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

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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 afternoon, I hope you all enjoyed your long weekend. We have four weeks of school left with many things coming up. Please be sure to mark your calendars for any events coming up.

We still continue to work with our students on kindness, acceptance, and standing up for what is right. It's been a hard year for all of us, but especially for our students. Many scholars say that it will take at least 5 years for schools to get back to where they were pre-covid. Supporting our students with their social emotional learning and growth is a priority. We work to help them understand what the natural consequences of their actions can be and that all of their actions have consequences. Those consequences can be positive or negative. There is so much that is out of their control when it comes to the time they lost in explicit instruction around social interactions, but there are also things that they do understand. Everyday we are trying to help them understand the power of their words and their actions and the impact they can have on our school community. We have AMAZING kids, and they will all make mistakes, so will the adults, it's human nature. The most important thing we can do is to help them learn from their mistakes and help them to not repeat them. We at BSS are so grateful for your collaboration and support.

Last week we said good-bye to Chrystal Santos, our BCBA, who is moving on to the private sector. We are so grateful to Chrystal for her support and dedication to our students and wish her all the best. This has been a tough year on so many school districts with staff turnover, staff burnout, and the impact of the pandemic on teachers, staff, and administrators leaving the field of education. More importantly, these things have a direct impact on our kids. As educators, we work tirelessly everyday to support our kids, fill in the gaps, cover for absences, and try to hire replacements when there are just no applicants. My hope still, I've been saying this for two years now, is that we do not return to an education system of practices and inequities that we had before covid and that we rethink, transform, and look at a new system of education through the lens of equity and transformation. It is sad to see the amount of people leaving the field or leaving public schools and even more sad to hear that young people don't even want to enter the field. Our kids deserve so much more and we have to work together and provide them with a system that meets their needs and puts them first. We all go into this work wanting to do what's best for kids. It saddens me to see people leaving and young people not wanting to go into this work. Work that can be so incredibly rewarding, work that fills your heart with joy, and work that truly makes a difference. It's easy to give up right now because things have been so challenging, but I truly believe that we can do this and get through this if we are willing to do this together.

We are officially done with MCAS testing. It was a long two months of unpredictability with student and staff absences and it was not as smooth as it could be due to absences, but we did get through them. I'd like to thank our staff who were constantly moved around in order to proctor the tests and help on make-up days. I appreciate their willingness to be flexible.

I did not get any responses from caregivers interested in sitting on any hiring committees. We are interviewing for our PE position this Thursday and Friday after school. If there are a couple of caregivers who are interested in joining us, please let me know by Wednesday.

Thank you and I hope you have a great week.

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

We are excited to announce the Bridge Street School Peace Crane Project led by second grade caregiver, Marta Martinez. Please see the attached information regarding this beautiful project. We hope that you can join us in creating 1000 paper cranes by June 24th.

Dear BSS friends! (Mensaje en español abajo)

We can’t wait to gather as a school community for The Better World Picnic to celebrate student work done around the theme “Voices of the People” on Wednesday, June 8th from 4:30-6:30 PM. Save the date for some celebratory school fun, and check out the volunteer sign-up here to get involved!

As we move toward the end of the school year, we’re thrilled that Field Day is back on Tuesday, June 21! This is an epic day of outside fun for the students and we need your help to make it happen! Sign up to volunteer as a class lead and/or for day-of support here. All volunteers need a current CORI check on file through the Volunteers in Northampton Schools. Get the form info here.

And, we’re excited to share the launch of the BSS Peace Crane Project, led by second-grade parent Marta Martinez. Join us in folding 1000 paper cranes by June 24 in support of community and peace. The cranes will then be made into a mobile that will be unveiled at school on September 21 for International Peace Day. You can pick up origami paper at school from Ms. Copperansky and Ms. Nora and come check out the first crane folding clinic at the Better World Picnic. Questions? Email Marta at stayintouchcenter@gmail.com. Learn more about the project here.

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

¡Queridos amigos de BSS!

No podemos esperar a reunirnos como comunidad escolar para el Picnic del Mundo Mejor para celebrar el trabajo de los estudiantes en torno al tema "Voces del Pueblo" el miércoles 8 de junio de 4:30 a 6:30 PM. Guarda la fecha para celebrar la diversión de la escuela, y revisa el registro de voluntarios aquí para participar!

¡A medida que nos acercamos al final del año escolar, estamos encantados de que el Día de Campo está de vuelta el martes, 21 de junio! ¡Este es un día épico de diversión al aire libre para los estudiantes y necesitamos su ayuda para hacer que suceda! Regístrese para ser voluntario como líder de la clase y / o para el apoyo del día aquí. Todos los voluntarios necesitan una verificación CORI actual en el archivo a través de los Voluntarios en las Escuelas de Northampton. Obtenga la información del formulario aquí.

Y, estamos emocionados de compartir el lanzamiento del Proyecto de la Grulla de la Paz de BSS, dirigido por el padre de segundo grado Marta Martínez. Únete a nosotros para doblar 1000 grullas de papel antes del 24 de junio en apoyo de la comunidad y la paz. Las grullas se convertirán en un móvil que se presentará en el colegio el 21 de septiembre para el Día Internacional de la Paz. Puedes recoger papel de origami en la escuela de la Sra. Copperansky y la Sra. Nora y venir a ver la primera clínica de plegado de grullas en el Picnic del Mundo Mejor. ¿Preguntas? Envía un correo electrónico a Marta a stayintouchcenter@gmail.com. Para más información sobre el proyecto, visita https://www.bsspto.org/peace-crane-project

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 hacéis!
Su PTO

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

SAVE THE DATES

• Wednesday, June 8 - 1/2 Day for Teacher Work Day
• Wednesday, June 8 from 4:30-6:30 PM - Better World Picnic
• Tuesday, June 14 at 2:30 PM - PTO Meeting
• Monday, June 20 - No School in Observance of Juneteenth
• Tuesday, June 21 - Field Day
• Monday, June 27 - Last Day of School (1/2 day)

Gwen Agna, At Large and Vice Chair member of the Northampton School Committee will hold her monthly “office hours” in the small park by the flag pole in front of Northampton High School at 3:30-5:00pm on Monday, June 6, 2022. All are invited to attend to ask questions and discuss issues facing us in Northampton.

Hello 5th grade families and caregivers,

Principal Choquette will be hosting a zoom meeting for all 5th grade caregivers on Thursday, June 2nd from 6:00-7:00 p.m. to finalize promotion ceremony. It is important that all caregivers attend if possible.

Join Zoom Meeting https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82760889748 Meeting ID: 827 6088 9748 Passcode: 193362

We still have many students who have not sent in photos for the year book and many who have not given their contact information to the 5th grade caregivers organizing our end of year events. Please see the information below and reach out to the appropriate people with the information. The deadline for submitting yearbook photos was May 6th. Please get photos in as soon as possible.

There are several things happening at BSS for the 5th grade and lots of opportunities to volunteer, including:

- Fundraising – we need to raise funds for the yearbook, Nature Week, promotion (graduation), and a class gift to the school. Attached is a flyer that you can distribute to your friends and family. If you are willing and able, you can make your own donation here: Bridge Street School, Northampton, 5th Grade (givebutter.com). We will also be asking community businesses (Herrels, Big Y, etc.) to show their support of their local school with donations. If you have a personal connection with a business that may be able might help us please contact motownjen@yahoo.com. We hope to raise at least $2,500.

- Volunteers are needed to work on fundraising, promotion, and the yearbook. If you’d like to volunteer, please sign up here or contact Stacey Dakai at sdakai@gmail.com.

- Promotion date is June 23 at 9:00 AM with a rain date of June 24 at 9:00 AM.

- Yearbook – Yearbook - Thanks to all who have submitted or uploaded photos! The deadline was May 6 but we'll extend it until all are collected! We're a little over halfway there but there are a group of 13 students for whom we don't have contact information and we want everyone represented! If you think you have not added your name to this contacts spreadsheet, please do so OR send an email to bss-yearbook@googlegroups.com and we'll provide instructions on what to do next. We're looking for 6-8 digital photos of your child(ren) and they can represent different ages. We also welcome group/friend shots. Due to file sizes and storage limits, we ask that you please email your photos to bss-yearbook@googlegroups.com rather than the parent contact directly (Catarina Costa; costawofford@gmail.com).

Anuario - ¡Gracias a todos los que han enviado o subido fotos! La fecha límite era el 6 de mayo, pero la prorrogaremos hasta que todas estén recogidas. ¡Estamos un poco más de la mitad pero hay un grupo de 13 de los que no tenemos información de contacto y queremos que todos estén representados! Si crees que no has añadido tu nombre a esta hoja de contactos, por favor hazlo O envía un correo electrónico a bss-yearbook@googlegroups.com y te daremos instrucciones sobre lo que debes hacer. Estamos buscando 6-8 fotos digitales de su(s) hijo(s) y pueden representar diferentes edades. También aceptamos fotos de grupo/amigos. Debido al tamaño de los archivos y a los límites de almacenamiento, le pedimos que envíe sus fotos por correo electrónico a bss-yearbook@googlegroups.com en lugar de hacerlo directamente al contacto de los padres (Catarina Costa; costawofford@gmail.com).

If you have any questions, feel free to contact Stacey Dakai at sdakai@gmail.com

June 2-Fifth Grade Caregiver Zoom Meeting-Finalize Promotion Ceremony

June 8-Better World Picnic 4:30-6:30

June 20-No School-Juneteenth

June 21-Field Day

June 22-School Council Meeting 6:30-8:00 zoom

June 23-5th Grade Promotion (June 24 rain date)

June 23-Last day for 4-day/week preschool

June 24-Last day for 5-day/week preschool-Half day

June 27-Last day of school K-5 (1/2 day-11:30 dismissal)

Dear Caregivers and Community Members:

The Northampton Public Schools is committed to creating more equitable opportunities for students by seeking feedback from stakeholders. If you are willing to share your thoughts please click on the link below. https://bit.ly/3ELj5z7

Please take a moment to fill out the survey. Your input is important to us.

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

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