We had an ELITE Week ONE of 2018!

With new staff, new scholars, returning scholars, and teachers rested and refreshed, classrooms and learning experiences were amazing!

The focus on this semester in our schoolhouse is making sure all instruction is engaging and exciting and ultimately growing our scholars.

Spring Semester is a time for lots of testing! We will do our best to prepare our scholars by keeping them organized and up to date and we will do our best to keep you up to date too, so you can stay on top of routines at home!

Please make sure that you are signed up for my REMIND, as well as the grade level REMINDS so you don't miss a beat! I have found some glitches with the REMIND and some parents have signed up for the one I use for teachers and staff. I have removed you from that REMIND, so please make sure you are still linked in to the one that is called BCMS Community. The link is at the bottom of this newsletter.

Monday- #CelebrateMonday, NO School!

Tuesday- #TerrificTuesday, Basketball AWAY, Football weights, Soccer Tryouts

Wednesday- #WinWednesday, Basketball AWAY, Soccer tryouts, Football weights

Thursday-#ThankfulThursday,Leadership , Health Department Scoliosis Screening(6th and 8th grade- 11:00 AM) , Basketball, HOME, soccer tryouts, football weights

Friday- #FocusFriday, Principal's Advisory Council 12:00-- Planning Kindness Week

Upcoming:

Kona Ice and HAT DAY ($1.00) 1/26

Valentines Sales will begin in February: Candy Grams!

Kindness Week in February

ALL School Field Trip: COMING Soon! Stay tuned for details!

Let's Talk About GRADES!

In January, my notes section will focus on grading, specifically grading in the middle school!

There have been many changes with grading and report cards over the last several years. Here are some things that are true for report cards at BCMS:

• We do not use zeros. If you child has a "50" in the grade book, that means they did not complete the assignment. The zero is VERY difficult for scholars to recover from them. They are a bad practice, and we do not use them in grading.
• We allow retakes and redos for any and all assignments and work. The goal is mastery of the standard. Therefore, any work can be redone. Each teacher has different policies and procedures related to this, it is important to discuss with them specifically.
• We do practice eligibility guidelines based on our athletic region and GHSAA guidelines. Those rules state that if a student is failing two or more classes, they are not eligible for athletics. Please see me or Mr. Wright for questions regarding eligibility.
• FEEDBACK is the critical component of grading. WHAT the teacher is telling the scholar about improvement is the important piece. HOW can they improve?
• Your child's MAP scores and LEXILE Scores are better indicators on whole picture. Your child's classroom scores are better indicators of specific mastery of standards of that class at that grade level. Remember, teachers are using differentiation and scaffolding for the learning day to day, and are not able to do that on standardized testing. We are always working to grow scholars. The goal is growth.......

I love to talk about grading. Next year, we will be piloting standards based grading in some of our classrooms. If you have ANY Questions about your child and where they are performing, please call me and let's talk!

Other notes:

As we begin second semester, I am ExExExCited to continue our Community "You Make A Difference" form! If there is a grown-up at BCMS who has made a significant difference in your child's life and/or middle school experience, I want to know about it! Pleae take a few minutes to share that on the form. We truly have ELITE teachers at BCMS! There is no profession like teaching! The impact, influence, and change that we have in the schoolhouse and classrooms everyday is life changing! I am proud to work along side such dynamic and dedicated professionals who truly are here to grow scholars!

The form is below! Please take a minute to fill it out and recognize an adult who has positively impacted your child!

Thank you for being proactive and for supporting our school and our passion work! I am proud to be your principal and would love to hear from you! If you have a concern or a comment, please do not hesitate to email or call me: eraeburn@bryan.k12.ga.us or 912-626-5050 or 912.255.0630.

The #OneWords are in and teams are using them into their everyday practices! We will continue to integrate the goals of our One Word project throughout second semester. In February , we will have a Make and Take it night with our #OneWords

Monday- Goal setting and Grade Checking- Goals are set based on Reading RIT MAP scores

Tuesday- Enrichment and Remediation Rotations begin!

Wednesday- Enrichment/Remediation

Thursday- Enrichment/Remediation

Friday- Clubs !

Ms. Jersey's class is cutting, counting, and sending in all our Box Tops. The first submission is in December! Send them all to the front office! I make it a personal mission to see how many products I can find with them! 😂

Our TRIBE shop is OPEN!

Check out the ELITE Bryan County gear that will be on sale! All money raised will go to our Clubs! We will have the cutest and hottest gear in North Bryan! Check us out! Also, our front office is getting a make-over! I can't wait for you to see the new, warm, and welcoming front office of #BeBCMS

Mr. Keith Wright, Assistant Principal and Director of Athletics

Mr. Abram Scott, Assistant Principal

@BryanCountyMS

Email: eraeburn@bryan.k12.ga.us
Website: bryan.k12.ga.us
Location: Pembroke, GA, United States
Phone: 912-626-5050
Twitter: @missliz31