Brooklyn Springs Elementary School is helping all students develop the World Class Skills and the Life and Career Characteristics of the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate by providing a safe, caring, and academically challenging learning environment. Our school’s vision is to provide educational experiences in and outside of the classroom which empower all students to make a positive impact on their world. Teachers plan engaging and rigorous learning opportunities that incorporate the four C’s of our district’s STEAM initiative – Critical thinking, Communication, Collaboration, and Creativity. Innovation is embraced with effective strategies, including: Google Apps for Education, 1:1 Chromebook initiative, student-centered feedback, inclusive teaching practices, and research-based best practices for literacy integration across all content areas. We are proud of our extraordinary history as we focus on developing the whole child.
As a Professional Learning Community, teachers continue to study and implement best practices and participate in other professional development opportunities locally and at the state level. The team of instructional coaches meet weekly with Grade Level Teams to discuss the implementation of best practices and to analyze school and classroom data. Through such collaborative efforts and rich dialogue, teachers tailor instruction to best meet students’ needs. Students are provided multiple opportunities for growth through various methods of instruction: balanced literacy workshop model; reading recovery; mathematics workshop; one on one and small group conferencing across subject areas; problem-solving and critical thinking through games and STEAM; flexible grouping; and the integration of technology (1:1 in all grades 4k-5th).
In addition to supporting our students academically, we believe it is important for students to become leaders in their school and community. BSE continued its journey as a Leader in Me school this year. Through “Leader in Me”, our BSE family focused on developing life-long leadership skills. Because of COVID-19, many of our student leadership opportunities we have utilized in the past had to be adjusted or removed. These included Lego Robotics Club, BSE Chorus, Girls on the Run, Let Me Run, BSE Art Club, and School Safety Patrol. Students in grades 3-5 are also provided an opportunity to participate in the 21st Century Learning Center. Even with COVID, BSE did conduct a Leader in Me Leadership day using technology to produce a video on how we modeled leadership in such an unusual year.
We believe that education is a shared responsibility. We recognize that building relationships with students and parents assists in building an important bridge between home and school. Parental involvement opportunities are provided to allow parents to participate in learning and supporting their child. The School Improvement Council (SIC)/ Title I Planning Team meets monthly to discuss Title I activities, special programs, parental involvement, and student achievement. Community partnerships are vital to the success of BSE. Partnerships with Keller Williams, Nutramax, and Second Baptist Church have been pivotal to the success of our teachers and students of Brooklyn Springs.
While we celebrate our many accomplishments in the 2020-21 school year, we are currently planning to build for future successes in coming years.
Michael W. Pratt, Principal
Monica Bowers, SIC Chair
