her first priority. She is gentle and kind and works well with others in the building.”
We are very fortunate to have Mrs. Fahnestock as a member of our Bowlesburg Family. Thank you Mrs. Fahnestock for everything you do and Congratulations on your award!
Supporting Your Student at Home
The Conscious Discipline Brain State Model
Conscious Discipline empowers us to be conscious of brain-body states in ourselves and children. It then provides us with the practical skills we need to manage our thoughts, feeling and actions.
With this ability to self-regulate, we are then able to teach children to do the same. By doing this, we help children who are physically aggressive (survival state) or verbally aggressive (emotional state) become more integrated so they can learn and use problem-solving skills (executive state). When we understand the brain state model, we can clearly see the importance of building our homes, schools and businesses on the core principles of safety, connection and problem-solving.
Survival State
Survival State asks the question, “Am I safe?”
THE ONLY WAY TO SOOTHE THE SURVIVAL STATE IS THROUGH THE CREATION OF SAFETY.
In a survival state where we feel triggered by threat, these skills are flight, fight or surrender. We can’t think clearly when a tiger is chasing us. In the modern world, the tiger may be a disrespectful child, but our brain’s evolutionary skill set is the same: fight, flight or surrender.
Emotional State
Emotional State asks the question “Am I loved?”
THE ONLY WAY TO SOOTHE AN UPSET EMOTIONAL STATE IS THROUGH THE CREATION OF CONNECTION.
Emotional State is our response to upset – and can only be soothed through connection. An upset emotional state is triggered by the world not going our way. It limits our ability to see from another’s point of view. This upset, unconscious state keeps us on autopilot so our words and tone match those of key authority figures from our childhood. We revert to disciplining the same ways we were disciplined, even if we know these behaviors to be ineffective or hurtful.
Executive State
Executive State asks the question, “What can I learn?”
THE EXECUTIVE STATE IS THE OPTIMAL STATE OF PROBLEM-SOLVING AND LEARNING.
Conscious Discipline empowers us to be conscious of brain-body states in ourselves and children. It then provides us with the practical skills we need to manage our thoughts, feeling and actions. With this ability to self-regulate, we are able to teach children to do the same. By doing this, we help children who are physically aggressive (survival state) or verbally aggressive (emotional state) become more integrated so they can learn and use problem-solving skills (executive state). When we understand the brain state model, we can clearly see the importance of building our homes, schools and businesses on the core principles of safety, connection and problem-solving.
Executive State is the optimal state for problem-solving and learning. As we learn to regulate and integrate our internal state to be one of relaxed alertness, we are able access our own brilliance. We are empowered to change and make wise choices. An integrated executive state frees us from past conditioning, attunes us to the feelings and experiences of others, enables us to remain focused enough to set and achieve goals, and allows us to consciously respond instead of automatically react to life events.
5Essentials Parent Survey
Please click on the following link or scan the QR code below to complete the survey
From the PTA
- The next PTA meeting will be Tuesday, April 9th at 6:00 p.m. in the library.
- Restaurant Night Fundraisers:
- Tuesday, March 26th 4:00-8:00 p.m. at Godfathers Pizza.
- Tuesday, April 23rd 5:00-8:00 p.m. at Culver's.
Birthday Snacks and School Wellness Policy
If you or your student is planning to bring snacks to school, please follow the District Wellness Policy.
In accordance with the Wellness Policy:
1. ALL SNACKS PROVIDED AT SCHOOL WILL COMPLY WITH THE FEDERAL SMART SNACK GUIDELINES This means that we have to make sure that we are giving students healthy items such as: *fruits and vegetables *low sugar snacks *low fat snacks
2. ALL SNACKS/TREATS BROUGHT INTO THE SCHOOLS MUST BE PREPACKAGED (no homemade treats). Due to the increase in severe food allergies, all food must not only comply with the Smart Snack guidelines but they must also be packaged with a listing of ingredients. Fruits and vegetables do not have to follow this guideline. Healthy snacks are available to purchase from the Food Service Office on the district website.
3. WE ARE MOVING AWAY FROM USING FOOD AS INCENTIVES and FOODS FOR CELEBRATIONS. We want our students to know that celebrating a birthday doesn’t have to mean treats. It can be as simple as a teacher offering a special activity for that child to celebrate a birthday. Please see our website for more information regarding our new wellness initiatives.
Calendar of Events
- March 11th -15th - Spring Break
- March 22nd - End of 3rd Quarter
- March 26th - PTA Fundraiser at Godfather's Pizza 4:00-8:00 p.m.
- March 29th - No School
- April 1st - No School
- April 9th - Early Dismissal at 11:30 a.m.
- April 9th - PTA Meeting 6:00 p.m.
- April 10th - No School
- April 23rd - PTA Fundraiser at Culver's 5:00-8:00 p.m.