Mariner News
Matapeake Elementary School
April 2023 Newsletter
MES Vision
A students will graduate with the skills necessary to pursue their professional pathway and be empathetic contributors to society.
MES Mission
The mission of Matapeake Elementary School, in partnership with families and community members, fosters a learning environment to educate and empower students academically, socially, and emotionally to prepare them for career, college and life success.
Principal's Corner
Dear MES families,
I hope you and your family are doing well and staying healthy. Please make sure to check out the entire newsletter for important information.
We received our rating from MSDE and MES is rated 5 Stars out of 5 Stars. We are also in the top 5% of all elementary school in the state of Maryland. This is truly a testament to all the hard work each and every one of our staff members do at MES. Your children should be commended for working hard and showing what they know! I am so very proud of everyone at MES.
We have some exciting events for families planned for April. Remember spring break begins 4/3-4/10. We will see all our kiddos back on April 11th. On April 18th we will have our Mariner Reading & Math Night with Food Trucks. All students have a chance to win a giant teddy bear or a telescope just by coming to MES that night! On April 22nd the PTA will be having a Fun Run at our school. More information will be coming out through the Thursday communications.
We will be beginning the process of grouping students for the 2023/2024 school year beginning in mid April. Please use the button below to provide valuable input for our team. Please note that specific classroom teacher requests will not be accepted.
STAR Students for the month of March will be recognized during lunches on April 12th. Each student will be presented with a certificate and have their picture taken, which is posted in the main hallway for the month of April. Please see the March STAR Student names using the link below.
In addition, we have had 22 Positive Referrals in the month of February! Congratulations to our hard working students. Names are listed in the link below.
Wishing you all a fabulous April!
Sincerely,
Carrie L. Mitten, Principal
Student Birthday Treats
We appreciate celebrating your Student's birthday, after all, it's a very special occasion! At this time, we are requesting ONLY pre-packaged items with an ingredient label on the food items. Due to many food allergies, we would also like to ask that your child's homeroom teacher has advance notice. The advanced notice to the teacher will give us time to contact any parents to arrange an alternative selection for that child if needed. Non-Food-related items are always welcome as a substitution!
Yearbook Sales
This year's yearbook sales are underway already! We have captured some amazing shots of our students and cannot wait to transform them into published memories! Order online at http://www.ybpay.lifetouch.com Enter code 11187323. The price for each yearbook is $25.00. This is directly through the Yearbook company.
Lost & Found
Grade Level News
PK
April is here and Spring is blooming all around us. This month we will be learning all about animals. We will continue to practice writing our letters, identifying our letter sounds, identifying rhyming words and clapping the syllables in words. We have been writing in our journals a lot and we will continue to do so this month. In math we will continue to work on number identification, using one-to-one correspondence when counting, building sets to represent numbers, counting orally to 30 and beyond. We will also introduce addition and subtraction. It is really important that your child is able to identify their numbers 0-10 and count objects in order to be successful with addition and subtraction. Please continue to support your child at home by practicing our monthly skills.
Kindergarten
Kindergarten has had so much fun learning about spring, animals, and addition and subtraction. In reading we will continue to learn about animals and animal habitats. We will also learn about different forms of transportation and U.S. symbols. In science, we will learn about where plants and animals live and how they change their environment. In social studies, we will explore more about state and national symbols. In math, we will continue to solve addition and subtraction word problems. We will also start counting and writing teen numbers. Continue to read with your child every night.
1st Grade
First Grade is flying by. Here is what your fabulous first grader will be doing in April.
Reading:
We continue to work on Unit 5 in reading: Figure it Out. Students have been talking, reading, and writing about an Essential Question related to the Big Idea "How can we make sense of the world around us?" The students are learning to describe characters based upon what they say and what they do. We have been looking for quotation marks when reading and discussing the insight they provide. The students are learning to differentiate between closed and open syllables. We have taught several vowel teams (ai, ay, ee, ea, ey, oi, oy, oa, oe, and ow) for the student's reference when they are reading text. These will be learned more in-depth for reading and spelling next year.
Math
Our focus is still on place value in math. The students are learning to decompose two-digit numbers, write two-digit numbers multiple ways using tens and ones, compare two-digit numbers and add two-digit numbers and one-digit numbers together. This month we will also start talking about time. Be sure to read the Family Letters for ways to support this new learning at home.
Social Studies
In April, students will continue to learn about economics and the choices people make. They will learn several new vocabulary words such as needs/wants, goods/services, and producers/consumers. Try using these words at home when the children are making choices concerning their money to build their financial literacy.
Science
Students will continue to learn about patterns in the sky. You can help reinforce this standard by looking at the moon and stars daily with your child to observe and describe the moon’s position in the sky. Be sure to look for the moon during the night AND the day. See if your child can find any of the constellations we have talked about in school. As a fun family project, make and name your own constellation.
2nd Grade
We hope all of our families enjoy a wonderful Spring Break! We are looking forward to our return and closing out the year with warmer weather and a lot more learning. We have finished our class books and have shipped them off for printing. We can't wait to share them with you at our Author's Breakfast when they arrive. This month, we will read and respond to fractured fairytales as well as engage in animal research to go along with our field trip to The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore on April 19th. In math, we have completed Unit 3 which included adding and subtracting numbers to 1,000 using a variety of strategies. We are excited to move on to measurement and graphing next. We want to thank everyone who has already donated a gift card for our second grade Math and Reading Night basket. We are still accepting donations of gift cards for any amount to anywhere on or around the island. If anyone would like to donate a large plant, bush or tree for this event, please let your child's teacher know. It would be greatly appreciated. With that said, thank you for your support!
3rd Grade
Happy Spring! This month in reading we will start with fun animal research projects and will really be diving into writing with compare-and-contrast essays that focus on multiple informational texts. The students always start this unit nervous about writing multiple paragraphs and end so proud and excited about their accomplishments. At the end of April, we have a fun poetry unit planned. In math, we will be starting our favorite unit, fractions! This unit offers so many hands-on and real-life applications. Be on the lookout for some fun at-home activities to practice. In social studies, we will continue to learn about the specific role the government has had in building communities both past and present, and how new ideas and inventions have changed society over time. In Science, we will be finishing up our unit on fossils and moving into life cycles and inherited traits.
April is going to be a month where our third graders are going to be able to show all they have been learning so far this year. The last week of April will be the first time these students will participate in MCAP testing. We will be spending time leading up to the test making sure the students are feeling confident and fully prepared for the rigors of state testing. We will be learning test-taking strategies, teaching them how to use the online testing tools, and getting them familiar with the testing format. We will also be focusing on working through any testing anxiety they may feel and providing strategies to help them not stress about the test. We have complete confidence that they will do amazing.
4th Grade
4th Grade is so excited to begin this spring season! We will finish up working with fractions and then move onto decimals in math class. Students will also begin working on geometry! In reading/language arts the students will continue to analyze fiction and non-fiction text structures. We will also review the narrator's point of view in fictional texts along with reviewing plot elements and summary writing. To help us prepare for MCAP we will continue to practice writing essays by pulling evidence from multiple texts on the same topic. In social studies, students will continue their journey through history by learning about colonial Maryland. Science class will finish up learning about waves and we will move into learning about plants! 4th grade is also starting to plan for a mini-career day! Stay tuned...more information coming!
5th Grade
The fifth graders at MES are busy preparing for a fun and productive Spring! This April, in reading and writing, we will be reviewing and refining our skills, in preparation for MCAP state testing. In math, we will multiply and divide fractions, convert units of measurement and review fifth grade standards in preparation for state testing. In Social Studies, we will study the events leading up to the American Revolution, and the war itself. This area of study will allow us to learn more about the founding of our nation, our founders, and the documents for the foundation of our government. In addition, our students are studying the concepts of economics and how supply and demand, scarcity, consumption, producing, and money apply to their Market Day project. Many students have already turned in their Market Day contracts ahead of the April 13th due date. Students are hard at work on their contracts and producing their items to sell on May 24th.
Friday Snack List
Cookies; Milk - $0.50 ea.
Cheez-Its; Goldfish; Fruit Snacks - $0.75 ea.
Chips; Rice Krispy treats - $1.00 ea.
Please be sure your student’s meal account has a positive balance - no snacks may be purchased if the meal account has a negative balance. Thank you for your cooperation.
Dates to Remember
General Events
4/3-4/10 - No School - Spring Break
4/12 - 5th Grade Panoramic Picture
4/12 - STAR Student During Lunches
4/14 - Family Input for 23/24 Due
4/17 - PTA Executive Board Meeting 5:00pm
4/18 - Mariner Reading & Math Night 5-7pm with Food Trucks
4/19 - 2nd grade Field Trip
4/20 - 5th grade Field Trip
4/22 - PTA Fun Run @ MES
4/24-4/28 - MCAP (5th Grade ELA & 3rd Grade Math)
4/25 - Mid Trimester Reports go home
4/25 - Bus Driver Appreciation Day
4/26 - Administrative Assistants Day
Mrs. White's Corner
MCAP Testing
Grades three through five will be taking the MCAP beginning in May. If you could refrain from making appointments during testing that would be appreciated.
April 24-27 - 5th grade ELA and 3rd grade Math
May 1-4 - 5th grade Math and 4th grade ELA
May 8-11 - 4th grade Math and 3rd grade ELA
Ms. Osborne's Reading Corner
Mrs. Herold's Math Corner
Spring brings the point of the school year where students dig deep into that grade level’s core math content. As students work with larger numbers, more intricate concepts, and unchartered math territory, encourage your children to be open to new ideas and welcome mistakes. It’s all part of the learning process! Continue to have those great math talks each night to reinforce the current math concept being taught and help show the connections with that skill between school and real-life. Practicing math facts in the car on the way to and from sports practices is a great way to squeeze in a little extra math practice and some family bonding.
Spring also brings testing season for grades 3-5. The 3rd graders will start their math MCAP test during the last week of April. In school, all 3rd-5th grade teachers will be going over effective test taking strategies to help ease any testing anxiety for students and help them make the best use of their testing time. Some things you could do at home to help prepare your 3rd-5th grader on testing days could include:
Arrive on time the day of testing, make sure they eat a good breakfast the morning of the test, and have received a good night’s rest.
Encourage your child to keep an eye on their testing time and use their time wisely.
Reinforce that as long as they worked hard and did their best, you will be proud of them!
Work on ways to ease any worries by encouraging deep, cleansing breaths and to focus on all of their accomplishments so far this year.
Keep a positive attitude about testing in general around your child and to try their best.
Mrs. Moller's Counselor's Corner
Our emphasis on social-emotional growth is an integral part of our focus at MES, and a major contributor to a positive school climate. We recently implemented a Social Emotional Learning survey that will provide a snapshot of how well versed our students are in the basics of emotional regulation.
Our expectation is that all students will be able to identify basic emotions and the associated zones, strategies for regulation, impact of behavior on others, and the importance of respecting different perspectives. The lessons taught in class as well as in small group and individual counseling sessions will concentrate on those areas where the survey shows gaps. In addition, please do not hesitate to reach out to us if you have a particular concern within the social emotional realm you would like to have addressed.
Mrs. Francis' Art Corner
In art, students will continue to explore the big idea of “Artists Connect” through observing, reflecting and responding to artwork. They will explore ways artists interact with art and other artists such as how characteristics of an artwork may influence artwork or qualities of their own art.
Kindergarten through second grade will observe subjects and characteristics of a work of art that can bring inspiration to their own artwork.
Third through fifth grade will focus on how artists connect through conveying meaning in a work of art. Students will look at visual imagery for inspiration and how artists convey messages while reflecting on this to compare personal interpretations.
Mr. Buie's Music Corner
Ms. Dailey's Computer Lab Corner
As always students in grades 3-5 spend 15 minutes of class after wrist and arm warm up using their favorite site for keyboarding, either www.typing.com or www.typingclub.com. We are using MS publisher to create Spring cards for classmates, a continued lesson from March. They are learning format, text, design and templates for creative, personal expressions. We will continue at Code.org and other various sites for learning to collaborate problem solving skills.
Pre-K and K are having fun on multiple sites learning letters, building treehouses, easter egg online hunts, math and reading. 1st and 2nd fill their time with keyboard letter recognition and practice typing at www.roomrecess.com, Starfall and ABCYa. Lesson for this month center on Spring, Responsibility, and Earth Day.
Mr. Ensor's PE Corner
Spring is here! Hopefully classes will be getting outside a bit more so please make sure kids have appropriate footwear and jackets.
During the month of April, classes will begin working on team sports and the skills associated with each sport. Grades 3-5 will practice kicking and striking skills leading to soccer, kickball, baseball, polo, and hockey. Grades K-2 will practice kicking and striking skills in small groups and begin learning about some of our field day activities.
Mrs. Clow's Media Corner
April is a big month in Media! This is the month where students vote for their favorite Black Eyed Susan Nominee! Ask your student which book is their favorite! 2nd through 5th grade continues with their big research projects culminating with a fun presentation during Media. Kindergarten and 1st grade continues to learn about being READERS and how to use books for information, what genres of books there are and connecting to different books through makerspace activities.
Arrival & Dismissal Reminder
If you are picking your child up at the end of the day, PLEASE DO NOT drive into the bus loop area. If you have a family member that is picking up your child for the first time and is not sure, please be sure to share they should not pull into the bus loop. We thank you for keeping everyone safe.
PTA News
Parent Teacher Association
MES PTA 1 Mile Fun Run & Walk!
Join us on Saturday, April 22nd at Matapeake Elementary School for a fun morning of exercise and activities with our 1 Mile Fun Run & Walk! Check-in starts at 8:00 am and the run/walk starts promptly at 8:30 am. In addition to the run/walk, some of our favorite local vendors will be joining us from Waterman Joe's Coffee and Jack Frost Snowballs with items for purchase. Pre-registration starts 3/30 and goes through 4/15 and is strongly encouraged. Pre-registration costs are $10/student and $15/non-student. Visit our website at https://matapeake-elementary-pta.square.site to register. Registration will also be available the day of the event with an entry fee of $20/person. Email the MES PTA with any questions! We look forward to seeing you and your families there!
Dates To Remember
Online Book Fair runs until April 4
April 5 - Sweet Frog Day (All Day)
April 19 - Ledo Pizza Day (11am-9pm)
April 22 - 1 Mile Fun Run
AlphaBest - Before/After Care at MES
Matapeake Elementary School
Cafeteria/Gym
Hours: 6:30-9:00 am and 3:45-6:00 pm
Pricing per week per child:
3 Day Package
3 days AM and PM $68
3 days AM OR PM $54
5 Day Package
5 days AM and PM $98
5 days AM OR PM $68
Parent Resources
Community Flyers
Matapeake Elementary School
Email: carrie.mitten@qacps.org
Website: https://www.qacps.org/mes/
Location: 651 Romancoke Road, Stevensville, MD, USA
Phone: 410-643-3105
Facebook: facebook.com/MatapeakeElementaryPTA