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Happy spring everyone! There are a lot of events that take place at OCES during the months of May and June. Field Day, field trips, Circus Day and 4th grade

graduation just to mention a few! In May, there is another important and special event that will take place at OCES. Dr. Karen Salmon, Maryland Superintendent of Schools, will visit us and honor OCES as a state Blue Ribbon School. During this event, Dr. Salmon will highlight some of what makes OCES the greatest school ever! I wanted to share these highlights with all of our community:

Giving Back at OCES:OCES gives back to the community by raising money and collecting goods (food, clothing, pet food) for numerous charities. This year, OCES raised over $37,000. We exceeded our annual Jump Rope For Heart goal of $26,000 by raising $31,300 for the American heart Association.

Stand Up, Speak Up Program: Stand Up, Speak Up is the bullying prevention program developed by OCES faculty, staff and parents. The goal of the pro-gram is to teach students the strategies they need to safely and effective stand up and speak up to bullies.

OC Stars: OC Stars originated in 1999 and is comprised of 3rd and 4th graders who must audition for the cho-rus. Between 120 - 135 students partici-pate year after year. One of their first performances was the opening ceremony of Springfest at the Ocean City Inlet. Since then, OC Stars has been selected as the opening entertainment for Springfest and Winterfest. They per-form for parades, community events, nursing homes and school assemblies. The success of OC Stars comes from hard work and sacrifice, and the support of school administration, teachers, and par-ents. OC Stars has become an integral part of the community. Mr. Rick Chapman has been the leader of the group since its existence.

Health Literacy: OCES 2nd grade was the pilot for a countywide health literacy initiative and partnership with Atlantic General Hospital. Second grade teachers worked with local medical professionals and began the program by writing inter-

disciplinary health lessons. Now, health liter-acy is part of most grade levels and it all began at OCES!

Academic Success:

OCES ranked #1 in Worcester County on the Kindergarten Readiness Assessment (KRA).

OCES had the highest percentage of stu-dents demonstrating Kindergarten Readiness in the state of Maryland!

Ihe average English Language Arts/Literacy PARCC scale score for Ocean City Elementary School’s third graders was 14 points above the county average and 38 points above the state average.

In mathematics, OCES third graders scored 9 points above the county average and 30 points above the state.

The average English Language Arts/Literacy PARCC scale score for Ocean City Elementary’s fourth graders was 15 points above the county average and 32 points above the state average.

In mathematics, OCES fourth graders scored 16 points above the county average and 29 points above the state. We have a wonderful school! We are so blessed to have students, staff, parents and community who work together to take care of our kids. It has been a privilege, an honor and a blessing to serve as the principal of Ocean City Elementary School. The memo-ries will remain with me forever. Thank you!

The OCES Motto I have a Curious Mind, A Caring Heart, and the

Courage to Never give up!

OCES Newsflyer Principal’s Message

May/June 2019

Mrs. Dawn Rogers, Principal

Mrs. Julie Smith, Asst. Principal

Mrs. Linda McGean, Counselor

OCES Phone: 410-632-5370

On behalf of Mr. Taylor and Mrs. Rogers, we would like to welcome and congratulate Mrs. Julie Smith as the new principal of Ocean City Elementary School! Mrs. Smith is currently the assistant principal under the leadership of Mrs. Rogers. We are excited to have Mrs. Smith continue to lead the school into excellence. Mrs. Smith began her career at Stephen Decatur High School, where she taught

English for 6 years. In 2010, she was named an assistant principal at Berlin Intermedi-ate School, where she worked for 3 years. Mrs. Smith has worked at OCES for the past 5 years and as of July 1st, she will continue her career as principal. "OCES has become a home for me, so I am thrilled that I now get to be the principal of the building. I am even more honored that I get to follow in Mrs. Rogers' footsteps - she has been a dear friend for so long, so this is a privilege for me. I look forward to the continued work with the faculty and staff, for they have been an integral part of my leadership. The partnerships with the community and families have been a bond that makes OCES the most amazing school. And, of course the ability to get to continue to build and foster relationships with the students is so near and dear to my heart. I thank Mr. Taylor for this amazing oppor-tunity. I'm beyond excited!"

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5/1-5/6 MCAP 3rd Grade 5/2 Yard Walk Pre-K AM @ 9:30-10:30 am

K @1:30-2:30 pm 5/2 OC Stars @ Springfest @ 10:15 am 5/2 Yard Walk Pre-K AM @ 9:30-10:30 am

Pre-K PM @ 1:30-2:30 pm 5/6 Blue Ribbon Celebration @ 2pm 5/6 -10 Teacher Appreciation Week 5/6 Blue Ribbon Celebration Pep Rally Gr.

Pre-K-2 @ 9 am , Gr. 3-4 @ 2 pm 5/7 Pre-K Dental Screenings 5/7 1st Grade Yard Walk @ 1:30-2:30 pm 5/8 4th Grade Boardwalk Fitness Walk 5/8-10 PTA Mother’s Day Plant Sale 5/9 1st Grade Field Trip to Coast Guard &

Life Saving Museum 5/9 MCAP Celebration 3rd grade @ 9-11am

4th grade @ 1-3 pm 5/10 Teacher Appreciation Week

Luncheon 5/10 4th Grade Career Day 5/10 Midterms sent home 5/13 3rd Grade Boardwalk Fitness Walk 5/14 Pre-K PM Yard Walk @ 1:30-2:30 pm 5/14 1st Grade Field Trip to Assateague @ 9-2 pm 5/15 Pre-K Orientation @ 4:00 pm 5/15 2nd Grade Boardwalk Fitness Walk 5/16 4th Grade Field Trip to Philadelphia

Zoo @ 6:00 am-6:30 pm 5/17 MD State Superintendent Visits for

Blue Ribbon Program @ 9:30 am 5/19 PTA Golf Tournament Kick-off @

Ropewalk @ 3-6 pm 5/20 4th Grade Bike Safety Lesson @ 10-

11 am 5/20 3rd Grade Field Trip to Furnace Town

Wrench & Spicer @ 9:00-2:15 pm 5/21 3rd Grade Field Trip to Furnace Town

5/22 Kindergarten 100 Book Parade @ 9:10 am

5/23 3rd Grade Field Trip to Furnace Town Eitel & Dzimiera @ 9:00-2:15 pm

5/23 AM Pre-K Field Trip to Marshal Creek @ 8:45-11:15 am

5/23 4th Grade Bike Rodeo @ 12:00–3:00 pm

5/24 Team Spirit Day 5/24 - Early Dismissal: Walkers/Car

Riders @ 12:30pm, Bus Riders @ 1 pm 5/27 School Closed—Memorial Day 5/28 PTA Golf Tournament at Ocean

City Golf & Yacht Club 5/29 Greatest Reader on Earth Circus

2nd grade @ 9-11:30 am 1st grade @ 12:30-3 pm

5/30 Student of the Month Luncheon @ 11 am

5/30 Pre-K PM Marshall Farm field trip @ 12:45 –3:00 pm

5/31 Field Day 6/4 3rd Grade Trip to Freeman Stage-

Charlotte’s Web @ 9:00-11:30 am 6/6 2nd Grade Trip to Freeman Stage-

Charlotte’s Web @ 9:00-11:30 am 6/6 Kindergarten Assateague program

@ 9:00-3:30 pm 6/6 4th Grade Graduation and

Celebration 6/10 Fitness Fun Day-Grades PreK-3,

PK, PreK-4, 3rd & 4th 6/11 Fitness Fun Day-Grades K, 1st,2nd 6/11 Early Dismissal: Walkers/Car

Riders @ 12:30 pm, Bus Riders @ 1pm 6/12 Last Day of School Early

Dismissal: Walkers/Car Riders @ 12:30 pm, Bus Riders @ 1pm

6/12 Report Cards Sent Home

Dates to Remember

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We wish the very best for Mrs. Rogers, Mr. Chapman and Mrs. Dykes as they retire this year. Their combined 87 years in education have given us leadership, an appreciation for the arts, laughter, kindness, inspiration and lots of memories! May your retirement years be every-thing you dreamed.

PTA News and Information

The Teacher Appreciation luncheon is on Friday, May 10th. Please contact Kelly Meehan at kelliemeehan@hotmail.com if you are able to donate an item.

Our annual Mother’s Day Plant Sale will take place May 8th - 10th. We are still looking for volunteers to help with the sale. If you can help, please contact Kelly Meehan at kel-

liemeehan@hotmail.com.

Come to Ropewalk in Ocean City on May 19th from 3-6 pm for our PTA Golf Tournament kick-off event. It is always a fun time and a great opportunity to socialize with other OCES

families and staff.

The 8th Annual PTA Golf Tournament will be held on May 28th at 1 pm. If you would like to participate, sponsor a hole or donate an item, please complete the sign-up and donation

form on the last page of this Newsflyer.

Election of the PTA officers will be held on June 6th immediately following the 4th grade graduation ceremony. Please attend to cast your vote!

Thank you to all of our wonderful families, staff and students for making this another great year! We truly appreciate all your time, effort and donations in support of our stu-dents, staff and school!

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Library Books All library books are due in the Media Center no later than May

31st. Note that your child will not receive a report card on the

last day of school if all books are not returned or fees are

not paid. Thank you for return-ing your library books on time!

Wednesday, June 12th is the last day of school. Walkers/Car Riders will be dismissed at 12:30pm and Bus Riders at 1pm.

AR Challenge Due Date You must submit your AR Read-

ing Challenge papers to Ms. Wright NO LATER than Friday, May 24th or you will not re-ceive credit for completing the AR Challenge. Please see Ms.

Wright if you need another AR Challenge packet.

Stand Up, Speak Up In May, the Stand Up, Speak Up anti-bullying program is highlighting the positive attribute of “befriend.” Be-friend means being kind and friendly to everyone, and being willing to help others even if you do not know them well. The following scenario was shared with students:

“A new student gets on the bus. “Can I sit with you?” she asks. Harry responds, “No. This seat is saved.” The girl is upset and embarrassed. What would YOU do?”

Note from the Nurse

Keep your children safe from the sun over the summer. Apply sun-screen to your children at least 15 minutes be-fore sun exposure. Re-apply sunscreen every 2 hours and especially af-ter swimming and sweat-ing. Wear a wide-brimmed hat and stay in the shade when possible.

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Worcester County Fine Arts Festival

The 2019 Worcester County fine Arts Festival was held on April 16th at Pocomoke High School. OCES was represented by the fol-lowing students and their beautiful art work: Madison Andrews, Reid Anecharico, Allison Baig-Gallegos, Elias Baldridge, Lylla Bergeman, Aden Betterson, Alana Brittingham, Miley Cabello-Vargas, Sophia Ciorrocco, Katherine Conway, Brice Davis, Mad-ison Delgado Guerrero, Desirae Godwin, Emilia Hovhannisyan, Annabelle Hyunh, Emma Hyunh, Ilya Karcheuski, Zoe Martin, Sadie Mohr, Dawid Pawlowski, Lukas Queen, Kevin Rusanov, Al-lison Schaeffer, Taylor Snyder, Max Solano, Adelyn Sweitzer, Lewis Takacs, Avery Weber, Ben Williams and Kirra Wright.

3rd-grader, Ben Williams is displaying

his self-portrait.

1st grader, Kevin Rusanov

is proudly holding his clay duck.

2nd grader, Kirra Wright stands near her self-portrait.

Thank you, OC Stars for your fantastic performance at the Festival !

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OCES Yearbooks Yearbooks will be deliv-ered in late May. Extra

copies have been ordered and will be available on a first come, first served basis. An order form will be coming home at the end of the month if you would like to purchase a

yearbook. The cost will be $30.

Accelerated Reader Update

Number of Students Gr. 1-4:

336 Points Earned for the AR

Store: 11,480

Avg. Reading Level: 3.9

Books Read: 10,519

Words Read: 65,891,842

% of Books Independently Read: 73%

% of Fiction Read: 89%

% of Non Fiction Read: 11%

Thank you for encouraging

your child to read every-day!

April Star Citizens

The month of April was Autism Awareness Month. On April 2nd, we held a “Light it up Blue” day to raise awareness, acceptance, and understanding of autism. Staff and students were beaming in all shades of blue to show their respect for those with autism. In addition, we made a generous dona-tion of $342 to the Autistic Children’s Sup-port Group of Worcester County.

Caitlyn Crockett Gabriel Dalfonso

Milagros Mil-Castro

Alexander Khalil Abu-Zaid Harper Sunshine Jerns

Allison Itzel Baig-Gallegos Jackson Harry Frances Masterson

Alana Marie Brittingham Lee James McAteer

Roman Leo Capati Stefan Dobroslavov Michev

Payton Rose Caprarola Bianca Montiel Bonola

Samantha Juliet Chavarria-Aguilar Vincent Alexander Nappi

Cassius Michael Coley Olivia Anne Prince

Israel Zion Igziabeher David Misael Rodriguez-Guerrero

Alyssa Nicole Frantz Lucas Reef Ruppert

Isabel Robel Gebrewold Zachary Joseph Schink

Conan Rowe Geiger Wyatt Lee Schlender

Opal Alane Hambury Benjamin Minh Tang

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Prevent the Summer Slide!

The summer slide is a decline in reading ability and other academic skills that can occur over the summer

months when school isn’t in session. One way to prevent this is to encourage your child to read every day. The Worcester County Public Libraries offer free library cards for children and family members. You can check out copies of books, access e-books and

attend a variety of summer events at any of the five local branches. Check out the summer calendar of events by accessing: http://www.worcesterlibrary.org/index.php/worclibrary/events/

or sign up to receive weekly emails. Prevent the slide by reading every day!

For the latest news and information,

Check out our website at: ocelementary.com

And follow us on Twitter: @ocesdolphins and Pinter-est: OceanCityElementary

Please check the in the cafeteria. There

are many hats, coats, sweaters, lunchboxes and other personal

belongings. All items remaining on June 12th will be donated to char-

ity. To help prevent lost items, mark your child’s belongings with

his/her name.

The Worcester County Board of Education does not discriminate in admissions, access, treat-ment, or employment in its programs and activities on the basis of race, sex (including sexual harassment), sexual orientation, marital status, color, gender identity and expression, nation-al origin, creed, religion, age, ancestry, genetic information, or physical or mental disability.

Delays in School Opening for Fog, Bad Weather, or Emergency Closings

Listen to the local radio and TV sta-tions, call the Hotline at: 410-632-5399,

access #6600 or our website at: www.ocelementary.com

Relay for Life Relay For Life is a community-based fundrais-ing event for the American Cancer Society. To support our local Relay for Life event which will be held at Frontier Town Campgrounds on May 11th, we are selling pinwheels and paper strips until May 10th. Students can purchase pin- wheels for $3 which are then proudly dis-played in our courtyard. In addition, students can purchase a paper strip for $1 and write the name of a loved one on the pa-per strip. The memory strips will be used to form a chain as we “band together” to stop cancer. On May 10th, we will have a banner pa-rade holding our paper chain. Thank you for supporting the American Cancer Society!

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