The Patriot Parent Newsletter
March 2022 Brooklyn Park Elementary School
Mr. Walker's Desk
Dear Brooklyn Park Community,
Is it safe to say "Spring has arrived"? We had a few days of above-normal temperatures and now another cold front has arrived. Despite the changes in weather, I hope everyone is doing well. Hopefully, we are on a positive pathway with Covid 19 and our prayers are with the Ukrainians. Now more than ever, we need to be thankful for our family, faith, and health. Please take a moment to review the following updates
Absences
Although my message is similar to January, our February attendance needs improvement. I understand some Covid 19 concerns, but we need our students in class. Our lowest attendance days are half days, late arrivals, and early dismissals. Each moment in the classroom matters and our curriculum is aligned to college readiness. My goal is to prepare our kids to compete locally, nationally, and internationally with other students. I have hired the best teachers and staff to support our kids, but I need them in school.
Cell Phones
Cell phones should be turned off during the instructional day. I know many students make calls on the bus or after school. My daughter takes the school bus, so I understand the safety of having a cell phone. Yet, we have had several situations where students called parents during the instructional day. Students should speak with their classroom teacher if there are concerns and not call home during the instructional day. Parents/guardians, we need your support.
Woman's History Month
During morning announcements, we will highlight the contributions of women. The classroom teachers will also be celebrating in their classrooms. On Fridays, we will wear red, pink, or white in honor of the achievements of w
We look forward to another great month..
Mr. Walker
Lost and Found
Attendance Matters
During second marking period, Second grade had the highest attendance percentage with 88.96%. We are already halfway through the 3rd marking period! Please make sure your children are in school every day.
If your child misses school, please contact the main office or your child's teacher and let them know the reason. If your child is absent for more than 3 days, he/she will need a doctor's note when they return. You can contact the office at 410 222 6590 between 8:45-2:45, Monday-Friday.
Before & After Care
Here is a link to our website where it walks the parents through registration processes. Parents will need to create an account to sign up for the program.
New Wall Mural Painted By Ms. Fitzmaurice
Classroom News!
Pre-Kindergarten
As we enter March, we will be learning about the letter people; Zz, Ii, Vv & Ll. We will also start our new unit about Living Things. We will study things that grow, what living things need (plants & animals), and how animals grow and change. In math, we will be focusing on adding to 5 using pictures, stories, and manipulatives. We have a lot of fun projects coming up in March and we will share them as they occur via dojo and our weekly newsletters. Thank you for your continued support!
Kindergarten
Hello Kindergarten families! February was such a fun month in Kindergarten. We celebrated Valentine's Day and our 100th day of school! In March we will continue working on writing opinion stories. Opinion stories are stories that tell how you feel about something. We also have been working on explaining why we feel the way we do! During literacy, students have been working hard on independently reading books, identifying letters/sounds, and building sight words. Please continue to encourage your child to practice their letter sounds and sight words at home! In math, we have been learning how to add and subtract numbers through 10. As always, continue to encourage your child to work on I-Ready math while they are at home. In social studies and science, we have been learning all about weather. We will have conferences on March 7 and 8th. Please keep an eye out for a sign up on Class Dojo. We will also be taking a field trip to Downs Park on May 6th and will need some activity leaders and chaperones. More information will be coming soon, but please save the date! Please reach out to us if you need anything, we are here to support you!
First Grade
It's hard to believe it is already March! This month we will be working on exploring tens and ones and comparing two-digit numbers. In writing, students are working on expanding on their ideas and using correct conventions--spelling, punctuation, and capital letters. Students are continuing to work on their tapping out strategies from Fundations and are working hard in guided reading groups. In science and social studies students will be exploring light and sound. We will hold conferences in March. You will be contacted by your child's teacher if they would like to meet to discuss your child's progress. Please continue reading at home and turning in homework each Monday! We are preparing students for second grade and it is important that students are completing all of their work and turning assignments in on time. Please reach out to your child's teacher if you have any questions or concerns!
Second Grade
Dear Parents and Guardians,
As the year continues to progress, we have started the year off by reviewing school rules and expectations. Students are expected to be a STARR patriot every day. STARR stands for Safe, Team, Accepting, Responsible and Respectful. Please review these expectations with your child. In Math, we just started working on building three-digit numbers. Students are learning model these numbers with place value blocks. We will continue to review addition and subtraction with regrouping, telling time to the 5 minute mark and counting money. In Writing, we are starting our Opinion Unit. We are and will continue to work on capitalization, punctuation, and spelling. In Science and Social Studies, we are learning about economics: needs, wants, good, services and how these concepts help us to make decisions. In Reading, we will continue to tap out sounds and work on comprehension strategies. We will be looking at different points of view of characters, text features in non-fiction texts, and determining the message of a text. Please continue to encourage your child to practice their reading and math skills daily! We appreciate your support from home! Please feel free to reach out to your child’s teacher if you have questions.
Third Grade
Reading
Just like jumping rope makes our heart stronger, reading makes our brain stronger! Please encourage your child to select books from the school library. Your child visits the media center each week and has the opportunity to select books of their choice to read for enjoyment and practice the reading skills they are learning during their Guided Reading lessons. Reading books before bedtime is a wonderful way to spend some quiet time with your child. They can read to you, you can read to them, or you can take turns reading to each other. This is a great opportunity for your child to practice reacting to a text. They can verbally share with you what they thought was interesting in the text, what was funny, what was confusing, what they loved, what surprised them, or what shocked them. The more they read, the stronger their brain muscle will get!
Math
This month our Mathematicians will explore using models and fraction tiles to create equivalent fractions. Students will also revisit the relationship between multiplication and division through word problems. We will continue focusing on fact fluency. Students should be fluent with the 0s, 1s, 2s, 3s, 4s, 5s, and 10s facts. This is such an important skill. Please ensure they are practicing daily. They can use First in Math to help them practice. Thank you for your support.
Writing
In writing, we are writing opinion essays and including details to support our opinion. We are also addressing counterclaims to refute what others might say to disagree with our opinion. Please continue to encourage your child to use capital letters to start every sentence, the pronoun “I” and acknowledge proper nouns. It is also important to remind young writers to end each sentence with the appropriate punctuation and use letter sounds to help them spell unfamiliar words.
Science
In Science, we are starting to investigate and classify fossils and the fossilization process. As part of our investigations, we'll talk about both living and extinct organisms and ways to identify them in fossils. Later, we will begin exploring the effects environmental change has on animals. By the end of the unit, your student should be able to identify changes in environments and discuss how those changes impact the lives of the animals in that environment.
Social Studies
In Social Studies we've been having conversations about money and are in the beginning stages of planning for a budget. As we progress, we'll explore how to use money to produce goods and services and even talk about the economy on a global scale. Continue to have discussions about money and find ways for your student to develop some financial literacy. Some easy ideas include earning an allowance, making a savings goal for a new item they want, and earning money by doing a service (ex. snow shoveling).
Fourth Grade
March is fun in 4th grade!! In Math we are going to begin to multiply fractions by whole numbers and then get into decimals. It is very important to ensure your 4th grader is practicing their multiplication facts every night for this skill to come easier to them. Multiplying fractions gets harder next year so we want them to have a solid foundation this year. In Language Arts we are going to keep going with fictional text elements and taking a deep look at the themes of text and how to support them. In Writing we are going to be doing opinion and persuasive writing. Be sure to make them persuade you the next time they ask to do something!! Give REASON!!! We will be ending our unit in Social Studies with the Declaration of Independence and moving into Science and getting ready for our Arlington Echo Field Trip on April 1. Please be sure to send in all permission slips ASAP for us to plan for this trip! This field trip is a ton of fun and apart of our science curriculum for 4th grade! If you have any question or concerns please don't hesitate to reach out to any of us!
Thanks and BRING ON SPRING!!
Ms. Nauman, Mr. Sheehan, Ms. Dacus and Mrs. Latorre
Fifth Grade
As fifth grade is approaching spring, students will begin testing with MISA in March. Students will need to make sure they have headphones and charged computers daily. Students must also, bring their computers to school daily. Students complete many tasks on the computer and need to learn the tools needed to be successful on their tests. At home, students should continue to work on i-ready and practice math/reading daily. It is important that students are in attendance daily at school to ensure that they are not missing any important information. If students are absent, please send a note or dojo message to the teacher in order for your student to get marked appropriately.
Reading: In third quarter, students have been focusing on determining the theme of a story. The remainder of third quarter, students will continue to determine the theme but of a poem. Students are working on applying text evidence to support their thoughts and answers.
Math: Students have begun unit 10: operations with decimals. This will consist of adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing decimals. It is important that students continue to utilize their multiplication facts as well as regrouping when adding or subtracting.
Social Studies: In fifth grade, we have looked at what led to the American Revolution and many wars that have taken place during the American Revolution. Students are going to take a more direct look at the different sides of the war, articles of confederation, and economic effects of the war.
Science: In March, students will take the MISA assessment. This is an assessment that focuses on science standards from Kindergarten to 5th grade. Students will begin reviewing many of these concepts in the following weeks as well as practice in preparation for the MISA assessment.
ESOL
K: Differentiating among weather patterns
1st : Researching inventions
2nd: Creating A kindness quilt
3rd: Studying regions of the World
4th: Looking into Potential and Kinetic energy
5th: Understanding properties of matter
Tracy Burke, P.E.
Students have celebrated national heart month by learning how to check their heart rate and by participating in hopping, jumping, leaping, and jump rope activities. At the end of the month, students will participate in a variety of rotations designed to showcase their jumping skills and celebrate their healthy hearts. This special event will mark the end of our Kids Heart Challenge. If your student is collecting donations to support the American Heart Association, please send in any checks or cash donations by Friday, March 11 so I can submit the paperwork for our school. Thank-you gifts typically arrive within 4-6 weeks after submission.
In March, students will participate in a bowling unit. We will turn the gym into a bowling alley complete with carpet lanes, ten-pin bowling balls, and colorful pins. Students will practice and improve their bowling technique, learn how to keep score, and work cooperatively to help their bowling lane run smoothly.
Water Bottles
Testing
For testing, it is important to have a good night's sleep and a healthy breakfast.
Carolina Montenegro, Bilingual Facilitator
Crisis Response System
Laura E. Wells, LCSW-C School Social Worker
(410) 222-6590.
Computer Parent Night
Title I News
March 21, 2022 we will have a Title I Parent Committee meeting. We will be analyzing iready usage data and learn the benefits of the iready program.
Here is our Schoolwide Title I letter that was sent home with students earlier in the school year.
Here is our School Wide Title I Plan for you to view. The plan is also located on our school website.
After you have viewed the Title I Plan, you are able to leave feedback.
The feedback will be used to help us improve our Title I Plan in the future.
Thank you!
Brooklyn Park Elementary
Connect, Engage and Discover
Email: erwalker@aacps.org
Website: https://www.aacps.org/Page/4088
Location: 200 14th Avenue, Baltimore, MD, USA
Phone: 410-222-6590
Twitter: @BParkElemAACPS