Happy New Year! We welcome everyone back after the Winter Break. We hope you all had a restful and enjoyable time

off and were able to spend time with family and friends. As we begin the New Year, we find ourselves 17 school days

away from the end of the 2nd quarter. January will be a month of school-wide assessments, so as a school, we can get a

mid-year pulse-check and set goals for the 2nd half of the school year. Please make sure your child is here each day and is

on time. This is so important for ensuring students have a routine and predictable schedule.

During this month of reflection, I would like to take a moment to recognize and thank our PTA that does so much to

support our students and staff. Our PTA, led by Mr. Dresden as PTA President, Ms. Lowery, Vice-President, Mrs.

Cantwell, Secretary and Mrs. Lopez, Treasurer, all do so much for our school. Without their support, we would not be

able to provide our students & staff with some of the following extras: field trips, assemblies, organizing goodies for the

staff, a special field trip for our departing 5th graders, our Patriot Program, Family Nights – the list just goes on and on!! If

you have not joined our wonderful PTA, please join today! The forms are on the PTA bookshelf outside of the office. Let

your child’s teacher know if you need a form and it can be sent home. Additionally, the PTA has a Facebook page where a

lot of RWES information is shared. If you are a member of Facebook, please consider joining this closed group, so you

can be informed of upcoming events: https://www.facebook.com/groups/royewilliamspta/.

Please remember as the weather gets colder, the children will still be going outside for recess as long as the temperature if

above 40 degrees. Please dress your child for the weather. Also, we are working very hard as a school to improve student

attendance. Please talk to your child about proper handwashing and ways to sneeze into the area where their elbow bends

if a tissue is not available. Our goal is to have all students present and in school every day ready to learn. Thank you for

your help 😊.

Harford County Public School nurses are committed to assisting students to maximize their learning potential by

promoting their optimum health status; we look forward to working with you and your student this school year.

One of our goals is to educate our community about common health care concerns. A common concern that can be

anxiety producing is head lice. Head lice are very common in childhood, but they have not been shown to spread

disease. Lice are transmitted primarily through head to head contact and are not able to jump or fly.

The American Academy of Pediatrics, National Association of School Nurses and the Maryland Department of Health and

Mental Hygiene do not support excluding students with nits (eggs). It is recommended schools admit students with

nits (eggs) but no live lice. HCPS nurses exclude students with active infestation of head lice and provide careful and

confidential case management for families. School wide letters regarding infestations are sent home to parents only in

extreme circumstances. We encourage parents to check their children for head lice regularly throughout the

year. Your school nurse is available to provide education about head lice.

We encourage all our parents to join our Roye-Williams Elementary Twitter and Instagram page. We post pictures of

every day happenings at our school. It is one of our many ways to communicate with our parents in order to provide

updated information and promote school happenings. Please follow us on Twitter “@RWES_Eagles” and Instagram

“rwes_eagles”. Also, a key link to everything happening at the school, is our school’s website:

https://rwes.ss18.sharpschool.com/. You can find all the past newsletters, important information and teacher’s pages on

our school’s website. Between our newsletter and social media accounts, we sure work hard to keep our parents well

informed.

Finally, if you are making changes to your child’s normal dismissal, you will need to either write a note that morning or

call the office prior to 3:00 p.m. We cannot accept any dismissal changes after 3:00 p.m. on normal operating days or

after 12:00 p.m. on early dismissal days. Additionally, if you are picking up your child on an early dismissal day,

please do so prior to 12:00 p.m. Our office and teachers are preparing the students and the office for dismissal and all our

energies need to be focused on the children and ensuring they have a smooth, safe dismissal. Thank you for your

cooperation. We wish all our families a wonderful January and February!!

A Message from Mrs. Martino

May 2012 Roye-Williams Elementary School January, 2019

Did you know that being able to read sight words/high frequency words without

hesitation will help your child better understand what is being read?

For more information to the importance of sight words, I encourage you to read the following article: https://www.speechbuddy.com/blog/language-development/what-are-sight-words/

Students read sight word sentences each week.

Reading sight word books and locating a specific word on each page. Students love to

use a “slimer” to highlight.

Kindergarten was very busy during November. We had so much fun with our parents and grandparents during American Education Celebration! We had the chance to show them all that we have been working on. In math, we are writing addition equations using number stories and have started to work on subtraction. In reading and science, we started our new Wonders of Winter unit and have explored the seasonal changes in winter! Our centers have changed a little to include more inquiry-based thinking and challenges. We love working as scientists and engineers! In writing, we are continuing to write true stories in our narrative writing unit. You should see how much we have grown!

We have been working hard in first grade!

Math: We are in Topic 5, and are using strategies to add and subtract.

Reading: We finished our Environment unit and learned several ways that we can impact it in

positive and negative ways. We discussed what we can do to help our environment. We

have started our Happier Days Ahead unit, and read Olive the Other Reindeer to discuss

conflicts and solutions. It is not one of our students’ favorite books!

Writing: Students published our personal narrative stories, and have been working hard on

teaching books. Students have been so excited to write informational pieces that teach

their readers about a topic.

Science: We finished our physical science unit where we learned about light and sound and

the states of matter. We finished the unit by making root beer floats to identify and describe

solids, liquids, and gases.

Social Studies: Students are learning where they belong. They have learned about maps,

continents, their country, and their town. Soon they will create their own map or a

community!

As always, please be sure to read to your child and listen to your child read to you each

night. Reading at home will help your child work on skills learned at school and help them

grow as a reader. Also, don’t forget to complete the math packets to support your child as

a mathematician. The homework pages align with what they learn in school each day and

will help build their addition and subtraction skills.

Thank you for your support from home!

Welcome back, Roye Williams families! We hope everyone had an enjoyable Winter

Break with their families and friends! It’s hard to believe it is already January! Time is flying

by so quickly! As we return from our time off, please remind your children to follow the

three Core Values of being safe, respectful, and reflective everywhere on school

property. Please ask your child to explain them to you!

The Second Grade students have been hard at work learning strategies for adding

and subtracting. We will continue to apply these strategies as we move forward through

the rest of our units. Upcoming skills also include solving two-step problems and reasoning

about them, telling time to the nearest five minutes, and solving problems with coins and

dollar bills. Math homework will continue to be assigned each night, and parents are

encouraged to discuss the day’s learning with their child. Please contact his or her

teacher if you have any concerns or questions.

In C.S.I. (reading), students have been reading various texts to learn how and where

characters learn lessons. Our next unit is titled Seek and Find. Students will learn how

curiosity can lead individuals/ characters to ask questions about our world and to search

for the answers. Please encourage your child to read at least 20 minutes each night and

discuss what he or she has read afterwards. Don’t forget to complete the Book It forms

and turn them in at the end of each month for a coupon for a free pizza at Pizza Hut!

We completed our first writing unit on Narrative Writing, where students learned how

to take a tiny moment they experienced and add details to turn it into a “book” of their

own. We are currently completing our Information Unit, where students are reading non-

fiction texts and learning how to write their own non-fiction texts and chapter books.

Each class will continue to use the Class Dojo online system for monitoring and

managing student behavior. If you have not yet joined your child’s class, please contact

his or her teacher for instructions. It is a great way for parents to monitor their child’s

behavior from home (or on your phone) each day and the students love seeing their

good behaviors rewarded on the big screen!

We have many great things planned for our Second Graders and we look forward to

a great second half of the school year!

The Second Grade Team

Miss Serrapere, Mrs. Nasuta, Mrs. Lewis and Ms. Richardson

December 2018-January 2019

We are continuing to enjoy getting to know our third graders as we make our

way through Quarter 2! We are learning a lot and continuing to work on following our

school’s core values. We look forward to watching our students continue to learn and

grow!

We have completed our first six topics in Math. We are beginning topic 7

(Represent and Interpret Data) and continuing with topic 8 (Use Strategies and Properties

to Add and Subtract) and topic 9 (Fluently Add and Subtract Within 1,000). Please make

sure your child completes the error tracker log after each assessment to practice and

review previous skills.

We just completed our third theme in Reading (CSI), which was Speaking of

Change. We will be moving into our fourth theme, Determination, when we return from

winter break. Please make sure that your student is reading at least 20 minutes each

night to build their reading skills. Students should be choosing books that are on their

lexile level. Please contact your child’s homeroom teacher to find out your child’s

reading level.

We have just completed our second Writing unit and published our final drafts of

our opinion writing. We presented our final speeches to the class to show off our hard

work! We will be moving into our third writing unit, which is informational writing.

We have just completed our first Social Studies unit, which was Citizenship and

Communities. We have just begun our second Science unit, which is Earth and Space

Science.

Just a reminder that second quarter will be ending on January 25th. Please check

Home Access Center and reach out to your child’s teacher if you have any questions

about your child’s grades.

Note: Please check the HOME ACCESS CENTER or CLASS DOJO for more

information or to contact us with any questions!

Fourth graders have been working very hard these past few months! In math, we have

done a lot of multiplying and dividing with different models and strategies. In social studies,

we have been learning about different cultures and the holidays they celebrate. In science, we

have been learning about the different types of rocks and the rock cycle. It has been very

interesting for the students! Our theme for Reading this month was "Heroes" and we have just started “Taking Risks”.

These have both been very fascinating to learn about. We have been able to read stories about

heroes from our past and present. We have also talked about many events in history dealing

with heroic actions, as well as, every day heroes. Taking Risks has started off great! We are

learning about different jobs that are risky in life. In writing, we have been using the Lucy

Calkins program to focus on opinion writing. Our students' opinions and evidence to support

them are awesome! We also continue to implement technology into all of our lessons and the

students are doing a wonderful job!

We cannot wait to see what we will continue to accomplish in the upcoming months!

Miss Baker, Miss Costantini, and Miss Mammarella

We have been hard at work in fifth grade over the past

month. In Science, we have successfully completed our Family

Life unit and have gained lots of new knowledge! For math, we

have been working to master multiplication and division of

whole numbers and decimals. In the New Year we will be

preparing to take our second Math Benchmark assessment. In

reading, we have been studying informational texts about the

human impact on the Earth and our Environment. Along with

reading informational texts, we have been researching in

writing in order to create our own!

• Be on the lookout for HAS grade posting which occur

twice a month until report cards come home

• Second Quarter ends January 25th and report cards go

home February 8th

#Weare5thgrade #happynewyear

If you have any questions or concerns please contact us

at:

Barb Concini

Jordan Heussler

Lindsey Gilmour

Anne Bailey

Patrick Bryant

Barbara.Concini@hcps.org

Jordan.Heussler@hcps.org

Lindsey. Gilmour@hcps.org

Anne.Bailey@hcps.org

Patrick.Bryant@hcps.org

RWES Health Suite

Stress: reactions that your body experiences as a result of changes and demands that occur in your daily life. Some stress is good for you. Things that make you happy or excited can motivate you. This type of stress is called “eustress” and is good for the mind and body. However, just as there is good stress, there is also bad stress which causes other reactions in the mind and body.

Daily Events Surprises Waiting in line Sports Math Early out Presentations Quiz School House Day Losing a tooth New puppy Chorus Parties Injury Vacation Lunch Argument Concert Birthday P.E. Science Playground Riding the bus PARCC Testing Review and select events from to list to discuss with your student. For each event, have them name a physical, mental and emotional reaction that describes how they feel.

Reactions

Physical Increased heart rate/chest pain Increased breathing/dizziness Incr. blood pressure/ headache Muscle stiffening/bracing self Stomach ache Sweaty palms Pupils dilated

Mental Alert Confused Indecisive Disoriented Lethargic Depressed

Emotional Happy Scared Anxious Sad Frightened Withdrawn Mad

The key is to recognize and limit the stress that is bad for your physical and mental health. Learning to manage stress helps to build resilience in an everchanging and demanding world. Some people try to manage their stress by taking medication, drinking, smoking, or overeating. There are healthier methods to help one learn to adjust and adapt to changing situations. Teach your student that it is helpful to talk about their feelings, good and bad to friends or people who have had similar experiences. This can help them clarify their feelings and to discern what might be triggering the reaction. It is also helpful to focus on something other than the event – try taking a physical or mental break such as: walking, dancing, stretching, writing, drawing, coloring, or crying. They might also try listening to music or watching a comedy. When revisiting the event after a little time has passed, they may have a different perspective. Charlotte Holloway, School Nurse Kaiser Permanente Healthwise Handbook, 2000.

READING MONTH January is a great month to start anew! A child's love of reading starts at home. Immerse your child in words, language and books. -Heather Morris, Literacy Coach

In School We will celebrate reading with something exciting each week- book trivia, mystery readers, buddy reading between mixed grade levels. January is an exciting month at RWES! Mark your calendar for the following dates/activities. Friday’s Dress for Reading Success

• January 4th, Wear a Word- Wear your favorite (school appropriate) tee for everyone to read.

Homemade creativity is encouraged. (no hats)

• January 11th, Wear a Word- Wear your favorite (school appropriate) tee and/or accessory for everyone to read.

Homemade creativity is encouraged. (no hats)

*Friday, January 25th, "Read Around Roye-Williams-" Dress like your favorite book character while you carry your character's book around with you, so you can read during every spare moment. At the end of the day, students will join a "Mystery Match" where they will travel to another room to listen to a read aloud of their favorite book by a mystery reader before participating in D.E.A.R. time. (D.E.A.R.= Drop Everything and Read)

At Home

According to Reading Rockets, “Reading aloud is one of the most important things parents and

teachers can do with children. Reading aloud builds many important foundational skills, introduces

vocabulary, provides a model of fluent, expressive reading, and helps children recognize what reading for

pleasure is all about. Featured partner: Reading Is Fundamental” Check out their website for a variety of reading resources from games to supports.

http://www.readingrockets.org/about

We hope that everyone had a wonderful winter break! We are so proud of how

hard students have been working in media. Fifth grade has been working on

research skills and Native American Tales. Fourth grade has been detectives

and learning about mysteries. Third grade has mapped the media center and

learned about fairy tales. Second grade has been working with different

genres. First grade is learning about Old Favorites. Kindergarten has been

learning about sequencing stories and working together.

Please continue to work with your child to find a safe place to keep their

library book(s) when they are at home. Books are due the following week but

can be renewed if the student chooses. Students receive an overdue notice

when their book(s) are late. It is a single piece of paper that has the title,

picture of the book and the price of the book. This is not a bill. A bill will

have another sheet of paper attached to it with a description of why it is being

sent home.

Happy Reading!

Kori Templeton

Kim Hayward

Art Room News from Mrs. Price and Ms. Jenkins:

It's hard to believe that it’s a new year already! Thank you all for your support. Please continue to send in your donations of good “junk”. We can always use home and garden type magazines, leftover scrap paper, buttons, etc. We are in need of some zip-loc baggies of various sizes, aluminum foil, and glue sticks. Kindergarten- Kindergarten students will be using the textured papers they created in stations to make a collage inspired by the book "The Mitten" by Jan Brett. Next, we will be moving on to creating 3-D works of art. We will use modeling media to create "medallion" relief sculptures. And then we will move on to cutting and bending to make artworks that are 3-D. First Grade- First graders are in the process of creating a few different winter themed artworks. Next, we will be using modeling media to create "fossil" relief sculptures. Then we will use paper sculpting techniques in order to create 3-D paper playgrounds. Ms. Jenkin’s first grade class is creating houses inspired by the book, “Maybe Something Beautiful” by F. Isabel Campoy and Theresa Howell. Second Grade- Second grade students are working on a collage inspired by the Native American tale of “The Thunderbird”. After this project is complete, we will be learning about symmetry and creating symmetrical architectural designs inspired by the Taj Majal. Third Grade- The third graders are finishing up demonstrating proper painting techniques in the painting of their landscapes. Next, we will be learning about complimentary color schemes. Ms. Jenkin’s third graders are using complimentary colors to create a winter fox scene.

Fourth Grade- Fourth grade students are learning about perspective and how to draw objects from different points of view. Next, we will be learning about the Japanese art of ink painting and creating a Sumi-e inspired painting. Fifth Grade- Fifth graders are in the middle of creating birch tree landscapes that demonstrate an understanding of depth. Next, they will be comparing and contrasting Eastern and European dragons and creating a dragon drawing with 3-D elements. Ms. Jenkin’s fifth grade class is working on creating graffiti inspired letter designs.

It is important that both at home and school we are helping our children to become resilient, which means being able to adapt when we are faced with challenges in life. It is the ability to return to a sense of normalcy after facing trauma or a difficult challenge. There are many benefits to being resilient including: improved academic learning, better attendance rates, reduced use of risk-taking behaviors, more involvement in family and the community, and better physical and mental health. There are many ways that we can work together to develop resiliency in our children both at home and in school. Some of these include using relaxation techniques to calm down, which might include listening to music, going for a walk, or using breathing techniques. It is also important to be assertive with others and be honest about how you are feeling. Additionally, hobbies, sports, and spending time as a family can help to reduce stress. Finally, developing healthy habits like getting enough sleep, eating healthy, and frequent exercise can also help to build and develop resiliency. Together we can help students to develop resiliency, so they have the skills and strategies to cope with difficult situations in our lives. For more information, access this article on resiliency: https://www.counselling-directory.org.uk/counsellor-articles/the-importance-of-building-resilience

BIRTHDAY/PARTY INVITATIONS AT SCHOOL We respectfully request that birthday/party invitations not be sent to school for either the child or teacher to distribute to other students. This disrupts the educational environment of our school and we would appreciate your cooperation with this important policy. Classroom teachers are looking for parent volunteers to create a class directory to send home to parents in order to send out invites. Please contact your child’s teacher if you would like to volunteer to create a class directory.

****BUS LOOP REMINDER**** Cars are not allowed in the bus loop from 8:00-9:00 a.m. and 3:00-4:00 p.m. daily. Please adhere to the posted signs and guidelines and use the upper parking lot during these times. Also, please do not park on the RED CURB in front of the school as this is for emergency vehicles only.

Student Pick-Up and/or Changes in Dismissal Parents are asked to write a note to your child’s teacher if your child’s dismissal procedure is going to change on any particular day. Teachers are instructed to send all students home normally UNLESS there is a note identifying an alternate transportation method. We ask you to not call the school to change dismissal procedures, as we can only take a parent note if they will be riding a different bus. If you are changing your child from bus rider to car rider status for the day, we prefer a note. However, you may do this by phone, but we will NOT make any changes to dismissal procedures after 3:00 p.m. Additionally, in order to have a safe and orderly dismissal, we ask if you are picking up your student early for an appointment that this is done by 3:00 on regular school days or by 12:00 on early dismissal days. Please keep in mind on early dismissal days students are considered absent for the entire day if they do not attend more than 2 hours of the ½ day. Additionally, on regular schedule days, if students are picked up early they will be marked as “early dismissal” on these days. The Maryland Department of Education keeps track of student attendance including tardy and early dismissal. Please help us to ensure students are present for the entire school day. Thank you in advance for cooperation.

Vision: At Roye-Williams, we are a supportive and patriotic community striving

to empower one another.

Mission: We are . . . Empowered to Achieve Goals and Learn Everyday