Principal’s Message Dear Families,

Every year, I look forward to February and our “Catching Kindness” campaign. Highlighting the kind acts that we do for each other reminds me of the Mother Teresa quote, “Do small things with great love.” We can all do kind acts for others, it only takes a minute. When students demonstrate kind actions towards others, they will receive a heart, instead of the usual bulldog bone. Hearts are given for any act of kindness, no matter how big or small. As well, when two entire bulletin boards are filled with hearts, we will all go outside for an extra period of play, complete with bubbles and sidewalk chalk.

If you have been in the school lately, you might have noticed our bulletin board “Throw Kindness Around Like Confetti”. From now until Spring Break, students will have a chance to write about the kind acts that others do. We encourage you to do the same. Simply pick up a marker and tell us about the kind acts that someone did for you. Kindness is contagious!!!!

In celebration of the Olympics and in support of our Canadian athletes, our gym was a sea of red as we helped kick off the Olympics. We made a Canadian flag out of 300+ red and white cupcakes. What fun and great spirit. Go Canada go!!!

Sincerely,

Wanda Salewski

WEBSITE bridge.sd38.bc.ca

Dates to Remember:

• Feb. 15 -Sockeyes Game Night

• Feb. 16-Lion Dance at 9:00

‣ Feb. 16 - Hot Lunch

• Feb. 21 - Parent Teacher Conferences, early dismissal 1:38pm

• Feb. 22 - Parent Teacher Conferences, early dismissal 1:38pm

• Feb 23 - DISTRICT WIDE PRO-D DAY, no school

• Feb. 27- Science Jam at Aberdeen Center

• Feb. 28- Bandarama at McRoberts, 6:45, Grade 7s

• Anti-Bullying Day Assembly, 1:15 pm

• Education Week, Feb. 25-March 3, info at http://edweek.sd38.bc.ca

EARLY WARNING 604-668-6294

February 13, 2018 NEWSLETTER #7

10400 Leonard Rd., Richmond, B.C. V7A 2N5 TEL: 604 668-6236

École Élémentaire William Bridge Elementary

Parent- Teacher Conferences It seems as if we have just come back from holidays, yet it is already time for Parent-Teacher Conferences. Many of our teachers are planning student-led conferences this term. At this type of conference, there may be more than one family in the room and your child will be explaining his/her learning to you. Notices will be coming home from your child’s teacher by Feb. 14, requesting a meeting time. We are really hopeful that you will come to school to celebrate your child’s accomplishments. In order to support the number of meetings that teachers need to facilitate, we will have Early Dismissal on both days. Please be sure to mark February 21 and 22, early dismissal at 1:38, on your calendars.

Spring Carnival Coordinator(s) Needed One of our best loved Bridge traditions, the Spring Carnival, is at risk of ending. Susie Cabral, who has coordinated this event for so many years, is hanging up her hat. She is leaving a well-organized “How-to” resource that she will pass along to the new Spring Carnival Team. If you are interested in helping with this popular event, please contact Susie at 604 312-8559 or danny.susie@telus.net

Parking at Bridge The beginning and ending of each day at Bridge are busy indeed with so many families dropping off and picking up children. Parking spaces in the lot are limited with only 2 spaces designated wheelchair accessible, for those with disabilities or health issues that make it impossible for them to park far away. Please be considerate of others and do not park in these spaces unless you have the appropriate parking sign displayed in your vehicle.

1

BOYS BASKETBALL SCHEDULE Tues Feb 13 - Home vs Whiteside

Thurs Feb 15 - Home vs Whiteside

Tues Feb 20 - Away at Cook

Wed Feb 21 - Away at Debeck

Tues Feb 27 – Away at Whiteside

2

GIRLS BASKETBALL SCHEDULE Thurs Feb 15 - Away vs Errington

Mon Feb 19 – Away at Cook

Wed Feb. 28 - Home vs. Maple Lane

Anti Bullying Day

Stand Up and Say “No” to Bullying

Although, Feb. 28 is officially Anti Bullying Day, it is really every day of the year. At Bridge, we encourage our students to be inclusive and treat others with respect. We teach students the difference between teasing and bullying and how to deal with each. Of course, teasing might hurt feelings, but bullying is repeated harassment that results in one person being the victim. Although we often hear the term “bullying” it is not always the case that children are bullied. Students at Bridge are encouraged to stand up for themselves, say no, and then report to an adult if any situation becomes uncomfortable. Please join us on Feb. 28, at our assembly. Remember to wear pink and say “No” to bullying.

School Online Payment Program To date, our school online payment program is a huge success. So far, we have 60% of our families paying for fieldtrips and activities online. Thanks for your willingness to adopt this new program so readily. As with any new system, there are still glitches to work out. Thank you for your patience as we get this system up and running. It saves the office staff and teachers so much time, by not having to count money for every school event. Hopefully, we will have the rest of the school paying online soon.  

Richmond Sockeyes at Bridge School Community Program

It was very exciting to welcome players from the Richmond Sockeyes hockey team to our school on Wednesday. Students have brought home a notice regarding "Hockey Night in Richmond". Our students will be

able to go to the Sockeyes game free of charge on Thursday, February 15th with an accompanying adult. The tickets for parents are only $3 each (the regular ticket price is $10). If you would like to purchase a ticket (and receive your child's complimentary ticket), please bring your payment to the school office beginning Thursday, February 8th. We are looking forward to filling up our reserved school section! Go Sockeyes Go! Growth Mindset This term we have begun talking about developing a growth mindset for learning. This phrase was coined by Carole Dweck and embraces the idea that personal traits, habits, personality, and skills grow and change. A growth mindset perspective believes that the brain grows and stretches when we learn something new and that challenges and mistakes actually help the brain to grow. Inherent in this paradigm is the belief that the more we try, without giving up, the more we will learn and the more our brains will grow. Rather than saying, “I can’t do this.” we are encouraging students to say “I can do this”. Just as with learning how to play an instrument or a sport, effort and practice do count. As parents and teachers, we play an important role in helping children develop a growth mindset for learning. Think about using a growth mindset at home and encourage your children to try again, never give up, try another way, and to challenge themselves. It’s really when we do something hard and make mistakes that we learn the most and grow our brains.

Here is a growth mindset activity based the book Ish, by Peter Reynolds. We wrote growth mindset statements and learned that doing our best is always okay.

Here are some of Div. 1’s family totem poles. The animals for each family member were chosen based on characteristics inherent in animals in First People’s culture. Please come and see these amazing creations.

PAC CORNER

NEXT PAC MEETING The next PAC meeting will be March 6th at 6:30 in the library. Babysitting will be provided.

Join William Bridge PAC on Facebook for regular updates and links to newsletters. “Like” us at www.facebook.com/WilliamBridgeElementaryPac

Your 2017-18 PAC Executive

Chair Andrew Scallion Vice Chairs Lynda Murdoch, Joanna Newman Secretary Catherine Sugiarto Treasurer Eric Yue Members at Large Sandy Pellizzari, Christine Fawcett, Susie Cabral Please contact us by email anytime with any questions, comments, or concerns at bridgepac@gmail.com We look forward to hearing from you.