Words to The Wise
Westowne Elementary School
A Message From Mr. Palmer
The second month of school has been busy! The Westowne staff would like to thank parents and community members for their support with the implementation of all programs. We have had many parent volunteers in the building, as well as supporting several PTA events. The Fall Fest was a success and the second annual Trunk-or-Treat went well. Moreover, Eco-Explorers, EPIK KIDs, and Black Saga clubs are up and running and all students have participated in two house days! This year promises to be a successful school year as the WES staff is steadfast in our commitment to provide a rigorous, engaging, and challenging instructional program that ensures success for the academic achievement and social/emotional/behavioral growth of our students.
The next couple of weeks will be busy at Westowne. Students are excited to participate in our third annual WES Turkey Trot and Fall Celebration on November 8, 2019. This proves to be a fun and exciting event for all our students. Ms. Impallaria and Mr. Malecki have been working hard to prepare our third, fourth, and fifth grade students to qualify for the one-mile run. Those intermediate students that can run the one-mile course in under 9 minutes, will participate in the Turkey Trot. The entire student body will be able to watch the race and cheer on our runners. It should be an exciting event. After the race, we will all take part in a craft that will benefit Catonsville Chamber of Commerce. We will end the half day of school with small Fall celebration parties in the classrooms. It should prove to be an enjoyable day!
We will also be celebrating American Education Week November 18, 2019 to November 22, 2019. Unfortunately, we are not able to welcome back grandparents as Elementary Conference Day is scheduled for Friday, November 22, 2019. The American Education Week schedule can be viewed a bit further down the newsletter. If that is not enough, First Marking Period Report Cards will be distributed at the end of the day on Thursday, November 21, 2019! Please be sure to review the report card and discuss grades with your children. If you feel a conference in needed. Please contact your student’s homeroom teacher.
I want to take this opportunity to thank our PTA for their ongoing support of our teachers and students. Please remember to sign up for the WES PTA. The $8 registration fee is minimal and the benefits to students are great!
A Message From Nurse Martin
Hello, Westowne Families! Greetings from the Health Suite!
The school year is in full swing! Almost all immunizations are up-to-date. I am always accepting physical and dental forms from doctors and dentists. If your child has an upcoming physical or dental appointment, please send me an email or give me a call, and, I will send home the form for the health care professional to complete. If your child has any type of health concern, please make sure that your child’s teacher and the school nurse are aware of the concern. It is important to make sure that all medical paperwork is in your child’s health record. If you are unsure, or, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at jmartin13@bcps.org or 443-809-0023.
Every child has a locker. It is a great idea to have your child keep a change of clothes in their locker for emergencies, for example, spills in the cafeteria, bloody nose drips on shirt, urine or feces accidents, vomiting on themselves, etc. I do have some clothing in the health suite for emergencies. If your child comes home in clothing that was borrowed from the health suite, please wash and return the shirt/pants as soon as possible. Please, keep the underwear; I cannot put used underwear on another student.
On that note, I am always accepting brand new, still in the sealed package, underwear. All sizes are greatly appreciated!
Please, send your child to school with a reusable water bottle every day. Hydration is so important for a healthy body! We do have a water consumption campaign at Westowne. More Water Monday, Two Cup Tuesday, Waterfull Wednesday, Thirsty Thursday, and Fill Up Friday are our days of the week. Water is so good for our health. Every child who visits the health suite drinks water before he/she leaves the health suite. Please help me to help keep your children hydrated.
Have a wonderful, thankful, healthy November!
Nurse Martin
A Message from The Library
Westowne welcomed author Marc Tyler Nobleman
On Monday, September 23, K-5 students heard author Marc Tyler Nobleman speak about his research and writing process. His presentation focused on one book in particular, Bill, the Boy Wonder: The Secret Co-Creator of Batman. This nonfiction children’s picture book takes a look at the career of comic book writer Bill Finger, who helped create DC Comics’ superhero Batman and, for many years, wrote the Batman comic books for little payment while Bob Kane received sole credit. Mr. Nobleman explained how he played “hide and seek” to find answers, which resulted in writing this book.
Many of Mr. Nobleman’s books have been ordered for the school library. In the meantime, please encourage your children to read his books from the public library and/or area bookstores. Bill the Boy Wonder is available on Destiny, the school library’s online catalog, as an eBook; and in TumbleBooks, which students can access through BCPS One’s Digital Content section.
The 7 Dudes Challenge
This year’s schoolwide reading program is The 7 Dudes Challenge. Each month, through April, Westowne will focus on a different genre. Each genre is represented by a Genre Dude. In May, we’ll focus on the Storyteller (a friend of the Genre Dudes).
At the start of each month, every homeroom (Pre-school through 5th grade) will receive a sheet to log books the students read from that month’s genre. The books can be read together in a class read aloud, at home with a family member, or individually by the students – they just have to be read during or after the month for that genre. (It isn’t fair to read ahead.)
Once the genre log is full, the teacher will turn it in to Miss Johnson in the library. Then the class will get a sign to display outside their classroom to let everyone know they earned their Dude for the month and a trading card for that Dude will be placed in the class’s holder in the case outside the library.
The goal is to fill in the class log during the month so the class is ready to focus on a new genre and log sheet when the next month begins. However, if a class needs more time to fill in the log, they have until the program ends in May to earn all the Genre Dudes.
BCPL Student Accounts
All BCPS students have a Student Account in the Baltimore County Public Library system. With a Student Account, BCPS students can
check out up to 5 items at a time without any extended loan fees and
access the library’s resources including online resources and downloadable books.
More information about Student Accounts will be sent home later this fall.
Eco-Explorers at Westowne
Irvine Nature Center holds a weekly afterschool program at Westowne on Thursdays from 4 to 5 p.m. This program welcomes students from kindergarten through grade 5 to learn about nature, science, and more. Participants make crafts, do experiments, meet Irvine’s animal ambassadors, explore the outdoors, and more.
The first session has focused on weather – including wind, lightening, floods, blizzards, and more. Students have met Irvine’s corn snake, American Toad and others.
The second session begins on December 12 and runs through February 20. Registration is open now on Irvine’s website www.ExploreNature.org. For more information, please contact Tara Lilley at LilleyT@ExploreNature.org or 443-738-9211
From the Library
In anticipation of upcoming events, Miss Johnson is collecting…
Paper towel & toilet paper tubes
Family-friendly sections of the newspaper (comics, etc.)
In anticipation of cold & flu season, the library would greatly appreciate donations of…
Boxes of tissues (the cube-shaped ones are preferred)
Donations can be sent in with your child to the library or dropped off in the school office (please label them as for the library). THANK YOU!!
For September & October, Owl be recommending…
I Lost My Tooth! by Mo Willems – Fans of Elephant & Piggie will enjoy the Unlimited Squirrels in this new series by Mo Willems. Friends search for Zoom Squirrels’ missing baby tooth. Includes “acorn-y jokes” and “cool facts.”
Sofia Martinez: Abuela’s Birthday by Jacqueline Jules – Sofia and her cousins are making a piñata for their grandmother’s birthday party, but when Bella the cats gets involved chaos ensues.
Also in the series Sofia Martinez: The Marigold Mess. Both books are available as eBooks through Destiny, the school library’s online catalog.
The Parker Inheritance by Varian Johnson (A Coretta Scott King Author Honor) – Twelve-year-old Candice Miller is spending the summer in Lambert, SC, in the old house that belonged to her grandmother, who died after being dismissed as city manager for having the city tennis courts dug up looking for buried treasure. When she finds the letter that sent her grandmother on the treasure hunt, she gets caught up in the mystery and, with the help of her new friend, Brandon, she sets out to find the inheritance, exonerate her grandmother, and expose an injustice once committed against an African American family in Lambert.
Ticktock Banneker’s Clock by Shana Keller – Benjamin Banneker is known and admired for his work in science, mathematics, and astronomy. He was born free at a time in America, 1731, when most African Americans were slaves. At the age of 22, he built a strike clock based on his own drawings and using a pocket-knife.
Did you know that Benjamin Banneker lived near Catonsville? The Benjamin Banneker Historical Park and Museum (300 Oella Ave.) has a replica of his clock on display in the museum as well as recreated buildings, gardens, and more. They will host a family-friendly celebration in honor of his birthday on Saturday, November 2 from noon-3 p.m.
Coming back to Westowne
on December 19
it is!
These Clothes Are Seeking Their Owners!!
Donate!! Help us be crafty!!
Westowne can help you with your extra toilet paper and paper towel rolls!! We have many teachers looking for your rolls!!
Tuesday, November 19, 2019 is Picture Retake Day!!
Events Happening in Our Community
NOV 9th - Catonsville High School PTSA Annual Craft Fair
Catonsville High School PTSA's Annual Craft Fair, held every year on the Saturday of Veteran's Day Weekend in the Gym and Cafeteria.
Saturday, November 9, 2019 at 9 AM – 3 PM
421 Bloomsbury Ave, Catonsville, MD 21228-5205, United States
Clean The Connection! Help Us Build The Short Line Trail.
We need volunteers to assist us in clearing a path from the end of the existing trail on Mellor Ave. to Bloomingdale Ave. (behind Catonsville Elementary School). Meet at 131 Mellor Ave. 21228. (across from Armory). We also need a "sit-down" volunteer to sign in volunteers.
Volunteers will be hauling yard waste to a dumpster, clearing brush and creating a new trail path. We need chainsaw and their operators. Pizza at 11:30. Rain date is Sunday, November 10.