At Creek Bridge STEM Academy, our focus is supporting students in developing the World Class Skills of the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate. We grow creative, independent thinkers and problem solvers. Because of CBSA’s commitment to strong instruction, challenging academics, and personalized relationships and support, our students are prepared to make positive contributions to society. At CBSA, we hold to our motto of “Best Students. Best Staff. Best School.”
The 2021-2022 school year provided our students, staff, and school community with a return to normalcy and new opportunities for growth and change.
CBSA stresses the importance of reading and math skills to our students, staff, and parents. Our elementary students utilize Fountas and Pinnell Classroom, which equips students to be competent and successful readers. Our new math curriculum, Into Math, focuses on building foundational math skills and challenging students with opportunities to extend mathematical practice. Students in need of extra support in reading or math receive intervention services through Reading Recovery, Leveled Literacy Intervention, and Bridges Math Intervention. Teachers engaged students in daily socio-emotional learning activities to support the behavioral, wellness, and academic needs of students.
This year, CBSA hosted its first ever school wide reading event, CBSA Reads. Students, teachers, staff, and community members read The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate. Throughout the reading, students participated in daily read-alouds and trivia activities. Community members served as guest readers, and the school hosted buddy-reading activities across grade levels. This event is sure to become a treasured part of being in the CBSA community.
Our STEM facilitator increased STEM engagement throughout the school this year, and our STEM initiative is something that we continue to be proud of. CBSA is equipped with a state of the art STEM lab, complete with 3-D printers and other maker materials. Through STEM, our students engage in the Engineering Design Process--creating drones, remote controlled devices, solar ovens, robotics, and much more. This year, CBSA partnered with South Carolina State 1890 Extension to provide STEM experiences to our elementary students.
CBSA continues to make great strides, but we acknowledge the necessity for continued academic growth. To support student growth, our Instructional Leadership Team works actively with teachers through instructional coaching--planning, observing, modeling, and co-teaching. Our team monitors progress data, and uses data to inform instructional decisions with teachers. In addition to instructional coaching, teachers participate in weekly common planning activities and evidence-based PLCs to promote teacher-driven, student-focused practices. Teachers take an active role in making data-based instructional decisions and implementing promising instructional practices in every classroom. We are confident that continuing this level of support will lead to significant student growth and achievement.
