Brittan Acres
Our Brittan Acres teachers miss our students!
Principal's Message
Dear Brittan Acres Families,
It is hard to believe we only have four weeks left of school. May is Mental Health Awareness month, which encourages us to ensure that we are creating an oasis of calm in this chaos. Mindy Hill, our SCSD Health and Wellness coordinator, has compiled numerous resources to support your family through this crisis. I especially found this curated collection of links useful from the San Mateo County Health Office. This article from NPR also shares some wonderful tips for parents as we continue to navigate this tumultuous time.
Our school counselor, Ms. Arasato, has been busy not only working 1:1 or in small groups with students but also compiling resources to help all families. Social Emotional Lessons are hosted on our distance learning portal: SCSD Distance Learning Portal - BA Specialists’ Page. Ms. Arasato has also been working on creating a website with additional resources: Ms. Arasato’s Website. I encourage you to take advantage of these resources as our students’ social emotional health is our top priority during this difficult time.
We are in the final week of distributing student materials. If you missed your child’s classroom pick-up time, please contact dmack@scsdk8.org to arrange a time to pick up your child’s materials and drop off library books this week.
Kind Regards,
Suzanne Fast - Principal
Principal Activity of the Day/Week
I'll post an activity that can be adapted and used for any students in TK-3rd grade.
Animate a scene with a flipbook.
Mild: Make a flipbook. Remember you can use a window instead of a light box, any type of paper, and rubber band instead of binder clip.
Medium: Make a flipbook that shows a transformation.
Spicy: Make a flipbook to cheer up a friend when they're feeling sad.
This is a fun activity to do with the whole family!
Pick a "breakout room" and and use your detective skills to try to figure all the clues to get to the end of the puzzle!
In honor of Earth Day this week, here is a fun, 18-minute activity with songs, instruments and humor brought to you by our friends at ZunZun! It is easily accessible to use with students, with 7 built in questions to assess comprehension! It is a great science lesson that is fun, interactive, and full of music and movement.
April14.mp4SMC Library Card
Do you have a San Mateo County Library Card? I loved going to the library when I was a kid. Now you can use your library card to get books to read digitally. What a great way to get new books without leaving your house. My challenge this week if for everyone to sign up for a library card!
Click here to sign-up for a library card. They will send you the new card electronically.
If you already have a library card, Mrs. Ha, our school librarian, shared some resources that you can access with your library card. Check out her read aloud video with tips and tricks for accessing these sites.
Tumbebook library
As many of my friends know, I simply adore comfortable walking shoes! When I stumbled across this opportunity to design my own features to my footwear, I could not resist asking YOU what you would do to a pair of shoes to make them spectacular! If I had jets on the bottoms of my shoes, just think how fast I could zoom around Brittan Acres! What would your ultimate pair look like? Please share them with me this week as you connect with your inner shoe designer.
Have you ever wanted to hear your favorite storybook read to you by a famous actor or actress? Click here to choose your favorite book and then hear it read to you from a famous actor or actress.
One of my favorite actresses is Reese Witherspoon, click on the Unicorn picture to hear her read, Uni the Unicorn.
Draw My Monster is a super fun way to develop communication skills and to reinforce descriptive writing skills. Take a few moments to have some creative time with someone nearby or accessible by video chat and send me a picture of what you imagine! I cannot wait to see them!
Click here for the directions for today's Principal Activity.
Let's take a peek at what our favorite sea creatures are doing at the Monterey Bay Aquarium today! This amazing resource allows us to visit ocean life in real time and check in on the exhibits that I so enjoy visiting when I'm in Monterey. Be sure to choose a favorite video to watch and craft a list of things you notice and wonder! Researchers often sketch what they see as well and label parts of the animals as they observe, so give it a try if you have the time. Enjoy your spring break!
Just added new dates for month of April! Come say "hi"!
Two Stars and a Wish
This week I'm offering an additional Principal Activity which will be an ongoing offer for families to schedule a 5-minute video chat with Mrs. Fast. It's called, Two Stars and a Wish. I'd love to see and say hi to my Brittan Acres students. I miss them all so much! To help structure this brief chat, I'd like to ask students to consider "2 Stars" meaning 2 positives that they are experiencing with Distance Learning or just being sheltered in place, and if they want to include a wish, which could be one concern or something they miss or wish for. The Wish is optional, but click HERE to sign up for a time. As you sign up, indicate what platform works best for you: Zoom, Google Hangout, or FaceTime. Please email me directly if you have any problems and I will sign you up automatically.
I will add additional dates and time slots in the coming weeks after spring break as needed.
This is an optional activity, but I'm hoping to get a virtual hug and a hello from my Brittan Acres kids!
Jo Boaler, one of my favorite math leaders in education from Stanford University, keeps me mathematically motivated on You Cubed ! Click on the picture on the left to try one of her fabulous math tasks to get you going today.
Ever wondered what it would be like to take a virtual tour of some of the coolest, most famous museums in the world? Here is your chance to explore one of my favorites in Washington D.C. Just click on the photo to start your adventure for the day!
This is a strange time for all of us but it will be a time that we will all remember. It will form a lasting memory. This book talks about memories and how important they are as we get older. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!