A LETTER FROM PRINCIPAL FRANCOEUR
I hope this note finds you enjoying the recently new blanket of snow that has arrived here in Maine. It certainly allows us to experience the outdoors both educationally and with a new sense of adventure. The New Year is off to a great start in our NFI North schools. We have concluded the 2nd quarter, report cards, and standardized testing "NWEA" have been completed. Our students have worked very hard during this first half of the year and we are so proud of their accomplishments!
I am happy to report that we have successfully completed the Department of Education site visit and desk audit for all of our four schools. We truthfully enjoy when the Department comes to visit our classrooms as it allows us to demonstrate just how special our students and teachers are and the excellent learning that is happening each day. We look forward to sharing the Departments feedback with all of you in the future. Until then, stay safe and warm!
In Education, Mike Francoeur, Principal
F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 3
SCHOOL NEWS
Bridge Crossing Academy
Bridgton, Maine
The end of 2022 and the beginning of 2023 has been an exciting and busy time at Bridge Crossing Academy. In early December we hosted our 2nd annual Santa Shuffle 5K walk/run fundraiser. The event was a huge success with over 100 racers participating in a kids run with Santa and a fun 5k walk/run despite cold and rainy conditions. A big thank you goes out to all of our participants and volunteers who made this event a success and contributing to our Bridge Crossing Academy Playground fund. The holidays and New Year are often a time in endings and new beginnings. We welcomed a number of new students to our school, while saying goodbye to others. We take so much satisfaction in our ability to work with new students in their growth while saying goodbye to those who are moving on their therapeutic journey. Below is a letter written by Josh H. who read this on his last day in community meeting.
"Some of the things that I have learned from being at Bridge Crossing Academy is that I always have people that will be there for me. Another thing I learned at Bridge Crossing is that I can always talk to a staff member if I need any help and that I can always rely on them to help me out. At Bridge Crossing I have always felt at home and have a good relationship with all of the staff there. I trust that I will be able to do that again at my next school. I know that I will have a good time at my new school."
Check this out!
Bridge Crossing Academy
As we kick off the New Year we are pleased to announce that Charlotte Vishnyakov has been hired as our newest Special Education Teacher. Charlotte joined the BCA team in the summer as a teacher's aide/Ed. Tech lll and quickly became orientated to our program, staff, and students. She embraced the Normative process and took initiative to find ways to enhance the services and education of our students. She is a certified music therapist and began teaching music classes and finding ways to incorporate music and arts into the program. She was familiar with the new Chromebook and Google Classroom technology that was introduced to the school and was able to help teach the staff team on ways to incorporate this new technology. Charlotte also began to produce a weekly school Newsletter to keep all parents and caregivers informed of the weekly happenings in the school. Charlotte has been a great addition to our team and we are so happy that she decided to grow in her career in education with us.
It has been a great New Year and we continue to look forward to continue to grow our program with the addition of new staff members and students in the Lake Region and surrounding school districts.
Charlotte Vishnyakov, our newest Special Education Teacher!
Bridge Crossing Academy Art and Science Projects
Buxton, Maine Beacon House
As we head into second semester, the student body has changed from primarily upperclassmen with few academic goals, to a younger group who are requiring support academically and functionally. We have a strong group right now who are learning very quickly how to support each other and exist in a community. This is where normative works best and we have a front row seat this time!
Reminders:
Last day of semester one was January 20th Monthly med reviews coming up February and March 8th
March 24th teacher
professional development
March 31st is our upcoming direct care day, days on which teachers and students are present but do not have class
The Winter NWEAs help us continue to track academic and teaching progress. The scores help us design individualized instruction and goals around the skills they are most ready to learn. Many students demonstrated an increase in their abilities, which is not an easy undertaking with the holidays being a stressor for most. The skills they are mastering will be key as they move towards independence in Math and English.
Acts of Kindness
Coming to live at a residential setting is never easy, especially when that involves changing schools as well. One student in particular has been especially kind and helpful to a peer. This student is an 11th grader, and has not had an easy time of things herself That is why it was of particular note that she regularly takes the time to support and encourage a new student who is younger and having some distress in his transition. She offers norm reminders, suggests activities or skills, helps with assignments, and makes it a point to talk to him, and is kind even when the kindness is not reciprocated. What she is discovering might surprise her, she feels better when she is helpful. Thank you to this student for modeling to us all what the Dalai Lama said, "if you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion."
We fish even in the winter
Beacon House Happenings
This quarter, we had one student preparing to return to public school full-time by taking a public HS class with a 1:1 Ed Tech. She quickly demonstrated that we could step-down the support, and in the immediate lead-up to her discharge she was able to attend without direct 1:1 support. It was not a simple thing for her to adjust from smaller classes to a larger school. She will now be better prepared to handle similar challenges when she enrolls in her sending district in the future.
This semester, on top of our core offerings, we had two students at BEHS for one class each, Photography and Geometry.
In English class this semester, students continued their study of storytelling. They wrapped up their writing projects including their own fables and persuasive essays and moved on to Greek and Roman mythology. Our focus on writing has shifted with our changing student body. We returned to review basic grammar and beginning composition work: parts of speech, sentence structure, and basic punctuation.
Carrie Girrad, Ed Tech lll/BHP
Staff Spotlight
Carrie Girard is new to the team as an Ed Teach/BHP. A long-time pub manager, she also graduated from the University of Southern Maine in 2014 with a double major in Art Education and Photography. Outside of work she focuses on her photography business, capturing events and special occasions throughout Southern Maine, as well as challenging herself in baking new recipes. She came to us with experience helping kids unlock their creativity by coordinating and running an after school art program. Whatever the day may bring, whether it be in the classroom or 1:1 helping a student, she is there. She can also be found taking students to BEHS for classes and providing the support they need to move into less restrictive settings. Welcome to the team, Carrie!
Students in US History learned about the Civil War and its effects on American culture. They studied the different events leading up to the war, as well as the technologies that advanced because of it. They also discussed the different ways that war can affect cultures afterwards.
In Earth Science this semester, students learned about plate tectonics, volcanoes, and earthquakes. They watched a documentary on the eruption of Mt St Helens and discussed the science behind it.
Math continues to include our most individualized content and instruction. In addition to the traditional HS courses in Geometry and Algebra, the Pre-Algebra class is focused on helping students understand basic algebra concepts and Integrated Math is focused on helping students understand how to integrate basic math concepts and skills into real-world application. Our Math teacher, Jesse, is taking a year-long training in and using Math 4ME teaching strategies to help students learn and succeed.
Maine
Sidney Riverbend Sidney,
Our school would like to spotlight our Ed. Tech lll, Karen Morse. Karen has been at Sidney Riverbend for 18 years. She has worked as a Direct Care Counselor and as an Ed Tech. She has BHP certification and is also CRMA certified. Karen has taught Life Skills elective classes in the past, as well as implemented the SPIRE program for struggling readers. Karen assists in running the day to day routines of the morning and of the classrooms during the school day She is there for 1:1 support for behavioral and academic needs as they arise. Karen has used her interests in cooking and crafting to implement groups such as how to cook eggs, heated rice packs, diamond painting, and many others. Karen was recently asked by a participant why she had worked here for so long and her reply was, "I like watching all of you grow and seeing the changes you make in your lives."
Reminders:
The end of the first semester was January 19th and report cards will be mailed out February break will be Feb. 20-Feb 24th
March 17th is no school due to Professional Development
March 22nd Parent Teacher Conferences will be in the afternoon or by arrangement, conferences are available through Google Meet or by phone
No school March 31st
End of quarter is April 4th
April Vacation begins April 17-21st
This year we continued with our annual movie themed day on the last weekday before Christmas. In the past we'd watch "The Polar Express" this year we decided to watch "A Christmas Story." Our participants had never seen the movie! We had our staff dress up as characters from the movie, our lunch included foods from the movie and afterward the "FRAGILE" box was opened to reveal treats. The afternoon was spent playing games related to the movie- and no one shot their eye out!
Staff Spotlight
Sidney Riverbend
This semester we offered Modern World History, Geography and World Cultures, and Civics. The Civics class utilizes games from iCivics.org to reinforce lessons for the class. Students also created poster projects and used the information they have been learning to create a menu for our upcoming International Food week.
We have a full plate of mathematics courses of high school pre-algebra, algebra, geometry, and algebra two. Mark has been implementing teaching assessments and teaching strategies from the Math4ME trainings he is attending.
We offered Internet Safety and Computer Use as an elective class. The students learn about keeping one's personal identification information safe on the internet. The students also learned about using credible sources and using MLA format for research papers.
English classes are working on analyzing themes in books, and what the author wants the reader to know One high school class is currently reading A Separate Peace, and the other high school class is reading All the Light We Cannot See. Both books focus on themes of power and change, nationality and loyalty, as well as shame and guilt.
Physical Science class has begun to learn about Chemistry. Students will be exploring periodic table, learning chemical equations and how to balance them, as well as what makes chemistry so important in our daily lives Our Earth Science class is in the middle of a unit on Earth's oceans. We have explored ocean landforms, and talking about climate change and how it affects the habitat of our oceans.
One of the electives offered this semester is Poetry. Students are learning about figurative language and elements of poetry. Another elective is Dystopian Book Club. Starting off the semester, we've been looking at elements of literature and discussing what makes a book apart of the "dystopian" genre.
The students in the Mythology elective are beginning to learn about the major Greek Mythological figures and their Roman counter parts. Eventually they will learn common mythology tales and explore the Mythology of other cultures.
The Current Issues class is learning about current issues from a variety of sources and comparing the information each source provides. They are also tuning into CNN10 for a daily 10-minute news brief of current events.
Happenings
Last summer our students explored Aquaponics and had individual aquaponics tanks with guppies and grew wheat grass and a variety of sprouts. Recently our system expanded and we are now learning how to care for guppy fry (baby fish). We have a tank with about a dozen babies who were rescued from the adult tanks and are thriving on their own. Guppy fry born in Dec. (left) and 1 month later (right) The students used a background of notebook paper for scale.
Stetson Ranch
Stetson, Maine
The Stetson Ranch School has ended the 2nd quarter and the year of 2022 with a variety of changes occurring. This past quarter we have sadly had a teacher move on to another position in another company, and we wish this person the best in their new position. We also have added three new staff members to our school program and they slid into their roles with ease and poise. They are all a welcome addition and we look forward to creating a more solid school team.
Staff Spotlight
The school staff would like to spotlight Wally Graves, Education Technician lll/ Behavioral Health Professional. He has been a member of the Stetson Ranch Staff for the past 4 years.
He currently maintains his CRMA, and has had the opportunity to support the Stetson Students in a variety of areas. He consistently is able to provide appropriate guidance to the students for them to be able to engage in their academic and functional programming. He continues to build rapport with the students and their families as needed. Wally continues to be Mission focused and has stepped up to cover shifts, overnights and 2nd shift as needed.
Reminders
January 19th was the end of first semester, report cards will be out soon
February Break will be Feb. 20thFeb.24th
March 17th no school due to Professional Development
March 22nd is Parent Teacher Conferences, in the afternoon or by arrangement, conferences are available through Google Meet or by phone
March 31st no school
End of the quarter is April 4th
April Vacation begins April 17th21st
Happenings
We continue to develop our LIFE and Leadership programming for the next semester and hope to engage our students in the program to further develop their LIFE skills.
Our new staff will be developing curriculum that enables students to learn in styles that engages them, such as through STEM, and continued participating in the Math4Me program. We would also like to continue to offer Extended Learning Opportunities (ELO) that will allow to assist students in alternate ways to earn credit towards graduation.
Stetson Ranch School
We celebrated the holiday season by participating in academic programming around the holiday theme, along with capping off prior to winter break by the students caroling and celebrating the holiday spirit to our local community members and friends of the program. The Stetson Ranch community was able to engage in the community and was privileged to be able to accept snacks and hot cocoa.
This semester we have been working on our core classes such as math; which included Basic Math Skills, Pre-Algebra, and Geometry. Our science classes have encompassed General Science, Earth Science, and Physical Science. In both Math and Science the students have been encouraged to work independently with guided learning opportunities, focusing on analysis and synthesis of information, and being able to process and understand new concepts; such as why letters and numbers are in math, and points of an X, Y coordinate.
In English the students have been reading the Narnia series: Prince Caspian and working on writing prompts around the story. The other groups have been working on the book Little Britches that describes the life in rural America in the late 19th Century. The students have been asked to compare and contrast then and now, them and us, and learning life lessons through the reading.
In history the students have been working on modern history and government, being able to understand historical events and how those events have impacted us as citizens of the United States and the world.
We have also participated in a variety of specials throughout the semester, such as Art, Health, Culinary, Adulting, Mindfulness, and Leadership/LIFE program. The highlights of our specials this semester are that the students are making soaps and t-shirt market bags for holiday gifts from some of our students to their families and friends. Learning about the history or rock and roll and how rock and roll has developed over time. Our adulting group continues to work weekly on what it means to become an adult, through budgeting, self-regulation, and making personal changes as we grow. We have also learned about creating meals for others, and developing appropriate recipes and how to work together in a kitchen. We continue to develop our Leadership/Life program where students who are on a mission and displaying consistent mission behavior opportunities for outdoor recreating such as hiking, rock climbing, and wood working skills.
