CSMA April 2022 News!

Principal's Message

April is here and Spring has sprung! We have many exciting things planning for the rest of the school year to have a little fun. Check the important dates to see what is happening.

Our 3rd marking period has come to an end and we are in the home stretch. Be on the lookout for information from your child's teacher regarding MP3 Conferences. We will be offering in-person and virtual meetings so please select what is best for you. We will have the Scholastic Book Fair set up if you would like to shop, consider coming in person, we would love to see you in the building.

I do have to mention that I have been having a lot of conversations with classrooms regarding kindness and respect for others. At times, students feel that it is fun to tease one another in unfriendly ways and given what the world has gone through the last 2 years this is having an effect on everyone. As you know, CSMA promotes kindness and a positive school environment. I encourage students to promote positivity and not get wrapped up in negativity. Trust me, I know that is easy to do. With your support and partnership I know we can make CSMA the best place to be.

I look forward to our continued collaboration as throughout the remaining months of school. We continue to look for parents who are willing to be active members in PAC. Please contact me if you are willing to support our PAC team with organizing meetings, planning fundraisers, and volunteering to support the school. We need your help!

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Yours in partnership,

Mrs. Davis

ldavis@bridgeportedu.net

April 1st - 3-8 Grade School Spelling Bee (contestants only)

April 1st - Quarter 3 Closes

April 5th - Grades K-2 & 4-8 Field Trip to Bridgeport Islanders Game 10:30 am

April 6th - Hispanic Health Council Puppet Show at Beechwood

April 6th - Teacher PD - No Extended Day Program (3:10 Dismissal)

April 8th - 3rd Grade Trip to Institute for American Indian Studies 9:30 AM

April 11th - 4th Grade Field Trip to Discovery Museum

April 13th - 3rd Grade Field Trip to Audubon Society

April 13th - One Session Day for Report Card Conferences 4:30-7 PM

April 14th - One Session Day for Report Card Conferences 1:30-4 PM

April 14th - Spring Portraits-if you purchase a package, your child may be out of uniform

April 15th-22nd - SPRING RECESS - No School

April 25th-29th - SBAC Kick-Off Spirit Week ($1 day/$5 week)

May 2nd - SBAC Testing Begins

May 11th - One Session Day -12:50 Dismissal

May 18th - Teacher PD - No Extended Day Program (3:10 Dismissal)

Attendance Matters

Our "TikTok, On Time, On Target" Attendance Challenges have been an exciting way to encourage school attendance! Keep it up!

March winners were:

Beechwood Building -

Ms. Finch's HR 1 & Miss Falconieri's HR 4

Linwood Building - Mr. Feeney's Homeroom 306

Our next challenge begins on April 1st. We are announcing and tracking classes with perfect attendance daily. In order to earn a point for the class for the day all students must be present and on time. On time is arriving to school between 8:40-8:50 AM. Homeroom teachers take attendance at 9:00 AM sharp. If your child isn't in homeroom by then they are marked TARDY. Classes with the most days of perfect attendance for the month will be rewarded!

Basketball Team Info

4th-8th grade Girls Basketball Team will continue to practice: THURSDAYS - 3:15-5:00 PM

**Boys Basketball Team will no longer practice due to building closure at 3:30 PM Fridays!

Season has come to an end. Both teams landed in 5th place in the district. We are so proud of all our players commitment. Continue to work hard and do your best. Many thanks to our parents and especially Coach Porter and Assistant Coach Lesia for their dedication to our team and school community.

BCYL Basketball Banquet

Saturday, April 23rd at 11:00 AM

Fairchild Wheeler High School

840 Old Town Road Bridgeport, CT

(come dressed to impress - 2 guests per player)

It's Yearbook Time!

We currently have a parent volunteer working with a company to complete our 2021-2022 yearbook. More information regarding ordering and pricing will be shared soon.

If you have any pictures of school events, first day of school, etc. please email them to CSMAyearbook@gmail.com

Ms. Curri, Media Specialist

For April, we’ll be exercising our curiosity in the library. Kindergarten scholars have been asking questions about animals in our read-alouds, while fourth and fifth grade scholars have begun making observations and asking questions about reducing waste from the cafeteria. Meanwhile, middle school scholars will wrap up work on how to ethically use media created by others and begin selecting topics for independent inquiry. We’ll also be looking at and sharing poems for National Poetry Month.

We’ll celebrate reading with our Spring Book Fair, which will be up and running by April 8th! Books will be available to purchase from April 11th - April 14th, and we will be open during conferences on April 13th for families who would like to shop.

If you are interested in volunteering, contact bcurri@bridgeportedu.net for more information.

Mr. Volpe, Music Teacher

The month of March was full of many fun activities in the music room. At the Linwood Campus, students grade six to eight finished up their study on guitar with an activity where they created their own chord progressions. A chord progression is simply a written series of chords meant to be played in that order. Usually, they serve as the harmonic backbone of a piece of music. The students then learned how to perform the chord progressions that they created, many of whom sounded fantastic as I was going around listening to each student. At the Beechwood Campus, kindergarten through second grade have been digging into rhythm reading using rhythm sticks or other rhythm instruments. The students first use their rhythm words to speak the rhythm, then transition into playing them on their instrument. If your student is in first grade, ask them about the song titled, “Green Apple Tree.” So far it has been one of their favorites to sing and play. Looking forward to the coming field trip on April 5th to see the Bridgeport Islanders play. Some of our middle school students will be singing the National Anthem to open the game! Thank you for your continued support of the arts in this school!

Dr. DeAngelis, PE Teacher at Linwood

CSMA scholars have been hard at work in the Physical Education classroom during the month of March! Our work on the State of Connecticut fitness test exercises will continue and we successfully concluded our basketball unit. In April, we will focus on volleyball skills and gameplay. But before beginning the volleyball unit we will take a week to participate in activity choices and tag games. Please make sure to ask your scholar(s) about what is happening in the Physical Education classroom and be sure to check PowerSchool for grade updates!

Mrs. Smart, Art Teacher

The expressive students at Classical Studies continue to use varied mediums to create abstract art. Canvas, acrylic paint, watercolor and shading pencils just to name a few. The subjects that inspired this months artwork have been of faces, people, and nature. Students also drew sketches of queens in their lives in honor of Women’s History Month last month.

Parent Square - Home/School Communication

Please check your email for an invite to join Parent Square. Download the app to access all school and district communication. This program has replaced SCHOOL MESSENGER. Also, keep the office up-to-date with your contact information so that you continue to receive all important school/district information.

Dismissal Procedures

Please remember to send a note or email to the office if there are any changes to your child's dismissal plan. While we understand last minute changes do occur, we will not be taking last minute changes on a regular basis. A note or email is preferred and appreciated so we can plan for more timely dismissal. We appreciate your support!

Additionally, students will not be called for dismissal between 2:10 PM-2:50 PM as we are preparing for dismissal. If you know your child must be picked up early please inform the office so we can have them ready for you and so we do not disrupt the educational process in the classrooms.

Dismissal takes place between 2:50 - 3:10 PM, please make the appropriate arrangements to pick up your child from school on time, or be at the bus stop at least 10-15 minutes prior to the designated time. Elementary scholars must be met at the bus stop by a responsible adult unless a drop off waiver has been submitted. Thank you in advance for your support, your child's safety is our concern.

CSMA Dress Code

Please see information about our dress code below. All students should be in uniform daily with shirts tucked in. Grey sweatpants and t-shirts are allowed on PE days. NO LOGOS please. Hoodies and non-uniform jackets or sweaters will not be allowed. Please be sure if your child needs an additional layer over their uniform shirt it is uniform color and has no hood or logos. If you have an issue with uniforms or have any questions please feel free to reach out.

**DISTRICT POLICY UPDATE: No CROCS are allowed in school. We have had many injuries during PE and during recess. Thank you for your anticipated cooperation to keep our students safe.

Magnet School Lottery & Preschool Registration

All magnet programs closed applications on February 25, 2022. Lottery results will be emailed at the end of March/beginning of April.

Please read information below on the Lottery Process Flyer for more information. If you have any questions, please contact the office.

Preschool Registration opened on March 7, 2022. At CSMA we have a Pre-K 4 classroom. It is not part of the lottery. Pre-K is first come first serve. We are able to accept 18 students. If you have a child that is or will be 4 years old by January 1, 2023 and would like to register, please go to BPS Online Registration and complete all registration questions and upload all necessary documents. If all documents are not received, your child's registration is not accepted.

Health and Wellness

Please check your child/children for symptoms of illness daily.
If your child is feeling sick they must STAY HOME. Child must be symptom free for 24 hours without medication to return to school. We recommend doctor evaluation or testing.
If your child is NOT vaccinated and has been in contact with a COVID-19 positive individual, he/she must stay home (please see the updated CDC guidelines for the most current information)
Contact Mrs. Davis and Nurse Bristhole/Nurse Teri with any health related questions or concerns: ldavis@bridgeportedu.net; mbristhole@bridgeportedu.net; tjarzynski@bridgeportedu.net

State of Connecticut Department of Public Health Updates