Bird's Eye View

Hello Larries Community,

Welcome to the March edition of the Bird’s Eye View, our community digital newsletter. Each month we will continue to:

1. Give you small snapshots of the great things that are happening here at SLC.

2. Ask for a little help with somethings to make our school/community the most productive we can be.

Our hope is you will continue to follow us every month, so we can continue to connect our great community with the students, staff, and programs that are here to help maximize our students’ futures.

Budget creation season is here. We have spent the past few months collecting data on both projected expenses, and revenues for the next school year. More information will be shared over the next few months.

A few reminders of important educational dates:

• Thursday, March 7th is UPK Information Night at 5:30 pm at the Elementary School. Please be aware that the selection process for full vs. half day slots must be done by “lottery”. All information needs to be in by May 31 to be included in the June 1 lottery.

• Thursday, March 14 is a Half Staff Development Day for all Pre-K-12 Staff. Students in grades 5-12 will be dismissed at 11:30 am and all Pre-K-4 students will be dismissed at 12:30 pm.

• Friday, March 15, is a Full Day Regional Staff Development Day. This means no school for students, as staff will be off around the county and in-house working to better themselves in their profession.

A few shout outs and reminders:

• Congratulations to all those that have been recognized in this March issue for the outstanding work you are doing both here and at BOCES!

• What can we say about the Drama Club’s presentation of Fiddler on the Roof this past weekend, AMAZING! Congratulations to all of our students, staff, and parents that participated in any way during the creation and production of this great show. It was another excellent production that shows the diversity of our students and staff here at SLC!

• To our student athletes & coaches: We appreciate the efforts you all made in the month of February and during the winter playoff season. Congratulations to our girls' varsity basketball team for making it to the Class C Championship game, and to our boys' varsity hockey team for winning the Division II Section X Championship at Cheel arena! High praise to all students, coaches, and teams that received team and/or individual academic, sportsmanship, and athletic awards at the end of the season. Dates and times for upcoming Spring sporting events can be found on our district website and app.

• A reminder to all families with a little one turning school age. Both Pre-K and Kindergarten registrations begin this month. Please be on the lookout for the information, and get your child(ren) registered sooner than later.

• March 1st was National Maintenance Worker Appreciation Day. We would like to thank Dwayne Bond, Mark Allen, and Justin Moreau for the hours they put into maintaining our school buildings and grounds.

• It is that time of year when we are again asking for anyone wishing to substitute (teachers, aides, cafeteria staff, cleaners) in our district to please reach out to 315-389-5131 ex. 29108 for more information.

An ask for help:

• To parents and guardians, each time you receive a progress report and a report card via mail or digitally, would you please do me one big favor? If a teacher makes a comment on the report, and asks you to please schedule a parent/teacher conference, then please take that seriously, and do so ASAP.

• A parent/teacher conference does not always have to be in a room filled with all of your child’s teachers, principal, and counselor, (although sometimes that is what is best). A conference can be done via email, or a phone call, or even a Zoom meeting with those whom you wish to speak to. The comment, “please schedule a parent/teacher conference”, is NOT meant to intimidate, but is an early warning sign that we need your help to better understand your child’s needs. YOU are the expert when it comes to your children and we know that, which is why we request to see or hear from you as soon as possible. Thank you in advance, as our partnerships need to be strong!

Thank you for your continued support of our great district!

Christopher Rose

Superintendent

Dear SLC Middle and High School Parents,

In our last Bird's Eye View newsletter, we talked about vaping at school and the harmful effects that it, and other ATOD (alcohol, tobacco and other drug use), can have on our kids. Below is some information from the Seaway Valley Prevention Council based on their findings from the whole county. There are also two graphs from our school that show increases in use of energy drinks, marijuana, e-cigarettes, and cigarettes from past years. You will see increases in risk on the second graph.

We encourage you to keep the positive conversations with your children going, so they are building healthy habits. We shared information on negative effects on teens from using nicotine. There is an increase in use of energy drinks in our district that you will see on the first graph, and the high levels of caffeine consumption can also have harmful effects on our students.

In the summary provided by Seaway Valley Prevention Council on our individual student responses, several positive changes were highlighted from SVPC including:

• The top two reasons that students report as reasons they don’t use (protective factors) are opportunities to be involved in school and rewards for being involved in school. Woohoo! You’re making school a fun and interactive environment for your students.

• Lifetime substance use rates are DOWN among all substances and across all grades. That is the FIRST time we have ever seen that.

We learned that there are several areas where we can continue to educate and advocate:

• A great deal of students are still drinking and using marijuana at home with their parents' permission or at their friends’ homes with their parents’ permission.

• Students are still beginning to use at a very young age, with the average age of first use being 13 years old.

If you would like additional information regarding how the school can help your child connect with substance abuse concerns, please reach out to their school counselor or Seaway Valley Prevention Council at www.svpc.net.

Online Social Media Help:

We have had parents continuously reach out about online related issues. Often, these issues occur after school and on the weekends when staff at school may not be available. We thought it would be important to relay to you some important information:

Here's how you can help!

1. Please report pages/posts etc. that have inappropriate or negative content. Often, we cannot tell who is posting these things, but if enough people report them, it will hopefully come down. All social media outlets have locations to select “report.” This is a good first step.

2. Do WHAT IS RIGHT! Stop sharing and participating and engaging with other students who are mean to others. Let's spread some kind online social media!

3. If you notice that others are not being nice, tell an adult.

4. STOP saying you are messing around when you are doing the wrong thing and being mean. You are being mean! That is how the cycles start and we have conflict that comes from it.

5. If others are not being nice to you online, block them.

Even after the amount we try to educate students at school, we still have recently been made aware of issues with students who are friending strangers online, sending pictures of themselves online and purchasing vapes online. We also have many students who are up very late at night messaging, gaming or calling others, and are coming into school unrested when their parents think they are sleeping. We want students to be in school, ready to learn and feeling well.

It really does take a community, and if we all band together, then the students that are being unkind online will be alone, and won't have an audience.

Progress Reports:

The end of our 5 weeks for Progress Reports is Friday, March 8th. If your child is struggling, please encourage them to stay after for help with teachers. Parents will be able to view progress report grades on Schooltool, and can currently see assignment grades to monitor how your child is doing so far.

Middle School State Testing:

• April 11-12 (Make-up April 25-26) - ELA CBT 3-8
• April 22-23 (Make-up April 25-26) - Math CBT 3-8
• April 30 (Make-up May 2) - Science CBT 5 & 8

High School Testing:

*Please note: SLC administers exams at 8:15 AM and 12:15 PM in place of the times designated on the NYS calendar below.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact your building principal.

Mrs. Zender and Mrs. LaBarge

Happy March, SLC!

Please find some helpful information below for parents and students by grade level:

Grade 12: New scholarships are coming each month, so please stop to see what is available! Senior scholarship packets will be coming out in April in ELA classes. Additionally, the senior scholarship binder is always available in the guidance office. Please stop down and check it out!

Grade 11: Junior scholarship packets will be coming out soon. These scholarships are school-specific; families are encouraged to look through the application and research opportunities that apply!

Grade 10: Sophomore scheduling meetings are almost done! If your child still needs to have their meeting and you would like to attend, please contact Julie Jenkinson at x29102.

Grade 9: Parents and students, please be on the lookout for information for upcoming 9th-grade meetings. If you want to attend with your child, please contact Julie Jenkinson in the Guidance Office at x29102.

As the school year transitions through the spring semester, students are encouraged to keep their grades and attendance up. If your child struggles academically, please reach out so we can help connect them with their teachers or additional resources. Let’s have a solid finish to the year!

Miss Bethel & Ms. Huntley

Several of our students that attend BOCES recently completed in the SkillsUSA Regional competition. Darrick LaMay placed 1st in the welding competition. He has the right to continue on to the state competition in April. Congratulations, Darrick!

Joshua Allen, Carl Moore, Ayden Page, and Valerie Taylor all attended the competition as well. Congratulations to all participants!

Congratulations to both Atreau Rawson for being recognized as Student of the Month in the HVAC/R Program and Dusty Green for being recognized as Student of the Month in the Natural Resource Management Program!

The Outing Club enjoyed two great field trips over February break. The first trip took them to Lake Placid where they got to skate on the Olympic Oval. Afterwards, they enjoyed lunch and did some shopping downtown. On their second trip they went to a SLU Men's Hockey game. They saw an exciting comeback win in overtime versus Colgate.

The Tri-M Music Honor Society Induction Ceremony was held in November.

In November, several students auditioned for the St. Lawrence County Music Educators' Association Vocal Select Ensemble. Emma Stevens, Rex Hoyt, Truman Burnett and Zorah Barse all earned slots in the 30 voice ensemble. Nekoda Barse was selected as an alternate which is also an honor.

December brought winter concerts, and our Tri-M Music Honor Society Members did a great job ushering and helping behind the scenes for the concerts.

Students also auditioned for the musical in December, and we were happy to welcome many new cast and crew members. We hope many of you saw them in the musical, and you enjoyed the show!

In January, students participated in All-County Festival A at the Crane School of Music. Congratulations to them all!

Junior High Band:

Leah Stauffer

Lydianna Burnett

Mathias Straight

Mara Russell

Brianna Williams

Ryder Van Sleet

Stella Todd

Liam Marcil

Avery Marcil

Thomas Liberty

Aiden Haverstock

High School Chorus:

Kaleigh Recore

Emma Montgomery

In February, students participated in All-County Festival B at Ogdensburg Free Academy. Mrs. Burnett was honored to conduct the Junior High All-County Chorus, and Mr. Lashomb played the drum set for multiple ensembles' performances.

High School Band Members:

Zorah Barse

Ruby Passon

Kalissa Young

Vocal Select Members:

Truman Burnett

Emma Stevens

Rex Hoyt

Junior High Chorus Members:

Lydianna Burnett

Chloe Crump

Alaura McMahon

Grace Black

Madison McCuin

Makala Richards

Claire Todd

Jaidyn Trimble

Mathias Straight

5th-6th Grade Chorus Members:

Lane Lincoln

Brantley Warner

Madilyn Austin

Katherine DeForge

Ellia Mayne

Maeve Villnave

Alyiss Wells-Stevenson

Upcoming Music Department Dates:

• 3rd and 4th Grade Concerts - TBA
• 1st and 2nd Grade Concerts - TBA
• Instrument Petting Zoo - Wednesday, April 24th, HS Auditorium and Music Rooms, 6:30 PM
• 9th-12th Grade Concert -Tuesday, May 14th, HS Auditorium, 7:00 PM
• 5th-8th Grade Concerts - Thursday, May 16th, HS Auditorium, 6:00 PM (Grades 7-8) and 7:00 PM (Grades 5-6)
• NYSSMA Solo Ensemble - May 11 and 12 at the Crane School of Music
• Coffeehouse - Wednesday, June 5th, 6:00 PM
• Graduation Rehearsal and Ceremony for Chamber Choir and Grades 7-11 Band Students - Friday, June 28th (9 AM rehearsal, 6 PM Ceremony)

Congratulations to the directors, cast, crew, and pit crew of Fiddler on the Roof on two great musical performances this past weekend!

There has been a variety of artwork happening in the high school Art room from charcoal drawings, monoprints, to different types of ceramics, and dry point etching.

The class of 2024 will be hosting Billy Martin's Cole All Star Circus on Thursday, March 14th at 6:30 PM. Adult tickets are $15 in advance or $20 at the door. Advance tickets for students age 13-18 are $5. Children 12 and under are free. See our school website and our Facebook page for more information.

Congratulations to the Boys Varsity Hockey team on winning the Section X Division II Championship with a 6-1 win over Salmon River at Cheel arena! They advanced to state regional play for the first time in 6 years. The team lost in a great game to Section 1's Byram Hills with a score of 4-2 on Saturday, March 2nd. Congratulations on a great season!

Cheer finished the season in second place in the Section X championship Small Division! They had three first place finishes throughout the season.

Girls Varsity Basketball advanced to the Class C finals at Maxcy Hall before falling to Heuvelton.

Boys Varsity Basketball lost early in the quarterfinals, but wrapped up their year with their 8th consecutive winning season, and their 7th Glenn Bissell Team Sportsmanship Award.

Spring sport physicals will be offered on March 12th. Emails were sent to students who signed up for spring sports who need a physical. You must have a physical in order to practice.

Varsity and JV sports will begin on Monday, March 11th while Modified teams will begin on Monday, March 18th.

You can find all schedules at sections710.org, or on our district website and app.

Hello SLC Middle School Students and Families,

We hope everyone is doing well! We wanted to share with you some updates that have been happening throughout middle school. Honor applications for grades 6-8 have been sent to students. For those who received an application, please make sure they are turned in, so teachers can evaluate and determine their recommendations.

This month, Ms. Ruddy (Mrs. Roldan’s long-term substitute) and Mr. Niles have been going into the classroom to talk to students about appreciating differences in students as well as the theme of empathy. Please see below the videos that we have been working on to explain and remind students about understanding differences in people, empathy, and being more inclusive. Please take a look at these videos as they can generate important conversations about respecting differences in people.

Videos:

• SEL Video Lesson of the Week (week 12) - Appreciating Diversity.
• "Under The Surface" - Empathy Film

As the next couple of months come ahead, please be on the lookout for NYS testing information and summer camp opportunities. Please continue to check in with your child to see how they are doing (not only academically, but mentally as well), and monitor their technology use. Many students have felt stressed due to deadlines, academics, and everyday stressors. We want to share another resource that we discussed in circles last month. Deep breathing and mindfulness have been a great practice used to help manage stress. Please take a look at the videos below. It has some great breathing and mindfulness exercises.

Videos:

• Coping Skill Ideas for Middle and High School Kids.
• 3 minute Mindful Breathing Meditation Relieve Stress

If you need anything in the meantime, please do not hesitate to reach out to your child’s counselor. Thank you!

Mr. Niles, Mrs. Roldan, and Ms. Ruddy

The Extended Day 8th grade students studied erosion and deposition with the stream tables.

Extended Day students went to SUNY Potsdam to Pete's Place and to the men's hockey game to cheer them on for their senior game. Thank you to SUNY Potsdam for all of the support for the Extended Day Program!

To jumpstart our reading goals for the new year, fifth graders participated in READBowl 2024. READBowl is the free global reading competition where PreK-8th grade aged teams around the globe compete to read for the most minutes. Mrs. Ramie’s fifth grade ELA classes worked in homeroom cohorts to compete against one another. In addition, there were a total of 14 countries represented through the competition this year, over 280,000 students and a total of over 180 million minutes were logged!

Congratulations to Mrs. LePage’s homeroom for coming in first place in the fifth grade with a total of 24,855 minutes logged! Top 8 honors go to Dalton Burnell, Julillian Chapman, Jack Goodrich, Trenton Cayea, Jayse Dishaw, Paul Stauffer, Sabrina Bell and Ainsley Colterman!

The 5th grade class worked in teams to build boats from nothing but cardboard and duct tape!

Students utilized teamwork and other skills learned in their various classes to create their vision of the best boat. They applied the iterative design process and created prototypes during their Tech Exploration class, then they were able to use the Gym to build their boat in only two class sessions. Each team was able to launch their boats to see how far they could get across the pool. While two teams reached the halfway point, one team (Captained by Ava Martin) was extremely successful and made it all the way across the pool, and back!

In Middle School Art, we started the new year out with sewing, clay, and drawing! Our 5th graders completed their sewing project by creating bunnies, and some had the chance to free sew. The 6th graders drew one-point perspective rooms that are inspired by the Surrealism work of Salvador Dali. The new group of 7th graders started art class, and are creating clay dream catchers, photos to come as soon as they are completed and glazed. The 8th graders completed their coil mugs and while they waited to glaze them, they created Word Art!

Hello SLC Families,

Pre-kindergarten and kindergarten registration are now open! Now is the time to register your child. Spots are limited in UPK and much of our planning for kindergarten hinges on numbers. In order to best prepare for your child's kindergarten experience, we request that you register them sooner rather than later. Pre-kindergarten information night will be held on Thursday, March 7 at 5:30 in the elementary library. Per NYS regulations, we are required to hold a lottery to determine placements if we don't have enough spots of any given option (half or full day). Our lottery will take place on June 3, so any registrations that are not complete, with all necessary documentation turned in, by May 31 will not be included in the lottery.

“Erin’s Law” requires that all public schools in each state implement a prevention-oriented child sexual abuse program. Our school partners with Renewal House, who sends an educator into schools throughout the county to deliver the required curriculum to our students. This takes place on an annual basis. More information about Erin’s Law can be found here. Additional information about Renewal House can be found here.

Here are two great resources with ideas for families to help their children do well in school:

• Parents make the difference!® - February 2024
  
• Daily Learning Planner - Elementary School Edition

The NYS Assessment Schedule at SLC Elementary is as follows:

• Grade 4 ELA - April 23 & 24
• Grade 3 ELA - April 25 & 26
• Grade 4 Math - April 30 & May 1
• Grade 3 Math - May 2 & 3

Dates to Know:

• Thursday, March 14 there will be a 12:30 dismissal for staff development and on Friday, March 15 there is NO SCHOOL, due to regional staff development. Please plan accordingly for both days.
• Spring pictures will take place on Wednesday, March 20.
• Spring break will be from Friday, March 29 through Friday, April 5. Please plan accordingly, as there will be no school.

Respectfully,

Mrs. Colterman

Happy March! This month we will be Marching into Kindness. Check out the paper chain students have created throughout the school. Each link is a different act of kindness they did or witnessed within the building!

The character trait of the month is humility. Why does humility matter? Humility is an important leadership quality that allows us to acknowledge our mistakes and be open to suggestions for improvement. True humility is a sign of strength; it is a quiet confidence in who you are. Some other words for humility are: unassuming, modest, down-to-earth, and pure.

Did you know that March 8th is SEL day?

SEL Day is a global campaign for social-emotional learning to support children's academic recovery, mental health, and well-being. SEL, or Social-Emotional Learning is important because SEL enhances children's coping skills, resiliency, and emotion identification. Some examples of SEL at school include: morning meeting, emotion check in, mindful breathing, and SEL based class discussion (and much more!). Our school works hard to incorporate SEL in a way that nurtures our students and helps them to succeed.

Mrs. McFarland and Mrs. White

Congratulations to all of our Character Education Award winners!

The Larries Spotlight Award was created to recognize Elementary Staff who demonstrate a specific trait each month. This award is voted upon by peers who want to give a shout out to one of their colleagues for doing an outstanding job.

Cara Liberty was the Larries Spotlight Award winner for the month of January. January’s trait was forgiveness and Mrs. Liberty received the award from her peers based on her compassion and ability to start fresh each day. She is always willing to listen to both sides of a story and is understanding to all. Mrs. Liberty shows strength by understanding mistakes happen and moving on from them without holding judgment. We are all lucky to have her at SLC!

Thank you, Mrs. Liberty, for being compassionate to everyone each day!

February 29th is the rarest day of the year, so it is the perfect opportunity to celebrate Rare Disease Day! Everyone has their own unique stripes, and this day allows everyone to be themselves while also showing support to all the children who are impacted by rare diseases.

In Miss Fountain and Mrs. Potter's Pre-k classroom, we had a special presentation by Mrs. and Mr. LaBelle on the importance of this day. She is very knowledgeable on the rare disease, Prader-Willi Syndrome, and wanted to share what she knows with everyone! For the day, she read a book, facilitated a zebra craft, and provided a special treat. A big shout out to Mrs. LaBelle for all the hard work that she put into making this a special day!

Third grade students in Mrs. Bryant's class went on a Viking Quest the week before winter break. They were able to act out like they were a Viking by rowing their longships, collecting food or resources, and even trading for things they felt they needed more. At the end, we all created our own Viking village.

Mr. Dow and the 4th grade teachers took their classes skating at the Tri-Town Arena during their Physical Education class. Fun was had by all, and many skated for the first time. Mr. Dow would like to thank the teachers, bus drivers and Ritchie LaFave, the arena director, for making this possible.

Mrs. Brouillette’s kindergarten students participated in a two-week long book study where they heard many variations of gingerbread men stories. They then compared and contrasted the setting, characters, and sequence of events. After, they wrote their own stories and choose who their character would run from! To wrap up the unit, they put on their baker's aprons, rolled out their “dough”, put the gingerbread men in the oven for 8 minutes, without peeking! They did amazing decorating their cookies and enjoyed the tasty reward for their hard work!

Sunshine, sandy beaches, and… security? Spring break is a time for fun, relaxation, and vitamin D, but let’s face it, most of us don’t completely disconnect while we’re away. Here are seven Spring Break security tips to keep your digital devices and personal information safe while you enjoy your getaway.

1. Avoid Using Public Wi-Fi: Public Wi-Fi networks can be a breeding ground for cybercriminals to intercept your data, as these networks are often unsecured and allow anyone to connect without authentication. Instead, use your smartphone’s hotspot feature to connect to the internet, as this creates a secure, encrypted connection that’s more difficult for hackers to breach. If you must use public Wi-Fi, consider using a VPN to add an extra layer of protection to your data.

2. Keep Your Software Updated: Make sure your operating system and antivirus software are updated to the latest versions on all your devices. These updates often contain security patches to fix vulnerabilities on smartphones, laptops, and tablets.

3. Enable Two-Factor Authentication: Two-factor authentication adds an extra layer of security by requiring a second form of verification, such as a code sent to your phone, before you can log in to your accounts.

4. Use Strong Passwords: Create strong, unique passwords for each of your accounts. Consider using a password manager to generate and store your passwords.

5. Don’t Overshare on Social Media: Be careful what you post on social media while you’re away on vacation. Photos, locations check-ins, or detailed posts can make you an easy target for burglars or identity thieves.

6. Keep Your Devices with You: When traveling, keep your devices with you, or locked up at all times. Don’t leave them unattended in public places like airports, cafes, or hotel lobbies.

7. Be Wary of Phishing Scams: Spring Break means searching for the best local restaurant, buying tickets online, or signing up for rewards programs and discounts. Phishing scams are designed to trick you into giving up your personal information. Be cautious of any unsolicited emails or messages asking for your login credentials or financial information. When you have so much going on all at once, it’s easy to just click a link – please don’t.

Follow these simple Spring Break security tips, apply sunscreen, and feel more secure knowing you’re better protected. Have a fun and safe vacation! Source: Safety Net, March 23, 2023

As always, if you have any questions, you can contact me via email at kwelsh@bfcdsd.org, or call the technology department at (315) 389-5131 ext. 29250.

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Email: crose@bfcsd.org
Website: www.bfcsd.org
Location: 1039 State Highway 11C, Brasher Falls, NY 13613
Phone: 315-389-5131
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BrasherFallsCSD