IN Brentwood-Baldwin-Whitehall Winter 2018 | Seite 63

“Growth Mindset at Brentwood
Middle School”
The concept of developing a “growth mindset” among students has been a primary
focus in the Brentwood Borough School District over the past couple of years. This
concept is visible at Brentwood Middle School in various ways.
One of the ways that teachers at Brentwood Middle School promote a growth
mindset among their students is through the continual implementation of formative
assessments in the classroom. Formative assessments can be described as small formal
and informal strategies used to monitor student learning and to check for student
understanding. These assessments help the teachers to identify which concepts and
skills students have mastered and where they may still need additional assistance.
In addition to daily classroom instructional activities, middle school students
also take an online assessment called Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) in
Math, Reading, and Science three times each year (fall, winter, and spring). The MAP
assessment is unique to each child as the questions become more difficult as the
student answers correctly, and become a bit easier if the student answers incorrectly.
The results of the MAP assessments help to demonstrate student academic growth
throughout the year and assist the teachers in making informed decisions regarding classroom instruction and curricular objectives.
Teachers meet with students individually to discuss the MAP results and plan for student academic success.
The teaching staff at Brentwood Middle School is excited to watch our students “grow” throughout the school year!
PTSS Educational
Donation to
Brentwood
Middle School
The Brentwood Middle School parent
organization (PTSS) recently made a
substantial educational donation of
$1800 to the middle school. This donation
was possible due to the hard work and
fundraising efforts of the PTSS executive
board and parent volunteers.
The educational donation will be
used to help provide “authentic learning
experiences” to the middle school students
throughout the school year, allowing
students to apply what they learn in class to
real world issues, problems, or situations that
are meaningful and connect them to the
world outside of the school.
The first purchase that was made with
funds from the educational donation was
a Sphero robot which will be used by the
middle school Computer Club to allow
students to have opportunities in the area of
computer programming.
The middle school staff and
administration would like to thank the PTSS
for their generous donation!
Middle School 8th Grade Field
Trip to Lutherlyn Camp
Students from the Brentwood Middle School traveled to Lutherlyn Camp in
Butler for the annual eighth grade field trip. Before the field trip, students were
randomly separated into five groups, with each group having about twenty
students. Throughout the day, groups took part in various team-building activities
that challenged students both physically and mentally. Students needed to
brainstorm ideas and then work together to execute their plan. They also needed
to problem solve if any difficulties arose throughout the task. Our eighth graders
saw first-hand the importance of cooperation, communication, leadership,
perseverance and teamwork. The experience was not only an enjoyable day
out of the classroom for students but also a wonderful and meaningful learning
experience! Each year, for many students, this field trip serves as one of the
highlights of their final year in middle school!
Teachers Dr. Hite, Mrs. Nystrom, Mr. Vaccaro, Mrs. Hubsch and Mrs. Golvash
as well as the school nurse, Mrs. Greer and paraprofessional, Mrs. Monahan
coordinated this field trip and accompanied the students to Lutherlyn as
chaperones.
BRENTWOOD-BALDWIN-WHITEHALL
❘
WINTER 2018
61