Prettyboy Elementary

Learn, Lead, Inspire  

 

Nicole Norris                  Mark Harris 

Principal                  Assistant Principal 

 

 

January 2019

Dear Parents, Guardians, and Students, Happy New Year! The PBE staff is excited to spend 2019 with students and families! Thursday, January 10, 2019, is Team BCPS Day. All students and staff are encouraged to wear blue on the 11th to show their BCPS pride! We hope you can join us for our Family Literacy Night which will be held on Wednesday, January 23, 2019, from 6:00 to 8:00pm. We will showcase Writer’s Workshop, math communication, self-regulation, disciplinary literacy through art, and the movement equipment in gym. It will be a fun evening of learning and community! Please note that siblings who do not attend Prettyboy will not be able to engage in the movement equipment station. Alternate activities will be provided. We look forward to spending the evening with you on the 23rd! On February 4, 2019, Winter MAP testing will begin. MAP, Measures of Academic Progress, is given two to three times a year to BCPS students based upon grade level. This online test measures student performance compared to grade level norms. Parents will receive a copy of MAP scores after all grade levels have completed testing this winter. Students have prepared for MAP all year through daily instruction. This is not a test for which students can study. The BCPS Stakeholder Survey is coming soon! Please look for upcoming information on how you can provide us accolades and feedback on your child’s education. Thank you for your partnership!

We are excited to announce that Gracyn L. was a winner for the NFL Play 60 Challenge and won a trip to a Ravens Game with special recognition at the start of the game. Way to go Gracyn! Also several Prettyboy students participated in the PTA Reflections Contest this school year. We have several student winners. The following students were recognized for their contributions with a certificate and their work will move onto the Baltimore County PTA level of competition: Visual Arts Annabelle F. Ryan S. Katherine L. Emmy W. Gracie B. Literature Isabella N. Photography Sam N. Dance Grace Z. Exciting things are happening at PBE!! If you have not yet done so, please follow PBE on Twitter @Prettyboyes1. We are sharing daily learning and events that are occurring. It is a fun way to stay connected! If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at 410-887-1900 or by email at nnorris@bcps.org. The PBE staff wishes you and your family a happy, healthy 2019! Nikki Norris

 

15th  PTA @ 7 PM in the Library 

21st  No School Martin Luther King Jr.’s Birthday Day 

23rd  Academic Night 6‐8 pm 

25th  End 2nd Marking period 3 hrs. Early dismissal 

  Tie Dye Spirit Day 

February 

6th  3rd grade field trip Baltimore Museum of Industry 

8th  I dent a kid 

12th  PTA meeting 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Music Notes  

 

 

 

 5th graders did a great job at the Winter Concert!  Thanks so much to all who attended!  They 

will continue to study rhythm and melody.                                    

4th graders will continue to prepare for their concert on April 30.  All 4th graders are expected to 

participate. 

2nd and 3rd graders will work on rhythm and melody. Music that some students will be bringing 

home music papers to practice reading note names.  Please do not throw them away. 

1st graders will work on rhythms. 

Kindergarteners will continue learning basic concepts. 

Thank you for supporting your child’s music education. 

     

 

Art News 

 

Nurses Corner

 

 

 

Counselor’s Corner Welcome back! This month we will be focusing on developing character traits necessary to be a successful student. Kindergarten and first grade students will be learning about whole body listening skills. Second grade will be practicing personal space skills and how to avoid being a space invader. Third grade students will read a book in order to develop courage to be an inspiration to others. Fourth grade will be talking about how to avoid gossip and rumors and fifth grade will be discussing what it takes to build a positive reputation.   

 

 

 

Climate Committee  

The Climate Committee would like to thank all of the families who sent in mittens, gloves, hats 

and scarves for our Mitten Tree. We had an overwhelming response and were thrilled to be 

able to send so many items to the Hereford Food Bank.  With your help, we were able to give 

them 130 pair of gloves, 25 hats, 14 pair of mittens and 3 scarves. We truly appreciate your 

kindness as we reach out to those in need in our community.  

 

Kindergarten Throughout January, Kindergarten students will be focusing on the following questions during  ELA:  

What do people use to do their job? 

Who are your neighbors? 

 How can people help to make your community better? 

We will be reading stories, answering questions, and talking about different jobs in the community, different cultures that make up communities around the world, and how a community changes an environment.  Math Essential Questions:  

How are numbers represented? 

What are effective ways to count? 

Why do we use measurement? 

 In our Measuring and Counting Unit, we will be measuring using nonstandard units and comparing lengths of shoes, strips of tape, and other objects.  Students will develop strategies for finding the total after a small amount is added to a set.  Students will act out story problems and play games that involve counting, comparing, and finding the total. 

 

First Grade Reading:  

We will begin the new year wrapping up our unit on nonfiction. This unit focused on identifying 

key details, main topics and text features. Ask your child how text features help them in their 

reading! 

Math: 

We will continue working on addition and subtraction for the new year! This includes 

continuing to practice strategies for solving both addition and subtraction problems as well as 

using our math talk to talk through math problems and share with partners.  We continue to 

practice showing our work as well. At home, encourage your child to share how they knew if 

they should add or subtract to solve a story problem.  

   Second Grade In ELA, we will continue and complete Unit 3, “Unique.”  Students identify how characters react 

and respond to major events and challenges in a story.  We will also compare and contrast 

folktales and fables and students will begin to write an original pourquoi tale. 

 

In math, we will be exploring Unit 4, “Data Analysis”.  Students will work with Venn diagrams 

and line plots, and read and interpret a variety of representations of numerical and categorical 

data.  We will also continue to address telling time and we will continue to solve problems 

involving money.   

 

We began cursive handwriting this month!   We sent home information regarding the cursive 

alphabet and cursive writing instruction.  The students are excited to learn cursive and are 

encouraged to review and practice the cursive letters we have learned in class. 

 

Third Grade In third grade math, students will be digging deeper into the relationship between 

multiplication and division.  We will be exploring ways to use our knowledge of multiplication to 

solve division problems, as well as how we can use division to find a missing factor.  Towards 

the end of the month, we will begin connecting multiplication to finding the area of 

figures.  Please encourage your child to use accurate mathematical vocabulary when discussing 

our daily learn at home.  Vocabulary for each unit can be found at the start of each new topic in 

the Pearson workbook at home. 

In social studies students have been working to answer the essential questions of “How does 

the geography of South America impact the lives of people?” and “How are communities in 

South America similar and different to each other?” We will be starting our next science unit: 

Safe Racer, in just a few weeks! Please send in any recyclable materials that students can use to 

build their Safe Racer car to keep Eggbert the Egg safe! Please reference the letter sent home 

with your child for more information regarding the materials needed. Thank you for your 

support! 

In ELA students will be continuing with Unit 3‐ Invention and Innovation –Students will 

read informational texts, along with several poems, related to the theme of invention. 

They read short biographies and informational texts about inventors and their inventions 

to gain knowledge about the creation, innovation, and continuing development of 

inventions. Invention topics in texts range from the simple (ear muffs and windshield 

wipers) to the complex (human flight, biomimicry, and renewable energy). Students will 

be having conversations and completing assignments that align to our essential 

questions.  These questions are:  

∙       How does solving problems lead to new ideas? 

∙     What is the relationship between invention and innovation? 

Fourth Grade ELA‐ students are beginning their new unit, Taking a Stand. Students will explore and research 

various social issues for the purpose of creating infographics to convey information on social 

issues and will write an opinion piece on a social issue.  

 

 Fifth grade   Post‐holiday break, students are roughly midway through unit 3. Depending on their 

mod, the units are dividing whole numbers and decimals or rational numbers and algebra. As 

we approach the middle of the year, please encourage your child to utilize the many math 

resources available to them (i.e., math journal, Pearson videos, videos made by Mr. Schmidt, 

etc.). If your child is absent, they can still keep up with missed work by accessing the flipcharts 

on Schoology. There is a link in their “How To” folder that will allow you to download 

ActivInspire.