INTEGRATED NEWS Boulder Community School of Integrated Studies January 27, 2006 BCSIS 10TH YEAR ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION Thursday, May 11 from 4:30 to 7:30pm Rocky Mountain Children’s Theater All current and founding BCSIS families are invited to the BCSIS 10th Year Anniversary Celebration! Marimba Band Dancing Burrito Bar Face-Painting Children's Art and Poetry Gallery Please join us in celebrating our amazing school and community! LEAD TEACHER REPORT Dear families, As many of you know, the BCSIS 10th Year Anniversary Celebration is coming up in May! We are inviting all current BCSIS families and all founding BCSIS families. The celebration will be taking place at the Rocky Mountain Children’s Theater and will include a Marimba band, dancing, good food, children’s art and poetry, face-painting, and lots of fun for all. We hope you can join us on this special day! In-House Student Survey As a part of this year’s school improvement goals and strategies, BCSIS conducted our own in-house student climate survey this fall. We hired a private consulting firm, Technology and Management Solutions, to help us develop and administer a survey of 3rd, 4th and 5th grade students. The survey differed from the district’s survey primarily in terms of using a spectrum of possible responses that students can choose from to answer questions, rather than simple "yes" or "no" responses. Also, we removed the ability for children to choose "maybe" as a middle ground response. We are excited by the results of the survey. Below is a summary of some of the results we are celebrating: * 97 percent of students report that often or most of the time they do not feel afraid at BCSIS. * 92 percent of students report that often or most of the time they feel safe on the playground. * 94 percent of students report that often or most of the time they are not made fun of at BCSIS because they look different. * 90 percent of students report that often or most of the time they have not had their feelings hurt by a BCSIS teacher. * 92 percent of students report that often or most of the time they have not had their feelings hurt by an adult at BCSIS other than a teacher. * 89 percent of students report that often or most of the time they feel safe in the lunchroom. * 91 percent of students report that often or most of the time they feel safe at BCSIS. * 94 percent of students report that often or most of the time they feel safe at dismissal. The survey demonstrated that most students feel very safe at BCSIS. We are proud of these results and plan to continue our positive culture building programs, including Rachel Kessler's Passageways curriculum, Conflict Mediation, Peace Place, Peer Mediators, and more. The only questions that fell below a 75 percent positive response level were questions that were related to dealing with bullies and bullying behaviors. The staff has begun conversations on how to increase students’ confidence and strategies for dealing with bullying behavior. We are looking at different curriculum programs that help children know what to do when they encounter bullying behaviors. We are also planning to increase staff training on how to support students who encounter bullies. We will keep you updated on our progress in this critical area. Although we celebrate the fact that 94 percent of our students from 3rd to 5th grade reported that they feel safe at dismissal time, we also acknowledge that parents have heard many comments at home from students about the pick-up arrangement this year. We know that for many students, though they feel safe at dismissal, they do not have as much fun at dismissal. Our staff has made a conscious choice that in this situation, children's safety needs to be our highest priority. So far this year, we have had no behavioral or safety issues arise at dismissal time. We are excited about this great improvement from last year, when we would often encounter several behavioral issues each week after school. Thank you for your continued understanding and support of these changes. Phil Katsampes and Sabine Smead THE BCSIS BROWN BAG BOOK CLUB The next book for the book club is "Hold On To Your Kids" by Gordon Neufeld and Gabor Mate. This parenting book deals with the issue of keeping our kids family orientated instead of peer orientated, and the issues that arise as we choose this path in a commercial society that values children as an economic marketing commodity and believes that early independence is a sign of success. The tentative date for the next meeting is Friday, March 17. Additional information to follow. Contact Kimberly Zerbey at 303-530-0627 or mamaberl@yahoo.com for additional information. NEWS AND NOTES K-8 update meeting The K-8 committee is meeting on Monday, February 6, at 3:45pm in the Open Space. The purpose of the meeting is to discern interest in continuing the expansion effort. If you would like to learn more and are willing to take on responsibilities, please join us. Children are welcome as well to occupy themselves in the Open Space while we are meeting. Contact Cynthia Carosella at 303-748-3037 or cynthiacarosella@hotmail.com if you plan to attend. Una Notte in Italia The Annual BCSIS 5th Grade Spaghetti Dinner On Thursday, February 9, the 5th grade class will transform the cafeteria into a Viennese Café serving spaghetti with meat or vegetarian sauce, salad, bread, dessert and a beverage. Seatings are at 5:00, 6:00 and 7:00pm. Purchase your tickets in advance at the office by completing an order form and paying with cash or check. Ticket prices through February 8 are $6/adult and $4/child (6 and under). Ticket prices increase to $7/$5 on February 9. Pick up your tickets at "will call" at the event. The spaghetti dinner is an annual, well-attended fundraising event for the 5th grade Outdoor Ed trip. It is also another opportunity for our families to be together and to see our 5th graders shine as they work together. Whether you buy a dinner, volunteer to help, make a donation, or all three, we need everyone’s help to make the dinner a success. National girls and women in sports day at CU The University of Colorado Athletic Department has planned a skills and fitness challenge for girls and boys aged 13 and under on Saturday, February 4 starting at 10:00am at the Coors Event Center. Children 13 and under are welcome to participate in a fun-filled morning with CU female athletes from golf, soccer, track and field, basketball, volleyball, tennis and skiing. Children who complete the challenge will receive a free CU t-shirt. Following the challenge and autograph signing with CU athletes, the CU women’s basketball team will face the University of Texas at noon. All participants, older siblings and parents will get into the game for free. Confirm your participation with an e-mail to cupromos@colorado.edu or call 303-492-1976. Hold the date BCSIS fundraiser at Bacaro March 5 Another evening of socializing and fundraising with BCSIS parents at Bacaro Restaurant is being planned. Those who attended last year's sold-out event will confirm that it was one of the most enjoyable and successful fundraisers in BCSIS's ten-year history. The ticket sales and silent auction raised over $5000 for the school. The BCSIS parents who own Bacaro are offering the school the opportunity to do it again. Here are the details: When: Sunday March 5, 2006 Time: Cocktails at 5 - dinner at 6 Location: Bacaro Restaurant (10th and Pearl) What: Dinner and silent auction fund raiser for BCSIS Cost: $60 ($50 before Feb 20th) includes four-course meal and wine) Invitations will be in the mail the first week of February. Call Beth Parish for information: 303-665-2450. TEACHER FEATURE Dawn Collamer, Special Education Teacher, Resource Support for Grades 3-5 Although this is my first year at BCSIS, this is my seventh year of teaching. Some of my prior teaching experience took place at Summit Middle Charter School and Casey Middle School here in Boulder, two years in Longmont and three wonderful years at a high school in Scottsdale, Arizona. I received my Masters degree in Special Education from Northern Arizona University. I am being completely honest when I say that BCSIS is the most amazing school at which I have worked. I feel very honored to be surrounded by my colleagues here. One of the draws to this school was the Waldorf philosophies because I went to a Waldorf school for a few years and knew that I believed in it. My fabulous family is the most important part of my life. It includes three spectacular and unique brothers, the gift of the best mom in the whole world, my caring dad and my spoiled dog, Sadie Girl. Outside of school, I spend a good amount of my time outdoors because I love to hike, snowboard, camp and white water raft. My new passion is anything having to do with horses. I also love to cook, salsa dance and spend time working on my house and with my spiritual teacher-my mom. I look forward to coming to BCSIS everyday. The smiles, hugs, excitement for learning and warm energy from the students here bring me happiness! IMPACT ON EDUCATION SEEKS NEW BOARD MEMBER Do you know someone who is passionate about education and can commit four to eight hours per month to serve on the Impact on Education Board of Directors? The ideal candidate would also have the following: strong corporate connections (with a current employer, previous employers, large Boulder County employers, or many corporate contacts due to current career role); political advocacy; connections with Boulder County high net worth individuals (to help support the major gifts program); prior experience on a Board of Directors, or other non-profit experience. Please contact Francie Anhut at francie@impactoneducation.org. Directors serve for three year terms, and can serve two terms. MARK YOUR CALENDAR Jan 30 and Feb 6 (Mondays) Roots and Shoots meets Feb 8 (Wed) 4-5:15pm. Ed Council Meeting in the library Feb 9 (Thurs) 5:00, 6:00 or 7:00pm. The Annual BCSIS 5th Grade Spaghetti Dinner Feb 17 (Fri) No school: District Professional Development Day Feb 20 (Mon) No school: President's Day March 5 (Sun) Bacaro Fundraiser March 7 (Tues) 7-9pm, Fairview High School. The BVSD Capital Improvements Planning Committee will discuss the building conditions, educational suitability, information technology infrastructure, capacity, utilization and historical significance of all BVSD schools. All BVSD parents are urged to attend a session. BCSIS is in the Fairview High School service area. May 11 (Thurs) 4:30-6:30pm. BCSIS 10th Anniversary Celebration at Rocky Mountain Theatre for Kids May 12 (Fri) Community Service Day If you have information to be included in the newsletter contact Cynthia Carosella at cynthiacarosella@hotmail.com, 303-748-3037 or Nan McGinnis at mcginnisnancy@comcast.net, 303-440-3656. Comments and suggestions are welcome as well! <>