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June 5, 2008
Montgomermy County Public Schools are closed today. Therefore KTS will also be closed.
Dear Parents,
The high school and middle school spring concert is tomorrow at 1:00 PM. Hope to see you there.
Chrisy
May 5, 2008
Dear Parents,
Isn’t it wonderful that Spring is finally here! It is also that time of the year when nationally we honor our teachers and staff for their dedication, hard work and commitment to our students. This week, May 5-9th is National Teacher Appreciation Week and we plan to give our staff a daily token of our appreciation. We would like our students to be involved in this process as well and we are asking for your support and help to make this happen. There is nothing more meaningful to a teacher/teacher assistant than praise or warm wishes from their students.
A schedule of events is listed below:
Tuesday– Staff Appreciation Breakfast – provided by Parents Association
Wednesday – Shower your Teacher/Teacher Assistant with a specially written and decorated card or note from home
Thursday -Flower Day – Each student to bring one flower for their teacher and teacher assistant(s) in the room. These can be picked from your garden!!
Friday – Supply your Teacher/Teacher Assistant with a few extra supplies that she always needs, i.e. a pack of pencils, a sticky note pad, etc.
Please help us make this the best Teacher Appreciation Week ever. Thank you very much for all you do.
Sincerely,
Christina Bernabe
April 16, 2008
Congratulations to our Montgomery County funded students that took the Maryland State Assessments last week. The Katherine Thomas School had an unannounced site visit from the Local Accountability Coordinator from the Maryland State Department of Education. She was checking to make sure KTS staff was following all guidelines and regulations for testing. Our staff was outstanding and we passed this site visit with flying colors. The coordinator had never been to KTS and was impressed with all the accommodations that we provide to the students to make them so successful. This truly was a team effort!
Chrisy Bernabe
TLC’s Katherine Thomas School Launches “Celebration of Nations”
Students Embrace Cultural Diversity From Around the World in Multi-Faceted Program
Rockville, MD— On Friday, March 7 TLC—The Treatment and Learning Centers’ Katherine Thomas School (KTS) launched its first “Celebration of Nations,” a multi-faceted event showcasing the cultural diversity of over 20 countries and regions around the world. KTS is an independent day school for students in preschool through twelfth grade with moderate to severe language and learning disabilities and high-functioning autism.
Conceived by social studies teacher Laura Wilson, the hugely successful program was designed to celebrate and explore diversity on all levels—at the school, in the community, across the country and around the world. Wilson was inspired in part by the sheer diversity of KTS families, who, along with other classes, were encouraged to be actively involved. Cross curricular integration with arts, crafts, music and dance was key, helping bring the large and diverse KTS family together as one.
The event began with a “tour of countries” through decorated classrooms that hosted students and families, or “tourists,” complete with stamped passports. Countries and regions represented included France, Italy, Switzerland, the Middle East, Africa, the Caribbean, Mexico, British Isles, England, Ireland, Scotland, China, Thailand, Japan, India, Sweden, Finland, Norway and the Ukraine. Many students wore traditional dress and shared art, games and other activities, maps, videos, slide shows, clothing, books and other information about each area, along with sampling a tasty array of regional delicacies.
The food was a favorite of first grader Terrell Phillips, who “liked eating the tacos,” while third grader Dev Surprenant “loved how we showed our art work about Ukraine and learned two dances!” The experience was perhaps best summed up by eighth grader Stefan Thomas, who said, “l liked visiting different places around the world and noticing the different kinds of food and music. I felt like I was on a plane.”
The tour was followed by a music and dance program conceived by music therapy volunteer Lyle Ness. Students from all grade levels performed and danced folk songs from Mexico, Norway, Russia and Italy. For sixth grader Katy Lundquist, singing the Mexican folk song De Colores “was a lot of fun!” An intricate North Skeleton Sword Dance from England and a lively Virginia Reel demonstration were also featured. Instrumental numbers included the French Au Claire de Lune, played on recorders, and the Cuban Cha Cha. As eighth grader Zachary Range said, “The music was good because there was good rhythm!”
The event was produced by KTS Fine Arts Committee Laura Wilson, Susan Barnett, Stephanie Botterell, Judy Cromwell, Denise Gambill, Jennifer Moyle, Joan Ritter and Wei Zhang with the support and dedication of KTS staff, students and families.
by TLC Marketing Manager Kristi Fletcher
March 4, 2008
Dear Parents:
We unfortunately have to report that we have a staff member in the TLC Early Learning Center who has a suspected case of the mumps. I am enclosing information that is given to us by Montgomery County Health and Human Services. We have contacted the appropriate authorities, The Montgomery County Department of Health, and are following their recommendations. They have advised us to inform you, the parents, of the possible symptoms. The symptoms, which are detailed on the attached paper, consist of swollen glands in front of and below the ear, headache, and earache.
Most of our children in our program have already been vaccinated through the MMR immunization. If you have any immediate questions or concerns, I ask that you please direct them to me, Ms. Christina Bernabe, Education Director at 301-738-9691 x144. I want to thank you in advance for your understanding in this matter. I will follow up with you as soon as we have more information on this particular case.
Sincerely,
Christina Bernabe
2/26/08
Dear Parents
Our staff and students are preparing for our Celebrations of Nations.
Our middle school Social Studies, Laura Wilson, created the idea of Celebrations of Nations last summer and has been working very hard with the assistance of the KTS Fine Arts Committee, staff, students, and parents to see it come to life. On Friday, March 7th from 1:30-3:30 KTS families will be able to tour the world and experience the sights, sounds, tastes, and feels of many nations. I hope you all will be able to join us in KTS’ first Celebrations of Nations.
Many of our KTS students benefit from the use of assistive technology. Why should this stop at school? Sometimes finances may stop parents from purchasing the same great assistive technology equipment for our student’s home use, so I want to take a moment to tell you about an Assistive Technology Guaranteed Loan Program. This AT loan program was established to assist Maryland residents with disabilities and their families in qualifying for low interest loans to buy equipment to live, work, and learn more independently. Your can check out this program at www.mdtap.org.
2/12/08 The Katherine Thomas School will OPEN ON TIME todayl
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IMPORTANT ALERT!!!! Weather for tomorrow morning, Tuesday February 12, 2008, is forecasting a wintry mix. Montgomery County Public Schools does not have school tomorrow. Therefore The Treatment and Learning Centers will be making there own decision on school opening and delays. Dick Pavlin will be making this decision between 5:30 and 6:00 AM. This decision will be recorded on the KTS phone message, will be posted on the KTS list serve, and will be posted on the Principal Corner.
Dear Parents,
It is good news that the parents continue to be just as excited as I am about getting the Smart Boards in the classroom to support instruction. Dave Boblits and I have been in collaboration to ensure that by the end of the school year all Lower and Middle School classrooms will have a Smart Board. Our plan of implementation is guided by the teachers’ level of participation, pacing of staff development, and technology competencies of the staff. The following is a timeline that we have developed in order to ensure that this goal is achieved:
SMART BOARD IMPLEMENTATION PLAN
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Timeline |
Goal |
Status |
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July 2007 |
Purchase 2 portable Smart Boards |
Completed
Total of 2 Smart Boards |
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August 2007 |
Staff Development of Smart Boards |
Basic overview for teachers-completed; training ongoing
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September 2007 |
Implement use of 2 portable Smart Boards for classroom instruction through IT check out system.
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Completed |
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September, October, November 2007 |
Closely monitor teachers use of Smart Boards to analyze which teachers are using them and what areas are more staff trainings necessary |
Completed |
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December 2007 |
Purchase 3 mounting Smart Boards |
Completed |
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January 2008 |
Mount 3 Smart Boards into 3 middle school classrooms based on the teachers’ usage in the fall of 2007. Mounting of Smart Boards will be staggered throughout the month of January to allow time to problem solve the new mounting system. |
In the process of mounting
Total of 5 Smart Boards available |
|
February 2008 |
Purchase 3 mounting Smart Boards to complete the 2 remaining middle school classrooms and 1 elementary classroom |
Target Goal |
|
March 2008 |
Mount 3 Smart Boards in 2 remaining middle school classrooms and 1 elementary classroom. Purchase 2 mounting Smart Boards |
Target Goal
Total of 8 Smart Boards available |
|
April 2008 |
Mount 2 Smart Boards in elementary classrooms. Purchase 2 mounting Smart Boards |
Target Goal
Total of 10 Smart Boards available |
|
May 2008 |
Mount 2 remaining Smart Boards |
Target Goal
Total of 12 Smart Boards available |
|
June 2008 |
All classrooms utilizing Smart Boards in classroom instruction |
Target Goal
Total of 12 Smart Boards available= KTS goal achieved |
Please let me know if you have any questions about our implementation plan!
Chrisy Bernabe
Dear Parents,
The Katherine Thomas School has just renewed its subscription to the Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Under the terms of the subscription, students and their families can use the Britannica at home as well as school. It can be accessed on the Web as follows:
Address: http://school.eb.com
Username: kts
Password: school
The full text of the Encyclopedia Britannica is available here, together with the middle-school Compton’s by Britannica and the easier-to-read Britannica Elementary.
Among the reference resources available through the E.B. are a world atlas and the Merriam-Webster dictionary. Under Learning Materials you will find interactive reading, writing, science, and other curriculum-based activities. Check it out!
I hope everybody has a safe and happy holiday!!
Happy New Year,
Christina Bernabe
The Katherine Thomas Lower and Middle School
Education Director
Dear Parents,
First quarter ended with a bang. Kindergarten through eighth grade students got to enjoy our first Lower and Middle School Assembly of the school year. The assembly was presented by the The Bureau of Lectures. The name of the assembly was Living Science: You are a Live Demonstration. The presenter was all the way from Buffalo, New York. He showed the students experiments on the following topics: Your Eyes Have It - Illusion versus Reality; Polarized Light; Laws of Balance - Why cats land on their feet; Angular Momentum; Tables in Space; Gyroscopes; Electricity and You - Plasma; Electricity from your hand; Hair Raising Electrostatics; The Air You Breathe - Liquid Dynamics; Air Pressure; Anti-gravity; Sound. The experiments involved student volunteers and had the kids engaged, amazed, and cheering.
Report Cards and IEP annotations were mailed out before Thanksgiving. Please let Gigi Armstrong know if you have not yet received a copy.
Christina Bernabe
The Katherine Thomas Lower and Middle School
Education Director
Dear Parents,
The first quarter academic reviews and reestablishing school routines and procedures are over! All beginning of the year reading assessments have been administered to all students. Intense academic focus and learning are clearly underway.
This first quarter all ten homerooms will enhance their learning with a field trip. The middle students were excited to be the first KTS group to experience in the 2007-2008 field trip adventure. Middle school social studies teacher, Laura Wilson, planned an excellent trip to Smithsonian’s Discovery Theater to see a play called African Roots, Latino Soul. Students experienced a play that explored what it means to be Latino, Black and proud growing up in the heart of the American melting pot. Our students learned a lot about cultural differences and similarities experienced by today’s multicultural youth. Please enjoy some middle school writing samples below written to thank the performers of the Discovery Theater!
Our 4 and 5th graders will be going to Baltimore’s Science Museum, while the K-3rd graders will enjoy picking pumpkins at the farm. The first quarter experiential learning will be wrapped up with our first KTS school wide assembly, Living Science Demonstration.
Middle school writing samples:
Dear Performers,
Thank you for the great production. You did a really great job. It was really funny and educational. I liked that each performer talked about their experience coming over to America. I didn’t know a lot of the stuff you talked about. I also liked the arguments about being different. The dancing, music and drumming was awesome.
Your friend,
Ella
Dear Performers,
Thank you for the enthusiastic Performance. I liked the music. I liked the funny jokes. It was really great. You guys did a great job. The school part was hilarious. Finally, I loved the dances.
Thank you for teaching me that we can be the same and different.
Your Friend,
Zach Range
Dear Mr. Woodaman,
Thank you for showing us around. I think that you really inspired us about Mexicans and their lives a long time ago. I learned so much and I will tell my family how great you are and what you taught me. I hope that when I come back I will learn so much more that I ever had. One thing that I learned was that the Natives worked hard in the fields and had to use different but similar to our tools. The natives use a hoe but the handles were much shorter then ours. They even had to bend down all the time in the very hot sun. A lot of people hurt their backs by bending down every day.
Thank you,
Ella H Burns
Send me an Email
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