Brackett eNews 3/8/2018

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Brackett eNews

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March 8, 2018

For up to the minute updates please visit the Brackett Website at http://brackettelementary.org and like the Brackett PTO Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/groups/227346734350605/

IN THIS ISSUE:

Brackett Green Team Updates and Upcoming Meetings
Science Fair Posters Due March 14
Volunteer for Brackett STEM Night: Friday, March 16
Spring Concert and Art Exhibit: Friday, March 23
Brackett's Read-a-thon is Coming March 12 - 26
Community Art Show and June Fair Co-Chairs Needed!

Community News:

Kindergarten Registration Begins March 10th
Colonial Day Forum, Monday 3/12
SEPAC Business Meeting, March 13
Parent Forum - Marijuana: The Blunt Truth: Rescheduled to 4/2/18
2018 Registration for Arlington Youth Baseball & Softball Association (A.Y.B.S.A.)
Cause + Event 5K: Support the Brackett PTO
Gibbs Parent Forum: March 14
Gibbs After School Program

SAVE THE DATES
3/16 - Brackett STEM Night
3/23 - Spring Concert & Art Exhibit, 9am
3/30 - NO School, Good Friday

Green Team Updates and Upcoming Meetings

Monday, March 12th - Come join us for planning and to give input!

Brackett GIG (Green Initiatives Group) is looking for input and involvement
from parents as we plan for the spring and next year! There are many ways to
be involved, some on a regular basis, but many others just for a project or
event with minimal time commitment.

We are offering two opportunities for you to meet with us and learn more
about GIG and school Green Teams on Monday, March 12th. The 8:15am meeting will be in the Brackett lunchroom and focused just on Brackett GIG. The 7pm meeting will be at the Robbins Library 4th floor Conference Room with
parents involved in green teams at multiple Arlington schools.

Please rsvp here to attend one or both of these meetings (snacks provided!):

https://doodle.com/poll/8h3fn9gdhnsa8c8m

For more information, please contact GIG (Green Initiatives Group) co-chairs
Rachel Oliveri (rachelboliveri@gmail.com) and Hilary Graham
(hilgraham@aol.com)

Thursday, March 15th - Next Green Team Meeting

The Brackett Green Team started working on our tree creation for Ecofest! We
are excited to share with the community how trees are ecosystem superheroes.
Please join us as we put finishing touches on our tree next Thursday, March
15th after school (2:30-3:30pm) in the Art Room.

Science Fair Posters Due March 14

Dear 4th and 5th Grade Families,

The Science Fair project posters will be due Wed March 14th, and they will be on display in the gym during STEM Night which will be held on Friday March 16th from 6-8 pm. These dates were changed when STEM Night was rescheduled. Please let your children know that they will have another week to complete their science projects.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Thanks,
Atwood Cheung
Brackett PTO STEM Co-Chair
(atwoodcheung@verizon.net)

Volunteer for STEM Night

We want to thank those parents who already signed up to volunteer for STEM night, AKA the coolest night at Brackett. But we still need a few more hands. If you are interested please sign up here: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090949a4ab2aa3fb6-stem
In addition to the activities we told you last week, here are a few more activities you will find at this year’s STEM night:

Light painting
Balloon powered cars
Soapbox derby
Thermo imaging
Hexaflexagons
Chances to win a BOSEbuild Speaker Cube and other prizes
…

Doesn't this sound like an interesting night? Mark your calendars! It is scheduled for Friday, March 16th 2018 from 6-8 pm.
Better yet, you can be part of the team to make this memorable night a success. To signup for a volunteer position, please click this link: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090949a4ab2aa3fb6-stem
If you have any questions, please contact Yaguang Si <ygsi01@gmail.com> or Garret C. Van Dyke Jr. <gvandyke@gmail.com>
Thank you,
Yaguang & Garret

Spring Concert & Art Exhibit: Friday, March 23

Please join us for the Brackett Spring Concert and Art Exhibit. The title this year is: A Song I Heard the Ocean Sing: Music and Art in Celebration of the Sea.

Friday, March 23 at 9:00am in the gym.

Student art exhibits are available for viewing in the lobby before and after the concert.

Brackett's Read-a-Thon is Coming March 12-26

Brackett's read-a-thon begins Monday, March 12th. Students will be encouraged to read as much as they can over the next two weeks. The goal is to develop a love of reading, from the beginning reader to the experienced one. Any kind of reading counts... parents reading to kids, teachers reading to students, picture books, chapter books... we hope students will discover a new habit to pick up a book.

Be on the lookout for the read-a-thon packet coming home in backpacks over the next few days. Questions? Please email the read-a-thon committee at brackettreadathon@gmail.com

Thanks!

Gabi Eisner, Jill Fousek, Mike Buglio and Lynette Cassel

Community Art Show and June Fair Co-Chairs Needed

Two of Brackett's most beloved and anticipated events are in need of co-chairs!

The Community Art Show is Friday, May 4th. We've got some amazing parent volunteers who have already signed up to make promotional materials, hang art, and handle most aspects of the art show. But we need two parents to oversee the volunteers. You do NOT need to have any artistic abilities just a desire to help. You can do most of the job from home, just sending emails to coordinate folks. It's a great group of people. Come be a part of it!

The June Fair is in early June and we're looking for co-chairs and a committee of parents to make this fun event a reality! Time honored games and crafts practically run themselves. We just need some parents to oversee the event. The June Fair is a highlight of the year. We promise you'll have a lot of fun, too.

Please email Catherine Fenollosa cfenollosa@gmail.com or Wendy Buglio wbuglio@gmail.com for more info or to volunteer.

Community News

Kindergarten Registration Begins March 10

If you have an incoming Kindergartener for Fall 2018, please register him/her for school. Kindergarten registration begins March 10th:

http://www.arlington.k12.ma.us/administration/schoolregistration/

Colonial Day Forum: Monday, March 12

As you may be aware, the school district is evaluating its approach to Colonial Days. Among the issues being considered is whether or not to continue the practice of dressing in Colonial costume.

As the community representative on the Brackett School Council I’ve been asked to collect perspectives from the Brackett community on Colonial Days.

Please join me to share your thoughts on Monday, March 12, from 6:30-7:30pm in the Brackett cafeteria. I will compile your reflections, ideas and concerns and present them to the school district.

Parents/Caregivers who are unable to attend the Colonial Day meeting but want to share their comments may email your comments to:
Brackettcommunityrep@gmail.com

I look forward to hearing your perspectives.

Sincerely,
Allen Feinstein
Brackett School Council Community Representative (and former Brackett parent)

Parent Forum - Marijuana: The Blunt Truth

There will be a FREE COMMUNITY FORUM for residents, parents and students in grades 5-12

Marijuana:The Blunt Truth

Rescheduled due to weather. New date: Monday, April 2nd

7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Arlington Town Hall Auditorium

Keynote Speaker: Dr.Marisa Silveri, Director of the Neurodevelopmental laboratory on addictions and mental health at McLean Hospital.

Followed by a panel discussion and Q & A.

Adults and Youth are encouraged to attend this event.

Youth Marijuana Use Prevention Forum.pdf

SEPAC Business Meeting: March 13

Please see the notice for the next SEPAC business meeting scheduled for March 13th, 8:30am, At the Jefferson Cutter House.

This month we welcome The Director of Guidance and Social Emotional Learning, Sara Burd to our meeting.

Arlington Special Education Parent Advisory Committee (SEPAC) is a parent group that acts as a resource for parents and advises the district regarding meeting the needs of students with special needs. We provide support and networking opportunities for parents and guardians of children with special educational needs, offer workshops and guest speakers to help parents become better informed about special education issues and meet regularly with school officials to participate in the planning, development and evaluation of special education programs in town.

Thank You,
Inae Hwang
Arlington SEPAC - Chair

Cause + Event 5K: Support the Brackett PTO

The 5K run/walk, Cause + Event Boston, is coming back to Arlington on Sunday, May 13 (Mother’s Day) at 8:00 am.

C+E Boston is a fun, family-oriented event that celebrates health and wellness, the spirit of philanthropy among the runners, and the work of the nonprofits in our community.

This race is unique – at least 50% of each runners’ registration fee is donated to their charity of choice. You can select the Brackett PTO or your favorite charity. The team with the most runners will get an additional $250 and bragging rights!

Over the past two years, Cause + Event has donated over $1,000 to the Brackett PTO as a part of the $60,000 donated to participants’ selected charities.

The race includes a free kids fun run and activities for the youngest participants. In addition, this is the goal race for the FitGirls program so there will 250+ 4th and 5th grade girls running the 5K. (If your daughter is planning to participate in FitGirls, you will be able to register her for the race through the program.)

Register today at www.causeandeventboston2018.racewire.com. Join the “Brackett Elementary PTO” team when you register and do it soon, last year the race sold out a month early!

Follow C+E Boston on Facebook to see updates on where we stand in the PTO Challenge. You can learn more about the race at the Cause + Event Boston website.

Questions? Feel free to contact Kristin LeClair (kleclair624@gmail.com)

Gibbs Parent Forum: March 14

Hello Gibbs Families,

I hope you and your children have had a great first week back following February break! I am happy to be reaching out with my second email to families. In this email I would like to invite you to our next parent forum! The forum will be held on:
MARCH 14, 2018
7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Stratton School Cafeteria

I have worked over the past few weeks and consulted with the advisory council to build an agenda for our time together. In addition, I have included some resources that will help parents gain some insights on elements we will be using in our programming at Gibbs.

First, you will find a link below that will take you through a tour of the inside of the Gibbs! This tour was for the Permanent Town Building Committee and occurred over February vacation. Please share this tour with your children as well.

http://arlington.wickedlocal.com/news/20180221/video-tour-east-arlingtons-sixth-grade-gibbs-school

Second, I wanted to give you some information about Responsive Classroom and Social emotional learning. I will be using these resources and information at our forum but wanted people to be able to preview the information beforehand if they would like.

SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING (SEL): SEL is the foundation for schools where children feel like they are significant, they belong and they have fun! Below is a link to a wonderful website. The Collaborative for Academic and Social Emotional Learning has some great resources and data around why SEL instruction is imperative for schools today. Please feel free to check out the site below and I invite you to watch the video which you can access from the top of the homepage. https://casel.org/

RESPONSIVE CLASSROOM: Responsive Classroom is one of the ways that teachers will be able to build communities that support social emotional learning. Below you will find the four domains that reference what adults working with children do to help establish these communities.

The Four Key Domains of Responsive Classroom

Engaging Academics: Adults create learning tasks that are active, interactive, appropriately challenging, purposeful, and connected to students' interests.

Positive Community: Adults nurture a sense of belonging, significance, and emotional safety so that students feel comfortable taking risks and working with a variety of peers.

Effective Management: Adults create a calm, orderly environment that promotes autonomy and allows students to focus on learning.

Developmental Awareness: Adults use knowledge of child development, along with observations of students, to create a developmentally appropriate learning environment.

In addition, I wanted to provide a link to some information about Advisory. The Advisory at Gibbs will not be the same as the current Advisory at Ottoson. Below is an explanation of Advisory from the Responsive Classroom site. In addition, here is the link to read about the format that teachers will follow as they implement this component.

“Responsive Advisory Meeting serves as an anchor for adolescents, a predictable routine that students need more than ever as they undergo rapid physical, emotional, and intellectual changes. Advisory provides a space and structure for teachers to support middle school students, both individually and as a group, as they develop their sense of self and identity in connection to their relationships with peers.”

General Information:

The first bell will ring at 7:55 and the last bell will ring at 2:26.
Tuesdays will be a full day of school at Gibbs
We are beginning to organize our library book procurement plan…stay tuned
Construction is on time and that will put us at a finish date of July 31, 2018
There will be two buses that will each have two runs in the morning and two runs in the afternoon. Where possible, stops will be at neighborhood elementary schools. More information to come.

Agenda for Parent Forum:

Building a Social Emotional Responsible School
Academics and Courses
Schedule
Busing
PTO Plan

I am hoping to see many families on the 14th at Stratton School. Have a wonderful weekend. Stay safe and dry!

Kristin DeFrancisco
Gibbs Sixth Grade
Principal

Gibbs After School Program

Dear Incoming 6^th Grade Parents and Guardians,

As you start to think ahead to next year and your incoming middle schooler’s schedule, this is the perfect time to consider the Arlington After-School Program at Gibbs (AASP Gibbs).

Our thriving program runs starting right after school until 6:00pm with the option for your child to walk home or leave at any point up until6:00pm. There is also a ½ day option which includes the homework time and ends at 4:30. The framework of our program mirrors that of our sister program at Ottoson, and is similar to the programs at Thompson and Hardy. As an active part of the Gibbs community, we are very excited to continue our partnership with the incoming principal Mrs. DeFrancisco. We will work with the teachers and staff to provide a consistent environment for our students.

Our schedule starts off with some time to unwind and socialize with friends. We offer both physical activities as well as a quiet space and art projects. At 3:30pm our students have a homework check-in to ensure they have the support they need to succeed. We provide homework help from our teachers and college interns. We offer help with both specific homework questions as well as support for the higher executive functioning skills expected from the students. Students have the chance to use the Media Center (Gibbs’s equivalent of a library) throughout the day for homework. We offer a second chance to let off some energy with a game or physical activity from 4:30pm-5:30pm for students who need a break or have finished their homework. And we have a “game of the day” which is always a hit.

We ensure our students have plenty of chances to get school work support while also respecting their need for socialization, down-time, snacks and other activities to engage them.

If you are looking for a vibrant, dynamic, structured program to help your Middle Schooler after school hours sign up today for AASP.

Registration Packet Below

2018-2019 RegistrationPacket-Gibbs.docx