Dear parents and Guardians,
I can’t thank the PTA and parent volunteers enough for their
planning, organizing, and running both the International Night and the 2018 Fun
Fair. Both of these events celebrate the
spirit of the Chesterbrook community and a strong commitment to the school and
staff. I am looking forward to having
one of our students shadow me for the school day as acting principal. I briefly met with him this week and he is
excited about the opportunity. He wanted
to know if he too would have a lanyard with a whistle attached. Again, none of this could be possible without
a dedicated and hardworking PTA.
As many of you already know, the selection process for a
permanent principal will commence in early April. The Region Office will lead this effort and
send out communique to keep you abreast of the ongoing search. I am confident that Dr. Zuluaga is intent on
finding a principal that will be committed in keeping Chesterbrook a school
focused on the whole child and on the cutting edge of educational practices.
After the Spring Break students become more involved in
extracurricular activities and the nice weather becomes a pleasant distraction. It is important to keep students focused on
the task at hand and maintain their classroom engagement. State testing is approaching and projects,
assessments, and grading continue with your child’s teacher until the end of
the school year. Please assist us in
keeping education the main emphasis. We
want to ensure that all students are achieving to their highest levels.
I
know it is always a concern of picking good reading material for our children. The
International Literacy Association just concluded its annual process of asking
students and teachers around the U.S. to select their favorite books. Here are
the selections, from kindergarten through young adult:
https://www.literacyworldwide.org/docs/default-source/reading-lists/choices-2017-reading-lists.pdf?sfvrsn=4
Have a restful Spring
Break and we will see you in April.
Thank you for your continued support.
Augie and Connie
Yearbook Orders
Don't forget to order your Chesterbrook yearbook.
www.ybpay.lifetouch.com
Yearbook ID Code: 13221418
The Fairfax County Association
for the Gifted proudly presents...
The
Mathemagician!
A public performance of magical mathematics, by Dr. Arthur Benjamin,
Professor of Mathematics at Harvey Mudd College. "He talks like a
performer, acts like a magician and multiplies faster than a calculator."
- Los Angeles Times
Sunday, April 8, 7-8pm, Longfellow Middle School Cafeteria
Suitable for kids (and adults!)
of all ages, especially those in 3rd grade and up.
This event is free and open to the public. FCAG members can reserve seats until
6:45pm on the night of the event by emailing fcagevents@gmail.com with
the number of people attending by April 7 at 7pm.
FCAG is a non-profit, parent-volunteer advocacy group for gifted
children in Fairfax County. For more information, please visit: www.fcag.org
A workshop
called KickStart Computer Science for girls in 4th grade
through 6th grades at Spring Hill Elementary
School on Wednesday, April 18.
The one and half hour workshop will introduce the girls to basic computer
science skills and present to them a video of my interviews of
current high school students pursuing Computer Science and of women in the
Northern Virginia Area working in the field of Computer Science. I plan
to engage the girls in a conversation about why it is essential to be
literate in the language of Computer Science and have them
perform fun-filled activities where they will write algorithms, which
stimulate reasoning skills and help develop logic. I will end the
workshop with a song and a formation and distribute prizes and
certificates.
Chinese Characters
1st grade: We learned about the four
seasons. 春天 (chūn tiān), 夏天 (xiàvtiān), 秋天 (qiūvtiān), 冬天(dōng tiān). Students will be able to write the
seasons and tell which season they like. We also sang a song called “春夏秋冬” (Spring Summer Fall and Winter). Please check out the blackboard to learn how
to say the four seasons.
2nd grade: Students learned to say different types of
clothing in Chinese. They also learned how to describe a person’s outfit
using either 穿 (chuān, to wear [clothes, socks,
shoes]) or 戴 (dài, to wear [accessories]). We
also reviewed vocabulary related to colors that they previously learned to
describe the colors of different clothes.
3rd grade: Students learned about cycle (循环, xún huán) and period (周期, zhōu qī). We discussed
examples of cycles in our daily life and focused on day and night. Students
learned to say day and night in Chinese, talk about what they see and what
they do during the day and at night. We also discussed how to use 还是 (hái shì, or) to offer options
and 为什么 (wèi shén me, why) to ask for
reasons.
4th grade:
Students learned about the landform. We talked about I see 我看到 (wǒ kàn dào) 山 (shān), 河 (hé), 森林 (sēn lín), 海 (hǎi), 湖 (hú), and 沙滩 (shā tān). I also show them some of the Chinese characters were originally
pictogram. They symbolize objects or express meanings
iconically. Pictogram Chinese characters are easy to recognize as the objects
represented in the symbols can be seen as soon as the meaning is revealed.
5th grade: After we talked about the 12 zodiac animals,
we now talk about what the animals can do. Students will be able to say the
action words: jump跳, sleep睡觉, fly飞, walk走路, crawl爬, bark叫, run跑, and swim游泳.
6th grade: We start a new topic which
students learn how to protect the environment. They will learn what we can
use less 少用 shao yong to protect the
environment. We use less electricity电diàn，water水shuǐ，and
paper 纸zhǐ.
Check out the blackboard to learn how to say and write.
How
to practice Chinese on Blackboard
(Log in to Blackboard 24/7 -> 035-schoolinfo-1718-YR:
CES School Information -> Chinese LTC)
Blackboard is a great learning tool for children to review
what they learn in class. On blackboard, each grade levels have their own
folders. Children can click on the folder to find the topic that they are
learning right now. Besides, there are
many learning resources links, songs, videos
and games. Please check out the LTC-Chinese on blackboard! If you have any
questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us!
谢(xiè) 谢(xiè)!
Thank you for supporting the Chinese
program!
Pik
Kei (Peggy) Leung (1st, 4th, 5th &
6th grades)
Yina Chang (2nd
& 3rd grades)
Fitness Focus
Eat a Healthy Breakfast
March is National Nutrition Month
The Morning Meal:
Kids need to eat breakfast each day to perform their best. Their growing bodies and developing brains rely heavily on the regular intake of food. When kids skip breakfast, it can create a lot of physical, intellectual, and behavioral problems for them.
By recharging the brain and body, you'll be more efficient in just about everything you do. Interestingly, studies show that kids who skip breakfast are tardy and absent from school more often than children who eat breakfast on a regular basis. Preparing a good breakfast can be as quick and easy as splashing some milk over whole grain cereal. Time invested in breakfast is much more valuable than the few extra minutes of sleep you might get by bypassing the morning meal. If you and your kids seem unable to make time for breakfast, consider enrolling your children in a school breakfast program, if possible, or pack a breakfast brown-bag or smoothie the night before that can be eaten on the way to school and work.
Skipping meals, especially breakfast, can actually make weight control more difficult. Breakfast skippers tend to eat more food than usual at the next meal or nibble on high-calorie snacks to stave off hunger. Several studies suggest that people tend to accumulate more body fat when they eat fewer, larger meals than when they eat the same number of calories in smaller, more frequent meals.
It is SO important for parents to educate their kids about the importance of the morning meal and the role it plays in maintaining good health.
-Taken from WebMD
Sincerely, Mrs. Sink & Mr. Levesque
Music Notes
Sixth Grade
The Sixth Graders have finished the Fairfax County music project. The project was to create a jingle for “Mom’s Pizza”, connecting their music skills to a real-world situation. We will soon start our unit on 20th century popular music.
6th Grade All County Chorus
We are working towards the next site rehearsal! If your singer has not checked out Blackboard, please encourage them to do so. All music needs to be memorized by the festival dates!
Important dates: April 13 2:45-4:45 (early release day) Site rehearsal @ CES
April 27 9am-4pm Festival Friday @ Hayfield SS (details to come)
April 28 10am-4pm (ish) Morning rehearsal and concert
Fifth Grade
The Fifth grade is ready to perform their Broadway music for their concert on April 4 at 2:30 and 6pm! Your child needs to be in the cafeteria by 5:45. This concert is mandatory, so if your child is not able to come for any reason, please email your music teacher so they may be excused. We are very excited for the show to start! It’ll be a lot of fun!
Fourth Grade
The Fourth grade took a break from recorder to do a listening and music history unit. We learned about the life of Mozart and got to watch one of his operas (The Magic Flute). We also learned about Beethoven and listened to some of his music (especially his symphonies). Later, we will learn a few of their famous themes on the recorder.
Third Grade
The Third grade has really progressed in their recorder playing! They have expanded their note reading abilities and are playing songs for their belts. They even wrote a composition to play on their recorders!
Some times, students can start to get frustrated when we start adding notes to their repertoire. If that ever happens, please do not hesitate to contact your music teacher. We are very happy to do everything we can to help your child either during class or at another convenient time.
Your child may have been exposed to a game called “Joytunes” on the computer. We highly recommend that game to help your student feel confident and have fun while practicing on the computer. You can find it at www.joytunes.com/master . Any time played on this website can also count as practice time!
We will take a little break from the recorder to do some singing. We have learned a song in Japanese about the coming sakura (cherry blossoms)!
Second Grade
In Second grade we have been playing the xylophone! We have been reviewing how to read the notes on the staff and use that to tell us what to play on the instrument! They are amazing note readers!
First Grade
In First Grade, we have continued to learn about the staff and are applying it to music making. We have started to use the xylophones—we use the note on the staff to tell us what to play on the instrument. Do you want to know about xylophone techniques? Ask them about “bicycle handle, chicken wing, super ball (in the middle)”.
Kindergarten
In Kindergarten we are finishing up with our singer’s secrets. We also did a listening unit that incorporates all of the children’s songs that we have learned in this unit (“London Bridge”, “The Farmer in the Dell”, “Sing a Song of Sixpence”, and LOTS more!)
What are our singer’s secrets?
- A good breath in gets a GREAT sound out.
- Little Mighty Consonants
- Head voice (ask them how the speaking voice, head voice and chest voice are like “Goldilocks and the Three Bears”)
- Listen, think, THEN sing
- “Yawny” mouth
- Think UP not OUT
5th and 6th Choir
In the 5th and 6th grade Choirs, we have been learning songs for the 5th grade concert on April 4. If your child will not be able to attend, please contact your music teacher. 6th graders will be excused after the choirs are done singing.
Have a GREAT spring break!
Mrs. Ater
Mrs. Zenk
Counselors’ Corner
We hope that you had an enjoyable mini-break earlier this
week! Now that we’re back in school for a day, classroom lessons continue!
Kindergarteners are learning about problem-solving and conflict resolution, and
so are first graders. Second graders are doing lessons on active
listening skills and cooperation. In 3rd grade, students
have wrapped up anger management and conflict resolution and will move on to
explore career interests after Spring Break. Fourth and sixth graders are
working on collaboration/teamwork, and in 6th we are also starting to talk
about the transition to middle school. In 5th grade,
students have finished the required bullying and harassment lessons and will
focus on appreciating differences after Spring Break.
Sue King and Sarah de Kramer
April Workshops
https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/VAEDUFCPS/bulletins/1e340da
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Upcoming Events
March 26-30: Spring Break
April 2: Student Holiday
April 4: 5th Grade Concert at 2:30 and 6 pm
April 7: PTA Reptiles Alive Show at 7 pm
April 9: Spring Pictures
April 13: 3rd Quarter Ends (2hr early release)
April 16: Student Holiday
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