Rocket Reader

Hello there Baldwin Rocket families,

Gobble! Gobble! Happy Fall and Thanksgiving to all Rockets this season! We are into our 2nd quarter of the school year and things are moving quickly. I would like to thank our PTO and all of you for helping to make our events so wonderful this year. Our Movie Night and Boonanza were both a huge success and we appreciate everyone coming together for our Rocket students.

As we progress into the new year please help to reinforce a strong work ethic and positive manners in your child everyday.

Here at Baldwin Elementary we focus on:

1. Respecting Ourselves

2. Respecting Others

3. Respecting our school (Baldwin Elementary)

The new year brings much hope and opportunity for learning and be on the lookout from teacher messages about midyear data. Please do not hesitate to ask your child's teacher for a conference. Whether in person, on the phone, or virtually it is important to communicate with your child's teacher. As inclement weather is possible this upcoming season, please be sure to all emergency information updated in Parent Portal so you are in the loop for closings, delays, etc. Stay tuned as we are working with the PTO and our Leadership team to provide some Academic Info Nights and possible Parent Engagement events during the day as well. We will let you know as we are designing these alongside our School Improvement Plan efforts.

Lastly, our school attendance is on a really good trajectory and much better than last year!!! We know that sickness happens, but please be sure to send your child to school when they are not contagious and are able to be here to learn! Every day counts and Attendance Matters!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank you again for having an active partnership with us here at Baldwin Elementary and we are here to serve you and your family. Reach out anytime at 571-377-6100.

Best,

David Rupert

Principal

Baldwin Elementary

What’s been happening in Library this quarter…

In the library we have read so many great books together! We read and celebrated great stories for Hispanic Heritage month such as Digging for Words: Jose Alberto and the Library He Built, Waiting for the Biblioburro, My Papi Has a Motorcycle, and Islandborn, among others. We have had lessons on being good digital citizens and cyberbullying. We have created some engineering projects in relationship to the books we have read as well.

What’s coming up next quarter…

The library is celebrating DInovember with literary activities related to both fiction and nonfiction dinosaur books. We also are celebrating Native American Heritage Month through books about and by Native Americans and relating it to having a Thankful spirit during November. November 13th- 17th is National Young Reader’s Week. We will have guest readers from our city sharing books in classrooms on November 17th. We will be doing some coding in the library over the next few months as well! Exciting times!

Teacher: Julie Frack & Mark Markiewicz

Email: jfrack@mcpsva.org & mmarkiewicz@mcpsva.org

Phone: 571-921-8039 & 571-377-6118

What’s been happening in P.E. this quarter…

K - We have been working on how to be a good PE student through listening and following directions as well as trying our best with each locomotor movement and exercise. We are also learning how to play games and run relays. Specifically the students did lifetime fitness activities including bowling and cornhole.

1st - We have been reviewing how to be a good PE student! We have also been working on locomotor movements and exercises, running relays, throwing, rolling, catching, blocking and dodging as well as spatial awareness. We have also been using scooters to learn to balance in preparation for riding a bike. One of our main focal points is sportsmanship.

2nd - We have been working on how to exercise, we have reinforced throwing and rolling, introduced team games, lifetime fitness activities such as bowling and cornhole. Sportsmanship will always be a part of what we teach as well as teamwork. We will continue to introduce lifetime fitness activities throughout the year.

3rd - We have been working on endurance training, throwing and catching, balancing on scooters, overall fitness as well as lifetime fitness activities such as bowling and cornhole. We have started to focus on games with strategy and teamwork. Good sportsmanship continues to be enforced as students play more competitive games.

4th - We have been working on overall fitness. We have also touched on lifetime fitness activities, such as bowling and cornhole. Our games focus on teamwork and strategy with multi step instructions. We have pre-tested for the ‘fitnessgram’ fitness test that begins in 4th grade so we have started our preparation for our end of the year fitness test.

What’s coming up next quarter…

K- Will work on locomotor movements and will start to introduce throwing games that are age appropriate. At this point we focus on sportsmanship and being able to win and lose. We will also be playing seasonal games that the kids thoroughly enjoy. Lifetime skill up next will be frisbee throwing. Students should be wearing shoes that are appropriate for these activities on days they have PE.

1st - We will continue learning how to exercise and add competition into games focusing on spatial awareness and agility. Students will also learn how to work together in teams to accomplish tasks. We will also play some seasonal games that are popular with the students. Lifetime skill up next will be frisbee throwing. Students should be wearing shoes that are appropriate for these activities on days they have PE.

2nd - this next quarter 2nd grade will be working on exercises to build strength and endurance. We will focus on hand eye coordination, being able to catch different objects out of the air. We will begin to work on strategy while playing games and multi-step instructions. Lifetime skill up next for 2nd grade is frisbee throwing . Students should be wearing shoes that are appropriate for these activities on days they have PE.

3rd - We will continue to work on fitness daily. Our students have over a dozen different exercises that they can be doing at home by this point. We will continue to add to this as the quarter goes on. Students will play games involving spatial awareness, agility, strategy and teamwork. Popular seasonal game will be played for the next several weeks. Lifetime fitness skill that is next for 3rd grade will be frisbee throwing. Students should be wearing shoes that are appropriate for these activities on days they have PE.

4th - We will continue to work on strength and endurance each time I see them. Our games will include agility, spacial awareness, competition, strategy and sportsmanship. Our next several weeks will be seasonal games that the students look forward to each year. The next lifetime skill will be frisbee throwing. Students should be wearing shoes that are appropriate for these activities on days they have PE.

We are looking forward to our winter activities!

What’s coming up next quarter…

We will continue with color theory- value, warm & cool colors, primary, secondary and tertiary colors, as well as seasonal creations.

Check the Baldwin website/Encore/Art to see new editions of our Baldwin Miniature Art Gallery

Teacher: Lori Grebner

Email: Lgrebner@mcpsva.org

What’s been happening in the Music this quarter…

Welcome to Music! In this past quarter we have been learning about beats, rhythm, meter, and scales. We are working on our singing skills and we prepared to sing the National anthem for our veterans. Hopefully we will be able to sing that soon. We have been having a great time using the instruments, moving to music, and sharing our music with the school. We perform for our teachers and anyone else that would like to listen!

In October, we started our BES 4th grade Chorus. They are wonderful! They sang for the morning announcements on Monday. We have made so much progress since we first started! We are singing in harmony now. We are preparing for our Winter Sing Along Concert in December and the All City Chorus event in February.

What’s coming up next quarter…

In the next quarter the 4th graders will travel to Osbourn HS to watch a concert on Dec. 19th during the school day. Permission forms will go out in early December.

We will be having our Winter Sing Along Concert on Dec. 21st. It will occur during the day for our students. Due to our large student body we only have capacity for our students and staff! We are sure your child will fill you in on the songs and fun!

In January, the 2nd graders will do a unit on Ukulele. The 3rd graders will begin their recorder units that will culminate in a concert later in the spring, and the 4th grade classes will begin a unit on guitar.

Teacher: (Kelly Kingett)

Email: kkingettmcpsva.org

Phone: 571-377-6161

Attendance Matters

Consistent school attendance is a vital component of your child’s academic success and overall development. By attending school regularly, they have the opportunity to engage in meaningful learning experiences, build strong relationships with their peers, and develop important life skills. Your dedication to ensuring your child’s attendance demonstrates your understanding of the importance of education and the positive impact it can have on their future. Your support and encouragement play a significant role in motivating them to attend school consistently and make the most of their educational journey. Attendance has improved this year thank you for all you do!

Ms. Torres,
Attendance Officer.

571-377-6216

What is Digital Citizenship?

Kids today may seem like experts at using technology, but the digital world requires all kinds of skills and habits that kids don’t just pick up as they go. Digital citizenship helps them learn those skills.

At Baldwin we use a combination of lessons from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/ and other MCPS created lessons to help our students to develop healthy media habits and learn how to be safe online. We are proud to be recognized as a Common Sense School.

Take a minute to learn more about Digital Citizenship by watching this video:

English: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toK_BAYnjoU

Spanish: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSNpfxw1a1E

Love your Laptop!

We are excited to offer each student in Manassas City Public Schools grades K-8 their own assigned Chromebook.

Remind your students that the computers we use at school are for school program use only. Use it to access school sponsored content only.

Remember to take care of your Chromebooks! They are sturdy, but not unbreakable, and misuse can cause them to break. If a laptop breaks due to negligence or abuse, students and their parents or guardians will be responsible for any applicable charges and it can be very costly. Click this link to see the cost for repairing Chromebooks.

You can learn more about student devices and expectations here.

November 22-24 - Thanksgiving Holiday Break, No School for Students or Staff

November 28 - Retake Picture Day

December 5 - Early Release for Students, PM Collaborative Planning Time for Teachers

December 13 - 3rd grade fieldtrip to Nutcracker

December 19 - 4th grade field trip to OHS

December 21 - Early Release for Students and Staff

December 22-January 1 - Student & Teacher Holiday, Winter Break , No School for Students or Teachers

January 2 - Return to School for Teachers and Students

January 11 - End of 2nd quarter, School is in session

January 12 - Teacher Workday, No School for Students, Teacher Workday

January 15 - Martin Luther King Holiday - No School for Students or Staff

January 29 - Professional Learning Day for Teachers, No School for Students

Keeping students and staff safe is a top priority for Baldwin Elementary School!

Safety is a top priority at Baldwin Elementary School. Our staff and students take safety very seriously.

We have drills throughout the school year that include: fire drills, earthquake drill, lockdown drills and a tornado drill. Baldwin Elementary School holds our drills with Baldwin Intermediate School. We are two separate schools in one building.

If there is an emergency it will impact the whole building. We hold fire drills once a month. We have had two lockdown drills and an earthquake drill this past fall and will hold a tornado drill in March. In addition, we have drills in the cafeteria so that students know what to do at all times throughout their school day.

If you have any questions regarding safety at Baldwin Elementary School, please let contact, Safety Coordinator, Ms. McKenzie at 571-377-6102.

We appreciate your continued support in these matters.

Reminders from the clinic:

We are coming into the colder weather season, which is a time where it’s easier for germs to spread between people.

Remember that handwashing is the MOST important way to prevent the spread of germs.

The Flu and Covid vaccines are very helpful in protecting individuals from severe illness and helps reduce the risk of passing viruses to others.

PLEASE send a water bottle to school with your child every day. Headaches and stomach aches are primarily due to dehydration which means you do not have enough water in your body. Being properly hydrated helps students feel better and work better.

Eating breakfast with protein every day before the school day starts also prepares our brains and bodies to learn and participate in class.

Thank you,

Nurse Williams

MaryWilliams@mcpsva.org

571-377-6112

We are here to help support keeping our students healthy and in school. Please let us know if you need any assistance or have any questions.

You can now visit Baldwin Elementary’s Website to report your child's absence. On the right under Quick Links, you will see an attendance button. This button takes you to contact information for our helpful office staff or an online form you can fill out to report your child's absence.

Parent Portal gives you access to your student's report cards, interims, grades, and attendance. Please note: Report cards will not be printed out this year ! If you still need to create yours, I can assist you!

Call my office at 571-377-6122 or email me at kaylinnewman@mcpsva.org to make an appointment. Set up typically takes 10-15 minutes. Bring your smartphone and photo ID.

Student and Parent Sign In (mcpsva.org)

Website: https://www.mcpsva.org/baldwines
Location: Historic District, 1978 Eagle Way, Manassas, VA, USA
Phone: 571-377-6100