Bruneau Elementary Newsletter
January 2021
Upcoming Events
Tuesday, February 9th School Board Meeting
Friday, February 19th Teacher InserviceThursday, March 11th End of 3rd Quarter
Thursday, March 12th Teacher Inservice
WIDA Assessment - February 1-4 and 8-11
WIDA Assessment
Students who are considered EL (English Learners) will be participating in our WIDA ACCESS Assessment. English Learners take the ACCESS each year to determine their level of English language proficiency and growth. Results from this assessment do not affect students' grades. It is used to help our school make determinations regarding planning, instruction, and services to best support our students. If you have any questions regarding this assessment, please contact Patty Dalrymple, Federal Programs Director.
A Note from The Principal
Happy New Year BGV Families!
Have you ever thought about how you deal with failure? Do you see mistakes as a part of the process of learning, or do you feel mistakes verify who you are? If you were learning to ride a bike for the first time and fell over, would you stand up, dust yourself off, and try again, or would you say, “I’m just not meant to ride a bike” and move on to something else?
Carol Dweck, a professor of psychology at Stanford University and author of the book Mindset, talks about two mindsets that define how we respond to struggle in our lives. Some people have a “fixed mindset”, believing that their ability cannot change through any power of their own. Others have a “growth mindset”, recognizing that their efforts can change the outcome. Here’s some common language of fixed and growth mindsets:
The mindset with which we approach learning can drastically change our ability to learn. If we approach learning expecting that failures will happen and we won’t get it the first time, we actually set ourselves up to be better prepared to handle the failure when it arrives. It’s easier to get back up and try again when falling down is already thought to be part of the process.
We sometimes don’t realize that the way we talk to our children can actually impact the mindset they have towards learning.
This month, take a moment to reflect on how you talk to your children when they fail and when they succeed. Are you talking about their ability (fixed mindset) or their ability to have grit, put in good effort, and learn from mistakes (growth mindset)? Check out this clip from Dweck’s website about the different types of praise:
K/1 Miss Wamper
2/3 Mrs. Graham
Happy January! I hope you all had a nice, relaxing break! This month, our kiddos have been working hard on getting back into the groove of reading stories and answering questions about them. 3rd grade is getting ready for the ISAT. They have been answering practice questions and took their first practice ISAT. They are AWESOME about using their grit and trying their best. In math, 3rd grade finished their unit about finding area and just started learning about fractions. 2nd grade is working on adding and subtracting 3-digit numbers. Our 2nd semester is off to a wonderful start!
4/5 Mrs. Pearson
In math, 4th grade is learning to multiply 3 and 4 digit numbers and how to make a mixed number from an improper fraction. 5th grade is learning to multiply and divide fractions and decimals.
In reading class, one 4th grade group is reading the novel, “The Wild Robot”, and the other group is reading all about natural wonders of the world, such as the Mariana Trench, Mount Everest, and the Grand Canyon. In 5th grade we are reading fiction and non-fiction stories about the Westward Expansion Movement, so we decided a fun afternoon follow up would be to play the retro computer game, The Oregon Trail.
Last week, our class had a surprise. A group of students from Rimrock came to eat lunch in the classroom with all of our 4th and 5th grade students and to play a game of basketball at recess. They came with the purpose of encouraging good sportsmanship and friendship. Everyone really enjoyed their visit!
January Cape Run
January's students are: Roan Folkman, Carlos Juarez, Waylon Ward, and Clancy Black.
January Student's of The Month
K/1 Weston Marney
2nd Grade Waylon Ward
3rd Grade Carlos Juarez
Valentine Grams
Please order your Valentine Grams by Monday, February 1st
We also deliver to Grand View Elementary and Rimrock if you would like to send someone a fun Valentine surprise.