Dear Brackett Community,
Happy middle-of-summer! Hope you all are enjoying these warm months where routines are more relaxed, and many of us take time to rest and rejuvenate with vacation time.
I can imagine some of you are thinking … WAIT! Dr. Vice is emailing? Does this mean it's time to think about going back to school? Not to worry! There are many weeks left before we will return to our 8am arrival, packing snacks, and navigating after school plans. Today’s email is a check-in to provide you with information about future communication timing, resend the update on the playground, and my reflections.
Future Communication
- Class assignments will be posted to PowerSchool mid-August. Currently this is planned for August 16.
- Letters will be mailed to all families with welcome information.
- Regular Thursday afternoon emails will begin on August 22, 2024.
Reflections on Communication, Literacy, and Belonging
One of my major summer activities is reflection and subsequent planning for the upcoming school year. This past year as a new principal was spectacular. As a previous math coach, I’m always drawn to the numbers.
Last year at Brackett …
- We graduated 97 fifth grade leaders – 62 who were on safety patrol or student council, 45 who volunteered to speak at graduation, 12 who wrote me personal letters advocating for change in the lunchroom, all of whom are embarking on new adventures as middle schoolers in just a few short weeks.
- Across the grades, our students went on 15 field trips, had 3 author visits, and attended so many cultural assemblies/ classroom presentations by outside experts on educational topics related to the curriculum that I lost count!
- So many family members volunteered during the over 20 out-of-school time events sponsored by the PTO. 200+ family members volunteered during the school day … in the library, in classrooms as mystery readers or chaperones on field trips, and during events, such as Hour of Code, field day, or Literacy Week. WOW and THANK YOU! (We’ll share more opportunities to volunteer soon!)
While there are many celebrations from my first year, there are three areas that I want to tell you about that demonstrate the depth of the incredible work of our students and faculty. These are also the foundation of next steps for the 2024-2025 school year.
Communication
Based upon family feedback during my interview process, my entry plan focused on listening to different constituencies and building communication channels between families and the school. From mid-year responses on the Panorama survey, we noted significant gains in how families felt connected to the school, the classroom, and their child(ren)’s education. Brackett families reported some of the highest results around communication despite overall decreases at the district level. Consistent weekly communication from teachers and the administration as well as Coffee with Dr. Vice provided more regular opportunities for family engagement. Our goals for the upcoming year are to attempt to restructure the coffees so that hopefully more parents/caregivers can attend. Weekly email communication will continue, and the website/calendar will continue to be updated to ease family planning.
Our New Literacy Curriculum
First and Third grades piloted the new district literacy curriculum this year. Our switch to using the EL (Expeditionary Learning) curriculum was the result of a comprehensive review process that focused on how we would build deeper content knowledge for students. This is in addition to the direct phonics instruction that students have been receiving for several years here in Arlington.
The results were incredible! Students in these grade levels produced higher quality writing and reading responses. They built deep understandings of science and social studies concepts in addition to literary concepts. In addition the curriculum built upon habits of character, e.g. initiative, perseverance, empathy, and compassion, that simultaneously increased independence and collaboration.
Next year we will expand the implementation of the EL curriculum in all grade levels. Check out the topics each grade level will be learning about here. This will be a main focus of professional development for our teachers and student support faculty.
Belonging
There is one final celebration that I want to highlight from the past year: how our faculty and staff worked to build greater belonging for all our students, especially our students on IEPs/504s. Creating a greater sense of belonging – being understood as a person, supported by adults, and respected by other students – is a key indicator in students’ academic success. Our faculty examined their own understanding of and biases around disability. They identified individualized connections between adults and children on IEPs/504s and discussed resources that created more windows and mirrors for students on IEPs/504s in Brackett classrooms. The SST (Student Study Team) process was strengthened in providing initial interventions for at-risk students within their classroom.
Our Instructional Leadership Team and our School Council also partnered with the district DEIBJ (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging, and Justice) department in training and implementation of empathy interviews for families of students with IEPs/504s. The analysis of these interviews provided clear steps for the upcoming year in strengthening communication and parent education, building more access for inclusive services, and supporting our entire community during out-of-school events.
In supporting all students, Mr. Vanderlaine spearheaded a faculty committee centered on Brackett community expectations. Students, families, and faculty/staff shared their hopes and dreams for what it means to be a Brackett community member. The committee worked to synthesize their responses, and these results will be rolled out over the next school year to provide a common language and clear understanding for all of us.
Enjoy the last few weeks of summer! Here is last week's announcement regarding the current timeline and safety considerations for the new playground. See you soon!
Best,
Dr. Gretchen Vice