|
Dear Cunningham Park Families and Friends,
It has been a year full of newness, of unpredictability, of trying and trying again, of frustrations, of successes, and most of all, it has been a year to adapt as a united Cunningham Park family.
For those of you familiar with Foo Fighters, you’ll know it’s a Grammy Award-winning band that formed in 1994. They have a song called “Times Like These” that perfectly encapsulates the year.
In part, the lyrics, “I’m a new day rising, I’m a brand new sky, To hang the stars upon tonight” can easily symbolize the many times we woke to a new day with new events and new expectations. The time we all woke up last March to find schools had closed, and then in April, waking to a new kind of school through virtual learning. And then this past September, waking to more structured virtual learning, and hoping and hoping again for transition back to in-person.
And finally, the phasing-in process for students who were to return to in-person, first two days per week, and then to four days per week.
For a while there, it felt like every day of navigating a global pandemic would be something new. As the song continues, “I am a little divided, Do I stay or run away And leave it all behind?” As families, there are many difficult decisions to navigate, and though it could bring frustration, Cunningham Park parents banded together with us and our teachers to guide your children through. In other words, you didn’t ‘run away,’ you stayed and we walked through this time together.
And we did it. Friends, we loved, learned, adapted, laughed, adapted again, and learned more.
As the song goes on to say,
It’s times like these you learn to live again
It’s times like these you give and give again
It’s times like these you learn to love again
It’s times like these time and time again
It’s times like these, indeed. Together, we have walked through PBLs, a car parade, food distributions (with FCPS and with Vienna Foodies), book distributions, laptop and WiFi distributions, laptop distributions again, virtual learning, concurrent learning, illness, health, unpredictability that we couldn’t help, and so much more.
You have donated air purifiers for classrooms completely unsolicited, books to distribute, food for those in need, funding for needed supplies and resources, and immeasurable amounts of time.
Together, we successfully learned to live, give, and love, time and time again.
Next year, as we look forward to resuming back to more normalcy, we will have grown and unified and we have so much opportunity ahead of us!
A few events to look forward to that are in the works for 2021-2022:
- An evening salsa and merengue dance complete with lessons for first-timers
- Hallowingo Re-boot (PTA)
- Holi- celebrated in India to welcome spring with the colors and life the season brings
- Community Walks
- Literacy Nights
- Story-Telling Celebration
- Maker-events
And so much more!
Instructionally, some things to look forward to:
- Five days of in-person learning
- Enriched Concept-Based Instruction re-boot (including PBLs)
- Fine arts
- STEAM in FLES
- Relevant learning
- EVERYONE here, at Cunningham Park, where we belong... together!
So cheers, friends! To the year it’s been, to the year it is, and to what’s to come!
Sincerely,
Katie Le, Principal and Jon Kemmerer, Assistant Principal
Creating Learning Communities for 2021-2022
Due Monday, May 31, 2021
Spring Virtual Book Fair Is Here!
Just in time for summer … it’s our Spring/Summer Book Fair!
Make a Splash: Read!
The virtual fair goes through Monday, June 6th.
Go to our PTA site to learn more about redeeming Book Bucks from our Spring Readathon.
Go to CunninghamParkOnlineStore to start shopping for great summer reads, or you can go toBookwormcentral.com and search for Cunningham Park
For orders under $30, you can choose “ship to school” at check out. Ms. Brinkhuis will be collecting those purchases from Bookworm and you can pick them up at school. There will be a slight delay in receiving these books as Ms. Brinkhuis will only be driving out to BW once a week.
You can also order books for teachers’ classroom libraries from the Fair.
Thank you for supporting our school library by shopping at the book fair!
Cunningham Park Elementary School earns its 5th ENERGY STAR certification; Outperforms similar U.S. buildings on measure of energy efficiency
FCPS has announced that Cunningham Park Elementary School has earned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) ENERGY STAR® certification for superior energy performance. This is the 5th year that Cunningham Park has earned the ENERGY STAR, reflecting a legacy of continued energy savings.
“Improving the energy efficiency of our nation’s buildings is critical to protecting our environment, “ said Jean Lupinacci, Chief of the ENERGY STAR Commercial & Industrial Branch. “From the boiler room to the board room, organizations are leading the way by making their buildings more efficient and earning EPA’s ENERGY STAR certification.”
ENERGY STAR certified buildings and plants are verified to perform in the top 25 percent of buildings nationwide, based on weather-normalized source energy use that takes into account occupancy, hours of operation, and other key metrics. ENERGY STAR is the only energy efficiency certification in the United States that is based on actual, verified energy performance.
We are honored to earn the ENERGY STAR for superior energy performance and appreciate the efforts of everyone who has been involved in its efficient operation. Saving energy is just one of the ways we show our community we care, and that we’re committed to doing our part to protect the environment and public health, both today and for future generations.
On average, ENERGY STAR certified buildings and plants use 35 percent less energy, cause 35 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions, and are less expensive to operate than their peers—all without sacrifices in performance or comfort.
To date, tens of thousands of buildings and plants across all fifty states have earned the ENERGY STAR. For more information about ENERGY STAR for Buildings and Plants, visit www.energystar.gov/buildings
|
Dates to Remember
May is:
Asian and Pacific-American Heritage Month, National Physical Fitness and Sports Month, Better Hearing and Speech Month
Until June 6 - Virtual Spring Book Fair
Tuesday, May 25 - Virtual Students’ 6th Grade Reading SOL, 12:30pm
Wednesday, May 26
- SCHOOL SPIRIT DAY: Wear Your Red CPES T-Shirt!!
- In-Person Students’ 5th Grade Science SOL, 9:30am
- Virtual Students’ 5th Grade Science SOL, 12:30pm
Thursday, May 27 - Virtual Students’ 6th Grade Math SOL, 12:30pm
Friday, May 28 - Student Ambassador Spirit Day - Crazy Hair Day
Wednesday, June 2 - SCHOOL SPIRIT DAY: Wear Your Red CPES T-Shirt!!
Tuesday, June 8 - Primary Election Day - School is Online, All Students Are Virtual
Wednesday, June 9 - SCHOOL SPIRIT DAY: Wear Your New Red CPES T-Shirt!!
Friday, June 11
- Wear ANY CPES Spirit Wear!
- Last Day of School
- 2 Hour Early Release, CPES Dismisses at 1:30pm
One Final Photograph
 Future Entomologist
|
