Issue 15

Lions Den

Be th e s da E le me n ta ry S ch o o l

Be th e s da E le me n ta ry S ch o o l PTA

Save the date…

April 14th-18th– NO SCHOOL– Spring

Break

April 21st– Now a

SCHOOL DAY

June 13th– LAST DAY

OF SCHOOL for STUDENTS (Early

Picture Day

Career Day

2

MCPS Extending School Year Due

to Snow Days

Yearbooks

3

Mayfair Shirts 4

PTA News…

Directory

STEM Thanks

5

MCPS News 6-7

Health Room

News 8

Parade of Flags 9

Inside this issue:

Dear Bethesda Families –

As you all have noticed, there have been several changes to the

outside grounds surrounding the front of our school. Please con-

tinue to follow the guidelines below for arrival and dismissal.

Many of you have asked about the use of the field during recess.

Given the weather this winter season, the ground is still saturat-

ed and too muddy for play. In addition, they are putting up fenc-

ing for the construction. Once all of the fencing is up, we will see

if we are able to monitor a section of the field that is not impact-

ed by construction.

Arrival

The side door, on the Moorland circle, will be opened starting at

8:35 a.m. for families who use the Moorland circle as a drop-off

location. If you arrive after 8:50 a.m., you will need to use the

drop-off circle located at the staff/visitor’s lot in front of the

building.

Dismissal

All students picked up at the Moorland circle will exit the school

through the side doors located along the walkway near the porta-

bles.

Dogs

Dogs are not permitted along the Moorland circle during arrival

or dismissal.

Lisa Seymour

Principally Speaking...

April 4, 2014

JUST A QUICK REMINDER…

YOUR PICTURE DAY IS April 9, 2014

Click Here to Print Your Order Form

http://www.classic-photo.com/marketing/md_indgrp_spring2014.pdf

For your convenience you can type directly into the order form from the link above

and simply print.

Career Day is Coming!

Calling all parents! I am looking for volunteers to

come and present for our annual Career Day on

Friday, May 9th from 9-11 am. This is a fun time for

students to learn about various careers. Career Day

consists of 2-3 short sessions per class where parent

volunteers visit various classrooms to talk about their

career and answer student questions. If you are

interested in helping, please email me at

Jessica_L_Nicholson@mcpsmd.org and include your

child’s name, grade, your profession, and contact

information. I will then be in touch with all

volunteers to discuss further details.

We hope you can join us!

Jessica Nicholson

School Counselor

PAGE 3 LIONS DE N ISSUE 15

Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) has made final adjustments to this year’s school calendar and will make up two snow days. Under a plan approved by the Maryland State Department of Education on Tuesday (April 2, 2014),

school will be held on the following days:

-Monday, April 21, 2014, (also known as Easter Monday) -Thursday, June 12, 2014 will be a full day of school -Friday, June 13, 2014, will be the LAST DAY of SCHOOL

for STUDENTS. This will be an early release day.

No other snow days will have to be made up under the state-approved plan. The 2013-2014 school calendar, as approved by the Montgomery County Board of

Education, has 184 days of instruction, which is four more than required by state law. MCPS has had 10 snow days this school year and, therefore, is six days under the 180 days of instruction required by state law.

On Tuesday, Maryland State Superintendent of Schools Lillian Lowery granted a waiver that allows MCPS to go four days below the required days of instruction if school is held on April 21 and June 13. “We appreciate Dr. Lowery’s recognition that this has been a very unusual winter and

her willingness to grant us some flexibility in our calendar,” said Superintendent of Schools Joshua P. Starr. “By holding classes on April 21 and June 13, we can make up two valuable days of instruction without significantly disrupting our community’s summer schedules.”

MCPS Will Make Up 2 Snow Days on April 21 and June 13….

YEAR BOOKS! YEAR BOOKS!

READ ALL ABOUT THEM "Don't be left out in the cold.... now is the time to order your yearbook!

Don't forget to get one! ($19.00)

Order forms were sent home with students and there are additional copies in the front office.

PTA News...

PTA News...

School Directory… DON'T MISS OUT!

Reserve Your Ad Space in the 2014-2015 School Directory Now. There is no better way to reach

the parents of Bethesda ES students than by advertising in our directory. Packed with valuable data like family contact info, important school dates, class rosters as well as a listing of spon-sors recognized as neighborhood partners because a good portion of their advertising costs goes back to the school and students. The School Directory is an indispensable resource consulted regu-

larly by school families, faculty, and staff. Support Bethesda Elementary and your business at the same time!

Wait List for Premium Placement Positions (Covers, Dividers, and Mobile Title Sponsorships) is

starting now as March 30th, 2014 is the deadline for getting available inventory released if they are not renewed by current sponsors.

Be sure to let your advertisers know you saw them in your school directory!

Contact Karen Dockser at 301-526-9901 or Karen@atozdirectories.com

STEM NIGHT…

Last week our visiting scientists listened to students as they presented their STEM Day projects. This was a terrific experience and we are grateful for their time and interest: Forrest Blank, John Capacchione, Russell Cruz, Catherine Cukras, Gary Davis, Andrew Fairbanks, James Garcia, Yev Gurevich, Ron Kinsey, Marie Kobayashi, Nancy Latham, Emil Lenchak, Buddy Livingstone, Jeevan

Mathura, Carrie Mulford, Maryan Naqvi, Kyle Potter, Javorka Saracevic, Joseph Soares, and Andrew Stivers.

STEM Night would not have gone smoothly without our wonderful parent volunteers: Rebecca Ber-

man, Diana Cummings, Asma Dilawari, Marie Kobayashi, Annette Mirantes, Theresa Rob-bins, Michel Santos, Jennifer Tiu, and Karen Trackman. Or without our BE alums/student ambassa-dors: Michaela Davis, Griffin Garcia, Rafe Garcia, Gracie Godes, Dylan Greenhouse, Dell Pat-ton, Reuben Rochkind, Asher Rubin, Ben Rumsfeld, Natalie Ryan, Manuel Sanchez, Matthew Si-

mon, and Sammy Tercyak.

I also want to extend a special 'thank you' to Ms. McCord and Ms. von Schwarz for all their hard work and helping integrate these events with the curriculum, and Sarah Mitchell and Stephanie

Shweiki for organizing an assembly from the MD Science Center earlier this month.

- Ken Tercyak

Stay Informed About the MCPS FY 2015 Operating Budget

Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett has released his recommended operating budget for next school year and is proposing a $77 million increase over this year’s budget. This is about $15 million less than the $2.3 billion operating

budget Board of Education had requested. The Montgomery County Council will hold public hearings on the County Ex-ecutive’s budget recommendation on April 8, 9, and 10, and this is a chance for parents, staff, students, and community members to share their thoughts with county leaders about how our schools are funded. Information on registering to

speak at a hearing and/or other ways to provide input to the Council on the budget is available at

www.montgomerycountymd.gov/council/.

The Board’s budget request represents a 4 percent increase over the current budget and is just 2.5 percent above the minimum funding level required by state law. The majority of the increase allows us to provide the same level of services

to a growing number of students. The budget request includes strategic investments that will help lower class sizes in some high schools, increase the number of counselors and other student support staff, add more technology to schools,

and improve services to English Language Learners.

The MCPS website has a series of briefs and videos that provide quick information about the budget that you can share

with friends and family. Visit www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org

and search Operating Budget.

Manténgase Informado Sobre el Presupuesto Operativo de MCPS Para el Año Fiscal 2015

El Ejecutivo del Condado Isiah Legget publicó su recomendación para el Presupuesto Operativo Para el Año Fiscal 2015 y

está proponiendo un aumento de $77 sobre el presupuesto actual. Esta propuesta es $15 millones menos del presupuesto de $2.3 mil millones solicitado por el Consejo de Educación. El Concejo del Condado de Montgomery (Montgomery County Council) tendrá audiencias públicas sobre el presupuesto recomendado por el Ejecutivo del Condado el 8, 9, y 10 de abril. Esta es una oportunidad para que los padres, el personal, los estudiantes y los miembros de la comunidad compartan sus

opiniones con los líderes del condado acerca de cómo nuestras escuelas son financiadas. Para más información sobre como inscribirse para hablar en una de estas audiencias y/o las diferentes maneras como ofrecer su opinión a el Consejo

referente al presupuesto, visite www.montgomerycountymd.gov/council/.

El presupuesto representa un aumento del 4 por ciento sobre el presupuesto actual y está 2.5 por ciento sobre el nivel mínimo de fondos que exige la ley estatal. La mayoría de ese aumento permitirá a MCPS proveer el mismo nivel de servicios a un número en aumento de estudiantes. El pedido presupuestario incluye inversiones estratégicas que

ayudarán a reducir el tamaño de las clases en algunas escuelas aumentar el número de consejeros escolares y otros

empleados de apoyo al estudiante, agregar más tecnología a las escuelas, y mejorar los servicios para estudiantes de

inglés como segundo idioma (English Language Learners).

El sitio de internet de MCPS tiene una serie de resúmenes y videos que proporcionan una visión general de la solicitud de presupuesto los cuales puede compartir con familiares y amigos. Visite www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org y busque “Operating Budget”.

MCPS News...

MCPS GIVE BACKpacks Campaign Under Way

The MCPS GIVE BACKpacks campaign is under way and needs your help to raise funds to purchase backpacks filled with school supplies for MCPS students in need. Last year, MCPS parents, staff, and community members generously

donated more than $100,000 to the GIVE BACKpacks campaign, and nearly 15,000 students in 41 schools received back-packs filled with school supplies. We’re hoping to serve even more students this year. A backpack filled with school sup-plies only costs $10, and donors have the option to sponsor an individual student, a classroom, a grade level, an entire

school, or a cluster of schools. Additional information is available at www.mcpsgivebackpacks.org or by calling 301-309-

MCPS.

La Campaña "GIVE BACKpacks" de MCPS ha Comenzado

La campaña "GIVE BACKpacks" de MCPS ha sido lanzada oficialmente y necesitamos su ayuda para recaudar fondos para comprar mochilas llenas de útiles escolares para estudiantes necesitados. El año pasado, padres de familia, empleados, y miembros de la comunidad de MCPS donaron generosamente más de $100,000 a la campaña "GIVE BACKpacks", y casi 15,000 estudiantes recibieron mochilas llenas de útiles escolares. Esperamos servir a aún más

estudiantes este año. Una donación de $10 proveerá a un estudiante necesitado una mochila nueva, llena de útiles escolares y usted tiene la opción de donar para un estudiante, un nivel de grado, toda una escuela, o un grupo de

escuelas. Visite www.mcpsgivebackpacks.org o llame al 301-309-MCPS (6277) para más detalles o para donar.

College Prep Fair to be held May 10

A free College Preparation and Scholarship Fair will be held 1-4 p.m. on Saturday, May 10, at the Universities at Shady Grove, 9630 Gudelsky Drive in Rockville. The fair is intended for students in grades 6–10 and their parents. Attendees will have an opportunity to meet various colleges and universities, learn about financial aid and scholarship opportuni-

ties and attend informative breakout sessions. There also will be a tour of the USG campus. Space is limited, so be sure to register early! Registration can be completed at www.mcpsparentacademy.org. Call 301-279-3100 for more infor-

mation.

Feria de Preparación Universitaria a Realizarse el 10 de Mayo

Habrá una Feria Gratuita de Preparación Universitaria y Becas el día sábado, 10 de mayo, de 1:00 a 4:00 p.m., en Uni-versities at Shady Grove, 9630 Gudelsky Drive, en Rockville. La feria está dirigida a los estudiantes de los Grados 6–10 y sus padres. Las personas que asistan tendrán la oportunidad de conocer a representantes de varios colegios universitari-os y universidades, aprender acerca de ayuda financiera y oportunidades de becas, y asistir a sesiones informativas en

grupos separados. También se ofrecerá un recorrido por las instalaciones de USG. El espacio es limitado, se recomienda

inscribirse, proceso que se puede completar ingresando a la página virtual de la Academia Para Padres de

MCPS. Comuníquese al 301-279-3100, para más información.

mcpssuper (English)

mcpssuper is a television show hosted by Dr. Starr that provides viewers with an in-depth look at the work of MCPS to engage and educate our students. The latest edition of mcpssuper features a comprehensive look at the Achieving Colle-

giate Excellence and Success (ACES) program, whose goal is to provide a seamless pathway from high school through college completion. ACES is a collaborative program among Montgomery County Public Schools, Montgomery College, and the Universities at Shady Grove that focuses on identifying and supporting students who are underrepresented in higher education and those who are the first in their family to attend college. The program can be seen on MCPS TV

(Comcast Ch. 34 and Verizon Ch. 36), and online at

www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/superintendent/mcpssuper/.

Note from the Health Room...

Dear Parents,

Wednesday, May 7, 2014 at 6:30 pm, Bethesda Elementary is hosting MULTI-CULTURAL/INTERNATIONAL NIGHT. To start the festivities, we would like to have students who are born in and/or have close ties to a foreign country give a greeting to the audience in their native language in a parade of flags. We hope your child can participate in these greetings and that we will have a strong

turnout for the evening. Please let us know whether your child can participate by returning the slip below by Wednesday, April 23, 2014.

We would appreciate it if you could bring your child to the front of cafeteria for a brief practice session prior to the performance at 6:00 pm on May 7,2014. If applicable, it would be great if your child could wear any traditional clothing and bring a flag that is representative of his/her country. ESOL students will have the opportunity to make a flag during the day in ESOL class. If your child is

not in ESOL please have them bring a flag. We can provide the paper if needed.

Thank you for your cooperation and support!

Respectfully,

INTERNATIONAL NIGHT PARADE OF FLAGS

Please return by Wednesday, April 23 if you would like your child to participate in the Multi-

Cultural/International Night greeting and parade of flags.

Since this is a family event, I understand that I will accompany my child to the event. I understand my child will line up with other students for a flag parade.

Name of the child ______________________________________________________________

Country/Language______________________________________________________________

Greeting: ____________________________________________________________________

Grade Level__________________ Classroom Teacher______________________________

Parent’s signature______________________________________________________________

Julie Petrossian, ESOL Teacher

Multi-Cultural/International Night...