Let’s fight the Flu together! We are now in flu season and the best way to protect you and your family from the flu is to get vaccinated. Flu vaccines are offered at doctor’s offices, clinics, health departments, pharmacies and by many employers. Other tips to fight the flu include: Washing hands frequently Covering coughs with your elbow Sneezing into tissues Eating a healthy meal Exercising Getting plenty of rest Disinfecting frequently touched areas Differentiating a cold from the flu can be difficult. Contact your health care provider when you are unsure of your symptoms. Please keep all sick children home until they are fever free, without the use of medication, for 24 hours. Students must not have any episodes of vomiting or diarrhea for 24 hours before returning to school. Please also keep in mind that your child must physically feel well enough to be in school and learning. PGCPS, in partnership with the Maryland Partnership for Prevention and the Prince George's County Health Department, are working to bring flu vaccinations to our school next month. Please be on the look out for consent forms following the holiday break. Additional resources about the flu have been attached.

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CMIT Nurse

Happy holidays! We hope that your family is enjoying the season and everything it has to offer. As much fun as this time of year can be, it can also be challenging — especially when it comes to sticking to healthy routines. If you have trouble making healthy food choices and getting enough physical activity during the holidays, you aren’t alone. Eating healthy is hard to do when celebrations with family and friends so often revolve around food. Add a packed social calendar and travel time to see loved ones, and you have the perfect recipe for unhealthy choices. The good news is there’s a lot you can do to change that. And you don’t have to miss out on the holiday fun — small changes can make a big difference in helping you eat healthier and get enough physical activity. Here are some ideas to get you started: • Focus on portion size. You don’t have to skip your favorite holiday foods — just eat less. For example, if your family does a buffet-style meal, have 1 helping instead of 2. • Try lower-calorie versions of holiday treats. Simple changes to your favorite recipes can make them a lot healthier. Try swapping full-fat cream cheese for light cream cheese in your go-to dessert. • Find time for physical activity. Remember, even 10 minutes of physical activity is better than none. Try taking a quick walk with your family after a holiday meal or seeing if a friend wants to go ice skating on a day off. Making healthier choices around the holidays can help you feel better, have more energy, and even manage holiday stress. This year, we encourage you to think of some ideas that can work for your family. For more suggestions, check out the link below on 10 healthy holiday tips from ChooseMyPlate.gov. https://www.choosemyplate.gov/ten-tips-make-healthier-holiday-choices

CMIT Nurse

Dear Parents and 8th Grade Students, With the PSAT quickly approaching for all 8th graders, we want to send out some quick reminders. The PSAT will take place this Wednesday, December 4th. We ask that you keep in mind the importance of rest and its impact on the test. Middle school children require 9-10 hours of sleep a night. Starting earlier bedtimes as early as Sunday 12/1 through Tuesday 12/3 will assure your child is properly rested for the test on December 4th. Principal Brauer has asked all 8th grade teachers to limit assigned homework and projects on Tuesday 12/3 so that students will get their much needed rest and relaxation. Please refer to the information below to the "Whys and Whats" of the PSAT exam. PSAT - Why is it so important - Determines Eligibility for specialty programs such as: Academy of health and science, Science and Tech, Aero Space and Engineering, and other programs - Puts students on colleges’ radars - Measure of college readiness - Predictor of SAT score - Links students to personalized preparation practice through Khan Academy - Identify student strengths and weaknesses - Gives students access to Scholarships - Benchmark for middle school progress (college are looking at 9-12 grades, but they begin with PSAT scores.)- - Identification as a National Merit Scholar Key content of PSAT - Words in context: No more vocabulary in isolation - Command of evidence - Math: That matters most: Heavy focus on problem solving a data analysis. - Problems grounded in real world Contexts - Analysis in Science and Analysis in History/ Social Studies - The Great Global Conversation and US Founding Documents - Right Only Scoring: students no longer penalized for incorrect answers.

James Screven, Assistant Principal

On November 20, 2019, the CMIT Golden Tigers took the first win of our season! They played against the Judith P. Hoyer Bears with a score of 57-13. We are definitely looking forward to a great season this year. Janaia Adams

James Screven, Assistant Principal

Please come out and support our Middle School Boys and girls basketball Team. Grab a snack at the concession, have the kids take pictures with our mascot Goldie the Tiger and cheer for our kids. If you have never been to a game I can tell you it is a fun filled and exciting experience. Below is the middle school boys and girls schedule. Schedule Home 12/02/2019 6:00:00 PM Girls Home 12/04/2019 6:00:00 PM Boys Home 12/09/2019 6:00:00 PM Girls Away 12/11/2019 6:00:00 PM Boys @ Imagine Morningside Away 12/16/2019 6:00:00 PM Girls @ Bucklodge Home 12/18/2019 6:00:00 PM Boys Away 01/06/2020 6:00:00 PM Girls @ Orem

James Screven, Assistant Principal

With elections completed we are please to announce the CMIT North PTO 2019-2020 Executive Board Executive Director - Benora McCain-Wigfall High School Executive Operations Board: HS President – Wanda Finch HS Vice President – Dorothy Simmons HS Treasurer – Tarnishe Samuel HS Corresponding Secretary – Vacant HS Recording Secretary - Vanessa Oguntayo Middle School Executive Operations Board: MS President - Shawniqua Ottley MS Vice President - Latishe Boyd MS Treasurer - Adriane Clark MS Corresponding Secretary – Khadija Bowen MS Recording Secretary - Mosina Wright The Board will work to transition to this new structure as quickly as possible.

Thank you, CMIT North PTO

Dear CMIT Community I will be out of school until January 6th and therefore will be turning over the responsibility of the CMIT Middle School Newsletter to Principal Brauer's capable hands. I am sure you will receive the same great coverage and news you have come to expect. I will return to the newsletter for the January 14th edition. In the interim, I wish you and your family a wonderful, joyous and family filled holiday.

James Screven, Assistant Principal

Q: Is CMIT North MS a public school? 

A: Yes We are a public charter school who is staffed by PGCPS teachers and administration, and support staff who work along side of a limited CLF staff. We have access to PGCPS support but also benefit from additional guidance, management and financial support from Chesapeake Light House Foundation, whose educational concept this school is based on. 

Q: Do siblings get preference in applying to CMIT?

A: The process of gaining entry to any charter school in Prince George's County is through a lottery. However, siblings of already attending CMIT students are weighted differently during the lottery process. This different weighting gives preference to siblings. 

Q: What makes CMIT different then any other school in the district? 

A: Although we are a PGCPS public charter, we are given some autonomy over curriculum. This autonomy allows us to fast track students, who are academically ready, through selected high school courses in math, foreign language, science and technology. It is that fast tracking that opens up opportunity to more advanced  coursework on the college level while still in high school.  Additionally, we offer students supports and enrichments to every student, not available at most schools. Lastly, we are a uniform school which takes away the distraction, the competition and the social stratification that is brought on by non uniform dress in a school. 

Our test scores oustrip not only county averages but also state avaerages. This, along with other metrics has made us a 5 star school. 

Q: Do you offer everything the big middle and high school's offer? 

A: Unlike many school in Maryland, we do not have a  full spectrum offerings in sports.  Instead, our focus is on STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics). Therefore, our sports offerings are more limited.  We offer, boys and girls soccer, basketball, girl's softball, boy's baseball and club lacrosse in the middle school. Additionally, boys and girls basketball, track/field and volleyball at the high school level. With that said we recently (2017) won the girls county basketball championship and made it to the playoffs in soccer. Our high school opened a multi-million dollar, state of the art gym complex, competitive with all schools of their size. The middle school has also added an indoor gym space.  Lastly, we do offer special educational services, but becuase we are a school of choice, the amount of service hours we can provide is limited to 7.5 hours a week, split between literacy and math. Services hours are delivered by special education teachers but are limited to literacy and math courses.