sandys middle family - moed.bm times newsletters/sandys middle... · the sandys secondary middle...

SCHOOL TIMES Focusing on what’s happening within the Bermuda Public School System

Lagoon Park Preschool

Page 4

Sandys Secondary Middle School

Page 5

West End Primary Page 6

Somerset Primary

Pages 7 & 8

Dalton E. Tucker Primary Page 9

Port Royal

Primary 0

Southampton

Preschool

Learn More About the Literacy Collabo-

rative Page 11

Also In The Times…

Page 12

The Ministry of Education—Experiencing change that ,ultimately, changes our experience February 2008

The Sandys Secondary Middle

Family :

Page 4

Page 10

Page 6

2

Oft times in life we get caught up in the day-to-day activities. Life flashes by in the wink of an eye and before you know it, another day has gone by. It’s no secret that we at the Ministry of Education are involved in significant change and are working arduously to improve our system. Irrespective of how hectic things may be, we at the Ministry of Education always keep one community at the forefront —our Island’s most precious jewels—our students. I am pleased to introduce to you the first edition of SCHOOL TIMES, which will keep us abreast of the great things which our happening in our family of schools. We have started with the Sandys Secondary Middle Family of Schools and will be working our way east before the end of the 2007/2008 academic school year. There are many positive and exciting experiences going on within our school walls and we are happy to share them with you. We look forward to hearing new things each month from each of your schools!

Dr. Radell Tankard Acting Permanent Secretary The Ministry of Education

Colleagues, Our public schools throughout the island are all rich in his-tory and produce students who continue to make their parents, the Ministry and the country proud. It is only fitting that the first edition of the SCHOOL TIMES is focused on these schools starting with those in the west. At the Ministry of Education, we recognise the hard work of the students and teachers. This newsletter offers an excellent oppor-tunity to highlight their achievements as well as report on the pro-gress of their schools. As Minister, I will continue to emphasise the need for main-taining healthy lives to our students and teachers by increased exer-cise, balanced diets and challenging school curriculums that are de-signed to produce well rounded young people who can grow to be pro-

ductive adults. Enjoy SCHOOL TIMES and feel free to offer your suggestions on any topic or event you believe needs to be covered by the newsletter by contacting our Communications Officer, Ms. Carla Zuill, at Ministry Headquarters. Honourable K. H. Randolph Horton JP, MP Minister of Education

School Times February 2008

3

It’s All About Our Future...


4

Reaching Out Into The Community By Carla Zuill Although tucked away in Dockyard, Lagoon Park Preschool has a large presence in the community. Under the leadership of administrator, Sherri Lee Bucci, the preschool has spent the last several years fostering a positive relationship with the residents at Lefroy House. Each year, all students of the school visit the rest home with one intention—to bring smiles to the faces of the residents. “We love to take good cheer,” Mrs. Bucci recently told School Times. But before they can do that, the four-year-olds must be sensitized in order to prepare them for what they may see at Lefroy House. Whether it’s holding a story-book parade in October or sharing Thanksgiving cards in November, the youngsters can always be certain to brighten the days of the elderly residents. At Christmas, instead of having a Christmas play, the school sings Christmas carols at the rest home and each child and teacher at Lagoon Park provides a gift for every resident at Lefroy House. Mrs. Bucci added there’s a valu-able lesson in requesting each child to pro-vide a present: “We believe that children should think about others and share the gift of giving.” In addition to the Dockyard pre-school providing 50 gifts last Christmas, each senior also gave a gift to each child. Mrs. Bucci continued: “The sen-iors love the one-on-one attention they get from our students and get joy from remi-niscing about when they were younger. Small children always bring a smile to their faces. At La-goon Park we are building a sense of community. Chil-dren have a purpose. They are not too young to make a difference.” Another great partnership that Lagoon Park Preschool enjoys is one with several male students of Sandys Secondary Middle School who visit the school weekly to offer drumming lessons. In addition to doing this, they also read to the boys at the preschool and can often be found lending a hand at other tasks when needed. “They are definitely positive male role models for our boys,” Mrs. Bucci said. Sandys Secondary Middle School educational therapist, Kevin Grigsby, echoed her sentiment and added: “It is a rewarding experience for (my students) mainly because of

how receptive and ex-

cited the preschoolers are when they interact with them. This is truly priceless because it teaches the older boys a deeper meaning of character and manhood. They stay on top of me constantly, reminding me when they are scheduled to return to the school.” But it isn’t just the males at Sandys Secondary Middle School making a difference. Their female counterparts have also assisted with arts and crafts activities in the past and for Black History Month they will be dressing up as notable Black figures as they bring their stories to life. Lagoon Park Preschool is thank-ful for the eagerness of the middle school students and knows theirs is a relationship that will last for many years to come.


5


Former Sandys Secondary Middle School student Trey Simons (right) is seen here being inter-viewed by some of his former school-mates.

Trey Simons, a former student of Sandys Secondary Middle School, is no stranger to Bermuda’s athletic community. Trey is attending Cushing Academy in Boston, and recently visited Sandys on his Thanksgiving break. He was interviewed by M3 students Jordan Richardson, Sherdon Bradshaw, Danzel Williams and Simeon Edwards. He shared with them his challenges and successes at Cushing Academy. Question: How did you get accepted into Cushing Academy and what grade level are you in? Answer: I was accepted into Cushing for my running ability and good grades. Getting into Cushing Academy is very hard. I am the youngest student in the school and I’m in grade 9 or S1. The school is a high school and also prepares you for college. Q: How are you doing in your classes and your running? A: I am doing very well in my classes and all of my grades are over 80%. My hardest subject is mathematics and my favourite subject is world cultures. I did not know a lot of the mathematics so I had to get help, but Cushing offers tutorials and study hall so that there is no need for anyone to fail. I’m doing well in mathematics now. When I arrived at Cushing I was academically prepared for the other subjects though. I have had a good cross country season and I placed 12th overall making the All New England Cross Country Team. Q: Have you experienced any problems at the school and if so, how did you deal with them? A: I experienced racism, and I wrote a letter about it to the principal. I remembered what I learned when VOICES came to Sandys, “I’ll fight with this and not with this.” (Fight with your mind and not with your hands). Q: What advice would you give to the M3 students and student athletes? A: Study hard and be prepared for college because there is a lot of competition and hard work. The Sandys family would like to congratulate Trey for making the All New England Team, and for his social and academic success. May God continue to bless you with the gifts and talents that He has given you.

Former Sandys Secondary Middle School Student Continues to Shine!

6

Over the last two months, there has been non-stop celebrating at West End Primary. Over the holiday season, three members of the school’s family were recognized for their creative writing in The Royal Gazette’s annual short story competi-tion.

Ten-year-old Imani Bailey took home second prize for her story, A Christmas Morning Surprise when Kinshasa Tofari-An’mai, also ten received an honourable mention for her work, Kwanzaa Celebration. Both dynamic students are in Primary Six. Principal Livingston Tuzo rounded out the West End sweep by earning an honourable mention for his story, Fathers and Christmas. Keeping with Christmas celebrations, West End Primary also won first prize in the annual Elbow Beach Christmas Gingerbread House competition. The winning entry was submitted by members of the school’s art club. Good job! School Times applauds the school’s Primary Five students who beat out all competitors in the public and private sector to place first in the primary division of the Bermuda Biological Station’s science competi-tion by submitting a phenomenal underwater scene that depicted the Island’s North Rock. And last but least School Times would like to recognise Jordan Bascome for her excellent perform-

ance in the Front Street Mile where she won the primary division. This Primary Six student is a great example of what it is to be a student athlete as she was also West End Primary’s representative in the annual Bermuda College Spelldown competition. When asked how he felt about his school family’s excel-lent performances, Principal Livingston Tuzo told School Times: ‘The process of reflection is challeng-ing. It requires the self-discipline to stay focused, the strength to relive mistakes and the common sense to learn from them’ “We here at West End Pri-mary took that quote to heart. Our staff deliberations in both June and September 2007, were such that all of us at West End Primary have recom-mitted ourselves to making sure that we all do our very best to ensure that ALL of our students get our maxi-mum effort at ALL times. The result of that promise, to our students, our parents and ourselves, has manifested itself in the kind of success and cele-brations that our children have achieved thus far this school year.”

Great things are happening at West End Primary!

By Carla Zuill


Below, West End Primary Principal Livingston is all smiles as he congratu-lates Imani Bailey (left) and Kinshasa Tofari-An’mai on their winning entries in The Royal Gazette’s annual Christmas Short Story Competition.

Jordan Bascome

7


Primary Five Expedition – Camp Wreck 2007 Submitted by Mrs. L. Siese of Somerset Primary

The Primary Five classes (Williams and Siese) ventured out of school to a closely-kept secret treasure of Sandys Par-ish, a camp-site owned by the Gibbons-Steynor clan. We were treated to a panoramic if somewhat stormy two days, exploring the mangrove swamp and seagrass beds, swimming, hiking and writing about our experiences. Camping is always exciting, but when you throw in torrential rain and 30 knot winds, you know you are in for some high levels of adrenaline. We stuck it out, however, with only two children packing it in for the night and returning the next day. The Park Rangers put together an interesting hunt / tour of Hog Bay Park, and the BZS speaker for the Mangroves had some hands-on activities for the students to do. Other highlights were a boat tour of the “Frying Pan”, and read-ing in our tents as the rain poured down. We certainly had some great writing come out of the experience!

8

Habits of Mind at Somerset Primary

In an effort to address the perception that some children are not being trained in thinking skills the Somer-

set Primary School team has embarked upon a programme that is intended to change that perception by studying

and teaching the Habits of Mind.

‘Habits of Mind’ are the characteristics of what intelligent people do when they are confronted with prob-

lems, when the resolutions are not immediately apparent. ‘Habits’ are a composite of value, inclination, sensitivity,

capability, commitment and other skills. The ‘Habits’, which are stated as verbs, include Persisting, Managing Impul-

sivity and Responding with Wonderment and Awe. Several team members studied the ‘Habits’ as part of their pro-

fessional development cycle during the last academic year and the excitement of the list of characteristics and knowl-

edge gained grew on the rest of the team through discussion and small-scale implementation.

The school is now immersing itself in those habits to give the students a greater understanding of them. One

form of immersion is the naming of classes in the Habits’ vein. (Every year the classes at the school are named for a

cause. For example, in the year of the former music teacher’s retirement, classes were given names associated with

music.) This year’s classes at Somerset Primary have names such as Robinson’s Responders (P. 2), Responsible Risk

-Takers (P. 6) and P. 4 Persistent Leaders. The students and their class teachers discussed the idea of the ‘Habits’

and they diplomatically decided which one would best reflect them, thus formulating their names.

The teachers have found this to be an exciting way of supporting character education as well. They look

forward to continuing to delve into the programme.

Imagine having access from your classroom to 4,000 full-length instructional videos segmented into 40,000 content-specific clips. Well you can! Why not sign up to use this excellent video resource to enhance your classroom instruction. Using Discovery Education’s United Streaming, Bermuda’s Educators can:

• expand students' horizons using new multimedia content for all subjects from leading educational publishers

• create and innovate with Assignment Builder, Quiz Center, Writing Prompt Generator, and other resources

• save time with fast and accurate search functionality and dynamic navigation menus customize and personalize lessons to different subjects, grades, and learning styles Call the Ministry of Education’s Help Desk at 278-3395 for the passcode for your school so that you can create your own unique login account or have the Help Desk Administrator or your on-site IT Technician create an ac-count for you. The Internet address for this site is www.unitedstreaming.com

Anthony Outerbridge, IT Manager at the Ministry

of Education

TECH TIPS:


United Streaming

9

Dalton E. Tucker Primary, formerly Southampton Glebe Primary The Great Debate…A Note from Principal Gladstone Thompson As the National Coach of Debate in Bermuda, I have a vested interest in democratizing debate. Simply put, every child should have excess to the skills and rig-our of the same. At Dalton E. Tucker Primary School we have begun to see this vision fulfilled. Every student that is enrolled in the Dalton E. Tucker after school program (ranging from P1 – P6) is introduced to the fundamentals of debate. I have great pleasure sharing with the primary one and two students. I ask them to turn and share about an experience. They are so eager to tell me their story, but the rule is, you must share it with your neighbor. They get penalised for sitting quietly; everybody has to talk. After a while they start to enjoy the experience and begin to express themselves very well. The Primary Three and Four classes have simi-lar experiences. However, their prompts are crafted so as to reach the higher levels of Bloom’s taxonomy. The Primary Five and Six classes begin to ex-perience a more structured form of debate. Presently, we are studying the social studies curriculum and the stu-dents are receiving information about the discovery of Bermuda and its early settlement. They will be intro-duced to a motion and will have to affirm and negate the same. This is the third year that our after school pro-gramme has incorporated debate in its list of activities. We have hosted debate nights where the parents have had the opportunity to see their children demonstrate their debate skills. This night has proven to be a very successful addition to the programme. Ask and you shall receive…. In 2005, the parents of Dalton E Tucker re-quested an alternative afterschool programme that pro-vided specialised services at a reasonable rate. They were serious and decided to implement such a programme, which was the birth of the current Community Hands Ushering Bright Stars (CHUBS) afterschool programme. With much volunteer work and support from parents, the programme is growing and is successful in terms of the programming, enrichment and cost. For $40.00 per week, children have the opportunity to be engaged in Spanish, Debate, Girls Club – which is focused on Com-munity Service, Football Drills, Arts & Craft, IT Club, Music Club etc. on a rotating basis over the various terms. Each specialised service is provided by qualified person-nel and at the end of the year the skills are presented through a demonstration where parents and friends are invited to events.

The programme is open to all student levels. Honouring Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Dalton E. Tucker Primary celebrated the mem-ory of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on January 15 with a walk from the Maxi Mart grocery store on Hog Bay Level, Sandys, to their school. Along with 128 stu-dents, parents and teachers also participated in the march. As they held signs adorned with Dr. King’s pic-ture, the marchers sang until they reached the school; there they heard the famed I Have A Dream speech which Dr. King delivered 45 years ago at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. Parent Juliette Darrell, whose six-year-old son Zaarion participated in the walk, told The Royal Gazette (1.16.08): “It helped teach him that Dr. King was a civil rights leader and what that meant. He guessed when I told him about it, it was going to be boring. But he had fun. He understands now that Black people…had to sit in the back. He walked with a White friend of his (during the march), but before they couldn’t play to-gether. When I asked him what things are different to-day he said the difference is that everybody is together.” Mr. Thompson said he always enjoyed when a former colleague brought her lessons to life for her stu-dents and decided that he wanted to do the same: “…I thought the walk was such a wonderful experience and the staff supports it. Now it has become an annual event.” This is one tradition that looks like it’s going to enjoy many years at Dalton E. Tucker Primary!


10


There’s a lot going on at Port Royal Primary

On Friday, January 11, 2008, Port Royal Primary School held their annual Fun Run. Students from Pri-mary One through Six participated in this event to gain points for their respective houses. The event is of-fered on a yearly basis to encourage everyone to get fit for the New Year. The top finishers in each year level will represent the school in the upcoming BSSF Cross Country Event.

The Southampton school held its Open House on Tuesday, January 29, 2008. The event was held from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and was open to everyone in the community. Both current and prospective parents were given the opportunity to see what happens in the school. The event was well attended and hailed a success. On Friday, February 1, 2008, Port Royal Primary School began their ‘Tea With Me’ series. Students are invited to sign up to have afternoon tea with Principal Holly Richardson while she shares a book with them. Although the initial aim was to host ten students during a lunch period, Port Royal students were so eager to participate that Mrs. Richardson read Grandma’s Pride with 45 avid readers!

11


Learn More About The Literacy Collaborative

Q: What is the Literacy Collaborative? A: The Lesley University Literacy Collaborative was developed in 1986 as a joint research project of teachers from the Columbus Public Schools and the faculty from the Ohio State University. Based on that research, a model was developed to train school-based literacy coordinators for the primary levels. The Literacy Collaborative is designed to provide a school-wide approach to literacy instruction in Primary One through Six plus M1 through M3. The goal of the programme is to assure successful literacy achievement for every child. Q: What is a literacy coordinator? A: A literacy coordinator is one who coaches classroom teachers and provides on-site professional development ses-sions. There are 17 literacy coordinators in the Bermuda Public School System at the primary level currently. Q: What role does the Principal play in the Literacy Collaborative? A: The Principal is extremely vital to this programme. He or she must possess a full understanding of how it works in order to ensure that it is being implemented in accordance with Literacy Collaborative standards and guidelines. The principal and literacy team monitor, evaluate and collect data on the performance of each child and plans for the child’s success. The principal also monitors teacher performance and student growth. Q: When will the Literacy Collaborative be fully implemented into our schools? A: There are five phases of implementation for the Literacy Collaborative: awareness and planning, leadership devel-opment and start-up, training and coaching, refinement of the programme and continued implementation. Our liter-acy coordinators are currently at the training phase. Throughout each of these phases the literacy coordinators en-gages in professional development so that they can deliver comprehensive training in their respective schools. All teacher training is expected to be ongoing.

12


Also in the Times….

Christmas arrived sooner than expected last De-cember for Harrington Sound teacher Janel Allen who was awarded the prestigious Bermuda Union of Teachers’ (BUT) Teacher of the Year. No idea that she was the winner, tears of surprise and joy streaked her face as she realized that the testimonial being read about the winner was in fact, hers. Ms Allen was nominated by Aleila Richardson, both of whose children she taught. Ms Richardson had nothing but praise for the Primary Four teacher. She described Ms Allen as a fair teacher who treated everyone the same and always encour-aged them to do their best. She commended Ms Allen’s teaching style. She told The Bermuda Sun (12.21.07): “She encourages the children not only to read books, but the newspaper as well. I found my son eager to read the newspaper every evening and discuss it the next day.” As she accepted her Teacher of the Year award, Ms Allen, mother of 13-year-old Danielle, told the judg-ing panel that she was both “shocked and happy” to have been selected. She told The Bermuda Sun: “Teaching is my first love. I love my students. If I didn’t, I definitely wouldn’t be do-ing it.”

Teacher Talk Tune in every Tuesday to Magic 102.7 to hear Teacher Talk—the newest radio show to hit the Island’s airwaves. Hosted by Garrita Coddington and Cindy Lam-bert, Teacher Talk will delve into a plethora of topics concerning education in Bermuda. Already guests have included Mike Charles and Keisha Douglas of the Bermuda Union of Teachers and Dr. Henry Johnson, Consultant Executive Officer at the Ministry of Education. If you have a question or comment, feel free to call Teacher Talk at 296-2442 each Tuesday on Magic 102.7 from 5.30 p.m. to 6.30 p.m.

Janel Allen (second from right) was all smiles as she was recognised as the Bermuda Union Of Teachers (BUT) 2007 Teacher of the Year. Also pictured are fellow nominees (from left to right) Chantal Simons of West End Primary, Angela Francis of Gilbert Institute and Lisa Siese of Somerset Primary.

Teacher Talk co-hosts Garrita Cod-dington (left) and Cindy Lambert

Coming In March… THE T.N. TATEM MIDDLE SCHOOL

FAMILY

SCHOOL TIMES Was produced by Carla Zuill, Communications Officer

for the Ministry of Education. Please email submissions to [email protected]

sandys middle family - moed.bm times newsletters/sandys middle... · the sandys secondary middle...

Documents