CMIT South Elementary School

Dear CMIT South Elementary Families,

As we approach the end of April, which is Autism Acceptance Month, I want to take this opportunity to reflect on and celebrate our wonderfully diverse school community. Every child brings unique gifts and perspectives that enrich our learning environment. As Temple Grandin, renowned scientist and autism advocate, once said: "I am different, not less. The world needs all types of minds."

Together, we are creating an inclusive space where all students can thrive, discover their strengths, and pursue their ambitions. Your continued partnership in supporting your children's education makes all the difference in their success.

Weekly Schedule Reminder

This is B-Week/Week 2. Please ensure your child follows their B-Week/Week 2 schedule for Creative Arts (CARTS) classes.

MCAP Spirit Week Success

We ended our MCAP Spirit Week with an incredible vocabulary parade! It was truly heartwarming to see students dressed up representing all kinds of words, their faces beaming with excitement and creativity. The enthusiasm and effort put into the costumes demonstrated our students' love of learning in such a visual and memorable way.

MCAP Testing Schedule

We have important work ahead with our MCAP assessments:

Testing Schedule:

• 3rd Grade: April 28, 29, 30, and May 1

• 4th Grade: May 5, 6, 7, and 8

• 5th Grade: May 12, 13, 14, and 15

On each testing day, students will complete two sessions. Tests will begin promptly at 8:30 AM and will be completed by noon. As we move into testing week, please ensure your child:

• Arrives at school on time

• Get plenty of rest the night before testing

• Eats a nutritious breakfast

• Comes prepared with a positive attitude

• Bring a water bottle to stay hydrated

For more detailed information, please review the MCAP Parent Letter available on our website.

Remember, while these assessments are important, they are just one measure of your child's growth and learning. Every day, we see your children's curiosity, creativity, and determination in action.

Basketball Game Information

We're excited to announce our upcoming CMIT South Basketball games on Monday, April 29th at Greenbelt Elementary (66 Ridge Rd, Greenbelt, MD 20770):

• 5:30 PM - Coach Young's team

• 6:30 PM - Coach Jenkins' team

Admission Fees:

• $5 per person (ages 14+)

• $3 per person (ages 7-13)

• Children under 7 - Free admission

Important Ticket Information:

• All general spectator tickets MUST be purchased online through Hometown Sports: https://events.hometownticketing.com/boxoffice/impact/L2VtYmVkL2V2ZW50LzYx

• Season passes are available for $60 (Adults 14+ ONLY) and must be purchased online at: https://events.hometownticketing.com/boxoffice/impact/L2VtYmVkL2V2ZW50LzQ3

Come out and show your CMIT South pride by supporting our basketball teams!

As we look ahead to the final weeks of school, remember that the STEM Journey Begins Here at CMIT South Elementary! Let's continue to fill this school year with exciting learning opportunities, personal growth, and impressive achievements for all our scholars. Every day brings new opportunities for growth and your partnership in education makes a profound difference in our students' success. We thank you for making CMIT South Elementary a vibrant and supportive learning community. Together, we're creating meaningful experiences for our scholars! Remember, we can't continue this STEM journey without you!

Let's make this year a roaring success! 🦁📚

Wishing you all a 🐾 PawwRific 🐾 day and see you all Monday, April 28, 2025!

With Tiger Pride,

Ms. Tauheedah N. Simmons-Lewis

Principal

Chesapeake Math & IT Academy Elementary South (CMIT)

Grade Level Updates:

Welcome back from Spring Break Kinder Families,

Students had a blast at the MD Science Center in-school field trip as they got to see the experiments up close. The permission slips for the next field trip will be going home this week.

Starting this upcoming week Kindergarten will be starting our Wacky Wednesday Countdown to Summer. Every Wednesday will be a different theme for students to participate in. Please check the link below for the calendar.

2025 Wacky Wednesday Countdown to Summer

This week please be on the lookout for a sign up genesis to volunteer in your scholar’s class for a embroidery project that we will begin soon. This project will engage students in the world around them through nature and the use of their fine motor skills. This in school project will last a couple of weeks so there will be multiple changes for signing up.

In Spring, many students have their allergies reawakened and sometimes it can be severe; if your scholar is one of those students and needs medication please remember to fill out a doctor’s form for medication to go to the nurse. Also we are entering warmer weather, please remember that Kindergarten's recess is early in the morning and students will still need coats. Also families, please have your scholar’s shoes tied when they come to school and continue to assist your scholar in their efforts of learning to tie their shoes independently. Students should have a school approved sweater or jacket to wear in the classroom, in case they get chilly.

Dates to Remember:

April 30: Baby pictures should have been submitted to the teacher

April 30: Wacky Wednesday Start: Disney and Bubble Day

May 2: Homework Packet Due

May 16: 3 hour early dismissal

May 23: Save the Date: Field Trip to the DC National History Museum

June 6: Save the Date: Field Day

June 12: Kindergarten Promotion

Reading Updates:

UNIT 4- Week 2: Uncovering the Past

Essential Question: What can we learn from the past? How do we learn about the past?

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

Blend and Segment: Onset and Rime

• Phonics:Vowel sounds - short u (/u/) and long u (/u_e/)

• High-frequency words: all, now, pretty

• Story Vocabulary: past, shovels, brushes, scientists

• Unit Vocabulary: time, discover, change, tradition

Learning Goals:

• Learn about the past

• Visualize details from a story

• Syllables and compound words

• Find details in a text

• Main idea and details

• Capitalization for the beginning of a sentence

• Types of Punctuation, go with different types of sentences

• Prepositions, adjectives, and articles

• Organize the story element: character, setting, plot

Math Updates:

Topic 10: Compose and Decompose Numbers 11 to 19

Essential Understanding: How can the number 11-19 be made up of?

• Show numbers in many way

• Count and write numbers 11-20

• Represent groups of objects with a number to 20

• Practice counting on from any number within 20

• Show different numbers as a group of ten and some more

Vocabulary: eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, patterns

Science Updates:

TOPIC 4 LESSON 4: Severe Weather

Essential Question: How do different weathers affect Earth?

• Learn how the relationship between the temperature and season

• Types of severe weather

• Discover how to prepare for severe weather

• Describe how severe weather can affects people and the environment

Vocabulary:thunderstorm, hurricane, blizzard, tornado

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:

May Topic: Keeping Clean and Healthy

• Describe what it means to be healthy, sick and why is it is important to stay well

• Discover daily routines that people do to stay healthy

• Encourage confidence in knowing how to show concern for others that might be sick

• Demonstrate respect for our bodies and encourage others to practice proper hygiene.

• Explain what is it means for the community to be clean and healthy

Grade Level Blurb:

Thank you for your continued support! As the weather is changing, please make sure your children are dressed appropriately for the day. We also have several field trips coming up, so be on the lookout for more information soon!

Reading Updates:

This week, the kids will be reading realistic fiction. They will explore stories that could happen in real life, with characters and situations that feel true to everyday experiences.

Math Updates:

Students will continue learning about time and money this upcoming week.

Science Updates:

Students will continue to learn about the life cycle of plants and animals. Also they will learn about their habitats.

Health Updates:

Students will continue to learn about germs and their effects.

Grade Level Updates:

This week, 3rd grade students will begin MCAP testing. It is imperative that they arrive to school on time, well-rested, having eaten a good breakfast. Students who arrive late to school, will have to retake their test at a later date. Remind your scholar's of the importance of doing their best and taking their time. We can't wait to see how much they have grown!

Greetings Fabulous Fourth Graders,

I hope this message finds you well. We home that everyone had a restful and relaxing Spring Break with their loved ones. We are now down to the last quarter which has plenty of events between now and the end of the year. Fourth grade will begin MCAP testing on Monday May 5, 2025 lasting to Thursday May 8, 2025. Students will take two sessions each day beginning at 8:30. It is imperative that your scholar is present and on time for school all four days. Students must take the assessment in order and missing a section will result in them having to make up that section at a later date. Students will not be able to join their class once the class has begun testing!

We ask that you continue to talk with your student nightly about “glows and grows” from their day at school. We are helping students to be more reflective about their days and ways they can make improvements. This is the last quarter of Fourth Grade and our scholars have made great progress and are beginning their preparations to become the building leaders next year.

The character trait of the month of April is Ambition. Students will have lessons in class around having ambition and striving to reach their goals. Ways you can help is to share with your scholar times when you have shown ambition and drive to reach your goals. Please continue to read to get updates and important information from Fourth Grade.

MCAP Practice Tests

https://support.mdassessments.com/practice-tests/english/

https://support.mdassessments.com/practice-tests/math/

Please sit with your child and review the MCAP with them. Ask your child to discuss what they are seeing and different tools they can use for testing.

Thank you for your continuing support and partnership.

Warm regards,

4th Grade Team

Important Upcoming Dates:

• 4th Grade MCAP May 5- 8, 2025

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.

Fourth Grade Reminders:

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. If scholars have access to a computer at home, we recommend that your scholar is getting at least 45 minutes of practice a week in both reading and math. Please encourage your child to complete lessons and ensure they complete the lessons independently to accurately improve their skills. i-Ready is accessed through clever.pgcps.org, and scholars will use their PGCPS logins to access the program.

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 share a note with the homeroom teacher and attendance managers within 3 days of your scholar returning back to school. 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 provided in Synergy are those that will be used to calculate progress reports and report cards.

Parent Teacher Conferences:

Conferences with teachers are available with families as needed. Please reach out to the homeroom teacher about scheduling a parent teacher conference.

Reading Updates:

All texts that are being read in the classroom are also available for students to reread at home in their Vol. 2 textbooks. Please have students continue to read and discuss with you information that they find in the text. Students should always read a portion of the text and share any thoughts or questions they had while reading. Students should also note the text underlining, circling, and highlighting parts of the story that were important to know. Homework continues to be sent home on a weekly basis on the first day of the week.

This Week: Students had in class activities in preparation for MCAP. Students this week read paired texts about animal adaptations. Students used the standard RI.4.9 which focuses on integrating information from across multiple texts to form new thoughts. This standard combines most of the skills given for fourth graders such as main idea, compare and contrast, author’s purpose, referring to details in the text, and finally reading a text closely.

Next Week: Students will continue to have in class activities in preparation for MCAP. We will have students read two informational texts about managing stress to determine the main idea and synthesize the information between the two texts. We will also explore the MCAP site and begin answering MCAP style questions.

Math Updates:

This week we will focus on Test Prep for our upcoming testing schedule as we close “Topic 5: Using Strategies and Properties to Divide by 1-Digit Numbers”;(4.OA.A.3 and 4.NBT.B.6). Students will be given a weekly MCAP homework assignment to complete at home. This assignment will be due on Thursday so that we can review the assignment as a class on Fridays.

At home, please continue practicing with basic math facts focused on multiplication and division to support math fluency and the computation strategies for this topic.

Reminder: IXL Action Plan Challenge is now over, however continue to have your scholars practice their IXL skill plans at home before the end of the month of March to receive their Scholarship reward. Please check Synergy ParentVue and Canvas with your scholar to ensure the completion of assignments.

Test Prep: Preparing for MCAP Testing

Parents and Guardians,

As we prepare for state testing and continue building strong math skills, we wanted to recommend two great resources that can support your child’s learning at home:

Math Tool Kit (Amazon Link: https://a.co/d/jlwZJbI)

4th Grade Common Core Math Quick Study Guide (Amazon Link: https://a.co/d/0Gy4Igw)

Both are fantastic tools that break down key math concepts, reinforce skills, and align with what we are learning in class. These resources can help students review and practice at home while also preparing for the MCAP.

If you’re looking for an easy way to boost your child’s confidence in math, these are great options! Let us know if you have any questions.

Thank you for your continued support!

Science Updates:

This week we will begin our next topic, Topic 4 Earth’s Features. The focus for this topic is to analyze the patterns and features of planet Earth. We will be focusing on the skills, observation, weather island erosion, and on analyzing and interpreting data. Key vocabulary for this topic is; canyon, butte, fault, trench, pattern and feature.

Please check Synergy ParentVue and Canvas with your scholar to ensure completion of assignments

Social Studies Updates:

This week: Students prepared for the MCAP assessment by reviewing key reading comprehension strategies, analyzing practice passages, and engaging in activities focused on improving their writing and language skills.

• Please have your student get on iReady and IXL every night to practice reading skills.

• A practice assessment will be sent home next week. Encourage your student to complete it for extra practice.

Next week: Students will prepare for the MCAP assessment by reviewing key reading comprehension strategies, analyzing practice passages, and engaging in activities focused on improving their writing and language skills.

Gearing Up for Greatness!

We had a great spirit week as we get ready for upcoming testing! Please continue to check Class Dojo for important updates about promotion activities and events for the students.

Reading Updates:

Students are currently engaged in a novel study of “The Thing About Georgie.” Through this story, students are analyzing character development, theme, and plot structure. They are participating in group discussions, completing journal reflections, and working on activities that connect the novel to real-world experiences and important life lessons.

Math Updates:

In Ms. Jenkins’ class, students are wrapping up Topic 9: Dividing Fractions. They have been practicing how to divide whole numbers and fractions, and how to solve real-world word problems involving division of fractions. We are currently reviewing all skills learned in preparation for an upcoming assessment next week.

In Ms. Lewis’ class, students have successfully completed Topic 8: Multiplying Fractions and are now beginning Topic 9: Dividing Fractions. Students will be introduced to key strategies, including interpreting division of fractions through visual models and story problems.

Science Updates:

In Ms. Jenkins’ class, students are continuing their exploration of patterns in space. As part of this unit, students are working on an in-class brochure project, where they research and present information about global patterns related to the sun, moon, and stars. This project helps students apply what they have learned about rotation, revolution, time zones, and the appearance of celestial objects over time.

Social Studies Updates:

Students are currently reviewing Chapter 7, Lesson 1, which focuses on how the early American government was formed, including the Articles of Confederation. Students are learning about the challenges the new nation faced and the importance of compromise in building a stronger government.

Health Updates:

General CARTS Message:

Please continue to check your students’ work/grades on both Canvas and Synergy for CARTS classes!

Art:

This week was one of exploration for the littles! The Kindergartners are starting to learn about different kinds of clay. We had a conversation about the way Play-Doh feels vs modeling clay. Play-Doh is more pliable from the start and dries out faster than modeling clay which is oily, cold, and hard before it’s worked with.

First graders reviewed different kinds of maps and their features. Then they began working in collaborative groups!

2024-2025 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