F
The Flower Hill
ALCON
Newsletter for the FlowerHillElementary School
18425 Flower Hill Way 301-840-7161
October 2007
Questions, comments, suggestions and input for future newsletters can be sent to
Lamar Whitmore, Principal
Dina Brewer, Assistant Principal
Annie Ahmed, PTA President
Chris & Beverly Reed, Newsletter Editors
Questions, comments, suggestions and input for future newsletters can be sent to
Questions, comments, suggestions and input for future newsletters can be sent to
The Flower Hill FalconOctober 2007
From the Principal’s Office
The school year is well on its way and we have had a great first month of school! It was wonderful to see so many of our parents attend our Back to School Nights this year. Both nights were a huge success. We hope that you found the information valuable and had a chance to see what your child does every day when they come to school. As your child’s first and most important teacher, we value every opportunity to work with you toward the success of all our students.
We are very excited to begin offering a variety of after school activities for students. This year Ms. Gomez will renew the Chorus for fourth and fifth grade students. In addition, Mrs. Jenkin’s Running Club has already proven to be a huge success. She has over 90 runners in the club! We hope to soon offer a Geography Club for GT students in grades two through four. Mrs. Stevenson is beginning her Theater Club in October and the PTA sponsored Chess Club will also begin running soon.
Our new playground equipment has yet to be installed. Unfortunately we are still waiting for the release of funds from the Maryland State Department of Education. As soon as the approval process is completed, the vendor will install the new equipment.
October will be a busy month at Flower Hill. Please be sure to mark your calendars with the following important dates. PLEASE be sure to make note of early release days and make arrangements for your child to get picked up at the appropriate time or have someone home when they arrive.
Mr. Lamar Whitmore, Principal
Ms. Dina Brewer, Assistant Principal
October Dates to Remember:
October 3NAACP Night – Rockville High
School (7 pm)
October 5PTA Sock Hop – 7-9 pm
October 8Community Open House
9:00 am-2:30 pm
October 19MSTA Convention – NoSchool
October 22Picture Day
October 23Family Reading Night
October 22-26 Book Fair
October 31Halloween Parade
From the PTA President
Thank you, thank you, thank you to the Flower Hill staff and parents. We are off to a great start. Everyone has been forthcoming with their time and commitment to the PTA and school.
Shelley Carter has graciously volunteered to take on the position of Treasurer. So, now all of our executive board positions are filled.
Our Vice President for Fundraising, Debbie Gemma, is eager to make us some money. You should have received the QSP Readers Digest packet that includes some wonderful gifts for you, family and friends. We want to make this fundraiser as successful as last year. She has also started "Flower Hill Restaurant Nights." Ledo's pizza was our first one and a successful one. Look for more to come. Also look for some information on the upcoming “Silent Auction” scheduled for December.
Come mix, mingle, and shake at our first "Fall Dance" scheduled for this Friday, October 5th @ 7 PM. It will be a night filled with fun, music and games. The dance is for Flower Hill students and their parents. Siblings may attend but must be accompanied by parents. We want the kids to have a safe and fun time all to themselves.
Lastly, our volunteer coordinator, Jackie Froelich, tells me that we are getting a record number of parents signing up to help. This is fantastic. At our recent training by MontgomeryCounty we learned that volunteer hours must be reported monthly. It is important that you sign in or report to us the number of hours that you are volunteering to the school. At the end of the year, schools with a high number of volunteers are given a special certificate by the Superintendent. I want us to be in the running.
Keep up the good work. Keep up the Flower Hill spirit!
Annie Ahmed
PTA President
301-869-0783(home)
240-460-2456(cell)
Kindergarten News
Kindergarteners have been busy adjusting to school. They have been learning school procedures and teacher expectations. Each class has written a set of classroom “Ground Rules” and students are doing a good job following them. They have been playing games and singing songs to learn to read and write each other’s names. This will develop their reading skills by helping them learn letter names and sounds. Formal reading groups are about to begin. Be on the lookout for the ziplock bag which contains your child’s reading book. Please help your child to remember to place the baggie and book back into their backpack to be returned to school the very next day!!
In Math, students have been studying positional words above, below, before, after, top, middle, and bottom. They have been making collections to learn to sort objects by varying attributes. We have discovered many little mathematicians in our midst!
Back to School Night was a success! It was wonderful to see so many parents!! You have been doing a wonderful job reading to your children at night and helping them with their homework. Thank you for ensuring that your child does his/her own homework. Parent participation is critical to a child’s school achievement. Way to go!!
First Grade News
First graders love the fall!! We are excited about our first field trip this school year! We will be taking a bus on October 11th to Summers Farm. This will be hands-on interactive learning experience for the students. They will also be able to walk through the fields and hand-select their own pumpkins. Back to School Night was a great success. The students enjoyed sharing their desks with all the parents who were able to come and learn about their class. During the month of October the students learned about Fire Safety. The firefighters came and taught us how to be safe in case of a fire. It was very exciting. In reading, the students are currently comparing and reading books by children’s author, Kevin Henkes. We are examining the books for the setting, characters, problem and solutions. Ask your child to examine other books using these common story elements. They are also learning excellent life lessons by reading his engaging and entertaining books. Reading groups are up and running. Keep a look out for reading books which will be coming home 3-5 times a week. In addition to reading group books, students should be receiving their homework packets on Mondays. They are expected to bring them back to school on Fridays. Thanks to all parents and students for making the first month of school a great success.
Second Grade News
We are off to a great start to our new school year! Our second gradersare so excited to learn. We have been establishing the ground rulesandwriting our class mission statements. In reading, the children have been learning strategies to understand,and make meaning, of what they have read. They have learned "before,during, and after" reading strategies such as making connections totheir own experiences. We have been practicing sight words so that wecan read fluently. The children have also been meeting in their guidedreading groups. We have also been testing so we can determine eachchild's strengths and weaknesses in reading. We have been continuing to learn more about the writing process as wewrite personal narratives. The children have worked on choosing atopic, using the pronoun of "I", having a clear beginning, middle, andend, and staying on the topic. They have written such interestingstories! In math we are practicing our math facts and learning strategies tohelpus add and subtract quickly and accurately. Our math classes have beenlearning about numeration and place value. Please encourage, and help,your child practice the basic addition and subtraction facts. Our first science unit is Balancing and Weighing. The children haveused Unifix cubes and the balance beam to discover the concepts ofbalance. We are also using the equal-arm balance to learn aboutweighing and balancing. We were very happy to meet so many of our parents at Back-to-School Night. If we did not get to see you then, please make sure toattend the conferences that will be November 9th and November 12th.
Our second graders have been trying hard to do their best. Please talk to your child about what he/she is doing in school, andcheck his/her homework folder, Wednesday folder, and book bag. Thankyou for your support.
Third Grade News
It was great to see so many of you at Back to School Night! If you were unable to attend, please be sure to check your child’s Wednesday Folder for the Back to School handouts. Please be sure to sign and return the Wednesday Folders each week.
Third graders are re-grouping for math. This has been successful in enabling us to meet different student needs. Classes are progressing well towards meeting unit 1 goals.
Our first science unit has begun. Our class detectives are hard at work solving crimes! We are arranging a visit from a real police officer to speak to the third graders.
We have been busy reading a variety of genres, such as realistic fiction and non-fiction texts. We are happy to report that most students have been reading 20 minutes or more daily at home and filling out their yellow reading log. These logs are checked routinely by the teachers so please keep them in your child’s Homework Folder. REMEMBER: Reading Night will be on Tuesday October 23rd. We hope to see you there!
Interim reports have been sent home on October 4th. If you have not already done so, please review, sign and return them. Parent/Teacher conferences will be held on November 9th and 12th.
Thanks for your continued support.
Fourth Grade News
The fourth grade team has been working hard this month. We are very excited to explore deeply into our Science Unit. All the classes have been working diligently on their own ecosystems. At the same time, the students have been producing wonderful work that can be seen in the hallways. In Math and Language Arts, students are acclimated to switching and are well adjusted to the change. The whole team is thrilled for interims because our students are doing well!
Fifth Grade News
Fall is officially here and we are back into the swing of things in the 5th grade! It is hard to believe we have only been back for four weeks because we have accomplished so much already. We are well underway with reading and math groups. We are deep in both the science and social studies curriculum and we had a great Back-to-School Night! Thanks to all who came out! If you were not able to make it please refer to the packets sent home by your child’s teacher.
Students are working on their first major home project, “The Cultural Heritage Presentations”. Each student will have an opportunity to celebrate his or her own family history through informative and creative presentations.
Please continue to sign the planners daily and S.T.A.R.R. reports each Wednesday.
With such a successful beginning we are looking forward to a great year and are off to a tremendous start!
Upcoming dates to mark on your calendar:
- Sept. 26…..Scholastic money was due ($5.75) PLEASE SEND IT IN ASAP if you haven’t already done so. Thanks!
- Oct. 11…..My Cultural Heritage Project
due (Assigned 9/26)
- Oct. 23…..Structures Project will be
assigned (Due 11/15)
- Nov. 2nd …..Mt. Vernon Field Trip
- Nov. 9th &12th…..Parent/ teacher
conferences
- Nov. 19…..Structures Gallery Walk for
friends and family (6pm-7:15)
- Nov. 22, 23….. Holiday-Thanksgiving
(No School)
- Nov. 26- Dec. 10…..Candy Fundraiser
ESOL News
All ESOL students are able to receive accommodations during classroom and ESOL instruction and during testing situations. We sent home a form last week and we will continue to send home forms this week. Please sign and return Accommodations Tool ELL-9A: Accommodations Documentation for English Language Learners (ELLs) or Accommodations Tool ELL-9C: Accommodations Documentation for Reclassified English Language Learners (RELLs) as soon as possible. RELLs are students who exited the ESOL program within two years, and they can still receive certain accommodations in the classroom and during testing situations.
Within the next few weeks, we will send home No Child Left Behind letters informing you of your child’s ESOL level (beginner, intermediate, advanced). Please sign and return these as soon as possible. Then, we will send home a copy of the letter.
Here is a description of the units in quarter 1:
Pre-K- The title and theme for the Pre-K Quarter 1 ESOL Unit is Welcome to My World. This unit focuses on: colors, shapes, counting, school tools, routines at school and at home, family, home, sorting and classifying, and seasons.
Kindergarten- The title and theme for the Kindergarten Quarter 1 ESOL Unit is Off to School We Go! This unit focuses on: families; colors; body parts; things about school; expressing ideas about themselves, their families, and friends; and expressing their likes and dislikes.
First-The title and theme for the First Grade Quarter 1 ESOL Unit is My World. The unit is divided into two parts. Part I focuses on helping students develop language for self-expression, classroom learning, and classroom communication. Part II focuses on learning to use language in the world beyond the classroom—in the school community, in the neighborhood community and in the world of stories.
Second- The title and theme for the Second Grade Quarter 1 ESOL Unit is Connections.
The unit is divided into two parts. Part I focuses on asking and answering informational questions, text features, and listening to information. Part II focuses on making connections, story elements, characters’ feelings, and writing a personal narrative.
Third- The title and theme for the Third Grade Quarter 1 ESOL Unit for high beginning and low intermediate students is Who We Are. The key skills which we will focus on are: identifying story elements and character traits, identifying antonyms, listening to a biographical description, and writing a personal narrative. The title and theme for the Third Grade Quarter 1 ESOL Unit for high intermediate and advanced students is Telling Our Stories. The key skills which we will focus on are: identifying the important message in a story, paraphrasing and summarizing text, and writing a personal narrative.
Fourth-The title and theme for the Third through Fifth Grade Quarter 1 ESOL Unit for high beginning and low intermediate students is Who We Are. The key skills which we will focus on are: relating personal information; discussing our families; describing ourselves and other people (physical and character traits); listening for information and details; speaking to relate stories, experiences and events; reading for literary experiences, describing characters and character traits, writing personal narratives and the writing process.
Fifth-The title and theme for the Third through Fifth Grade Quarter 1 ESOL Unit for high intermediate and advanced students is Telling Our Stories. The key skills which we will focus on are: immigration and migration in the United States; exploration and discovery of the Americas; reading for literary experience: historical fiction, story elements, character traits and character development; listening and reading to comprehend main idea and details; summarizing narrative text; explaining chronological sequence (in a narrative) and procedure (the writing process); speaking and reading aloud withclear pronunciation and fluency; the writing process; and writing for personal expression: personal narratives and histories.
We will also focus on before, during (phonics and comprehension), and after reading strategies; grammar; and vocabulary.
Middle School Gifted & Talented Program - It’s not too late to apply!
Attention all families of fifth grade students - There's still time!
The application materials for the Upcounty Center Programs for the Highly Gifted at RobertoClementeMiddle School will be available online in mid-October (see website below). All fifth graders are eligible to apply. These are exciting opportunities for interesting and challenging experiences at Roberto Clemente MS. One program focuses on math, science, and computer science, while the other program focuses on humanities and communication arts. Completed applications are due 7 December. You can visit the website to download an application:
Important Dates:
14 Nov 2007, 7:00 pm - Information meeting at
Clemente MS
7 Dec 2007 - Application deadline, postmarked or delivered
You may also visit the website for information about the Middle School Magnet Consortium programs at ArgyleMiddle School, LoiedermanMiddle School, and ParklandMiddle School. The Choice Form is due December 7, 2007.