By Deniece Moss, Principal, West Bay Elementary School
“Welcome to the West Side of the Bay, where we come to learn, and grow, and play!” Those are the lyrics you will hear on a Friday morning if you happen to pop into a West Bay Elementary School House Meeting, and a motto we live by daily. At West Bay Elementary, our faculty and staff members strive to know every scholar by name and need. Whether it is an engaging hands-on academic activity, developing social skills through leadership lessons, or having a dance party at our monthly school wide house meetings, every adult on campus works to serve the whole child when it comes to our kids. We provide them with opportunities to visit with our school counselor Mrs. Dean’s therapy dog, Murphy. We also give our scholars options for extracurricular activities including baton twirling, ukulele lessons, and running club.
At The Small School with a Big Heart, every scholar and adult is a member of House, just like in the movie Harry Potter. The House System is used worldwide to encourage community and inclusion in schools. At West Bay we take pride in knowing our campus feels like home to all who attend or visit. If you go to West Bay, you will become a member of one of our four houses by spinning our giant game-show sized wheel. This year the school’s tagline is “Four Houses One Heart.” While each house is named after a specific character trait, our scholars work in unity to represent kindness, empathy, courage, and harmony. Through our House System, West Bay Scholars participate in various community service projects and competitions to earn points for their houses. This year our four houses have raised money for “Stuff The Bus,” collected socks for senior living communities, and delivered cards to our local Veterans. House members also perform cheers to motivate and inspire everyone on campus, and students have made connections with peers across grade levels during house meetings.
At West Bay our teachers are all about student engagement! Across campus, classrooms are often transformed into new settings to make learning experiences that will help our scholars remember the rigorous content they are learning. Enchanted forests, outer space, surgical centers, Jurassic Park, and fancy restaurants are just a few of the classroom transformations we have seen here on campus this year. Teachers also incorporate technology, games, and STEM projects into lessons to increase student participation and excitement about academic content. We work hard to teach outside of the box and increase student involvement by using chants, instruments, and accountable talk. Scholars are more inclined to partake in difficult tasks and lessons when the presentation of content is creative and fun!
As you can see, West Bay Elementary is a safe and exciting place for all who attend and visit. Our faculty and staff work hard to make our school inviting and joyful for our scholars, while meeting their needs academically, socially, and emotionally. Be sure to visit our Facebook page to see all the fun we are having at the “Small School With A Big Heart.”
