February 2022 Newsletter
New Market Elementary
Message from Administration
Dear NMES Families,
Throughout this year we have been highlighting different parts of our NMES School Improvement Plan. One section of our School Improvement Plan contains Health and Wellness goals. One of those goals is: We will promote student wellness in our school. Many of the activities to support this goal involve social-emotional learning. One common activity across all grade levels is the implementation of the county-wide social-emotional learning program, PATHS. PATHS stands for: Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies. PATHS focuses on promoting emotional and social competence in children, reducing behavioral concerns and stimulating the educational process. These developmentally appropriate lessons provide time to develop:
- Emotional literacy
- Self-control
- Social competence
- Positive peer relations
- Interpersonal problem-solving skills
Click HERE if you are interested in reading more about the research behind the PATHS program.
Ask your child about what they are learning in PATHS. You can also ask them to share ways they have applied what they are learning in PATHS.
Thank you for supporting our school improvement plan and most importantly, your child! As a reminder, click HERE to view our NMES School Improvement Plan overview which contains ideas for how to help your child at home.
Mr. Bowser - Principal
Mrs. McGaha - Assistant Principal
Important February Dates
- Friday, February 4: 2-hour early dismissal (Dismissal begins at 1:25)
- Monday, February 14 - Friday, February 18 - Kindness Week (see details in Mrs. Carl's Counseling Corner below)
- Monday, February 14: Valentine's Day Parties
- Friday, February 18: Mid-term
- Friday, February 18: 2-hour early dismissal (Dismissal starts at 1:25)
- Monday, February 21: Schools and Offices closed for Presidents' Day
- Tuesday, February 22: Twos Day at NMES (See details below in Media Center Updates)
Mark your calendars for our Reading Olympics starting February 4th and running through February 20th! See details below in the Media Center Updates section of the newsletter.
Hearing and Vision Screening Information
Hearing and Vision Screening will take place on February16th and 17th for all students in pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, 1st grade and new enterers to the Maryland public school system. Maryland State Law mandates this screening. Parents/guardians who have an objection to this screening based on the tenets and/or practice of their church or religion must submit a request for their child to be exempt from screening. . All written requests must be submitted to the health room by February 14th. Please make sure if your child wears glasses or contacts that they have them on the screening days. If you have any questions please contact the health room at 240-236-1310.
PTA Information
We will have our February meeting on Wednesday, February 9th from 7-8PM. We will be discussing the school beautification project and other spring ideas. We are so excited to begin this project and discussing spring ideas. Our Google Meet info is:meet.google.com/bzr-cbrd-mfz
Please join us!
Teacher of the Year Nomination
Staff Spotlight: Get to Know Mrs. Reifer
What are your main job responsibilities? My main job responsibilities are to support the special education department, coordinate IEP meetings, provide teacher coverage and support small student groups.
What do you most enjoy about your role at NMES? At NMES, I enjoy getting to know the students and watching them grow as people throughout the year.
What is a fun fact about you that you would like to share with the NMES community? I am an avid reader of suspense and mystery novels, love building puzzles, watching Jeopardy, going Good Will hunting with my friends and cooking with my husband.
Other interesting information about Mrs. Reifer: I have been at NMES for 16 years and I can't imagine working anywhere else!
Media Center News
Winter Reading Contest
Thank you to all students and their families for participating in our Winter Reading Challenge with Beanstack! Our school has read over 85,000 minutes! The contest ends on January 31st and Mrs. Siderius will send a FindOutFirst with our school's total minutes read, along with our winning homeroom, by February 4th! Congratulations to all students caught reading by our Mystery Readers! We hope they enjoy the free meal voucher donated by Texas Roadhouse!
Twos-Day: Learning Is More Fun with a Friend!
Be on the lookout for information coming home for our schoolwide celebration of Tuesday, February 22, 2022 (Twos-Day or 2/22/22)! NMES plans to celebrate this fun numerical day with Dress Like a Twin Day, fun learning activities, such as reading buddies, partner coding, read alouds about dynamic duos and more! The media center will be giving away books, such as the graphic novel Twins, to two lucky winners in each grade! More information will come home as we get closer to Twos Day!
Reading Olympics Contest
Is your child interested in winning a gift card to our spring book fair? If so, participate in our Reading Olympics from February 4th-20th! To participate, visit https://bit.ly/NMESReadOlympics. Your child can complete each of the 5 reading challenges to explore different types of books and reading! Once they are finished, visit https://bit.ly/readdrawing to submit their name for the drawing. At the end of the Reading Olympics on February 20th, Mrs. Siderius will draw 10 winners for the gift cards! For questions, please email Mrs. Siderius at jennifer.siderius@fcps.org.
February Optional Choice Board
February is full of diverse holidays and learning event like Lunar New Year, Black African American History Month, the Winter Olympics, Valentine's Day, Groundhog's Day and more! Help your child learn more through articles, videos and games on our optional choice boards! View the links here: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1OnpcUARCcE8BYu5tU_r3Jhd8JpMPTkjZvTBEFmFKgLU/present?slide=id.p Email Mrs. Siderius, our media specialist, with questions at jennifer.siderius@fcps.org.
Weather Guidelines and Outdoor Recess
It is difficult to set guidelines that fit every circumstance and condition with regards to outside activities during cold weather. Principals use their discretion and good judgment as to whether or not students will go outside, as well as the duration of the outside activity. Sometimes we may opt for a shorter recess period in cold temperatures or specify a temperature above 20 degrees as the cut-off point for going out. Elementary students should not go outdoors for recess or physical education whenever the temperature falls below 20 degrees, including the wind chill factor. The temperature cut-off at NMES is 20 degrees, so please remember to dress your child in the appropriate clothing (labeled coat, hat and gloves).
Visits from Zeke
Zeke showing off!
Zeke taking a break!
Gifts for Zeke!
Volunteering at NMES
Schoology Resources for Parents/Guardians
- FCPS Schoology Page for Students and Families https://www.fcps.org/student-services/schoology
- FCPS Schoology YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGATg8OciCItdUiqHJyHHrA
- FCPS Schoology Troubleshooting Guide https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OJWzxwXeSumMlev5Ac8_-B0aaKhW5_ofMvuRO3a1pws/edit?usp=sharing
- How To View Grades in Schoology https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HG9UQhjKp3gqu7lj6zJJoPNuALXpsY8GGseM5Gu-yX0/edit?usp=sharing
FCPS Bus Delay Information
Free to-go Supper and Snack Meals
Free to-go supper and snack meals will be available for students to take home at various locations around the county. To-go supper and snack meals for the weekend will be distributed on Fridays. These meals are available at the following schools:
Ballenger Creek Elementary
Brunswick Elementary
Butterfly Ridge Elementary
Hillcrest Elementary
Lincoln Elementary
Middletown High
Monocacy Elementary
North Frederick Elementary
Spring Ridge Elementary
Sugarloaf Elementary
Thurmont Middle
Walkersville Elementary
Waverley Elementary
Whittier Elementary
Click HERE to view additional information from FCPS Nutrition Services.
New Market Elementary
Email: Jason.Bowser@fcps.org
Website: https://education.fcps.org/nmes/
Location: 93 West Main Street, New Market, MD, USA
Phone: 240-236-1300
Twitter: @FCPSNewMarketES