October 1, 2010
18820 Strawberry Knoll Road
Gaithersburg, Maryland 20879
E. Frank Kaplan, Principal
Rosemary Ford, Assistant Principal
Web Site Address—http://www.mcps.k12.md.us/schools/
strawberryknolles/
Strawberry Knoll News
STRAWBERRY KNOLL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Help Us Become Great!
Can you believe we completed our fifth week of school? Needless to say, our noble knights are well on
their way to what will be a successful school year. Please join us as we strive to make this year GREAT
for our students. Talk with your child about his/her reading and math goals for this first marking period. Listen to your child as he/she reads to you. Encourage your child to use math-talk to explain his/
her problem-solving strategies. Invite your child to demonstrate his/her computer technology skills.
Equally important, set aside family time and discuss the importance of working hard, making good
choices, and helping those in need. Your help in following these suggestions will support the goals
contained in this year’s Baldrige Guided School Improvement Plan (BGSIP.) Our 2010-2011 BGSIP
is a work in progress and can be accessed online by going to our website at www.mcps.k12.md.us/
schools/strawberryknolles.
Our partnership with you is paramount to our school’s success. Remain involved. Continue to support
us as we help our students reach and surpass goals, challenge our students with rigor, engage all students and help them become keen thinkers. Indeed, we have GREAT expectations of our noble
knights for this new school year!
Learn to Read. Read to Learn
Can you recall the first book you read? As we all know, the ability to read is a complex process and
life-long necessity. The key to hooking students is by modeling good reading habits and providing
students multiple opportunities to read. Clearly, the availability of reading material has a strong impact
on a child’s education. This is why our classroom shelves are filled with books and made available for
students to read during indoor line-up and throughout the day. Here’s an interesting fact- 10 to 15 minutes of daily reading by students typically shows a 20 percentile point increase on standardized tests.
What a joy it is for us to first see our youngest of students handling books, looking at pictures, creating
their own stories, and then stretching the letters to make words that when read fluently become meaningful sentences. Then, equipped with strategies, our students advance to becoming skilled, analytical
thinkers and read to learn. Oh the places our students will go by reading books!
Attention All Families of Third and Fifth Grade Students
The application materials for the Center Programs for the Highly Gifted at Clearspring Elementary
School were mailed directly to all parents of third grade students. Mr. Doug Nelson, magnet coordinator recently spoke to our fifth grade students about the Upcounty Center Programs for the Highly
Gifted at Roberto Clemente Middle School. Application materials for the Center Programs at Roberto
Clemente are available online at www.mcps.k12.md.us/curriculum/specialprograms . All third and
fifth graders are eligible to apply to the elementary and middle school Center Programs. These are exciting opportunities for students ready for challenging experiences. Transportation is provided.
Some important dates to remember are as follows:
October 6, 2010 at 7:00 p.m. Information meeting at John F. Kennedy High School for parents of third
grade students.
October 26, 2010 at 7:00 p.m. Information meeting at Seneca Valley High School for parents of third
grade students.
October 13, 2010 at 7:00p.m. Information meeting in the Clemente MS for fifth grade students and
parents.
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Please also visit www.mcps.k12.md.us/curriculum/specialprograms for information about the Middle
School Magnet Consortium programs at Argyle Middle School,
Special Point of Interest:
Loiderman Middle School, and Parkland Middle School. All
Si usted quiere tener las noticias del
fifth grade students are eligible to
Knoll en espanol por favor llame
apply, however, transportation is not provided for the Magnet
Senora Stevens 301-840-7112.
Consortium schools.
Come to Open House
What are your plans for Monday, October 11, 2010? Consider visiting us for our annual Open House from 9:30a.m. until 2:30 p.m. We are always happy to see you at this event, as are your children. Open House will be a regular instructional day for us. You are certainly the best judge
of your future noble knights who are still at home. If you decide to bring a youngster not currently enrolled in school, use your discretion when
you visit us. Again we want to make sure our students are able to focus and concentrate (us adults as well.)
We Have New Stage Curtains!
The wait is over. Folks were here this past Wednesday and replaced our old orange stage curtains with beautiful blue ones. This
could not have been done without the financial help from our P.T.A. Stop by the cafeteria and check-out the new curtains when you
visit for Open House!
Celebrate International Walk to School USA-Day
Get ready to walk with your child to school next Wednesday, October 6, 2010, as we celebrate International Walk to School USA-Day. Please
make sure to model pedestrian safety when you walk with your child to school each day, and especially next Wednesday. Continue to use the
crosswalks and follow our crossing-guards’ directions. Some of our SKES staff will show our support for next Wednesday’s celebration and walk
with students and families from Cross Country Place (near Traxel Lane.) at 8:20 a.m. to the Knoll.
Fitness Night—Thursday, October 14, 2010
We will host our first ―Family Fitness Night‖ Thursday, October 14, 2010, starting at
6:30 p.m. and ending at 8:30 p.m. Join us in the gym. Family fitness is a great way to show children the importance of maintaining a healthy life.
You can do this by staying active and participating in next Thursday night’s fun! Stations will be available for parents and students to visit. Be
sure to wear your sneakers and proper gym clothes. Get ready to make your heart work hard! This popular event is sponsored by the Knoll’s
P.T.A. and Physical Education Department. Volunteers are needed and may contact Mr. Matesa at 301-840-7112 .
Book Fair Returns
Our P.T.A. sponsored book fair begins Friday, October 8, 2010 and runs through Friday, October 15, 2010. This annual event
is always popular among our students. This month’s book fair will be held in the Media Center. For further information,
please contact Mrs. Baker at 301-960-4307.
The Seven Keys to College Readiness
What do you know about the Seven Keys to College Readiness? The Keys represent the school system’s commitment to
ensuring that students are college ready as measured by seven
keys. The keys for student achievement are as follow:






Advanced reading in Grades K-2
Advanced reading MSA in grades 3-8
Algebra 1 in Grade 8, ―C‖ or higher
Algebra 2 by Grade 11, ―C‖ or higher
3 on AP exam, 4 on IB exam
1650 SAT, 24 ACT
Classroom teachers have posted copies of the Seven Keys to
College Readiness in their classroom data centers. We will
continue to discuss the importance of these seven keys with our
Strawberry Knoll students.
For additional information about the Seven Keys to College
Readiness visit http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/info/
keys/
IMPORTANT DATES
October 5
October 11
October 8– 15
October 15
7:00 p.m. PTA Meeting
9:30 a.m.—2:30 p.m. Open House
PTA Book Fair
MSTA Convention – No School for Teachers
and Students
October 28
―Professor Bodywise‖ Assembly
October 29
End of First Marking Period
October 29
2:00 p.m. Halloween Parade
1st Marking Period Ends
November 1
Professional Day for Teachers–
No School for Students
November 2
HOLIDAY—Election Day
November 9
7:00 p.m. PTA Meeting
November 10
Individual Picture Day
November 11, 12 12:35 p.m. Early Dismissal Day
November
11, 12 Parent/Teacher Conferences
November 12
PTA Fall Festival 6:30—8:30 p.m.
November 24
12:35 p.m. Early Dismissal Day
November 25, 26 HOLIDAY—Thanksgiving
Have Your Plans Changed?
Dear Parents,
We are beginning to think about grade
level and class
organizations for the coming year and
need to know if
any of our students, other than fifth
graders, will be leaving
Strawberry Knoll.
If you have changed your address this
year we need to know.
If you are planning to move, enroll your child in private school, or return to your home
school (you live outside of SKES’s attendance area), please complete the form below
and return it to the school office by May 9, 2003.
Our Child(ren)
_________________________________Present Grade
_________________________________Present Grade
_________________________________Present Grade
_________________________________Present Grade
New Address________________________________________
________________________________________________
Staff Development Substitute Teachers Return
Some of your children may have recently informed you that they had a substitute teacher, or ―guest teacher‖ as we like to
say. As one of the Superintendent’s “Call to Action” initiatives, all schools are provided with staff development teachers.
Staff development teachers like our very own Mrs. Carrie Schoenfelder provide teachers with a priceless currency-time!
Through the use of staff development substitute teachers, our teachers are able to spend time with their grade level colleagues and plan for instruction. Teams also use their staff development time to increase their understanding of best practices. This past week our second and third grade teachers went to the Baldrige
academy at Sherwood Elementary School and learned more about “Classroom Learning Systems.”
Staff development substitute time is also provided for teachers to analyze student data. Next month teachers will engage in
“Quarterly Conferences” with Mr. Kaplan and Ms. Curry to review reading and math data. During the time that teachers
are meeting with administrators, students will remain in their classrooms receiving instruction. We’re most fortunate to
have an outstanding cadre of staff development substitute teachers here at the Knoll. We’re equally grateful for the time
teachers are given to develop professionally and collaborate with one another.