The Wellwood Globe

Wellwood International strives to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring students in an engaging, rigorous and multi-cultural environment to instill inter-cultural understanding and respect.

Hello Wellwood Families!

Happy New Year! I hope you all had a wonderful and restful holiday season. As we begin the second half of the school year, I am filled with excitement and optimism for what’s ahead.

Our focus remains on fostering academic growth and success for all students. In the coming months, we aim to build on the progress made in the first half of the year and continue striving toward our goals in reading, writing, and math. This is a critical time to strengthen foundational skills and encourage a love of learning. Your support at home plays a vital role in helping us achieve these goals.

To kick off the year, we are excited to invite you to Math Night on Tuesday, January 14, 2025, from 5:30–7:00 PM. This will be a fun, interactive evening designed to help families explore math concepts and discover ways to support students at home. We hope you can join us for this engaging event!

Thank you for your ongoing partnership in making our school a place where students thrive.

Warm regards,

Alonna Thompson

athompson8@bcps.org

Jan 2 (Th): Schools Reopen

Jan 13 (M): PTA Meeting & Shared Decision Making Team, 5:00-6:30 pm

Jan 14 (T): Wellwood's Math Night, 5:30 - 7:00 pm

Jan 20 (M): School's & Office's Closed - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Jan 24 (F): School closes at 12:40 pm (Dismissal begins at 12:25 pm) - End of 2nd Marking Period

Jan 29 (W): School Closed - Lunar New Year - Staff Professional Development Day

WIDA Access for ELLs:

In January students receiving ESOL services will take the Access for ELLs assessment. ACCESS for ELLs (ACCESS) is the collective name for WIDA's suite of summative English language proficiency assessments. ACCESS is taken annually by English learners in kindergarten through grade 12 in WIDA Consortium member states. WIDA provides this flexible suite of tests because we know that no single test is suitable for all students. Educators use ACCESS results, along with other WIDA resources, to make decisions about students' English academic language and to facilitate their language development. Students' scores reflect proficiency levels ranging from Level 1 (Entering) to Level 6 (Reaching). Wellwood students will take the assessment in small groups with Ms. Nimer and Ms. Johnson throughout the month and score reports will be provided in the spring.

MAP:
All students in grades 2-5 are given the MAP growth assessment at the end of January and beginning of February in the areas of math and reading. Information about your child’s performance on this assessment will be sent home at the beginning of spring. The assessment allows teachers to track student growth in each subject and provide targeted support based on these results.

Maryland Compulsory School Attendance Law and Wellwood International’s Attendance Policy

The Maryland Compulsory School Attendance Law (COMAR 7-301) requires all children between the ages of 5 and 18 to attend school regularly. Additionally, Baltimore County Public Schools' Policies and Rules 5100 and 5120 address procedures for recording, excusing, and monitoring student attendance. Both the Maryland State Department of Education and Baltimore County Public Schools expect students to maintain an attendance rate of 94%, which allows for no more than 10 absences per school year.

To support this goal, Wellwood International will work closely with families to help improve attendance, offering regular reminders of each student’s attendance rate throughout the year.

Attendance Communication Process:

• 5 Absences: A letter will be sent home as a reminder of the attendance policy.
• 8 Absences: A second letter will be mailed to offer assistance in addressing any attendance-related issues.
• 10+ Absences: Families will be asked to meet with the assistant principal and pupil personnel worker to create a tailored support plan aimed at improving attendance.

This attendance policy is part of Wellwood International’s yearly progress plan.

Wellwood International School was thrilled to host the Maryland Book Bank's Bookmobile on December 2nd! Students had a wonderful time visiting the Bookmobile, selecting books, and taking them home to enjoy.

A huge thank you to our incredible partners—CHAI, Univest, the PTA, and our dedicated Wellwood staff—for providing holiday support this season. Your generosity made a meaningful difference for so many families in need.

Stay tuned for an exciting opportunity coming to Wellwood in January! We are partnering with the American Heart Association for the Kids Heart Challenge. More details will follow after the break.

As your Community School Facilitator, I’m here to connect you with resources like emergency food, health services, afterschool programs, housing support, and more. Feel free to reach out at mfriedberg@bcps.org.

Wishing you all a joyful and restful holiday season!

Your Community School Facilitator,

Miriam Friedberg

Our school has partnered with Amira Learning in support of our readers. Amira is a digital reading tool that leverages artificial intelligence (AI) to assess students’ reading mastery and coach them through new reading skills.

Students will also use Amira to strengthen their reading skills. They will read out loud, receive interventions and support, and talk about the story they’ve read to build their comprehension skills.

Amira is a program committed to AI safety for students. Amira uses AI to select from a predetermined set of interventions and responses. Amira does not pull from the internet and cannot respond to students outside of the curated options vetted by humans. All student data is protected and owned by the district.

Starting Wednesday, October 30th, when students bring their computers home to charge, they should spend at least 20 minutes reading with Amira at home. Wednesdays are now all about Amira at Wellwood!

Please support us at home by:

• Helping your child set up in a quiet space.
• Not helping your child read the words - let Amira do the helping!
• Making sure your child reads to the end of each story so the data will be saved for the teacher to view.
• Celebrating when your child completes a story! (We will celebrate them at school too!)

Hi Wellwood Families!

Welcome to the Counseling Corner, where we will showcase helpful tips and information about Social Emotional Learning.

The theme for the month of January is Character. Students in primary grades will have lessons that focus on active and whole body listening, as well as self-control. These strategies will assist students in improving their coping skills and communication skills. The intermediate grades will focus on empathy, perseverance, growth mindset, and internet/ social media safety.

Lunch & Learn – Who You Gonna’ Call? Not Ghostbusters! Virtual Presented by the Center for Family

January 10 – 12:30 PM

Success Need information, contacts, clarity? Getting the run-around or at a dead-end? Get your plan of action today. Learn how to find, ask, read, contact, and resolve your questions with the right person in a productive way.

Click here to register for any of the events

• BCPS Virtual Calming Room
• Baltimore County Crisis Response: 410-931-2214
• Crisis text line: Text the word "TALK" to 741741 for free 24-hour support
• Maryland Food Bank: 410-737-8282
• 211 Maryland: dial 211 or https://211md.org/
• Maryland Suicide and Crisis Hotline: dial 988
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK
• Trevor Lifeline: Text “START” to 678-678 or call 1-866-488-7386
• Baltimore County Department of Social Services: 410-853-3000
• Sheppard Pratt's Urgent Walk-In Clinic is available through virtual appointments. https://www.sheppardpratt.org/care-finder/virtual-crisis-walk-in-clinic/

ldelis@bcps.org

443-809-1167

Happy New Year! As we start the new year, it's important to stay healthy and strong. January brings colder weather, which means we need to dress warmly and wash our hands often to stay healthy and avoid catching colds or the flu. Make sure to get plenty of rest, eat nutritious meals, and drink lots of water to keep your energy up. If you feel sick, it's best to stay home and rest so you can get better quickly and keep everyone around you healthy. If you have any questions or need help, don't hesitate to contact the nurse's office. Wishing everyone a happy and healthy start to the year!

Questions? Email cgoff@bcps.org or skatenkamp@bcps.org

We are excited to invite you to join us in an important initiative that will help shape the future of our school community! As part of our commitment to ensuring that every student and family has the resources they need to succeed, our Shared Decision Making Team is meeting to learn about Title I funding and Community School Funds, and to give input on how these resources can best be used to support our students.

Title I and Community School Funds are designed to provide additional resources to schools, specifically to assist students who may need extra support in their academic journey. These funds can be used in a variety of ways, such as for academic programs, enrichment opportunities, and community-building activities that support student success.

The purpose of this team is to bring together families, educators, and community members to learn about these funding opportunities, discuss the needs of our students, and collaboratively decide how best to allocate these resources to make a positive impact on our school community. Your voice is essential in helping us create a plan that meets the unique needs of our students.

Meeting Details:

• Date and Time: Monday, January 13th from 5:30-6:30
• Location: Wellwood's Library
• Details: Dinner will be provided and interpreters are available to assist
• RSVP Here!

At Wellwood, we’re kicking off the new year with a focus on building strong math foundations! Being able to solve basic math facts quickly and accurately is essential as students grow and tackle more advanced math concepts.

Our New Year’s resolution is for all 1st through 5th graders to master the basic math facts appropriate for their grade level. Students will have the opportunity to become “Fact Stars” by demonstrating their skills with different sets of facts. At the end of the year, we’ll celebrate their hard work and progress with a special "Fact Stars Celebration" to honor all they’ve learned.

More details about this exciting program will come home in January—so keep an eye out! We can’t wait to see our students shine as math fact masters!

Wellwood is a National Green Ribbon School and a Maryland Green School. In order to continue our efforts, we have several recycling programs available. Below is information on each of our programs. Please help us to continue our efforts to recycle as many materials as possible!

Sneaker Recycling: Do you have any old sneakers or tennis shoes and don't know what to do with them? Drop them off in our lobby in our collection bin to be recycled!

Ink Cartridge Recycling: We take LaserJet and inkjet cartridges. Drop them off in our bins in the lobby to support Green School activities at Wellwood!

An important part of the BCPS Library Curriculum is teaching students to be positive “Digital Citizens”. In this unit, students learn how to be safe, respectful, responsible, and caring while using technology and when connecting to the internet.

I would like to give a “shout out” to our 3rd grade students in Mrs. T. Johnson’s class. They engaged in meaningful conversations about digital citizenship by reading different scenarios with a partner and then discussing how to apply what they have learned.

Families of grades K-5 students, please remember to check in with your child to see if they have been returning their library books so that they are able to check out different books each week.

Happy reading!

Mrs. Garde

Thank you to all the students for your hard work and amazing performances at our winter concert!

Mrs. Sherman

Instrumental Music

adickerson3@bcps.org

Ms. Marcussen tossed rainbow "snowflakes" in the air with Ms. Feldman's class while singing "Snowflakes, Snowflakes" to demonstrate musical form.

Bonjour! Winter is here and Kindergarteners have seen their animal friends in the wrong places! We will return in January to learn new songs and begin counting all kinds of things. Un elephant, ca trompe, ca trompe!

First and Second graders are singing about seasons and snowmen and will use their neige - snow balls- in our learning tasks. We have invited Olaf in to sing about l'ete -summer-, but we are not sure if he will survive the heat in the cottage.

Students in 3rd-5th have been learning about the 5 accents in French. We will return in January ready for le Karate! Students, can you get the correct accent on our bold words?

French club is underway! We have been learning about foods and customs related to food. Students here are "fishing" and decorating edibles. Presentations of edibles were Dec. 18th!

We’ve had such a busy and fun month! We explored materials to make sea creatures for our classroom coral reefs and got excited for the start of winter by representing snowmen in different ways. We continue to develop collaboration skills when working together and using our big voices to express ourselves. We’ve grown so much!

We've been active in the gym this past month! Our primary students have been working on scarf dancing & tricycle riding. Meanwhile, our intermediate have been bowling. Everyone enjoyed all the fun and exercise!

We are excited to showcase the stunning artwork created by our talented students! The 2nd graders have been inspired by Vincent van Gogh's "Sunflowers." They learned to tear and arrange strips of paper to create their own beautiful sunflower masterpieces.

Additionally, our Pre-K students explored the world of Jackson Pollock through marble painting. They had a blast manipulating paint-coated marbles to create unique marks and mix vibrant colors.

Come and see these wonderful creations on display!

Students had a blast in December when they created a coral reef and sat "Under the Sea" for story time!

PreK 4 students welcomed families and other classes to the classroom coral reef. Visitors could explore by completing a scavenger hunt for sea animals and plants created by students.

Our Kindergarteners started learning about research writing. They explored Pebble Go to research jobs in our community.

Our first graders learned lots about what to do to help save our communities most precious body of water, the Chesapeake Bay! Students shared what they learned by creating an informational poster.

2nd had a stem challenge and tried to trap and keep the gingerbread man. Students took the challenge seriously and were very creative!

In third grade we are conducting small groups with Rigby Readers! We are also continuing to practice Amira weekly. In ELA we just completed Module 4.

We’re so proud of our students for their hard work and dedication! Keep up the great work, third grade!

In December, fourth-grade students began their geography unit, learning about maps, regions, and the interaction of climate, physical features, and natural resources. This unit will continue into January, providing opportunities for independent research projects on regions within the United States and an in-depth investigation of a specific state.

In language arts, students read about the first European colony on American soil (spoiler alert—it isn’t Jamestown!) and participated in a class reading of a Greek drama about the fall of Medusa. Foundational skills remain a focus as students review phonetic patterns and syllabication strategies to decode larger words.

Our fifth-grade students completed piloting a science unit for BCPS, called Greening the Community. Students created models of organisms obtaining energy from food. It is closely connected to our Bio-Blitz science unit, which examines different facets of our ecosystem, including food chains, webs, and biodiversity. December saw the end of our first social studies unit. In this unit, students learned about the 13 colonies and their distinguishing geographic and economic features. Finally, students have been doing a variety of essays during the English Language Arts block, including a letter asking a professional (such as someone working in a museum or a professor) for information about life in colonial America.

Wellwood International School

2901 Smith Avenue

Baltimore MD 21208

Phone: 443-809-1212 | Fax: 443-809-1213