Bridge to Home                                         Bridge Mural
   A weekly publication about Bridge Elementary School by PTA volunteers
             August 6, 2010                                                                                    Vol. 15, Issue 1
 
Bridge Elementary School
55 Middleby Road, Lexington, MA  02421
Web Site:  http://bridge.lexingtonma.org
(781) 861-2510


Upcoming Events
2010-2011 SCHOOL YEAR: MARK YOUR CALENDARS!


Aug 31, Tue

First Day of School: 1/2 Day (Dismissal 12:15 pm)


Aug 31, Tue, 8:45-10:30 am

PTA Welcome Back Breakfast, Bridge Cafeteria

Sign-up for PTA Membership, Room Parents & Committees


September 1, Wed

First full day of school for Grades 1-5 (Dismissal 3:15 pm)

1/2 day for Kindergarten (Dismissal 12:15 pm)


September 2, Thurs

1/2 day for whole school (Dismissal 12:15 pm)


September 3, 6, 9

No School


Sept 15, Wed, 8:30-9:00 am

Bridge Classroom Visitation/Open House


Sept 23, Thur, 6:00-7:30 pm

Back to School/Curriculum Night (Parents Only, District-Wide)


Sept 28, Tues, 5:30-7:30 pm

Family Pizza Night & World Map Celebration


Sept 30, Thur, 8:45-10:30 am

Newcomer's Breakfast (location TBD)

More Summer Jokes
Q: What did the pig say at the beach on a hot summer's day?
A: I'm bacon!

Q: Why do dogs sit in the shade?
A: Because they don't want to be HOT DOGS!

Q: How do you talk to a shark?
A: Long distance !!!


Subscribe to receive weekly B2H e-mail

Next B2H Deadline
NEXT DEADLINE:  Thursday, August 26, 5 PM

Articles must be approved by Mrs. Colella or be from authorized Bridge School and/ or PTA sources. 
Submit by email to Aimee Burstein at [email protected]
In This Issue...
Get the info!
Summer Welcome from Principal Meg Colella
Welcome Back Breakfast
Wishing Well
Early PTA Registration
Sign-up for PTA Committees
"One Shot Deal" Volunteering
2010-11 Bridge Directory Updates
Please remember to update your contact information for this fall's Bridge Directory.  This can now be easily done through a secure form on our Web site.  Click on Update my Bridge Directory information
to access the form.  Thank you!  Questions?  Contact Directory Chair, Jane Chang at [email protected]
Child graduated?
If you no longer wish to receive B2H, please use the unsubscribe link at the beginning or end of this email (but of course, you are welcome to stay).
Student Absence Line

call (781) 861-2510
press 6, then press 1

Parents should call Bridge School by 8:30am when their child is going to be absent or late.

Cafeteria Info.
Lunch: $3.25
Milk only: $0.75


View this week's menu from Chartwell's

Get the info!

Welcome to the new format of Bridge to Home (B2H), your weekly source about Bridge School events, school information, and memos from the principal.  Last year's survey results indicated a preference for an email format, so here it is.  Over the course of time, we will be working to link more easily to the Bridge website (http://bridge.lexingtonma.org) and also to make it more attractive and user-friendly.  If you have any suggestions, please contact Aimee Burstein at [email protected].  We will also be publishing a "quarterly" paper version of B2H.

In addition to B2H, there are two other Internet-based sources of information about the Bridge community and the Lexington Public School system as a whole.   The Bridge School List Serve (electronic mailing list) was established to keep families at Bridge up-to-date with pertinent information about district-wide Lexington Public School events. It also serves as an emergency contact list that enables the school to contact parents quickly (for example, health alerts, school closings due to snow, water main breaks, etc.).  You can sign up by emailing our ListServ Chair, Jane Chang, at [email protected].

Finally, a Yahoo group has been set up for parents to share information, ask questions, and post information (e.g. babysitting, after-school activities, looking for ice skates, etc). To join, either go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Bridge_02421/join- OR - send an email to [email protected].

Summer Welcome From Principal Meg Colella
 
I hope that you are all enjoying a restful and relaxing summer vacation. For those of you who do not know me, I will be the Interim Bridge School Principal for the 2010-2011 school year. Over the past three years, I have been the Assistant Principal here at Bridge and have worked closely with the outgoing principal to ensure a smooth transition into the new school year. 

There have been many questions and concerns regarding enrollment, space, and technology.  I wanted to update you on these areas.  In addition, I will be sending home a summer letter the second week of August that will include more specific information regarding the start of the new school year. 
 
Enrollment:
Currently, our enrollment for the 2010-2011 school year is 507 students (as of August 5, 2010).  We have secured 4 sections for each grade level.  In addition to our veteran staff, we are also welcoming Ms. Davis to the Kindergarten Team, Ms. Conway to the Second Grade Team, and Ms. Hinton to our Fourth Grade Team.  Ms. Baranofsky will be moving to first grade and Mr. Nichols will be moving to third grade.  We have also been very busy hiring Kindergarten Assistants as well as a new Instructional Assistant. 
 
Space:
At the end of the 2009-2010 school year, we spent a great deal of time determining the most efficient use of space at Bridge School.  The custodians have been very busy moving classrooms and offices, as well as painting various rooms. 

Special Education:
The computer lab is in the process of transforming into a Resource Room. Three special education teachers, who service students in small groups of 1-5, will share this space. The room is being a painted a cheerful blue, shelving is being installed, electrical work will be completed, and the teachers are thrilled that the air conditioning will continue! A Resource Room should be a welcoming environment where students can work with special education teachers in a quiet setting to have their individual needs met.  We are confident that we are creating such an environment.  The PALS Program will continue to be housed in its current locations: rooms 102 and 133. Other special education services will continue to be provided in various office spaces throughout the building that accommodate groups of 1-5 students.

ELL:
Our ELL classes will remain in room 120 and 110D. Although Bridge School will greatly miss Ms. Meg Jackson, we are thrilled to welcome our new full-time ELL teacher, Mrs. Deidre Schadler.  Ms. Nebus will also be working with our ELL students on a part-time basis.  

Mathematics and Literacy:
The literacy department at Bridge is expanding to 3 full-time literacy specialists and one part-time literacy coach (a literacy coach works with teachers on implementing literacy instruction in the classroom).  Ms. Sharon Kingsbury and Mr. Dana Robertson (who is transferring from Estabrook School) will share an office space in room 117 (this room accommodates two groups of 5 students each.  Ms. Litchfield and Ms. Laura Broach (who we welcome to our staff) will share a similar office space located in the Kindergarten Wing in room 128B.  We have also allocated a special reading resource space to house the resources that all classroom teachers and specialists share in order to better facilitate reading instruction.  Our two mathematics specialists, Ms. Kelly and Mrs. Burk (who we are welcoming to Bridge) will continue to be located in room 122.

Technology:
Bridge school is acquiring a mobile laptop cart that will house 25-27 new laptop computers that will be available to all classrooms!  Classroom teachers will sign up on a regular basis to use the laptops in a similar fashion to a computer lab.  They will also be available for teachers, special educators, and specialists to borrow for small group instruction or centers.  The current computers that are housed in the computer lab will be reallocated to increase the number of desktop computers for all classrooms.  Various teachers are receiving ELMO Document Readers to replace overhead projectors.  It is our hope, that over time, we can acquire even more.  Through a technology grant, two SmartBoards will be located in a third and fifth grade classroom (we are awaiting final approval by the School Committee), as well as two Portable Collaborative Interactive SmartTables that will be housed in Kristen Baranofsky's first grade classroom and Heather LaBranche's kindergarten room. The PTA has generously allocated money to purchase an ELMO Document Reader for their use as well as use by various school personnel. 
 
I hope that this information will help to answer your questions and assure you that the 2010-2011 school year is already off to a good start.  Please look for my summer welcome letter the second week of August and  enjoy the summer!
 
       
Meg Colella
Principal
Join us at the Welcome Breakfast August 31st

Every year on the first day of school, the Bridge PTA sponsors a breakfast to welcome parents to Bridge School, to enable them to sign up for the PTA membership, as well as to volunteer to be a Room Parent or a participant in any of the 40+ active PTA Committees.  This is a great time to meet the Principal Meg Colella and fellow parents, and to get involved in the thriving Bridge School Community. 

Please mark your calendar and join us from 8:45 to 10:30 a.m. in the Bridge Cafeteria on August 31, 2010.
Wishing Meg Colella Well in 2010-2011
What is the Wishing Well?

We would like to dedicate our new Bridge School Wishing Well to Meg Colella in honor of her becoming our principal. We all wish her and the entire Bridge staff well over the summer, and we look forward to this new school year under her capable guidance.

The Bridge School FUNdraising Committee has begun using the wishing well over the summer to gather "wishes" from the Bridge School staff.  We have asked the Bridge School staff to come up with individual wish lists to drop into the wishing well.  After your class list is sent to you, we will circulate your child's teacher's wish list as well as the staff's wish list.  We will ask for parent volunteers from each classroom to coordinate and update the wish lists throughout the 2010-2011 academic year.  Parents can choose to donate items on the wish list at any time.  This will supplement the PTA's Mini-grant and Teacher's Purse programs and will enable parents to directly participate in helping out the school.

Over the next few weeks, if your child is interested in drawing a picture or writing a poem about the wishing well and/or making their wishes for the school known, kindly email or send them to Shannon Amsler, 6 Hampton Road, Lexington, MA 02421. Submitted pictures or poems may be used in future correspondence with our Bridge School Community.  Please include your child's name and grade as well as your contact information with your submission.

If you have any FUNdraising ideas and/or would like to join our committee,  please contact me at [email protected]  or (617) 549-3272.

We wish you a fantastic summer.  Thank you in advance for your cooperation in our new addition to Bridge School.

Shannon Amsler
FUNdraising Committee
Early Registration for PTA Membership

Most parents sign up as PTA members during the Welcome Breakfast on the first day of school.  Want to beat the rush?  You are welcome to download the 2010-11 PTA Membership Form from the Bridge Website and either mail it with your check payable to the "Bridge School PTA" at 55 Middleby Road, Lexington, MA  02421 or place your form and check (inside an envelope please!) in the PTA Membership Box in the Front Foyer of Bridge School. 

PTA Members will receive a confirmation of membership, a membership card, a subscription to the Bridge to Home email, and a complementary Bridge School Directory (published in October).

Questions?  Email the Bridge PTA at [email protected].
Sign up for 2010-2011 PTA Committees!

We are pleased that over 41 Chairs and Co-Chairs have agreed to manage our nearly 40 Committees.  Please consider Chairing, Co-Chairing one of the vacant committees, or joining one of our many committees this year.  Below is the list of Committees & Chairs as of today.  Please contact us at [email protected] if you are interested in any of these committees, or if we need to make any edits to this list.

There will be another opportunity for parents to sign up for Committees at the PTA Welcome Breakfast on August 31 from 8:30-10:00 a.m. in the Bridge cafeteria.
 
2010-2011 Bridge PTA Committee Chairs (as of 7/31/2010)
ACT (Arts Created Together), Ami Stix
ACT Walk for the Arts, Ami Stix and Jackie Quint
Barnes & Noble Fundraiser, Mary Ellen Alessandro
Big Back Yard, Laurie Curtis
Book Fair, Sue Wilner
Bridge 02421 Yahoo Group, Jane Chang
Bridge to Home Email & Quarterly Newsletter, Aimee Burstein
Communications/Sign Board, Cathy Smith
Community Event/Spring Fling Social, VACANT
Community Service, Cindy Lewis & Susan Morin
Eco-Bridge, Marcia Gens
Enrollment, Stephanie Mitzenmacher
Family Math Night, Stu Jacobson & Angela Chang
Family Word Night, Audrey Roth
Fifth Grade Activities, VACANT
FUNdraising Initiatives, Shannon Amsler
Gardening, Liza Connolly
Hospitality, Ann Horiatis
International Night, Cary Morse
Kids Cooking Green, Liza Connolly
Library Volunteers, Cary Morse
ListServe, Jane Chang
Membership, Nikki MacKesy
METCO, Deb Savin
Morning Car Greeters, JJ Krawczyk
Newcomers, Kara Libby & Christie King
Reflections Program, Bruce Rubenstein
Room Parents (Playground/Teacher Appreciation), Stephanie Mitzenmacher
Safe Routes to School, Ann Stokes
Safe Routes to School Clean-up Crew, Tom Shiple
School Directory, Jane Chang
School Pictures, Clare Sweeney
Science Night, Frank Schapfel
Spiritwear Fundraiser, Richa Jain
Teacher Pictures, Justine Wirtanen
UNICEF, Kris Maeda
We Care (Student/Family Crisis), Sue Kingsbury
Website, Devjani Ray & Keith Posey
Welcome Breakfast, Jennifer Pawloski & Susan McNamara
Wilson Farms Pie Fundraiser, VACANT
Sign up now for "One Shot Deal" Volunteering

So you don't like meetings and don't want to be on a PTA committee, but you'd like to help out somehow?  Here's your opportunity!  Sign up for "One Shot Deal" volunteering.  Examples of special assignments might include creating a poster or baking cookies for an event, helping to paint a classroom, helping with a PTA mailing, distributing B2H quarterly newsletters, or checking in people at an event...

Email Suzanne Lau at [email protected] with the following information:

Your Name:_________________________________________________

Your Availability [specific dates/morning/midday/afternoon/evening/weekdays/weekends]_________________________________________________

Your Contact Preference [phone#/email#]:__________________________

2010-2011 PTA Executive Committee Members

CO-PRESIDENTS

Justine Wirtanen

Rebecca Reynolds Moore


CO-VICE PRESIDENTS

Victoria Campos

Stephanie Mitzenmacher

Jean Sabatini

Laura Schroeder

Guorong Zhu


TREASURER

Tricia Weisberg

SECRETARY

Suzanne Lau

Bridge School Office Staff


PRINCIPAL

Margaret Colella

ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL

John Harney

ADMINISTRATIVE ASST

Marcia Cavatorta

GUIDANCE

Lucia Gates

NURSE

Diane Celi