Geography Bee
Stoddert Elementary
4th & 5th grades

Hi! I’m Robert M. (1st place winner) and I have always loved looking at maps and highways, and I think it’s really cool to look at places all over the world. This all began when I was five. Once my Dad told me about going to Oshkosh after he’d gotten out of college to see a fly over. I’d never heard of Oshkosh before then and I never thought that I’d get a question on that very city at Stoddert’s Geography Bee last Thursday. The question was: Oshkosh is located in what northern state? My correct answer was Wisconsin! My parents’ stories, many books on geography that my parents have gotten me from the National Geographic’s book fair at the Armory over the years, and lots of studying, enabled me to win this year’s bee. The winning question for me was: Cologne Cathedral is located in what northern European country? I answered correctly with Germany. I knew I had a chance at winning this bee because I study geography a lot. I love it and I have plenty of practice in it.

Hi! I’m Casey B. and I’m the 2nd place winner. I was motivated to take part in the Geography Bee this year because I participated last year. I got interested in geography when I was in 3rd grade. I like bees and competitions because you have a chance at winning and you get tested on what you know. For this bee, I used my Dad’s iPad app and played Stack the States and Stack the Countries. I focused more on worldwide geography and those questions were harder than the ones about the states. The question in the bee that I thought was the hardest was: Okefenokee Swamp is in Florida and what other state? I’d never heard of this swamp, so I just guessed. That happens sometimes in bees. The correct answer is Georgia.

Hi! I’m George T. (3rd place winner) and geography is really my thing. I got a kid’s atlas in the 1st grade from my grandparents and that’s how I got interested in geography. I thought the regions of the world were really interesting. It’s nice to know where things are. For this bee, I really studied. My Mom got me geography study books. I focused on both worldwide and the states. Physical and cultural geography is hard. The hardest question for me was: Which state capital city is on the Puget Sound? The correct answer is Olympia.

Casey, Robert & George

I skate on ice. I go to New York. I walk with my family. I make a snowman. I make a flower.

Savannah – Mrs. Redman’s class (2nd)

My Family Tradition

My family tradition is Christmas. Every Christmas my family puts up a Christmas tree. First, we put on the lights. Then we put on ornaments. After that we put on the ribbon, and last, but not least, we put on the star. When we’re done the house smells so nice.

Every Christmas my family watches How the Grinch Stole Christmas. My dad makes popcorn and gets the drinks. It takes a long time because it takes a long time to make hot chocolate. The hot chocolate tastes so good. We sit down, eat popcorn, drink our drinks, and watch the movie. This is one of my favorite holiday traditions.

This Christmas my family is going to New York City. My mom and dad are going to take us to the ice skating rink, and to see the Christmas tree, and we are going to Toys R Us. My mom told me the Toys R Us is really big. It’s big enough to fit a ferris wheel inside!

Another thing I’m doing for Christmas is reading a Christmas book. The Christmas book is Bear Stays Up For Christmas. When my family reads the book, we will be sitting by the fire.

Every Christmas my dad lights the fire. My family goes to the fire to warm up. The fire always feels just right. My mom sits by my dad and I sit by my brother and sister. I love Christmas!

Kayla – Mrs. Redman’s class (2nd)

How I Celebrate Christmas With My Family

Every Christmas my family puts up a tree together. We decorate the tree with lot of ornaments. There are different types of ornaments. We do it together at night after dinner. There are airplanes, balls, people, cars. and lights.

Every year we go to my uncle’s laundry mat. This year my family might go to my uncle’s for dinner. We get to see my uncles, aunts, and cousins. We celebrate my uncle’s birthday together. My cousin Tyler comes from Chicago, Illinois to celebrate my uncle’s birthday.

On Christmas morning we open presents from our aunts and uncles. My sister and I get a lot of presents. In the cards, we get Target gift cards to get toys. I get things I really wanted for Christmas.

This is who comes. My older cousins come. Two cousins are in college. My aunts and uncles come. There will be no grandparents because my grandparents died before I was born.

This is how the building smells. We smell different types of food. There are vegetables, noodles, and sweets. Every person who comes brings a dish. All the food is yummy.

This is how it looks. The place looks old because my grandpa bought the laundry when my dad was two or three. There used to be webs on the wall but my dad swiped them off. My uncle did not put pictures on the walls or it would look spooky when it’s dark.

This is how it sounds. You will hear a movie because someone brings a movie for the grownups so they don’t get bored. You will hear kids playing because my sister, cousins, and I play games and don’t watch the movies because it is very scary for the little kids.

My feelings are different for my holiday tradition. I’m happy for going to my uncle’s for Christmas. One of my other feelings is thankful for my aunts and uncles for providing a holiday party for my family members. These are my feelings for Christmas.

Acy – Mrs. Prosser’s class (4th)

The Chinese New Year

Every January 1, our family celebrates Chinese New Year. We usually hang lights, put out decorations, wear colorful clothes, and go to the Chinese Embassy to perform.

Like every year, people go on stage to perform and the rest watch. I sing different songs and I dance, but sometimes I don’t perform anything at all. This year I decided to sing a song. The performances are wonderfully awesome, especially the dancers. I think they even can perform at the Kennedy Center!

At home we celebrate the new year like Christmas, but something we do differently is that our grandparents give out money in red bags. That’s my favorite part! The children use the money to buy things they want. But sometimes kids like me want to save the money for an emergency. I call it emergency because kids have times when they really want something, but their parents won’t buy it for them. That’s the time when I normally use my money.

I also enjoy the dragon parade. That’s when people use sticks to place the fake dragon up high in the air. I like it when the dragon is swirling because it really looks like it is real. The last time I was in China, I saw two fake dragons swirling around high, and they were like chasing each other.

My favorite holiday is the Chinese New Year. I hope you’ll enjoy it, too!

“Stoddert Students Learn the Rules of the Road” — The Georgetown Patch gave us a great write-up.

(Our post has the class information and more background on the program, as provided by WABA.)

Many thanks to Dr. Cuthbert, Coach Wagner, and Glen Harrison at WABA for making this excellent program a reality.

As always, the Georgetown Kiwanis’ Judges had a difficult time choosing the top four entries. Without further ado…. Sophie was our top “Setting” entry. She was caught in the kitchen. She was reading a cupcake recipe book. Elise was our top “Character” entry for her detailed portrayal of Calpurnia Tate! Ava was our top “Caught” entry. She was caught reading a book about cats, while snuggling with her cat. Finally, Khalil was awarded “Honorable Mention” for his entry. Did you know that this is his third year as a “Caught Reading” winner? This year he chose to read a book about the Buffalo Soldiers, at The Buffalo Soldiers Monument. Congratulations!

Again, we would like to thank the Georgetown Kiwanis Club for the time and resources they put into this event. They donated personal and financial resources that we greatly appreciate!  Also, special thanks to all of the teachers and staff who allowed Mrs. Bruce to catch them reading for our display!

The party will be an opportunity for the students to experience the garden in a hands-on way. They’ll learn to harvest and wash the spring greens and herbs they planted and helped grow, and then will get to sample them with delicious dressings they’ll help make. The event is being organized by Stoddert third-grade teacher Ginny Choi, with parents Martha Rebour, holistic health counselor; and Eliza Gonzalez, professional chef and culinary educator.

We still need volunteers for the day and the following supplies:

To Buy:

• One 12-oz. bottle of soy sauce
• Two 12-oz. bottles of rice vinegar
• Two 12-oz. jars of Dijon mustard

To Borrow:

• Two salad spinners
• One wire whisk

To Volunteer:

• We can use help at all times between 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. We’d like volunteers to be able to stay one hour.

Please contact Martha Rebour for information and to volunteer: mrebour[at]gmail[dot]com

To make the afternoon complete, DPR will host an end-of-year dance for all ages from 4:00–5:30 P.M. We’ll post more details as we get them from the organizers.

It has been another busy and exciting week for the Stoddert Wolves. Thanks to the support from you through the PTA, the whole school was treated to a performance by the Lesoles Dance Troupe. These very talented dancers, some of whom are natives of South Africa, performed three different dances. The performers chose students from the audience and taught them short dances that they performed to the delight of the other students. The troupe also taught the students a few words in the languages of South Africa. Please ask your child for more details. The students were wonderfully behaved and enjoyed this performance. Thanks again, parents and PTA!

Please come by and re-register your child for next year, if you are returning to Stoddert. It is so important that you register now so that we can anticipate staffing for next year. We are very fortunate that we did not have to excess any of our wonderful staff so far, but the entire budget for next school year is based on students who are actually registered, not those indicated on an intent form. Yes, you do have to register every year. For returning parents, you should have received packets in the mail. If you have lost or misplaced the packet, all forms are online on the DCPS website. We also have copies of them in the main office. The only way we can really plan for next year is to know how many REGISTERED students we really know are coming. You are the key to our successful planning!

Each Friday morning in May before school, outgoing PTA President Mary McLaughlin will be outside the building to encourage everyone to register, to answer questions, or to chat and share ideas for next year. I will join her every other Friday (I serve on a DCPS committee alternate Fridays). Please say hi when you are dropping off your children and heading into the office to officially REGISTER! Currently, only 25% of those indicating intent to be at Stoddert next year have registered and shown proof of residency. (You do not have to turn in your medical and dental forms now. Although we’d like them as soon as possible, they can be turned in throughout the summer as you are able to get medical and dental appointments for your children.)

The following are friendly reminders about upcoming dates.

• We’ll have Career Days in late May: Pre-K through 2nd Grade on May 19; 3rd Grade through 5th Grade on May 20.
• The Science Fair for 3rd- 4th-, and 5th-graders will be June 9; times to be announced.
• Science Day for Grades 1 and 2 will be held on June 10.
• The 5th-Grade Promotion is June 16 at 9:30 a.m.—in our marvelous new gymnasium!
• [CHANGE] The last day of school is June 20. Students will be dismissed at 12:15 p.m., as the afternoon is used for teachers’ record-keeping.

I can always be reached at marjorie[dot]cuthbert[at]dc[dot]gov. Please enjoy this gorgeous weather with your families.

2011- 2012 school enrollment forms were sent home by the DCPS central office. You should have gotten a big white folder just before spring break. These forms must be returned to the school in person with proof of residence (see the details in the forms). The health form can wait until school starts back up. The main enrollment form assists with planning for classrooms, teacher allocation, and projected enrollment numbers. Please bring these forms in as soon as you can. Thanks.

Science Fair projects should be started NOW. 3rd-, 4th-, and 5th-grade Science Fair project information went home in backpacks. The projects are due June 6 and the judging of projects is on Thursday, June 9, in the gym. Take note: this can be a whole-family event. Get involved— think, breathe, and eat science lingo! Please identify yourself if you would like to assist children with good ideas, improve the scientific process, or if you would like to be a judge. Ms Prosser would love to see some budding parent scientists participate this year.

The 2011 Stoddert Summer Camp application deadline was extended to May 25th. Camp applications are available here.

— Mary McLaughlin

May 23 :: Spring Concert
7:00 PM, Fillmore/Hardy auditorium
Strings, band, and chorus for students Grades 3 – 5

June 3 :: Stoddert Sharing Performance
1:30 PM, Fillmore/Hardy auditorium
Students in Grades 1-5. Grades 1 and 2 music, drama, and dance; Grades 3-5 drama and dance.

June 13 :: Last day of Fillmore