Blaine Elementary School Craig Baldwin, Principal

836 Mitchell Ave., Blaine, WA 98230 (360) 332-5213

B.E. INFORMED Monthly Newsletter

ISSUE 2, October 2018

Month at a Glance

October 8th 10:20 am Late Start - No Breakfast

October 9th 6:00 pm PTO Meeting - BES Library

October 12th 9:00 am Walk-a-Thon Award Assembly

October 15th 8:30 am PTO Coffee Talk-BES Library

October 17th Student Picture Day

October 29th 10:20 am Late Start - No Breakfast

November 8th 2:00 pm Veteran’s Day Assembly

November 9th No School - LID Day

November 12th No School - Veteran’s Day

Student Picture Day

October 17th

Stay tuned for more information to

be sent home soon!

We’re going digital!

Starting in November, our B.E.

Informed newsletter will move to

our online platform!

Please remember to download the

Blaine School District app to stay

connected with our schools.

If you would prefer to receive a

paper copy of the newsletter, please

contact the main office.

We’re having great start to the 2018-19 school year at Blaine Elementary! During the month of

September, we accomplished so many things, including our annual PTO Walk-a-Thon to raise money

for our school, hosting our Back to School Night and launching students on their way in each

classroom. As we enter October, we’re excited to carry this positive momentum forward with a variety

of school events.

Our October calendar has two late start days. A late start day on

Monday, October 8th and October 29th. During our late start days, K-12 staff are

involved in a variety of professional development work. Students will start

school at 10:20am on these days. On Tuesday, October 9th @ 6:00pm our PTO

will hold its second meeting of the year in the library. I strongly encourage

families to get involved with our school by attending PTO meetings each month.

On Friday, October 12th we’ll celebrate our fundraising efforts at the Walk-a-Thon Awards

Assembly. At this assembly, our PTO hands out a variety of prizes for individual and group

accomplishments during the Walk-a-thon. A BIG THANK YOU to the parent volunteers who helped

at the Walk-a-Thon this year! Donations are being counted this week and we’re hoping to hit the

$25,000 mark this year!

On October 16th our 5th grade students will join students from all over

Whatcom County at Western Washington University for the Compass to

Campus. Compass to Campus is a program run by WWU to encourage

students in Whatcom County to consider attending college or other post-high

school studies as they enter adulthood. Starting in 5th grade, students interact

with mentors (college students) from WWU as they visit our school and work

in classrooms or as part of after-school programs. This mentoring connection

continues until 12th grade as a way for our students to build connections to

university level education and become inspired to consider future

opportunities.

On Wednesday, October 17th we will hold individual picture day at BES, with class picture day

occurring later in the spring. Please look for information coming home and contact our main office if

you have questions.

Finally, I’d like to thank our families and staff for supporting such a great start to this school

year. We had a great turn out for our Back to School Night and Walk-a-Thon events this past month,

which speak to the commitment of our community. As always, the start of the school year is a

momentous act of planning and collaboration. It takes involved families and staff to make everything

go smoothly in our first month. Thank you to everyone for your commitment to making Blaine

Elementary School work for our kids. We appreciate you!

Craig Baldwin Principal

From the Principal’s Pen…

The P.E. Heartbeat

We have started the year in PE with an emphasis on teamwork and

sportsmanship. We've been doing activities that have used small groups where

the kids have to work together, use some strategy and plan how they'll succeed

in each game. Tic Tac Toe relays were fun and incorporated some cardio, along

with teamwork. We’ve also been doing activities to teach us about

sportsmanship and making sure we feel good about our accomplishments, but

not take it too far as to boast or brag about it. I personally enjoyed the Walk-a-

Thon this month and thought all grades did a great job out at the track!

Mr. Krahn

This year at BES we are putting an increased

emphasis on the area of Social Emotional

Learning (SEL). Please join us in some of our

learning by reading this column of the BE

Informed Newsletter each month. If you have

questions about current SEL work at BES or

would like to get involved in our efforts, please

contact Kelli Alonso or Craig Baldwin.

SEL is broadly understood as a process through which people build awareness and skills in managing

emotions, setting goals, establishing relationships, and making responsible decisions that support success in

school and in life.

SEL develops cognitive social competencies, such as; self-awareness, self-management and social

awareness. Developing such skills fosters positive social skills, reduces conduct problems, diminishes

emotional stress, and improves academic performance.

Furthermore, when we develop social and emotional skills, our ability to form relationships and build

social awareness increases, enhancing our ability to connect with individuals of diverse perspectives,

cultures, languages, histories, identities and abilities. By implementing SEL on a macro-level, we create

more equitable, better performing schools and communities. This type of cultural change creates

environments in which all students learn the skills needed to be prepared for career, college, and life.

As an educational approach, SEL recognizes students are complex human beings whose learning and

behavior are just as impacted by their emotions—and their control over those emotions—as they are by the

quality of instruction and discipline.

Source: SEL Online Education Modules developed by the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction

Looking for a new way to connect with your kids?

Trying to figure out how to co-parent your child with another caregiver?

Running out of ideas for promoting positive behavior?

Try Emotion Coaching!

“Emotion Coaching: The Heart of Parenting presents a 5-step method that builds emotional intelligence and creates positive, long lasting effects for children. Easy to learn, and used by parents, educators, and care-givers, it supports kids through life’s ups and downs in a way that builds confidence and helps them grow socially, emotionally, and intellectually.” – The Gottman Institute (https://www.gottman.com/)

Blaine School District will be hosting a 4-night workshop for caregivers of Primary and Elementary students. The workshop will be co-facilitated by our School Counselors (Craig Robinson and Sarah Point-Moore) and Primary Behavior Specialist (Lori Robison). We will present the Emotion Coaching: The Heart of Parenting video series and engage in discussion activities from a parent handbook. We would love for you to attend!

Where: Blaine Primary School When: Nov 1st, 8th, 15th, and 20th from 5:30 to 7:30 PM What: 5:30 to 6:00 PM - Family pizza dinner 6:00 to 7:30 PM - Parent workshop in Multi-Purpose Room

Childcare for students and siblings in Covered Play Area Cost: $10 per family (financial help available) RSVP: Return the form below with payment

(cash or check made out to Blaine School District) We have capacity for 30 families and a wait list will be developed after that --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Emotion Coaching: The Heart of Parenting Workshop: Nov 1st, 8th, 15th, and 20th Attn: Craig Robinson or Sarah Point-Moore, School Counselors

Name: ________________________________________________________

Student’s Name: _____________________________________________

# of Adults Attending: ______________________________________

# of Kids Attending: _________________________________________

Phone Number: _____________________________________ Email: _______________________________________

I’m happy to introduce Nate Krahn to the Blaine Elementary

School community! Mr. Krahn is one of our new PE teachers this

year. Mr. Krahn has taught PE for 10 years now, including

working with high, middle and elementary school students. Mr.

Krahn’s favorite thing about Blaine Elementary School so far is that

everyone has been really friendly and welcoming. It’s made it a

great first year here for him.

In his free time, Nate is a sports junkie! Football and basketball are

his favorites, but he enjoys all sports. He loves spending time with

his family, which includes his wife and three children. They like

camping, movies, riding bikes and reading books. Nate and his

wife like to ski each winter. Mr. Krahn is also really into cooking

and loves all types of food, as well as trying new recipes.

Something you may not know about Nate is that he likes to travel

and has been to 15 different states in the United States of America.

Thanks for joining us at Blaine Elementary Mr. Krahn, we’re glad

you’re one of us!

BES Star ~ Wes Kerwin

I’m happy to introduce Wes Kerwin to the Blaine Elementary

School community! Mr. Kerwin is one of our new PE teachers this

year. Wes has been a PE teacher and coach for 22 years in the

Blaine, Arlington and North Shore School Districts. Mr. Kerwin’s

favorite thing about Blaine Elementary School is how students and

staff bring an excitement to school every day, making BES the

place to be!

In his free time, Wes enjoys playing sports like racquet ball, tennis,

badminton, squash, and pickle ball. Mr. Kerwin enjoys spending

time and traveling with his family. He and his wife have three

children who are 19, 16 and 10 years old.

Something you may not know about Wes is that he has climbed

the two highest mountains in Washington State! He also collects

hats and has over 250 hats in his collection! Thanks for joining the

Blaine Elementary Staff Mr. Kerwin, we’re glad you’re one of us!

BES Star ~ Nate Krahn

Happy Fall, BES Families!

Our community has a number of amazing resources available as well as opportunities to be

involved during the upcoming winter season. Here are a few of them:

Thanksgiving Food Baskets: Baskets are available, but

must be reserved by Tuesday, November 6th. Please call

(360) 332-0740 or email rfeaster@blainesd.org.

Loads of Love: This is a program that helps low

income/homeless families get their laundry done for

free. It is located at The Washhouse, located at 715 3rd

Street, between 5:30-7:30pm on the 1st and 3rd Monday of

the month. To learn more about Loads of Love, email

christchurchblaine@gmail.com or call (360) 332-4113.

Community Meals: Weekly dinners are served on Wednesdays from 5:00-6:30pm at the Blaine

Community Center, 763 G Street. To learn more, contact Becky Grasher at

communitymeals@blainecap.org

Free Winter Clothing: Free winter clothing for

children and adults are being given away for

families in need. Distribution will be at Unit 280 in

the Cost Cutter Mall. Dates will be:

Tuesday, Oct 16th: 10am-2pm

Wednesday, Oct 17th: 5pm-8pm

Friday, Oct 19th: 10am-2pm

Contact rfeaster@blainesd.org for questions!

For additional information on any of these opportunities, please do not hesitate to contact Robert

Feaster, our family service center representative at (360) 332-0740, or the BES Counseling Office at

(360) 332-0590.

Sarah Point-Moore School Counselor

Special Events (Reptile Man, Sky Lab etc.)

PE & Playground Equipment

Student Scholarships

Family Fun Nights

Other (please specify)

(Cut here and return to school)

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THANK YOU to EVERYONE for making this years’ Walk-a-

Thon such a huge success!! The day was beautiful and the kids

ran their hearts out! We couldn’t have asked for anything more.

We were truly amazed to see over 50 volunteers and parents

cheering on students!

We should be finished counting donations brought in by the end of the week and prizes will be

ordered. We are excited the closer we get to our goal of $25,000! If you haven’t already; please

return your donation envelope! We will have our Walk-a-Thon Assembly on October 12th to

recognize our hardworking students and pass out prizes!

Want to know where your pledge and donation money is spent at BES??

Here is where the PTO spent funds raised from our 2017 Walk-a-Thon fundraiser:

Mt. Baker Theatre field trips

Bus costs for all field trips

Musical instruments

Wobble Stools

Library books

New technologies for the library

Stand up desks for some classrooms

Individual classroom supplies

Ice cream during field day

Hot chocolate for the pumpkin run

Scholarships

Chromebooks

Pizza for Math Nights

Family Fun Night

Teacher Appreciation

YOUR Opinion Matters...Please Take Our Survey! Where do you want the PTO to spend our fundraiser money this year??

** Please indicate your TOP 3 choices in order below with #1#2 & #3 **

Survey is also available online at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WQVLXJF

Fieldtrips

Technology Upgrades

Library

Music

Science

Hi, my name is Rachelle Bouma. My husband; Preston

and I have 5 boys; Tyler, 12; Peyton, 10; Isaac, 8; Riley, 6

and Jacob, 2. I grew up on a farm in Sunnyside, WA

where most of my family still lives. I went to Sunnyside

Christian School, attended college at WSU, YVCC and

graduated from WWU with my Master’s degree in

Exercise Science. I love traveling, watching and playing

sports, boating and raising my boys. I don’t have too

much spare time, but when I do have time without my

kids, I enjoy a shopping trip to Seattle for the day.

This year is my 4th year on the Blaine Elementary PTO. Currently, I am on my second year as the

President. I was the Vice President the previous two years. I had no idea what I was getting into when I

decided to join the PTO. A notice was sent home that the PTO was going to dissolve so I felt compelled

to help. I was reluctant at first and worried it would be a stereotypical parent group; very clique and

full of drama. My worries were soon a distant memory as I was pleasantly surprised by the fun I had

and friendships that have been created. Being on the PTO has been a much more rewarding experience

than I could have ever imagined. I enjoy the students, teachers and other parents I have met while

being involved in the school.

Fun Facts:

- I traveled around Central America for 13 weeks during a summer while in college

- I was a clogger for 8 years as a child

What is your spirit animal?

- Eagle

If you could have coffee with anyone (living or deceased) who would you choose?

- Queen Elizabeth - So I could ask her what it is like to be a real Queen.

If you could name a theme song that represents your life, what is it?

- Livin’ La Vida Loca by Ricky Martin! I have five boys so I’m living the crazy life!

Rachelle Bouma- President

BES Spirit Sale is coming soon!

Don’t miss out on sporting some awesome Borderite gear! We

will have a great selection of items for the whole family!

Order forms will be sent home and advertised later this month!

(Cut here and return to school)

Yearbook Dedication Deadline is November 1st!

*For $20.00 you can leave a sweet picture and

message for your 5th grader in the yearbook.

*Add a cute picture along with your message

and return to the school office.

Student Name________________________

Teacher _____________________________

Write a message to your

student:_____________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________________

Make checks Payable to: BES PTO

You can also send picture and message via email to besyearbook0@gmail.com and turn check into office with this

form and students name.

Borderite Pride Yearbook 3rd & 4th Grade Only

Deadline is December 1st!

If you missed the early bird offer, don’t worry

you have a final chance to get your child a

yearbook for $20.00!

If you would like to help sponsor a book for another student, it is $20.00. Teachers will divide

and distribute sponsored books in June.

I would like to purchase a yearbook for my student ______________________ in

Grade________Teacher_____________________Address___________________________

Address is for spring insert that will come home after school gets out.

Total Books Purchased_________Total Amount $____________

Please make checks out to: BES PTO and return this slip with payment to Mrs. Ellis in the office.

BES Annual Food Drive

November 2nd-13th

Did you know the Blaine Food Bank helps to serve one out of four members of our

community? I’m thinking ahead to next month’s Blaine Elementary Food Drive. We have

managed to outperform ourselves for several years in a row! We’d like this year to be even bigger,

bolder, and one for the record books!

If you would like to join our committee this year with can collecting, running an online

donation drive through social media, supervising kids, or weighing food, please come and see a

member of our PTO or come see me, Michelle Schulz. I will compile a list of volunteers that we can

contact at the end of October. We would like to include Boy Scout and Girl Scout groups, Youth

groups, small groups, quilt groups, etc.…. Any groups willing to help!

Thank you ~ Mrs. Schulz, 4th Grade Teacher

Is there a staff member that has

gone above and beyond for

your child?

If there is a staff member at BES

that you would like to recognize

for their awesome work please

feel free to acknowledge them

through our Staff Shout Out

board in the office.

Pick up an orange slip from the

office, fill it out, and staple it to

the board. Thank you for adding

some sunshine to our school!

October is the official start of the crockpot season.

Try out this delicious, seasonal crockpot recipe!