We have been busy working on improving and updating safety procedures here at Barnstead Elementary School for the ’17-’18 school year. We are ready to roll out a new and different way for Buses and Parents to drop off students in the morning, and to pick them up in the afternoon. Essentially we are separating out where parent cars come in/out of the school entrance (we widened the entrance to now also be an exit for parents). Buses, during morning Drop-Off and afternoon Pick-Up, will be the only vehicles in the front loop. Parents will be routed through the parking area for teachers, and then exit out the widened entrance/exit. Take a look at the video as a quick introduction to the Parent Drop-Off and Pick-Up process.

Look for more information on the website and materials coming home about Bus Routes, Parking, and the Drop-Off & Pick-Up process!

As a parent and Educator, I have seen so many great ideas on pictures for the first day of school and how to bring all these together to show the growth and development of your son or daughter. This celebration is something that tells your child how important and special school is, and you get to participate in the event. Here’s a few ideas I have seen that you can put together a theme over the years your child is in school.

Have a Great last few weeks of summer and we’ll see you all at BES for Open House on Tuesday, August 29 from 5-6:30pm.

First day of school is Wednesday, August 30th!

BES Faculty and Administration have embarked on a new way to foster community and safety in the school and classrooms. The 12 members above attended a four-day training in Concord, NH (August 1-4); Shown left to right in the photo are Kendyl Smith (K-4 Guidance); Stephanie Hurley (Grade 3); Anabelle Boyle (Title I Math); Allison Jone (Grade 4); Allyson Hobby (Kindergarten); Jeni Laliberte (Assistant Principal); Patti hamilton (Grade 1); Tammy Rackliff (Behaviorist); Christine Bergeron (Grade 3); Ondrea Hastings (Grade 3); Tim Rice (Principal); and Phil Giunta (Grade 1). Missing are Emily Reese (Director of Student Services); Annie Bourque (Grade 6); Karen McGee (Grade 6); and Kristen Brooks (Grade 8).

We will be working with a consultant this year to make this a school-wide implementation and slowly be phasing out of PBIS for student behavior management. Effective and respectful management and discipline strategies enable educators to create environments where students feel safe enough to take the risks necessary for great learning. There are important social and emotional competencies that students need to develop to be successful in school and beyond. And yet, too often in schools, these skills are demanded but not taught (“Cooperate in your group work today!”) or taught in isolation, separate from academic work (February is Empathy month!). Through this work, teachers will learn to identify the social and emotional skills their students need to be successful and develop a repertoire of practical strategies for teaching them as a part of the regular instructional day.

One disruptive student can bring all teaching and learning to a halt, and in many classrooms, there are several (or more!) students with such challenges. Teachers who are already under incredible pressure to deliver an unrealistic amount of content in too little time feel overwhelmed with students who melt down, refuse to do work, and disrupt others. Teachers need practical strategies and supports. To be clear, this work isn’t about quick-fixes or silver-bullet cures. It’s about building teachers’ and students’ skills sets to set everyone up for long-term growth.

So this is where we are headed, and this group, along with our consultant, Mike Anderson will lead us in our new Social and Emotional Learning journey!

Sometimes making fun of yourself and not taking yourself too seriously is something that we should model for our students; taking a break and finding the lighter side is a mindful activity. What are the ways you find to enjoy the lighter side of life and model for your students, your family, your significant others?

“If you’re not a risk taker, you should get out of business.”
–Ray Kroc ( He joined McDonald’s in 1954 and built it into the most successful fast food operation in the world)

Beginning Wednesday, August 31 Barnstead Elementary School is filled with students, and they are all coming here for different reasons. Some come each day to be challenged academically, for social interaction, to participate and integrate in the arts, technology, and sports. Some come each day because the school is a safe place. These are all the services we are asked to provide for students while also meeting the challenges of an ever-changing curriculum, evaluation systems, and standardized testing correlating with academic growth of our school. Educators could never be successful in all of these areas unless they are willing to take risks. We have to get out of our comfort zone and try something new. Risk takers produce change, and risk takers aren’t afraid to fail. We committed to creating an academic environment focused on engagement and critical thinking.

In order for for this to be successful, it has to be different than it was, and you have to feel supported when you try something new, knowing it might not be perfect the first time. Teachers at BES,…students,…parents,…paraprofessionals,…staff; Take a risk and improve the education of students in your classes!

I found this video a high school made last year and I loved it. So funny and awkward – these teachers and administrators had a ton of fun doing this video – do you think BES should make one too? Let me know and we’ll see what we can do.

Greetings Parents, Grandparents, Students, Teachers, Paraprofessionals, Staff, Community Members,and others who are reading this blog. I have have been a little slow in posting news and information on this blog – my goal is to do 2-4 posts a month for the coming ’16-’17 school year.

The 1st day of school for teachers, staff, and other educators is Monday, August 29th.

Open House is Tuesday, August 30th from 5-6:30pm; Please come and meet your child’s teachers (and while you are here sign-up for Parent-Teacher Conferences in October), take a walk around and visit, and get yourself signed up to be a part of the Barnstead PTO.

The 1st day of school for students is Wednesday, August 31st (arrival or drop-off between 7:25-7:40am). Students will be greeted by teachers and directed to playgrounds. If you drive your child to school, please follow the signs and flow through the inner car drop-off route; stay in your car and keep moving forward as directed. Students in grades 4-8 are directed to the Larger Playground area by the modular classrooms, students in grades K-3 will go to the Primary Playground (the one closest to the old Village Store).

What Changes have we made to BES for the coming school year? Well, for one we have many new teachers and administrators. Join me in Welcoming the following:
Dr. Brian Cochrane – Superintendent for SAU #86 Barnstead
Jeni Laliberte – Assistant Principal for BES
Dorothy O’Rourke – Primary Guidance Counselor (Grades K-4)
Lindsay Rowley – Grade 1 Teacher
Stephanie Hurley – Grade 2 Teacher
Bethany Franz – Grade 3 Teacher
Karen McGee – Grade 6 Teacher
Kristen Brooks – Grade 7 Language Arts/Social Studies Teacher
Kerry Grella – Grade 7 Science Teacher
Tanner Van Nest – Grade 8 Language Arts/Social Studies Teacher
Joanne Rautio – Grade 7 Special Education Teacher
Andrew LaFlame – Tech Integration Teacher
Kristyn Piortowski – Speech Pathologist
Phillip Guinta – Title I/Math Intervention Teacher

We have done work on classroom bathrooms in the Primary wing to make them more accessible to handicapped students; we put in a new Security window in the Main School Entrance; new carpeting in the Library/Media Center; new paint in the Middle School classrooms and hallways; more upgrades to the infrastructure for technology and more wifi access points.

There is a lot of excitement for the coming year and a lot of work we will be doing to upgrade curriculum in Reading, Writing, Math, and Science. We are focused on improving our instruction and use of data to guide those improvements. Teachers are also focused on collaborative teaching, working together to differentiate instruction, and to meet the diverse student needs in our classrooms.

Welcome Back!

On Friday, November 10, 2015 Barnstead Elementary School held a ceremony and breakfast to honor and support Veterans in our Community. This is something we have done for many years as a way of giving back and supporting all these amazing people. Students read poems and personal tributes about Veterans in their family, this community, and from across the country. Our Band and Chorus groups perform several songs and we complete the program with the playing of Taps. Priscilla Tiede has been the leader in this tradition and we thank her for her service as well.

This year we added another important layer of recognition which all can see every night: A Green Light out front by the school sign. So what does this mean? I have added a link directly to the site which you can find below, but there is a national campaign to recognize all Veterans, seen and unseen. In other words, a Veteran out-of-uniform is impossible to distinguish from a non-Veteran. The green light becomes our way of letting all Veterans know we care and cherish their service. All parents and community members can join us by having a green light on their porch, window, or pole to always recognize and thank a Veteran for their service.

Here’s the link: http://www.greenlightavet.com/

There is a lot of work being done right now on Happiness, Brain Function, and how it can help in education. Brain chemistry accounts for a lot of the way we live our lives, but the interesting thing is that through conscious action we can change or brains! I have attached a TED Talk by Ron Gutman about the physiological effects of smiling; you can literally make someone else feel better by smiling at them – research shows that it is very difficult to frown when you see someone else smiling.

Often a student will be upset or in a bad mood over something from home, a conflict with another student, or that they may not have done as well on an assignment or test, and they refuse to work and need a break. It is always amazing to me by speaking with them and trying to get them to smile (and smiling at them), that their mood lightens and they seem to come out of their gloom.

I tell them all the time, “Change Your Brain, smile!”,…here’s the TED Talk. I would greatly recommend you try his suggestions and report back on your experience in trying to smile for others.

 

Welcome to the Barnstead Elementary School Blog! I hope to use this blog as another tool to communicate with parents, grandparents, and guardians, to engage in dialog around educational issues, budget, curriculum, and the strategic plans for the school and district. There are a lot terrific things taking place throughout the school, but for us to get even better we need your involvement and support.

I attached a TED Talk by Rita Pierson; take a few minutes to watch and listen to her message that every child needs a champion, and that teaching and learning is all about the relationships – she makes it look so easy! I believe in her message and would love your feedback and reaction to her talk.