January 2015 • Volume 3

From Our Principal………Dear Bailey Lake Families,

Happy New Year! I hope the holiday season brought peace, joy, love, and hope to you and your family.

Thank you to those that contributed to our many outreach projects over the holiday season. Contributions from Bailey Lake families made a diff erence for many local families. BLE should be proud of their infl uence and reaching out to assist others in need! As you have notice over the past two years, mathematical instruction and practices are in the process of making a shift. This shift has posed questions, and sometimes, concerns from parents. Please check out this video- http://vimeo.com/110807219, to gain another perspective on the need for the shift and how parents can better understand the change.

A school improvement initiate, improving writing instruction, will be the focus of teacher professional development over the next two months. The BLE teaching staff will be led by Annemarie Johnson, a national writing expert, to gain a better understanding of the Pathways writing curriculum.

Sincerely,Glenn GualtieriPrincipal, Bailey Lake Elementary

Happy New Year!

JANUARY CALENDAR

January 19… No School, Developmental Day

January 21… Late Start

Scrip Gift Card Orders Due

January 22… 8 a.m. Mornings with Mom, A-L

January 23… 8 a.m. Mornings with Mom, M-Z

February 2… PTA Meeting, 7 pm.All are welcome!

February 4… Late Start

Scrip Gift Card Orders Due

February 13…Valentine’s Day Party, 3 pm.

Look for your School Directories

in February!

Adopta Family

From Our PTA President………Hello Bailey Lake Families!

We hope everyone had a relaxing, enjoyable holiday break. It is hard to believe that we are already half way through the school year! Our school “Theme Day” this past November was extremely powerful and impactful! Thank you Andrea Beauchamp, Marcelino Caballa & Sara Hoyle, our co-chairs for organizing such an awesome event!

Thank you to all of the fathers who came out for “Donuts with Dad”. The children always enjoy these special moments. A special thank you to Andrea Beauchamp and Christy Kreucher for organizing this event!

Also, thank you to everyone who participated in the “Refl ections Art Program” and Angel Coon for organizing this event!

And lastly, thanks to everyone who came out and supported the “Scholastic

Book Fair”. It was the most successful scholastic book fair in Bailey Lake history! This will greatly benefi t the school library, and all who use it! Thank you to Amy Darnell and Whitney Schmit for all of their time and dedication to this event!

Thank you to all of the parents who organized, planned, and attended the holiday parties! The children always have so much fun, and remember these events. I continue to be amazed by all of the wonderfully supportative families and staff that we have here at Bailey Lake!

Don’t forget that Mornings with Mom is coming up Jan. 22 & 23!

Sincerely,Becky Walker

Planning a nice dinner out with someone special? Valentine’s Day is fast approaching!Possibly consider a gift card from one of the many restaurant options available through Scrip’s!Passive Fundraising for Bailey Lake

Scrip Gift Card Program……What is Scrip Fundraising?We all shop at our favorite retail stores, go grocery shopping? Why not let our shop-ping help our schools? Our organization earns money with each gift card purchased through this program. There are no hidden fees or extra costs. We pay face value for every gift card purchased. Each retailer in return, provides a certain percentage back to the school, an instant rebate! You are only purchasing what you need! There are no expirations on gift cards. By simply planning ahead on everyday purchases, we can earn easy money for our school!

Instead of buying through the store, order your gift cards through BLE!With over 300 of the country’s biggest brands, including grocery and department stores, gas stations, restaurants,hotels and home improvement, GLSC has something to appeal to every family. For a complete list of retailers, visit: shopwithscrip.com.

• Place your order through the forms created just for Bailey Lake, including your check (made out to BLE PTA)Your student should come home with a form soon, if they do not, forms are located near the Staff workroom door or on the Bailey Lake website or Facebook page. In an envelope, provide name of student, teacher, phone number and your preferred distribution of gift cards (pick-up or sent home with student). Send in with your student. If you are looking for a brand you do not see on form, visit shopwithscrip.com.

• Our school coordinator will submit your order to Great Lakes Scrip Center® (GLSC), and deposit your check (made out to Bailey Lake PTA)

• Your gift cards will be distributed within the following week of placing order.

By simply planning ahead on everyday purchases, the average family can earn at least $11 a week for our school. That modest number adds up quickly. The more families participating, the bigger the earnings for our school. Passive, yet very easy money!

Scheduled DUE DATES FOR ORDERS in January/February

Late Start Days: Wednesday, January 21, February 5 & 25

Orders received no later than noon on the following days. Send in with your student.

Morton’s Steakhouseoff ers 9% rebate

Bravo’s Cucina Italianaoff ers 12% rebate

Tony Roma’soff ers 12% rebate

Charlie’s Craboff ers 9% rebate

Longhorn Steakhouseoff ers 9% rebate

P.F. Chang’soff ers 8% rebate

and many others available:

Red Lobster, 9% rebateOutback, 8% rebateBuca di Beppa, 8% rebateMaggiano’s Little Italy, 11% rebateLogan’s Roadhouse, 9% rebate

Pay Face Value of CardScrip gives BLE rebate

for ordering through them

5 FAMILIES HELPED! THANK YOU!…………A huge Thank You goes out to all that helped support our Adopt-A Family Holiday Project this past December at BLE. We helped provide a wonderful holiday to 5 families! An extra special thank you to those that took time out of their busy schedules to help wrap gifts for these families.

A Salute to the Armed Forces

Bulldogs all day military salute Novem-ber 13, 2014 was a huge success! Andrea Beauchamp, Marcelino Caballa & Sara Hoyle, Chairs for this event, want to send out huge THANK YOU’S to all the BLE military parents who took time out of their day to share their knowledge and experience with the Military (especially Jason Onteveros, Angel Coon, Ryan Nelson, Tammy Lejack, Matthue Maynor via video & Julie Belliveau)

Marines: Lance Corporal Chambers & Sergeant Joshua T Fitzpatrick both from Selfridge Air National GuardUS Coast Guard: Commander Gregory Thomas, Petty Officer James Dixon, Seaman Michael Schneider, Command Senior Chief James E. Jones, Bill WeissAir Force: Captain Chris Platz (Selfridge)Navy: Lieutenant Michael CullenArmy: Lee Zhang, President of the Student Veteran Association Clarkston American Legion Post 63

The day started off with American Legion Post 63 Honor Guard ( Don Carter, Sergeant of Arms & Bernay Shoenfeld Campbell Richmond) presentation of the flags, 21 gun salute & taps!

Bailey Lake students and staff welcomed and recognized some of our very own Military Families (we apologize if we missed any families)

A Successful Salute!Respect those who fight for their country – and for our freedom! Never forget that we are living the future they fought for and continue to protect!

BLE was able to honor a few of it’s own family members on November 13, 2014, but there are many other BLE family members that have grown up with the military as part of their lives. They have many family members serving, or have served our country. Here are just a few we would like to recognize and thank…

* The Johnson family also have had the following family members serving or have served our country:

Aunt: Malisa A Hamper, currently serving United States Army (Iraq War)Uncle: Matthew B Hamper, served US Marine Corps (Iraq War)Uncle: Michael W Hamper, served US Marine CorpsGrandpa: William B Hamper, served in Army National Guard during Vietnam WarGreat Uncle: John Hamper, served in the United States Navy, RetiredGreat Uncle: Ernie Ingles, served in US Army, WW2Great Grandpa: Robert Burgermyer, US Air Force (National Air Corps at the time), WW2Great Grandpa: John Hamper, US NavyGreat Uncle: Ken Case, US Army2nd Cousin: Jim Hogan, US Army, Vietnam WarGrandpa: Gregg Hale, US Marine Corps then US Army, Desert Storm, Panama War, Somalia, Lebanon

*And BLE’s teacher Mrs. Heidi Brown, also has grown up being apart of the military. Her Dad retired from Air National Guard three years ago and served for 15 years, and was also in the Army in the ‘70s,A Cousin currently overseas serving on his third tour, Another cousin that just returned and works at Selfridge Airforce Base,Another Cousin is a West Point graduate who works in DC currently,Two cousin in-laws that are in the Marine’s and Air Force full-time, both stationed on the east coast.

Alissa & Isabella Maynor’s dad, Matthue Maynor, Specialist for US Army & currently stationed in Kuwait with hopes to return home this February;

Elena Ontiveros’ dad, Jason Ontiveros, US Marine Corp Combat Veteran;

Jayden Coon & Zach Marko’s Mom, Step-mom, Angel Coon, Army National Guard 1460th Transportation Co., out of Midland, Michigan;

Aidan & Rylin Nelson’s dad, Ryan Nelson, Army Staff Sargeant with the Military Police and Full Time Reserves;

Cole Dellinger’s dad, Matthew Dellinger, Marine Corp vet works with the Federal Govt. & supports dept. of Defense, recently deployed in Decem-ber, & sister, Stephanie Dellinger, is in the Ohio National Guard;

Mason & Mya Koning’s dad, Jeffery Koning, served;

Julia & Jaylie Johnson’s, dad, Thomas Johnson, US Army Infantryman (peacekeeping overseas) veteran;

Max Belliveau parents, Julie & John Belliveau, US Marine Corp and Navy Veterans;

Ethan Clark’s dad, John Clark, served;

Logan Haley’s mom, Melanie Haley, AirForce Veteran, served 4 years;

Alyssa Morris’ dad, Lee Morris, served;

and Aubrey Snavley’s parents, Tamra Lejack & Michael Snavley, Air Force & Air National Guard Veterans

The goal of the day was to provide proper flag etiquette, how to show courtesy toward our United States heroes in uniform as well as respect for our Veterans. Efforts were made to build patriotism in our youth and to provide a better understanding of what some BLE students sacrifice.

This day could not have gone as smoothly without the help and support of many people working together!From local businesses, parent volunteers, teachers and staff… WE ARE GREATLY APPRECIATIVE!This was a wonderful, educational day for our children. It was fun, impactful, and a great learning experience!

Local business’s: Tim Hortons (Bob Mantha), Rudy’s Market (Robert), Ruby Tuesdays (Tony Lankford), Gregg’s Gourmet, Clarkston Union, for donating coffee & food, Morgan’s Auto Parts Store for supplying the tires for our ‘Bulldog boot-camp’, Joe’s Army Navy Surplus Waterford (Jeff Goldsmith) for donating supplies & helping with embossing 600 dog tags, B Zany (Bruce) donating party supplies and 600 mini American Flags, Clarkston News (Phil Custodio) for a great article and pictures of the event, Muriel & Terry Shelswel of Clarkston Military Vehicle collectors Club of Mi., brought their Military Vehicles for display ~ a 1952 Willys M38A1 & Kaiser- Jeep M816, Detroit Apparel Factory (Jesse Moyet) Clarkston Love camouflage t shirts were given to the volunteer soldiers as a thank you. Thank you Jesse for making this happen in 1 week’s time! Ashleigh Guidoux also donated 2 shirts from her “Love Clarkston” apparel to BLE active duty Soldiers.

Parent volunteers: Kassie Scaglione, Nikki Kurmanick, Kerri Kacanowski, Julie Rinaldi, Mark Beauchamp, Jesse Moyet & Ashleigh Guidoux helped with picking up food, decorating, boot camp, assisting the soldiers and making sure the day went smooth.

Teachers and Staff who rearranged their rooms for the speakers, prepared students for 21 gun salute & helped the students the week of the event with collecting non perishable goods for care packages & writing letters to the soliders (thank you to the parents who helped Sara Hoyle assemble packages). Mrs.Noble for collecting candy for Operation Gratitude for troops overseas & Mr. Woodworth for helping Marcelino Caballa lead the bootcamp & loaning us supplies for the obsticle course. Frank Abney & Matt Brake working around us while we set up the night before and helping move tables & desks all the while never complaining! Mr. Gualtieri for your enthusiasm & constant support for this project, coming up with a structured time frame for the event and allowing us to make this day a reality!Julie Grow & Denise Casper for the “VIP Parking signs” for soldiers & getting informa-tion out to parents so promptly! Clair Dedow, for loaning her Father and Brother’s Navy uniforms for display and Leslie Brandenburg for support and laminating News articles for the soldiers. Theresa Rotman, staying up late putting together November newsletter making sure all info was accurate.Julie Nemeth, “My Habitat Clarkston” for helping find volunteers and constant positive feedback.

Kindergarten

Grade At A Glance…Our Teachers:Mrs. Reis, Mrs. Wilson and Mrs. Secord, Mrs. Sprague, Mrs. Morris

In addition to Reading Workshop, Writing Workshop, and

Math Workshop our Kindergarteners learn daily through play.

An important part of our day is Choice Time. Students make choices

about where, what, and who they play and learn with.

In the pictures you will see collaboration, problem solving,

communication, planning, and follow through.

First

Grade At A Glance…Our Teachers:Mrs. Sajan, Mrs. Noble, Mrs. Shipp and Mrs. Patnaude

In the fall our frst graders went

to the zoo and had a great time

with friends!

In December they had a visit from

Offi cer Potts, who talked about

safety, participated in the Holiday

Sing-a-long, and put their creative

talents to good use to by making their

own, unique gingerbread houses for

the holidays! They had a lot of fun

doing it as well!

In Math, they are

learning to play a game called

“How Many to 10 or 20”. This is a

game played in class, in which the

students roll a die and place that

number of counters on

a double ten-frame in an

eff ort to reach 20 fi rst.

Bailey Lake’s

Scholastic Book Fair Follow-Up!THANK YOU to all the Bailey Lake Families who supported our Book Fair. Our fair sold a record-breaking $14,675.52. Thanks to you, our library now has $8805.31 to spend on new books and other materials for our Bailey Lake students. A special thank you to all the volunteers who gave their time to help make this event a success. We defi nitely couldn’t have done it without you!

Thank you,Amy Darnell and Whitney SchmitBook Fair Co-Chairs

Christy Kreucher & Andrea Beauchamp, chairs of Donuts With Dad would like to thank all the parent volunteers and Tim Hortons (Bob Mantha) for a discount on donuts and donating coff ee, cups & lids December 4th & 5th. Also, Abby Forbes employee at Tim Hortons volunteered her time to help make this event a success!

Donuts with Dad… From Clarkston Community Schools

Our apologies - some users were unable to read our previous eblast.

Inclement Weather Guidelines… The following information details our approach to school cancellations due to inclement weather. There are several principles that guide our decision-making with regard to school closings. First and foremost, however, is the safety of all our students and staff .

Clarkston SchoolsOn days when inclement weather occurs, we try our best to make the call by 5:30 a.m. to provide as much time as possible for families to be notifi ed so that arrangements may be made for childcare, etc. Once the decision is made to cancel school, we inform parents via automated phone calls, the Detroit-area media, email, Clarkston Community Calendar eblasts, our website, Twitter and Facebook page. Decisions regarding school closings due to snow and ice are made after CCS transportation staff make a recommendation regarding the ability of our buses and drivers to safely conduct their routes. It is

possible that main roads will be drivable while our many miles of unpaved roads are not. On cold days, our deci-sion to close will include a number of factors, such as road conditions, windchill, and air temperature throughout the day. We will close school for certain when the tem-perature with windchill reaches -25 degrees Fahrenheit or colder during transport times. As always,we encourage our students to dress appropriately to protect themselves from the cold. Parents can decide to override the school district’s decision and bring their children to school when they feel it is safe to do so.

Sporting Events and Community Education ProgramsAthletics and Community Education programs will always follow the same schedule as the schools. If Clarkston Community Schools are closed, Community Education programs will be canceled and patrons will be notifi ed. Athletic events that are “home” will be canceled unless weather greatly improves prior to the event. Away games/matches will be determined by the hosting district.

Congratulations BLE 2015 Spelling Bee Champion… Audrey Parker!

Congratulations to our top 20 fi nalists!

• Please Make Note •

Seuss Fair

has been changed

to Friday, April 17

Ten Thinking Apps for Parents: App #2……Develop a Growth Mindset:

Dear Parents:

I’m writing for a second time to think with you about our district’s mission and our shared responsibility for who our children become. Among everything your child learns in school, perhaps nothing is more important, or life lasting, than her/his mindset. This plays a role in life, well beyond school, and is a partner with confidence, happi-ness, and persistence.

Carol Dweck, a world renowned psychologist from Stanford University, popularized the concept of mindset, which takes on two, distinct perspectives: a Growth Mind-set is the belief that intelligence and ability expand and develop over time, as opposed to a Fixed Mindset, which suggests that intelligence is static and cannot change, even with great effort. A Growth Mindset “encourages greater risk taking, collaboration, enjoyment of challenge, long-term development, and continuous achievement in all types of learning endeavors” (Ritchhart, 2012, p. 1). A Fixed Mindset understands that setbacks are permanent, [they] define us holistically, and that intelligence is prede-termined (Dweck, 2006). Obviously, our mindsets matter greatly.

According to Harvard researcher Ron Ritchhart (2012), “Parents can help children develop a Growth Mindset by

focusing your praise on process, learning, and effort (ex: ‘You really worked hard on this and have learned a lot. You did a great job of developing a plan and following it through. You’ve really developed as a musician.’), as op-posed to ability (ex: ‘You’re so clever. Look how smart you are; you did that so fast. You’re good at math. You’ve got a lot of talent.’)” When we praise our children, as parents or teachers, they hear us. They learn to value the things that we value. They seek to emulate us. When we model growth through effort, trial and error, and stick-to-itive-ness, our children notice. When we give up easily, lack patience in learning new skills, and connect failure with competence, our children catch on and come to assume the same mindset.

It is imperative for children to believe that they can learn, grow, overcome obstacles, reach goals, fit in, and contrib-ute. Clearly, confidence connects to achievement. Let’s work together continuously to model the fact that our brains and bodies grow through hard work, a balanced diet of thinking and factual learning, through collabora-tion and a sense of agency, and in a willingness to keep trying when things are difficult.

It is vitally important that our children achieve at the highest levels. We, collectively, must help develop each child’s thinking and assist them in the pursuit of their dreams.

Thank you for thinking with me,Rod Rock Superintendent of Schools

Bailey Lake Talent Show Volunteers needed! HH

The Bailey Lake talent show is underway with a great turnout of approximately 100 kids participating this year making up about 40 unique acts!! Mark your calendars because the show is set for Thursday, March 5 at the Junior High School.

The kids are preparing their acts and we are finalizing the details over the next 8 weeks! There are several volunteer options available. Click the sign up genius link below or please contact Melissa if you are interested in helping out!

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/8050f48adad2da13-baileyMelissa Snyder • 248.709.6776 • (Melissa.snyder@gm.com) • Talent Show Coordinator

The results are in and we have the winners for Reflections 2014-2015! This year’s theme was “The World Would Be a Better Place If…” and our students had excellent ideas! This year we we only had 60 entries at Bailey Lake Elementary but they were great ones! I want to thank all of our students who participated and invite all of you back next year!

Visual ArtsKindergarten1st- Lainey Brown “Happy Drawing”2nd- Connor Kreucher “If Everyone Had a Home”

Primary1st- Koen Suender “Playing Cat”2nd- Audrey Morgan “If Everyone Recycled”3rd- Sophia Kreucher “Every Bit Helps”4th- Riley Budny “Helping the Environment”

Intermediate1st- Reagan Hakala “The Ice Cream Cone”2nd- Leah Pawlowski “Animal Shelters”3rd- Ryan Suender “Natural Beauty”4th- Miriah Prainito “Two Sides to a River”

PhotographyKindergarten1st- Jonathon Patton “Garbage in the Water”

Primary1st- Milan Patton “Painting of the Rocks”

Intermediate1st- Jordan Sinclair “Red Star”2nd- Caitrin Lugger “Grasshopper Language”3rd- Savannah Frendo “Untitled”

Music CompositionPrimary1st- May Guidoux “Friends”

LiteraturePrimary1st- Audrey Morgan “If Nobody Had Food Allergies”

Intermediate1st- Aubrey Snavley “My Special Dog”2nd- Reagan Hakala “Second Chance”3rd- Noelle Shiff “The Ride”4th- Audrey Parker “An Everyday Christmas”

Dance ChoreographyKindergarten1st- Ryan Harp “Hard Knock Life”

Intermediate 1st- Sophie Harp “Are You Out There?”2nd- Reagan Hakala “Hope”

Music CompositionIntermediate1st- Taylor Hartline “World Needs to be Taken Care of”2nd- Thomas Rumstadt “Smile to Your Face”

Film ProductionIntermediate1st- Aubrey Snavley “Bullying is Bad”2nd- Aidan Barnes “Adventures”

Every entry was inspiring and showcased how talented our students really are! The top two placements in the pri-mary and intermediate divisions will advance to the state finals as well as Jonathan Patton’s photography submis-sion! Best of luck to those individuals!

I invite all parents to attend the Awards Banquet this spring where students will receive placement awards as well as participation awards! Information on that event will be sent home as the date approaches.

Thank you and see you next Reflections!Angel Coon

Congratulations

2014-2015 Reflections Winners………………

About your PTAThe Objects of the Bailey Lake Elementary PTA, in common with those of the National PTA and the Michigan PTSA are:

a. To promote the welfare of children and youth in home, school, community and place of worship.

b. To raise the standards of home life.

c. To secure adequate laws for the care and protection of children and youth.

d. To bring into closer relation the home and the school, that parents and teachers may cooperate in-telligently in the education of children and youth.

e. To develop between educators and the general public such united eff orts as will secure for all children and youth the highest advantag-es in physical, mental, social and spiritual education.

BAILEY LAKE Elementary School

8051 Pine Knob Road Clarkston, MI 48348

Phone: (248) 623-5300 Fax: (248) 623-5305

Student Absence Line: (248) 623-5390

School Hours: 8:35 a.m. - 3:50 p.m.

Rebecca Walker, PTA PresidentGlenn Gualtieri, Principalwww.clarkston.k12.mi.us/ble

Calling all 2015-2016 Kindergartners!

If your child turns fi ve (5) years old on or before September 1, 2015, he/she is eligible to attend Kindergarten.

In the Fall of 2015, Clarkston Community Schools will continue to off er two options for parents of Kindergartners:

Kindergarten Full-day Kindergarten is off ered at every elementary school.

Young Fives KindergartenYoung Fives Kindergarten is available for students that turn fi ve years old between June

1 – September 1, 2015 (or as late as December 1 with a signed waiver). Full-day and half-day options are available. Young Fives Kindergarten is off ered at the Early

Childhood Center and Independence Elementary. Students that attend Young Fives go to their home school the following year

for regular Kindergarten.

To learn more about Clarkston’s Kindergarten options and for information regarding how to enroll your child, parents are invited to attend:

Kindergarten Information NightFebruary 5 - 7:00 p.m.

Clarkston Junior High School, 6595 Waldon Rd.

PTA MeetingsHow often does the PTA meet?The PTA Board members meet monthly. We also communicate via e-mail between monthly meetings if necessary.

Where and when are the PTA Board meetings held? What time do they start?BLE PTA Board meets on the fi rst Monday of each month in the Media Center. Meetings start at 7 p.m. We usually post the date on our front school signage and on our monthly newsletter calendar. You do not have to be a Board member to come to the meetings. We welcome all parents!

How long are the meetings?The Board meetings are usually an hour to an hour and a half.

Who comes or is welcome to the PTA board meetings? PTA Board members (executive offi cers and committee chairpersons), our principal, and teacher representative(s). As well as any caring, supportive parents, interested in hearing about new and exciting things happening at our school and in our classrooms, are welcome!

What happens at the PTA meetings?Minutes from previous meetings are approved; various reports are given by our Principal, PTA President, Treasurer, Executive Offi cers, and Committee Chairs. Anyone else who is on the agenda receives a turn to speak. New business and unfi nished business are discussed. Various announcements are made. PTA meetings provide an excellent opportu-nity to be involved in what is happening at our school! Please consider joining us!

PTA: from Questions to Understanding…