Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

1

2

5

Spirit Night: Panera

6 Election Day

School Closed

7

8 9 School Spirit Day:

Red, White & Blue

First Marking Period

Ends

SCHOOL CLOSES

at 12:50 p.m.

No PM Pre-K

Open Door - Open

AMERICAN EDUCATION WEEK (9:30 – 11:30)

12 American Ed

Week Visitation

Grade 1

13 American Ed

Week Visitation

Grades PK and KG

PTO Meeting

7:00 p.m.

14 American Ed

Week Visitation

Grades 2nd and 3rd

15 American Ed

Week Visitation

Grades 4th and 5th

Parent Information

Session (Adults Only):

“Keeping Your

Children Safe as They

Navigate the Internet

and Social Media”

7:00 p.m.

16 American Ed

Week Visitation

Grandparents’ Day

19 Fall Picture

Make-Up Day

20

21

22 23

THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY

SCHOOLS CLOSED

26

Report cards

distributed at

end of day

27

28

29

30 Elementary

Conference Day –

Schools Closed for

Elementary

Students

Ms. Deidre Lynch

Assistant Principal

Mrs. Charlene Behnke

Principal

Mrs. Nitsa Stakias Zdziera

PTO President

Honeygo Elementary School November, 2018

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE

On November 12th, we begin the second quarter of the school year. Report cards will be

distributed to students on Monday, November 26th. However, no longer do parents need to

wait to see their child's progress, as all parents have access to Schoology through BCPS

One, our online grade and reporting system. The first quarter grades can be accessed

electronically for students in grades 1-5.

On Friday, November 30th, all elementary schools are closed for parent conference day, and the teachers will be

available to discuss each child's academic progress at a scheduled meeting with parents. The purpose of report

cards is to share your child’s progress each quarter and to identify their strengths and weaknesses.

Here are some ways you might respond to your child’s report card.

• Praise your child for their effort. • Acknowledge all the positive grades and written feedback.

• Ask your child to identify any areas of weakness. Allow your child to talk openly about what they think

they could do to make improvement.

• Work in cooperation with your child to set up goals for improvement in one or two areas. (Too many

goals may be too overwhelming and therefore not attainable). Seek advice from the teacher if needed.

• Inform the teacher about any goals, so that feedback can be provided, or an incentive program can be put

in place.

Honeygo will be hosting a Parent Information Session (adults only) titled, “Keeping Your Children Safe as They

Navigate the Internet and Social Media”, led by Retired Officer Paul Ciepiela, on Thursday, November 15th at

7:00pm.

Students are working hard every day to be the very best learners that they can be!

Charlene Behnke

Principal

Honeygo Elementary School November, 2018

Awards and Recognitions at Honeygo Elementary School

At Honeygo Elementary our students will be

recognized with a variety of weekly and monthly

awards. These include: Honeygo High Five,

Virtue Shout Outs, Positive Office Referrals,

Student Voted Citizenship Award (one per

class per quarter).

Students in grades four and five will work toward earning

the following recognition at the end of their fifth-grade

year.

• President’s Award for Educational Excellence

(Gold)

The purpose of this award is to recognize

academic success in the classroom. To be

eligible for this award, students must have, all

A’s, or all A’s and not more than one B, each

quarter in Grades 4 and 5. President’s

Award for Educational Achievement

Guidelines say: The purpose of this award is to

recognize students that show outstanding educational

growth, improvement, commitment or intellectual

development in their academic subjects but do not

meet the criteria for the President's Award for

Educational Excellence. This award should not be

compared to the President's Award for Educational

Excellence or be seen as a second-tier award, for it

recognizes a very different type of academic

achievement. It is meant to encourage and reward

students who work hard and give their best effort in

school, often in the face of special obstacles to their

learning.

At Honeygo Elementary, the purpose of this award is to

recognize students who show outstanding educational growth,

improvement, commitment or intellectual development in their

academic subjects. These students have worked hard and

consistently gave their best effort. This award will be

identified by the staff using the following as considerations.

The official guidelines also include some examples of how a

student could earn the Achievement award including:

• Show tremendous growth but not meet the criteria for

Educational Excellence

• Demonstrate unusual commitment to learning in

academics despite various obstacles

• Maintain a school record that would have met the

school’s criteria for excellence but illness, personal

crisis, or special needs prevented the students from

maintaining such high standards despite hard work.

• Achieve high scores or show outstanding growth,

improvement, commitment, or intellectual

development in particular subjects such as English,

math , science, SS.

• Demonstrate achievement in the arts such as music

theater.

Attendance Certificate for students in Grades 1-5 –

Congratulations quarterly for students who have between 98-

100% attendance as identified on their BCPS Report Card.

Fifth Grade Farewell Assembly will include Recognitions

including both President’s Awards and Perfect Attendance

K-5 as well as participation in school clubs and other

special recognitions identified by the Fifth Grade Farewell

Committee.

Just a Note...

Kindergarten: Kindergarten has been learning about musical

opposites, (loud and soft), and are practicing moving to a

steady beat. Save the date for the Kindergarten performance on

Friday, November 16 during Grandparents' Day of American

Education Week.

1st grade: 1st graders have been learning about the difference

between beat and rhythm and walking and skipping songs.

Save the date for the 1st grade winter concert on Tuesday,

December 4.

2nd grade: 2nd graders have been reviewing known rhythms

and are preparing for walking and skipping rhythms.

3rd grade: 3rd graders have started learning the recorder and

are beginning to read notes in treble clef.

4th grade: Exploratory students are playing the clarinet during

their woodwind unit and are learning about harmony.

5th grade: Band and orchestra lessons are up and running, and

the students are practicing syncopated rhythms.

Be on the lookout for more information regarding the 3rd-5th

grade musical in the next few weeks!

Happy music making!

-Mrs. Gorecki and Mrs. Ritchey

Honeygo Elementary School November, 2018

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

Honeygo students are doing a great job in their physical

education classes during the fall. Kindergarteners, first graders

and second graders have been improving their ball awareness,

rolling, and throwing and catching skills. Third graders, fourth

graders and fifth graders have been improving their throwing

and catching skills while working on testing their fitness levels

using Fitnessgram. We have also opened our doors early on

Tuesdays and Wednesdays for our Intramural program, which

is an extension of our Physical Education program.

During the month of November, Honeygo

Lanes will be officially open for bowling

activities and games. We will also begin

to use manipulatives such as Speed Stacks

towards the end of the month.

We are continuing to have a lot of awesome learning

experiences and new memories each week. Please remember to

encourage your student to be physically active for at least 60

minutes every day and to make sure your student is getting

plenty of water.

Steve Ey (sey@bcps.org) and Zach Keesecker

(zkeesecker@bcps.org)

Follow on Twitter @HoneygoPhysEd

NEWS FROM HONEYGO LIBRARY

The library is in need of volunteers! If you are interested in

volunteering to help your

child’s class with book check

in and check out, please email

me (bcosgrove@bcps.org)

your name and email address.

I will be sending out a sign-up

genius to those interested

parents. Thank you for all you

do for our Honeygo

Community!

Volunteer Applications

If you haven’t completed the BCPS volunteer application and

training, please don’t wait until later in the year if you plan to

volunteer. It takes several days to review the applications, so

they cannot be turned in the day you would like to volunteer.

Volunteers must complete a new application each year for each

school they would like to support. Send your completed

application and training certificate to Mrs. Carver. After it is

reviewed, your name will be added to our Approved Volunteer

list. Feel free to contact Mrs. Carver if you have questions

about the application or training at wcarver@bcps.org or 443-

809-8606.

Magnet Applications due November 16th!

If you are the parent of a 5th grader, the magnet application due

date is almost here. Middle school magnet applications are

available on the BCPS Magnet Programs’ Web site:

www.tinyurl.com/BCPSmagnet. Applications can be submitted

online, or they can be downloaded from the web site and

mailed to BCPS Magnet Programs by the deadline date. Paper

applications that are postmarked after the November 16, 2018,

deadline will not be considered. It is recommended that you

send paper applications by certified mail. Applying online is

the easiest way to apply and you are given verification that

your application has been received right away. Online

applications must be submitted by 1:00 PM on Friday,

November 16, 2018.

REMEMBER:

• Applicants may apply to ANY three programs on

the application. This includes selecting up to three

magnet programs at one location.

• Applicants to middle school magnet programs do

NOT submit report cards or take assessments. They

will be selected by random lottery.

Please contact Mrs. Carver if you have any questions or need

assistance in obtaining a magnet application.

Counselor Connection

Fall has finally arrived, and we are heading into November!

October has been a month of special events when we held our

first pep rally, chose our school mascot, and participated in the

Honeygo ES ribbon cutting. October is also National Bullying

Prevention Month and the week of October 22 – 26 was BCPS

Bully Prevention Week. At Honeygo we dressed in the daily

colors and learned about Civility, Equity, Unity, Respect, and

Positivity. My monthly counseling lessons for October also

focused on defining bullying and teasing and learning what to

do if you or others are being bullied. I hope you received the

lesson letter that was sent home with your child after their

class’ lesson. All the classes also learned the acronym

“F.E.V.E.R.”, which is a strategy I use to refocus the class’

attention after discussions. The letters stand for; Face the

speaker, Eyes on the speaker, Voices on mute, Enthusiasm,

and Respect. See how many of the letters your child

remembers! I will continue seeing each class every month and

following the BCPS Counselor Core Curriculum. November’s

lessons will focus on conflict resolution. Students will learn

about strategies to use in a conflict, ways their words and

actions impact their relationships with others, viewing conflicts

from alternative points of view, and tattling versus reporting.

Look for a parent letter that I send home with each lesson and

ask them about what they have learned.

Honeygo Elementary School November, 2018

Mindful Moment

This month’s mindful moment is an activity that can teach

your child about how strong emotions, such as anger or

anxiety, can take hold, and how to find peace when these

strong emotions happen. It is called, “The Mindful Jar.”

• First, get a clear jar (a clear plastic bottle or container

is recommended) with a lid and fill it almost all the

way with water.

• Next, add a big spoonful of glitter glue or glue and dry

glitter to the jar. Put the lid back on the jar tightly and

shake it to make the glitter swirl.

• Finally, use the following script or change it using

your own words to form your own mini-lesson:

“Imagine that the glitter is like your thoughts when you’re

stressed, mad or upset. See how they whirl around and make it

really hard to see clearly? That’s why it’s so easy to make silly

decisions when you’re upset – because you’re not thinking

clearly. Don’t worry this is normal and it happens. Now watch

what happens when you’re still for a couple of moments. Keep

watching. See how the glitter starts to settle and the water

clears? Your mind works the same way. When you’re calm for

a little while, your thoughts start to settle and you start to see

things much clearer” (Karen Young, 2017).

This exercise not only helps children learn about how their

emotions can cloud their thoughts, it also facilitates the

practice of mindfulness while focusing on the swirling glitter

in the jar.

Idea taken from:

https://positivepsychologyprogram.com/mindfulness-for-

children-kids-activities/

Most classrooms have glitter bottles like this for students to

use if they need to calm down during the school day.

Honeygo Gives Back

Fourth graders have been

invited to participate in a

community service club at

Honeygo called, “Honeygo

Gives Back.” Participating

students will meet twice a

month on Friday mornings and

will plan projects to give back

to the community. This might

include: food drives, ways to

support local charities, and helping local community groups.

The students will plan, organize, advertise, and participate in

the projects they select. Team members will also use their

leadership, communication, and problem-solving skills to

ensure the group’s success. Spaces were limited for the start of

this club, but more students may be added later in the year.

The students will need your support to complete their projects,

so be on the look-out for flyers and information in future

newsletters for ways you can help Honeygo to Give Back!

SAFETY FIRST

Please use the school

crosswalk when

escorting your child

across the parking lot

and returning to your

car.

READING AND LANGUAGE ARTS NEWS

Mrs. Holland and Mrs. Wise, Reading Specialists

We’re in full swing here at Honeygo, and it has been

wonderful to see so many students demonstrating a love of

READING! With so many brand-new books, it’s easy to see

why students want to “Fall” into a good book!

Did your child reach his/her October Pizza Hut Book It! goal?

Please try to take time to read and then discuss reading

materials with your child for at least 15-20 minutes each

evening. We have started

having “Book Talk

Tuesdays” on the morning

announcements. Teachers

have been sharing some of

their favorite books. Do you

know what books are your

child’s favorite? Reading and

having conversations with

your child about reading are

sure ways to not only improve your child’s reading skills, but

even more importantly to spend time together!

Honeygo Elementary School November, 2018