Mountaineer News

It is the vision of Berlin Elementary School to empower each student to grow academically, socially, and emotionally based on their individual needs. Students will be provided with meaningful, relevant, and connected learning to reach success. We will foster a learning environment that collaborates with families and the community to achieve this vision.

January 5th - School Resumes

January 13th - Special Board of Education Workshop Meeting at 6:30 pm at the Berlin MS/HS for Capital Project

January 14th - PTO Meeting (meet.google.com/eme-jthd-zrx)

January 15th - Grade 5 Art Club 3:30 pm - 4:30 pm

January 19th - No School - Martin Luther King Day

January 20th - Board of Education Meeting @ 7:15 pm in BMHS Auditorium

January 22nd - BES Math Night 5:30 pm - 7:00 pm

January 29th - Grade 4 Art Club 3:30 - 4:30

January 29th - Snow Date for Math Night

Shooting Stars returned from break ready to go. We are working on improving our writing skills using capitals and ending punctuation without reminders and using adjectives. We did an author study on Jan Brett and learned how animals adapt in winter. We continue to work to build our sight vocabulary and reading skills.

We recently had some Senior volunteers in the classroom which we enjoyed listening to stories and working with them at the end of the day. In our future we plan to move on to learning about types of matter, the Arctic and enjoying a week of creativity with Crayola's Creativity Week.

Third graders have been busy becoming math superstars! This month they have been learning all about multiplication and division. We have practiced with arrays, equal groups, and fun word problems to show what these math ideas look like in real life. We have also begun to explore how multiplication is related to area! Try this at home: Count toys, snacks, or steps to make your own multiplication or division story.

Our students have also been busy spreading cheer through their holiday writing. One favorite activity was “How to Make the Grinch Grin.” Students wrote step-by-step instructions using clear details and sequencing words to turn the Grinch’s frown upside down. We also talked about using descriptive words to help readers picture their ideas. Also, to welcome the new year, students wrote thoughtful New Year’s resolutions, sharing goals for school, home, and personal growth. From reading more books, to being kinder friends, their writing showed reflection and hope for the year ahead. Students are looking forward to their next research project for Chinese New Year! We are so proud of the enthusiasm our third graders are bringing to their writing!

Students have been exploring the world of invisible forces in science. Even though we can't always see them, pushes and pulls are all around us and help objects move, stop, or change direction. We will also be exploring magnetic force and the invisible push or pull that magnets use to attract or repel certain objects. To connect science with engineering, students put their skills to the test by building strong bridges. By testing their bridges with pennies, they learned how forces like gravity, support, and balance work together to keep structures standing strong. Fantastic work, scientists and engineers!

4th grade has been hard at work across all areas. In math we are working on division and working on skills to prepare us for fractions. In writing we are using two texts to write an essay about them. In science we are learning about types of energy and electricity. In reading we are focusing on what makes someone a hero and practicing skills like theme, point of view and text and graphic features.

Math: Since returning from holiday break, students have been studying fractions. The main focus has been on adding and subtracting fractions with unlike denominators.Students have learned about the importance of finding equivalent fractions, simplifying fractions and estimating sums and differences. In the coming weeks, students will use what they have learned to add and subtract mixed numbers.

ELA: In January we have been reading stories all focused on natural disasters. While reading these stories students have analyzed an author’s craft, learned about the importance of making predictions before and while reading nonfiction and identifying sensory details in writing. We have also continued to use the TIDE (Topic, Important Information, Details, Ending) writing strategy to help students organize their writing. Starting Jan. 20th ELA homework: students will have one front and back grammar sheet that needs to be completed and turned in by that Friday.

Social Studies: During the month of January fifth graders are continuing to learn about eight Enduring Issues. During this study students are reading articles that demonstrate each Enduring Issue and the effect the issues have on people and/or the environment. Our next unit will be researching one of three ancient civilizations and giving a presentation to the class when finished with slides.

Science: We’re working on our chemistry unit. We discovered what substances change the appearance of a tarnished penny. We acted like ancient alchemists and created a model and tested it to see if we could coat a steel nail with copper. We will be creating a test for acids to identify which common substances contain acids. During this unit; for homework, instead of writing their observations of what they see outside, students may write observations of what they see happening when they help you cook/bake.

Last week, Berlin Elementary Principal Mrs. Cataldo along with Mrs. Dolan announced the annual Fire Safety Poster Contest winners, selected by the Berlin Fire Department. The Mountaineers were each awarded a $25 check from the Berlin Fire Department and congratulated over the announcements. The theme this year was ‘Charge Into Fire Safety!’ The BES Mountaineers did an excellent job capturing this year’s focus on lithium-ion batteries, which works to better educate the public about how to buy, charge, and dispose of them safely.

Thank you to the Berlin Fire Department for creating this Fire Poster Contest at BES each year, inspiring Mountaineers to learn the importance of fire safety and share what they have learned in a creative and artistic way. Please find the list of poster contest winners below.

Congratulations Mountaineers!

BES 2025/2026 Fire Poster Winners

Mileena Johnson – Kindergarten Mr. Dobbins
Josephine Brock – Kindergarten Mrs. Hannigan & Mrs.Wilson
Judy Roberts – 1st Grade – Mrs. Berkau
Lanah Rose – 1st Grade – Mrs. Heinrichs & Ms. Ballard
Noelani Halpin – 2nd Grade Mrs. Ruebel
Helena von Schilgen – 2nd Grade – Mrs. Healy & Mrs.Tregger
William Suttie – 2nd Grade – Mrs. Kneer
Liliann Dickinson – Shooting Stars- Mrs. Baker
Bentley Morris – 3rd Grade – Ms. Rontey & Mrs. Savaria
Landon Young – 3rd Grade – Mr. Bourquard
Athena Peterson – 4th Grade – Mrs. Laz & Mrs. Bersaw
Ava von Schilgen – 5th Grade – Mr. Turetsky & Mr. Moseley
Henley Sorbello – 5th Grade – Mrs. Walsh & Mrs. Masterson

Berlin Elementary Kindergarten is looking for Hearts from Around America! The BES Kindergarten classes are participating in ‘Hearts Around America.’ The goal is to receive a card, paper heart, postcard, or special item from all 50 states and maybe even beyond. As part of the kindergarten 50-states unit of study, the Mountaineers will track the states on a map for the entire school to enjoy.

Will you help the BES Kindergarten get a heart from all 50 states?

If so please mail your messages to:

Berlin Elementary

Kindergarten Class

53 School Street

Berlin, NY 12022

Thank you! The BES Kindergarten Team!♥️

Winter has arrived and it is getting cold and snowy outside. Please make sure that your children have the appropriate clothing for going outside for recess. I am attaching a picture of the guide we use at school for your reference. Thank you for your support!

Attendance Matters at BES and we understand that Every Day Counts! As a way of celebrating students daily attendance, we are filling our jar with snowflakes for every classroom that has perfect attendance. We celebrated filling our jar three times already, with a whole school dance party, a lunchtime popcorn party, and in December we showed a movie during lunch with candy canes for all students. We look forward to our next school wide celebration. Once our jar is filled again, the whole school will have another celebration. Students can continue to watch our jar fill up, but knowing when the jar gets filled will remain a mystery. Help us celebrate good attendance at BES!

We have completed all 8 of our Emergency Drills required before December 31st.

Please see the attached letter with additional information. We will be contacting families with 7 days of practicing these drills as a way to ensure a trauma sensitive experience.

The Berlin Central School District's Transportation Department is excited to announce the return of SpotMyBus, which has been newly updated with improved connectivity in our district!

What is SpotMyBus? SpotMyBus is the mobile app that shows you where your school bus is, so you can track it as it heads to your bus stop.

It is free and newly updated with both English and Spanish versions of the app. You must go to spotmybus.com to install the SpotMyBus app on your phone, as it is not available from Google Play or the App Store.

You will receive an email from the transportation department with the code for our school. Please do not share this code with anyone. If you misplace or do not know your group code, please contact the BCSD Transportation Department. More details can be found on the attached flyer. For questions or help with the app, please contact SpotMyBus directly at questions@spotmybus.com. We look forward to seeing you at the bus stop! Wishing all Mountaineers and families an excellent and safe school year!