Lee F. Derby, Principal
Meaghen Alexander,
Acting Assistant Principal
December, 2015
www.mcpsmd.org/schools/cedargrovees
Staying Focused
December is a busy time in the schoolhouse.
We have numerous special events this month,
including concerts, field trips, assemblies,
spirit days and nights, and the very popular
holiday shop. It might be easy to lose focus
amidst all these events and the upcoming
holidays, but that is not what we are seeing -teachers and staff are instructing at a high
level while developing innovative ways to
support and challenge students. And our
amazing students are rising to that challenge.
The level of work they are producing is
impressive and shows a great deal of growth
in just these first few months of school. I
hope you are as proud of your child’s
achievements as I am and that you let them
and their teachers know it.
We would like to welcome Mrs. Meaghen
Alexander as our acting Assistant Principal
while Mrs. Jones is on maternity leave. Mrs.
Alexander has her Administration
Certification from McDaniel College and has
been teaching for 16 years. She hails from
Little Bennett Elementary School most
recently where she has been a fourth and first
grade teacher and a member of the leadership
team for seven years. In the short time that
she has been at Cedar Grove, Mrs. Alexander
has already begun building relationships with
the students and their families as well as
providing valuable support to our teachers
and staff.
I have to pass on that one of the first things
Mrs. Alexander noted about Cedar Grove
was how polite and kind our students are.
This sentiment has been echoed several times
recently by other visitors to our building who
are in many schools. We should all be proud
of the fine young people we are raising and
teaching.
Parking Lot Safety Concerns
Are Growing
Recently we have noticed an increase in the
gridlock in our parking lots and on Ridge
Road during student arrival and dismissal
times, resulting in significant delays and
potential for property damage and injury.
Several near-misses have been observed,
and at least one child was dropped off on
Ridge Road, creating a situation fraught
with potential danger.
As always, I encourage parents to utilize
the bus transportation provided by MCPS,
thus avoiding the need to drive to and from
school daily and decreasing the traffic flow
in the parking lots. If you do choose to
drop off and/or pick up your child(ren), it is
imperative that you follow the established
traffic pattern and procedures. Student
drop-off and pick-up is to occur in the side
parking lot only, where adult monitors and
safety patrols can assist students. Students
should not be dropped off in the main
parking lot to walk up the stairs and cross
the bus lane. Doing so not only impedes
traffic, but is unsafe for those children. If
you would like to walk your child into the
building, you must park in a space in either
lot and do so. Parking in the flow of traffic
is not permitted.
Getting almost 700 students to and from
school safely requires everyone’s
cooperation, and I thank you in advance for
your compliance with these procedures.
CGES Radon Levels
Within Acceptable Limits
Annual Toy Drive Underway
Cedar Grove is once again participating in
the Marine Corp Reserve’s Toys for Tots
drive. We began collecting new,
unwrapped toys after Thanksgiving and
will be accepting donations through
December 17th. The toys collected will be
Christmas gifts to less fortunate children in
our community and send a message of hope
to less fortunate youngsters that will assist
them in becoming responsible, productive,
patriotic citizens. Last year we collected a
total of 191 toys. Let’s see if we can meet
that goal again or, even better, collect more
toys for those in need.
There have been recent news reports about
elevated levels of radon in certain
classrooms in Montgomery County Public
Schools (MCPS). This is to inform you
that the MCPS Indoor Air Quality unit
indicates that all classrooms and offices in
our building are below the United States
Environment Protection Agency (EPA)
recommended action limit of 4.0 picocuries
per liter of air (pCi/L). No action is
needed at this time for our school, but as a
precaution, our school, along with all
MCPS facilities, will be retested to
establish new baseline levels of radon.
As background, radon is a naturally
occurring radioactive gas that comes from
the natural breakdown (decay) of uranium
which is found in soil and rock all over the
United States. The EPA recommends that
the radon levels above 4.0 pCi/L should be
retested prior to any mitigation efforts.
While there are no concerns of elevated
levels of radon in our school, I wanted to
make you aware of this information. More
information about the MCPS Radon
Testing and Mitigation Program can be
found here.
Bravo to our Young Musicians
Over the last two weeks, our fourth and
fifth grade musicians have presented inschool and evening concerts to students and
teachers, parents, family members, and
guests. These chorus, band, and orchestra
members demonstrated remarkable talent,
strong work ethic, and teamwork as they
worked together to produce beautiful
instrumental and choral music. It is
amazing what they accomplish with weekly
instruction with Mrs. Eschelman and Mrs.
Jackson!
Where is That Jacket?
Our Lost and Found is overflowing
with many unclaimed items. If
your child is missing anything,
please be sure to check the items on
the racks and in the bins across
from the gym. All items not
claimed by the start of Winter
Break on December 23 will be
donated to Planet Aid.
Cedar Grove Students are
“Taking Care” of Each Other
Dr. Paul Hadfield recently brought his
“Taking Care” program to our students and
shared important anti-bullying information
with parents as well. He presented at the
PTA meeting on December 1st to provide
background information for his program
and additional strategies for use at home. In
particular, Dr. Hadfield reminded us that
bullying is “when someone is mean to you
over and over again, even though you have
asked them to stop.” Bullying behavior can
be categorized in 4 ways: physical attack;
name calling; excluding others (leaving
people out on purpose); and, spreading
rumors (talking about people behind their
backs). When someone is bullying your
child, Dr. Hadfield gave us a great 3-step
strategy to help children be successful in
warding off bullies: Walk, Talk, Squawk.
“Walk” stands for walking away from the
instigator the first time without saying
anything; “Talk” indicates using words to
tell the offender to stop the second time
(usually with an assertive “I” statement – “I
want you to leave me alone.”); “Squawk”
represents telling an adult about the
situation and person or people involved.
This is intended to discourage students who
are bothering or teasing from continuing
the behavior towards other students. Please
discuss these strategies with your child and
engage in a conversation with him or her
about the assembly. Ask your child about
Billy Briefcase and what we can learn from
him and his friend Marcos, and visit the
website for more about the program here
Our students are continuing to
demonstrate exemplary behavior in our
hallways, and much improvement has
been seen in the lunchroom, as well.
As a result, many classes are earning
more bears each month! Our Bear Way
winners for November are:
K
Mrs. Schofer’s Class
1-2
Mrs. Gross’ Class
3-5
Mrs. Troup’s Class
Keep up the great work!
Winter Wonderland Returns
It may not feel like winter yet, but it is time
for our own Winter Wonderland! From
Monday, December 14 through Friday,
December 18, the gym will once again be
transformed into a frosty, fun place filled
with winter-themed exercises and activities.
Students in all grades will review the skills
they have been working on in their PE
classes by participating in those activities.
Mr. Jansson brought this great tradition to
Cedar Grove, and we are excited to see its
return every year. Stop by and check out
the fun and learning going on!
Impact Aid Parent Survey
Impact Aid programs and grants are
designed to assist local school districts that
enroll federally connected students. The
grants from these programs become part of
the MCPS general operating budget and
support instructional activities. To qualify
for Impact Aid funding, MCPS must
determine how many of its parents/
guardians are in active duty with the
uniformed services, employed on federal
property, reside in federal or public
housing, and/or are a foreign government
military officer. MCPS uses the Federal
Impact Aid Survey that is distributed to all
families to collect this information. For
each school-aged child in your household,
please complete and return the survey by
December 18. The survey is available on
the MCPS website, search “impact aid
survey.” If you have any questions, contact
the MCPS Division of the Controller at
301-279-3039.
CGES Students Go on
Google Expeditions
Cedar Grove Elementary was chosen from
a long list of elementary schools to host the
Google Expeditions Pioneer program,
during which our children had the
opportunity to explore the world with the
use of special technology. Students in
grades 2 through 5 participated in these
virtual field trips directly related to their
grade level curriculum. Second grade
students went under the ocean to
experience ocean creatures and their
habitats in an ocean safari. Third graders
viewed the enormity of landforms around
the world and pondered the effects of
erosion. In fourth grade, the students visited
the ecosystem of a coral reef and discussed
the impact humans have on it. Fifth grade
students visited Historic Philadelphia where
they determined the site of the greatest
change in US government. Ask your
second, third, fourth or fifth grader about
this amazing project and all the new things
they learned!
I want to thank our families for the
great caring shown during our
recent canned food drives. Your
generosity enabled many local
families to have a happier
Thanksgiving and holiday season.
Thanks also to Mrs. Spoales for
coordinating with Damascus HELP
and to Girl Scout Daisy Troop 2953
for working with Clarksburg CAN
on these drives.
I’d also like to recognize the owners
and patrons of GoPerformance and
Fitness in Clarksburg. Together,
they donated $150 in grocery store
gift cards to Cedar Grove families
in need.
I’d also like to thank everyone for
the generous contributions to the
Heavenly Hats Foundation. Our
Heavenly Hat day raised $412 that
will be used to provide hats to those
who lose their hair due to the
treatment of cancer or the many
other medical conditions which may
cause hair loss
It’s wonderful to be a part of such a
caring community.
Board of Education Approves
$1.73 Billion Capital Budget
The Montgomery County Board of
Education approved a $1.73 billion six-year
Capital Improvements Program (CIP)
request for MCPS on November 16. The
Board’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2017–2022
request includes 10 new classroom addition
projects—6 in elementary schools and 4 in
secondary schools—and a new elementary
school in the Clarksburg cluster. The CIP
request keeps on schedule many other
projects that will add capacity to schools
and increases funding for countywide
projects, including Heating, Ventilation,
and Air Conditioning (HVAC) replacement
and numerous other infrastructure needs.
The request will now be sent to the county
executive and the County Council for
consideration. Visit the MCPS website to
learn more.
Dates to Remember
12/14 Progress Reports distributed
12/16 Spirit Day-Crazy Hair Day
FluMist Clinic
12/17 Toys for Tots Drive Ends
12/24-01/03/16
Winter Break
01/05 PTA Meeting @ 7:00 PM
01/12 Group Picture Day
01/13 Science Expo @ 7:00 PM-RHMS