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| Student designed and created photo booth. | Soda straw rockets being put to the test. | Exploration with Merge Cubes. |
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| Hissing cockroaches we a tremendous hit! | Testing the design. | Creating memories together. |
Global Day of Play next Wednesday, February 5th
Play has significant psychological and cognitive impact on children.
Positively, play...
- develops physical fitness,
- refines physical (gross motor and fine motor) skills,
- provides practice for social and emotion development (requires cooperation, problem-solving, work in close proximity, requires emotional regulation, etc...)
- at times requires high levels of strategic thinking,
- and assists in developing skills to navigate risk and fear.
In other words, play can be considered the "work" of children.
Current research bears out significant negative impact on a child’s cognitive, social, and emotional development when play, especially unstructured play, is absent from children.
Research findings illustrate that a decline in play is closely correlated to
- a decrease in empathy,
- increase in anxiety and depression,
- a decline in creativity,
- and deficits in socialization skills.
Simply put, Global School Play Day started in 2015 with the intent to set aside one day (or portion of the day) for students to engage in unstructured play. It is an opportunity to introduce and inspire us to consider the necessary benefits of play.
After careful consideration, our staff decided that on Wednesday, February 5th, Boone Meadow will participate in Global School Play Day. This day will provide us the opportunity to:
- observe and interact with students as they engage in authentic social exchanges,
- use this time to witness how your children navigate peer relationships,
- expand our understanding of your child as a person that has academic, social, and emotional aspects of their well-being,
- witness how they interact, show empathy, assist one another, problem-solve, and create
- glean more insight and information in order to provide more feedback to you (parents/guardians) that we are often unable to provide from our typical school day programming.
Our staff was inspired to consider participation when we viewed a TedTalk by Dr. Peter Gray. In this TedTalk, Dr. Gray shares his research on the impact of decreased play. I have provided a link to the TedTalk below. He definitely provides some interesting food for thought.
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BME Kindergarten Round-Up is Wednesday, March 25
ZCS is planning for Kindergarten registration go live the week of February 24th. (Registration links are anticipated to go active on 2/25)
More information to come!
Important Dates
February 5 - Global School Play Day
February 6 - PTO Meeting @ 7:00 (Cafe)
February 7 - 4th Grade Parent Coffee Talk with Matt Doublestein (8:30-9:30) more info to follow
February 14 - Valentine's Day (and parties)
February 17 - Presidents Day (no school)
February 18 - Staff Professional Development Day (no school for students)
February 19 - Dine to Donate at Smoothie King 4:00-8:00
February 29 - Boone Meadow Blast (New Date! Was previously shared as 2/22)
March 4 - PTO Meeting @ 7:00 (Cafe)
March 8 - Daylight savings time
March 18 - Wellness Night
March 20 - Boone Meadow Mixer (evening social for adults @ Golf Club of Indiana)
March 25 - Kindergarten Round-Up
March 27-April 3 - Spring Break
April 13 - PTO Meeting @ 7:00 (Cafe)
May 6 - PTO Meeting @ 7:00 (Cafe)
May 22 - Last Day of School
Dine to Donate 2/19 at Smoothie King
Come and support BME PTO on February 19th 4:00 pm - 8:00 pm at Smoothie King
located at 3704 Whitestown Pky. See you there!
BYOD (bring your own device) Computer Purchase Option
This time of year, the ZCS Technology Department is asked quite often, “what kind of computer should I get my student for the Bring Your Own Device 1:1 program in grades 5th-12th?”
Normally we just give the minimum specs for the computers, but this year we have worked with Lenovo to provide our families with an option to purchase the same device that ZCS uses for the rental program. It will be at the same discounted price ZCS pays ($506), tax free, and shipped to your door with free shipping in 2-3 weeks. If you wish to purchase instead of rent the device we selected as a technology team for its ruggedness and performance, just follow the link below and create an account with Lenovo.
https://www3.lenovo.com/le/1213352583/us/en/1213521421/login
After creating your account, we will approve you as a ZCS resident and you will receive an email from Customer Registration at ecomm.accounts@lenovo.com. After being approved, simply log in, select products, then “laptops and ultrabooks” in the upper left corner to select the only option, the Lenovo ThinkPad 11e 5th Gen. For a full explanation of the process and detailed instructions for ordering, please visit https://www.zcs.k12.in.us/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=1655035&type=d&pREC_ID=1801359.
Texts from SchoolMessenger
From time to time Boone Meadow uses SchoolMessenger to send a text to all of the families. If you haven't been receiving texts from us, you may need to opt-in by sending YES to the SchoolMessenger short code of 68453. Contact Beth Kiel in the front office if you have any questions bkiel@zcs.k12.in.us
Eagle Recreation offerings at Boone Meadow!
For Food Services monthly newsletter and information, click on link below
Nutrition Nuggets publication is focused on elementary aged students, while the Teen Food & Fitness edition is geared towards secondary students.
Community Events See the link to learn more about local events:
Volunteers and Visitor Background Checks
CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECKS FOR VOLUNTEERS
We value partnerships with our families and welcome parents and guardians to serve as volunteers in our schools. Each ZCS building offers a wide variety of volunteer opportunities.
Examples include:
- Field Trip Chaperones
- Out of Town/Overnight Chaperones
- Tutors
- Volunteer Coaches
- Classroom Helpers (PTO parties/room parents)
- Library Helpers
- After Prom Workers
- Field Day/Jog-A-Thon Volunteers
- Book Fair Sales/Athletic Ticket Sales
During the school day, all volunteers are expected to sign in at the front office. Prior to the volunteer opportunity, all volunteers must sign a Non-disclosure Acknowledgement Form and have successfully completed a Full Criminal History Background Check. Necessary background check paperwork is available on the ZCS website at the Volunteers/BRAVO link and should be submitted at least 10 days prior to the intended volunteer date. Volunteers must also view the state mandated confidentiality/bullying video, provided on the Volunteer/BRAVO website. The volunteer will pay the fee* for the full background check which will expire after 5 years. The link to apply for the full background check can be accessed on the Volunteers/BRAVO link on the ZCS main webpage. For more information, contact the Volunteer/BRAVO Coordinator.
CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECKS FOR VISITORS
During the school day, all visitors must enter via the front door and sign-in at the front office. Visitors need to be prepared to present a government issued photo ID which will be scanned against the National Sex Offender Registry. All visitors will be issued a visitor badge/tag to be worn inside the building at all times.
Examples Include:
- Lunch Guests
- Classroom Guest Speakers
- Classroom Special Events (Grandparent Day/Famous Hoosiers/etc.)
- Parent/Teacher Conferences
We ask that all visitors schedule an appointment to meet with teachers, counselors, administrators and all other staff members so that we may best serve everyone. Visitors other than parents/guardians must be prearranged and organized through the main office.
*ZCS thanks all volunteers for generous support of our youth and schools. Thank you, too, for supporting assurance of student and staff safety by completing and paying for a volunteer background check.
