Cooper Elementary School

The Cooper PTO is hosting a Family Game Night on Friday, March 8th from 6p-8p. This is a great time to get out of the house, play some games together, and enjoy each other! We have games of all kinds, including yard games! Cooper Reads will be selling various food items, with all proceeds going towards the purchase of a book vending machine for the school. This is a free event, but we do ask that you bring a non-perishable food item as a donation to a local food pantry. All families who attend will be entered into a raffle to win some brand new games. We hope you can make it! -Cooper PTO

We start each week with an episode of the Bronco Breakdown, a video series to share information with students about our school, our events, our counseling message, our celebrations, and more. Starting this week, we are able to share full episodes of the Bronco Breakdown with our families. You can access this week’s Bronco Breakdown via our new YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@cesbroncos . Subscribe to our channel to receive updates when new videos and Bronco Breakdown episodes are posted. Enjoy!

We are increasing the fun in our school tours. Prospective students will receive a map of “Cooper National Park” to help them navigate the building, learn about encore, transportation, playgrounds, and more. We are also adding some junior rangers as guides, too. Welcome to Cooper, future Broncos! https://youtu.be/pAHGGNxKZBQ

Mrs. Tia Glover is a prized member of our WIN team and our February Staff Member of the Month. Her connections to Cooper began years ago when her children were students and she became the PTO President for 2 years. She loved having a small glimpse inside the school and ways to give back. Last year, a P.E. position opened up and for her, "It opened my eyes to the many ways our children are cared for at Cooper." When asked what she loves about Cooper, she said, "I love that I get to see the excitement when a student understands a concept and the satisfaction that comes from their hard work. I also love the people I get to work alongside. I feel inspired by their dedication and genuine concern for each individual student. Plus, they are just plain fun!" According to members of our Cooper family, Mrs. Glover is incredibly patient and kind. She sees the good in every person and situation and is always looking for ways that she can help make wherever she is a better place. She is the kind of person that makes those around her feel calm and understood. One of her colleagues described Tia says that she "couldn't ask for a better teammate. She makes coming to work super fun. We laugh so much and so hard everyday that it hurts. I can always count on her when I need her and she is always willing to jump in." A few fun facts about Mrs. Glover: The furthest place she has traveled to is New Zealand, where her mom is from. She can play the piano, organ, and ukulele. As you can tell, Tia Glover is a very special member of the Cooper team and is truly loved by all, maybe because everyone around her feels genuinely loved. - Rachel

Join us this Saturday at BHS for the Bentonville Schools Career Fair. This event is for anyone interested in a licensed or classified position at Cooper or elsewhere in Bentonville Schools. We hope to see you there!

We are having an art show! On the 14th, visit the Cooper gallery, featuring framed works of art by our Broncos. Then, step into the cafeteria to enjoy our 3rd grade musical performance. It is going to be a great evening!

The coolest thing happened today in 2nd grade. 2nd grade students secretly organized a baby shower for their teacher, Mrs. Yearber. They stashed gifts in classrooms, donuts in the office, and cookies and balloons in other rooms. They even scheduled it around Mrs. Yearber’s duty schedule. The shower was a student operation, and it was a success. Thank you, Mrs. Yearber’s class for your creativity, planning, and love. You made today exceptionally special and memorable for the Yearber family. They will remember your incredible (and sneaky) kindness for years to come. Photo credits go to, yep, you guessed it: The kids. They tackled that part, too.

The 100th day of school was celebrated in style today by many, many Broncos. It was a GREAT day!

National School Counseling Week starts tomorrow. Help us celebrate and recognize the work of our incredible counselors, Mrs. Dumes and Mrs. Mayo!

Today, we kicked off Day I of Cooper Academies and welcomed students from Ignite to our school. In the Medical Skills Academy, students learned about blood pressure, splinting, heart rate, ultrasounds, and CPR. Ignite students led hands-on experiences in each of those areas. In the Technology Academy, students learned about what Ignite Tech offers, Ignite projects with Wal-Mart and Arvest, different types of coding, 3D printing, AI, and more. In the Video and Film academy, students learned about technical areas of video production and jumped into roles as directors, camera operators, light operators, and sound operators. The classroom was transformed into a studio, creating a memorable learning experience for our students. It was an awesome afternoon for all of us. Thank you, Ignite for partnering with us and extending your learning to our students!

Attention Bronco Parents: Career Day is approaching! Please contact our awesome counselor, Mrs. Dumes, if you are interested in sharing your career with our students!

Kindergarten Pre-Registration Starts Monday!

Cooper, our mission statement is, “We are a family of innovators who create pathways to learn, connect, and inspire.” This week, we will take a big step towards fulfilling this mission by starting Cooper Academies for our 4th grade students. Cooper Academies is a partnership between our school and our greater school community. This week’s academies will feature visitors from programs at Bentonville High School, Bentonville West High School, and Ignite. Later in the semester, we will bring in community partners for additional hands-on learning experiences. Each month, fourth grade students will have a learning experience within their academy. Our K-3 students, on the other hand, will have the opportunity to learn about pathways and careers during our annual Career Day. Career Day will allow students to discover areas of interest and help drive our academies in the future. We are excited to see our students learn, connect, and find inspiration from our greater school community this semester. Below is a quick promo from this week's Bronco Breakdown. It’s an exciting time to be a Bronco! http://tinyurl.com/Cooperacademies

Elf on a shelf, carols, holiday parties, and more. Today is another special day at Cooper Elementary!

This month’s staff member of the month is Kay Mills. Mrs. Mills is an instructional assistant and member of our WIN Team. She is in her second year in that role. WIN is an hour block of time where students receive support, intervention, and extension. She wears many hats at Cooper Elementary. You can find her in every area of the building at some point during the day. She starts the day in the cafeteria, monitoring and assisting students as they eat breakfast. Soon after, she spends time supporting students and teachers during WIN. She does this for all five grade levels at our school. You can also find Mrs. Mills in the cafeteria during several lunches, running the procedures, sharing stories, telling jokes, opening up milk cartons, and more. In short, Mrs. Mills is everywhere and is always willing to help. Mrs. Mills plays an important role in each student's growth, and she does much of this work behind the scenes and oftentimes, without the credit she deserves. She does an incredible job. Kay and I started our journey at Cooper Elementary at the same time, and it has been a pleasure to work alongside her. She is an excellent source of support for our students and our entire staff. I appreciate that she approaches situations with a problem solver’s mindset. She is also a learner who is working on her Canva video production skills. She’s awesome. Please help me celebrate Kay Mills, our December Staff Member of the Month! --Josh

Meet Stephanie Dwyer…or should we say, “Welcome back, Stephanie Dwyer!” We missed you and are so glad to have you back at Cooper Elementary! Mrs. Dwyer began her teaching career in 4th grade at Cooper Elementary two years ago. After venturing to another elementary school closer to her home, she realized that Cooper was the best place to be. Mrs. Dwyer loves the family-like atmosphere at Cooper and stated that Cooper simply feels like home. She is very grateful to have the opportunity to once again serve the students at Cooper. Here are some quick facts about Mrs. Dwyer: * Mrs. Dwyer came to Cooper after teaching 26 years in Southeast Kansas where she was born and raised. * Mrs. Dwyer believes that laughter is good for the soul and loves to make people smile. * Mrs. Dwyer loves to shop. She loves to buy shoes and purses because they always fit. We are so glad to have you back, Stephanie. Cooper feels more complete with you back in one of our classrooms. You are an amazing teacher but also a beloved coworker, mentor and friend.--Rachel

Today, 4th grade families are starting the process of selecting their student’s Cooper Academy. Cooper Academies are a part of our School of Innovation plan, and the academies will allow 4th grade students the opportunity to explore a Bentonville Schools career strand and learn alongside our broader school community. Cooper kids will participate in monthly activities within their academy. This year, students will select from the following academies: Animal Academy Bike Academy Culinary Academy Flight Academy Medical Skills Academy Performing Arts Academy Technology Academy Video and Film Academy We are excited to extend these learning experiences to our students in these fields in partnership with BHS, BWHS, and Ignite!

Happy Thanksgiving, Broncos!

We want to thank our amazing cafeteria team for their work in serving hundreds of families this week. Thanksgiving is all about coming together as a family and enjoying a meal and time together. This team makes it possible for ALL of our families to come to Cooper and share a meal with their student and our staff. It’s awesome to see a full cafeteria of people enjoying each other’s company and the meal prepared by this exceptional group of people. It is a great experience for our kids, and it’s great for our school. Thank you for going above and beyond for our students, our staff, and our families!

Today was awesome. We enjoyed serving and sharing a meal with our families. We had a HUGE turnout for kindergarten, second grade, and fourth grade Thanksgiving lunches. We look forward to seeing our first and third grade families later this week. We’ll be rocking the hair and beard nets then, too. A big thank you to Joan and our amazing cafeteria team. They are exceptional, and hundreds of families enjoyed their hospitality and culinary skills this afternoon! We have so much to be thankful for here at Cooper. It’s great to be a Bronco!