The Tiger Times

Dear Amazing Tiger Families and Community,

What an extraordinary week we've had together! I am incredibly proud of how our Tigers showed up with confidence and determination during MAP Growth testing. Watching our students tackle challenging questions, persist through difficulty, and demonstrate their academic growth fills me with immense pride. Your support at home, ensuring charged devices, providing encouragement, and reinforcing positive mindsets, made all the difference. Thank you for being partners who invest in your children's success every single day!

As we continue celebrating Confidence as our Character Word of the Month, I'm moved by the powerful words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: "Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase." As we honor Dr. King's legacy this Monday, let's reflect on how his unwavering confidence in justice, equality, and human dignity changed the world. True confidence means stepping forward with courage even when the path ahead isn't clear. This week, let's inspire our Tigers to take bold steps toward their dreams, just as Dr. King did!

🕊️ School Closed - Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Monday, January 19, 2026 - School Closed in Observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Take this day to reflect on Dr. King's extraordinary legacy of courage, confidence, and commitment to justice and equality. Consider watching age-appropriate documentaries, reading books about Dr. King's life, or discussing his "I Have a Dream" speech with your children. Dr. King's confidence in a better future, even when others doubted, reminds us that confidence paired with purpose can change the world.

We'll see everyone back on Tuesday, January 20th!

📚 Read-A-Thon Kicks Off This Week!

Mark Your Calendars: Read-A-Thon January 21 - February 11, 2026

Kick-Off Event: Wednesday, January 21, 2026
Detailed information, registration links, and tracking tools will be shared via ClassDojo!

What is Read-A-Thon?
This exciting fundraiser encourages students to read daily while raising funds to support our school. Every minute spent reading helps our Tigers grow academically while earning valuable resources for our school community. Funds raised will be used to update our technology lab and purchase instructional supplies that directly benefit our Tigers' learning experience.

Why It Matters:

Reading just 20 minutes a day can help students create lifelong learning and reading habits that will serve them throughout their entire lives. With Read-A-Thon, those are habits worth celebrating and encouraging! This innovative fundraiser tracks minutes, not pages, encouraging kids to read what they genuinely love—whether it's fiction, non-fiction, graphic novels, poetry, comics, biographies, or anything else that sparks their interest and imagination.

The Best Part:
We earn more resources for our school while helping kids read more! It's a win-win for literacy development AND for enhancing our school's technology and instructional materials.

Building Confidence Through Reading:
When students read regularly, they build essential skills that boost their confidence in powerful ways:

• Vocabulary expansion helps them express themselves more clearly and confidently

• Comprehension skills improve their understanding across all subjects

• Background knowledge increases their ability to make meaningful connections

• Reading fluency builds their confidence in academic settings

• Love of learning develops when they discover books they enjoy

Most importantly, every book completed, every minute read, and every new word learned strengthens their belief in themselves as capable, competent learners. Reading is one of the most powerful confidence-builders available to our students!

How You Can Prepare:

✅ Start establishing a daily 20-minute reading routine now
✅ Visit your local library to stock up on books your child enjoys
✅ Create a cozy, distraction-free reading space at home
✅ Model reading by letting your child see you read too
✅ Talk with your child about what they're reading—ask questions and share reactions

Stay tuned for registration details, minute-tracking information, fundraising guidelines, and specific ways you can support your Tiger in this important literacy initiative!

📅 Important Upcoming Dates

Monday, January 19, 2026 - Martin Luther King Jr. Day
School Closed - Honor Dr. King's legacy of confidence and courage

Wednesday, January 21, 2026 - Read-A-Thon Kick-Off
Let's launch our literacy fundraiser with enthusiasm and Tiger pride!

Monday, January 26, 2026 - Grading & Reporting Day
Early Dismissal for Students (specific dismissal times will be shared via ClassDojo)
End of Second Quarter (46 Days) - Celebrating a semester of tremendous growth and achievement!

Tuesday, January 28, 2026 - PTO Meeting with Mr. AK, CEO of CLF

6:00 PM via Zoom (link will be shared via ClassDojo)
Join us for important updates, community discussion, and an opportunity to ask questions about our schools' operations and future plans

Please mark these important dates on your calendars and make the necessary arrangements! Each of these dates represents an important milestone or opportunity for our Tiger community to connect, grow, and celebrate together.

Remember: We are Leveling Up the STEMTastic Way! Let's continue building confidence through reading, honoring legacies of courage, and taking bold steps toward our brightest future!

With Confident Tiger Pride and Endless Gratitude,

Tauheedah N. Simmons-Lewis
Your PAWW-rific Principal
CMIT South Elementary School
Home of the STEMTastic Tigers 🐯

Grade Level Blurb:

The scholars had an awesome time on the field trip. Thank you again to all of the Chaperones that helped to make our trip to the Aquarium a great success. We will let families know about the next field trip soon.

We have finished i-Ready and MAP Testing, but the testing season is still in swing. Up next is Winter Dibels Testing, please check classdojo for the specific date for your scholar’s class.

During these cold months please ensure that students have the gear to be outside during recess, if the temperature is 40 or above the classes will be going outside for recess.

Students are losing their personal belongings. Please label all items, sweaters and jackets especially, so that students will know what belongs to them. Please use simple reminders to help students learn to become and stay responsible for their own items. Also please continue to practice tying shoes and turning sleeves of jackets from inside out to the correct way with your scholars.

When your child has been absent please communicate to the teacher and complete the online document submission form, because we are not taking paper notes: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1lp2fJsfDLjWNINllvX10OKjiGDn443yAB8Hq8BMBa-E/viewform

IMPORTANT KINDERGARTEN DATES-

January 19- No School

January 21- Read-A-Thon Fundraiser Starts

January 22- Kindergarten Winter Dibels Testing Starts

January 26- 3HR Early Dismissal

January 26- PTO Candy Gram Fundraiser Starts

January 28- PTO Meeting with Mr. Ak

January 30- Homework Due

February 6- Dress Down: Blackout

February 9- 100th Day of School : Students are invited to dress like they are 100 years old

February 13- 3HR Early Dismissal

February 13- Dress Down:Spread the Love

February 16- No School

Reading Updates:

UNIT 2- Week 5: Run, Jump and Swim

Essential Question: How do some living things make what they need?

• Phonological Awareness: Initial and Final Sounds; Segment and Blend Phonemes

Blend and Segment: Onset and Rime

• Phonics: Short /e/ middle sound and Letters W and Y

• High-frequency words: go, from, yellow

• Spelling words found in weekly readings: swim, push, climb, and carry

• Unit Vocabulary: grow, need, share, depend

Learning Goals:

• Learn what a persuasive text is

• Understand Informational Text Structure

• Find details in a text

• Capitalization for the beginning of a sentence

• Adjectives preposition and Verbs

• Rhyming Sort

Math Updates:

Topic 7: Understanding Subtraction

Essential Understanding: What types of situations involve subtraction?

• Show numbers in many way

• Express smaller parts of a bigger number with actions

• Represent subtraction as taking away from numbers up to 10

• Practice using an subtraction equation

• Show subtraction using number lines, ten frames and pictures

• Vocabulary:

Vocabulary: minus, take away, equal sign, take apart, left over, patterns

Science Updates:

TOPIC 4: Changes to the Environment

Experience 1: How do People change their environment?

• Review living vs non-living things

• Inquiry about the relationship between people and where they live.

• Demonstrate the relationship between the needs of people and the places they live, which together make up a system.

• Describe habitat relationships using relational language and simple adjectives.

Vocabulary: environment, system, model, change

Social Studies Updates:

Chapter 4 : Geography of the Neighborhood

Essential Question- What is the world like?

• Understand different places and areas that are around us

• Look into the into a map as a tool

• What is a globe?

• The parts of a map

• Analyze how we interact with jobs that help the community and the location of places

Vocabulary: street, community, neighbors, map, neighborhood, globe, legend

Health Updates:

January Topic: My Body is Special

• Demonstrate respect for different types of bodies

• Encourage self confidence by discovering one’s own special qualities and talents.

• Describe basic routines necessary to keep one’s “special” body healthy and safe.

• Explain why it is important to tell a trusted adult about situations involving personal safety.

Grade Level Blurb:

Hello Second Grade Tiger Families!

Due to testing, we will be extending last week’s activities into this upcoming week.

Our field trip to the Air and Space Museum will be on January 27, 2026. All Permission slips and payments must be made by January 23, 2026! No CASH PAYMENTS WILL BE ACCEPTED. All payments must be made through MySchoolBucks. Thank you in advance to all of the chaperones who are dedicating their time. Your scholars homeroom teacher should have notified you by now.

💻 Chromebook Reminder
Please continue to send your scholar to school daily with a fully charged Chromebook.

🌦️ Weather & Wellness Update 🧼
As the weather continues to change, seasonal germs are making their way around. Please remind your child to wash their hands frequently and practice good hygiene. If your child is feeling unwell, please keep them home to rest and recover.

Reading Updates:

This week, scholars will be reading an informational text. Throughout the week, we will focus on identifying the author’s purpose and making connections to the text.

In phonics, we will be working on diphthongs: ou, ow, oi, and oy. Scholars will practice reading and applying these sounds in words.

Math Updates:

This week, in Math, we will be starting Topic 4 which will be fluently adding within 100.

Science Updates:

In Science class, we’re exploring Earth’s changes and discovering how volcanoes, oceans, weather, and ice shape our planet!

Social Studies Updates:

Our next topic in Social Studies is Government! Students will learn about the different branches of government and how they all work together to make decisions and support our country .

Health Updates:

In Health, students are exploring the functions of the heart and learning why it’s so important to take care of it!

Grade Level Blurb:

We’ve had a very productive and focused week of learning, and I’m excited to share what our third grade classes have been doing. We completed the MAP testing! YAY! The classes will now be able to return to our routines and subjects. Please do not forget to submit your student’s permission slip and payment. Space for chaperones is very limited. We must include chaperones from the approved list that Ms. Reese maintains. At GMU, the students will enjoy the production, “Les Ballets Africains.” It’s an African dance performance by The National Dance Company of the Republic of Guinea. We are looking forward to it!

Reading Updates:

This week, students completed MAP Testing. We started with a practice test and reviewed test-taking strategies to help everyone feel confident and prepared. Their hard work paid off! As a class, we grew from the 42nd percentile to the 71st percentile, meaning our students are now performing better than 71% of students nationwide at their grade level. We are so proud of their growth and focus!

Social Studies Updates:

We also began watching Our Friend, Martin to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day and learn more about his life, leadership, and the importance of standing up for what is right.

Math Updates:

This week, students spent time strengthening important testing strategies for MAP testing while reviewing a variety of key math concepts. We focused on skills such as:

• Fractions and number lines

• Perimeter and area

• Multiplication and division

• Reading and interpreting pictographs

• Telling time

Students practiced carefully reading questions, choosing effective strategies, and checking their work. This review helped build confidence and reinforce skills they will need to be successful during the school year. I am pleased with their amazing scores!

Additionally, students demonstrated their ability to use the many multiplication strategies they have learned to solve multiplication facts and word problems. Keep up the great work!

Science Updates:

In science, students are diving into our unit on weather and climate. They are learning about different weather patterns and how climate affects our everyday lives. As part of this unit, students are also developing their data analysis skills by learning how to collect, organize in order to plot data using bar graphs. This hands-on approach allows them to make real-world connections between science and math.

Students also presented their STEM Fair projects. We have enjoyed listening to the students share and discuss their projects that showcases the new science knowledge they gained from completing the project. .

Health Updates:

Students also discussed test/study habits during health class as we learned about character and values in our “Healthy You” topic. Learning to have a positive attitude and lower stress was another main focus of the week.

As always, thanks for your support in educating our children. We can’t do it without you! Have a wonderful long weekend. Stay warm!

Greetings Team 4Ward,

I hope this message finds you well and full of joy. Can you believe it? We are down to the last week of the second quarter. This quarter has been busy with breaks, testing, and field trips. We have concluded our schoolwide winter diagnostic testing and have just a few make ups to complete. Once all makeups are completed updated data will be provided to all families. We are so proud of the growth that we have seen our scholars make thus far on their diagnostics. Please check in with your scholar about replenishing their school supplies.

🚌Field Trip

4th Graders had a blast over at the Howard B. Owens Science Center this past Friday. We had a first hand experience of our solar system and the different stars and planets you see in the sky. We are awaiting approval for our February field trip and will be sharing that information with you all when we know more. Please be reminded that payments must be made using MySchoolbucks. Field trip payment links are only available for up to two weeks. At the submission of the field trip packet chaperones were also selected and submitted. If you are interested in chaperoning a field trip before the end of the year, please contact your student’s homeroom teacher.

💻Many class activities use online tools. A charged computer ensures your child can fully participate in lessons and complete assignments. Our students also need a pair of wired headphones to complete activities and for testing. Students who arrive on time are better prepared for learning and reduce classroom disruptions. Please plan to have your child at school a few minutes early each day. A healthy breakfast helps students focus and have energy for learning. School breakfast is available daily until 8:00 when students arrive in the morning.

In our classrooms, we will be working on a variety of assignments and projects designed to challenge and inspire them. I encourage you to check in regularly with your scholar about what they are learning.Your support at home is greatly appreciated and makes a significant difference in their academic success.

Thank you for your ongoing support in your child’s learning journey. We are grateful for the partnership between home and school — together we help every student thrive.

Warmly,

Team 4Ward

Important Upcoming Dates:

• Dr. Martin Luther King Jr Memorial Day- No School Monday January 19, 2026

• MAP Winter Diagnostic Makeups Tuesday January 20, 2026

• Half Day Dismissal at 11:25- Monday January 26, 2026

Fourth Grade Information:

i-Ready:

i-Ready is a computer based math and reading program that is available for all of our scholars. Scholars have completed their diagnostics and are working on programs based on their areas of need. This program will be available all summer for students to continue to utilize in both reading and math. Please help your child complete at least 45 minutes of math and reading to grow their abilities.

Absences:

This is a friendly reminder that late work is only accepted if a student has an excused absence! If a scholar is absent and does not bring a note they will earn a 0 on the assignment that was missed. Please read the reminders to ensure that you are partnering with your scholars to make them successful for school. If a scholar leaves early or arrives late to school and it is not excused they will earn a 0 for all work that is not completed.

If your scholar is absent, please complete the CMIT South ES Absence Google Form within 3 days of your scholar returning back to school. https://forms.gle/euXzCpDvNGbLwb8U6 In order for students to receive make-up work you must provide a note stating; the student’s name, the date of absence, and reason for absence. Work is provided to students upon their return to school with an absence note.

Communications:

Students must bring their agenda book each day. Teachers will note the agenda book and it should be signed nightly by the adult at home.

Please allow up to 48 business hours for all responses to emails and Classdojo messages. Teachers are not actively monitoring their emails during the day because we are engaged in instruction. Emails are not monitored over the weekend or in the evening hours when teachers have gone home. If the message sent relates to dismissal changes please call the school directly to leave a message with the front office.

Grading:

Please check Synergy weekly to see scholar’s updated grades. Canvas is a Learning Management System in which scholars utilize to complete assignments and get access to materials.The grades entered in Synergy are those that will be used to calculate progress reports and report cards.

It is imperative that work is complete and turned in on time in order to receive full credit. Our district has set policies regarding assignment completion and make-up assignments. Only students that have an excused absence will be given an opportunity to receive and complete missing assignments.

Uniforms:

We are a uniform school. Students must be in the proper uniform each and every day. Students are expected to have mostly black shoes. They may wear a navy blue or school logo jacket or pullover during class. Students will be asked to remove any jacket or sweater that is not following the uniform policy. Students are not allowed to wear Crocs on school grounds.

Reading Updates:

We are in Volume 2 of our textbooks Unit 4: Impacts. Within this unit students will explore diverse literature styles from all over the world.This year writing is a main focus within our school. As we enter the second quarter scholars' writing will increase in frequency and length. We are expecting them to write at least 8 sentences per essay. How they organize and how clearly they share their points and ideas will also be important in scoring their writing.

This Week:

This week we finished our first drama “La Culebra.” Our students enjoyed being able to act out stories and showing narrative elements in different ways. Our students were able to answer whether or not we should do good deeds without expecting anything in return. Students also had an opportunity to act out a new ending or sequel to the drama we have read in class.

Next Week:

This week students will read a Historical Fiction called “ The Secret of the Winter Count.” A historical fiction is a story that has narrative elements but the story is set in the past. This story is about ` In this story students will seek to answer: how can what we learn from stories guide our actions?

Math Updates:

As we return from the break, we will continue with our Multiplication Focus. This week and next in Math, scholars continued working through Topics 3 and 4, focusing on using strategies and properties to solve 1-digit and 2-digit multiplication problems. Please continue to build math fluency through repetition of basic math facts to build speed and math confidence.

Please encourage scholars to practice their facts at home using Prodigy, IXL, i-Ready, and XtraMath to boost automatic recall. A few minutes of daily practice goes a long way!

Science Updates:

In Science, scholars are focusing on STEM Fair presentations! This week we took time to showcase each scholars’ hard work with an in-class STEM Gallery walk, touring each board exploring the different STEM topics. Next week, we will begin STEM presentations and choose our top 3 classroom representatives for the STEM Fair.

In addition to the STEM Fair, in Science we will begin our next topic, Human Use of Energy. In this topic, scholars will describe how fuels humans use for energy are derived from natural sources. They will learn that some of these resources are renewable over time, and others are not, and that human use of these energy resources can affect the environment in multiple ways.

Social Studies Updates:

This week students brainstormed an important American who helped shape the U.S. nation to prepare for their in class quest presentation project.

Grade Level Blurb:

Hello Families!

We had a great week of testing! 🎉 We are so proud of our students’ growth, focus, and hard work. As the quarter is coming to an end soon, this is a great time to finish strong! 💪🏽

Reading & Writing Updates:

Students are working on prefixes and verb tense while reading and writing informational text, focusing on key ideas and supporting details.

Social Studies Updates:

Continuing Chapter 4, Lesson 5: The French and Indian War.

Mrs. Mitchell led a game board activity using informational text.

Ms. Agbaniyaka led a Kahoot review to reinforce learning.

Math Updates:

Topic 7 — adding and subtracting fractions with unlike denominators. Students are practicing finding common denominators, following all steps, and simplifying answers.

Science Updates:

Chapter 6 — Earth’s systems (hydrosphere, atmosphere, geosphere, biosphere) and how they interact.

General CARTS Message:

Please remember to check your student's Canvas assignments and Synergy grades regularly!

Technology:

Another reminder that Digital Citizenship projects for students in grades 2–5 are due on January 21.

There are two required digital assignments for this project:

1. Graphic Organizer

2. Digital Citizenship Poster

All technology class projects are completed digitally. Every student should already have a copy of their graphic organizer—either started or completed—saved in their Google Drive. Students will create their poster using Canva for Education.

Once finished, students must submit the link to each assignment in Canvas.

Please note that most classes will only have one more technology class session before the due date, so it is important that students work on these assignments outside of class time as needed.

If you have any questions or need additional support, please do not hesitate to reach out.

Music:

Hello CMIT family,

Just a reminder for 3rd graders to bring in their recorders. Again, you can purchase from several retailers like Amazon, Walmart, Target, Music & Arts, and even Dollar Tree. We begin playing recorder on February 9th. Third quarter for 3rd grade is ALL recorder. Students will NEED a recorder to be successful.

All classes are currently working on our school’s character theme of confidence. We are learning the song, You-Nique. We are using arts integration to further engage with the lessons. Art and tableau are 2 of the methods students are learning and using to demonstrate their understanding of our lessons about confidence. My hope is that all students will feel a little more comfortable living in their own wonderfully, created bodies.

Also, parents… If your child received a grade of “C” or lower, there was probably a problem with their excused absences. Please go to the Student Absentee Notification Form to update the absence as excused with whatever documentation you may or may not need. Feel free to contact me if you have any additional questions or concerns. Michelle.Duncan@pgcps.org or Mduncan@cmitsouthes.org

Maker’s Lab:

The STEM Fair showcase is going to be on February 7th from 12p.m. to 1! Mark your calendars!

P.E.:

This week is focused on nutrition! We learned about the 5 important food groups that should be on a plate: protein, dairy, grain, fruits, and vegetables.

2025-2026 School Calendar

School Meals

School Violence Resources and Support

PGCPS TV

CMIT South ES Enrichment Program

Vendor Managed Child Care

Parent Handbook

Students’ Rights and Responsibilities Handbook.

Synergy ParentVUE Support for Parents and Guardians

Student Absence Form