Year at a Glance, What is Modern Learning

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Library Learning Commons News, Food Drive Dona-tions

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Monthly Wellness Tip from Our Partners in York Re-gion

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November 2017

Dr. M. Richmon Principal

Ms. H. Parekh Vice Principal

Ms. D. Banaj Administrative Assistant

Ms. C. Nappi Secretary

Phone: 905-731-8227 Fax: 905-731-8161

BPS Blog: www.bakersfieldps.com

On Twitter @Bakersfield_PS

Mr. P. Mastrangelo Lead Caretaker

Mr. B. Pariselli Mr. V. Yabut Mr. B. Young

Caretakers

Mr. L. Aversa Trustee

Mr. P. Valle Superintendent CEC West

905-764-6830

Ms. S. Greene & Ms. S. Lipson

2017-2018 School Council Co-chairs

Inside This Issue…..

YORK REGION DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD

This past month has been a busy one, with some returning seasonal events and some new ones. October saw Bak-ersfield P.S. hold it’s very first Student Council Elections and we were proud of our students’ leadership and their will-ingness to represent their peers. Along with a President, the school elected Vice Presidents of Inclusion, School Spirit, Helping Hands, and the Environ-ment. We look forward to these stu-dents working with staff to make our school an even better place. As well, our school launched it’s annual Fall Food Drive which culminated in a dance with Bounce Entertainment. Students took responsibility for promoting the event and organizing the food dona-tions. Well done, student leaders —there’s more to come!

Not surprisingly, November looks no less busy, with a number of events in-cluding the Mathletes program where many of our students will spend a full-day engaged in ‘hands on’ mathematics across classes —the program was very successful last year, and we can expect learning involving cooperation and fun. As well, our grade eight students will be visiting Stephen Lewis Secondary

School on November 1st to learn about secondary school program require-ments in support of their transition to grade nine. Further still, there will be an opportunity for the community to join us at Bakersfield for special event. On November 9th we will be hosting a special Holocaust Survivor Speaker Presentation for our intermediate stu-dents. The community is more than welcome to attend. Details of these events will be shared on our school blog at www.bakersfieldps.com.

This month parents will also receive Progress Reports in which teachers will report on learning skills and academic subjects such as language and math, but instead of assigning a mark or grade as found in the Report Card, they will indicate how well your child is progressing: ‘very well’, ‘well’ or ‘with difficulty’, as well as highlighting strengths and areas to improve before evaluations are completed. Through these reports, and the subsequent Par-ent-Teacher interviews, we hope to encourage early and ongoing commu-nication between you and your child's teacher(s). We look forward to contin-uing to work together.

Progress reports will be sent home on Wednesday, November 22, 2017. Parent-teacher interviews will be held on Thursday, November 23 (evening) and on the P.A. Day, Friday, November 24. We look forward to seeing all of our parents and guardians. This year we will be using Edsby to book parent-teacher interviews. The Parent-Teacher interview schedule will open for bookings on November 10th at 10:00 a.m. For help signing up for Parent-Teacher interviews, please vis-it http://bit.ly/edsbyparents.

The ultimate goal of assessment and evaluation is to improve student learning. To better understanding the Progress Report (or subsequent Term 1 or Term 2 Report Cards) please don’t hesitate to speak to your child’s teacher(s). As well, please visit the Ministry of Education’s website to learn more about how to ‘Support your Child's Learning through Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting’ at http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/parents/reportCard.html.

This information may help to clarify many questions around the reporting process.

Progress Reports & Parent Teacher Interview

Administrators’ Message

Bakersfield P.S. Page 2

Year at a Glance

Nov 20, 2017-Nov 23, 2017—Scholastic Book Fair Nov 22, 2017—Photo Retakes Nov 24, 2017—P.A. Day Nov 30, 2017—School Council Meeting, 7 p.m. Dec 25, 2017-Jan 5, 2018—Winter Break Jan 19, 2018—P.A. Day Jan 25, 2018—School Council Meeting, 7 p.m. Feb 2, 2018—P.A. Day Feb 19, 2018—Family Day Feb 22, 2018—School Council Meeting, 7 p.m. Mar 12, 2018-Mar 16, 2018—March Break March 22, 2018—School Council Meeting, 7 p.m. March 30, 2018—Good Friday April 2, 2018—Easter Monday April 24, 2018—Grade 7 Immunizations (Hep B, HPV, Menactra; boys and girls) April 26, 2018—School Council Meeting, 7 p.m. May 21, 2018—Victoria Day May 22, 2018-June 4, 2018—EQAO Administration Dates June 4, 2018—P.A. Day June 28, 2018—Early Release Day June 29, 2018—P.A. Day

The most compre-hensive and up-to-date list of im-portant dates is maintained on the Bakersfield P.S. Blog. It can be found on the right side-bar widget of the web-site.

What is ‘Modern Learning’? Modern Learning is authentic, relevant, deep learning that enables learners to create, to connect, to com-municate, to share their learning with the world and to be ready for the future. In order to be successful as a learner in the 21st Century, we encourage our students need to adopt a growth mindset. What is Growth Mindset? A growth mindset is the understanding that we can develop our abilities and talents. Motivating students and instilling positive habits of mind, such as a willingness to persist, to take responsible risks, and to question and pose problems, are integral parts of learning. You may be aware of the phrases “fixed mindset” and “growth mindset”. Dr. Carole Dweck coined these phrases in hopes of moving our learning from a fixed mindset to that of a growth mindset. This shift in thinking leads to a focus on learning, in-creased effort, and a willingness to learn from mistakes. How do I know if my child has a Fixed or Growth Mindset? With a Fixed Mindset, students believe that their skills and talents are fixed traits and often resist learning and trying to improve. Students may think “I’m either good at it or I’m not”, “I don’t like to be challenged” or “I give up if I find something difficult”. Alternatively, with a Growth Mindset students may think “I learn from my failures”, “I can learn anything I want to”, “I want to challenge myself” or “I always persevere even when I’m frustrated”. Fortunately, we can promote a Growth Mindset in our students. Consider trying the following: 1. Let your child know when they demonstrate a Growth Mindset; acknowledge their positive attitude.

2. Praise your child’s effort in the process of an activity (e.g. I am proud that you did not give up).

3. Avoid praising results—this undermines effort by linking approval to the outcome, not the work itself.

4. Embrace failures and mistakes—demonstrate to your child that mistakes are how we learn.

Bakersfield P.S. Page 3

Library Learning Commons News

Times: Open daily for class visits, morning recess (10:35-10:55), after-school Monday to Wednesday until 4:00 p.m. and during parent-teacher interviews (Thursday evening until 8:00 p.m.)

Location: The Bakersfield Library Learning Commons

Family Event Evening: Thursday, November 23rd

The Book Fair will accept cheques made payable to Bakersfield Public School,

as well as VISA, MasterCard and American Express.

Help spark the love of reading and support our school!

Come one, come all!

The Scholastic Book Fair is returning to

Bakersfield Public School!

Book Fair Dates:

November 20 – 23, 2017

There’s Still Time ...

… to donate to Bakersfield’s Food Drive in support of the Vaughan Food Bank.

It is simply incredible that we’ve filled six large drums, and had to overflow additional items into boxes. This community always demonstrates a spirit of generosity and you’ve outdone yourselves this year! Thank you! While many students brought items in for donation at the Fall Dance, we will keep the dona-tion bins on hand through Friday, November 3, 2017, so if you have yet to give, don’t hesitate to drop off non-perishable food items in the school foyer in the remaining days ahead. Together, we can help local families in need.

Bakersfield P.S. Page 4

Monthly Wellness Tip