Strawberry Knoll News
STRAWBERRY KNOLL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
April 26, 2013
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/
Strawberry Knoll Salutes Mrs. Anderson and
Mrs. On!
“Thank you,” is among the first phrases we
teach our children, and an important message
we communicate throughout our adulthood. It is
with utmost gratitude and pride we recognize
our Mrs. Anderson, administrative assistant, and
Mrs. On, attendance secretary and feature
their interesting biographies in today’s publication. Please join us as we thank
Mrs. Anderson and Mrs. On for all they do!
Mrs. Anderson
Mrs. Anderson was born in Jacksonville, Florida and grew up in Severna Park,
Maryland. Mrs. Anderson’s husband, Bill, works for the Library of Congress.
James, Mr. and Mrs. Anderson’s oldest is 26 years old and works as a fifth
grade math teacher in Delaware. James and his fiancé will marry this June!
The Andersons have two daughters. Kari is 23 years old and a third grade
teacher at Greencastle Elementary School, here in Montgomery County. Jenna
is 18 years old and a freshman at the University of Tennessee. Jenna is a mass
communications major. Mrs. Anderson loves spending time with her family.
She also enjoys her first passion, riding horses, especially on scenic trails. Finally, Mrs. Anderson likes to read, bike, and run.
Mrs. Anderson received her BA in Music from the University of Maryland at
College Park and then worked as a music store manager before starting a family. Mrs. Anderson has been employed by MCPS as an administrative assistant
for 25 years, 19 of which have been at Strawberry Knoll. Mrs. Anderson loves
her job and does not intend to leave the Knoll.
Needless to say, Mrs. Anderson’s job as administrative assistant requires numerous responsibilities. She works closely with Mr. Kaplan and Mrs. Ford.
Mrs. Anderson ensures the school runs smoothly. She communicates with the
many offices in MCPS and always makes time to keep staff, students and families informed.
Mrs. Anderson states, “I love working with the children and their parents in
this community. We have such a great staff at the Knoll. We are a family!”
Mrs. On
Mrs. On was born in Hong Kong and moved to Silver Spring, Maryland with her
parents and siblings when she was nine years old. Mrs. On attended Harmony
Hills Elementary School, Parkland Junior High School, Robert E. Perry High
School, and subsequently, Wheaton High School.
Mr. and Mrs. On have four children. Anthony is 16 years old and Brandon is 15 years old. Both sons attend
Wheaton High School. Caitlin is 13 years old and attends Parkland Middle School. Dana is 11 years old and finishing her fifth grade year at Strathmore Elementary School. Mrs. On’s children keep her busy and the family
van running!
Prior to assuming the attendance secretary’s position at the Knoll, Mrs. On was the attendance secretary at
Oakland Terrace Elementary School. Mrs. On finds our school to be a perfect fit. She loves the staff members’ generosity and caring spirit. Mrs. On comments, “The students are considerate Noble Knights.. I thank
everyone including our Strawberry Knoll families for welcoming me, particularly after following our beloved Mrs.
Karolick. One request remains the same. Let’s make sure boys and girls we come to school every day and on
time”.
Progressive Hip-Hop Artist and Multi-instrumentalist Christylez Bacon
We would like to thank Dr. Kellert on behalf of the Strawberry
Knoll family for his generosity. Dr. Keller sponsored an assembly
for students in grades 3, 4 and 5 on Wednesday, April 10, 2013
for Progressive Hip-Hop artist and multi-instrumentalist
Christylez Bacon. Mr. Bacon was born in Southeast , Washington
D.C. Mr. Bacon multi-tasks between various instruments such as
the West African djembe drum, acoustic drum, acoustic guitar,
and the human beat-box, all while continuing the oral tradition of
storytelling through his lyrics. He has performed at the National
Cathedral, the Mansion at Strathmore and the John F. Kennedy
Center for Performing Arts. The students enjoyed the interactive concert with Mr. Bacon. Thanks again, Dr. Kellert.
It’s OK to be DIFFERENT!
It is said when you have met one child with autism; you have met one child with
autism. This statement goes to say that every child with autism is different.
In honor of Autism Awareness month, staff and students came together to
celebrate the diversity and differences among all of our children at the Knoll.
Each student took the time to decorate a puzzle piece however they liked.
These pieces were then put together to create posters to display and celebrate our differences. In addition to creating our puzzles, students were provided with an Autism Awareness Fact of the Day during announcements. These
announcements allowed our SKES family to learn a little bit more about autism
and how autism affects everyone differently. Everyone has really enjoyed admiring the wonderful work that our students have put forth in celebrating our
differences!
We Love Our Volunteers!
Volunteers continue to share their time and talent at the Knoll. While some of our volunteers listen to students
read and assist with their writing, other volunteers shelve books in the Media Center and help our younger Noble
Knights open containers and equally important, develop appropriate dining behavior. Then there are those volunteers that change our hallway bulletin boards, join our students on fieldtrips, and when able, assist during classroom celebrations and school-wide events. As a result of our volunteers’ hard work and dedication to students,
we recognized this year’s volunteers at our annual Volunteer Tea.
Each year we recognize a volunteer that demonstrates the
character traits and dedication of a beloved volunteer,
Mrs. Shirley Ehrman. Mrs. Ehrman was certainly a familiar
face to the school community during her many years of
volunteer service to our school until her passing in 2002.
Unique to this year’s Shirley Ehrman Award is that we recognized a group of dedicated Strawberry Knoll mothers, all
members of our P.T.A. executive board. The Strawberry
Knoll staff and students thank these ladies for their tireless hours planning and hosting a variety of events and volunteering their time. To all of our volunteers, “We love
you!”
Are You Up to the Fifth Grade Challenge?
Our very own Grace Harvey, fifth grade student joined other fifth grade students last Thursday in a wonderful
round of Are You Up to the Fifth Grade Challenge? Sponsored by the MCPS Educational Foundation, Grace and
selected fifth grade students tested local celebrity contestants. Proceeds from the programs at last Thursday’s
event at Damascus High School and Wednesday’s program at Imagination stage will support the mission of the
MCPS Educational Foundation- to provide grants, programs, and scholarships that improve educational opportunities for MCPS students.
A third live audience program of Are You Up to the Fifth Grade Challenge? will be presented on Monday, April 29,
2013, at the Olney Theater Center, 2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Road in Olney at 6:00 p.m. For ticket information,
visit www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/5thgradechallenge/ or call 301-517-5099.
Congratulations, Mrs. Parker’s Class!
Mrs. Parker’s third grade students are winners in this year’s City of Gaithersburg Mayor’s Book Club Reading Competition. Mrs. Parker’s class read an impressive 78,122 pages during the month of March. Recognition also goes
to Jason Liu as the overall top reader among those third grade students from six participating schools including
ours. Jason read 19,495 pages!
Mrs. Parker’s class will be recognized at the 4th Annual Gaithersburg Book Festival on Saturday,
May 18, 2013. Additionally, Jason will have the honor to ride the trolley with Mayor Katz and the City Council at
the 75th Annual Labor Day Parade on Monday, September 2, 2013. To learn more about next month’s Book Festival
visit www.gaithersburgbookfestival.org.
Pedestrian Safety Remains a Priority
Spring has arrived, finally! This means many more of our students walk to and from school each day. Let’s remember to practice pedestrian safety. Please continue to serve as good role models for our students and use
the crosswalk leading directly from our school and the ones along Strawberry Knoll Road and Quail Valley Boulevard. We are concerned some of our students have been encouraged by family members to walk across our
pick-up circle during dismissal to “save time.” Remember, we’re all about our students’ safety. Thanks again for
your support of pedestrian safety!
Upcoming Dates and Events
April 29
May 2, 3
May 6 – 10
May 9
May 15
May 16
May 20 – 24
May 22
May 23
May 27
May 30
June 3
June 4
June 5
June 6
June 7
June 12
June 13
7:00 – 8:00 p.m. 5th grade Family Life Meeting – Media Center
Kindergarten Orientation
Staff Appreciation Week
7:30 a.m. Instructional Council Meeting – Media Center
2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Fifth Grade Open House at GMS for Students and Parents
9:30 A.M. – 1:30 P.M. Patrol Picnic
10:00 a.m. Recorder Concert
2:00 p.m. - 2nd Grade Poetry Party – in classrooms
2:00 – 3:00 p.m. Family Life for 5th Grade
2nd Grade to Brookside Gardens
1:45 – 2:45 p.m. Instrumental Music Concert- Grades 3,4,5
7:30 – 8:30 p.m. Instrumental Music Concert – Evening Performance
Memorial Day – HOLIDAY
PLC’s
Field Day – Second Grade
Field Day – Third Grade
7:00 p.m. PTA Meeting
Field Day – Kindergarten (a.m.) first Grade (p.m.)
Field Day – PEP, HS, Autism
Field Day – Fourth and Fifth Grade
9:30 a.m. Town Hall Meeting
9:30 a.m. Fifth Grade Promotion Ceremony