BCE Bear Mail
Friday December 15th.
Message from the office.
Hello BCE Community-
Another busy week at BCE. Yesterday we had our monthly awards with a focus on Empathy. It is so great to see so many students working hard on the BCE way. We also were able to give awards for running club. We have 2 students that have already run 20 miles since we started and several more climbing the later. So fun to see our Bears making healthy and fun choices during recess.
Next week will be filled with fun and excitement. We have a lot to do next week and attendance is still very important. If you are going to be out, please make sure you call the attendance line.
Next Friday is our Dress up day. Holiday Sweaters or PJ's for our movie party. Can't wait to see the amazing outfits.
4 more days for the canned food drive. Thank you so much for all that has already been donated. Kids are very excited to see our numbers go up, and the community will be so thankful for the amazing donations.
Don't forget all Lost and Found will be donated on the 22nd. Please take a moment next week to look through the lost and found.
4 more school days till Winter Break. Have a wonderful weekend
I can be reached best by email at gfippin@slvusd.org
Gerri Fippin
Principal BCE
Holiday Reward
To reward the students for good behavior and collection of the canned food drive, we will be having a school-wide movie party on 12/21. We will gather in the MU for popcorn, hot chocolate, and a movie. It will be ugly sweater day and/ or PJ day. Students are welcome to bring one small pillow or stuffy to have with them at the movie. We will be watching the following movies-
- TK- 2- Dr. Suess The Grinch (2018) rated PG
- 3-5- Dr. Suess- How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) rated PG
If, for any reason, you do not want your student to participate, please email your teacher. We will have an alternative activity for your student. Please keep in mind that this is an opt-out, not an opt-in experience.
Canned Food Drive
BCE is showing up for our community by donating to the Valley Churches United Canned Food Drive. Please send in your non-perishable donations to help support families in our community. This is a great opportunity for students to discover the good feeling we receive when we help others. This year BCE has set a school wide goal of 2000 cans/non-perishable items. Thank you for your support!
National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Santa Cruz County is a critical community partner, offering classroom presentations, support groups, classes, a 24/7 warmline, webinars, resources, and so much to community members with mental health conditions and loved ones who support them- at no cost for participants. Here are just a couple upcoming resources to share with local families. Check out all they offer on their website.
Family-to-Family Class starts January 10th, 2024
Wednesdays 6:00-8:30pm PST on Zoom, 8 weeks
Free of cost, 8-session educational, evidence-based program for family, significant others and friends of people with mental health conditions.
"Before I took the course, I felt alone and overwhelmed dealing with my daughter’s mental illness. By taking this course, I have met others who are going through the same things I am and have learned about many resources that I never knew existed." -Participant
Family Support Group for Parents/Caregivers of Youth (11-17) (English)
2nd and 4th Wednesdays, 6:30 - 8:00pm PST, drop-in-friendly
Free of cost, drop-in friendly, and confidential. For parents and caregivers of adolescents who have mental health challenges. Gain hope and develop supportive relationships.
NAMI Grupo de Apoyo para Familiares (Español/Spanish)
Todos los martes de las 6:30PM a 8:00PM, A Través de Zoom
Un grupo libre, confidencial y seguro para ayudar a los familiares y seres queridos de personas que viven con una condición de salud mental. Los grupos de apoyo de NAMI son únicos porque siguen un modelo estructurado, lo que garantiza que todos tengan la oportunidad de ser escuchados y obtener lo que necesitan.
Coffee with the Principal
Cradle to Career will be sponsoring a Coffee with the Principal and welcome back from the holiday break on 1/12 at 8:40. We will have a chance to catch up, and for families to learn more about how Cradle to Career supports our school site. Hope you can join us for a cup of coffee.
Friday, Jan 12, 2024, 07:00 AM
Upper Playground
Boulder Creek STEAM EXPO
February 14-15, 2024
Please Register on the BCE Website or BCE STEAM Expo Registration
Online Registration Extended- January 26th
Do you love science experiments? Inventing things? Engineering to solve a problem?
If so, this is for you! Any student can participate, TK-5th grade. In addition to traditional projects that follow the scientific method or engineering design process, the STEAM Expo invites projects that are demonstrations or inventions/creations that do not necessarily include testing or evaluating for effectiveness. The STEAM Expo enables students to explore their interests and talents by offering different project types and categories from which students can choose, many of which are directly tied to categories represented in California Science and Engineering Fair (CSEF), the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) and the Invention Convention.
THE PROCESS:
Choose a topic. Students, think about what interests you. What are you curious about? What do you enjoy learning or doing? If you want some ideas, you can visit sciencebuddies.org for ideas on traditional science fair projects as well as STEM activities for ‘Showcase’ projects. **NOTE: Projects involving the growth of unknown mold, fungus or bacteria will NOT be allowed AT ALL! Ask if you're not sure about your project. Safety at home Blog post.
Traditional Science Projects begin with the Scientific Process.
Make an Observation
Ask a Testable Question
Form an Hypothesis
Design an Experiment
Do the experiment and write down your data and observations in a notebook.
Present Results and Conclusions by answering your testable question.
Register by December 20th on the BCE website under BCE Info.
Do the project. Carry out the experiment, engineering project or showcase piece. Let us know if you have questions along the way or need any materials.
Presentation Board. Put together a tri-fold board that tells about your project. Boards are available in the BCE Office or Room 12, you do not need to buy one! Let us know when you are ready for a board.
Expo Time!! February 14 Project set up in the MPC room before school. Students will be called in for interviews during the mornng. Interviews give students the opportunity to talk about their project and receive feedback from interviewers, no judging takes place.
Student Interviews: Each participant will be briefly interviewed by 2-3 volunteer interviewers during the BCE STEAM Expo.
Flue season is here-
RSV is one of the respiratory illness going around- Please take a moment to read the attached documents so you can know what is going on
Attendance Matters
We know people get sick, people get injured, and there can be family or life responsibilities and other issues that are reasonable and excused.
But if your student can attend, they need to be in school.
If your student is out for three or more consecutive days, we may request a doctor's note to continue excusing the absences.
Students who miss 3-5 days will receive a Chronic Absence letter. We will then meet with those families to attempt to support the student attending school. On the second Chronic Absence Letter, families may be required to meet at the District Office to put a plan in place for the student's attendance. On the third Chronic Absence Letter, families may be required to meet with the County Office Student Attendance Review Board for truancy.
Our goal is that nobody ever gets that far along with truancy. We are here to help and support, but it does start at home with the expectation that your student will attend school regularly.
Dates to Remember
- 12/1-12/21- Canned food Drive
- 12/8- Bear Paw Store
- 12/14- Virtual Parent Club meeting- Zoom Link
- 12/15- School site awards
- 12/21- All School Movie
- 12/21- Last day before winter break
- 12/22-1/5- Winter Break
- 1/8- No School- Teacher Professional Development Day
- 1/9- Back from Winter Break
- 1/12- Coffee with the Principal and Cradle to Career
December is Empathy Month
Here are a few resources you might want to utilize at home
5 Tips for Cultivating Empathy, Harvard Graduate School of Education
Teaching Empathy: Evidence-based tips for fostering empathetic awareness in children, Parenting Science
How to Teach Empathy to Kids, Nadia Hlebowitsh, Think Psych
Community Information
If you are interested in community opportunities approved by the district, please visit the site above. You can also find out how to have flyers approved on the website.
PBIS Amazon Wish List- Bear Paw Store
Volunteers
We are excited to have volunteers back on campus. All volunteers need to be cleared with the appropriate paperwork from the office. The office is happy to help if you have questions about your volunteer status.
If you can volunteer this year, we would love to have you. Please speak with your teacher and office staff. All volunteer schedules need to be approved by classroom teachers before volunteers begin in classrooms.



