Morning Announcements March 3, 2010

Good Morning Everyone!!

Quote of the day:

“You have the good fortune to be part of a free nation with boundless possibilities – and enough challenges and diversions to make life interesting every day….Read books. Write stories. Learn history. Enjoy life.” – David S. Broder – Columnist – Washington Post, TV panelist

Joke of the Day:

Q: when is homework not homework?

A:  – When it is turned into the teacher.

Thought of the day: Try, try, try again

“The only people who never fail are those who never try.” – Ilka Chase

Many wise people have written about failure, what it means, and how to cope. Here are four more inspiring sayings:

Henry Ford: “Failure is the opportunity to begin again more intelligently.”

Max Beerbohm: “Failure is more interesting than success.”

Robert Kennedy: “Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.”

William D. Brown: “Failure is an event, not a person.”

Today….make up your own saying about failure.

Question of the day:

Figure out what the capitalized words in Column A have in common. Then decide which one of the three lowercased words in Column B belongs with the capitalized ones.

Column A DESSERTS DIAPER STRAP REWARD STAR STINK

Column B tower devil exits

Yesterday’s answer:

skiing; taxiing; radii
vacuum; continuum
bazaar
powwow
savvy; flivver

Word of the day:

Complacency (noun)

Pleasure, contentment, satisfied with own abilities.

The Olympic gold-medalist stopped practicing after her victory, and it was this complacency that led to her losing in the next competition.

Announcements:

IMPORTANT: School Calendar change – we WILL be having school on Friday, March 19. There WILL be a work at home day on Thursday, April 1st.

TODAY, REMIDER: Mohawk bus riders: They have an early dismissal TODAY.  Please let your parents know that you will need to be picked up at the Mohawk school in the afternoon, they will NOT be busing you to your house.

Drama Club – Spring Play – practice is today, Monday from 2:00-2:45 pm. Please meet in Mrs. Santangelo’s room, room 10.

Seniors: please remember to get your pictures in to the office for the slide show. Also please turn in your biographies and your ideas for flowers, motto, song, etc.

Reminder that there are study tables every morning beginning at 7:30 am and Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday afternoons after school until 3:30 pm. Students who were unable to work during snow days are required to be at study tables to make up their time. Study tables are also for anyone who needs extra time to get ahead or if you need assistance for classes. Students who are falling behind in classes should use study tables to help get back on track. We want everyone to take advantage of this time.

Tiffin Teen Center: 162 East Perry St, phone number: 419-443-0359

Open every day: 2:45-6:00 pm (unless indicated differently)

Study tables everyday: 2:45-4:30 – free tutoring, homework help and prizes for achieving personal study goals.

This week’s lunch menu:

Wednesday: Tilapia, white rice, zucchini squash, wheat bread, fruit; Thursday: Spaghetti with Meatballs, green beans, breadstick, fruit; Friday: Lemon Baked Fish, baked Potato, veggie blend, dinner roll, and fruit.

Have a great day!!

Morning Announcements Feb. 23, 2010

ineffable (adj)

Indescribable, either because something cannot be expressed verbally, or because its description is limited by social or religious constraints.

Walking out into the fresh spring air, Joey was overcome with an ineffable feeling of joy, an emotion impossible to describe in words.

Have a great day!!

Founders and Administration of Bridges Community Academy

Founders and Administration of
Bridges Community Academy

Dona Kaufman and Judy Back are the co-founders of Bridges Community Academy established in 2004.   They have been administrators of this “gifted/individualized” charter school for the past 6 ½ years.

Dona has been in education for the past 32 years. She taught junior high students for over half of her career in teaching. After 16 years of teaching Dona worked as a Graduate Assistant for Dr. Tom Southern at BGSU and received her master’s degree in Gifted Education. She was then a Gifted Education Coordinator for North Central Ohio Educational Service Center for 5 years. She also earned her administrative licensure at Findlay University in 2002. In 2004 she became the Director of BCA.

Judy has been in education for the past 18 years. She was a Gifted Intervention Specialist for twelve years for the North Central Ohio Educational Service Center. She attended Bowling Green State University to receive her masters in Gifted Education.  Judy later became a Gifted Coordinator and attended Findlay University to work on an administrative licensure. In 2004 she became the Director of Academics at BCA.
Judy has been involved with Ohio Association of Gifted Children as a regional representative, then President-elect and President over the past 10 years. She has assisted OAGC with their involvement in the NAGC convention and was instrumental in defining OAGC’s restructuring.
Dona has served on the Executive Committee and Governing Board as 2nd Vice-President of OAGC.  She is also the author of a book about meeting the needs of gifted children, My Child is Very Special.

Together, Dona and Judy have worked together to present their knowledge to parents and educators at OAGC, COCG, NWOCCG, OCQE and OAPCS  conferences, and have also provided many district staff in-services.

Dona and Judy’s passion has always been to educate others about the needs of gifted children and to help provide appropriate educational opportunities for every individual child.   If you are reading this webpage then they hope you have learned what BCA is all about.  They are compassionate, yet strong leaders and they have had the ability to promote teamwork that has turned brainpower and a few dreams into reality. The evidence of their assets and their passions are in the accomplishments of the staff, students and families of Bridges Community Academy.

New Student Illness Reporting Guidelines and Procedures

Bridges Community Academy HAS NOT had a confirmed case of any student or staff member contracting the H1N1 virus this school year.

Due to increased concerns over the spread of the H1N1 virus, the Seneca County General Health District has issued new guidelines to be followed when reporting any student absences due to illness. There is a new form that must now be filled out and turned into the office when any student illness is reported. This new form is available HERE.

Additionally, when calling in students, you will need to provide the following information:

Student Name
Grade
Birth Date
Is the student running a fever?

How high was the fever and how long has the student been running it? (degrees)

Does the student have any of the following symptoms?

• Fever
• Headache
• Tiredness (can be extreme)
• Cough
• Sore Throat
• Runny or Stuffy Nose
• Body Aches
• Diarrhea and Vomiting

Thank you for your cooperation. Should you have any questions, please contact the Mrs. Hines or Mrs. Stanko in the school office.

For additional information and recomendations, please visit the Seneca County General Health District website.

Please check back often for additional changes / information.

Teams 1 and 5 Begin Big / Little Buddies Program

This week saw teams 1 and 5 joining together in a new partnership. Big Buddies will be tutoring their little buddies in the classroom once a week. Our kickoff activity was an icebreaker. Buddies drew chalk outlines of each other. As they worked together to decorate their pictures, they had a chance to talk, and get acquainted. It was a chance for the older and younger students to get to know each other a little better and forge a bond. They will also continue to get together as a group once per month and the The Big / Little Buddies Program will continue throughout the the 2009 / 2010 school year. As you can see by the pictures below, everyone seemed to be having a very enjoyable time!

BCA Photograpy Students Help With Picture Day

Several BCA photography students helped with the recent BCA Fall Picture Day. Ellis Studios is the official BCA school photography studio, and owner Terry Hanning and assistant photographer Jill were on hand for the morning’s activities.

The photography students arrived early and helped with setting up and adjusting the various pieces of photographic equipment. Once everything was in place, Terry and Jill then instructed the students on some finer points of the photography business and portrait photography. The students were given the opportunity to take a few “test shots” of each other.

Once picture time arrived, the students acted as “runners”, escorting the classes to the gym and helping out with “crowd control”. Some of the photography students were able to take a few of the student photographs! With the students’ help, everything ran very smoothly and everything was finished by noon. Terry and Jill were quick to compliment the BCA students and were very appreciative of their help.

This is the first year BCA has worked with Ellis Studios. Mr. Hanning has volunteered several days over the upcoming school year to work with the BCA Photography Program. He will be instructing students on various technical aspects of photography and the photography business. We are very pleased to be working with Ellis Studios and appreciate everything they are doing for the students.

BCA Biology Students Head to Heidelberg for Lab

Bridges Community Academy Chemistry and Biology students from Team 4 had their first Lab experience at Heidelberg University with Dr. Bob Murray on Wednesday September 23, 2009.  It was an engaging and exciting experience for students and teachers.  Students were able to participate in a college freshman level Biology lab on the Heidelberg University Campus.  Students are anxiously awaiting the future labs in which they will study enzymes and a fetal pig dissection.  Keep tuned for more exciting pictures and information as our semester at Heidelberg Lab unfolds!

Parent Communication Matters at BCA!

Last week at the BCA Board meeting, “Wonderful News Happening at BCA” was presented by Director Mrs. Kaufman. This short update on all the wonderful things happening at BCA always opens the beginning of each monthly meeting. The following email was written to staff from a parent expressing that BCA is providing ways for their individual child to reach their full potential!

I just want to let you know how well things are going for my child already this year. She has said several times already that she loves school. That is so wonderful. She says she loves every subject.

Once she said, “It’s challenging, but that’s how I like it.” Today she said, “You don’t know how great it is to feel like I’m good at math now.” She used to think she wasn’t any good at math so this is a real gift to her.

I know you all work very hard and probably see all the things you wish could be even better than they are. So I want you to know that you have some extremely satisfied customers and that our family is among them!

Thanks so much.

One of the BCA goals embedded in our mission is communication between parents and school.  BCA welcomes all communication and it is really nice to hear “complementary comments” too!  We are honored to serve children and families. This communication enlightens our service.  Everyone should feel free to share more letters or stories of encouragement on the forum!

(Names will always be kept confidential.)

The Fireman Come for a Visit! Fire Safety for Team 1.

On Friday, September 11, 2009, the students from Team 1 had an exciting visit from the Sycamore Volunteer Fire Department! Fireman Donn and Fireman D were on hand to explain some very important information. The students learned about fire safety, and what they should do in a real fire. They were all shown how to stop, drop and “rock”. The firemen also explained that even though they wear a lot of specialized equipment, children should not be afraid of them and should never hide from a fireman. The firemen also wanted everyone to know how important it is for everyone to have a fire evacuation plan for your house and you should practice using it with your family.

Afterward, the students were given a very special and exciting ride on the fire truck! Thanks again fireman Donn and fireman D and to the entire Sycamore Volunteer Fire Department!

Mrs. Schimmoeller, Mrs. Santangelo, Grandma Burks

Opening Parent Meeting Success

WOW, what a commitment to our mission and vision we have as a community at BCA!

Congratulations to the over 110 families that were present at the Opening Parent Meetings this past week.  79% of our community were present and another 15 families had contact with their teams making arrangements to obtain the information from these very important meetings. It was a pleasure for the administration and staff to introduce our new families and to share the exciting changes toward our committment of EXCELLENCE with everyone!

The Governing Authority of BCA and the Expected Outcomes Committee worked together to develop a Contract of Excellence for both parents and students of BCA. The following letter of explanation was given to every family in attendance and will be shared with any family unable to attend within the next week:

We are excited you have chosen to join us as we strive for academic and personal excellence. Students completing our curriculum will be well prepared to pursue higher education and become contributing, positive members of the community at large. Students and parents joining our community aspire to identify and develop each student’s own individual strengths essential to becoming a lifelong learner. Therefore, curriculum is individualized. BCA firmly embraces the philosophy that parents and BCA are PARTNERS in Education. We offer the following contracts between student, school and parent(s) to ensure the success of this partnership for our students.

The 2009-2010 Governing Authority of Bridges Community Academy:

• Rob Ashworth-President
• Donn Pahl-Vice-President
• Mary Rizza
• Eric Basinger
• Karen Kline
• Melissa Lyon
• Gary Hauter
• Bob Murray
• Mary Jo Murray

The Administration of Bridges Community Academy:

• Dona Kaufman-Director
• Judy Back-Director of Academics

100% returned contracts will be expected and valued!!

Congratulations to the following families.  Your child’s name was drawn from those in attendance to win 1 free lunch coupon from the BCA community. Just mark on your lunch form that you received notice of this coupon.  Names will be with Anetta Otte, lunch room director.

• Team 1- Mollie Bryant, Eric Schmidutz, James Vanderhoff, Isaiah Wells
• Team 2-Peter Maier, Ben Rozzell
• Team 3-Anna Whitmer, Ryon Forman
• Team 4-Raelynn Navarro, Faith Breaux, Jacob Panuto
• Team 5-Sierra Lanning, Shayne Stanforth, Kyle Zahn

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