PARCC score were distributed to all current 4th and 5th graders that attended a PGCPS school last year. If you did not receive a PARCC score please email me. The attached chart informs parents/guardians of specific dates for local and state assessments. All students in designated grades will take these assessments. If you have specific questions or desire additional information, please contact Jessica Baynham, School Testing Coordinator at jbaynham@cmitsouthes.org. Best,

Attachment(s)

Jessica Baynham

Back to School Night will take place on Wednesday, September 26, 2018 from 6-7:30 pm. Ms. Asafa, the principal of CMIT South Middle/High has agreed to allow parents to park at her school as an overflow space. Please do not park in the parking lot across the street from the school or your car will be towed. Make use of the school's parking lot. As well, you can park in the the car line lanes. The first fifteen minutes will be devoted to the introduction of the entire staff, the PTO, acknowledgment of EDuSerc, a prespective community partner, and PGCPS Board Member for District 9, Sonya Williams. Please see schedule above.

The Administrative Team

Hello Kindergarten families! Starting October 2nd, there will be a new after school club, run by two Kindergarten teachers, Ms. Lucas and Mrs. Curtis. This Arts and Crafts club is open to the first 25 Kindergarten students to sign up! There is a $10 fee for this club, in order to get any necessary materials. Please make checks payable to CLF. The arts and crafts club will meet every Tuesday after school from 3-4 where we will create exciting crafts and projects each week. If your child enjoys working with their hands and creating something beautiful, then this is the club for them! Please sign up for the club using the link provided at the bottom. In the sign up it says October 2nd but the sign up is for a permanent spot in the club, for all weeks. We look forward to getting started with our new members in October! Thanks for your participation, Ms. Lucas and Mrs. Curtis https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0F48ACAC23A4F58-arts

Diana Lucas

Thank you in advance for your support of the CLF-BBA Basketball training program at CMIT-South Elementary Campus. Please see below for the dates of the program flyer (attached). Grades K - 5 CMIT Elementary South 10 or 20 sessions at CMIT Elementary South Gym Wednesdays Oct 3, 10, 17, 24, Nov 7, 14, 28, Dec 5, 12, 19 Fridays Oct 5, 12, 19, 26, Nov 2, 9, 16, 30, Dec 14, 21 Option-1: Wednesdays 3:00 - 4:15 pm, $165 Option-2: Fridays, 3:00 - 4: 15 pm, $165 Option-3: Wednesdays and Fridays, 3:00 - 4: 15 pm, $260

Patrice Harrell-Carter
Principal

Mark Sutherland here with Chesapeake Lighthouse Foundation. I know when we last met, we discussed your company's excitement about our six public schools growing to serve 3,300 STEAM students & 5K parents across MD. We do need involvement from our business leaders, families, staff & students. Here at CLF, the spirit of volunteerism and philanthropy is being nurtured because of how it connects to all other areas of business and community. Directly, the biggest mistake we can make is for a false perception that our home office or public schools are elitists. I’m writing to you to let you know that we need volunteers & we need philanthropic support routinely. You’ve noticed our schools, our high standards, and how, even though our students come from random lottery assignments, they rise to meet and exceed expectations. This is not by some miracle or secret recipe. It’s by creating a culture within our school community designed to succeed. There is no guarantee. Have you noticed our innovative approaches are beyond classroom academics? Did you know the construction, operations, renewals, & replications of our public STEM/STEAM schools are accomplished here at CLF? To date, we’ve serviced over $70 million in debt as a non-profit to provide this community’s STEAM academies. Now, for MORE students to continue to maximize their individual potential, for CLF to be able to maintain quality, we know as a business leader and citizens in the same community’s we serve that you would understand and empathize with this reality: staying on top is harder than the climb. That’s why we’re doing things a little different for this year’s 6th Annual CLF CultureFEST. Please let me know if you are able to participate (as little as $150) to secure a vendor booth. Perhaps even just a THEME BASKET to donate for our silent auction (hobbies like golf, or a dinner & movie date night, perhaps a new baby gift basket, or your cool company brand/promos, tech gear, collectibles, rare items that help us draw a crowd, etc.)! Perhaps this is the year we put your company name next to ours for co-sponsor naming rights ($10K) to our harvest-style CLF CultureFEST? Please, help us reach our philanthropic goals for STEAM education programs. Our shared business benefits are already compounding. Come further with us; expand your company’s footprint with our education community! Let’s celebrate our cultures & show folks on Nov. 3 from 10am-4pm that you support MD's #1 public STEAM schools by supporting our annual festival! Remember we at CLF, like all our STEAM schools, are all 501c3 not-for-profits. Know when you give, its totally a tax-write off, too. Please, we really do need our community’s support to sustain success. $1, 1 hour to volunteer, 1 fwd to the right company. Our festival is the platform, but I’m really just asking you to have fun with us in the spirit of thankfulness for the same community’s we live, work, and serve. Find all details attached for quickest Q&A are my event team. Mr. Johnson (djohnson@clfmd.org) handles vendors, graphics, and philanthropy and Mr. Bicer (cbicer@clfmd.org) here is on live performances/music and coordinating with school staff/event volunteers. I’m happy to answer any Qs related to these areas or event info in general towards making sure our two companies work closer together in the future. If nothing else, come to our family-friendly festival. IMPORTANT DATES: Wednesday, Sept. 26: CultureFEST Crew Kick Off Party (Volunteers only) Monday, Oct. 1: 5K Philanthropic Goal Wednesday, Oct. 3: CultureFEST Crew Philanthropic Focus Meet up (Volunteers Only) Monday, Oct. 8: 7K Philanthropic Goal Wednesday, Oct. 10: CultureFEST Crew Meet-Up (Volunteers Only) Wednesday, Oct. 17: CultureFEST Crew Sign Making Workshop (Volunteers Only) Friday, Oct. 19: 10K Philanthropic Goal Wednesday, Oct. 24: Last CultureFEST Crew Meet-Up (Volunteers Only) Friday, Oct. 26: 15K Philanthropic Goal Saturday, Nov. 3: CULTUREFEST! from 10am to 4pm / 20K Philanthropic Goal Wednesday, Oct. 7: CultureFEST Crew Close-Out Party / MakerFEST Volunteer Sign Up (Volunteers Only)

The Office of Community Partnerships CLFPR@CLFMD.ORG

Greetings All, Students take the PARCC assessment every school year in grades 3-5 (at the elementary level). The results are in from the students who sat for the assessment last school year. A copy of the results were sent home with your child. Please check their back pack to ensure you receive the results. The attachments give further explanation on how to interpret your child's score and plan for this year's assessment.

Attachment(s)

Patrice Harrell-Carter
Principal

Together, your Chesapeake Lighthouse Foundation and the Bellucci Basketball Academy announces a partnership to deliver joint solutions designed to improve students basketball skills. Bellucci Basketball Academy, or BBA, is the only basketball training in New York and Maryland that applies techniques used by professional athletes across the country. At BBA, we train basketball fundamentals like shooting, dribbling, and defense and then advance those concepts to include improving speed, agility, reading defenses, and reacting to the play on the court. BBA also specializes in character development BBA is committed to these 3 core values: BBA trained athletes recognize they cannot be successful on their own. BBA trained athletes take responsibility for their choices. BBA trained athletes never quit. At BBA we look forward to sharing our professional experience and secrets of the trade with the goal of developing athletes to their fullest potential. Our programs build confidence, self-esteem, and a wide-ranging skill set that transcend the court and will be beneficial throughout life. Grades K - 5 CMIT Elementary South 10 or 20 sessions at CMIT Elementary South Gym Wednesdays Oct 3, 10, 17, 24, Nov 7, 14, 28, Dec 5, 12, 19 Fridays Oct 5, 12, 19, 26, Nov 2, 9, 16, 30, Dec 14, 21 Option-1: Wednesday 3:00 - 4:15 pm, $165 Option-2: Friday, 3:00 - 4: 15 pm, $165 Option-3: Wednesday and Friday, 3:00 - 4: 15 pm, $260 To register the program go to www.clfadvancedstudies.org/basketball

Cihan Bicer
CLF Student Activities Director

We can’t believe how quickly Week 3 flew by! For Reading, the students have been reading the story, “Because of Winn-Dixie.” We worked on sequencing the events in the story to guide us in forming summaries. Additionally, we read a review of the movie, “Because of Winn-Dixie.” We spoke about how an author’s purpose is to persuade his/her audience when writing a review. We then applied what we learned through writing our own review of the story, “Because of Winn-Dixie.” For Social Studies, the students continued to practice describing the different types of landforms that can be found in the United States. We discussed the reasons why the United States has so many different types of landforms. Lastly, we talked about how the United States is divided into five regions and discovered that we live in the Northeastern region. In Science we began our first exploration of experiments by making observations about popped popcorn and unpopped popcorn. We weighed both popped and unpopped popcorn, and will graph our results. We are learning to be scientists by writing observations in details, and discussing inquiries in depth. In Math we are digging deep into understanding place value. Students are identifying the place of a digit in a number and the value it holds, as well as writing in standard form, expanded form, and word form. As many of you already know we worked in class to set up an interactive notebook for place value. Students are able to use this to test themselves (or be tested). Directions can be found on class dojo. Please make sure you are checking in on our class stories periodically, and do not hesitate to reach out with any questions you may have! ~The 4th Grade Team~

Ms. Nicholls

This year I will be sponsoring the paws club! PAWS Club is a service club that helps promote awareness for animals. We also hold an annual drive throughout the school to donate to the local animal shelter. This club is open to 13 students in grades 3-5 We will meet on Thursdays from 3-4pm. Parents must arrange pick up for your child if you would like them to attend at 4pm. We will meet in the cafeteria and then walk to my room 135. https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0f4ba8ae2da4fe3-paws

-Ms. Pavignano

Hi all! We wanted to announce that Yoga Club will be starting on October 2nd. The club will meet on Tuesdays at 3pm. Parents are expected to pick up their child at 4pm. If you are late to pick up your child on more than one occasion, your child will no longer be able to participate in the club. The club is available for students in all grades. In this club, your child will be able to learn basic yoga poses that will promote strength, flexibility, and coordination. There will be many opportunities for your child to practice breathing and relaxation techniques. Additionally, your child will be able to practice working as a team with other children during yoga games. For yoga club, we please ask that you purchase one yoga mat for your child. To sign up for yoga club, please use the link below: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0F48A5A72BA6FC1-cmit Space is limited, therefore, it will be first come first serve. Since both Ms. Nicholls and Ms. Girch will be running the club, if one teacher is absent, the other teacher will run the club independently. If we are both absent and unable to run the club, we will notify parents via email. We both can’t wait to start! ~The Fourth Grade Team~

Ms. Nicholls

Happy Friday Parents! This has been a great week of school. Students attended their first assembly about the School-wide discipline plan and were formally introduced to their Principal and Vice Principal. In Reading, students worked on building a Literacy community. We were able to review How to create a summary, and we finished with an online game that tested the students knowledge. We will be introducing Guided Reading small groups next week. This is where I will meet with students and discuss concepts and idea in a smaller setting. Also, on October, We will have school clubs. My club will be a Chess club. I am opening it to 4th and 5th graders. If you are interested,I will send a sign up sheet for parents to sign up their students. We will meet once a week on THURSDAYS at 4 pm. In the event of my absence, there will be no club. I will send that email out to all registered parents. As always, thank you for the privilege of educating your students.

Victor Hawkins 5th Grade Reading / Language Arts

Hello parents! This week in 1st grade art, students began designing the compositions for their stained glass inspired projects. Last week, we discussed directional lines such as horizontal, vertical and diagonal. Students had an opportunity to use directional lines to divide space and create shapes on paper. Our next steps are to fill in the spaces with color in order to create a stained class resemblance. Starting October 1st, Art club will begin!!! Sign up is available only to students in grades 3-5. There will be 15 open slots for students to sign up. An email will be sent out where parents can sign their child up for the club. There will be a $10 charge fee to cover art supplies. Please write checks out to Chesapeake Lighthouse Foundation. Art club projects will mostly be collaborative and geared toward enhancing the school’s aesthetic appearance. For planned cancelations, parents will be notified via email in advance or the morning of for unexpected cancelations. Please email me with any questions or concerns.

Brittney Frei

Happy Friday! The students have been working so hard to finish assessments and I do believe that they are finally all settled in to their fifth grade year! This week in Math we covered Adding/Subtracting decimals and Rounding and Estimating decimals. I encourage you to go over the different place values with your children to reinforce what we have been learning. Next week we will be covering how to Multiply and Divide decimals. In science we continued our conversation about the constellations and the students have been encourage to look up at nighttime and do a bit of stargazing! A few housekeeping things to mention, homework for my classes will always be due on Monday, and students will also be assessed in Math every Friday. Students will be sent home with a Math Feedback form that they will fill out so that families can discuss and be aware of how they are doing every week. This provides a time for students to reflect on how they have done and to plan ahead to continue their success or how to increase success for the following week. The days are going to start getting colder in a bit and I wanted to remind you all that the only jackets that are to be worn in the building are the jackets with the CMIT logo on it. On another note, we have had a few students who have been sick at school, it is beginning to look like there is a small bug going around. Please encourage your child to wash their hands often and please use whatever precautions you deem necessary. As a reminder students should not be sent to school if they have a fever, we love our students and want them to feel their absolute best! I am super excited to announce that clubs will officially start at CMIT South Elementary on October 1! I will be sponsoring the Little Einstein Tigers! This club will be a homework club for students in grades 3-5, max 15 students on Mondays 3-4p. Students will have a chance to get homework done and to have extra help with tutoring. If you would like for your child to attend you can sign them up at this link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0F48ACAC23A2FB6-little As always if have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask! I can be reached via email or ClassDojo.

-Ms. Libebe

We have been working hard in the Blue Hallway! This week we have started lessons on brand new, interesting topics and answer questions such as the following: ELA - How do we retell a story? Math - How do we solve story problems? Science - What do engineers do? Why do we have day and night? Social Studies - What is a community? Who are our leaders? We would also like to announce that after-school clubs are beginning on October 1st! There are a wide variety of clubs to join and if you find one that interests you, the 1st Grade Team encourages you to sign up! Have a wonderful weekend!

Ms. Brown, Ms. Fleet, Ms. Madison, and Ms. McDonagh

Kindergarten is so much fun when the students can play outside. We are so happy the sun is shining again and we can get outdoors. It does make a huge difference in our classes. RELA Students have learned the sight words “I” and “can”. They are listening to stories and learning what an author and illustrator does. As the students listen to the books, they are learning the concepts of print which is the beginning of reading. Students are also engaged in recognizing new letters each week. This week we have worked on the letters I, J, K, L, M, N. We also continue to go over expectations in the classroom. There is a lot to learn for someone who is five but they are doing GREAT! Social Studies This week we continued learning about being a good citizen. We learned about and discussed the rights and responsibilities we have at school and at home. Science The Kindergarten students were scientists this week. They were explained what a prediction was and then had a chance to try it out. They had to predict what would float and what would sink in water. Students were very surprised at the outcome. The students were very excited about being scientist and can not wait for the next experiment! Math Students have continued working on their counting and working on cardinality. We use songs, manipulative, and interactive worksheets to have students count sets and hopefully work their way up to 100. We have been comparing numbers and working on writing our numerals. We will continue improving these skills throughout the school year. Please remember to pack a water bottle and snack for your student. Thanks, Kindergarten Team Ms. Cunningham, Ms. Curtis, Mrs. Derfler & Ms. Lucas

Amy Derfler

Hello Tigers! As we prepare to end the month of September, I would like to congratulate my students on their behavior when transitioning to classes and overall behavior. It has been an adjustment for us all and they did an amazing job. As we are preparing to schedule field trips please keep in mind that if you would like to volunteer that you need to be finger printed and let myself or Mrs. Baynham know that you have done so.

Ms. Michelle Phillips

The image above explains it all. Make reading a priority.

Patrice Harrell-Carter
Principal

Dear Parents/Guardians, Week 3 is almost over and I can see in the student's enthusiasm as we started our first unit that they can't wait to see what's next. Next week for grades K-2 we will be working on the other half of the locomotor movements; skipping, leaping, walking, galloping. For our upper grades 3-5, they already did most of the locomotor movements so all that is left is running and jogging. We will discuss heart rate as it pertains to exercising through running and jogging. Starting on October 1, 2018, I will be starting an after school club called "Sports Mix" every Monday from 3-4 pm. This club is only for 3-5 graders due to the complexity of the material we will be covering and the skills needed to perform. I will be starting up a club for grades K-2 after winter break called "Group Fun" which will also be every Monday from 3-4 pm. This group will focus more on playing various games in teams and learning how to work, communicate, and problem solve in a group setting. If I ever happen to be absent on a Monday, I will announce my absence in a newsletter, email or put a message into the morning announcements for students to make arrangements to be picked up. The cost of the club is $5 and the check needs to be made out to CLF. (checks only, please) Due to the anticipated number of students who may want to join, I will only be accepting 30 students into the Sports Mix club ( in order to maintain a manageable teacher-to-student ratio ) and the sign up process will take place online at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0F48A9AE2FA3F58-grades The first 30 students to sign up will be placed on my roster. It will be a requirement for both parents and students to sign an "expectation" agreement about behaviors while in the club and a "picking up on time" policy. I can't wait until I get to see all the students who come out and showcase their skills. Sports are my passion and I always love sharing that with those who want to better themselves in the field of athletics !

Garrett Loomer P.E. Teacher - K-5 CMIT South Elementary

Career Club will be open to Grades K-5 and will meet on Mondays from 3-4! Come learn about all of the careers that you could possibly have when you get older, and find the ones that interest you! The club will be run by Ms. McDonagh and Ms. Madison. If you are interested, please sign up using the link below! https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0F48A5A62CA0FA7-career

Ms. McDonagh and Ms. Madison

Book Club will be open to Grades 3-5 and meet on Tuesdays from 3-4! Come discover new authors, genres, places, and more! The club will be run by Ms. Fleet and Ms. Madison. If you are interested sign up below! https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0F48A5A62CA0FA7-book

Ms. Fleet and Ms. Madison

Greetings, The students practiced classroom procedures and policies for two weeks. They learned their responsibilities and what I expect to do or not to do from them. This week the students met the Lego boxes: K-2 grades built a pinwheel with wings and observed how fast it whirled round. 3-5 grades built a machine with gears and recognized that how fast or how slowly one gear makes another turn depends on the number of teeth on the gears and their position. Please find as attached what the students built. Math club will be started in October for 3-5 graders. The students will discover mysterious math in the real life. They will learn how to solve math & logical games; then they will prepare to attend competitions of MOEMS and PERENNIAL MATH. There are only 8 students can attend the club. It will be on Mondays after school. The time is 3:50-4:50. Only students who are in enrichment will be able to sign up for this club. Lego & Robotics clubs will be started in October for K-5 graders. Mrs. Derfler will be a support-teacher. The club will be offered on Tuesdays. The time is 3:50-4:50, and it is also offered to the students who are in enrichment. The students will practice building machines and using the coding software. Only 12 students will be able to sign up.; fourth and fifth graders who sign up will enter the First Lego League. Dates will be posted soon. Looking forward to a very successful school year.

Sincerely, Esra Keskin Lego & Robotics Teacher

Hello parents and students, With October around the corner, extra curricular activities will be starting in no time. As the music teacher, I will be in charge of after school band for 4th and 5th graders. From what I've seen, students have been showing a lot of interest and are anxious to get started. After school band will incorporate all concert band instruments (most students start out with saxophone, clarinet, flute, trumpet, trombone, and snare drum) which can be rented or purchased at local music stores. Students must provide their own instrument and music book (having their own sheet music stand is not required but is highly encouraged). Please see links below for materials references. I have also gotten multiple inquiries about string orchestra, piano, and music technology activities. If this first semester goes well with concert band, then there is a possibility we may be able to add other after school music activities in the future. In the meantime, feel free to contact me and I can refer private lesson instructors outside of school. Thank you and I look forward to making great music with our students! Instrument Rental (click on "Rentals" and type in your zip code) https://stores.musicarts.com/oxon-hill Band Book- Essential Elements Book 1 https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=essential+elements+book+1 Music Stand https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07D5KK26W/ref=sspa_dk_detail_4?psc=1&pd_rd_i=B07D5KK26W&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_p=f52e26da-1287-4616-824b-efc564ff75a4&pf_rd_r=S7JF9999Z63VH8GTF508&pd_rd_wg=bjCHx&pf_rd_s=desktop-dp-sims&pf_rd_t=40701&pd_rd_w=7FI8y&pf_rd_i=desktop-dp-sims&pd_rd_r=1813a74f-bcdf-11e8-a216-dd230e49624b

Jared Bailey Music Teacher CMIT South Elementary

Greetings Parents/ Guardians, Students will receive the Parent Letter and Log in Card his week. Please check your child username and password. Practice to log in with your child. Instructions are provided in the Parent Letter. I attached the Parent Letter in the newsletter. Thank you Mrs. AK Technology Teacher

Attachment(s)

Mrs. Ak

Parents we have come to the end of week 3, and all educators are learning the dynamics of your precious gems' personalities. There are those who are funny, some that are intellectual, some that are very energetic but all are very special in his or her own personality. After getting to know several of our students this week, I realize there are social behaviors which we-parents and educators- will have to work together in the effort of the healthy development of all students. Social development refers to the process by which a child learns to interact with others around them. This week I would like to pose the questions? What are your concerns in regards to the social development of your students? What social behavior are you encountering from your student? How socially develop is your student? What areas of development would you like to become more knowledgeable? I look forward to hearing from you and we work towards developing a phenomenal counseling program in the best interest of you and your students These answers and any other suggestions that you have can be sent to me at ddavis@cmitsouthes.org https://www.scanva.org/support-for-parents/parent-resource-center-2/social-development-in-children/

DM Davis Professional School Counselor CMIT South ES ddavis@cmitsouthes.org

Parents/Guardians, We have just completed our third week of school. Everyone is excited to be here. That excitement on the part of students often spills over into uncontrollable and unnecessary behavior. As educators, we know that all students with support, encouragement and reminders will give of their best. They will become world renowned scholars. Please help us make this possible. Give that talk in the car as you drive to school in the mornings. This is the best way to beat the traffic:) Talk about respect for self, teachers, school, friends and hard work. Ensure that all homework is done before bed. Read to your children and listen to their conversations Please encourage and support the teachers as they plan meaningful lessons to engage our scholars. Take part in the PTO. Pay your dues of $20.00 and let your voice be heard. The world will be a better place when we invest in our children, not only through what schools have to offer, but also investment in making positive choices each and every day. Our students are learning about being a true CMIT TIGER. Help them ROAR!

L. Watkis (Assistant Principal)