Middleton Moments - Owlet Edition
November 22, 2022
Principal's Message
Middleton Owls,
Thank you to all of you who came out to for Grandparent's Day at Arthur Middleton on November 22nd! Our students are so loved and everyone enjoyed all of the visitors smiling throughout the building and enjoying lunch with their grandchildren!
Don't forget that schools are closed November 23-25th for Thanksgiving break. Please take the much needed time to spend with your families, friends, and loved ones. Make sure our Owls get lots of rest and relaxation over the break, as well! They deserve it for all their hard work so far this year!
REMINDER:
Breakfast is served daily from 9:00-9:15. Our instructional day begins right at 9:15, which means this is when breakfast ends. If you want your student to eat breakfast at school, please ensure they arrive right at 9:00 AM so they have enough time.
Please contact our office if you have any questions or need additional information.
Sincerely,
Nicole L. Hawkins,
AMES Principal
Grandparent's Day at AMES
Thank You , Pastor Mike and Redeemed Church for the Thanksgiving Donations!
Lost Items?
If your child is missing a coat, hat, scarf, gloves, bookbag, lunchbox, water bottle, sweatshirt, or any other items, please remind them to check out the lost and found area in the school located where the Daycare Vans drop off and pick up. Once we return from the Thanksgiving break, we will be donating all items. Thanks!
Absent From School? Can I Be On Campus?
As a reminder, if your student is absent from school for the day, they CANNOT be on school grounds unless you sign them in as a late arrival. In other words, if they are home sick for the day and there is an awards ceremony, they cannot attend the ceremony (even with the parent) unless you sign them in to attend school for the day. If students are sent home from the Nurse, there is a timeframe given for when they are eligible to return to school (given by the Nurse). Thanks for cooperation with this as we work hard to keep all our students healthy!
Dates To Remember
November 23rd - 25th - Schools Closed for Thanksgiving Break
November 30th - Hootfest (Math, Reading, and Stem Family Academic Night) 6:00-7:30 (Please RSVP)
Title 1 Parent Liaison News
Hi! My name is Kristina Milam and I am the Parent Liaison with Arthur Middleton. I am a mother of 5 children, 3 of which graduated CCPS and 2 who are currently in high school.
As your Parent Liaison, my primary goal is to empower you to become an active participant in the education of your child(ren). In my role, I will work to bridge the communication between school and home by helping you get the information, help and support that you need to ensure your child(ren)'s academic and social success here at Arthur Middleton!
Please feel free to reach out to me at kmilam@ccboe.com or 301.753.1749.
AMES Title 1 Parent Compact
Please click on the attachment to read the AMES Title 1 Parent Compact. The school-parent compact is a written agreement between teachers and parents and provides an opportunity to create new partnerships in your school community. It is a document that explains what families and schools can do to help children reach high academic standards of excellence
Counselor's Corner
November is here and we are so thankful for such an amazing AMES community! Our Boo Thru was a tremendous success that made more than $400 that will go directly to supporting our students and staff. As we move into November, we have a new character trait of the month, Courage which is defined as "Being brave enough to do what you should, even when you’re afraid". It often takes courage to go against the grain and stand up for others and we encourage our students to exemplify courage in all they do. As for class counseling, I will be pushing to classes to talk about emotions and emotional management. For our youngest learners this will entail understanding strong emotions and developing coping strategies. For our intermediate learners, these lessons will help students to build their coping skills toolbox and how to navigate conflict with decision making skills and not our emotions. Our schoolwide focus over the next two months is giving! We are having a donation drive this month to provide food to our AMES families and will be collecting next month to support additional families during the upcoming holidays. As always if you are interested in giving or would like to receive additional support, please contact me at kspriggs@ccboe.com
Math Instructional Resource Teacher
As a reminder we use Dreambox as part of our Math instruction across the county. This computer-based program helps to teach grade level skills using visuals and games to complete lessons. The goal for every student is to complete 5 lessons weekly. Some time is given in class for this activity, but students may also work on this at home. These are to be completed independently as the computer is able to adjust the lessons based on their answers. Students have a goal of completing 5 Dreambox lessons per week.
To access Dreambox from home:
- The school code for Dreambox when using an iPad is: kqed/82r4
Student' logging in on laptops or desktop computers may access Dreambox through Clever.
Homework Guidelines and Tips
Purpose of Grading
Grading serves the following purposes or functions:
• Information: to inform parents and students regularly of the student’s success in learning and mastery of standards and skills
• Guidance: to promote and maintain desirable patterns of behavior and achievement and to identify areas of special ability as a basis for realistic student self-appraisal and future educational and occupational planning.
• Motivation: to encourage the student toward maximum achievement and realistic self-appraisal for future educational and occupational planning.
• Administration: to provide data for use in educational planning and decision-making
At Arthur Middleton Elementary School, we have aligned our Grading Policy to the vision, mission, and core values of Charles County Public Schools. The Grading Policy defines the grading and reporting policies and procedures that will ensure academic grades are based on clearly defined criteria representing the student's attainment of content knowledge and skills.
Homework
Homework includes all assignments designed to be completed entirely at home. The purpose of homework is to improve student learning and provide opportunities for extending learning time beyond the school day by providing practice, developing proper study habits, and fostering positive attitudes toward school work outside the school day. Current research reveals “no clear-cut consensus on the benefits of homework at the early elementary levels” and very small positive effects on student achievement in cases where it has been measured (Marzano and Pickering, 2007). Still, advocates of homework at the elementary level argue homework can help young children “develop good study habits, foster positive attitudes toward school, and communicate to students the idea that learning takes work at home as well as at school” (Cooper, 1989).
Multiple facets of student home life should be considered when assigning homework: availability of adult supervision and support with homework, amount of time dedicated to homework commensurate with the age of the student, and consideration of after-school/home activities.
When assigned, homework should be purposeful, adjusted to the level of the individual child, and related to specific subject objectives. Assignments should provide practice or extension of skills already taught or prepare students to begin a new topic or part of the course.
Assignments should be made with consideration given to a student’s schedule and should be coordinated across subject areas at each school to avoid overloading students at any particular time.
• Feedback should be provided regarding any assignment sent home for completion. Homework should be based on only content standards taught, assigned, and completed recently or spiral review at a level of difficulty that can be completed independently by the student.
• Homework should be directly related to the standards and specific learning targets.
• Homework should be viewed as formative in nature, allowing for the practice of new skills and knowledge.
• Homework may be provided as an enrichment activity for the material mastered in class.
• Homework expectations should be communicated and homework should be differentiated according to student needs.
• Homework should not be assigned as a punishment or consequence related to behavior.
• Homework guidelines, not including additional reading assignments:
v Pre-K – 2nd grade should be 10 – 20 minutes per day
v 3rd grade – 5 grade should be 30 – 60 minutes per day
Homework is given as an extension. There is NO rule that homework has to be given daily.
Teachers are NOT required to provide additional work for practice. If you have a specific concern, please contact your child’s teacher.
When your child has homework:
• Find a quiet place for your child to work.
• Provide support, but allow your child to complete the assignment unless the directions state for you to assist.
If your child does not have homework, below is a list of suggested tasks for them to complete for extra practice:
• Read for 30 minutes
• Practice reading and writing sight words
• Practice Math Facts (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division)
• Complete DreamBox, Waggle, Imagine Learning, or My Path lessons independently
• Complete other Apps found on Office 365/Clever (i-ready)
• Practice your handwriting in manuscript or cursive
• Physical Activities such as riding a bike, sports, dancing, jumping rope, walking, etc.
• Everyday activities such as helping with dinner, organizing items around the house
Arrival and Dismissal Procedure Reminders
ARRIVAL: All students will enter through the main doors (walkers, drop off, bus riders, and daycare van riders). Doors open at 9:00 AM. All students MUST be in their seats by 9:15 AM or they are considered tardy. Breakfast is served daily from 9:00-9:15 AM. Please ensure our scholars arrive on time daily!
DISMISSAL: Walkers and Parent Pick Up will be dismissed first starting at 3:45PM. Walkers will exit through the back doors of the school where the gym/cafeteria are located. It is understood that as walkers, these students ARE NOT being monitored by school staff once they leave the gymnasium exit doors for the day. They are instructed to walk home and not linger around the school. Parent Pick Up students will meet their pick up person on the side of the school near the trailers. Signs will be set up by grade level and we ask that parents line up behind their signs. If you have students in various grade levels, you will have to go to each grade level to retrieve each of your students. ONLY adults aged 18+ with a photo ID and that are on the child's emergency contact list will be permitted to pick up their student. NO EXCEPTIONS!! This is for the safety of our students and this is the policy of Charles County Public Schools. Bus riders and daycare van riders will dismiss from the front doors at the end of the school day.
No cars are permitted in the main lot during arrival and dismissal - we have a lot of students dismissing and coming from various directions during these times. To keep all our children safe, we cannot allow any cars to move through our lot during these timeframes. For the safety of all our students, we ask that you PLEASE DO NOT pull into the main lot of the school. Thanks for your cooperation!
Bus Safety Is Key (review letter with your children)
MyPaymentsPlus - Meal/Lunch Account Support
Parents who want to add money to their child’s meal account should use MyPaymentsPlus to deposit funds. Meal prices, menu items and a link to MyPayments Plus are posted online here. Parents will need their child’s six-digit student identification number to create and use a MyPaymentsPlus account. Please us the QR code below to apply for the free and reduced meals program.
Free and Reduced Meals Application
All families are encouraged to use the QR code below to apply online. This helps maintain funding at our school.
Technology Guide For Students and Parents
Please use the QR code below for technology support.
The Importance of Attendance
AMES teachers and staff are working very hard to become a school where students are achieving at their highest abilities. Regular student attendance is essential to this goal. Research shows that attendance is the single most important factor in school success. Learning builds day by day. If your child is not in school he/she cannot learn. Our passion is to teach your children and we need them here. You may be surprised at how much learning happens in one day of school.
Good habits begin early and the most important school habit is regular attendance. By building the habit of daily attendance, you’ll help your child see that school is serious and chances are you’ll also see an improvement in your child’s grades. So make every effort to get your child to school on time every day.
As a school, our goal is for students to miss “10 or less for school success.” Our hope is that each student strives to have perfect attendance. We understand that there are times when students will be absent but these should be limited and under special circumstances. Those special circumstances tend to be medical and with notes from a doctor. Students enrolled in public schools must attend school regularly Monday through Friday.
We treasure and value our time with your child and feel that regular, on-time attendance is an important piece of the academic and social development of your child. Please let us know if we can help: We hope to work together to improve your child’s attendance this school year.
Tips to prevent absences:
¨ Talk about family expectations about school attendance.
¨ Discuss family expectations for earning a high school diploma.
¨ Praise positive behaviors and achievement in school.
¨ Look for attitudes from your child that indicate unhappiness with school or fear of attending school. Listen to what they say and ask questions. Address issues of concern with the school. Start with the teacher or the counselor.
¨ Work with your child to create morning and bedtime routines.
¨ Identify a “back up” plan for getting to and from school.
Make a commitment to ensuring your child is in school EVERY DAY!
Attendance Matters
Please use the QR Code below for the Charles County Policy on attendance.
CCPS Dress Code Policy
Suggestive, provocative or excessively tight clothing is not allowed to be worn to school or to school-sponsored
activities. CCPS does not allow clothing to be worn on school property or to school-sponsored activities
which displays messages or images that are offensive, vulgar, harassing, or otherwise inappropriate for the school
setting. Clothing that is judged by the school administration to be disruptive to the orderly school process either
by virtue of the design or in the manner in which it is worn is also forbidden.
Members of the Charles County Association of Student Councils, in collaboration with parents, staff, and
community members, developed the following system-wide dress code, as amended and approved by the Board
of Education.
1. Clothing must be suitable for all scheduled classroom activities including physical education, science labs,
wood shop, and other activities where unique hazards exist.
2. Shorts and skirts are permitted as long as they reach the middle of the thigh, defined as shoulders relaxed
and arms straight down alongside the body where fingertips touch the thigh. Slits in the skirt may not rise more
than two inches above fingertips.
3. Clothing must cover the chest area, cleavage, torso, and undergarments. Tops may not be lower than midback.
4. Spaghetti straps and garments that are both strapless and sleeveless are not permitted during the school day.
5. Undergarments must not be visible at any time.
6. Pants must be secured no lower than mid-hip.
7. Ripped pants are permitted as long as rips fall below the shorts length criteria, are limited to the front side
of the leg, and do not exceed three inches in diameter above the knee. Skin exposed by all other rips must be
covered by opaque clothing that is not underwear.
8. Leggings, biker-type/spandex shorts, or joggers must be opaque and worn with a top that meets the length
expectations of shorts and skirts (see #2).
9. Backless and open-toed shoes with a hard sole are permitted as long as the shoes do not pose a safety hazard.
Foam and similar soft-soled shoes, such as flip-flops or beach footwear, are prohibited.
10. Headwear is not permitted. This includes, but is not limited to, hats, skull caps, visors, bandannas, sweat
bands, shower caps, and hoods. Scarves may be worn as a headband only. (Exceptions may be granted based
on religious and medical reasons with proper verification.) Sunglasses are not permitted except during outdoor
activities.
11. Sleepwear and sleepwear-type clothing are only permitted for certain activities, such as overnight field trips
and spirit days.
12. Clothing that displays or symbolizes any language or material that is inappropriate for school or offensive
to any group is not permitted. This includes, but is not limited to, material relating to drugs, alcohol, profanity,
obscenity, racism, gang activity and violence.
13. Formal attire must not be disruptive or distracting. Spaghetti straps and strapless formal garments are acceptable
as long as adequate coverage is maintained during the activity. Slits in skirts or other garments must
meet the expectations for the same in rule #2. Transparent attire is prohibited. Necklines may not fall below
mid-sternum. Backless garments are permitted at any formal affair.
14. The dress code is in effect for participating students at all school-sponsored events on and off campus.
Note: Administrators have the flexibility to exercise their judgment to determine if a student’s attire is considered
disruptive, distracting, or a safety hazard. Exceptions may be granted for medical or religious reasons.
Cell Phone Policy and Procedures
Charles County Public Schools allows the possession and use of cell phones and other personal electronic
devices by students. It is the intent of the Superintendent to ensure that this allowance does not disrupt the learning
environment, after-school activities, or the safe transportation of students. Students are permitted to use cell
phones while attending (but not participating in) general public events that occur after-hours and are open to
the community. The following conditions outline the standard expectations for the possession and/or use of cell
phones by students at school, on the bus or on other school-chartered vehicles.
Elementary School
- Students may only bring their phone or device with approval from the principal.
- Once approved, student must keep their phone or device powered completely off (not on vibrate or silent mode) and inside their book bag, locker or cubby throughout the entirety of each school day, unless other storage arrangements are made with the teacher.
- Once approved for school, students may use their phone or device on the bus or school-chartered vehicle, but use must not be disruptive or cause a distraction to the driver at any time. Sound must only be audible through headphones. Phone conversations are prohibited.
Birthday Treats and School Snacks (brought in from home) Guidelines
Due to allergies, students and their parents/guardians are not allowed to bring to school and distribute any outside food products unless the products are commercially manufactured, individually wrapped in single serving sizes, and are marked with the ingredients and the nutritional facts label. Parents/guardians must obtain permission from their child's teacher or school administrator prior to bringing outside food for distribution so that the teacher/administrator can review the timing and impact on the school day, the benefit and fairness to students, and other considerations.
Lunch and Other Items From Home
Please be mindful that when you are dropping items at the school for your student(s) that you bring the items in a bag with their name on it. For outside lunch items, these items must be in a lunch box, lunch bag, or brown bag with the student's name on it. This is the same for food from restaurants (i.e. McDonald's, Chic Fil A, etc.). Not all students have the opportunity to receive meals from outside the school. Therefore, we are asking that if you do drop it for your student(s) that you bring it in a concealed bag that does not display the name of the restaurant and that it has your child's name on it. If the items do not come in this way, they will not be permitted at the school. Finally, we ask that you be mindful of both arrival (9:00-9:30) and dismissal (3:30-4:00) times. The office is very busy during these times and this is not the best time to stop in to drop items or pick up materials. Please handle all office business during the hours of 9:30-3:30 daily. Thank you in advance!
Arthur Middleton Elementary School
1109 Copley Avenue
Waldorf
MD
20602
Feeder Schools: Hanson, Somers, & Stoddert Middle Schools
Total Enrollment: 600
School serves grades PreK-5
Main phone: 301-753-1749 | 301-645-3338
Fax number: 301-944-0881
School hours: 9:15 a.m. - 3:45 p.m.