Chambers Hill Elementary School
CentralDauphinSchool District
ChambersHillElementary School
Steven Epstein - Principal
From the Principal’s Desk
December 1st, 2011
Dr. Luis Gonzalez – SuperintendentDr. Carol Johnson - Assistant Superintendent
PSSA
As you may know, PSSA testing will take place several times later in the school year. In the past, the district would not approve any Educational Trips for grades 3, 4, or 5 during the entire two-week assessment window regardless of the exact test dates. This year, only requests for Educational Trips that fall on the exact testing dates will not be approved. If there are snow days during the below testing dates, tests will resume the following school days. Dates have been established for the purpose of planning potential Educational Trips during the PSSA assessment windows. If you plan to take any Educational Trips, please work around these dates, which are listed below. Parents must submit any Educational Trip Request forms at least 7 days prior to the trip/activity to allow for possible approval and avoid an unexcused absence. These forms can be obtained in the school office. Remember, no Educational Trip is to exceed 5 days. (Further information can be found on page 32 of the school district calendar.)
PSSA Test Administration Dates for grades 3, 4,& 5 will be announced as soon as possible. The testing windows for Writing, Reading/Math, and Science are all within the months of March and April.
- Grades 3, 4, and 5 - Reading/Math window is slated for the window of March12-20
- Grade 5 - Writing window is slated for the window of April 16-20
- Grade 4 - Science window is slated for the window of April 23-27
Students in these grade levels will not be granted Educational Trips on the above scheduled days or snow make-up testing days.
December/January Activities
- December 7th – School Store (During lunch)
- December 8th – 2-Hour Delay day
- December 8th – Holiday Secret Shopping night @ 6:00-6:45 and 7:45-8:15
- December 8th – Holiday Concert @ 7:00
- December 23rd– January 2nd– Winter Break – No School
- January 4th – School Store (During Lunch)
- January 9th – PTO Meeting @ 6:30
- January 15th – PTO Swimming Party
- January 16th – Martin Luther King Day – No School
- January 20th – End of 2nd Marking Period
Special Events in History
On Morning announcements, we changed from a foreign language to a special event in history. The following are those events that took place in October throughout history:
On December 1st, 1878 the 1st White House telephone was installed
On December 2nd, 1951 the Philadelphia Eagles set the NFL record for 25 1st downs rushing in one game.
On December 5th 1868 the first American bicycle college opened in New York.
On December 6th, 1849 Harriet Tubman escaped from slavery in Maryland
On December 7th, 1787 Delaware become the first state to accept the US Constitution
On December 8th, 1940 the 1st NFL championship game was broadcast on national radio. The Chicago Bears beat the Washington Redskins 73-0.
On December 9th, 1965 A Charlie Brown Christmas is first shown on television.
On December 12th, 1787 Pennsylvania became the 2nd state to accept the U.S. Constitution
On December 13th, 1843 A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens was published and 6,000 copies sold.
On December 14th, 1819, Alabama was admitted into the Union as the 22nd state
On December 15th, 1854 the 1st street cleaning machine was used in Philadelphia
On December 16th, 1773 the Boston Tea Party took place
On December 19th, 1948 the Philadelphia Eagles shutout Chicago Cards 7-0 in an NFL championship game
On December 20th, 1949 the ballet Beauty and the Beast was first seen on stage
On December 21st, 1620 the Mayflower Pilgrims land at Plymouth Rock in Mass
On December 22nd, 1882 the 1st string of Christmas lights was created by Thomas Edison
Reminders to Parents/Guardians
- If your child is absent from school please be sure to call the school office in the morning and inform us of his/her absence.
- A note should be sent with your child when he/she returns to school explaining his/her absence. You must have the dates of absence on the note and a parent/legal guardian signature is also required.
- If your child arrives tardy to school a parent must come in to the office and sign the student in. If the student was at an appt. please be sure to have a doctor, dental note with you when you sign your child in at the school office.
- If a student has an early dismissal for a doctor, dental appt. be sure to get a note from the doctor’s office so the student can turn it in the following day.
Supporting Academic Progress at Home – Some Helpful Hints
Measure Up!
By: Reading Rockets
Hands-on measurement activities are fun to explore with children. Introduce your young learner to these interesting new vocabulary words and knowledge, and help your child develop an early love of measuring everything in sight!
Hands-on measurement activities are fun to explore with children. Armed with interesting new vocabulary words and knowledge, your young learner will soon be measuring everything in sight!
Measurement all around us
Begin exploring measurement by asking your child to help you collect all the objects around your house that help you measure. This can include rulers, measuring cups, tape measures, thermometers, clocks, laundry soap scoops, and the container you use to measure dog food.
Gather these items and talk about how each is used to help us measure something. Sort the objects into things that measure liquids, things that measure length, and others. Collecting and sorting is a great way for your child to see how often we use measurement in our daily life.
Many ways to measure
In addition to measuring using standard measurement tools such as a ruler, it's important for kids to measure using non-standard measurement tools. For example, you can ask your child to use stuffed animals to measure distance. "How many stuffed animals long is our kitchen table? How many stuffed animals does it take to measure our hallway?" Shaped graham crackers, blocks, and dried pasta make other good non-standard measurement units.
Let's talk about measuring
When measuring, help your young explorer use terms such as taller, shorter, wide, small, large, lighter, heavier, hotter, colder, warm, and variations of the terms such as large, larger, largest, small, smaller and smallest. As you're talking about what you're doing, use measurement vocabulary words such as thermometer, calendar, ruler, meter stick or yard stick, clock, and scale. These words help your child compare items and expand your child's vocabulary.
Keeping track of measurements
As you do with all with all science and math related activities, encourage your young learner to record their estimates and findings in a special notebook or journal. Have your child record the distances measured using various objects, record the weight of objects that are weighed and track how much time chores take using a stopwatch. Simple drawings and labels that order objects from smallest to largest provide a chance to put all the language arts, math, and science skills together.
Recommended children's books
Actual Size
By Steve Jenkins
This colorful, oversized book reveals a wide range of animals, from very small to huge, at actual size. Part of the fun is talking about how the author/illustrator can fit the two-foot tongue of a giant anteater on the pages of the book. This is a beautiful and engaging introduction to the idea of relative size. (Ages 4-8)
Cook-A-Doodle-Do!
By Janet Stevens and Susan Stevens Crummel
A charming picture book about a hen who decides to make strawberry shortcake with her friends...none of whom know anything about cooking. Iguana tries to measure the flour with a ruler! Hen teaches about measuring properly with the right tools and the author includes side notes about dry versus liquid measuring, as well as equivalents such as 1 stick butter = 1 cup = 8 tablespoons. (Ages 4-8)
How Big Is a Foot?
By Rolf Myller
The Queen's apprentice needs to build a new bed for the Queen. But how big is a bed when beds have not been invented yet? The amusing story is a fun introduction to the concept of standard measurement. (Ages 4-8)
Measuring Penny
By Loreen Leedy
A young girl named Lisa has a homework assignment to measure something in as many ways as she can. "Use your imagination!" says the teacher. Lisa chooses her dog Penny and discovers, among other things, that Penny's tail is one biscuit long. This engaging book teaches the difference between standard and non-standard measurement. (Age level: 4-8)
How Tall, How Short, How Far Away?
By David A. Adler
Learn the units of measure (including the metric system) by comparing the lengths to fingers, arms, feet, and other body parts. You'll find lots of examples of how we use measurement in everyday activities as well as hands-on activities, such as asking the reader to see how tall you are using units of measure from ancient Egypt. (Ages 6-9)
Millions to Measure
By David M. Schwartz
An entertaining look at linear, weight, and volume measurements, with Marvelossimo the Mathematical Magician as your guide. The book clearly explains the metric system and why it's used around the world. (Ages 4-8)