Sudlersville Elementary School - Where Eagles S.O.A.R.

1. Motto:  Where Eagles S.O.A.R. S-Safety O-Outstanding Behavior A-Academic Excellence R-Respect SUDLERSVILLE ELEMENTARY A Title 1 School & Judy Center Partner FEBRUARY 2014 Our Mission: The mission of Sudlersville Elementary School is to educate and enlighten each of our students through an engaging curriculum and high expectations (for behavior and achievement) by dedicated teachers and staff with support of parents and the extended community. Our Vision: A graduate of Queen Anne's County Public Schools will be well-educated, globally competitive and prepared to become a caring, productive citizen of the 21st Century Upcoming Events FEBRUARY 2/3 PFY Spring session begins 2/5 BOE Meeting @ 6:00pm 2/7 Kindergarten Field Trip 2/7 BINGO night at SES 6:30pm 2/12 Early Dismissal/Professional Development 2/12 Cultural Competency Meeting 10 am 2/14 Valentine’s Day 2/17 Schools Closed 2/19 JA in a Day training for volunteers (Financial Literacy Day) 2/20Science Center Assembly Prek-1st grades 9:40 am 2/21 Science Center Assembly 2nd-4th grades 1:30 pm 2/24 SIT Meeting@2:45 PAC Meeting @ 3:30 (Plan for STEM Night) 2/26 Parent Involvement Activity iReadyTraining for Parents 6:00-8:00 in Computer Lab 2/28 Jump Rope for Heart 3/3 & 3/4 MSA Reading Grade 4 3/5 & 3/6 MSA Reading Grade 3 3/7 & 3/10 MSA Math Grade 4 3/11 & 3/12MSA Math Grade 3 3/13 thru 3/18 MSA Make-ups 3/19 Bus evacuation 3/20 Picture Day Principal’s News Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) For the first time, one class was randomly selected to take the new statewide assessments that are aligned with Maryland College and Career Ready Standards.  Ms. Settlemaier's class was randomly selected at Sudlersville Elementary School.  These students will be taking the field test.  The field test is an opportunity to "test the test" to see how well the test works, determine the quality of test questions, and make any necessary adjustments before it is given to all students in school year 2014-15.  The new PARCC assessments will replace the current statewide tests, the Maryland School Assessment (MSA).  The MSA will be given for the last time this Spring.

2. SUDLERSVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL A Title 1 School & Judy Center Partner FEBRUARY 2014 PTA News The PTA Board Chairs are up for their term. If you are interested in running, please see Sara Clark or Kelly Embert. The nomination/voting meeting will be the regular scheduled May meeting. We are doing a Celebrating Home Candle Fundraiser from now until February 10th. All orders and money are due on the 10th. The class with the most sales will receive an ice cream party! Students enjoying math in Ms. Landgraf's class Sandy Chance, kindergarten teacher, received the Difference Maker Award at the Board of Education meeting on January 8, 2014.  She was nominated by Miranda Tarr. RJ Maule, third grader, received the Hero Award at the Board of Education meeting on January 8, 2014.  He was nominated by Sophia Mohen.

3. SUDLERSVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL A Title 1 School & Judy Center Partner FEBRUARY 2014 Pre-K News Grade 2 News selections by black authors. Your child's teacher will be sending information home about these events and activities. Be sure to check your child's folder for this information. Thank you, The Kindergarten Team February is here and we have a lot to do this month. Our students are really excited about our new writers’ workshop that we started in January. Encourage your child to come up with ideas for their stories and to write often at home. Making books is fun! Everyone continues to work hard and is doing a great job! As we begin our 3rd quarter, we will be working on more regrouping in math; both addition and subtraction. We are also continuing with our Economics Unit in Social Studies. Black History Month is celebrated this month. We will have guest readers come in to read to the students about several famous African Americans and their contributions to our country. Reading progress is being made daily. Please continue to read with your children at home and provide independent reading time for them. Good reading helps to make good writers! It is important reading logs be filled out each day. Use good questioning techniques to make sure your child understands what he/she has read. You will know immediately if they actually DID read. A reminder: please check homework folders and agendas when your child comes home. Besides homework, important class and/or school messages are being communicated through these tools; many of which need to be returned. Please empty your KEEP AT HOME side on a regular basis. Some of the folders are quite full. Really cold weather has finally made its way here. Many of our students are coming to school without proper winter clothing. Please make sure your child comes to school with a coat, gloves, hats and anything else to keep him/her warm. We DO go outside for recess (unless the temperature is at the freezing level). You and your family enjoy Valentine’s Day. If your child would like to fill out Valentine cards for classmates, they may bring them in on the 14th. Wow! The second marking period flew by in Pre-K.  We are currently finishing up our unit on "Animals Everywhere."  Pre-K has been busy learning about many different animals, how to sort and graph, using animals, identifying  numbers 0-10, and uppercase and lowercase letters of the alphabet.  Please continue to practice the alphabet and numbers with your child.  On Friday, February 14th, we will be having our Valentine's Day party beginning at 9:00 for A.M. Pre-K and 1:00 for P.M. Pre-K.  You will be hearing from our room parents very soon. If you have any questions please feel free to call me at school.  In addition, please don't forget to send your signed report card envelope back to school.  Thanks for all of your support!  The Pre-K Team Grade 1 News Happy Winter! We hope you are staying warm in this cold, snowy weather. Please make sure your child comes to school with appropriate layers. Inside and outside temperatures vary greatly. February promises to be a busy month. We are counting up to our 100th day of school. As soon as we know the date we will let you know when it will be. During that day students will be doing activities with the number 100. Also coming up is Valentine's Day. We will have our celebration on Friday, February 14. Look for information from your room parents. At the end of the month, we will reward our SOARing behavior as students have the opportunity to redeem Eagle bucks and participate in a morning dance activity. Finally on February 28, we will celebrate our class books with an Author Book Sharing Breakfast. Room parents will be in touch to let you know what we may need. As always, continue reading every night with your child. The reading log needs to be completed for 4 nights of reading each week. Don't forget to have your child answer one of the questions on the back. The math homework is also a great tool to reinforce concepts taught in class each day. Thank you for your continued support. 1st grade team Kindergarten News February will be a busy month in kindergarten! We are planning our trip to Chesapeake College to see a play on February 7th. Remember that if school is closed or there is a delayed opening, this event will be rescheduled for another time. The Valentine's Day events will be on Friday, February 14th. The "Tooth Fairy" will be visiting us on February 13th for dental health month. The Hundred's Day celebration will be held probably during the last week of February. Remember that kindergarten classes started five days after the classes of children in the upper grades so our Hundred's Day celebration will be a week later than that of grades one and above. We will also be celebrating Black History month by learning about famous black Americans and reading

4. SUDLERSVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL A Title 1 School & Judy Center Partner FEBRUARY 2014 Grade 3 News Grade 4 News Reading Fantastic February! Happy winter! Third grade will be very busy this month. In Math, we just completed a topic on area and are beginning the study of division. Please continue to practice multiplication facts with your child. Black History will be celebrated with a variety of activities during the month. One special event includes each third grade class enjoying a book read by a special guest reader! On Valentine’s Day morning students in each class will enjoy a “Valentine’s breakfast!” A letter will be coming home soon concerning this event. Schools are closed Monday, February 17th, 2014 for “President’s Day.” Thank you for your help in sending your child to school prepared for the cold weather- heavy coats, hats and gloves are strongly suggested (especially while waiting for the school bus!) Looking ahead to March our students will be administered the MSA in Reading the week of March 3rd, 2014 as well as the Math MSA the following week, March 10th, 2014. It is imperative that students go to bed early those two weeks so that they will be able to perform to the best of their abilities on the assessments. Some February fun facts… • February is “American Heart Month” – exercise your heart! (Look for information regarding “Jump Rope for Heart” coming home soon.) • “Children’s Dental Health Week” is the first week of February  • Happy Chinese New Year!- “Year of the horse”- January 31st, 2014 • Only “28 days” in the month! No “Leap Year” in 2014. Have a fabulous February and thanks for working with your child in completing the weekly reading log as well as math homework. Happy Days! Fingers crossed- February looks like a calm month with little disruptions.  February 12th is an early dismissal day and the 17th school is closed. Important Content:Students will be starting a new Science unit on Tuesday February 18th.  Students will switch teachers again this marking period. Math we will be finishing division and moving into fractions. Social Studies we will be focusing on the War of 1812 and how Maryland became a state. Celebrations:We will be hosting guest readers for African American month on February 3rd. Dress for the Weather: Please remember to have your students dress in long pants and a jacket until the Spring weather arrives. LOVE TO READ  Reading fluency is an important part of being a successful reader who loves to read.  We are working on reading fluency everyday at SES.  Here are some activities parents can do help their children build their reading fluency. 1.  Have your child select a favorite book and read it aloud two or three times.  Have them track the words with their finger as they read. 2.  Model fluent reading for your child by reading aloud to them daily. 3.  Echo reading helps to build reading fluency.  You read a phrase, sentence, or paragraph aloud to model fluent reading.  Your child then reads the same phrase, sentence, or paragraph, like an echo. 4.  Poetry and nursery rhymes can be used to practice fluency.  5.  Use paired reading to build reading fluency with your child.  First, you read a poem or short passage to your child.  Then, you and the child read the poem or passage together several times.  Finally, have your child read the poem or passage to you. 6.  Review basic sight words with your child to make sure that he or she knows these words automatically.  Knowing these common words on sight will help to improve your child's reading accuracy and rate.  7.  Set aside reading practice time every day.  Even 5 minutes of reading fluency practice using any of the activities listed above will help to develop your child's reading fluency. Have fun reading!!!! Mrs. Thurber, Reading Specialist Art The school year is flying by and the art room has never been busier!  We are studying many aspects of art:  color, line, shape, value, texture, and pattern!  Congratulations for students creating so many wonderful masterpieces.  This month is the annual Mid-Shore Student Art Exhibition in Easton at the Academy Art Museum.  We will have many students represent Sudlersville Elementary School.  The show runs from February 5 to February 23.  There is an opening reception on February 5th from 4:30 to 6:00pm.  Your child will be notified if selected to be in the show.  However all are welcome to come and support our artists. Stay warm and keep creating!Cassie Hosler - SES ART

5. SUDLERSVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL A Title 1 School & Judy Center Partner FEBRUARY 2014 Health Room If it is discovered that a student has head lice she/he will be excluded from school. The student will be allowed to return to school only after being treated and after all lice and nits have been removed. Students excluded for lice will be reexamined upon returning to school. If any lice or nits are seen during this examination the student will again be excluded until they are nit free. If you have any questions concerning this matter don’t hesitate to call us at school. Just remember that regular checking is the best prevention. Stay ahead of lice! Some “Lousey” News From The Healthroom We have had several cases of head lice this school year so we want to remind you all to watch for signs of head lice, such as frequent head – scratching. Anyone can get lice…from another person, or from sharing hats, coats, hairpieces, etc… No one likes to talk about head lice and nit picking is a nuisance but you parents can help a lot by checking your child’s hair 1 to 2 times a week. The louse is about the size of a sesame seed. Nits are tiny tear dropped shaped specs attached to the hair close to the scalp. They are cemented to the hair shaft. Nits hatch in about 10 days. They can live for up to 30 days and they can survive away from a warm head for about 2 days. A female louse can lay up to 6 – 10 eggs (nits) a day. So as you can see early detection is worth the effort. If you discover signs of lice proper treatment involves the following steps: • kill the lice with a pediculicide • remove nits with a special comb, nit removing products, and fingernails • check all family members for lice and nits • treat personal articles and the environment (washing, drying, vacuuming) SES welcomes a new Title I tutor, Carolyn Tolson. Guidance February’s CC pillar of the month is respect. Children learn to be respectful adults from adults being respectful to others around them. Our student’s role models for respect are usually their families and school staff, the people who spend the most time with them. We all know children repeat what we say so be careful what messages you are sending them. Dr. Robyn Silverman’s top ten tips for teaching respect include; model it, expect it, teach it, praise it, discuss it, correct it, acknowledge it, understand it, reinforce it and reward it. YEARBOOKS will be on sale from January 27 through April 25. The 40 page full color books arrive at the end of the year. Buy one to capture the memories of this school year! Cost is $17.00. Make checks payable to SES.

6. SUDLERSVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL A Title 1 School & Judy Center Partner FEBRUARY 2014 Parent Involvement Math Matters UPCOMING MATH EVENTS- Mark your calendars! • March 25 - Junior Achievement’s JA in a Day- a day of financial literacy activities and games sponsored by the Queen Anne’s County Chamber of Commerce. • March 27- Family Math Night at Millington Food Lion Congratulations to Mrs. Mindy Bacchus who has been nominated as the PIMA (Parent Involvement Matters Award) recipient for SES. Her submission will be reviewed at the county level where 24 semifinalists will be selected from each county and then a state winner will be selected in May. Good luck Mrs. Bacchus! Thank you to the parents who attended the PAC (Parent Advisory Committee) meeting on January 13th. Mrs. Bacchus brought her ideas for a math/STEM event at SES. There was open discussion and suggestions made by parents. Further discussion will take place at the next PAC meeting immediately following the SIT meeting on Feb.24th at 3:30 p.m. All interested parents are invited to attend. The Math Homework Help Day was held on Jan. 16from 9-10 a.m. in the computer lab. Parents/Grandparents that attended appreciated the one-on-one attention from Mrs. Gloyd helping them to better understand the math homework and resources available to them. Another session will be held on Wed. Feb. 26th with iReady training in math and reading. Look for a flyer to be sent home soon. The District PAC meeting had to be postponed because of the weather and will be held sometime in March. Upcoming events: The Family Math Event at Millington Food Lion will be held March 27th. Elaine Butler Karla Altiminrano Parent Coordinators x234 COMMON CORE UPDATE: Our mid-year Math Benchmarks were given the end of January and beginning of February. The scores from these assessments will inform teachers and school staff of areas of strengths and weaknesses in our students and their math progress. CURRICULUM UPDATE and HOME CONNECTION: Pre K is working on counting and comparing sets. Kindergarteners are working on learning to add sets. First grade is working on adding two digit numbers. Second grade is working with two digit addition and subtraction. Third grade is working on relating multiplication and division. Fourth grade is beginning their study of division of larger numbers. You can help your child at home by making math connections in what you do each day. For example- Pre-k and kindergarteners can count spoons and forks as sets and then compare- “Which has more? How many more? Which has fewer? How many fewer? How many in all if we put the spoons and forks together?” As you calculate quantities using addition or subtraction, ask your child to “help” you or check your work! Use cards and form two digit numbers to add and subtract as a game! Practice basic facts whenever you can to help your child develop number fluency. PROBLEM OF THE MONTH- Winter Olympics The 2014 Winter Olympics are in Sochi, Russia. The opening ceremonies will be on February 7, 2014. The closing ceremony will be on February 23, 2014. Over 85 nations and more than 2500 athletes will compete. There are now 98 events at the Winter Olympics, with 12 new events. If they give one gold, one silver and one bronze medal for each event, how many medals will be given out? How many of these medals will Team USA win? Make a prediction and see how close your estimate is! The motto of the Sochi Olympics is 'Hot. Cool. Yours.' Check out the following Olympic Math Hunt from Scholastic online. http://teacher.scholastic.com/mathhunt/StartGame.asp?QuizID=10

7. SUDLERSVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL A Title 1 School & Judy Center Partner FEBRUARY 2014 Coordinator/Early Childhood Liaison at (410)438-3164, x.272 or lori.yarbrough@qacps.org if you are interested in attending the group sessions. Judy Gaston, Program Coordinator for the Eastern Shore Oral Health Education and Outreach Program-Office of Oral Health is providing a dental health training in collaboration with the Judy Center on 2/5/14 for our area childcare providers. The training will help broaden our local childcare providers’ knowledge of dental health in their programs. The session is entitled, “Dental Smiles in the Childcare Home”. We look forward to hosting the event for local childcare providers. The Judy Center is proud to report an overwhelming response of donations and support from the community to assist the local family devastated by a fire in our area. We are working closely with the family to assist them in replacing their possessions, and reclaiming their lives. Many people from the community have made donations to the family in an effort to assist them with this tragedy. Senator Mikulski’s office telephoned January 27th, 2014 to receive an update on the family as well. Thanks to all who contributed to the family. The Judy Center and the family were deeply touched by the generosity of the community. The Judy Center is chugging along supporting children, parents, teachers, SES, and community partners in ensuring all children are prepared for school success! We are currently working with Chesapeake College to continue to facilitate the adult education classes held at SES on Monday and Wednesday evening. We are excited to be working with Erin Jones, a local licensed childcare provider, and Washington College Externs to provide high-quality early childhood instruction in the evening while parents are in adult education classes. On Friday, January 31st, 2014 the SMS PTA will host a fun, family event in honor of Hispanic Heritage. The Judy Center staff has volunteered to coordinate the “Corn Hole” game for the event. This will be the first time the Corn Hole set, built by Richard Hammond, and won in a Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) drawing, has been used at a family event. We look forward to seeing many from the community turn out for the event and play Corn Hole. SES parents have expressed the interest of establishing a support group to assist them in their journey of rearing children with challenges. The Judy Center is coordinating with SES parents to create a monthly group and will begin the sessions in February. Please call Lori Yarbrough, Judy Center Family Services Jenny Crossley, Family Center Service Coordinator, and Elizabeth Miller, Judy Center Coordinator on the Judy Center Fun Bus after picking up new car seats purchased with the grant from the Choptank Trust. Photo taken by: Lori Yarbrough, Family Services Coordinator/Early Childhood Liaison Fun School Readiness at The Family Center open to all families with children 3 years of age or younger.  Call or stop by for a visit! Gross motor play happens inside or outside every day at The Family Center. This builds upper body muscles which better prepare children for elementary school handwriting and sitting straight and tall at their desk.

8. SUDLERSVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL A Title 1 School & Judy Center Partner FEBRUARY 2014 Students of the Month Congratulations to the Students of the Month for the month of January! A big cheer for these outstanding students who were recognized for their outstanding behavior!!!