January 17, 2014
18820 Strawberry Knoll Road
Gaithersburg, Maryland 20879
E. Frank Kaplan, Principal
Rosemary Ford, Assistant Principal
Web Site Address—http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/
strawberryknolles/
Strawberry Knoll News
STRAWBERRY KNOLL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Wintry Weather Brings Commitment to the Knoll!
This month’s weather lets us know, winter has a firm grip on the D.C. metropolitan area. Goodness, after a one day return from winter break, staff and students were given a “snow day” on Friday, January 3, 2014. Although school was
closed for all students and most staff, a cadre of staff was here at the Knoll.
Our Mr. Hebron, building service manager, fondly known by many as “Mr. Skip,”
reported to open our school on January 3, 2014 at 4:00 a.m. Mr. Skip, joined
later in the day by our fabulous building service staff, including Ms. Schools,
Mr. Portillo, Mr. Allen, Ms. Lee, and Mr. Willis ensured the Knoll was ready. As
a team, these dedicated professionals made sure the building was ready for
the arrival of Kids Co. Inc. staff/students along with the school’s administrative team.
Little did we realize how much colder the weather would become until the arrival of a “Polar Vortex”. Morning temperatures ranged between one and three
degrees Fahrenheit. Once again, our Mr. Skip and Mrs. Schools guaranteed the
building was toasty warm for staff, students, and families. Mrs. Cates, food
services manager, warmed the ovens and prepared what would later become a
welcomed breakfast for our students.
Given the frigid morning temperatures on Monday, January 6, 2014, patrols
typically assigned to outdoor duties remained indoors. Thus, staff volunteered
to brave the cold. Thank you to Mrs. Ford, Mrs. Martorano, Mr. Rosewater,
Mrs. R.Thomas, Mrs. Wiles, Mrs. Philbin, Mrs. Amoroso, Mrs. Martin, Mrs.
Wang, Mrs. Falk, and Mr. Matesa for welcoming our Noble Knights and families
on a morning we’ll always remember!
Join Us for Our Next Town Hall Meeting, Friday,
January 31, 2014
Our second Town Hall Meeting is scheduled for Friday,
January 31, 2014 at 2:00 p.m. in the gym. Join us as we
recognize classes for the Red Knight, Fine Dining and
“AAMP” (Art, Music, P.E. and Media) awards. Finally,
our third, fourth and fifth grade teachers will
acknowledge students that demonstrate the academic
success skill of collaboration. Equally important, students from each class will receive recognition for the
“Character Counts!” award. We look forward to seeing
our guests and families on Friday, January 31, 2014.
Bravo to our Musicians!
The Gaithersburg cluster schools
came together as family last
Wednesday and Thursday, January 8, 2014 and January 9, 2014
during the annual cluster concert
at the new Gaithersburg High
School. Dr. Christine Handy Collins had every reason to beam with pride as families,
staff, and guests assembled in the refurbished state of
the art auditorium, one of the largest among MCPS high
schools. The “concert hall” came to life as our Noble
Knights performed with other musicians from the feeder elementary schools and listened to musicians from
the two feeder middle schools and Gaithersburg High
School. We acknowledge those Strawberry Knoll students that performed last week and certainly thank our
Mr. Gale, instrumental music teacher for inspiring our
budding musicians.
HOLIDAY—Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Monday, January 20, 2014
No School for
Students and Staff
Join Us for Curriculum/Arts “Knight!”
Strawberry Knoll will host its very first Curriculum/
Arts “Knight” on Thursday, January 30, 2014 from
6:30-7:30 p.m. The students and staff members at
SKES are excited to showcase the great learning
that has occurred during the first two marking periods. We hope you will be able to join us at our Curriculum/Arts “Knight!”
Fifth Grade Chorus Performs Winter Concert
Tuesday's fifth grade chorus concert on January
14, 2014, was a huge success! Not only did the students have an excellence performance for the
school and community, but they did it after a
three week break. They sang a variety of
songs, from songs you hear on the radio every
day to songs in a foreign language. Our fifth graders had a lot of fun singing and playing instruments for their friends and families. In fact, the
students performed so well that they have already
been asked to perform at some other upcoming
events here at SKES. I am so proud of the hard
work they have done and can't wait to start working on the spring program. Congratulations Straw-
No School
for Students
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Professional Day for Teachers
Gaithersburg Joins in Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Tribute
The City of Gaithersburg is once again joining with Montgomery County in a celebration of the life of Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. The celebration includes multiple opportunities for community service, a Musical Celebration and Tribute, and a Literary Arts Contest.
For the 23rd year the City of Gaithersburg has teamed up with the Gazette Newspapers to host a Literary
Arts Contest specifically for Gaithersburg area young people. More than 200 students addressed the theme,
“Honoring the Legacy: Celebrate, Serve, Remember.” Members of the City’s Educational Enrichment Committee selected three winners: Benjamin Bell, a sixth grader from St. Martin of Tours School, Sarah Cooper, a
fifth grader from Strawberry Knoll Elementary School and Kyle Dalrymple, a fifth grader from Rosemont
Elementary School. Their essays will be read at the Gaithersburg Mayor and City Council Meeting, taking
place at City Hall on Tuesday, January 21 at 7:30 p.m.
Dr. King Memorial
There once was a man,
named Martin Luther King.
He wanted freedom for all,
even if he had to fall.
Others took the chance,
and made a stance.
All across the nation,
people fought to end segregation.
They wanted blacks and whites
to have the same rights
He fought with his words
that flew across the nation like birds.
Blacks and few whites marched,
they walked so much their backs arched.
King used to preach
then he gave a speech.
His speech was called “I Have A Dream”
But life was harder than it seemed.
He and many others were put into jail
and they would not give up because they knew they would not fail.
And they did not,
They did put segregation to a stop.
Before Kings Words things were not equal.
Now boys and girls, men and women no matter what race are equal!
Written By: Sarah Cooper
Fifth Grade Student Persevere —Mrs. Dolan, Mrs. Row, Mrs. Shafie
The ability to persevere through difficult and complex problems is one of the most important qualities a person
can have in life. It is our desire this skill will enable our fifth grade students to approach any obstacle with
greater success, both academically and emotionally. As fifth grade teachers we chose to focus on this skill with
our students. We have throughout the year, modeled and provided strategies to teach perseverance to our students. We selected lesson plans that encourage our students to persist even when faced with difficult problems.
As part of this unit of study, each student was asked to describe what perseverance means to them and why it’s
important to not give up. They then wrote examples of times when they showed perseverance at school. Their
responses will be displayed on our fifth grade bulletin board. Some excellent examples of students persevering
at school include:
Benita
“I show perseverance at school when I am in instrumental music. For example, sometimes the music notes don’t
come to me that fast. I show perseverance by taking the time to practice and writing the notes on music
sheets.”
Jotrina
“I showed perseverance in my social studies class when we had a test on the 13 colonies. I’m not very good at
tests, but I remembered that you always have to try your best. I read over the question three times with patience, then suddenly I remembered all the studying I did and was able to answer the question.”
Immanuel
“I show perseverance at school when I have a test and there are hard questions. I don’t give up and when it’s all
over I always get a good grade.”
Mason
“I show perseverance at school when I never give up if I am stuck on a question or if I am losing in a sports
game. I keep on trying until the clock hits zero! “
Sarah
“I show perseverance at school when I am stuck on a math problem. I think of multiple ways to solve the problem, if one doesn’t work I try another way to solve it.”
Jada
“I show perseverance at school when I tell a teacher I do not understand something even though I don’t want to
do the problem again. I also study during recess when I don’t have to.”
Upcoming Events
January 27
January 30
January 31
February 3
February 4
February 5
February 7
February 17
February 19
February 20
February 27
February 28
10:30 a.m. Mayor Katz visits Fourth Grade
6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. Curriculum Night/”Love Your Art Night”
1:45 p.m. Town Hall Meeting
Mad Science Assembly – All-Purpose Room
10:15 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. – K – 2
1:45 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. – Grades 3-5
7:00 p.m. PTA Meeting with Mr. Matt Kamins, School Psychologist
7:00- 8:30 p.m. - 5th Grade Parent Night – Gaithersburg Middle School
7:00 p.m. PTA Movie Night
Presidents’ Day – HOLIDAY
9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. - 2nd Grade to Imagination Stage
7:00 p.m. PTA Science Fair
Jump Rope and Hoops for Heart
9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. – 5th Grade
10:15 a.m. – 11:15 a.m. – 4th Grade
1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. – 2nd Grade
12:30 p.m. Early Dismissal Day
Jump Rope and Hoops for Heart
9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. – K and 1st Grade
10:50 a.m. – 11:50 a.m. – 3rd Grade
Reflections from Mr. Kaplan
Anniversaries allow us to reflect upon personal and
professional accomplishments. Oftentimes the two
become one as we ponder where we were and remember those who were with us during special times. I’m
sure our fifth grade parents can recall their children’s first day of school, as can those staff that
began their teaching career at the Knoll. January 5,
2014 was a memorable day for me as I celebrated
my 37 year anniversary as a teacher. Little did I
know as a sixth grade teacher at the American
School in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, that I would one
day become principal of the “berry-best” elementary
school in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
Time passes quickly, particularly as we reach that
point in life when being 50-something isn’t all that old. To my wonderful staff, precious students, and caring
SKES parents, thanks for making my job as “teacher on special assignment,” the best job I’ve had these 37
years. Happy 2014!