Ashburton Elementary School

Ashburton Elementary School
6314 Lone Oak Drive, Bethesda, MD 20817 * 301-571-6959
PRINCIPAL’S NEWS
May, 2016
Dear Ashburton Parents/Guardians,
How quickly the school year has gone and now it is already May! It was only about a year ago that I first
set foot on Ashburton’s grounds and the time has flown by! I’m reminded of how welcomed I felt by all of
the parents, students, and staff as I came onboard here and I want to thank you for continuing to welcome
me throughout the year. This first week of May is National Teacher Appreciation Week, and Ashburton
would not be the shining place that it is without the stellar staff that we have. On Monday May 9, at
Rockville High School, our special education staff throughout the building are being recognized by the
Montgomery County Council of PTAs for their outstanding work on behalf of our students with disabilities.
We have had so many staff members being recognized by various groups and for various reasons this year
and we are so proud to have them here in our
building. As quickly as this year has gone, the last bit
Calendar Updates
of it will go by even more quickly because we have
May 9 - June 3- PARCC testing for grades 3-5
so many end of the year events to look forward to.
Our 4th and 5th grade chorus students will perform in See chart below for exact dates for each grade
concert this month. Due to the large number of
May 14 - PTA’s Spring Fling
students in our band and orchestra, we have moved
the instrumental music concert to the auditorium at
May 19 - Spring Chorus Concert, 7:00 p.m.
th
Walter Johnson High school on June 8 . Our fifth
May 30 - Holiday- Memorial Day, No School
graders are going to end the school year with a lot of
fun activities, which includes the North Bethesda
June 1 - Field Day Grade PEP-2
Middle School visit, Philadelphia field trip, patrol
June 2 - Field Day Grades 3-5
picnic, and the departing class picture this month;
June has even more excitement with our PTA Fun June 7- Race for the Stars Fun Run at recess
Run, a celebration for fifth graders sponsored by the
June 8 – Instrumental Music Concert, 7 pm, Walter
PTA, promotion and the clap-out.
Johnson High School auditorium
We will hold PARCC testing for our third through
fifth graders in May and end at the beginning of
June. Please see the attached schedule for your
child’s grade level. If at all possible, please avoid
making appointments on a day that your child will
test. If your child is ill, please keep them at home and
we will arrange for them to makeup the missed test
portion. Students have begun to do practice tests in
order to familiarize themselves with the test
procedures and using the Chromebooks for this
purpose; test practice links were sent home by each
June 10 – Grade 5 PTA Celebration
June 15 - 5th Grade Promotion Ceremony 7:00
p.m. Walter Johnson High School Auditorium
June 17 - Awards Assembly-Grades 3-5
June 17 - PEP Last Day of School
June 20 - K-5 Last Day of School, Early Dismissal
12:35 p.m.
June 28 - Report Cards Mailed from Central Office
grade level and you can get a good look at the PARCC assessment. For your planning purposes: the tests
for literacy last about 90 minutes and the math tests about 60 minutes. Children cannot enter the classroom
once testing has started so it is important that all children come to school on time.
The school year has been extended to June 20th, which will be a half day of instruction for students. We
will keep some of the previously scheduled events the same: field day for PEP- 2 is on June 1st and grades
3-5 is on June 2nd. Fifth Grade Promotion will be held on June 15 (but in the evening) and the Awards
Ceremony for Grades 3-5 will now be held on June 17. The awards ceremony is generally for students in
grades 3-5; however, many important awards are given to fifth grade students at the promotion ceremony.
We hope you can join us but understand that it may be difficult for some parents to take off work. As noted
in a letter to the fifth grade parents, the promotion ceremony will be held at 7:00 p.m. at Walter Johnson
High School, again due to the large number of students in the grade level. The fifth grade bowling party
will still be held on June 15th during the school day. PEP students will have their last day on June 17th.
Our students are getting excited for the SPRING FLING event coming up on May 14th! We hope you are
able to attend the Spring Fling, rain or shine, which is coordinated by a fabulous team of parents - Jen Luna,
Lisa Fishberg, Allison Peppelman, and Lisa Wexler. The class baskets are being organized and there are
many wonderful donations from families and businesses for the silent auction coming in. I’ve elected to
take the last shift in the dunk tank and am very much looking forward to plunging into the icy water in
support of our amazing PTA!
Our May PTA meeting was held on May 2nd. There will be several new officers for the PTA Board and I
want to take this time to thank the out-going Board, particularly President Laura Chace, Tom McCarty, and
Jennifer Lewis. The PTA has been incredibly supportive as I transitioned here as the new principal, and I
am so appreciative of all of the assistance and guidance. Additionally, there are many committee chairs that
support the students, staff and community. We appreciate all of the support from our parents; whether it is
chairing a big event, volunteering in the classroom, or helping at an activity or event. Our parents truly
make a difference for our children. I encourage each parent to get involved as much as you can next year,
and we look forward to working with the new PTA Board.
Thank you to many of the parents and others who participated in our Career Day! Mrs. Gillespie and Mrs.
Brenner had an overwhelming response to their request for volunteers. It was truly inspiring for the students,
and the talents of the presenters were absolutely impressive. We really appreciate the efforts of Alicia
Prevost and the other volunteers in organizing a number of activities at school for Earth Week. It was a
huge success and fabulous to see how much our students care for the environment.
While this year has been an amazing one, the next year looks to be even more amazing! It is that time of
year when we begin to create next year’s classes! Our goal is to create balanced, heterogeneous classes in
which students and teachers can be happy and productive. We seek to achieve balance in terms of gender,
level of academic achievement, racial/ethnic groups, leaders and followers, learning rates, work/study
skills, behavioral issues, and special needs. We value the input of parents in this process, so please take a
few moments to complete and return the Parent Survey about your child that we sent home this week. We
use your comments and input from these surveys; however, please do not request a teacher by name.
We are projected to have the following number of classes: 5 kindergarten, 5 first grades, 5 second grades,
6 third grades, 5 fourth grades, and 5 fifth grades. We will rearrange a few classrooms this summer and
have several summer projects to improve the school; including painting of the entire school, fire alarm work
and some HVAC repair. Please note that there will be no summer camps, nor daycare this summer.
However, the office will attempt to remain open throughout the summer (please call prior to coming by in
case we are not here). Classes are tentative and subject to reorganization during the summer because of
unexpected increases and decreases in enrollment at a specific grade level. Staffing is based on student
enrollment. We are in constant contact with our Office of School Support and Improvement regarding
enrollment and staffing. Please notify friends and neighbors about enrolling students as soon as they know
they will be attending Ashburton ES.
As I started my journey with Ashburton, it was important to me that I join a school that had a strong and
supportive community, and I have absolutely found that to be the case here. I am forever indebted to all of
the parents who continually support our amazing staff and advocate so strongly on our behalf, it is because
of you that Ashburton has continued to shine as the amazing school that it is. I hope to see you at many of
our end of the year events during the months of May and June!
Sincerely,
Greg Mullenholz, Principal
Thinking of What to Do for Staff Appreciation Week?
A most welcome appreciation thought is to write a letter for a teacher’s file; it’s long-lasting, calorie
free, and really means a lot to the staff member.
A huge thank you to all of the parents who have volunteered to bake, prepare or purchase treats
for the staff this week- we do enjoy the thoughtful and generous ways that you show
appreciation. The variety of food treats is always delightful.
Lunch Money Rollover- If your child will attend North Bethesda Middle School or another MCPS
school next year, please note that any funds in the cafeteria account will roll over to the new school.
Accounts at Ashburton hold over money until the next year.
Summer Painting- our entire school will be painted this summer. Every room will need to be packed
up and we will need help in two ways:
 Boxes- we will need lots of medium sized boxes as all materials must come off shelves and out
of closets.
 Packing help- the last week of school and during the professional day, we will need lots of
help, parents, students or SSL volunteers to assist in the Media Center, classrooms and other
support rooms.
Contact Marney Jacobs for more information.
PARCC Schedule May-June 2016
Grade 3
Literacy 1
Literacy 2
Literacy 3
Literacy
May 9 @ 9:00 a.m.
May 11 @ 9:00 a.m.
May 20 @ 9:00 a.m.
Grade 4
Literacy 1
Literacy 2
Literacy 3
May 16 @ 9:00 a.m.
May 23 @ 9:00 a.m.
May 31 @ 9:00 a.m.
Grade 5
Literacy 1
Literacy 2
Literacy 3
May 10 @ 9:00 a.m.
May 12 @ 9:00 a.m.
May 13 @ 9:00 a.m.
Math 1
Math 2
Math 3
Math 4
Math 1
Math 2
Math 3
Math 4
Math 1
Math 2
Math 3
Math 4
Math
May 16 @ 1:15 p.m.
May 19 @ 9:00 a.m.
May 24 @ 9:00 a.m.
May 25 @ 9:00 a.m.
May 18 @ 9:00 a.m.
May 26 @ 9:00 a.m.
May 27 @ 9:00 a.m.
June 3 @ 9:00 a.m.
May 17 @ 9:00 a.m.
May 19 @ 1:15 p.m.
May 23 @ 1:15 p.m.
May 25 @ 10:20 a.m.
PEP Newsletter
Dear Families,
For the next several weeks, children will
investigate nature with our May theme, “Nature
All Around Us.” This theme covers many of our
favorite science topics, such as plants and how
they grow, the sun and the moon, and weather and
the seasons. Take advantage of all that nature has
to offer to help your child learn about the world
around us.
Sample Vocabulary: flower, seeds, petal, roots,
plant, tree, blossom, sprout, stem, sky, stars,
clouds, sun, moon, lightning, thunderstorm,
rainbow, nighttime, daytime, rainy, sunny,
snowy, mountain, desert,
ocean, windy, seasons,
spring, summer, fall, winter,
and leaf.
On May 11th, students will be going on a field trip
to Glen Echo Park
to watch a puppet
performance
of
“Sleeping
Beauty.” Please
be sure to return
permission slips if
you have not done
so already.
On May 14th, Ashburton PTA will be sponsoring
our annual Spring Fling. Students will have a
chance to win an ice cream party with the
kindergarten teachers. Your child’s teacher will
provide more information about entering the
raffle. We are looking forward to all of the
exciting events this month!
Reminders:

There is no school May
30th (Memorial Day)
As always, thank you for your continued support.
Please feel free to e-mail us with any news,
questions or comments.
The PEP Team
May Happenings in Kindergarten
May is a busy month in kindergarten! On May
3rd, students will participate in a Young Author’s
Conference. Adam Rubin, best-selling author of
many children’s books (including Dragons Love
Tacos), will be visiting and giving a
presentation. Students will also be sharing their
writing with second grade students. On May 5th
and 6th, we will have Kindergarten
Orientation. Current kindergarten students will
not have school – please plan accordingly!
First Grade News
Dear First Grade Families,
We are now approaching the home stretch!
Quarter 4 has begun and our first graders are
showing a lot of growth both academically and
socially. We look forward to an exciting last
quarter!
Our field trip to Imagination Stage was
rescheduled to Tuesday, May 24th. We hope all
our volunteers will still be able to join us on the
new date. If you are not able to volunteer
anymore, please let your child’s teacher know as
soon as possible so that other arrangements can
be made. It is important for all first graders to be
at school on time the morning of the field trip. We
will leave the school at 9:45 am. Please make sure
your child has a heavy breakfast that morning
since we will have lunch upon our return to
school at 12:30
We will also be testing each child’s reading level
this quarter. Students take a standardized reading
test three times a year in grade one. This will be
the last round of testing and will show how much
progress students have made in reading fluency
and comprehension since the last time they were
tested in January.
We appreciate all
your support and
cooperation this
year!
Sincerely,
The First Grade Team
healthy breakfast and positive energy on testing
days! We are excited to start a unit in math on
measuring volume and mass. We will compare
measurements in the world around us. Did you
know students will be able to help you with your
budgeting after the month of May?  Students
will learn the importance of making financially
responsible decisions and get an opportunity to
create their own budget to “adopt a pet”.
Additionally, see if your 3rd grader can talk to you
about the differences between myths, folktales,
fables, and legends. We look forward to creating
our own fables at the end of the month. Please
continue practicing your math multiplication
facts on a daily basis as these provide the
foundation for all subsequent math skills this year
and the coming years! Happy May!
Second Grade Town News
Fourth quarter is in full swing and our
days are filled with exciting projects and lessons.
We are all anxiously awaiting the emergence of
our butterflies from their chrysalis stage. The
students have really enjoyed watching the
caterpillars go through their life
cycle! In reading and writing, we
are finishing up our poetry units
and beginning work on nonfiction.
We will spend a lot of time learning
about important leaders of the past
and present in reading, social
studies and writing. Throughout
fourth quarter we will be focusing on
examples of how leaders use effort, motivation
and persistence to reach their goals. Talk with
your child about ways you have shown effort and
persistence to reach your own goals, and what
motivated you to reach them. As always, feel free
to contact your child’s teacher with any questions
or concerns. Have a great month!
Third Grade Newsletter
Welcome Springtime! As May rolls around, we
prepare for the PARCC assessment. Please check
with your child’s teacher to ensure your 3rd grader
will not be absent on testing days.
We
recommend having a good night’s sleep, a
News 4 You
Wow! With only weeks of school left, we
are still trying to figure out how this year has
flown by so fast! Our last field trip is to St.
Mary’s City on Wednesday, May 25th. If your
child has not yet brought back his/her form
and money, please be sure to send that in
by the due date of May 18th! Our chorus
students will be participating in their spring
chorus
concert later
this month.
We
are
embarking on
our last big
research
project
for
this school
year.
Students will
be working
on a either a
science
or
social studies topic to research. They will
learn how to narrow a topic and develop
research questions, and then use a variety of
sources to gather information. It is imperative
that students are studying their basic facts and
working towards mastering all multiplication
and division basic facts. Math concepts will
continue to become more challenging, and
the fifth grade curriculum assumes all
students have mastered their basic facts. We
are so proud of all of the hard work and effort
that our fourth graders have put forth all year!
seeing a play in a professional or local theatre,
including:
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Fifth Grade News
We are entering a very busy season for our fifth
graders, visiting middle school, performing in
musical concerts, and completing all of the
PARCC math and language arts assessments. In
the middle of all the extras, we'll be busy in all of
the classes. In math, the students are using their
decimal and fraction calculating skills to measure
and convert measurements in both the metric and
customary systems. The students will not be
converting between the systems, but will identify
their similarities and differences and determining
when the various units of measure are reasonable
and useful. They'll then move on to working with
numbers outside the measurements arena,
looking at the relationships between and patterns
created by numbers and how those relationships
may be displayed graphically. They will work
with coordinate planes and graphing ordered
pairs, including using ordered pairs to draw
geometric figures with given attributes. The
compacted math students will continue their
exploration of geometry moving from area and
volume to surface work, creating nets and
calculating surface area of three dimensional
figures. They will then shift to working with data
displays and analyzing the bases for statistical
questions. In this campaign season, they are
evaluating the ever flowing data concerning the
primary races around the country.
In reading, the students will switch genres back
to fiction texts, reading theatrical plays and
identifying the special structure plays with such
their casts of characters, scenes, and stage
directions and understanding how these
structures work together to create drama.
Students will determine the skills necessary to be
a successful actor in a play. Our goal is to have
students perform their plays for students within
the grade level. At home your child might enjoy
Local high school or middle school
Imagination Stage, Bethesda, MD
Olney Theatre Center for the Arts, Olney, MD
The Puppet Company, Glen Echo, MD
Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts,
Washington, D.C.
Our writing and social studies work are focused
on economic issues. In writing, the students are
pulling together their research on the grand topic
of jobs, how to get a particular job or career and
what you may find when you get there. They are
looking forward to recruiting fourth graders for
these jobs when they put on their job fair. It is a
wonderful event, as they impressively share their
enthusiasm
and
knowledge with the
rising fifth graders. In
socials studies, they are
continuing to learn
about ways to make and
manage money with
jobs, investments, budgets and charity,
appreciating the joys and pitfalls associated with
all of them. They will move into more personal
writing at the end of the month when they will
write memoirs based on their experiences here at
Ashburton.
In science, the students are identifying the
characteristics of plant and animal cells through
microscopes, as well as through various media.
As they have been comparing the two categories
of cells, they have been noting the differing
characteristics of the cells. They will apply what
they are learning to develop a greater appreciation
of cell specialization and the connections among
the forms and functions of cells and their
organelles. That work provides the foundation
for their study of inherited traits and the exciting
work being done in the field of genetics.
There is a lot going on during this final
elementary quarter. We appreciate everyone's
support and responsiveness to all the materials we
have been and will continue to send home.
Grade 5 May/June Events

May 4 - Departing Class Picture, 9:30 a.m.
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May 6 - Visit to NBMS, 9:45 a.m.
May 19 - Spring Choral Concert, 7:00 p.m.
June 2 - Field Day, Grade 3-5
June 3 - Philadelphia trip
June 8 - Instrumental Music Concert at WJ, 7:00 p.m.
June 10 - PTA’s Celebration, 6:30-8:30 p.m.
June 15 - Bowling Party Field Trip, 10:45
June 15 - Promotion Ceremony, WJ, 7:00 p.m.
June 17 - Awards Assembly, 9:30 a.m.
From the Counselor
I can’t believe we are nearing the end of another
great school year. I have really enjoyed getting
to know all of the students better this year. One
of the best parts of my job is going into all of the
student’s classrooms to do lessons on things such
as problem solving, bullying, being a good friend,
internet safety, etc…
This past month we have been focusing on
learning how to use the DEBUG strategy to
problem solve when someone is bugging us. We
talked about how there are times when someone
is really bothering us or bugging us and we just
don’t know what to do, which sometimes leads us
to do things which aren’t good choices. We
focused on learning the five steps of DEBUG, and
got to learn about them in a unique way by
watching skits of Mr. Mullenholz, Ms. Cino, and
Mrs. Scarborough acting out the steps. The kids
loved seeing their administrators in this light!
You can ask them all about it. If you would like
to see the video yourself you can search YouTube
for “Mrs. Gillespie’s Debug Video”.
We practiced the DEBUG steps so I wanted you
to be aware of them as well so that if your child
is having a simple problem, they can use these
steps to help solve it. The steps we talked about
were 1. Ignore 2. Walk Away 3. Talk Friendly
(please stop bugging me) 4. Talk firmly (STOP
bugging me!) 5. Get adult help. We also talked
about how when a child is hurt or in danger, they
should skip all the steps and go straight to getting
adult help. Each child was given their own
DEBUG bug with all the steps on it so they can
always remember what to do.
Of course we don’t expect children to solve all
problems on their own, we just want to give them
some steps to help them become more
independent problem solvers. If your child is
ever having a problem with another student, or
anything in general, please feel free to contact me
for support [email protected]
or 301-571-6959. If I don’t see you before, have
a great summer!
MCPS to Make Up One Snow Day
on June 20
Due to the six days that school was closed due to
snow, MCPS will extend the 2015-2016 school
year by one day and end the year will on Monday,
June 20, 2016. The MCPS request for a one-day
waiver of the 180-day school year requirement
was approved on April 18 by the Maryland State
Department of Education. The school year was
previously scheduled to end Friday, June 17, and
now will end with an early release day on June
20. June 17 will be a full instructional day.
You can view the revised calendar online at
www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/calendar/.
A huge thank you to the PTA for sponsoring our
visiting author’s this week. Adam Rubin, author of
Dragons Love Tacos and Those Darn Squirrels,
and Mary Amato, who wrote The Good Crooks
series and The Word Eater. The lower grades
loved seeing Mr. Rubin who was very amusing.
The upper grades are enjoying Ms. Amato and
learning about her writing process. Both authors
are award-winning, nationally acclaimed
children’s writers. We appreciate the PTA for
funding the opportunity to bring in authors each
year and thank Ms. Elaraj, our Reading Specialist,
for coordinating the visits.
PTA Insider – May 2016
UPCOMING EVENTS:
May 5&6 Kindergarten Orientation (NO SCHOOL FOR KINDERS)
May 11 Roundtable Public Information Meeting, 7-9pm, WJ Cafeteria
May 14 PTA’s Spring Fling, 12 -4pm
May 18 Dine out at California Tortilla, Cabin John
May 24 Instrumental Concert, Grades 4 &5, 7:30pm
May 30 HOLIDAY - Memorial Day - No School
June 1 Field Day, Grades PEP-2
June 2 Field Day, Grades 3-5
June 7 PTA’s Fun Run
June 8 Instrumental Music Concert at WJ at 7:00 p.m.
June 10 PTA’s Grade 5 Celebration, 6:30-8:30pm
June 15 5th Grade Promotion Ceremony, 7:00 pm
June 17 Awards Ceremony, Grades 3-5, 9:15am
June 20 Last Day of School, Early Dismissal at 12:45pm
News from our President and PTA Board
It is hard to believe that this is my last newsletter as PTA President. This school year has literally flown
by! The PTA and the school have made many great strides this year, thanks to all of you and your
continued support.
I want to offer my sincere gratitude to ALL of the parents who have helped out this year in some way whether you chaired an event, volunteered at an event, volunteered in your child’s classroom or at lunch
or recess, donated items to the PTA, joined a committee for the first time, attended a dine out, went to a
hearing, or wrote a letter to an elected official- WE ARE THANKFUL! We have a large community here
at Ashburton and we really do rely on your support to keep our PTA active and a strong supporter of the
students and school. I realize that with our busy lives, I forget to thank people enough, but please do
know that on behalf of the entire PTA Board, we are appreciative of the time that you dedicate to the
PTA!
I want to separately thank the PTA Board members for their dedication and commitment to the PTA and
the school. We are fortunate to have such committed parents, who are willing to donate their time and
energy to help lead the PTA on everything from membership to advocacy to events. You wouldn’t
believe the amount of effort that goes in to making things run so smoothly, and that is only possible with
a great team such as we have here at Ashburton, so THANK YOU!
Finally, I want to thank Mr. Mullenholz and Ms. Cino for their incredible leadership and partnership
throughout the year. They have made it possible for us to bring new initiatives to Ashburton, such as the
Fun Run (June 7th - stay tuned!) and a salad bar (coming on May 16th!) and the new school
garden. These are just some the very visible ways in which we have successfully partnered up to create
new initiatives to benefit the children, but make no mistake about it, we are working together each and
every day to ensure the best possible experience for the students at Ashburton. As a PTA, I could not ask
for better, more committed leaders to work with who always put the interests of the children first. We are
fortunate as a community to have such caring administrators. Any administrator is only as good as the
team they have, and a special thanks go out to Ms. Jacobs and Ms. Lynch for their tireless work to make
things run smoothly at Ashburton. They are the heart and soul of our school. They play mother, nurse,
mediator, and - oh yeah -they actually have to do their paying job too! We could not get along without
them.
With only six weeks of school left, we still have events and activities on the calendar. The PTA’s biggest
fundraiser of the year is Spring Fling on May 14th from 12pm - 4pm. For those of you who have
attended in the past, you know what a fun event this is for the whole family, and you also know that we
need A LOT of volunteers. If you have not yet volunteered at an event this year, this is the time - sign up
for Spring Fling! There are carnival games, a moon bounce, a DJ, plus all the class baskets and teacher
features in the raffle. There is also a silent auction with excellent prizes to bid on. The highlight,
however, is that Mr. Mullenholz will be making an appearance in the dunk tank! DO NOT MISS
IT! Sign up today to volunteer and be sure to tell your friends and neighbors to come on My 14th!
Join us on May 18th for a dine out at California Tortilla in Cabin John. Take the night off cooking and
come support your school! Finally, our Fun Run has had to be rescheduled due to rain, and it is set for
June 7th. The run will take place during the lunch and recess time block for each grade. We need many
parent volunteers to pull this event off, so please sign up to help out for an hour if you can. Signups for
all volunteer jobs are posted on the PTA website.
The Roundtable process is in the final stages and wraps up at the end of May. MCPS is holding a public
information meeting on May 11 from 7-9pm at WJ for parents to come hear about all of the possible
approaches to overcrowding and submit comments or questions. I encourage you to come to this
meeting. Our PTA will be submitting a position paper on preferred solutions at the secondary and
elementary school levels at the conclusion of this process. I thank those of you who attended our PTA
meetings or who wrote me with your comments throughout this process, and shared your feedback.
Enjoy the last weeks of school and please join me in welcoming your new PTA Board for the coming
year:
President: Sharon Watts
VP Administration: Sindhu Blume
VP Administration: Stacy Cohen
VP Membership: Laura Chace
VP Membership: Amelia Risner Butera
Secretary: Dana Chan
Treasurer: Yvonne Morrison
Have fun, get involved, make memories!
Laura Chace, on behalf of the PTA Board