Sunday, March 4, 2018

March 5 - 9, 2018


Bears,

You know the saying - March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb.  I hope Mother Nature holds true to the latter, because March sure came in roaring! Weather-wise, that is. 

Well, I guess you could say March roared in at Bacon, too. On Thursday, March 1st, we had our monthly PBIS Pep Rally.  A number of students were honored for grades, attendance, and we even had a special spotlight on two young men who acted quickly to help a staff member in need (see pics below).  After the business part of the assembly was over, it was time for the fun and games.  This month, we did Hungry Hungry Hippos, Bacon style.  Even the staff got in on the action. 





This past week was Read Across America Week.  Each day had a theme for what to wear, and each day our students and staff didn't disappoint.  The week ended with students and staff members dressing as their favorite characters from books.  There were plenty of characters to be found in the halls and classroom of our great school that day - more so than usual. 















As hard as it is to believe, we've got Spring Break coming up in less than a month.  We've got a full, busy March to get through first.  Everyone - stay the course, keep doing great things, and above all, keeping making learning meaningful and fun!

I'll close with this thought -- last week, I talked about how we'd probably do well to listen and observe twice as much as we talk.  This week, I want to follow up with this idea:  when we do talk, our words matter.  I know that's cliche, but it's true.  What we say matters, possibly more than we'll ever realize.  A cutting word here, a negative tone there - they all add up and accumulate.  The weight of these words eventually impacts others in ways we might see immediately or in ways we may not see right away.  I know we all have off days, and there are things that come out of our mouths (myself included) that we wish we could take back.  The idea here isn't perfection, but I would encourage us all to be consciously aware of what words we use - in school, out of school, whenever and wherever.  If you know me, I can sometimes (ok, often) use words to try (and I really stress try) to be funny.  But I know I have to be careful.  A wrong word here, or an ill-advised joking comment here, and I could have the opposite effect than what I desired.  The same is true for our learners.  If they are exposed daily to words that are positive, uplifting, kind, and encouraging, the total effect will always be for the better.  And the opposite is true.  In fact, the opposite is probably more true because life has a way of producing negative effects faster than positive ones.  This even plays out in nature.  The few times I tried to plant something, weeds shot up right away while the intended fruit took much longer (much of that was user error, but the point is still there). So hang in there.  If you don't see the results you want as quickly as you'd like, keep watering.  Keep tending the seed.  It will grow, eventually.  And part of that process is what we say to our learners and how we say it.  I once had a teacher in high school tell the class that when things got a little testy between he and his wife, she'd stop him and say, "Excuse me, I can't hear you.  You are speaking too loudly."  There's a great lesson in there.  How we say things are just as important was what we say.

Keep being positive.  Keep being kind.  Keep being an influence for good.  We're all better for it!     

Parents - don't forget there is NO SCHOOL for students on Wednesday, March 7th.
Staff - don't forget there IS SCHOOL for you on Wednesday, March 7th!

Everyone have an excellent week!

The Week Ahead
Monday (3/5):  B day - Lesson plans due

Tuesday (3/6): C day - 3rd M.P. progress reports go home

Wednesday (3/7):  NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS (staff professional development day)

Thursday (3/8):  D day - staff meeting (8 am in the library)

Friday (3/9):  E day - Wear Bacon gear

Upcoming Dates
3/29 - 1:45 dismissal
3/30 - 4/6 - Spring Break
4/9 - School resumes


Bacon Pics

Creating some delicious, healthy snacks with Miss Candy
Looks good!

Crazy sock day
A Dr. Seuss-themed puzzle

Working on the puzzle
Some young Bear singers to get our morning started right


On Friday, many of our staff and students dressed as their favorite characters from a book.
Can you tell who they are supposed to be?




















PBIS Pep Rally








Matthew Harris (left) and Bryant Nelson (right) being honored by members of the Cumberland County Sheriff's office for their quick thinking during a medical emergency.  Great job, gentlemen!

And the families came out, too!
Thank you Sergeant Hoffman and K-9 officer Riley for being a part of this special day

Birthday Selfies









Friday, February 23, 2018

February 26 - March 2, 2018



Bears,

It's been a fun-filled past few weeks at school. We recently had two great events - the Chinese New Year Celebration and Jump Rope for Heart.  The pictures mostly speak for themselves, but a few thank-yous are in order.

First, a great big thanks to Mrs. Rohaly and Ms. Peck for organizing and pulling together the New Year's celebration.  It was a true cross-curricular, multi-discipline event in which the entire school got to participate.  Also, many thanks to all the classroom teachers who opened their rooms to our music and art teachers and helped get the students ready for the celebration.  It was a fun event!

In addition, thanks to Mrs. Muhlbaier for organizing the Jump Rope for Heart and Ms. O'Neill and Mrs. Bingham for helping to pull everything together for the event.  A number of Leader's Club members from Millville High School also helped out, and it was another fun whole-school event for our Bears to enjoy.

It's been an interesting few weeks for other reasons as well.  The flu/cold/strep throat - you name it - has made the rounds at our school.  While the number of student absences has been holding steady and actually gone down a little, our staff members have been going through the unpleasantness as well.  I'd like to thank Mrs. McCafferty from Culver for helping to keep the office going while Mrs. Klaudi and Mrs. Polof were down and out.  In addition, several staff members helped in the office to cover the phones and make sure everything was running smoothly.  It took a team and a family to pull together to make sure we carried on, and people went above and beyond to keep our school moving.  Thank you, all!!

This week, we have our PBIS assembly in which we'll do our usual recognitions, rewards, and game - but we'll also feature two students who acted as heroes recently.  We are looking forward to honoring their good deed - stay tuned!

Before I close out this part of the blog, I offer you a thought for this week.  We were given two eyes, two ears, and one mouth.  Could it be that we should spend twice as much time paying attention to others and listening than we do speaking?  Maybe some of us would do well if we talk less, listen more, and focus on what others are doing around us.  I know I'm guilty of doing too much of one and not enough of the others.  How much do we miss because we are too focused expressing our thoughts instead of trying to see the world as others see it?  How much do we not hear because we're already focused on the words we are convinced we need to share?  I think we were meant to be here for each other.  How much can we do that if we have a hard time really seeing and really hearing what others are going through?   Just a thought...

Everyone have a fantastic week!


The Week Ahead
Monday (2/26):  B day - Lesson plans due, Read Across America Week Begins,  FOX IN SOCKS (wear silly or mismatched socks)

Tuesday (2/27): C day - CAT IN THE HAT (wear favorite hat OR wear black and white)

Wednesday (2/28): D day -  Workout Wednesday, WACKY WEDNESDAY (wear wacky and crazy hair OR wacky and crazy clothes, PBIS Respect the 29th assembly (2 pm)

Thursday (3/1):  E day - GREEN EGGS AND HAM (wear green) staff meeting (8am in the library)

Friday (3/2):  A day - MY BOOK ABOUT ME (dress as your favorite character from any book)

Upcoming Dates
3/6 - Progress reports go home
3/7 - NO SCHOOL, teacher professional development day




Chinese New Year Parade





































Jump Rope for Heart









Congrats to Max, Bacon's top fundraiser for Jump Rope for Heart
Bacon Pics






Birthday Selfies