Centennial Lane Elementary:

Centennial Lane Elementary School

Mrs. Debra Anoff, Principal

Mrs. Siobhan Drumgoole, Assistant Principal

3825 Centennial Lane

Ellicott City, MD 21042

(410) 313-2800

(410) 313-2804 - Fax

(410) 313-1710 (Health Room)

Student Hours: 8:45a.m. - 3:15 p.m.

Office Hours: 8:00 a.m. - 3:45 p.m.

cles.hcpss.org

🩵 Greetings Centennial Lane Elementary School Families & Community Partners! 🩵

It was another wonderful and full week at Centennial Lane Elementary School! We had so much fun celebrating the 100th day of school and reflecting on just how much learning and growth has taken place over the past 100+ days. It is truly amazing to see how far our students have come!

This week also served as a meaningful reminder of the power of kindness. Each day, we highlighted a different kindness theme, and we wrapped up our celebrations with friendship activities in classrooms. Our Dolphins continue to show that small acts of kindness truly make a big difference in our school community.

A great big THANK YOU to our incredible PTA for hosting such a successful 1st Annual Family Fit Night! 🩵 What a fantastic evening of movement, fun, and community connection. We are so grateful for the time, energy, and dedication our PTA pours into creating memorable experiences for our students and families.

We would also like to extend our heartfelt thanks to our Chinese community for the beautiful staff luncheon on Monday in celebration of the Lunar New Year. Your generosity and thoughtfulness were so appreciated by our entire staff. In addition, thank you for organizing the wonderful student assemblies this morning. Our children were absolutely amazing — engaged, respectful, and they truly enjoyed watching their CLES peers perform so beautifully. It was a joyful and meaningful experience for all of us!

Please remember that schools will be closed on Monday in observance of Presidents’ Day and closed on Tuesday in observance of the Lunar New Year. During the long weekend, we encourage students to continue reading and practicing the math skills they have been working so hard to build.

We look forward to welcoming everyone back on Wednesday, February 18th at 8:30 a.m. 😊

With Dolphin Pride,

Debra A. Anoff, Principal

Siobhan Drumgoole, Assistant Principal

February

• 16-Schools & Offices Closed, President's Day
• 17-Schools & Offices Closed, Lunar New Year
• 20-27- PTA Book Fair
• 24 -PTA Restaurant Night (Ernesto’s)
• 28 -Yearbook orders AND 5th grade dedications are due (see below)

March

• 2-6 Kindergarten Registration for 26-27 School Year Opens
• 3 - Professional Learning/Work & Wellness Day, schools close 3 hours early (12:15 p.m.)
• 4-13 CLES Read-A-Thon Fundraiser-Information coming soon!
• 19-5th Gr. Panoramic Picture-Teachers will send home info closer to date.
• 20 - Professional Work & Development Day, schools closed

March 30th - April 6th - Spring Break, schools closed

For another language, click "Translate Newsletter" tab and select the language of choice at the top of this page.

Spanish

Para otros idiomas, haga clic en Traducir Newsletter y elija el idioma que prefiera.

Korean

다른 언어의 경우 뉴스 레터 번역을 클릭하고 원하는 언어를 선택합니다.

Chinese

对于其他语言，请单击翻译新闻通讯，然后选择所需的语言。

Urdu

دوسری زبانوں کے لئے ، نیوزلیٹر کا ترجمہ کریں پر کلک کریں اور اپنی پسند کی زبان کا انتخاب کریں۔

There will be no printed 2025-2026 calendars. Staff, students, and families may add our online calendar to their own mobile/online calendar by

1. Going to https://www.hcpss.org/calendar/
2. Scrolling down to Subscribing to a Calendar
3. Right-clicking on the calendar you wish to subscribe to
4. Selecting Copy Link Location/Address/Shortcut
5. Adding to your calendar of choice (See your calendar for specifics on adding a new calendar)

You also may view and/or download printable PDFs of the full calendar and/or important dates only. Updates to the PDFs will be noted on the HCPSS calendar page.

PLEASE NOTE! The calendar is subject to change. The online calendar reflects the most recent version.

Calendars in Spanish, Chinese, and Korean

西班牙语日历

스페인어로 된 달력

As a reminder, for the safety and security of our students and staff, all visitors must sign in at the Sign-In computer located in the front lobby using a government-issued photo ID. Please be sure to bring your ID with you whenever you visit. Thank you for helping us maintain a safe and secure learning environment for everyone.

Drop your items in our yellow donation bins! Our donation box collects clothing, shoes, and textiles, and Centennial Lane earns money based on the total weight collected each month.

Please note: All donations must be bagged before being placed in the bin.

We wish those students, families, and community members celebrating, a Blessed Ramadan. If your child will be fasting on certain days and would like to go to another location to read or color during their designated lunch time, CLES staff will provide supervision in a location other than the cafeteria during Ramadan.

March 2 – March 6, 2026 is the designated countywide kickoff registration period. Registration assistance should be available throughout the school day during the kickoff week. Please consult the HCPSS website for updated information on Enrollment and Registration

Age Eligibility for Kindergarten:

• Kindergarten is a mandatory grade in the state of Maryland.

• Children must be five years old on or before September 1st to attend kindergarten.

• Children entering kindergarten in the fall of 2026 must have been born between September 2, 2021 and September 1, 2022.

• Students will be enrolled in the attendance area in which they live. Please refer families to School & Bus Locator to confirm the assigned school.

Every child who is 5 years old on or before September 1 must be enrolled in a kindergarten program this fall or have an approved waiver.

Getting Ready for Kindergarten Information click here.

Road to Kindergarten parent information session.

Throughout each year we celebrate the incredible diversity of all of our students at Centennial Lane. In February, we focus on Black History Month and highlight the important contributions of Black and African Americans who have helped shape our country and contributed to our society.

Black History Month was created to focus attention on the contributions of African Americans to the United States. It honors all Black people from all periods of U.S. history, from the enslaved people first brought over from Africa in the early 17th century to African Americans living in the United States today. This newsletter has resources that can be utilized in the classroom or at home to celebrate Black History Month. Throughout the month of February, Centennial Lane Elementary School will recognize Black History Month and highlight the many accomplishments of African Americans.

There are a number of resources our teachers use throughout the school year and in February. There are quite a number of excellent resources including the PBS Kids video below that are examples of resources teachers use during their instruction. We also want to share read-aloud books for kids from Netflix Jr. Many of these books can be found in our library and the Howard County Public Library. We want our students to see themselves and their friends in the literature that is used for instruction and for reading pleasure.

Read Alouds

Grab a book, grab a friend, and join Netflix Jr. in celebrating Black voices during Black History Month. Full Episodes of Bookmarks included are:

• "I Love My Hair" read by Tiffany Haddish
• "I Am Enough" read by Grace Byers
• "Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut" read by Caleb McLaughlin
• "Sulwe" read by Lupita Nyong'o
• "ABCs For Girls Like Me" read by Marsai Martin
• "I Am Perfectly Designed" read by Karamo Brown
• "Pretty Brown Face" and "Brown Boy Joy" read by Jill Scott
• "Firebird" read by Misty Copeland
• "Let's Talk About Race" read by Common
• "The Day You Begin" read by Jacqueline Woodson
• "Antiracist Baby" read by Kendrick Sampson
• "We March" read by Marley Dias

The HCPSS Special Education Resource Fair provides families with information available from the community and HCPSS to support their students receiving special education and related services. Get connected to services for students with a developmental delay or disability including:

• Services within HCPSS
• Recreational Activities
• Camps
• Community Groups
• Service Providers
• Transition Information
• Assistive Technology
• Behavioral Health
• Howard County Government Resources
• And Much More!

For information, please contact FSRC@hcpss.org. Registration is not required. This event is part of the HCPSS Parent Empowerment Series including training sessions related to special education and events for families of students with an IEP or IFSP.
Free

Starting this month, students in grades 1-5 will take the Measured Academic Progress (MAP) assessment. The MAP window runs through March 6th. Each grade level team will send out messages letting parents know the exact dates for testing. The data from the MAP assessment will help schools and teachers measure your student’s academic progress. The MAP test does not affect grades and the difficulty adjusts depending on how your child responds. It is normal for students to only answer about half the questions correctly. To learn more about the MAP assessment, please visit: https://www.nwea.org/the-map-suite/common-questions-families/. Please make sure your child has headphones at school since they will be used for testing throughout the school year.

HCPSS will be offering SPACE parent groups this spring starting in March. This group is for parents who would like help supporting their children with anxiety and school avoidance. Parents can self-register through the link on the HCPSS News Announcement or the QR code on the flyer.

HCPSS families are invited to attend the 2026 Family Academy Conference on Wednesday, March 4, 2026, from 5:30–8:30 pm at Long Reach High School. This free, districtwide event brings families, educators, and community partners together for an evening of learning, connection, and support. Families can enjoy a light dinner, a community resource fair, interactive workshops focused on academic achievement and well-being, and free childcare. Workshops will include topics such as college and career readiness, special education supports, curriculum updates, and hands-on learning strategies for use at home. Interpretation services will be available. For additional information, please contact BSAP Supervisor, Nicole Brown.

Register online: EnglishLinks to an external site., EspañolLinks to an external site., 中文Links to an external site., 한국어Links to an external site.

Parents can email CLESabsence@hcpss.org to report a student’s absence. Please include your child(ren)’s full name, parent’s/guardian’s full name and phone number, the date your child(ren) was absent and the reason. Parents may instead choose to send in a paper excuse note to their child’s teacher with the same information when the student returns to school.

For families requesting local discretionary absences, please complete a Local Discretionary Absence Request Form and submit it to the front office at least one week in advance.

In alignment w/ Policy 10010, the following announcements have been approved by the Public Information Office for distribution.

The below community notices are neither sponsored nor endorsed by the HCPSS.