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Bobcat Bulletin
Breen Elementary School
May/June 2015
Principal’s Message
Upcoming Events
As the end of the school year grows near, it’s important to thank you, our parents, for your commitment
to Breen. Contributions by our PTC and individual
parents are simply amazing. The activities you plan
and the money you raise create wonderful experiences and opportunities for the children and staff.
While it’s impossible to name everything you do for
us, here’s a partial list: fall carnival, tile nights,
farmer’s markets, new stage curtains, Big Daddy Basketball, field trip transportation, Coats for Kids, $300
PTC class donations, cross country, 6th grade breakfast, jog for fun, Jr. Achievement, beautification days,
box tops, restaurant nights, Bobcat Awards, popcorn
Fridays, Bingo Extravaganza, movie nights, Bobcat
bulletin board, Christmas Miracles, academic interventions, Chromebooks, Strategic Plan, A Touch of
Understanding assembly, talent show, hospitality
events, garden, Bobcat luncheons, Sly Park chaperones, Innisbrook fundraiser, field trip chaperones, art
docents, Daddy Daughter Dance, and more. You
greatly enhance the culture of Breen. Thank you!
May 4
Volunteer Tea
All adult volunteers are invited to attend a celebration
at the annual Volunteer Tea on Wednesday, May 6, at
2:30 pm in the multipurpose room. Child care will be
provided by adult aides. A yummy dessert, a song in
your honor, a photo display, and visiting with fellow
parents will be the highlights.
May 5
May 6
May 7
May 10
May 11
May 12
May 13
May 14
May 18
May 19
May 22
May 25
May 26
Dunk-a-Principal
You have done it again! Breen won the dunk contest
at the Public Safety Fair by a 3:1 margin over the
next participating school. Thanks to you, Breen will
be awarded $381.
May 27
May 28
May 29
June 1
Open House
Please join us for Open House on Thursday, May 14.
Classroom visitations will begin at 6:00 p.m. and continue through 7:00 p.m. The 4th grade students will
begin their annual square dance performance on the
playground at 5:30 p.m. The annual Art Docent Budding Breen Artists’ student exhibit and sale will take
place from 6:00-7:30 p.m. in the multipurpose room.
This fundraising art exhibit of student work helps to
sustain the Art Docent Program.
June 2
June 3
June 4
Teacher Appreciation Week
Gr. 5 Science Testing 8:00-10:15
Chinese School rm. 32 1:30-2:30
Intellibricks rm. 17 1:40-3:10
Gr. 5 Science Testing 8:00-10:15
KidzArt rm. 29 2:30-3:30
Loutensock to Bishop’s Farm 10-1:30
Volunteer Tea in multi 2:30
Bingo Night in multi 5:30
Loutensock/Parra to Johnson Springview
Park 10:00-1:00
Breen’s Online Auction ends
Ancient Artifacts gr. 6 8:00-11:00
Talent Showcase practice 1:30-3:00
Chinese School rm. 32 1:30-2:30
Intellibricks rm. 17 1:40-3:10
Gr. 6 Algebra Readiness testing 10:3012:00
KidzArt rm. 29 2:30-3:30
Breen PTC meeting in lib. 2:45-3:45
Breen Band Concert in multi 6:00-7:00
Loutensock to Spring View 10:00-1:00
Minimum day 7:50-12:20
Gr. 5 Sly Park Orientation 5:30-6:00
Open House 6:00-7:00
Minimum day 7:50-12:20
Talent Showcase practice 12:30-2:00
Chinese School rm. 32 12:30-1:30
Aragon/Dunn/Furlong to Bishop’s Ham
burger Farm 9:00-1:20
Sgambati/Spainhour to IMAX 8:45-1
KidzArt rm. 29 2:30-3:30
Gr. 2 Movie Day 2:20-4:30
No school
Gr. 2 Career Week
No more charging of lunches
Oxenham to IMAX 8:45-1:00
KidzArt rm. 29 2:30-3:30
Talent Showcase practice 2:30-4:00
Goin’ Buggy 8:00, 9:00, 7:00 p.m.
Jog-a-thon/Breen BBQ
Bobcat Awards 8:00-10:00
Gr. 2 Field Day 8:00-11:15
Gr. 5 to Breen Park 9:30-12:30
Gr. 6 to Rocklin High 9:00-1:15
Chinese School rm. 32 1:30-2:30
Talent Showcase 8:05, 9:15, 6:00 p.m.
Spainhour to Breen Park 12:30-12:00
Bug Guy Dunn, Johnson 8:00-9:25
Loutensock/Parra to Chuck E. Cheese
10:00-1:00
Gr. 1 Celebration 8:50-11:15
Sgambati to Breen Park 10:30-12:00
Minimum day 7:50-12:20/last day
Gr. 6 Breakfast in multi 7:00-7:40
Wild Things in multi 9:00-10:00
Reading Celebration 10:00-11:00
Not Returning?
If your child(ren) will NOT be returning to Breen in
the fall, please notify the office as soon as possible
@ 632-1155. We need this information in order to
have accurate class counts for next school year.
Jog for Health and Fun & Schoolwide BBQ
In conjunction with this year’s jog for health and fun
event on May 29, a school-wide BBQ for students
and families is scheduled. Pre-sale tickets for adults
and younger siblings will be sold from May 20-27.
Students can use their school accounts or cash.
Last Day of School Schedule
Please mark your calendars for June 4 as the last
day of school. It is a minimum day. All students arrive at 7:50 a.m. and will be dismissed 12:20 p.m.
Dress Requirements
With spring here and summer-like weather close behind, it’s important that students dress safely and
appropriately. Please be sure to review page 11 of
the Breen Handbook for a description of expected
dress and appearance. Proper shoes must be worn,
shirt or blouse necklines cannot be too low, straps
cannot be too narrow, undergarments cannot show,
and skirts or shorts must rest below outstretched
fingertips. Additionally, pants cannot have rips,
tears, or holes. These guidelines will help maintain
safety and keep the focus on learning.
Reading Goal and Celebration
Breen students have set a school-wide reading goal
of 100,000,000 words for the 3rd trimester. They are
well on their way to meet and of surpass this number. When they meet this goal, they will be treated
to a music video on the last day of school at 10:00
am, highlighting students and staff. Please encourage your child to continue nightly reading to help us
reach an extended goal of reading 120,000,000
words for the trimester.
Talent Showcase
The annual school Talent Showcase for 4th-6th grade
students is scheduled for Tuesday, June 2, at 6:00
p.m. Registration forms for students wanting to participate in this year’s show are now available in the
school office.
Goin’ Buggy
The annual presentation of Goin’ Buggy will be performed by our 3rd grade students on Thursday, May
28, at 7:00 p.m.
California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress
Since March 16, 3rd-6th grade students have taken part in
the first statewide administration of the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP).
These computer-based tests have replaced the former
paper-based, multiple-choice assessments in English language arts/literacy (ELA) and math.
The tests are an academic check-up, designed to give
teachers feedback they need to improve instruction and
the tools to improve teaching and learning. The assessments will use computer adaptive technology to provide
more accurate information about individual student performance. And because the tests are taken online, information will be available to teachers, schools and school
districts on a timely basis so it can be used to help students learn.
Like the new academic standards, the new tests are too
fundamentally different from the old exams to make any
reliable comparisons between old scores and new. In
many cases, new textbooks and materials have only recently arrived at schools or haven’t arrived at all. That’s
why this year’s test results will only establish a baseline
for the progress we expect students to make over time.
Based on trial runs of some test questions in California
and other states, many if not most students will need to
make significant progress to reach the standards set for
math and ELA that accompany college and career readiness.
No student, parent or teacher should be discouraged by
scores, which will never be used to determine whether a
student moves on to the next grade. Rather, the results
will provide an opportunity to focus on the needs of students and support teachers and schools in their work.
California’s new assessment system represents the next
step in our comprehensive plan to promote high-quality
teaching and learning and improve student outcomes.
This plan recognizes that assessments can play a role in
promoting high-quality instruction.
Teachers in California support these changes because,
unlike in other states, the primary purpose of testing here
is to support learning, not to impose high-stakes consequences. This approach fits well with California’s new system for funding our schools, which recognizes that decisions about education dollars are best made by parents,
teachers and communities themselves. In a state as diverse
and complex as California, adjustments will always be
needed to make lasting progress. Patience and persistence will be required to help our schools continue to succeed during this time of transition.
Band Concert
Fifth and sixth grade band students will be performing on Tuesday, May 12, at 6:00 pm. Our students
will amaze you with their musical talents.
Breen Cafeteria
Breen PTC News
A friendly reminder from the Bobcat Café:
It is coming up on the end of the school year and we
just wanted to remind all students and parents that
starting May 26 there will no longer be the option of
charging a lunch. So make sure you have lunch
money on your account or with you to receive
your lunch! For your convenience, please use our
payment website, MySchoolBucks.comJ
It is hard to believe this school year is coming to an
end! We have had a very busy year and want to
thank all of you that have donated time, money,
and goods for our school this year. We still have a
couple of really big events to finish off the year.
Lisa Shaver-Neill
Breen Kitchen
Our Multicultural Bingo Family event is next Friday,
May 8, at 6:30pm. Dinner, dessert, bingo, raffles,
Disneyland raffle, silent and live auctions and more!
$10/per person - get your tickets at breenptc.com
under "events" or turn in your forms at the office.
The event will sell out, so get them quickly! All proceeds from this event will go towards purchasing
additional Chrome Books for our students to use!
Our Jog-a-thon will be held on May 29, 2015. We
have decided to have this be a “fun run” instead of
a fundraiser. We really appreciate all the contributions our Breen families have made this year and
thought it was best to not ask students to solicit for
donations. We will be having a fun-filled day with
each student being rewarded for participating. The
top runners per class and grade will also be recognized after the event! Also, the class with the most
laps per grade will receive a special reward for their
participation! We will need MANY volunteers to
make this a successful event. Volunteer forms will
be going home soon. This will be a great day of encouraging physical fitness while also having FUN!
Breen Library
May Library
Hours
May Library Hours
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May 4th – 8th is the last
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May 26th – June
4th Closed
Our next PTC meeting will be held on May 12, at
2:45p.m. in the library. We will be voting for the
board for 2015-2016 and all are welcome to attend. We will be looking ahead to another successful year. The more individuals involved, the more
successful we will become. Please email [email protected] if you have an interest in participating or being the head of a committee or event
for next year.
Jump Rope for Heart
Breen Physical Education thanks all of our families
who participated in Jump Rope for Heart. One hundred eighty five students participated in the event
and raised over $7,300.00 for the American Heart
Association. The Jump Rope for Heart representative said it was unprecedented for a school to raise
this much money for the 1st year participating. We
are grateful for our Breen families. The gifts from
the American Heart Association will be coming in the
next few weeks for all qualifying students.
Thank you again,
David Lacoste