Bruneau Elementary Newsletter
January Issue 7
Upcoming Events
February 9th School Board Meeting
February 11th BES Winter Carnival 5:30-9:00
February 13th Teacher Inservice
February 14th BES Community Valentine's Singing
BSU Science & Engineering Festival
The BSU Engineering & Science Festival is a FREE event Saturday, February 4th, for all ages with a wide variety of engaging activities designed for K-12 students and their family.
COME AND GO ANYTIME BETWEEN 9AM-4PM, WE SUGGEST YOU COME EARLY TO GET THE BEST OF THE ENGINEERING & SCIENCE FESTIVAL!
Snow Days & Delayed Start
1. The district monitors ongoing weather forecasts from a variety of meteorological forecasts.
2. If snow is in the forecast, ranging from Mtn. Home to Murphy, the Superintendent and Transportation Director wake at 4:00 am in order to determine the conditions of the district bus routes. BGV has 4 routes that cover Oreanna to the Elmore County line - a 40 mile difference in weather and road conditions.
3. Bus drivers in the area report conditions to the transportation director, based on their locations (Bruneau, Grand View, Oreanna).
4. The Superintendent reviews all available information and makes the final decision.
5. If a delay or cancellation is to be implemented, staff will receive notification no later than 6:00 am. Notifications are sent to local media agencies and posted on the district website and social media outlets.
*In rare cases it is possible for the district to make a decision the evening before for the next day. When that happens, families will be notified between 9-10pm.
*If schools are cancelled for the day, all after school activities and events are cancelled.
Delayed Start
On occasion, the district will implement a delayed start rather than canceling school. Delayed start allows the District to record and report school attendance for the day, while still allowing additional time for staff and students to arrive at school safely.
When school is on a delayed start morning:
*Administration and secretaries arrive at school during their regularly scheduled time, to help field phone calls and questions from the community.
*Bus pickup and school start times are delayed 2hrs. This means that families should have their students at the usual bus stop, 2hrs after their usual pickup time.
*Students go straight to their classrooms upon arrival, no breakfast is served. Elementary students start their classes with whatever activity is on their routine schedule for 10:00. Rimrock students report to their 1st hr class and will be on a reduced class schedule.
*Afternoon dismissal times are the same as usual, unless otherwise announced.
Because the BGV school district busing program serves so many square miles, conditions vary greatly from one end of the district to the other. We strive to keep all students safe while they're in our care.
Valentine Grams
Valentine Grams!
The Bruneau Elementary Staff has put together fun Valentine Grams that parents and students can order. The treats will be delivered to the students Tuesday, February 14th. We will also deliver to Grand View Elementary and Rimrock if you would like to send someone a fun Valentine surprise!
Please return order forms and money by Friday, February 3rd.
If you would like to keep your order a surprise, please put order forms and money in an envelope and write “Valentine Grams” on the front.
Thank you!
VALENTINE GRAMS
*Add a helium Mylar Balloon to any valentine gram for $1.50
#1 – $2.50 Have a HEROIC day!
*Includes a stretchy flying Superhero, glider, punch balloon & a lollipop!
#2 – $3.00 You’re a friend I’d never LEGO of!
*Includes Lego pack, disc shooter, gummy candy & lollipop!
#3 – $4.00 You LIGHT UP my day!
*Includes finger beam light, glow sticks, light up bouncy ball & Pop Rocks!
#4 – $2.50 I think you are just WRITE!
*Includes Valentine notepads, arrow pencil, heart pen & a Fun Dip!
#5 – $3.00 HEART breaker!
*Includes a heart necklace, heart tattoos, heart sticky hand & a heart Ring Pop!
#6 – $4.00 I’m over the RAINBOW for you!
*Includes a pair of rainbow sunglasses, swirl lip gloss & a swirl lollipop!
#7 – $2.00 Totally CRUSHING on you!
*Includes a Crush pop and Valentine straw!
#8 – $2.00 Is it HOT in here, or is it just you?!
*Includes a bag of Takis and Hot Tamales!
#9 – $2.00 Happy Valentine’s Day!
*One helium mylar balloon attached to a Valentine Treat!
Winter Carnival Baskets
Bruneau's Winter Carnival will be Saturday, February 11th.
Please send in items to help fill our Winter Carnival Baskets. Monetary donations are also accepted.
Pre-K Idaho Basket
K/1 Building Basket
2/3 Road Trip Basket
4/5 STEAM Basket
K/1 Miss Wampler
Eating a Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwich
Making our sandwiches
Enjoy!
2/3 Ms Prucker
The students have done wonderful getting back into the swing of things after so many snow days. In social studies we completed another round of state projects. It was very interesting to see what they knew about the southern states. Some states we knew more about than others. They created posters about their states to show us what they already knew before we even started our research. For North Carolina the only thing that group could think of was that it was North of South Carolina. I love it when they think outside the box.
In science we are learning about the ocean. I think this is our favorite habitat so far. They already know so much about the deep ocean animals and the ocean layers that we are going to be able to go into more detail than we have on some of our other habitats. They are still very curious and came up with numerous interesting questions for us to answer.
I want to thank all the families who have sent in items for our Winter Carnival basket so far. I appreciate your help. The theme for our basket is a road trip. The goal is to have things that would be fun to have on a road trip or would make the trip possible. Games for the car, movies to watch on the trip, cash that can go towards gift cards are all items that would be helpful. We’ve been discussing different options in class so your children can give you great ideas for the basket as well.
4/5 Mrs. Kangas-Hanes
The Inauguration of a New President
After following the election season of 2017and a study of the three branches of the United States government the 4th and 5th GRRRR-Raiders watched intently as Donald J. Trump was inaugurated and became America’s 45th President.
We watched a live feed as dignitaries gathered and our country made a peaceful transition between leaders that had, at their core, diverse beliefs and opinions about how our country should be governed.
As we viewed, the students were discouraged from speaking so that they could hear remarks, view the Oath, and listen to the pomp. The students were given sticky notes on which they placed questions, which we will answer over the course of the next couple of weeks. This viewing was the culmination of a unit about American government that targeted firing within our students the belief and commitment of citizens of a national community and instilled the importance of actively participating in our republic.
When the Inauguration was over, we were shocked at the number of questions, comments, and unknown terms the class generated. Some of the wonderings were: Does the Trump children inherit the Presidency; What limits are placed on a person who wants to run for President; Why does the President take an Oath with a hand on the Bible; When does the President go to work; Why were there so many people singing; How do the people see the President when they stand so far away? Below is a picture of our white board with their “sticky questions”. It was inspiring to see how deeply and thoughtfully our children experienced this miracle of our nation and her people.
Art Mrs. Pearson
In art class, students K-3 created paper weavings, using their painted paper as the "loom". This project was a fun way to exercise fine motor skills and stick-with-it-ness.
Earlier this year, students in 2nd-5th grade studied the artist and naturalist John Audubon, and his beautiful portraits of bird species found around the U.S. After learning about the various types of owls found in our own home state of Idaho, we drew both realistic and "cartoon" versions of owls. Look for our cartoon owls perched in the tree by gym doors!
Music Ms. Volk
Since the return from winter break, Ms. Volk’s music room has been hard at work mastering and experiencing rhythms. Ms. Wampler’s kindergarteners are finally catching up to their first grade friends and beginning to read rhythms. The K/1 class is also testing on whether or not they can hear high and low. The 2nd and 3rd graders are in a unit about rhythm words; they are making literacy connections by matching words to rhythms and creating “rhythm sentences”. Coming up for Ms. Prucker’s class is also a lot of dancing to work on movement skills! Mrs. Hanes’s 4th and 5th graders are doing a similar rhythm project but with more words to choose from. Other units for the 4/5 class at Bruneau this spring include learning about different instrument families and mastering more notes on recorder.