Volume 41 Spring Issue ‘22-’23 The Furman Forum Ladaisha Ballard Kimberly Davis Rosalind Lockwood Wanda Best Principal Assistant Principal Executive Director Board President Happy Spring, Spring Showers Bring May Flowers! We had a blast,enjoyi ng our spring festivities! Mr. Bunny Spring Pictures ‘22-’23 Spring has sprung! Here’s to lots of sunny days to come!
★ Vision & Mission Statement………….Page 3 FLT’s Mission & Vision Statement Important Dates Parent Information ★ Core Values…………………………….......Pages 4-6 Principal’s Word FLT’s Core Value of the Month A Message from the Social Worker ★ Content Update & Tips………………...Pages 7-12 Intervention, Health & Wellness Attendance Updates & Tips Special Recognitions ★ Community School News………….….Pages 13 Meet the Promise Heights Team & School Partners ★FLTPA News & Events………………….Page 14-15 Stay Connected with Us - Social Media links Parent Voice Schedule Parent Chat ’N Chew Schedule ★Resource Guide..…………………….…..Pages 16-34 Community Resources, Upcoming Events, & More Look What’s New In This Month’s Issue! Furman L. Templeton Preparatory Academy 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21217 furmantempletonprepacademy.com Like Us On Facebook: Furman L. Templeton Preparatory Academy Follow Us on Instagram @FLTempleton Follow Us On Twitter @FLTprepacademy 2 Spring Issue
3 Our Mission To accelerate the opportunities and outcomes for our children by demanding nothing but excellence from the students, staff, and the community. Our Vision Accelerating the academic achievement of all students, in partnership with the entire community, to ensure that students have the attitudes, skills, and proficiencies needed to succeed in college and in the 21st century global workforce. ● March 8, 2023- Early Release Day for Students ● March 24-30 - Report Card Distribution Window ● April 3-10 - Spring Break: School Closed ● April 10-17 - Intersession Break School Closed ● April 17 - Professional Development (PD) / No school for students ● May 12-16 - Progress Report Card - Distribution Window ● May 17- Early Release Day for Students ● May 26- Intersession Day / School Closed ● May 29 - Memorial Day / School Closed ● June 7 - Early Release Day for Students ● June 13 - Last day of school Important Dates The complete 22-23 SY Calendar with important dates may be found towards the end of this newsletter Join the Furman Parent Town Hall Meetings Once a month Mondays at 6pm Check class dojo for the link and the date for the next meeting For more parent information, check out the resource guide at the end of the newsletter. Parent Chat ’N Chew Once a month @ 8a Mondays in the PAC Check class dojo for the next date Parent Information Furman L. Templeton Preparatory Academy
4 Dear Parents and Guardians, As you all know, the State of Maryland requires assessments to measure student academic performance. This year your scholar will complete two assessments that are a part of the Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program (MCAP). These assessments measure student mastery of Common Core State Standards at their grade level in reading and mathematics. It provides schools including ours with a snapshot of how effective instruction is being delivered throughout the building even in non-tested grades. The idea is that if every student leaves his or her grade with the skills they need, students will consistently meet grade level expectations from year to year. A Message From Principal Ballard Students will consistently meet grade level expectations from year to year. Students will be assessed in Spring of this year. The MCAP testing window will begin on April 24, 2023 and end on May 26, 2023. To prepare for this assessment, teachers have provided daily instruction on grade level standards. Teachers have also familiarized students with the test expectations by giving them access to the practice tests, the tools, and overall experience. To support students at home, parents/guardians can continue to visit http://support.mdassessments.com. This site provides practice tests for grades 3, 4, and 5. A paper copy of the grade level practice assessment was also sent home in March for you to become familiar with the academic performance expectations at the third grade level. Take the time to review the test with your student and discuss the importance of scholarly attitudes, effort, and perseverance. We are quickly approaching the part in the school year where the work of the previous months tend to catch up with us. It is down to the last quarter where at times motivation can be hard to find, but it is ever so important to make a plan filled with the intention of finishing strong. Here are some quick tips to maximize your scholar’s learning for the remaining weeks of this school year. ● Make a Gear Check! New materials go a long way and give a dash of motivation and inspiration. ● Lead by Example! Be mindful of your language and behavior around learning and activities; spread positivity, commitment, and faith. ● Stick to your Routines! Maintain the structure of your programming until the very last day to avoid changes that may take away practice and add frustration. ● Revisit and Reset Goals! Remember what we set out to do and maximize on the time left in the school year to meet individual learning goals and beyond. If you have any questions regarding your student’s performance, please contact your student’s classroom teacher or the main office. We know that we cannot do this work without you and deeply appreciate your continued support and partnership. Educationally yours, Ladaisha Ballard, Principal
5 Core Value of the Month Ms. Kimberly Davis CORE VALUE OF THE MONTH This month’s core value is courage. Courage is the mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty. Synonyms: bravery, fearlessness, nerve, heroism Antonyms: cold feet, mousiness, softness, weakness Courage is an attribute everyone desires. We share stories and fairy tales about bravery from The Wizard of Oz to Star Wars and Harry Potter – we are raised on the theme of courage and being brave but do we really understand what it means to have courage and how do we attain it? The definition of courage states the meaning as having the strength to withstand fear. Notice, the definition does not suggest we must not fear or that having courage means we will not be afraid. It means we face our fears, learn to manage them, and push through to accomplish the tasks at hand. Clinical psychologist, Melanie Greenberg, suggests there are several standing attributes of courage. Take a moment and reflect upon the attributes and how they relate to your everyday life and experiences and ponder upon the quote attached to the characteristic. 1. Feeling Fear Yet Choosing to Act "I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear." —Nelson Mandela 2. Following Your Heart "And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” —Steve Jobs, Stanford commencement speech, June 2005 3. Persevering in the Face of Adversity "Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says, 'I'll try again tomorrow.'" —Mary Anne 4. Standing Up For What Is Right "Speak your mind, even if your voice shakes." —Maggie Kuhn, social activist 5. Expanding Your Horizons; Letting Go of the Familiar "Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore." —Lord Chesterfield How will you show courage today?
6 A Message From the Social Worker Kristine Zwerlein-Rose School Social Worker Hello Furman Families, The school wellness team is here to offer children and families support in a variety of ways. The team members include; Kristine Zwerlein-Rose, LCSW-C (Team Lead), Linda Callahan, LMSW (Early Childhood Mental Health Consultant), Ms. Latoria Jones (Community Schools Coordinator/ Attendance and Family Supports), Mr. Damian Jones (School Wholeness Specialist), Trisha Arkoi-Decatus (School Psychologist, Phillip Bartoloni, LMSW (Villa Maria/ Expanded School Mental Health Services)- If you feel your child or your family is in need of additional supports please reach out to Mrs. Rose for the appropriate referral. This team supports the running of the school store, the monthly PBIS celebrations, homeless family supports as well as individual and family counseling services. Welcome from the Wellness Team March is Social Work Month Last week was school social work week, and did you know that we have several social workers on staff at FLTPA? Kristine Zwerlein-Rose, LCSW-C (School Social Worker), Latoria Jones, LMSW (Community School Coordinator), Linda Callahan, LMSW (Early Childhood Consultant), Phillip Bartoloni, LMSW (Villa Maria Expanded School Mental Health) and each of us serves in a different capacity in the school building but we are all here to support children, families, and overall school climate and school attendance initiatives. By now you are aware that we are pushing numerous attendance incentives throughout the month of March and we are hoping to increase our overall school attendance and decrease our chronic absence rate with the March Madness incentive. Please send your children to school every day, unless they have a fever or are vomiting. School attendance is imperative for academic success and we need your students here. Finally, support the school choir club by purchasing concessions at the Thursday afternoon basketball game concessions. We are traveling with 60 students and parents to Niagara Falls, Canada in June for a choir performance and sightseeing trip for 4 days.
7 Illuminating Intervention The intervention team continues to provide high quality lessons for all of our intervention students. Most students have been attending regularly and positively engaging in the sessions. This month, the interventionists are completing informal assessments to identify student growth in the areas of Dolch Words (1st - 2nd) and fluency/comprehension (3rd - 5th). The students have been making excellent growth and we cannot wait to see their scores on this month’s assessments! This month the GAL students and additional high achieving students in grades 2 through 3 will begin participating in a virtual book club, lead by Ms. Levy from Fable and Lark Storied Adventures. This program is sponsored by the school and is an additional opportunity for students to learn how to respond to reading by discussing and in writing. The 4th and 5th grade GAL students and additional high achieving students are still participating in the writing club with Writers in Baltimore Schools. The purpose of both of these programs is to support our students in their writing development. As a reminder, in order to officially qualify for the GAL program, students must score at least in the 73rd percentile on the NNAT3 assessment. Students that score above the 73rd percentile and either do not have reading and math standardized scores or the reading and math standardized scores are not above the 80th percentile are identified as Talent Development. Students that are in the 80-89th percentile on the NNAT3 and have reading and math standardized scores in the 80-89th percentile are identified as Advanced. Students that are in the 90th+ percentile on the NNAT3 and the reading and math standardized scores are identified as gifted. Grade levels that do not have as many officially identified students have additional high achieving students added to the GAL group. More information about the GAL program, the GAL data, and the demographics are available on the school website. Mrs. Benton has tons of great resources to help children with reading and math. If you need materials to help your child at home, please email her at [email protected]! Intervention & GAL Programs
8 Wellness Watch The first week of March is National Sleep Awareness week. For the last 10 years, most pediatricians recommend that children 3-5 years old need 11-13 hours of sleep, 5-10 year olds need 10-11 hours of sleep, and children 10-17 years old need 8.5 - 9.5 hours of sleep. That means, that kindergarten students that wake up at 6:30 AM to get ready for school should be in bed between 6:30 and 8:30 PM! While sleep time needed by adults vary from person to person, most people need between 7 and 8 hours of sleep per night. When putting children to bed, it is important to establish a routine. Doing so can make bedtime an easy and comforting process rather than a battle. Part the routine should include hygiene activities like brushing their teeth, washing their face, or taking a bath. After putting on their pajamas, have your child get into bed and read a book, tell a story, or have some other type of quality time. It is important to follow the same routine every night. As such, it is not a good idea to start a routine that would not be practical most nights. TVs and other blue light devices (tablets and phones) can inhibit a child’s ability to fall asleep because they suppress the production of melatonin (a hormone made by the body that plays a role in sleep). So, turn off those devices an hour or more before bedtime, and instead, enjoy a good book together!
9 Attendance Updates Attendance at FLT Here at Furman L. Templeton, we are always striving for strong and successful attendance from our young scholars. Each month our scholars who have perfect attendance receives a small prize and a certificate to celebrate their attendance accomplishments. Parents and guardians of students who have perfect attendance will also receive their own certificate for their contributions for getting their child to school each day. We celebrate our parents by placing their names in a monthly raffle for one lucky parent to win a gift! Each week we have a daily attendance raffle where classrooms each day with 90% or more will have one ticket and if the classroom has perfect attendance then two tickets will be added. The classrooms would be entered into a weekly raffle and receive incentives the following week. We have also began 95% or more fridays in which classrooms with 95% or more on friday will receive a pizza party same day. And we have perfect attendance 5x , which is were classrooms who have perfect attendance 5 times in the previous month will receive a pizza party. And last but not least, for the month of March our young scholars have been participating in Attendance March Madness. Each round of March Madness classrooms go head to head with the classroom they share a bracket with for who had best attendance during the week. At the end of the week the classroom who had best attendance moves to the next round and receive the March Madness incentive for that week. We want every single one of our students to be successful and have good attendance. If you are having problems with getting your child to school, we are more than willing to work with you. Latoria Mackey, Community School Director 443.813.1522 [email protected] Dayauna Thompson, Attendance Monitor 443.930.1166 [email protected]
10 Attendance Updates Overall School Wide Attendance Percentages Grade Attendance Q2 10/27/22-1/18/23 FLT Avg. 83.74% Pre-K 81.93% K 83.10% 1 82.91% 2 84.24% 3 85.16% 4 83.24% 5 84.78% Grade Attendance Q1 8/8/22- 10/26/22 FLT Avg. 87.64% Pre-K 87.81% K 87.49% 1 87.73% 2 88.68% 3 87.17% 4 86.05% 5 88.45% Grade Attendance Q3 1/19/23- 3/23/23 FLT Avg. 86.98% Pre-K 85.83% K 86.56% 1 86.64% 2 85.04% 3 88.55% 4 88.25% 5 87.87% 94% Goal
11 Attendance Updates Check out these Attendance Incentives in Action Weekly Raffle Winners Ms. Williams Ms. Oliver Ms. Castillo Ms. Johnson Ms. E. Brown Ms. Crosby Mr. Vietmeier 95% Friday Winners Ms. Brock Ms. Oliver Ms. Castillo Ms. Johnson Ms. E. Brown Ms. Crosby Ms. Vinson Ms. Hill 5x Perfect Attendance Winners Ms. Oliver Ms. Castillo Ms. Johnson Ms. E. Brown Ms. Crosby March Madness Attendance Champions - Ms. Oliver
12 Special Recognitions Staff of the Month Nominees SY 22-23 Coach Smith Melvin Estep Sonia Hall Alisha Shelton Denise Ruffin Edith Johnson Laura Penhallegon Joan Spencer Brandon Bennett Student of the Month Nominees SY 22-23 September Britni Coe Skylar Willis Michael Able Khalea Prince Kanai Freeman Savannah Davis Jennifer Jackson-Morris Erwin Scofield November Aaron Prince Logan Rogers Jah'Ahri Dorsey Braelyn Hutcherson October Zoey Hayes Ryan Berry Nasir Jones Zion Williams December Layla Harris Skylar Willis Mason Turnage Jameria Lewis January Jalayah Fields Sijae Bailey Dont'e Stuckey Dynver Johnson Kaylee Williamson February Zoey Hayes Michael Abel Tyrain Whitehead Khloe Colbert RaNaiya Smoot Nikita Rollins Danni McLean Keith Vietmeier Melinda Clark Erica Hall Earlene Brown Josephine Turner Ricardo Doroja Michelle Matthews Grace Shipman Tracey Wells-Jones Brandon Walker Breyana Crowder Jerod Thompson March Deonte Wilson Neriah Williams Damira Davis Ginaesia Shorts Layla Evans Elijah Salaam (S. Hall) James Gant-Hunter
13 Community School News ● Child First ● B’More for Healthy Babies ● YMCA ● Little Flowers ● FEV Tutor ● Movement Team For more information Contact: Latoria Mackey, LMSW Community School Director ● Promise Heights ● Breath Mobile ● Sharp Street Memorial Church ● Stanley Snacks ● MD Food Bank ● Chicago Parent ● Catapult Learning Partnerships at FLT The Promise Heights Team at FLT Latoria Mackey, Community School Director 443.813.1522 [email protected] Dominique Butler, Assistant Community School Director 443.930.1119 dominique.butler@ ssw.umaryland.edu Linda Callahan, Early Childhood Mental Health Consultant 401.207.3664 [email protected] Nikea Taylor, Early Childhood Assistant 443.930.0170 [email protected] We nominate Sharp Street Memorial for this month’s partnership highlights. We would like to thank them for being a dependable partner. We are grateful for the services that you provide to our students and the community! Partnership Highlight Dayuana Thompson, Attendance Monitor 443.930.1166 [email protected] Charlotte Chason, SSW Intern [email protected] Maura Hogan, SSW Early Childhood Intern [email protected] Parent Leaders: Rebecca Robinson & Brittany Turner
14 Stay Connected with Us! Keep up to date with school events and communications on: ClassDojo: Furman L. Templeton Elementary School Facebook: Furman L. Templeton Preparatory Academy Twitter: @FLTprepacademy Instagram: @FLTempleton Stay Connected. Stay Informed. Stay Engaged ● Subscribe to the school website for email communications ● Follow us on all of our social media platforms ● Stay updated on COVID-19 and school updates ● Attend Parent Town Hall, PTO, and Parent Chat N’ Chew workshops!
15 UPCOMING FLTPA EVENTS Events Date Event Title March 27th Scavenger Hunt March 30th Day of the Boy March 31st International Day April 27th Mommy &Me May 15th Mother’s day Brunch Parent Chat ‘N Chew Schedule SY 22/23 Date Parent Chat N’ Chew September 16th October 24th November 21st December 12th January 9th February 21st March 13th April 24th May 1st June None
16 Resource Guide LET’S GET INVOLVED! ★ Parent Activities & Resources Chat and Chew Parent Town Hall ‘22-’23 School Year Calendar ★ School Events ★ Health Initiatives Breathmobile ★ Community Events Fatherhood Classes
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19 School Year 22-23 Calendar
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24 Call today to register for the STRIVE class offered in the new year!
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