Fallsmead
Falcon
The Newsletter of
Fallsmead Elementary
School
January 23, 2015
Roni Silverstein, Principal
Calendar for the Weeks Ahead
Thursday, January 29, 2015
Report Cards distributed
Friday, January 30, 2015
Fifth Grade Field Trip to Frost Middle School
Monday, February 2, 2015
6:30-9:00 p.m.– information session for parent
about new PARCC assessments-Montgomery
Blair High School.
Aara David-Jones, Assistant Principal
Principally Speaking
Happy New Year to each and every Fallsmead family! As the new
year begins and we make resolutions for ourselves, kids can also
get started on setting goals for themselves! Just like adults, kids
have trouble managing the time they have available to accomplish
the things they need to do. ERIC, the Educational Resources Information Center has some suggestions which can help kids manage
their time:

Tuesday, February 3, 2015
7:00 p.m. - PTA meeting

Wednesday, February 4, 2015
1st Grade Assembly on Nutrition
Friday, February 13, 2015
2:00-3:00 p.m. - Valentine’s Day Parties
Monday, February 16, 2015
No School - Presidents’ Day
CONGRATULATIONS!


Congratulations to all of our students who were
chosen to be in the Wootton High School production of Mary Poppins, including Adalyn Gully, who was chosen to be Jane Banks, one of the
lead parts! The following students will be in the
ensemble on the 2nd weekend of the show:
Zachary Eig, Madeline Eig, Shana Gittleson,
Gerald Lu, Dilan Parikh, Jayne Samborn, and
Ivy Seligman.
Please support the Wootton Theatre and cheer
our students on! More information to follow.

Parents can help their child set some beneficial goals. Selfmanagement needs to start with something that your child can
visualize as a worthy goal, such as: getting better grades in a
specific class, learning a new skill, finishing family chores, etc.
Set a target together, and make it an important outcome.
How do you manage the big tasks? “Divide and Conquer”!
With help from their parents, children can accomplish so much
more if they divide the tasks at hand into small manageable
parts. Help your children to learn to write down the steps they
need to take to accomplish a big goal. This technique is really
helpful as children begin a long term school project or report
too.
Develop regular hours for regular tasks. Creating a routine for
homework or other chores helps to build responsibility and success.
“Brag time and encouragement” When your children complete
a task, help them to celebrate their accomplishments. ERIC
suggested the following ways that children can brag about their
accomplishments:
-Read writing to an appreciative listener
-Post finished products on bulletin board or the “fridge”
-Send copy via e-mail to a friend or relative
-Check task off a list
-Take photos and send a text or email with their photos
-Create a ‘Finished’ box and drop a note in the box—
Finally, modeling some of these techniques for your child is a
great way to show them that they are maturing, and trying
adult techniques to manage their time!
PARCC NIGHT
MCPS , in partnership with the MCCPTA and the NAACP Parent’s Council, will host an information session for parents on the new PARCC assessments on Monday, February 2nd. Parents will learn more about
PARCC and how MCPS is preparing students for success on these new assessments. The event will be
held from 6:30 to 9:00 p.m. at Montgomery Blair High School.
MORNING AND AFTERNOON CAR DROP-OFF AND PICK -UP
Parents, if you drop your child off at our car drop -off line in the mornings, or pick them up in the afternoon carpool line, please follow safe driving procedures. Please have your child ready to exit or enter the
car quickly, so that other parents may pull up as well. Please pull up as far as you can next to the sidewalk
to drop -off or pick up your child to expedite the system. Please do not allow your child to run across the
parking lot. These procedures are in place to ensure the safety of all of our students. NOTICE!!! All our
doors will be locked at 8:50 a.m. If you carpool, please do not drop off your child after 8:50. After
the doors are locked, parents must come into the building with their child through the front doors
and sign their child in. Thank you.
SPECIAL PARKING SPACE
You may have noticed that we installed a special parking space for the winners of this year’s auction item
during our fall auction. During our auction, parents had a chance to bid on a special parking space in our
lot. Please leave this space available for those parents who bid, won, and paid for that parking space. As
you know, all monies collected at the auction will be used to pay for the upcoming outdoor classroom
which will be built soon in our “butterfly garden” in back of the school for all our students to enjoy!
DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. —On Monday, January 21, 2015 we celebrated the birthday and
the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. King was a true civil-rights leader. “In 1957 Dr. King formed
the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and began lecturing nationwide, urging active nonviolence
to achieve civil rights for blacks.” As an ordained minister, Dr. King protested segregation. In 1963, Dr.
King helped to organize the “March on Washington”. This was a historic gathering of more than 200,000
protesters at which he made his famous “I have a dream” speech. As a result of this march and other protests, the 1964 Civil Rights Act was passed, and Dr. King was awarded the 1964 Nobel Peace Prize. Later,
Dr. King was a strong advocate for civil rights including voting rights for all poor people. Tragically, Dr.
King was assassinated by J.E. Ray in Memphis, Tennessee, where he had gone to support a strike by sanitation workers. Dr. King taught us to respect all people, and to peacefully fight for equal rights.
FLU SEASON
It’s flu season again. Doctors say it isn’t too late for anyone over 6 months old to get a flu shot. We can
help prevent the spread of illness by following a few easy tips! Encourage your child to:
1. Wash their hands frequently. 2. Keep their hands away from their face, nose and mouth. 3. Cover
their mouth with their arm or sleeve when sneezing or coughing .
Keep students home from school whenever they have a severe cold or cough , are vomiting and/ or
fever is present. Students should only return when fever free for at least 24 hours or more.