The Boeckman Buzz
October 2, 2020
Message from Principal Blazek
BMS Families,
This week we kicked off our Step It Up Fundraiser and have already raised over $8000. The money we raise this year will go towards providing learners with personalized learning experiences. These experiences will look different this year as we have more variation in our learning models and have restrictions on how we bring kids together. This year we will be using our money to support virtual experiences and tools, and we hope to eventually be able to use to support the signature trips and speakers we had planned for.
This week you should have heard from your child's Tiger Connection's teacher about conferences. They are using Calendly to set up virtual conferences with families. If you have questions please reach out to your child's Tiger Connections teacher. See the link below if you would like to meet with our school counselors, behavior interventionist, or grade level intervention teachers. All conferences will be scheduled between Oct. 5th and Oct. 14th.
Fall is in the air, and our goal is to continue getting outside as much as possible. Please encourage your child to dress for the weather and when necessary bring a light jacket with them. We have also opened up the air handlers to let in as much fresh air as possible, and this could lead to cooler than normal temperatures in the classroom.
We will continue to not use lockers because it helps us manage social distancing during passing time. With 50% of our learners in classrooms, there is room for them to have their belongings with them. Next week our Building Operations Committee is going to begin a discussion around storing the winter gear kids come to school within their Tiger Connections classrooms.
Our Fall MEA break is coming up quickly after next week, and I want to draw your attention to our district hybrid schedule. You will see it is different for the week of Oct. 12th - 14th.
Your children are doing an amazing job with all of the changes to the school experience. This is a year like no other, and the learning on remote days is vital to your child's progress. We appreciate all of your support in making sure learning continues on the remote days at home. If you are child is struggling on remote days please reach out to their teachers, or school counselor so we can get supports in place. We want every child to have a successful year of learning.
Thank you,
Megan Blazek, principal
Week at a Glance Reminder – Check Boeckman Website!
We want to make it as easy as possible for learners and parents to know what is happening in school. Each team is committed to keeping their Week at a Glance updated with teacher contact information, times for virtual coaching sessions, codes to access those sessions, and a snapshot of what is happening in each class. Week at a Glance documents can be found on the Boeckman website, under the “Academics” tab.
Step It Up Fundraiser - Kicks off on Monday & Wednesday
It's that time of the year again to kick off our Step It Up fundraiser! This year we will be kicking off in our Tiger Connections and providing incentives that meet our COVID safety guidelines. In place of The Day of Awesomeness, we will be receiving an additional 10% of funds earn to support personal learning experiences.
Our Golden Ticket collection has been extended. Cohort 1 students can bring in their Golden Tickets on Monday, Oct. 5th, and Cohort 2 students can bring in their Gold Tickets on Wednesday, Oct. 7th.
Farmington Academy learners your participation is important to us. Continue to turn in your Golden Tickets to Mrs. Burns to get prizes and your names will be entered into our daily drawings.
The fundraiser will run September 28th through Tuesday, October 13th. All students who turn in their Golden Ticket will be entered into drawings. Watch the morning announcements on the following dates to hear the winners.
Golden Ticket Drawings
Oct. 2nd - Air Pods
Oct. 6th - Mini Fridge w/ cash inside
Oct. 7th - Mini Fridge w/ cash inside
Oct. 8th - Mini Fridge w/ case inside
Fall Conferences (October 5th - October 14th)
We are making changes to how fall conferences will take place this fall. District-wide teachers will be setting their own conference schedules and have the option to offer them virtually or in-person. All conferences will take place between October 5th to October 14th, and will be scheduled for 15 minutes.
Learners, parents/guardians will be meeting with one of their Tiger Connections teachers, and will not have individual conferences with each of their teachers. Your child's Tiger Connection teacher will be reaching out to you with their schedule and a link to sign up. If your child works with a case manager or support staff you will receive an email with the option to schedule a second conference with them.
You can expect to hear from your child's Tiger Connections teacher by October 2nd to schedule your conference. October 8th was scheduled as an early release on our district calendar and will remain as a 2-hour early release so our staff can offer conferences during this time.
Progress Report in Campus
Teachers have begun putting information into their grade books to communicate your child’s progress. You will see the grade book in Campus Portal. If you do not have a Campus Portal account please call 651-460-1400 and we will assist you in setting it up. We strongly encourage you to have a Campus Portal account, because it is one of our main communication tools.
This year our goal for reporting learner progress is to create a common language for our reporting practices. This will allow parents, teachers, and learners to clearly understand and discuss their progress. We want to give you up-to-date information about your child’s progress academically. When you look at grade books, progress reporting will be done in one of two ways: Competencies or Letter Grades. Below, there is a description of both reporting practices and a common language that will be used. Your child’s teachers will be communicating with you what reporting practice they will be using. We understand this can be a lot of information and are here to answer any questions you have.
Trimester Reporting
All courses will be reporting out in-progress grades and levels of learning each trimester. The trimester structure allows learners to have two specialist experiences in a 12 week period and aligns the middle-level reporting with the elementary and high school levels. In trimester three a final level of learning will be given that will be transcripted.
Competencies
Many of our courses will be reporting out on competencies. Competencies are aligned to state and national standards and cover the same content as other alike courses reporting out using letter grades. Competencies have learning criteria aligned that allow learners, teachers, and parents to see where their level of learning is at, and what growth needs to happen to reach the next level. In Campus you will see a rubric with four levels of learning: Beginning, Approaching, Competent, and Extending. Our goal is for every child to be competent in each learning criteria. Learners will upload evidence of this level of learning into Campus for you to view and teachers will leave their feedback about the child’s learning in Campus. Learning is continuous and these courses will be updating these rubrics throughout the year with the current level of learning your child is performing at. At the beginning of the year, many learners will have not yet demonstrated learning or will be at beginning or approaching as they work on becoming competent in each learning criteria. Courses reporting out on competencies will post a level of learning for each competency at trimester and will not be giving a letter grade.
Letter Grades
Letter grades will be calculated based on two categories of assessment: summative and formative. Teachers will enter assessments of learning under these categories. Formative assessments happen multiple times during the day and are a tool for teachers to know where a child’s level of learning is at, and what instruction is needed to continue learning. Learning happens through mistakes and formative assessments allow for both teacher and learner to see what mistakes they are making and to correct those misunderstandings. Summative assessments happen at the end of the learning process and tell us where their understanding is when we have finished covering a topic. This breakdown allows us to better see how learners are academically performing.
If you have questions about your child's progress in a course please reach out directly to their teacher to get more information.
How to connect with a school counselor
All learners have the opportunity to meet with their School Counselor. Students should have a link on their iPads that directly take them to their Counselors scheduling calendar. Counselors see students for a variety of reasons. If your learner is needing support with any social, emotional, or academic transitions back to school, please encourage them to check in with their Counselor! In addition, please check out
BMS Mental Health Mission: Possible for resources and information.
iPad Tech Help
This is the first stop for troubleshooting issues with iPads. If you are not able to troubleshoot your issue please make an appointment with Mrs. Tredinnick or call the district tech helpline.
In-Person or Virtual Appointments with BMS Tech Support
Using this link you can schedule an in-person or virtual appointment with Mrs. Tredinnick our BMS Tech Support. These appointments are for iPad Help or Repair.
Phone Number
For help with your iPad or other technology questions that might be able to be solved by phone while off-campus, please call our student and family tech helpline during normal school hours: 651-463-5090. If after school hours, please leave a message and include the student’s name, school, your contact information, and a brief description of the issue.
Looking for Parent Ambassadors
Meeting Dates and Times
Tuesday, November 17th @ 6:30 pm
Tuesday, February 16th @ 6:30 pm
Tuesday, April 20th @ 6:30 pm
Yearbooks
Boeckman Middle School Hours
Office Hours: 7:45am - 4:15pm
Buildings Open for Students: 8:40 am
IGNITE Before School Program
Has been canceled due to low enrollment. Will be reconsidered when we return to full in-person school.
Useful Phone Numbers
School: 651-460-1400
Nurse: 651-460-1406
Food Service: 651-463-5025
Bus Company: 651-463-8689
School Fax: 651-460-1510
School Athletics: 651-252-2514
School Closing Line: 651-985-1100
Community Education: 651-460-3200
About us
- Personalization that honors the uniqueness of each learner
- Mistakes and reflection as essential components of learning
- Openness to new ideas and innovation
- Safe environments that support a growth mindset
- Partnering with the community to champion our learners
Email: mblazek@farmington.k12.mn.us
Website: https://bms.farmington.k12.mn.us/
Location: 800 Denmark Avenue, Farmington, MN, USA
Phone: 651-460-1400
Facebook: facebook.com/boeckmantigers
Twitter: @BoeckmanTigers