Chevy Chase Citizens Meeting with Chancellor Rhee
DCPS Chancellor Michelle Rhee will be the guest speaker at a meeting of the Chevy Chase Citizens Association next Wednesday, November 28th, at 7:00 PM. Chancellor Rhee will speak about issues confronting the school system and provide updates about programs and facility improvements. There also will be time for questions and answers. The Chevy Chase Community Center is located at 5601 Connecticut Avenue, NW.

Edward Hayes, Jr., Esq.
President, Chevy Chase Citizens Association
202/363-8183 or ehas@msn.com

The Chevy Chase Presbyterian Church Craft Bazaar & Bake Sale
COME ONE, COME ALL!!!!!
Saturday, November 17 10am-3pm
Chevy Chase Presbyterian Church
1 Chevy Chase Circle
Chadsey Hall (entrance off Oliver Street)

Wonderful hand-made crafts and gifts including stained glass, fine silver jewelry, note cards, artwork for children's rooms, and much more!
Enjoy sipping freshly-brewed coffee and eating yummy baked goods from the bake sale while you shop.

(Betsy Casey for) Cindy Walsh
Director, CCPC Weekday Nursery School
cindy@chevychasepc.org or 202-363-2209

I am very sad to report that our long time security guard, Ms. Priscilla Soribe has been transferred by her employer to another location as part of a different contract with the city government. As many of you know, Ms. Soribe is a citizen of Nigeria, and although she is a legal resident alien, there is a provision in the contract with DCPS that all school security officers must be US citizens. It is beyond my understanding as to why that's in the contract or why the security firm decided now (after several years) to ensure compliance with that provision, but I'm hoping that we can get an exemption and get Ms. Soribe transferred back to Janney. I'll let folks know the end result and if there is any advocacy that might help. Stay tuned. In the meantime, please feel free to introduce yourself to our new security guard, Ms. Giraya Maxfield, who has been nothing but pleasant and dependable, and of course not responsible for Ms. Soribe's transfer.

Our food service provider, Ms. Blair, has also been out sick for a while now and it is not clear when or even if she will return. Her replacement for now is Ms. Tiffany, who is filling in quite capably. We have had some students make cards for Ms. Blair and if you would like your own child to make one, we'd be happy to deliver them to her.

I promised at the beginning of the year that making our science program at Janney more consistent would be a focus for the staff this year. I asked each grade level to submit a brief synopsis of the science topics that were covered in the first quarter. Here's what the teachers reported...

Pre-K and K- During the 1st advisory in science the students in the PK/K classes learned about the five senses, the seasons (with a focus on fall) and the weather.

1^st Grade - First grade science begins with learning about our class pets (mice, hermit crabs, fish)- their requirements for life, characteristics, and behavior.  Then we learn about the earth and sun- that the earth is made up of land, air and water, and that air takes up space and it's movement can be felt as wind.  We learn that the sun provides heat and light, and that the rotation of the Earth creates day and night.  Next we will examine up close solid earth material- rocks in various sizes (pebbles, sand and silt) and learn how the Earth formed those sizes of rock particles.

2^nd Grade - We have all finished the solids and liquids unit and are working on the air and weather unit. In this unit, we will identify the basic properties of air and find that it is matter and it takes up space. We will make and use basic weather tools to gather information about temperature, rainfall, wind, clouds, and seasons.

3^rd Grade - Mrs. Cassidy's class is piloting an astronomy unit that the other third grades will use later in the year.  Her students are studying the movement of the earth including the cycle of day and night, the phases of the moon, and learning about the night sky and the different constellations that appear in different seasons.  Mrs. Roberts and Mrs. Walters are implementing four sequential investigations dealing with observable characteristics of organisms.  Students observe, compare, categorize, and care for a selection of organisms and in so doing they learn to identify properties of plants and animals and to sort and group organisms on the basis of observable properties.  Students investigate structures of the organisms and learn how some of the structures function in growth and survival.

4^th Grade - The fourth grade has integrated the Landforms Science unit with Social Studies this advisory. We learned about erosion and deposition using the FOSS kit. We also learned about the geography and climate of the five regions of The United States.

5^th Grade - 5th grade recently completed a unit on variables. Students conducted controlled experiments to determine how different variables affect results. We have just begun an environments unit, with a beginning focus on cells and hereditary. We will be broadening our scope to the relationship between organisms and their environments and how changes in an environment can be hard on organisms and, sometimes, even disastrous.

6^th Grade - Sixth grade students study Earth and Space Science using the McDougal Little text as a framework. In the first quarter, students studied how the earth's surface looks from space using different types of maps and satellite photography. In the second quarter, students will begin studying rocks, minerals, and archeology.

Have a great Thanksgiving and safe travels if you're going out of town.

Sincerely,
Scott Cartland
Principal