Friday, September 27, 2013

Journal Writing

Kindergarten students worked with Mrs. Parnell today on journal writing.

Journal Writing

Students in Ms. Anderson's second grade classroom are working on creative writing in their writing journals.

Reflex Math

Students in Mrs. Lynch's third grade classroom today were learning how to set up their avatars and accounts for Reflex Math. Reflex Math is a program that helps students improve math fluency.

5th Grade

A student in Mrs. Fitzpatrick's fifth grade classroom was doing research today on Pre-Columbian Ancient Civilizations.

PTO Meeting

Last night our instructional technology specialist spoke to the PTO about how technology is one of the tools we use at school.

Thursday, September 26, 2013

4th and 5th Grade Recess

Students in fourth and fifth grade enjoyed the great weather today during recess.

Message from Adopt A Class

The Adopt a Class 2023 fundraiser for Meadow Farms pie orders are orders are due Monday, October 7th. 

Message from Fox Hill


FANTASTIC PUMPKIN FAIR ... Friday night, October 18th, 2013 6-9 pm at the Fox Hill School. Come join in the fun of our annual fall tradition. Great games, fall crafts, fabulous prizes and a few good scares. The ever popular Haunted Hallway will be sure to fright, along with many old favorites: Moon Bounce, Cake Walk, Pumpkin Painting, Spin Art, Face Painting, Duck Pond, Pizza, Hot Dogs, Cupcake Decorating, Popcorn, Cotton Candy, Raffles, plus lots more games and activities. Admission is free; tickets for each activity/game can be purchased at the door. Open to the public. For additional information, contact Julie Quinn at quinns@rcn.com.

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Updating iPads to iOS7

Apple recently released a major update for the iPad's software. Over at the Pine Glen LTC blog I've posted a guide that shows how to update your iPad (or iPhone or iPod Touch) to the newest version of iOS so you can run all of the latest apps. The guide is somewhat specific to BPS devices, but can still be a good guide to getting your home devices changed over.

Pine Glen PTO

The PTO blog now has a Paypal account on the page Pine Glen PTO Blog (The first meeting is tomorrow night at 7:00).  Parents can go to the Pine Glen PTO Blog and make a tax deductible donation via Paypal for $20 per family and join the PTO.  This new convenience allows families a check free to join the PTO and an easy way to print the tax deductible form after.  I used this service to join the PTO this year.  The process was super easy and took me only 2 minutes. 


Parents of Young Learners



New Information Series for Parents of Young Learners

Welcome to the Burlington Public Schools Early Childhood Information Series!  We are excited for the opportunity to share information about early childhood development with you.  Our hope is that the sessions provide you with useful tools to understand the development of your child.  Here are the dates and proposed topics of each session:

October 10,2013 - Life Skills and Social Thinking Curricula
November 21, 2013 - Opening the World of Learning (OWL) Curriculum
December 12,2013 - Morning and Nighttime Routines in the Home
January 16, 2014 - Fine and Gross Motor Activities
February 6, 2014 - Reading to Your Child and Homework Routines
March 6, 2014 - Transitions to New Buildings and Classrooms
April 10, 2014 - Technology for Early Learners
May 22, 2014 - Fun Activities for the Summer

The sessions will be held in the School Committee Room, housed in Burlington High School.  Each session will begin promptly at 6:30pm, and will last approximately 1 hour.  We will also be available for questions after each session.  In order to ensure that the Information Series is useful to you, we ask that you please complete a brief survey.  This will help us better understand your family’s needs, and tailor the information sessions to topics that are relevant to you.  Please click on the link below to access the survey:

If you have specific questions pertaining to the the Information Series, please feel free to email Naomi Abelson and Tiffany D'Abbraccio at beccinfoseries@gmail.com.  You can also access useful information regarding the series by visiting the BECC Information Series blog at beccinformationseries.blogspot.com.  We look forward to seeing you on October 10th!

Sincerely,

Tiffany D’Abbraccio, M.S.Ed., Special Education Teacher
Naomi Abelson, Behavior Specialist

Parent Technology Night


The Burlington Public Schools EdTech Team will be hosting a Parent Technology Night on Tuesday, October 1 at Marshall Simonds Middle School. Please join us for information about the BPS elementary school 1:1 iPad program. The session will provide an opportunity to learn about the iPad initiative at grades 1, 4, and 5 this school year. Our team will discuss Foundational Apps, student access to devices, student responsibility, and digital workflow.
Time during every Parent Tech Night session is also dedicated to technology related questions and support.

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Salt Marsh

Fifth graders learned about estuaries and their importance today at camp.

Fifth Grade 2013

The fifth graders in a group picture at camp.

Super Lobster

Fifth graders learning about a lobster's pincher and claw on board a lobster boat.

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Classroom on the Water

Learning about lobsters and other animals out on the ocean at Camp Bournedale.

Crab Eggs

This afternoon we learned a lot about different animals in our local ocean habitat. Students touched the animals and got to see first hand crab eggs.

Planks and Stumps

Fifth graders working on problem solving and team building at Camp Bournedale.

Camp Bournedale

Fifth grade students left Pine Glen this morning for Camp Bournedale. One of the classes students participated in was the low ropes course.

Monday, September 16, 2013

Message Massachusetts Voluntary Enrollment Form


Parents and students can go to our website (www.isi1959.com/student_accident.html ) and sign up for coverage by completing a Massachusetts Voluntary Enrollment Form and returning payment to the address listed.

Thank you,

Matthew Sinderman
Manager, Business Retention

INSURANCE SPECIALISTS, INC.
SERVICE CENTER
305 CARTERET STREET
BEAUFORT, SOUTH CAROLINA 29902

Friday, September 13, 2013

enVisionMath

Today I observed Ms. Smith, Ms. Christie and Mrs. Groom instructing first graders using the new enVisionMath program.

enVisionMath

Ms. Marcus fifth graders today learned about concepts such as expanded form, standard form and decimal place value. She used the interactive white board along with the enVisionMath software curriculum.

enVisionMath

Mrs. Lynch used the interactive white board and the software associated with the enVisionMath curriculum to explain the concept of number line to her third grade students today.

Message from Boosters Club


CRAFT FAIR

The Burlington High School Athletic Boosters Club will host their annual Craft Fair, Saturday, October 19th.  The fair will be at the BHS cafeterias from 10 - 3. 

This year, 100 crafters will offer lovely jewelry, holiday items, doll clothes, home decorations, cards, books, and more.  Our new cafe section will feature unique sauces, jellies, chocolates, and other gourmet items.

Our bake sale table will feature delicious snacks.  Enter the HUGE raffle including a wide variety of our crafters creations.  Enjoy lunch at our concession stand and dining area.
Visitors are encourage to park in the Student Lot and ride the shuttle to the cafeteria-
entrance.

Admission is only $2, and includes a FREE raffle ticket.  BHS is handicapped accessible. 

Thursday, September 12, 2013

A Parent's Guide to the Standards for Mathematical Practice from Pearson


Letter from Pearson (Publisher of enVisionMath)


Dear Parents,

Recently, more than 40 states in the United States have developed and adopted a
common set of academic standards in mathematics. These standards, called the
Common Core State Standards were developed in collaboration with teachers, school
administrators, and mathematics and education experts under the auspices of the
bipartisan National Governors’ Association and the Council for Chief State School
Officers (CCSSO).

These standards will serve as important benchmarks to ensure that all students are
receiving high quality education and are well prepared for success in postsecondary
education and the workforce. Students will be assessed on a regular basis throughout
their school career to monitor their progress towards meeting these benchmarks.

As individual states have adopted these new standards, they have committed to a
shared grade-by-grade sequence of topics to be taught. For many states, this requires
a shift in the instructional materials used, to match both the content skills and the
mathematical understandings contained in the Common Core State Standards.

Your child’s school is using enVisionMATH® Common Core edition ©2012 as their math
program. This program was specially developed to provide comprehensive coverage
of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics. Take a look through your
child’s math textbook/workbook and you’ll notice that each lesson specifically targets
one or more of the content standards (shown just below the lesson number).

You’ll also notice that many of the exercises in the lessons have a red logo next to
them. These exercises highlight opportunities for your child to develop particular
mathematical skills and habits of mind that are part of the Common Core State
Standards. Called Standards for Mathematical Practices, these standards describe
practices and abilities of very good math thinkers. You can help your child develop
these abilities by encouraging them to think about the questions found on the back of
this letter.

Pearson is committed to providing quality instructional materials that can help all
students achieve mastery of the Common Core State Standards and be well prepared
for success after high school. We hope that your child has a successful and rewarding
year in the study of mathematics!

Save the date- We will be having a presentation for parents on October 23rd about
enVisionMATH® Common Core edition ©2012. Time and location TBD.

Open House (September 17, 2013)


Pine Glen Open House will be on September 17, from 6:00 to 7:30. The night will begin in the cafeteria at 6:00 with opening remarks from the principal.  We will leave the back doors of the cafeteria open so parents can enter and exit the building through the cafe.  At 6:10 parents are free to proceed to classrooms. We will continue to have two informational sessions. The first session will be held from 6:15-6:45.  The second session will run from 6:55-7:25.  You are welcome to attend either session. This is a parent informational night.

Heroes Ceremony Video

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Heroes Assembly 9/11/13

Today Pine Glen Elementary School had our Heroes Assembly.  On this day every year we say a big thank you to the Burlington Fire and Police Departments and the brave men and women in the Army, Air Force, Coast Guard, Marines and Navy who keep us safe.  We also take time to remember Thomas McGuinness, a former Pine Glen Student and Lt. Commander in the Navy, who our Pine Glen community lost on September 11, 2001.  I would like to thank the McGuinness Family for attending our school assembly and all the men and women who keep our community safe.