2 Parsons Street

Northampton, Massachusetts 01060

413-587-1460 (phone) 413-587-1474 (fax)

Dr. Beth N. Choquette, Principal bchoquette@northamtpon-k12.us

Elizabeth Peterson, Administrative Assistant epeterson@northampton-k12.us

Jordan Celino, Secretary jcelino@northampton-k12.us

Nora DeJasu, Head Teacher ndejasu@northampton-k12.us

Would you like this news letter translated? Here are the steps to have it translated:

At the top of the weekly email, there's a link that reads "View it in your browser," click that and it takes you to the post on a webpage.

Scroll to the bottom where there's a black menu bar and pick the option that says "Translate."

Select the language you would like it translated in and it will then translate it on the webpage.

Le gustaría traducir esta carta de noticias? Aquí están los pasos para traducirlo:

En la parte superior del correo electrónico semanal, hay un enlace que dice "Verlo en su navegador", haga clic en eso y lo llevará a la publicación en una página web.

Desplázate hacia la parte inferior donde hay una barra de menú negra y elige la opción que dice "Traducir".

Seleccione el idioma en el que desea traducirlo y luego lo traducirá en la página web.

It is the vision of Bridge Street School to promote educational excellence and equity for ALL students. Promoting educational excellence and equity will prepare and motivate students to be engaged learners and critical thinkers who strive for high academic achievement, listen to all perspectives, value the multicultural and diverse world we live in, and actively participate in eliminating racial and social injustices so that all people are able to reach their full potential.

Bridge Street School’s faculty and staff, caregivers, and community are committed to providing educational excellence and equity to its students by challenging the injustices that create barriers to high academic achievement, to access and opportunities to learn, to high-quality teaching and learning, and to a climate of belonging. This commitment to educational equity, where all children are successful regardless of their personal, social, or cultural contexts, is at the core of our practices, structures, and policies.

Good morning, I hope you all are having a nice weekend.

Please take the time to read this week's weekly carefully, as there is an update to the masking requirements/protocols. Please read Dr. Provost's and Lisa Safron's letter below for the details. Although we are moving to masks being optional in most cases, there will still be students and staff who are not yet comfortable with the mask off. I ask that you please speak to your children about respecting everyone's decision. No student or adult should feel pressured into not wearing a mask. There are a variety of reasons why people will make the choice that they do and we need to respect that and not ask why they made their choice. I also realize that having masks be optional in most cases will make many students and families anxious and worried. Please know that we will still continue to keep 3 feet of distance when possible and will continue to frequently wash hands and teach students to cough or sneeze in their elbows as we always do. If any of you have children who may be anxious about the mask option, please reach out to me or Laurie Sperry and we will be happy to talk with them. Your child's safety is our number one priority.

I am happy to announce that we can have normal field trips again and a normal field day! Additionally, students are allowed to play GaGa once again beginning on Monday at recess. It feels good to get back to some sort of normalcy, but we also need to "proceed with caution" as we know things can change, which is why we are encouraging all students and staff to keep or have a supply of masks handy if we need to use them again.

I will be holding a Principal's Chat from 2:30-3:15 on Tuesday the 29th outside. It will be sunny and in the 30's with a breeze. Bring something warm to drink and let's enjoy our time together talking about whatever we need to.

MCAS testing for grades 3-5 begins on Tuesday. Please make sure students are well rested and have a good breakfast (or they can eat at school) so they have the energy to focus and do their best. The tests are nothing to get anxious over, students should know that the data from the tests give us good information about curriculum, standards, and where we may need to change our teaching practices. If you have any questions about the tests, please don't hesitate to reach out. I have attached the testing schedule below.

Finally, Monday and Tuesday are supposed to only be in the 20's and 30's and windy. Please make sure students are dressed in their winter coats, hats, and gloves. Some of them are coming without coats and asking to stay in for recess because they are cold. We go outside a lot, not just for recess. I know the weather can be tricky this time of year, one day it's 70 and the next it's 30. That's New England for you :)

Take care and have a great rest of the day.

Please see the attached documents for last weeks Covid-19 numbers.

5th Grade Nature Week: May 9-13, 2022

5th Grade Promotion Ceremony: Thursday, June 23, 2022 (24th rain date)

Dear BSS Families, (Mensaje en español abajo)

Don’t miss the chance to catch up with Principal Choquette at her upcoming Principal’s Chat on Tuesday, March 29 from 2:30-3:15 PM on the playground. Bring your questions and curiosity!

We’re thrilled to be launching BSS Kids Zootopia. As a way to get to know all the fab students of BSS we’re inviting you to submit a brief video introducing your favorite stuffie or pet. We’ll compile these into a gorgeous video that showcases all the sweetness and creativity of our student body. Learn more and submit your video here!

There is still plenty of time to purchase books and other items through the BSS High Five virtual book fair! Visit the special BSS Book Fair Link through March 21st and a portion of the proceeds from your purchases will be donated to the BSS PTO! This is also a great opportunity to support our teachers and our library by buying items from the Wish Lists on the Book Fair page! And in further support of our teachers, the PTO plans to help build classroom libraries with the money raised from this fundraiser!

You can always stay connected to your BSS pals through the family directory. You can find contact info for your classmates here with password bridgestreet21-22. If you don’t see your info, or need to update it, feel free to reach out to president@bsspto.org.

Thanks for all you do!
Your PTO

Queridas familias de BSS,

A medida que el clima cambia con COVID-19, nuestro comité escolar está explorando el mandato actual de la máscara dentro de nuestras escuelas. Comparta sus pensamientos tomando esta breve encuesta antes de la reunión del comité escolar de este jueves!

¡La próxima ronda de clases BASE está abierta para la inscripción! Revise todas las ofertas aquí y devuelva las hojas de inscripción a la oficina antes de este viernes, 18 de marzo. No dudes en ponerte en contacto con el coordinador de BASE, Greg Kerstetter, si tienes alguna pregunta.

No se pierda la oportunidad de ponerse al día con la directora Choquette en su próxima charla con la directora el martes, 29 de marzo de 2:30-3:15 PM en el patio de recreo. ¡Traiga sus preguntas y su curiosidad!

Estamos encantados de lanzar BSS Kids Zootopia. Como una forma de conocer a todos los estudiantes fabulosos de BSS estamos invitando a presentar un breve video presentando su stuffie favorito o mascota. Los recopilaremos en un magnífico vídeo que muestre toda la dulzura y creatividad de nuestro alumnado. Para más información y para enviar tu vídeo, haz clic aquí.

¡Todavía hay mucho tiempo para comprar libros y otros artículos a través de la feria virtual de libros de BSS High Five! ¡Visite el enlace especial de la Feria del Libro de BSS hasta el 21 de marzo y una parte de las ganancias de sus compras será donada al PTO de BSS! ¡Esta es también una gran oportunidad para apoyar a nuestros maestros y nuestra biblioteca mediante la compra de artículos de las listas de deseos en la página de la Feria del Libro! Y en apoyo de nuestros maestros, el PTO planea ayudar a construir bibliotecas de aula con el dinero recaudado de esta recaudación de fondos!

Siempre puedes estar conectado con tus compañeros de BSS a través del directorio familiar. Puedes encontrar la información de contacto de tus compañeros aquí con la contraseña bridgestreet21-22. Si no ves tu información, o necesitas actualizarla, no dudes en ponerte en contacto con president@bsspto.org.

¡Gracias por todo lo que hacen!
Su PTO

Traducción realizada con la versión gratuita del traductor www.DeepL.com/Translator

SAVE THE DATES

• Tuesday, April 12 at 2:30 PM - PTO Meeting
• Tuesday, May 10at 6:00 PM - PTO Meeting
• Tuesday, June 14 at 2:30 PM - PTO Meeting

Link to District Calendar

YOUR PTO BOARD

• Ayana Morse (third and fourth-grade parent) and Cait Mahoney (third-grade and kindergarten parent): Co-presidents
• KeriAnne Gaffney (fourth-grade parent): Treasurer
• Sienna Baskin (first-grade parent): Clerk

It is our hope as a board that Bridge Street School continues to be a warm, fun, loving, and safe environment for the children, teachers, and staff. If you have any ideas on how to keep building and strengthening this community, don’t be shy! Come to a meeting or introduce yourself to us on the playground. Feel free to be in touch to president@bsspto.org.

March 29: MCAS begin for grades 3-5; Principal's Chat 2:30-3:15 on the playground

April 18-22: No School-Spring Break

Welcome to our first volume of the NPS Elementary Curriculum Corner!I In this monthly newsletter, we will share curriculum news, offer a view into a different grade levels and curriculum, and share the many reasons we are grateful for the amazing NPS educators and all of the joy and learning taking place among the wonderful students in our schools!

Newsletter Link:

https://www.smore.com/4c1m2-nps-elementary-curriculum-corner?ref=email-content#w-5799051425

_________________________________

I provided some resources below both for educators and caregivers to help with discussing different types of disabilities with your students/children. At Bridge Street School work hard every day to create an inclusive environment where all students feel cared for, loved, and that they belong. Please use these resources to talk with your children about different types of disabilities and how they can be advocates for those who may learn, act, and look different than they do. A caregiver shared a link to the book and guide for, We Move Together, which I also included below. Thank you.

https://www.learningforjustice.org/classroom-resources/lessons/what-is-a-disability

https://www.learningforjustice.org/sites/default/files/general/tt_learning_about_disabilities.pdf

https://www.learningforjustice.org/the-moment/july-13-2021-celebrate-disability-pride-month

https://wemovetogether.ca/

https://wemovetogether.ca/resources/WMT-LearningGuide-v01.pdf

We encourage everyone to be vaccinated - and to be up to date with their booster shot.

Walk-in COVID Vaccine March 2022 -- Pfizer (age 5+), Moderna, and J&J

Elks Lodge

17 Spring Street in Florence

Mondays 2-6pm &

Fridays 10am-2pm

and

Thornes Marketplace

150 Main Street in Northampton

Thursdays 2-6pm &

Saturdays* 12-3pm

*March 12, 19, & 26

We are coordinating home visits for COVID vaccine (boosters or first/second doses) to homebound individuals in Hampshire County.

If you are someone or know someone who would require a home visit to receive a dose of COVID vaccine, please use THIS link to send us some basic contact information. A nurse from our team will follow up with a more detailed phone call to gather information about previous vaccine doses and scheduling information.

Again, for home visits, use this link or https://forms.gle/5sH5NzRrcYnqwTNx9

We will follow up with individuals and typically be able to provide a home visit within about a week, sometimes sooner.

Please keep your guard up against COVID.

Katherine E. L. Kelly, MPH, MSN, CNP

(she/her)

Public Health Nurse

City of Northampton Health Department

kkelly@northamptonma.gov

COVID Vaccine Clinic Information:

https://www.northamptonma.gov/2219/Vaccine-Clinics

Direct office line: 413-587-1216

Mobile (google voice): 413-341-6716

Main Health Dept Line: 413-587-1214

Link to district website re: State At-Home Covid Testing Consent/Information

https://northamptonschools.org/additional-covid-screening-options-consent-needed/