1st Semester Reflection Well, I can’t believe the first semester is about to come to a close. Great things are happening at Branson Elementary West. During the first semester we welcomed many new students to our building and averaged over 96% for school-wide attendance. In addition, teachers helped align curriculum, design lessons and analyze student instructional data during Friday collaboration to improve student achievement. We also implemented Pirate Time at the end of the day as an extra layer of literacy support and enrichment. Mrs. Doherty, our beloved music teacher, produced two outstanding grade level music programs and performed to a full house each night. Mrs. Matzat conducted a school-wide book study of The Tale of Despereaux, which culminated with a family book night were over 500 people attended to show their support for literacy. Thank you for a great semester of learning and supporting our school. We look forward to a prosperous 2009.
Weather Change The weather has officially changed. Please be sure your child is properly dressed each day before getting on the bus. If the weather is 20 degrees or above, students will be going outside for recess to play and exercise.
Kindness / Compassion Over the past few weeks our Student Character Council has organized a “hygiene drive” for Christian Action Ministries. Students have been bringing in toothpaste, shampoo and deodorant. We hope that this act of kindness continues to root in our students and transfer to other areas of their life. If you can help by donating items, it will be greatly appreciaated.
NWEA – Winter Testing During the week of January 12th, teachers will be administering our Winter NWEA exam in Reading, and during the week of January 19th, teachers will be administering our Math exam. These exams help gage student growth from the begining of the year, providing meaningful information to teachers about which concepts have been mastereed and which need to be revisited. If you’re interested in reviewing your child’s first semester progress, please feel free to contact your classroom teacher for a mid-year parent/teacher conference.
Snow Day Make-up
Just a reminder that if we would have a snow day between now and January 16th, school will be session on January 19th, Martin Luther King Holiday. Making snow days up early provides an extra day of instruction before the state exam and prevents us from having school in June. Thanks for your support.
Christmas Break School will be in session for a full day on Dec. 19th before we adjourn for Christmas Break. School will resume on Monday, January 5, 2009. If you’re traveling over break, please be sure to buckle-up, have fun, rest and get ready for an awesome 2009.
Jan. 12th – Honor Roll Celebration On January 12th, we’ll celebrate our Honor Roll and Principal award recipients for the 2nd quarter at our Monday morning assembly which is scheduled for 9:00 a.m. This is a great time to recognize student achievement and individual character. We hope you can join us.
