FARMLAND ESOL PARENT NEWSLETTER

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1 FARMLAND ESOL PARENT NEWSLETTER Quarter 2 November 2016 January 2017 The Farmland ESOL Team Farmland s ESOL teachers: Cheryl Ruffa, Linda Bernard, Tatiana Khokhlova and Rachel Dinkin. Feel free to contact us at school: , or via with any questions or concerns. Cheryl Ruffa Linda Bernard Rachel Dinkin Tatiana Khokhlova Hye-Kyong Cher_ruffa@mcpsmd.org Linda_B_Bernard@mcpsmd.org Rachel_Dinkin@mcpsmd.org Tatiana_Khokhlova@mcpsmd.org Our Wish List It has turned to the season when our children are sneezing and coughing. ESOL teachers would welcome donations of tissue boxes, liquid soap and/or hand sanitizer to control the spread of germs. Sending these things to the ESOL classroom is completely voluntary, not required. ESOL Grading and Reporting Your child will bring home his or her first report card on November 17 th. At your parent conference, you might see a copy of it. Please remember that when a teacher cannot give a grade, due to limited English, the report card will say NEP, non-english proficient. Students can receive NEP for only two marking periods, or quarters (for ESOL 1 or 2) after students have been at a MCPS school for more than two report cards. They will be graded on the mastery of outcomes for their grade level. The report card shows academic grades as well as learning skills. Academic grades show what your child knows and is able to do. Learning skills show their behavior and effort in class. On the report card you will also see a section for ESOL. Your child will receive a mark for listening, speaking, reading and writing. The mark will show the ESOL WIDA level at which your child is presently performing on for each English language skill. It is possible for your child to achieve anywhere within the ESOL levels of 1-5. Newsletter 1

2 ESOL Essential Questions for the Second Quarter Questions for Kindergarten: How does sharing thinking help me understand new ideas? How can representing and describing new ideas in different ways help you learn? How does asking questions and seeking answers help you think about new ideas? How does organizing ideas help you learn? ESOL Enduring Understandings and Essential Questions for First Grade: How does asking questions in different ways help you make sense of ideas? How does using different strategies help you create ideas? How does being willing to share ideas, ask questions, or try new tasks help you learn? How does being willing to change help you solve a challenging problem? Questions for Second Grade: How does thinking about what you know help you determine what you need to know? How does breaking down a whole into parts help you explain how parts are related or make inferences? How does asking clarifying questions about your thinking help you adjust your strategies and learn? How do organizing and explaining your ideas help you self-monitor and learn? Questions for Third Grade: How do I select and test possible choices to make decisions? How can explaining my thinking help me learn? What strategies can I use to check how I am doing? How do I use new information when it conflicts with my thinking? Which criteria should we use to justify a choice or solution? What can I learn through selfmonitoring? Questions for Fourth Grade: What do I need to know to set an achievable goal? What steps do I take to achieve my goal? How does adding details improve my work? How does combining or adding to my ideas improve my work? In what ways can I enhance my work? Questions for Fifth Grade: How do I use new information when it conflicts with my thinking? How can I monitor the effectiveness of my thinking? How can I put ideas together to form a solution? How does synthesizing information help me understand a concept? How I know when a learning strategy is working and what do I do if it s not. Newsletter 2

3 UPCOMING DATES NOVEMBER Nov. 10 th & 11 th : Parent Conferences/Early Dismissal. These are half days for students. The day will end at 1:20 for students. There is no school in the afternoon so that parents and teachers can conference about the students. Nov. 23 rd : Early Dismissal. Students dismissed at 1:20. Nov. 24 th & 25 th: Thanksgiving Break. There is no school on these days so that families can celebrate Thanksgiving. DECEMBER Dec. 24th Jan. 1st Hanukkah Dec. 26 th Jan. 2 nd : Winter Vacation. No school Dec. 24 th : Christmas Eve Dec. 25 th : Christmas Day Dec. 26 th : Kwanzaa begins Dec. 31 st : New Year s Eve JANUARY Jan. 1 st : New Year s Day. Have fun watching the Rose Ball Parade on television and many college football games! Jan. 3rd: Winter break ends. Back to school! January 16 th : Dr. Martin Luther King s Birthday. Schools and federal offices are closed to honor him. PTA Newsletters! The PTA would like all ESOL parents to join! This will help you know all that is happening at school. They provide the school with financial support and are responsible for events such as the Science Fair, International Night, the Geography Bee, Cultural Arts assemblies and much more. They welcome parent volunteers. You can go to to join the PTA and to sign up for enews for PTA updates. Tips for Parents During Winter Break, try some of the following ideas to keep your child learning English: * Visit the public library. Allow your child to select books. Children's books on tape or CDs can provide good English models. Ask the librarian for suggestions. * Visit some of the many (and free) museums in the Washington area. * Have your child write (or draw) in a journal about the day's activities (especially if you go on vacation). * Plan "play dates" with English-speaking friends. * Help your child to do arts-and-crafts or make yummy treats. January 20 th : Inauguration Day. Schools are closed. January 26 th : End of Q2 Marking Period January 27 th : Teacher Report Card Preparation Day. No school for students. Teachers will have time to work on report cards and go to professional meetings. Newsletter 3

4 Attendance and Absences During Family Vacations Sign Up For MCPS QuickNotes The MCPS QuickNotes news service is available in English, Spanish, French, Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese. It is a monthly newsletter gives parents important information about Montgomery County Public Schools. Go to the home page at and click on Parents & Students at the top. Click on Sign Up for QuickNotes under the column that says For Parents and follow the instructions to subscribe to this service. Vacations are not considered excused absences from school. It is highly recommended that vacations be planned during school holidays. When family vacations require students to miss school, students are encouraged to maintain a daily travel journal and to read in English for at least 20 minutes each day. When a student returns to school, he/she will be asked to complete some of the work that was missed. Individual teachers will determine how work that was missed is to be completed. Teachers are not expected to plan work for students during family vacations during the school year Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November. This year it is November 24 th. There is no school on Thursday and Friday so that families and friends can celebrate together. The tradition was started with the Native Americans and the Pilgrims. When the Pilgrims arrived from England, the first winter was very hard and many died. In the spring, they met some friendly Native Americans who taught them how to plant, hunt and fish. The harvest was so wonderful in the fall that the Pilgrims invited the Native Americans to a three day celebration to give thanks to God for all of their blessings. Today, Americans celebrate the holiday in many ways. People usually eat turkey, stuffing, cranberries, sweet potatoes and apple or pumpkin pie. There is a big parade in New York that you can watch on television. There are many football games on television as well. Newsletter 4

5 Weather Related Closings Now that it is winter, it may be necessary to close the school if the weather is bad. Sometimes the closing is announced on the radio or television the night before. Other times, it is announced on the radio or television early in the morning. It is important to listen to the news when there is snow or ice. Do not call the school unless you do not understand the news about the closing. Also, look on the MCPS website, which always posts all important announcements. Sometimes school is not closed, but opens two hours late so that the roads can be cleared of snow or ice. Other times, the bad weather might start after the students come to school. When that happens, school might close early. If the weather is bad during the day, please listen to the news. It is important that your child knows where he or she will go if school closes early. December Holidays Christmas, Hanukkah or Kwanzaa. However, some people do not celebrate any holiday in December. This is important to know because many children can feel left out during this month. Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. Countries celebrate his birth in many different ways. In the U.S.A. people usually have a Christmas tree, eat a big family dinner, go to church, and open lots of presents. Christmas is always celebrated on December 25th. Stores, libraries, banks and many restaurants will be closed. Jewish families celebrate a holiday called Hanukah. For eight nights the families light candles in a candle holder that is called a menorah or chanukiah. One new candle is lit each night until the menorah is filled with eight candles. The holiday remembers a miracle that happened over 2,000 years ago. Jewish people in the U.S.A. usually exchange gifts and eat potato latkes (pancakes). This year Hanukah begins at sunset on December 16 th and lasts until sunset on December 24 th. The Jewish people use a lunar calendar to know when to celebrate the holiday. Kwanzaa began in 1966 to celebrate African American family unity. Families light candles in a holder called a kinara. One candle is lit each night until all seven candles are burning. Kwanzaa always begins on December 26th and lasts until January 1st. The United States has many celebrations in December. In your country, everyone might celebrate Christmas or Hanukkah. In the USA, people might celebrate Newsletter 5

6 December Family Activities There are many fun activities in our area that you can enjoy with your family during the month of December. Here are a few suggestions! Watch the Christmas parade from Disneyworld on television on Christmas morning. Check your newspaper for the time and channel. Watch the Rose Bowl Parade on TV from California on New Year s Day. All of the floats are made out of flowers. Check your newspaper for the time and channel. See the Zoo Lights at the National Zoo on November 25 th - January 1 st (closed December 24 th, 25 th ). The event is from 5 PM to 9 PM. No tickets are needed. The event is free! Visit the Festival of Lights at the Mormon Temple in Kensington, Maryland. (301) December 3 rd Jan 1 st. Musical performances are at 7 PM and 8:30 PM in the Visitor s Center. Tickets to the performances are given away for free 90 minutes before each performance. It s open from 10 AM to 10:00 PM daily with the lights being turned on at dusk. Drive through the Winter Lights at Seneca Creek State Park in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Nightly, November 25 th December 31 st (closed December 25 th ). Sunday Thursday 6 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday 6 10 p.m. Winter Lights is a magical Christmas light display including more than 365 illuminated displays and along a 3.5-mile drive through the park. The cost is $12 per car Monday - Thursday and $15 Friday - Sunday 6 PM- 10 PM. Visiting the National Christmas Tree in Washington DC is a tradition. It will be lit on December 1 st at 5 PM but all tickets have been given away. You can view it at any time at the Ellipse near the White House. For additional information visit Watch the National Hanukkah Menorah Lighting Ceremony. It will be December 25 th at 4 p.m. check the website for updates: Admission is free. However, tickets are required for reserved seats. Standing room is available to all. Festivities at the lighting ceremony include musical performances and hot latkes and donuts. This year's celebration will feature the US Marine Band. The menorah will be lit each night of Hanukkah. Newsletter 6

7 About Dr. Martin Luther King Dr. Martin Luther King was a famous African-American. We celebrate a holiday to remember him on the third Monday in January although he was born on January 15, This year he will be remembered on Monday, January 18 th. When Dr. King was growing up, there were laws that did not let African-Americans do the same things as white people. He knew these laws were wrong. He believed everyone should be treated fairly, or equally. He gave speeches and tried to change things in a peaceful way. Unfortunately, he did not live to see his dream come true. Dr. King was shot and killed on April 4, Today, we celebrate his life. In Montgomery County we close the schools and some offices. People gather to honor Dr. King. January ESOL Testing All ESOL students in the state of Maryland take a test every year. Once again, this year we will all use the ACCESS test that 32 other states in the USA use. The window for the test this year is January 9 th February 15 th. Students will be tested in all four language skills: listening, speaking, reading and writing. The speaking test is given individually; the other three sections are given in a group. (Except in kindergarten, where the entire test is given individually) It is important that you do not plan vacations during this window Newsletter 7