November 8, 2019

Dear Burr Families,

We had some great events at Burr this week. As we do every year, we celebrated freedom, citizenship, and the importance of our nation's veterans who give so much to our country. The most powerful part of our assembly was when veterans introduced themselves by explaining when and what their service was and their connection to students at Burr. Students also learned about the concept of freedom this past week and how people in the United States have freedoms that aren't afforded to many people in the world. Without the commitment to freedom and citizenship on the part of veterans, our country would be very different.

We also had a wonderful second annual Literacy Night this past week. A number of Burr families had the opportunity to write together, read together, and play word based family games together. Our goal was to continue to build joy and passion for literacy, show off the great work that our students are doing as readers and writers, and connect literacy at home with literacy at school. Ultimately (and most importantly), we want all of our students to have thoughtful reading and writing lives. To us this means that reading and writing are important to them and remain important long after they are an expectation (and assignment) in school.

Finally, some thoughts about independent reading. Independent reading (both in school and outside of school) is the hub of our reading curriculum and reading instructional methods. Without eyes on print - without consistent opportunities to engage in the practice of reading - it will be extremely challenging for students to meet the demanding literacy challenges of middle school, high school, college, and ultimately the workforce. We see independent reading at home as a critical component of this work. Students in grades 2-5 should be reading independently for 30 minutes a night minimum. I would encourage (make that highly encourage) that you reflect about the following ideas:

• A parent's job is to provide opportunity and access for reading. This means making sure that students have a consistent time and place to read where they can focus. This means supporting Burr School to get books into your child's hands (more about that later) either through purchase or by visiting a library. Help your children find favorite series, authors, and characters. Send a consistent (and warm) message about the importance of independent reading in your family. If you read yourself, please model that for your children.
• Please work with the school to make sure your child is reading books that they are both passionate about and can read at a deep level. We are not big believers at school that students should know their reading level. (Levels were originally created to help teachers instruct students - not as a way to label students.) Keep in mind too, that students are also not reading at one level. Students read within what's called a band. In other words, depending on their familiarity and interest in the material, students can be reading independently at multiple levels. Please, please, please - do not put books in your children's hands that are way above their reading level. It will give you a skewed view of their reading skills, it will test their frustration with reading (and ultimately send a negative message about reading), and it will not give them the extremely important decoding, fluency, and comprehension practice work they need to progress as readers. If you need help with this or are not sure if a book is appropriate, talk to your child's teacher and/or Lisa Henkel and Gina Dignon (Burr's LASs). If a book is way above your child's reading level, read it to them. It will be a great opportunity to expose them to sophisticated storytelling or informational text.
• In general, students in grades 2-5, should not be reading more than one book at a time, so please make sure that the book they are reading at home is the book they are reading in school. (They should be carrying the book back and forth between school and home.)The reason for this is only the most sophisticated readers can keep track of complicated plot and character development (or in the case of non-fiction - a lot of information) in multiple books at the same time. We are looking for depth of thinking, and, for most grade 2-5 elementary school readers, this is only possible if they immerse themselves in one book at a time.

Have a great weekend!

Jason

clc paraprofessional and building sub

• We are looking for a paraprofessional and a building substitute for our CLC program. If you know of anyone who is interested, please have them contact me. Building substitutes need to have a bachelor's degree and elementary certification in CT. Paraprofessionals need a bachelor's degree.

Diversity Week is coming December 9-13

• We are looking for an assembly speaker to speak with students who has adapted to a handicap. This could involve someone who has adapted to a visual or physical handicap. For example, a few years ago, students had the privilege of spending time with an artist who painted with her feet. if you know of anyone who would talk or demonstrate with our students on Friday, December 13th, please e-mail me at jbluestein@fairfieldschools.org

Family Handbook

I have included a link to our family handbook. It contains practical information about our school as well as links to many district resources.

2019-2020 Family Handbook

Behavior handbook

Below is a link to our Behavior handbook. For the month of November, please focus on the topic of understanding. We want students to know that understanding is fundamentally about how they treat others and whether they can put themselves in the shoes of others.

• Page 4. This page (in chart form) defines what understanding looks like across different parts of the school day. I would ask that you review this page with your children as well as think about how your child can demonstrate understanding in settings outside of school.
• Last Page. This page has a list of books that can be used to teach understanding. I would encourage you to read multiple books from this list. They have great messages which could lead to great conversations about how to apply these skills in your child's everyday life.

Behavior Handbook 2019-2020

Upcoming Dates

Monday, November 11 - No School - Veteran's Day

Wednesday, November 27 - Early Dismissal, Thanksgiving Break - No School November 28 and 29

Progress Reports - Released through Infinite Campus on - Wednesday, December 18