A Message from the Principal

Welcome to March, everyone! The second trimester has come to a close,

and we are in the home stretch of the 2013-14 school year; that doesn’t mean we don’t have

a lot to still complete, however.

March is a busy month on campus for our students and staff alike. Starstruck Show-

case practice begins the first week of March in preparation for the show on April 8th & 9th.

Also, our students will continue to prepare for pilot testing of the new Smarter Balanced

Assessment Consortium (SBAC) tests that will accompany the new Common Core stand-

ards. Those tests will be much more demanding than the old CST tests and will be done en-

tirely on computer. To help schools prepare for the first wave of testing in 2014-2015,

schools will be taking pilot tests in late April & early May. In addition to the these state sanc-

tioned pilot tests, this month we will be doing additional test preparation by going to the

SBAC site and walking the kids through the on-line sample questions to help familiarize them

with the styles and complexity of the questions. Please see the accompanying “Common

Core/SBAC Parent Info” letter that will provide more important preparation infor-

mation. Also, The next Parent Info Night, “Unpacking Common Core Standards”, has

been rescheduled for Tuesday, April 1st. Our guest presenters from the Placer County Of-

fice of Education (Jennifer Palmer & Andy Wood) will walk you through the history and de-

velopment of the new national standards and the SBAC testing; we’ll also let you know what

we’ve been doing over the last three years as a district to get both students and staff ready

for the new Common Core standards.

In addition to continued Common Core/SBAC preparation, our staff will be com-

pleting their Love & Logic training this month. So far, the response has been very positive,

and it has been a great compliment to the parent course that many of us have just complet-

ed. We are also in the beginning stages of implementing our new Positive Behavior, Inter-

vention, & Supports (PBIS) program. This world-renowned program emphasizes re-

warding positive behaviors to help teach our students the behaviors we’d like them to

demonstrate at school, at home, and in their everyday lives. In conjunction with a revised,

consistent discipline plane and our Love & Logic training, we expect PBIS to help us create an

even better overall school climate and to do even more to help us develop the character of

our little Tigers in the years to come!

And lastly, I wanted to give you all another update on the progress of our security

camera purchase. I have spoken with our interim Director of Technology; he has assured

me that the cameras will be purchased, but the final project may not get completed until

summer. Thanks again to those of you who have contributed to our Safety Fund; anyone else

who is interested may still contribute.

Warmest Regards,

Rey Cubias Go Tigers!

Tiger Tales M A R C H 2 0 1 4 V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 6

CAL ENDAR

3/3

TK & Kinder Registration

Forms Available (Must show

proof of residency)

3/6

PTC General Mtg. 3-4 in the

Library

3/7

2nd Trimester Report

Cards Come Home

3/7, 3/14, 3/21, 3/28

Tiger Tracks Running Club

& Adult Hoops Afterschool

3/10

“Sami’s Circuit” Health

Assembly

3/11

TK & Kinder Registration

Day at 8:30 am in the Multi

(Doors open at 6:30 am)

3/13

“Sami’s Circuit” Circuit

Day

3/22

PTC Sponsored Daddy-

Daughter Dance - “Neon

Glow”

This is an exciting time for everyone at Twelve Bridges Elementary School

As you may already know, we, along with thousands of schools across California, are partici-

pating in a field test of a modern assessment system designed to help shape teaching and learn-

ing in the classroom. Known as the California Assessment of Student Performance and Pro-

gress – or CAASPP – these computer-based tests replace the STAR program.

These tests are aligned to the Common Core State Standards for English and math, which Cali-

fornia adopted in 2010 to describe what knowledge and skills students need to be well prepared

for college and careers, no matter where they come from or where they live.

Part of the goal of the field test this year is to determine how well individual questions allow

students to demonstrate what they know and still need to learn. We are also taking this oppor-

tunity to see how well our technical capabilities meet the demands of computer-based assess-

ments and to see what resources our teachers and school may yet need.

Finally and importantly, this year also gives your student an opportunity to try out the new sys-

tem without consequences. All of this combined means that we will not be capturing scores this

year. Instead, we will use what we learn from this field test to help ensure a successful full

launch of the system in the 2014-15 school year.

Our next step in that transition is to administer the field test to students in 3rd through 5th

grades over a two week period from mid-April to early May. If you want to see what types of

questions students will be asked or how the test will be presented, there are practice tests and

training tests available online at http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/tg/sa/practicetest.asp and https://

sbacpt.tds.airast.org/student/login.aspx?c=SBAC_PT. You are strongly encouraged to pull up

those tests and review and practice them with your students.

If you would like more information, please visit the California Department of Education Smart-

er Balanced Web page at http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/tg/sa/smarterfieldtest.asp. If you have any

questions regarding your child’s participation, please contact me at (916)434-5220.

Sincerely,

Rey Cubias

Principal

Dear Parent/Guardian:

Twelve Bridges Elementary PTC General Meeting, March 6, 2014

Agenda

Review Minutes

Review Budget

Mother/Son minute to win it recap

Daddy/Daughter Dance

Bingo Night

Technology

Misc.

Upcoming Events:

March —Red Robin Restaurant Night

March 22nd 6-8pm Daddy/Daughter Dance

April 4th—6-8pm Family Bingo Night

April 9 & 10—Starstruck Showcase

May 9th—Spell-a-thon

May 16th—Movie Night