RM Bacon Weekly

Saturday, October 22, 2016

October 24 - 28, 2016

Bacon Bears,

Hello, everyone! The picture above captures a simple but true concept that we embrace here at Bacon. We believe that all kids can learn, and all means all. Anyone who is willing to put in the time and effort can achieve success. Our job as educators is to engage, equip, and empower every student for academic, behavioral, and social success. So - work hard, get smart, and go far. All can do it, and all means all!

This week was Wellness Week. I want to thank Ms. Spanbauer for putting together a week of great info and activities. The students and staff did a nice job with the color-of-the-day, and the classrooms and halls resounded with the positive messages of the week.

On Monday, Dina Klaudi and I completed the SAMS time and task management training. I have set a personal goal for how much time I want to spend on instructional matters during the year. So far, it's going very well, and I can already tell my time is more focused and productive. Our SAMS trainer has been great, and he's been helping us implement the program quickly and effectively. Thanks to all the Bacon Bears for your patience and understanding as we collectively adjust to this new system. I'm looking forward to seeing where this takes us.

The I&RS team had it's first meeting of the year. I was able to stop in a few times during their sessions, and it was apparent that everyone was focused on helping our students. Nice job, team.

On Tuesday, Bacon will be having it's annual Halloween Frolic from 6-8. We hope to see you!

Have a great week, everyone. Be great. Be awesome.
Mike
"Together, we can. Together, we will."

Pictures from around the School

Congrats to Mrs. Taylor on 10 years in education!

Safety Patrol doing their thing on a beautiful but warm fall morning.

Dare to Be Fit is officially underway.

Dare to Be Fit

Lunch time!

A happy Bear

Getting ready for the Frolic

A bit of nature close by outside Mrs. Levari's room (maybe a little too close)

Friends visiting an animal friend

These guys were happy to bring some breast cancer awareness

Friends having lunch outside with Ms. Berry

Another great morning

Learning taking place in Mrs. Cheeseman's room

Wellness Week!

Birthday Selfies!

Happy Birthday, Mrs. Levari!

Weekly overview (be sure to check the official school calendar)

Monday (10/24): B day - lesson plans due

Tuesday (10/25): C day - PARCC data meeting at Culver, Halloween Frolic (6-8 pm at Bacon)

Wednesday (10/26): D day - Workout Wednesday, Dare to be Fit (8 am in the gym), Wheaton Village trip, PLC meetings with Amanda for 2nd grade (10:44), Kindergarten (12:50), 5th grade (2:14), and 3rd grade (2:56)

Thursday (10/27): E day - SIP meeting (8 am in the library), 4th grade PLC (10:44), Parents as Leaders meeting at Bacon at 6 pm (topic: roles, rules, and respect)

Friday (10/28): A day - Wear Bacon gear, 1st grade PLC (12:08)

Sunday, October 16, 2016

October 17 - 21, 2016

Bacon Bears,

Good things were happening at Bacon this week. I'd like to give a shout out (just like on our shout out board at school - see the pic above) to all the great people I have the pleasure of working with each day. You all make the school a wonderful place, and I look forward to coming every morning. It's fun for me to do what we do alongside each other. I also want to give a shout out to all the students (or should I say BEARS) who call Bacon home. Without you, there'd be...nothing to do all day. Okay, but seriously - I love seeing your smiling faces, and your joy is contagious. Keep learning. Keep working hard. Stay positive. Stay great!

Weekly Recap
We had our first PBIS Tier 2 meeting, and it was a success. The team was focused on helping students stay on track behaviorally and academically. Issues were addressed, ideas were shared, and plans were made - all in the interest of our students. Great job, Tier 2 team!

I also attended our monthly Leadership Team meeting at the Culver Center where I got to hear from other school and district administrators on the positive things going on around MPS. I'm proud to say I work alongside other individuals who believe that all students can learn and high levels and all means all.

Also this week, teachers during their PLC times began the process of drafting their SGOs (Student Growth Objectives) for the year under the guidance of Ray Jacobs. Teacher questions were addressed, and the planning that took place during these meetings was crucial to helping the staff and students have a successful year. Thanks to all who participated, and a big thanks to Ray for his steady hand and depth of knowledge in helping the teachers arrive at their growth targets.

On Thursday, our PBIS Events Planning Committee met before school to plan our PBIS Respect the 29th Pep Rally. A big shout out to all who came early to help prepare a fun and rewarding rally for our deserving students. Our first assembly was a big success because of your hard work, and I believe each will only get better. Thank you!

Wellness Week 2016

Next week (10/17 - 10/21) is Wellness Week! Staff and students - join in the fun as we show our commitment to wellness. Dig through your closet and get your "colors of the day" ready to help represent "wellness all the way!" Here's the schedule for the week:

Back-Black Monday: Dress in BLACK because you won't stand BACK when someone is being bullied
Spread-Red Tuesday: Get the word SPREAD by wearing RED - no drugs for me
True-Blue Wednesday: Dress in BLUE to represent a friend who is TRUE
Clean-Green Thursday: Keep the world CLEAN by wearing something GREEN
Think-Pink Friday: Dress in PINK to show you will THINK about ways to respect yourself and others (Breast cancer awareness)
**Each day, the homeroom with the most participation in wearing the designated color will be featured on the digital sign and on the Bacon Weekly.**

What is Wellness Week? (from Ms. Spanbauer, guidance)

Each year, the Millville School District celebrates Wellness Week. It incorporates Violence Awareness Week and Red Ribbon Week (anti-drugs).

Wellness week is a time to really stress to our students the importance of a drug-free, non-violent lifestyle that is full of healthy choices for our mind, body, spirit and world!

We will be celebrating with a “rainbow theme.” Each day of wellness week will be a special color day. Don’t be left out! Keep your eyes & ears open so you’ll know the color of the day!!!

Wellness Week Activities

K-5 classes will be doing various art projects which will be displayed around the school.

Kindergarten - Blooming with Respect
1st grade - Bucket Filler
2nd grade - Simon's Hook
3rd grade - Chrysanthemums
4th grade - Word Hurt
5th grade - Respect Bumper Sticker

Other announcements

This year's Halloween Frolic will take place on October 25th from 6-8 (rain date Oct 26th). If you are interested in helping, please contact the school. Note: Due to recent events and out of an abundance of caution, the Millville Police Department has recommended that no clown costumes be allowed this year. Bacon school is heeding this advice; therefore, no clown costumes will be permitted this year. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

On Monday, Dina and I will attend our first SAMS training session. SAMS is a program designed to help me focus my time on areas that improve instruction and learning through effective time management and task prioritization. It will be a new experience for me (and everyone at Bacon), and I'm looking forward to getting started to see how it will play out in our school. Dina and I met with one of the coaches last week, and he was able to answer what questions we had at this point in the game.

On Monday night, staff members who have reached various milestones in terms of years of service will be honored at the staff meeting. For those Bears who received letters stating that you'll be recognized - I hope to see you there!

On, Tuesday, I'll be attending my second and final personal coaching session. I had homework (sort of), so I hope I pass. Kidding aside, it will be nice (and no doubt enlightening and educational) to check in after a few weeks to discuss my progress in the areas on which we focused. While this sounds like I'm focused on me, the ultimate goal here is to help me serve the Bacon family in the best way possible.

Staff - there are various meetings throughout the week. Please see the weekly overview below and/or check your calendars.

On a personal note...
On Friday, I'll have the pleasure of attending Joe Baruffi's retirement party. I worked with Joe at Lakeside Middle School for 12 years. He always proved himself to be helpful and knowledgeable, and I appreciate his guidance, advice, and support through the years. We took many Phillies and Sixers trips together with the students, and his care for the kids showed in what he did. I am honored to call him a friend, and I'm looking forward to him receiving the honor he deserves at his party. Joe, you ran the race well - now enjoy your family and all that life has to offer! You more than earned it!

Everyone have a great week.

Be great. Be awesome.
Mike
"Together, we can. Together, we will."

Pictures from around the School

Mr. Coyle playing a review game with the students

It was rigged! He had no chance of winning.

Tic-tac-toe, anyone?

3rd grade chorus doing an awesome job!

3rd grade chorus singing "My Country Tis of Thee"

Bacon friends

She's in the big seat

Last day of Bacon for this friend. We'll miss her!

Birthday Selfies!

Weekly overview (be sure to check the official school calendar)

Monday (10/17): B day - lesson plans due, Mr. Coyle at SAMS training, board meeting at 6:30 to recognize various staff members' years of service

Tuesday (10/18): C day - I&RS meeting, Mr. Coyle personal coach session part 2

Wednesday (10/19): D day - Workout Wednesday, Wheaton Village trip, SGO meeting for Kindergarten during PLC time

Thursday (10/20): E day - Staff meeting (8 am in the library)

Friday (10/21): A day - Wear Bacon gear!

Saturday, October 8, 2016

October 10 - 14, 2016

It's been a busy week here at Bacon, so let's get right to it!

On Monday, I attended a personal coaching session for principals and other school leaders. I found the experience to be worthwhile, and I've been given an opportunity to improve on some areas of my job where I felt I needed some work. What I really liked about the session was that through some back-and-forth conversation between myself and the coach, these areas where I could focus my energy and improvement came up naturally. Nothing felt forced, and I didn't feel like I was being judged or evaluated. My time with the coach certainly gave me a few things to think about. It was timely, too. At school, I'm constantly telling the students and staff to be great, grow, be the best you can be, etc., and my coaching session forced me to squarely face a few things where I could do better myself. The time of reflection and self-honestly was powerful.

Sign located on our top floor.

There is a lot of truth to this saying.

Tuesday saw the return of the RAC (Regional Achievement Center) team for the 2016-2017 school year. A few of the members have stopped by since school started, but this was the first time most of the team came together to visit our school this year. The RAC functions as a support team for school improvement, and they operate at the state-level. While they were here, they visited several classrooms, stopped by the cafeteria, asked about curriculum and instruction, and took the school's "temperature" regarding culture and climate. While that all sounds official and heavy duty (and it is), the RAC team is nothing but positive and supportive. We got a lot of great feedback for our school, especially in the areas of culture and climate. We also got some useful thoughts on how to improve on what's already here, and that is something we are always striving for - growth, growth, growth. The bottom line - our passion and dedication show, and I couldn't be happier. Bacon has the right approach and mindset to continue to grow and succeed. Great job, Bacon Bears, and thanks to the RAC for a good day of feedback and positivity. It was a great and productive visit.

The 5th grade class took a historical and nature-filled field trip to the Bivalve/Shellpile area on Thursday. They learned some local history and explored some nature unique to the area. The students had a good time, and they appreciated the opportunity to have that experience.

On Friday, we had our first district in-service day of the year. All of our teachers and some of our other staff members spent the day in a variety of workshops. After lunch, several of our K-5 teachers returned to Bacon for some in-house professional development, and many others reported to Holly Heights for Google training. It was a busy day all around, and I want to personally thank Mrs. Digiorgio, Ms. Peck, Mrs. Rohaly, Mrs. Taylor, and Mrs. DeVita for stepping up and being willing to host their own PD sessions at Bacon.

Everyone, have fun this weekend. Relax, decompress, unwind. Spend some time with family and friends, pick up a book, skip off somewhere fun for the three-day weekend - whatever you do, have a blast.

Be great. Be awesome.
Mike
"Together, we can. Together, we will."

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

The Mobile Dentist that was supposed to visit on 10/6 had to reschedule. Once we get word on when that will be, we'll pass that along.
Remember - no school on Monday. Enjoy your three-day weekend.

Pictures from around the School

Congrats to our students of the month for displaying the character trait of respect!

Our "Caught being Awesome" board is already full for October! Paws up to you, Bears!

Smile, Ms. Peck - you're on Coyle Camera

Ms. Peck and Mrs. Rohaly giving an overview of Arts Infused

Birthday Selfies!

Nurse Pruett!

Monday (10/10): No school - Columbus Day

Tuesday (10/11): C day - PBIS Tier Two meeting (10:44 - 11:24, conference room)

Wednesday (10/12): E day - Workout Wednesday

Thursday (10/13): A day - PBIS Events Planning Committee (8 am in the library), progress reports get sent home

Friday (10/14): B day - A fabulous Friday!

Saturday, October 1, 2016

October 3 - 7, 2016

Principal's Post

We had a great week here at Bacon. The rain simply wouldn't quit, the skies were gloomy, and the weather turned cooler. Our school, however, was warm and cheerful. Throughout the week, I saw learning taking place in friendly and positive environments. Everyone stayed upbeat and sunny, despite the fact that we had indoor recess nearly all week (That alone is an accomplishment worthy of celebration!).

On Thursday morning, Bacon held it's first Respect the 29th PBIS Pep Rally. The rally opened with students sharing some of the awesome things they've done since school started. From there, we reviewed some discipline and attendance info (all good, by the way - see below in the PBIS update), and then we picked students who were awarded with a "Paws Up" during the month of September and randomly selected them (by way of a drawing) to play some "minute to win it" style games on the gym floor. The students had a blast, whether they were playing or cheering their classmates. A great time was had by all as we collectively celebrated a dramatic reduction in office discipline referrals and an increase in the attendance rate. Great job, Bears! Keep being awesome!

Friends enjoying the PBIS Pep Rally

Parents As Leaders Kickoff

On Thursday night, the United Advocacy Network hosted it's kickoff for the Parents As Leaders group here at Bacon. A number of families braved the weather and joined us for pizza and a time of collaboration and information sharing. It is already shaping up to be a good year for families and the school working together. While the parents were learning about the program in the library, other members other UAN had activities for the kids in the cafeteria. Great job to all involved.

In all, it was a fun week of learning, celebrating, meeting and working with our parents, and planning for the future.

Be great. Be awesome.
Mike
"Together, we can. Together, we will."

PBIS Update with Ms. Berry

What a great September we have had at Bacon School. Positivity resonates throughout the building. Staff and students demonstrate our core values (we are safe, responsible, and respectful) on a daily basis. September 2016 at Bacon School has been a record setting month. We had ZERO major office discipline referrals and only 18 minor discipline referrals. Keep up the good work!

We started giving out our Paws Up cards to staff and students caught being awesome. Seventy-seven Paws Up cards were given out in September, and we are setting our October goal for over 100. In addition to the Paws Up cards, the students were given their own shout out board this year. It's filling up fast. The kids are giving shout outs for help they have received, kind acts they have witnessed, and for being great friends. Let's keep it going. We are looking forward to a great October of being safe, responsible, and respectful.

Respect the 29th PBIS Pep Rally