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Cecilton Elementary Update

October 27, 2024

CeciltonElementary UpdateOctober 27, 2024

Please Support the Ruritans - They Help All of Us!

It's time for the Ruritans annual spaghetti dinner fundraiser at the Hack's Point Fire Company (1185 Glebe Road, Earleville, MD 21919). This is a great way to support an organization that supports our school and the entire community every year. Dinners are available on Friday evening from 4:00 p.m. until they are sold out. This year, the Ruritans have already sponsored the DJ for the Cecilton Community Trunk or Treat event and made a donation towards upgrading our school sound system.

The Upper Bay Ruritans are requesting donations of baked items for desserts for the fundraiser. If you are willing to donate, please bring your items into school no later than Friday, 11/1, by noon so that they can be transported to the fire company and prepped for the dinner. Thank you and we hope to see everyone there!

FY26 Budget Input from Families

Please help us prepare our budget request for FY26 this fall by completing this short survey to share with us any ideas for improvement that you may have regarding our budget priorities. This allows you to provide us with your perspective on where we should concentrate our funding based on our current level of services, any needs that you feel the school or families have, and/or what you believe our overall budget priorities should be. You can access the survey HERE.


Thank you for taking the time to provide us with this information.

Elections are Coming in 9 Days! ✅

On November 2nd, it is our opportunity once again to vote for leadership at both the local and national levels. While the national elections are very important for many reasons, our local elections will immediately affect your day to day life here in Cecil County. Please make sure that you have taken the time to research the platforms of those candidates asking for your votes. Make sure that they are truly supporting your wishes on local issues of importance. One aspect of the election that may greatly impact your children's lives are the candidates who are running for our local board of education. Below, you will find an infographic with the major roles of the members of the school board in Cecil County and the websites of the candidates. I encourage you to do your research in this area before making your decision.

Make your voice heard. Early voting in Cecil County is open now through Thursday from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Cecil County Administration Building in the Elk Room. (GPS - 200 Chesapeake Boulevard, Elkton MD 21921)

Monday, October 28 - We are READY to make healthy choices. Wear red to kick off Red Ribbon Week: a week focused on healthy habits.

Tuesday, October 29 - Sleep smart for a bright start! Wear PJ's and bring a stuffie. Make sure you get 9-12 hours of sleep every night.

Wednesday, October 30 - Exercse healthy habits. Exercise is a way to keep your body healthy and moving. Wear your favorite workout clothes.

Thursday, October 31 - Say BOO! to unhealthy habits. Wear your costume to school. (See below for costume restrictions.)

Friday, November 1 - Cecilton Students make healthy choices! Show your school spirit and wear your Cecilton gear!


🎃COSTUME RESTRICTIONS FOR THURSDAY< OCTOBER 31ST:

🎃 Keep it Spooky, Not Scary: Avoid costumes with violent or bloody images. It's okay to look "spooky," but nothing too gruesome.

👁️ Masks and Makeup: No masks, face coverings, or makeup/ painted faces are allowed at school.

🧥 Safe Costumes: Make sure your child’s costume doesn’t have anything hanging below the wrist or ankle to avoid tripping or getting things caught.

🎒 Accessories: No hoods, accessories or props should be brought to school.

🚫 No Weapons: Please don’t include any toy weapons in the costume. They will be taken by school staff and are a violation of the Student Code of Conduct.

🏃 PE/PW-Friendly Costumes: If your child has Physical Education or Personal Wellness on the 31st, pick a costume that’s safe and easy to move in.


If staff feels that your child's costume is inappropriate, we reserve the right to ask your child to remove their costume and wear their regular school attire.

Cecilton Elementary School Improvement 2024-2025 - part 3

Equitable Rigorous Learning Opportunitiies

The School Improvement Plan (SIP) is a living plan that allows us to adjust to the changing needs of our students. The heart of our SIP is referred to with the acronym ERLO - Equitable Rigorous Learning Opportunities. While this sounds like quite a mouthful of words, it simply means that we strive to ensure that all of the students at Cecilton Elementary School - regardless of any demographic status that they currently experience - leave our school prepared to meet all grade level academic proficiency standards. When we accomplish this goal, it means that all of our students are ready for a rigorous middle and high school experience that will prepare them for their future at college, trade school, the military, or the world of work - whichever pathway they choose. Our stated goal reads as follows:


Equitable Rigorous Learning Opportunities Goal: 100% of students at Cecilton Elementary School will demonstrate proficiency or above, on grade level nationally normed, summative achievement measures (Acadience Reading and Mathematics, NWEA MAP, or MCAP depending on grade level) by the end of the FY30 school year.


In order to achieve this level of performance, we regularly review our classroom performance data in order to adjust our instruction to meet the needs of the students in each classroom. Our primary and intermediate teachers are receiving coaching from the University of Delaware to implement the Bookworms 1st Edition curriculum. We also implement the Fundations program during one instructional block in grades K through 3 in order to ensure that all students can decode efficiently which will help them read fluently in order to increase their comprehension of written text. Teachers meet with the Title 1 Resource Teacher, Mrs. Dochney on a regular, three week cycle to adjust small group instruction to enhance reading skills.


In mathematics, we are continuing to implement the Illustrative Mathematics program which builds conceptual understanding at the same time that students are building procedural knowledge. An example of this is during third grade multiplication when students are using their knowledge of repeated addition to build an understanding of multiplication concepts. They use the fact that they know how to break apart numbers (partners of ten) so that they can create easier problems to accurately compute mental math computations. So if they do not know the answer to 13 x 8, they can complete the two easier problems of (10 x 8) + (3 x 8) and add the results (80 + 24) to end up at the correct answer of 104.


So what are we doing on those Wednesday afternoons when students leave early? Some of those times are used for teacher planning so that our teachers can prepare lessons and materials. At Cecilton Elementary, we are using this time one Wednesday a month to work directly on our ERLO goal for school improvement. Teachers collect writing samples of students responding to questions in both ELA and mathematics. They look at how our students respond to the writing prompt for both accuracy and knowledge of content. We then use this time to look at the development of skills within our student body from K through grade 5. This allows us to make instructional decisions that can impact our building across the grade levels. On our first day back in August, we did this same process using our previous year’s data and identified a focus on basic facts development in mathematics. As a result, fifth grade parents were invited into the classroom once a week for several weeks to support students in learning multiplication and division facts. This has been an amazing partnership between families and the school which can be supported at school and at home in the evenings for families that are not able to come into the building during the day. Our teachers, support staff and families all have the same goal, to maximize our student’s achievement and we do this by working together through the structures and processes outlined in the SIP.


BOOK SWAP - THIS Friday

We are excited to bring back our monthly book swap opportunities for all students. Each month, on the first Friday, Mrs. Wiggins will open the library during arrival, breakfast and morning meeting times for students to exchange gently used books. This allows your child to get new books to read without always having to purchase new books or run to the library. Your child may keep the books as long as he or she wants (maybe even forever!). The next month, bring the books back and swap out for some new ones. If your child does not have books to begin the first month, please let us know that your child wants to participate. We can begin the whole process with them selecting a book to start with. Our first book swap of the year will be held on the morning of November 1st.

From Our Community School Advisor, Mrs. Morris

The Fall season is among us and 'Ol Man Winter will be here before you know it! While supplies last, we have children's coats ranging in size from 2T thru Adult Large. Please complete the form, by clicking on the link, below if your child is in need of a warm winter coat and we will do our best to provide them with one. Complete one form for each child. If you have any questions, please call Kim Morris, Community School Advisor, at (410)996-5401 ext. 30037.

English Version


Spanish Version

Save the Date ~ Where in the World s Our Tiger?

CALENDAR OF EVENTS ~ November 2024

Click the link HERE to the November school calendar to read detailed information as it becomes available. Translated materials are also available at the link. Changes will be made on the live calendar available at the link. Please check this link each week for any updates!

PTO NEWS

Calling All Veterans! - Updated INFORMATION

We are looking forward to honoring our Veterans at Cecilton Elementary School next month. As we prepare for the festivities, we need some information. Please forward the names and digital pictures of your veterans to Mrs. Morris (kamorris@ccps.org ) to be included in our slideshow presentation.

Updates from Cecil County Public Schools

  • If your child previously received Medicaid benefits please remember that there is no longer an automatic renewal. You can find more information on how to renew your child’s benefits HERE.

  • The Office of Multilingual Education will be offering virtual (zoom) parent workshops twice a month on Tuesdays starting on October 15, 2024. Time: 10 a.m. to 10:40 a.m. Flyer

  • YES Spooktakular Fall Festival (Spanish version)

Food Resources

Adult Education Opportunities

Affordable Health Care

Katherine Derby
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