Thurmont Primary School News
September 2021 - Volume 2
Principals' Message
Dear Families,
During our Start With Hello Week celebration last week we were reminded of the importance kindness, acceptance and inclusion makes in our school community. Students enjoyed meeting and greeting new friends during lunch and recess. We also learned about our unique hobbies/interests, favorite colors and favorite sports/teams.
We will continue to focus on Social Responsibility, one of our Habits of Work, throughout the year. Please see the image below for examples of what social responsibility looks like during school days and in our daily lives.
During October, we will celebrate World Smile Day on Friday, October 1st and National Stop Bullying Day on Wednesday, October 13th. Look for more information to be shared on how you can support and encourage social responsibility that contributes to our positive and safe learning community.
Yours in education,
Michele Baisey
#BetterTogether
#CourageofaCougar
Safety Week
Each year schools are required to complete safety drills that help to prepare all students and staff for a variety of potentially dangerous situations. TPS will be conducting these drills during the week of October 4th. Information on each drill, from the FCPS Security & Emergency Management Website, is provided below.
- Evacuation – Students and staff move to an area outside on campus or to an off-campus location.
- Lockdown – All doors are locked, no one enters or leaves, students and staff stay inside until the emergency situation clears.
- Lockout – All individuals move inside the building and lock the doors. Exterior doors remain locked with only authorized access to the building, no students are allowed outside unsupervised, and activities are conducted as usual inside.
- Severe Weather – During severe weather, such as a tornado, students and staff seek shelter immediately using ground-floor interior hallways. They are brought in from portables and outside activities. They stay away from windows and doors with glass and avoid rooms with free-span ceilings such as gyms and cafeterias.
- Shelter – Exterior doors remain locked; air handling units are turned off to protect students and staff from potential hazards outside.
- Avoid, Deny. Defend – In the event of violence or the threat of violence on school premises, staff will instruct students to move as quickly as possible away from the threat to avoid danger, to deny access with barriers and remain quietly out of sight and, if necessary, to defend themselves.
- Drop, Cover and Hold – In the event of an earthquake, students and staff drop to the ground, taking cover under a sturdy desk or table and holding onto something sturdy until shaking stops; they carefully exit the building afterward.
How Children Become Strong Readers & What Can YOU do to Help
Why do you read? What do you read? It is so important for us to help our children learn to read and write. YOU are a very important part of helping your child to become a reader and to feel successful. Learning to read is difficult. Children learn the names of both upper and lowercase letters. Once they learn the names of the letters, they learn the sound or sounds that each letter makes. We know that some letters make two sounds and some letters work together to make sounds. Learning to read involves our children doing many things at the same time. They have to look at the letters, make the sounds and blend the sounds together, they have to understand what the words mean as they read, they learn to read more quickly which we call fluency, and they read to understand what the text is all about.
What does it take to be a strong reader?
- Print Awareness - understanding the parts of a book and what print is.
- Phonological and Phonemic Awareness - recognizing and being able to hear the sounds in words we speak.
- Phonics - connecting the letters to their corresponding sound.
- Fluency - reading with expression and accuracy
- Vocabulary - knowing what the words we read mean
- Comprehension - understanding what we read.
What can you do to help your child become a better reader?
- Model reading yourself. Let your child see you reading.
- Visit the library to check out books you and your child will enjoy reading.
- Establish a time to read with your child, even if it is only 5 to 10 minutes.
- Choose a night of the week to spend reading instead of watching TV.
- Write notes to your child. Then, encourage them to write back to you.
- Have your child read to a younger sibling, relative, neighbor or friend.
- Encourage all of your child’s reading efforts.
School Picture Day - Monday, October 25th
Look for information, including online ordering and print picture form options, to be shared via Find Out First.
Last Call - FARM Benefits Applications
We are 3% away from the minimum percentage (40%) which will provide our school with funding and resources. Every single form submitted helps our school!
The deadline to submit your form is Friday, October 1st. We appreciate all those families who have already submitted a form and any additional ones which are provided by the end of the week!
If you have not yet returned the form for your child please access the links below or call the school for assistance.
PTA Support
- planning family fun events like donuts with grownups and the fall festival
- supporting school sponsored events like the book fair
- organizing spirit wear fundraisers
- providing funds to support literacy, mathematics, STEM and more
- offering staff reimbursement for classroom expenses
If you are interested in supporting TEPS with a role in the PTA please contact michele.baisey@fcps.org.
Important Dates
- Friday, October 1st - World Smile Day
- Monday October 4th - Friday, October 8th - School Safety Week
- Tuesday, October 12th - School Starts at 12:10pm - Evening Conferences
- Wednesday, October 13th - National Stop Bullying Day & School Starts at 12:10pm - Evening Conferences
- Friday, October 15th - Schools Closed - Teacher Professional Development Day
- Monday, October 25th - School Picture Day
- Tuesday, October 26th - School Closed - Teacher Work Day
Contact Information
Email: michele.baisey@fcps.org
Website: https://education.fcps.org/tps/
Location: 7989 Rocky Ridge Road, Thurmont, MD, USA
Phone: 240-236-2800
Twitter: @ThurmontPrimary