Bridport Community Newletter
December 21st, 2025
Howdy!
Today, on winter solstice, the shortest day of the year, is a time to reflect on what brings us light, and get ready for brighter, longer days. I'm lucky that there are many amazing things to reflect on from last week.
Wednesday's holiday luncheon was a moment that brought so much laughter, pride and community! It was great to see so many folks joining together in a delicious meal and celebrate our students. They loved performing on the big stage and "showing off" for our guests.
On Friday, we went Ice Skating at the Memorial Sports Center in Middlebury. We really leaned into our school-wide theme of the "power of failure" as we all fell down, got back up and tried new things. When the power went out unexpectedly- we kept on skating and laughing.
I am so proud of how far our students have come this semester, and look forward to seeing what we can accomplish in 2026!
Happy Holidays
Jenny
My Powerful Hair by Carole Lindstrom
“I can’t wait for my hair to grow” is the powerful opening to this book, which lays groundwork for this compelling story highlighting not only the significance of hair to Indigenous peoples, but also memory, generational trauma, and the power of healing. Using three generations of hair as the medium, Lindstrom’s sparse, poetic language (“Our ancestors say: Our hair is our memories. Our source of strength”) and Littlebird’s bright palette capture both serenity and hope. The debut illustrator’s watercolor, ink, and computer-generated art resembles woodcuts—an effective medium for the etchings contained within the long, dark hair floating across double spreads.
This month, we read and talked about the book. Then we had a conversation about indigenous peoples, and made bullroarers, which are one of the first musical instruments, and ways to communicate. We LOVED creating them on Friday out of cardboard and string- ask your student to show you!
