Principal’s News

1. SUDLERSVILLE ELEMENTARY A Title 1 School SEPTEMBER 2010 “Where Eagles SOAR!” www.qacps.k12.md.us/ses/WELCOME.HTM Principal’s News Dear Parents and Friends of SES, Welcome back to school. The 2010 – 2011 academic year is off to a fine start. We hope your child is happy to be here; from all indications, students returned ready and eager to work. Our enrollment is at an all-time high at 409 students although our largest class is twenty-two with an average class size of about twenty. We are fortunate to have great students at SES. Our MSA results are the highest they have ever been. They are competitive with scores throughout the county and, as you have undoubtedly heard, this year Queen Anne’s County scores in grades 3 – 5 are the best in the state. These results are a direct outgrowth of parental support and hard work along with those of our students, teachers, and assistants. We believe that as long as we maintain an excellent staff, provide good instructional tools, monitor student progress, and provide enrichment and remediation during school, after school, and through the summer months, all of our children will be successful. We continue to have students who experience academic challenges however, with your help we will meet those challenges and those youngsters will meet academic success. If any SES staff member or I can be of assistance, please feel free to contact us at the school.   Sincerely, P.S. Reminder: Our new school hours are 7:45 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Upcoming Events • 9/8 Volunteer • Orientation • 8-8:30am and 6-6:30pm • 9/15 Back to School • Night 6:00 pm Volunteer Orientation • offered at 7:45 pm • 9/16 Picture Day • 9/21 Title 1 Orientation Prek-2 • 6:30–8:00 pm • 9/22 Title 1 Orientation Grades 3-5 • 6:30-8:00 pm • 9/24 Odyssey • Opera Theatre • 9/30 Title 1 Dinner • SVFD Hall 6:30-8 pm • 10/4–8 Book Fair • 10/7 Health Fair Silly Bands

2. SUDLERSVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL A Title 1 School SEPTEMBER 2010 “Where Eagles SOAR!” www.qacps.k12.md.us/ses/WELCOME.HTM Grade 3 News PreK News Grade 1 News We enjoyed meeting everyone at conferences.  We are looking forward to a great year.  We are starting out with the theme "Welcome to School".  We will be reading lots of different books about starting school.  We will also be learning about different shapes in math.   Remember to check your child's folder each night and talk with them about their day. Thank you for all of your support.  Thank you to all of the parents who visited with us at our recent parent conferences.  If you have any further questions about your conference discussions, please contact your child's teacher.We will be going to the Wicked R. Ranch on Thursday, October 28th.  Information about the trip will be sent home in a few weeks.  This is a great experience and we are looking forward to the many activities offered by the ranch. We are looking forward to beginning our kindergarten year.  Please remember to check your child's folder each night and clean out any papers that do not need to stay in his/her folder.    Thank you, Mrs. Beres, Mrs. Munson and Mrs. Nuse  “Good-bye Summer, Hello School!” Welcome third grade students and parents! We are glad to meet you and are looking forward to a busy year! Below, you will find some helpful hints and strategies that will help you as a parent, “halt the homework battle” for the 2010- 2011 school year. 1. “Schedule it”- Set a homework time and stick to it. 2. “Erase it”- Cut back on after school/ evening activities that interfere with homework (just dropping one will lighten the load and give less headaches) 3. “Don’t just do it”- When you see mistakes in your child’s homework, provide coaching and guidance, but don’t simply give the answers. This will help the teachers get a realistic picture of your child’s skills and how well he understands the material. 4. “Break it”- Break homework into manageable chunks by building in breaks such as- walking the dog, eating dinner, or playing outside. 5. “Get help with it”- A quick call to another classmate to discuss an assignment may be useful- especially when you are confused. If your child seems to need excessive help, talk with the teacher about getting extra help in class. Please feel free to contact the third grade teachers during school hours if you have any questions or concerns. We look forward to meeting you at the “back to school” night on Wednesday, September 15th, 2010 at 6:00 p.m. -Mrs. Bildstein, Mrs. Leventhal and Mrs. Thren Welcome to First Grade! Please remember to send your child to school with a jacket or sweater for when the classroom gets chilly. We will begin the year with the following units: Math: Establishing Routines, Reading: Back to School and All Together Now (including letter sounds and handwriting review), Science: Life Science (living vs. nonliving), and Social Studies: Going to School. We look forward to a fun and exciting school year! Welcome back second grade students and parents! We've jumped right into the new school year and are off to a great start! Hopefully everyone had a wonderful summer and is ready to get back to work! Please be sure to check book bags nightly to catch all the new information coming home during the first few weeks of school and return the necessary completed forms. As a reminder, please label all school items and clothing with your child's name.  We are looking forward to a truly successful year here in second grade. Kindergarten News Grade 2 News

3. SUDLERSVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL A Title 1 School SEPTEMBER 2010 “Where Eagles SOAR!” www.qacps.k12.md.us/ses/WELCOME.HTM Grade 4 News Health Room News Field Trip: We will be taking our first field trip on the Sultana in Chestertown. Mrs. Settelmaier’s class will be going Monday, Sept. 15th, Mrs. Comegy’s class will be going Tuesday, Sept. 16th, & Mrs. Hayman’s class will be going Thursday, Sept. 18th. Field trip permission slips will be sent home soon. We are happy to begin the year with an eager group of students!  As we start the year, we will review classroom expectations and student learning goals that will be emphasized throughout the school year.  Some of our learning topics for the month ahead will be studying the water cycle and earth changes in science and to correlate with our study of the earth, we will be reading about the theme, "Nature's Fury" in reading.  Students will read about a variety of topics including earthquakes, storms, hurricanes, tornadoes, and volcanoes.  Book report assignments will vary per teacher to accompany the reading theme.  In math we will study factors, prime numbers, composite numbers, and computation.  We ask that parents review multiplication facts with their children for quick recall.  Finally, in social studies we will study Native Americans and archaeology.  We have many exciting learning topics to explore and we thank you for supporting student learning! Welcome Back: We are so excited to start a fresh new year with such a great group of 4th grade students. We are starting the school off strong and learning new things every day. Please be sure your child is prepared with pencils and necessary supplies each day. Also, get into the routine of checking your child’s agenda and homework each night. Washington College Interns: We are so excited to have three energetic and knowledgeable interns with us this school year. Erin Mazzata will be working with Mrs. Comegys, Sarah Prickett will be working with Mrs. Hayman, and Corri Deegan will be working with Mrs. Settelmaier. The first semester they will be with us on Wednesdays and Fridays. Second semester they will start with us full time. They are great resources and will be a valuable asset to our working team, please help us make them feel welcome. Homework: Students will have nightly homework assignments in Reading and Math each Monday through Thursday. We will also have periodic Science and/or Social Studies homework. Along with the nightly homework we will also be encouraging daily reading and required thematic book reports. Book report directions and grading rubrics will be passed out at the beginning of EACH of our six Reading themes. The first book report is going to be about Journeys. Students will be expected to read a book about a journey and reflect upon it by creating a book jacket (further directions will be given out by classroom teachers.) The first book report is due Monday, Oct. 11, 2010. Grade 5 News Any Medication brought to school must be in the original container for nonprescriptions, or the pharmacist bottle for prescription medication. These medications must also be accompanied by a “Physician Medication Form”. Some doctor’s offices have copies of these forms, or you may ask the nurse in the health room for this form at any time. A responsible adult must bring in the medicine. This is a policy of the School Board and the Health Department. Please be sure to keep current phone numbers on file, in the event of emergency. It is also important to have a “back-up” plan for students to be picked up due to illness or injury. The health room is active, and it does not have availability to keep students for the day, nor should a sick child be sent home on the bus. Parents please place a change of clothes in your child’s back pack. This will come in handy if for some reason your child has accidentally messed their pants, vomits, or gets wet. We do not keep a supply of clothes in the health room.

4. SUDLERSVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL A Title 1 School SEPTEMBER 2010 “Where Eagles SOAR!” www.qacps.k12.md.us/ses/WELCOME.HTM Attention: All PK & K grades Parents, Have you sent in a filled out Maryland State Lead certificate on your child to the school? The state legislature enacted a law requiring all children who currently live, or have ever lived in an at risk area, and who are entering a public school in Queen Anne’s county in grades PK & K to show evidence of blood lead tests and the dates the tests were done. Each child is to have a filled out MD Blood Lead test certificate on file at school by the end of September. If you have any questions regarding this matter please contact the Queen Anne’s Co. Health Dept. at 410-758-0720. You may also call us here at school. Head lice happens. Make it a habit this new school year to check your child’s hair at least 2 times a week for signs of head lice. This preventive tip is so worth the effort. Thank you for your support. Happy School Year Blessings, Mrs. Reilly, R.N. & Mrs. Golshani, L.P.N. I hope everyone had a safe, healthy, and enjoyable summer.  We are excited about the new school year at SES.  We will be working diligently to help all students increase their reading skills.  We need your help and support to reach our goals.  Please have your child read daily for at least 20 minutes.  Remember, the more they read, the better they will read!   Don't forget the importance of reading to your child.  This is a valuable tool in helping your student become an accomplished reader.  Looking forward to a great year! Barbara Thurber Reading Specialist Sister School News SES Sister School Partnership Grows Mrs. Vooris and Mrs. Leventhal traveled to Mexico this summer to teach in our sister school in Guadalupe. Our sister school is Escuela Primaria Juventino Rosas and has students from Kindergarten through Grade 6. They performed a big welcome show with dancing and P.E. activities. Then there was a school feast. It was similar to our annual SES Hispanic Month celebration. During their trip, Mrs. Vooris and Mrs. Leventhal conducted a teacher workshop for our sister teachers. They also learned new ideas to share with our SES teachers. On another day, Mrs. Leventhal taught fourth grade and Mrs. Vooris led a birding field trip. There will be a Sister Schools assembly during National Hispanic Month so our school community can learn more about our sister school in Mexico. National Hispanic Month is September 15 – October 15 of every year. Media News Please return your child's "Bucks for Books" reading log to his/her teacher by Friday, Sept. 10th.  Students that return their log to their teacher will be invited to spend their money at the "SES Big Buck Store" on Monday, September 27th.  Parents are also encouraged to come and celebrate with their star reader.  More information will be sent home about this celebration.  Thanks to all that participated in our summer reading incentive!!!! The media center will be collecting SunnyD  UPC labels from SunnyD products to earn free books for our library. Each label equals one free book.  Please send in any labels to the media center.  We will be collecting the labels during  September and October.  Thank you for your support!  Kelly EmbertSES Media Specialist Winter Concert: Wednesday, December 15 @ 6:30 Spring Concert: Wednesday, May 18 @ 6:30 Reading Music News

5. SUDLERSVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL A Title 1 School SEPTEMBER 2010 “Where Eagles SOAR!” www.qacps.k12.md.us/ses/WELCOME.HTM Parent Involvement Cultural Arts If you cannot attend either event, please contact me at the school and I will schedule a time to meet with you. Remember, this a requirement for all volunteers in QACPS. Elaine Butler, Parent Coordinator x209 It’s back to school time and that means that families once again will face homework time. With math, it is important to practice skills daily. Teachers will send home a short assignment each night. Be sure to discuss the skill involved with your child. Also, express how you may use this math skill at home or at work. For example, when your child is working with addition, it may help to tell them that you add up purchases in the store to get a total amount spent. When subtracting practice is the skill, share that we use subtraction all the time when we make change for the money paid at a store. When children see that you use math everyday, it will motivate them to master the skills we are teaching here at school. Each month, I will write a short article about a math topic and give suggestions for the home connection. I hope you will find them helpful and that you will agree with me, that MATH MATTERS! Terri Gloyd, Math Specialist for SES Funds from the PTA are used to give our children assemblies throughout the year. This is the largest expenditure of the SES-PTA. The SES-PTA was also awarded a $1,500 grant from the Queen Anne’s County Arts Council and a $500 grant from the Maryland State Arts Council. Together, we have some wonderful assemblies planned for this year and hope you can attend! SCHEDULE FOR 2010/2011 September 24th 930 & 1030 am Odyssey Opera Theatre This delightful, highly interactive program shows students how exciting it can be to tell a story through the unique art form of opera. Students will discover how opera is actually a powerful combination of many art forms: music, drama, and visual arts. After experiencing an example of each basic element of opera, the entire audience will use their voices, emotions, bodies, and imaginations to create a mini-opera version of the beloved story Hansel and Gretel. Story structure, as well as the creation of dialogue, will be emphasized throughout the process of developing the mini-opera. Nov. 10 – Totally Vocally Feb. 23 – Cubanana April 20 – Classic Comedy May 25 – Monkey Tales Greetings and Welcome Back! New this year is the “Parent Resource Room”. It is located in the same room with me which is directly across from the main entrance and it is available all school hours this year! Please stop by and check it out. There are many items for borrowing, including grade level reading books for the students, math and reading games, parenting literature, etc. If there is something we don’t have, but would like to have available for borrowing, please do not hesitate to let me know and I will see about getting it. It never hurts to ask! “Upcoming Events” Display CaseIn addition to the attached calendar, the dates for upcoming school/family events for September are posted next to the Parent Resource Room. VOLUNTEER ORIENTATION Please volunteer your time at the school! Anyone who plans to volunteer within Queen Anne’s County Public Schools (QACPS) is required to attend a Volunteer Orientation. I will be conducting a Volunteer Orientation on Wednesday, September 8, 2010 in the SES cafeteria. There are two sessions - morning from 8 – 8:30 a.m. and evening from 6 – 6:30 p.m. Please try to attend one of these sessions. There are also required forms to be completed. If you cannot attend on the 8th, time has been allotted during the last 15 minutes (7:45 – 8 p.m.) of the “Back to School” night on September 15th. Math Matters

6. PTA Welcome back everyone! We are looking forward to an exciting and fun-filled year. We are hoping our support and participation grow this year. The PTA meets once a month and we need you!!! We are looking for new faces, fresh ideas and ways to improve our school and children’s success! Currently, we need volunteers for the Book Fair, Health Fair and the School Store. If you are unable to work, our hospitality team could always use baked goods for winter and spring activities. Stop by our table at Back to School Night!! Have you linked your Food Lion card to Sudlersville Elementary? Sign up at Back To School Night and enter to win a $25 gift card. Also, if you sign up for the PTA, you will be entered to win a $10 gift card and other prizes, as well. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at sespta@hotmail.com. MONEY & SUPPLIES FOR SES!!!