C Paul Barnhart ES

Happy New Year, families, and welcome to 2026! A new year is a wonderful opportunity for a fresh start, a time to reset routines, revisit expectations, and set new family goals together. At school, we are taking time this January to reset and recommit to our schoolwide expectations so that all students can learn in a positive, respectful, and safe environment. We encourage you to have conversations at home with your child about how they contribute to making their classroom a great place to learn and how their choices support their own success and the success of others. As we move toward the end of the semester, we are also focused on finishing strong, staying engaged, doing our best work, and taking pride in our growth.

There is a lot of important and exciting information included below, so please take a few moments to read through everything carefully.

Wishing you a healthy and happy new year,

Mrs. Burke, Principal

January 2026

5th: School reopens

7th: iReady and WIDA Access Assessments Begin

13th: School board Meeting 6pm at Central Office
14th: MD Science Center Assemblies (paid for by your spirit night participation)

15th: 'Breath in, Chill Out- Stress Busting Strategies- Parent Workshop, 5:30-7:00, Information coming soon
16th: 2 hr early release (1:30); Coat Giveaway 2-5, Winter Warm-Up Day- wear your warm winter favorites as we enjoy our Quarter 2 PBIS celebration

19th: School Closed for Dr. Martin Luther King's Birthday

21st: 2nd quarter ends

22nd: 3rd quarter begins, Winter Band/Chorus Concert

26th: Semester Break- School Closed for Students

27th: 3rd Grade (Evans/Yates) to the JER Science Center

28th: Chick Fil A Spirit Night 5:30-7:30, Smallwood Location

29th: 3rd Grade (Godbee/Campbell) to the JER Science Center

February 2026

2nd: Report Cards posted in Parent Vue

5th: 100th Day of School- Tentative

10th: School board Meeting 6pm at Central Office

12th: 3rd Grade to Port Discovery

13th: 5th Grader to CSM for Destination College/ Pink and Red Day

16th: School Closed for Presidents Day

18th: 4th grade (Wheaton/Odom) to JER Science Center

20th: 2 hr early release (1:30)

23rd: Interims posted

25th: Black History Month Celebration, 6-7

26th: 5th grade to Nanjemoy, Extended Day (Miller)

27th: 5th grade to Nanjemoy, Extended Day (Bush)

March 2026- Sneak Peek, additional dates to be added next month

2nd: 5th grade to Nanjemoy, Extended Day (Giorsetto),

Read Across America Spirit Week-Details to come

3rd: 4th grade (Jarboe/Davis) to JER Science Center

4th: 2 hr early release (1:30)

6th: Read Across Charles County- many parent volunteer options coming soon

11th: School Closed for Students

17th: Green Day- How much Green can you wear today?

19th: Spring Pictures/Class Pictures

25th: STEM Night- 5:30-7:00

26th: Fun Run!!! All classes will run during their specials time, come and cheer them on, Details coming soon.

27th: 2 hr early release (1:30)

28th-April 6th- School Closed for Spring Break

Check the CCPS calendar for all county wide events.

We want to extend a heartfelt thank you to our families for your continued support of our fundraisers throughout the school year so far. Between our spirit nights, pizza fundraiser, and book fair, your generosity has allowed us to provide meaningful and memorable experiences for our students. Prior to the holiday break, we welcomed Blue Sky Puppet Theater for a holiday puppet show enjoyed by our entire school. In January, the Maryland Science Center will present an exciting science show for our kindergarten through fifth-grade students, and Mother Goose will be visiting to read to our pre-K and kindergarten classes. Additionally, we have been able to pay for admission and transportation to all field trips this year thanks to our Title 1 and Community Schools supports.

Fundraisers later in the year will help us celebrate and shower our teachers with appreciation during Teacher Appreciation Week and support end-of-year activities for all students, including mark-the-moment ceremonies for pre-K, kindergarten, and fifth grade. We look forward to your continued support with upcoming spirit nights and our much-anticipated Fun Run in March. Please be sure to mark March 26 on your calendar, as we will be seeking volunteers to help make the Fun Run a success.

As we move into cold and flu season, we kindly ask families to help us keep our Blue Jays healthy and learning! If your child is showing signs of illness—such as fever, vomiting, persistent cough, sore throat, or generally not feeling well—please keep them home to rest and recover. Students must be fever-free for 24 hours without medication before returning to school.

Keeping sick children home not only helps them heal more quickly, but also prevents the spread of germs to classmates and staff. Thank you for your partnership in keeping our school community safe, healthy, and ready to learn! 💙🦅

• Set aside 10–20 minutes a day for reading at a consistent time (bedtime, during breakfast, while waiting for activities)
• Let your child choose books that match their interests (rereading favorites is encouraged!)
• Create a cozy reading spot with pillows, blankets, or a special reading light

• Try listening to audio books while driving or while doing fun activities like playdough or legos.
• Read together as a family—take turns reading pages or read aloud
• Ask simple questions or make connections while reading to build comprehension
• Try a family reading challenge or keep a simple reading calendar
• Host a “book tasting” or a “blind date with a book” at home to spark excitement

When reading feels relaxed, positive, and part of everyday life, children build confidence, stronger skills, and a lifelong love of reading.

Helping Your Child Build Math Skills at Home

Happy New Year! January is a great time to set goals and strengthen math skills.

Here are some fun and easy ways to practice math at home:

Everyday Math Moments

Cooking Together: Let your child help measure ingredients.

Talk about fractions (½ cup, ¼ teaspoon) and ask questions like,

“If we double the recipe, how much sugar will we need?”

Shopping: Have your child estimate the total cost of items in the cart

Math Games

Deck of Card Games: Play “Addition War” – each player flips two cards and adds them; the highest sum wins.

Grades 3-5 Play “Multiplication War”

Fraction Match

Draw two cards: one is the numerator, the other the denominator.

Compare fractions with another player’s fraction to see whose is larger.

Make 10

Lay out 5 cards face up.

Players take turns finding pairs that add up to 10.

Replace cards as they are used.

Board Games: Games like Monopoly or Yahtzee build counting and probability skills.

Math Growth Mindset Tips for Parents:

Praise effort, not just results.

Celebrate mistakes as learning opportunities.

Encourage persistence and problem-solving

i-Ready Diagnostic Tests

During the month of January, students in Grades 1-5 will retake the i-Ready diagnostic assessments in reading and math. Comparing their performance at the start of the school year to the new data we will collect allows us to celebrate their progress and adjust our instruction to align with their changing strengths and needs. To prepare for this second round of testing, classroom teachers will facilitate “data chats” in which students analyze their previous scores, consider their growth goals, and plan actions they can take while completing the assessments to ensure their new scores reflect their best efforts. You can support your child at home by reviewing the For Families Report (Report Code: 6DQ8RZ) in your child’s i-Ready student portal together. Ask your child to identify their areas of strength as well as areas in which they’d like to improve and to describe what they want their results to be after they retake the tests. Then, discuss what they can do to make progress toward their goals, including test-taking strategies and the importance of a positive attitude.

Kindergarten Readiness Assessment (KRA) and Early Learning Assessment (ELA)

Students in kindergarten will retake the Star Early Literacy and Star Math assessments during the month of January. As with the i-Ready diagnostic tests taken by students in Grades 1-5, our goal is to collect evidence of their growth and tailor our instructional programs to their academic needs. Students in pre-kindergarten will also take the Star Early Literacy assessment during this round of testing. We will be gathering baseline data with which to gauge their progress when they retake the assessment in the spring. In the case of our youngest scholars, the best way to provide testing support from home is to maintain healthy habits for rest and nutrition as well as to continue to reinforce positive self-talk and self-regulation techniques.

Thank you for participating in Penguin Patch! We hope all of our students’ friends and families enjoyed their special gifts.

Fun fact: National Hot Chocolate Day is January 31st—so be on the lookout for a sweet treat to celebrate!

Our next PTO meeting will be held on January 20th. We hope to see you there!