BROOKVALE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 3400 Nicolet Avenue Fremont, CA 94536

Telephone: (510) 797-5940 Fax: (510) 797-0151 Office Hours: 7:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m., Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday

7:30 – 3:30 p.m. Wednesdays & Early Dismissal Days Be sure to check out our school website at: www.fremont.k12.ca.us/brookvale

PARENT NEWSLETTER

November 9, 2017

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE: As hard as it is to believe, we are already one-fourth of the way through the school year. We look forward to parent teacher conferences this month! Please make sure you've made an appointment with your child's teacher. As we move into the second trimester of the year, we continue to focus on the academic, social, and emotional growth of our students. We appreciate your support in this. November is citizenship month Children see themselves as members of communities (classroom, school, community, and world) and understand how to participate appropriately and responsibly. Strengthening focus and attention Does your child have a difficult time maintaining focus? We have many students who are working to grow in this area. Attention can be improved through activities that reinforce focus. Quiet reading time and maintained focus on single activities help to develop attention and focus. Please check this article from Edutopia: 7 Ways to Increase a Student's Attention Span. I've also included some information below on mindfulness. Simple mindfulness exercises like these have been shown to improve emotional state and focus for elementary-age students. Perseverance! We continue to reinforce growth and taking on challenges. We want to encourage students to keep doing their best (even when things are challenging) and focus on having a "Growth Mindset". We want our

students to understand that they are growing when things get hard! Evening routine Establish a routine to build habits and dependability and responsibility for work at home. Practicing reading and math skills for a reasonable amount of time will help with their development. Please make sure your child reads nightly! Mindfulness exercises: Relaxation Breathing - 1 Minute Use this meditation when feeling anxious, pressured or panicked for immediate intervention and stress relief. A simple exercise to activate the parasympathetic nervous system – i.e., the relaxation response - involves regulating the breath to lower the heart rate and blood pressure quickly and effectively. When our exhales are longer than our inhales, our body signals its “rest & digest” mode (vs. “fight or flight” mode) and we are able to relax from the inside out. An excellent tool for those moments of panic and anxiety (think, stuck in traffic, walking into a big meeting or during a heated argument), relaxation breathing tackles physical responses to sudden, acute stress while buying us time to respond thoughtfully rather than react impulsively. The practice: Close your eyes and take a deep breath in for a count of four, and then exhale for a count of eight. As you inhale, visualize the movement of oxygen through your respiratory system. As you inhale, imagine any stress you’ve been holding float away. Repeat five times.

Principal: Cindy Hicks-Rodriguez Secretary: Lena Anderson Office Assistant: Karen Joe

Mindful Breathing Meditation - 7 Minutes Use this meditation twice daily to develop better focus, attention and a greater overall sense of clarity and calm over time. Mindfulness is the practice of awareness of the present moment, enabling us to disassociate with notions of past and future that trigger rumination and stress. With mindful breathing meditation, we use the breath as an object of meditation, concentrating deeply on the rhythm and sensation of our most basic life force. Think of it as an exercise for your brain that strengthens your “attention muscle” by forcing your awareness inward and challenging you to stay focused. In perhaps the most significant mindfulness study to date, a team of Harvard researchers found that after 8 weeks of daily practice, mindful meditators reported a sense of increased peace and clarity while non-meditators did not. Not only that, but their MRIs showed an increase in gray matter in parts of the brain associated with focus and attention and a decrease in gray matter associated with stress and anxiety (non-meditators remained unchanged). The practice: Sit comfortably with a long, straight spine and find a slow, oceanic breath. Begin counting your inhales and exhales from one to ten (inhale one, exhale one; inhale two, exhale two; etc.). When you reach ten, start again but count backwards to one. Repeat this cycle five times. When you’ve completed five cycles of breath-counting, simply continue to breathe at this calm, steady pace, for two-to-three minutes, visualizing the breath moving through the respiratory system and appreciating its physical relationship with the body. Body Scan Meditation - 5 Minutes Use this meditation to build body awareness and ease tension after a long day or before falling asleep at night. A body scan meditation allows us to identify where unconscious holding patterns reside and helps to release them with our own awareness, enabling us to relax more completely. Research suggests that including body scan meditation in a mindfulness practice significantly reduces sleep problems and improves symptoms and severity of fatigue and depression. The practice: Sit or lie down in a comfortable position and take a few moments to find a calm, steady breath. Now, bring your awareness to sensations in the body, where you will spend several slow breaths on each focal point beginning with the left toes and checking in with left foot, left ankle, calf, knee, thigh - all the way through the left hip. When you notice an area of tension or discomfort, breathe into it, relaxing on the out-breath. Repeat through the right side. Follow with the pelvic region, abdomen and lower back, moving up

through the torso and heart region. From there, follow and breathe through the sensations in the fingers, hands, wrists, up the arms, through the shoulders, neck, jaw, temples, ears, eyes, forehead, crown of the head and skull. We appreciate your continued support to reinforce the ideas we are working toward and support your children in their extra practice and home. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving break! Warmest Regards, Cindy Hicks-Rodriguez, Principal

IMPORTANT SCHOOL DATES: Please check out the Fremont Unified School District website www.fremont.k12.ca.us regarding Enrollment. Check our Brookvale website for a complete calendar of events for the school year. NOVEMBER 9 End of 1st Trimester 10 Veterans Day Holiday—No school 13 – 17 Parent Conference Week; Early Dismisal Schedules this week--see Bell Schedules online for your child’s grade level. Please

attend your child’s conference to receive their report card!

20 – 24 Thanksgiving Holiday—No school DECEMBER 2 PTA Meeting in Library @ 6:30 p.m. 5 Lifetouch Picture Make-Up Day 8 Father/Daughter; Mother/Son Dance

6- 7:30 p.m. MUR Watch for details to come home!

25 – Jan 5 Winter Break—NO SCHOOL JANUARY 8 School Resumes 15 Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday—NO

SCHOOL

BROOKVALE WISHES YOUR FAMILY A HAPPY THANKSGIVING BREAK!

ENROLLMENT FOR 2018/2019 SCHOOL YEAR Hello Brookvale Families! Please continue to check the Fremont Unified School District website and the Student Support Services webpage regularly for updates regarding enrollment for next year: https://www.fremont.k12.ca.us/Page/32030 Kindergarten age siblings (brothers or sisters) of students already attending Brookvale this year in grades TK-5, will be able to take advantage of registering before the general public during Sibling Registration! At this time, we do not have a timeline but the information may be posted online before our next parent newsletter which comes out on December 14, 2017. EMERGENCY CARDS AND CONTACTING PARENTS!

All students at Brookvale must have a complete and current emergency card on file. The emergency card is referenced each time a child comes in to see the nurse/office and it is important to note allergies or other health concerns. We also send automated calls home regarding special events taking place at Brookvale via our BrightArrow phone system. Students may not be released during the school day to anyone not listed on the emergency card who is less than 18 years of age. Please contact the school office should you need to update your phone number/contact information, email address or notify the school of any new health concerns regarding your child. Thank you!

LIFETOUCH Picture Re-takes Lifetouch will be taking picture re-takes for

students who were absent on picture day or who would like to trade in their picture packet for a new photo on December 5, 2017. You can still order online at MYLIFETOUCH.COM and use the picture ID code BY417044Q1.

GATE Information 2017-18

Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) provides differentiated instruction for students with superior ability and high-level academic performance. All grade three students will have the opportunity to be tested for GATE. The process is automatic and does not require parents to initiate it. Any student whose parent does not want them to participate in testing must submit an opt-out letter to the Assessment and Accountability office, 4210 Technology Drive, Fremont, California, 94538, no later than January 15, 2018. Letters submitted after the deadline will not be accepted. The GATE testing window for grade three will be between February 5 - February 16, 2018.

Students in grades four or five who are new to Fremont Unified School District and have not been tested in Fremont have the option to be tested. If your 4th or 5th grade child is new to the district this year, and you would like them to be assessed with the GATE test, please submit a letter with the request to the Assessment and Accountability office by January 15, 2018.

If a grade three student was opted out of FUSD testing and the parent wishes their child to participate as a 4th or 5th grader, the parent must write a letter to the Assessment and Accountability office, 4210 Technology Drive, Fremont, California, 94538, indicating their wish for their child to test. Fifth grade is the last opportunity for students to opt in for the GATE test. If a student does not take the assessment, they are not eligible for the professional judgement process described below. The deadline for this is January 15, 2018.

Students in grades five or six who have been tested and were not identified may be nominated for GATE identification through the professional judgement process. Teacher and/or Parent Nomination Forms are accepted for review under “other identification criteria.” Additional information and forms are available in the student's school office and may also be downloaded from the Gifted and Talented (GATE) Department website.

If a parent believes their child may require GATE services and is in the 5th or 6th grade, they must submit a completed Nomination Form to the Curriculum and Instruction Department, 4210 Technology Drive, Fremont, California, 94538 between November 1, 2017 and January 15, 2018.

資優教育的資料 2017-18 資優教育(GATE)為具有優秀能力和高水平的學生提

供區分的教學。 所有三年級學生將有機會接受GATE考試。該考試

是自動的，家長無需啟動該過程。若家長不希望子

女參與該考試，他們必須在2018年1月15日或之前

向評估和當責部位於4210 Technology Drive, Fremont, CA 94538的辦公室遞交退出通知書。截止日期後遞交

的通知書將不會被接受。

三年級的GATE考試將會在2018年2月5日至2月 16日期間進行。 尚未在菲利蒙聯合校區參與GATE考試的四年級和

五年級新生亦可被測試。如你的四年級或五年級子

女是今年校區的新生而你希望他們參與GATE考試

，請在2018年1月15日前遞交書面通知到評估和當責部位於4210 Technology Drive, Fremont, CA

94538的辦公室。 如三年級學生希望在四年級或五年級才參與菲利蒙

聯合校區的GATE考試，家長必須在2018年1月15日或之前寫信到評估和當責部位於4210 Technology Drive, Fremont, CA 94538的辦公室，表示希望子女參與GATE考試。

五年級是學生參與GATE考試的最後機會。如學生

沒有參與任何GATE考試，將不符合專業評估的資

格。 家長和/或教師可通過專業評估程序提名曾經參與G

ATE考試而沒有被確定的五年級或六年級學生。教

師和/或父母提名表格可以在”

其他鑑定條件”下接受審查。詳情和表格可到學生學校

的辦公室索取，或到GATE網站下載。

如果家長相信他們的五年級或六年級的子女可能

需要GATE服務，家長可填妥提名表格後，在2017年11月1日至2018年1月15日期間提交到課程和教學部位於 4210 Technology Drive, Fremont,

CA 94538的辦公室。

IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING BOARD POLICY 6158 ON INDEPENDENT STUDY CONTRACTS (ISC) Please do not schedule family vacations during school time. There are only 180 days of school and students need to be present for every one of them if possible! Therefore, independent study contracts will only be granted in extreme circumstances with the mutual consent of the principal/teacher/parent or guardian/student. Schools are not obligated to provide an ISC. Students should only be placed on an ISC if the student can successfully accomplish their academics. (EC 51745(a) and 51747(c)(7))

A short term voluntary ISC may not be issued for less than five (5) consecutive school days and may not exceed ten (10) consecutive school days; only 1 Independent Study Contract per school year in grades Kindergarten to 12.*

• The student/parent must notify the school administrator and teacher of intentions to go on a trip or to be absent for other non-medical reasons at least ten (10) days prior to the absence.

• Students whose achievement is below grade level standards, based on multiple measures, in Language Arts or Math may not be eligible for short term Independent Study.

• Students may not be on short term Independent Study more than three (3) times while in Grades K-12.

• NO Independent Study Contracts will be issued the first 20 school days of the year, the last 20 days of the school year, or during state testing times.

*TK is not eligible for Independent Study Contracts due to their age.

Please email Karen Joe at Kjoe@fremont.k12.ca.us if you have questions or plan to request an ISC. Please reference the FUSD Parent/Guardian & Student Handbook and Notice of Rights and Responsibilities 2017-2018 to learn more: https://www.fremont.k12.ca.us/Domain/2893