On the first day of school, every child is greeted by the full team of CNH teachers and is given a wildflower.  They carry that wildflower into their homeroom and add it to the class vase sitting at the front of the room to create the class bouquet.  We use this metaphor to illustrate this community to which we each belong. This year, we started with the school bouquets that went home with each individual student.  In distance learning, we are all still connected.  You are each part of the CNH bouquet.

Many months of loving thought and deliberate action have led up to today.  Will there be glitches?  Yes.  Will there be snags?  Absolutely.  Will your children’s teachers do everything they can so that your child is Known, Loved, and Inspired?  For certain.  We all can admit this is not ideal, but it is the safest reality. We are in this together, and we will make this school year great.  I love each and every one of you.  Have a fantastic first day of school!!!

Happy Week 1, everyone!

Warmly,

–Dr. Shyla.

Important Dates:

  • Tues. Sep. 8 — First Day of School!

  • Tues. Sep. 8 — 6-7:30 — CNH Board Meeting on Zoom

  • Oct. 7, 8, 9 —  Half days for Progress Report Conferences

  • Oct. 16 — No School, Professional Development Day for Teachers

*********************************************

Important Scheduling for the First Three Weeks of School

  • Week 1 of the school year (9/8-9/11) is Assessment Week. This is a time when teachers get to know students and their areas of strengths and needs in the classroom.  — See the bottom of this document for all schedules.

  • Week 2 (9/14-9/19) is our first week of classes. This is also the week that teachers will analyze the data from Assessment week in order to determine small groups as well as inform what and how topics will be taught with this group of students. Students will receive the Clubs and Elective sign-up form to complete by the end of the week.

  • Week 3 is a time when everyone should be falling into a good routines and steps.

NOTE: We will begin Intensives and Clubs/Electives on the third week of school.

*********************************************

 Back-to-School Summit 

We recorded the back-to-School Summit for families who were not able to attend.  Click Here to view it

*********************************************

CNH Family  Site

Families can access the CNH Family Site from our main CNH website.

Click here to connect to our main website.

*********************************************

CNH Academic Calendar for 2020-2021

Here is the link to this calendar on Google Drive.

Not all of our dates align with the City Schools Calendar.  Be sure to consult the CNH calendar first if there is any discrepancy.

*********************************************

Want to Lead an Elective or Club at CNH?

Every Wednesday from 1:15-2:00, every student at the school is going to sign up for either a club (K-5) or elective (6-8). This is our way to create a non-academic space for kids to connect with one another with common interests.  Every teacher in the school will lead a club or elective. Some adult family members have asked if they can lead one too.  Here is a sign-up form, if you would like to lead a club or elective for kids this fall.  It will be a 10-week commitment for Trimester 1, once per week for 45 minutes.  Sign-ups to lead are due by Friday, September 11, 8:30 a.m.

*********************************************

Family Work Groups

Some of our Summer Family Workgroups will be continuing into the Fall as Committees.  Click here to see a listing of Committees.  Click here to complete the Google Form to sign-up for a committee.

As a reminder, it is an expectation that all CNH families join at least one committee and fulfil the required 40 hours of Family Participation hours each school year.  Select your committee now!  There are many different options to suit your interests and skills!

*********************************************

Donations to the School

Some families reached out to the school over the summer mentioning that they would like to donate the money they didn’t spend on groceries this summer due to receiving the P-EBT card for their children.  Other families reached out to me wanting to donate money to support our acquisition of technology to support families this fall.

If you would like to donate money to the school (for any reason), the easiest ways are through our CashApp or PayPal accounts.  Checks mailed to the school will also be accepted. Please add a note, no matter how you might donate, with how you would like it used (general educational expenses, technology, arts, etc).

If you aren’t able to donate funds to the school, we always appreciate your donation of time supporting the general programming needs at our school (all virtual, of course).  If you would like to volunteer for the school, please email our Family Participation Board Director Elisabeth Hyleck at ehyleck@cityneighborshamilton.org.

*********************************************

Resources

  • Meal Sites

    • This Spring, Baltimore City Schools opened meal sites at any school location that offered.  We were one of them.  This upcoming school year, the school district is carefully selecting meal sites so that they are spread out evenly throughout the city and in areas of highest need. Here is the link to the school district’s Meal Sites page.  It provides information for meal sites as well as other resources for accessing food. Bookmark the link so that you can visit it again closer to the start of the school year to see which schools will serve as meal sites near you.

  • Immunizations

    • Baltimore City Health Department’s Immunization program is open by appointment (no walk-ins) Tuesday through Thursday 10AM-2PM. Call 410-396-4454 to schedule an appointment.

    • KIPP Baltimore is serving as a site to provide immunizations by appointment only (no walk-ins).  Call 410-793-7263 8AM-5PM to schedule an appointment.

    • All students are required to be fully immunized before school begins.  Find the required immunizations here. 

    • Stephanie has been working with families this summer to ensure everyone is in full compliance before September 8.  Please look for and respond to emails from her, and reach out to her with any immunization questions: sking@cityneighborshamilton.org

*********************************************

Connecting with Shyla

Below the signature of every email I send from my computer (not the ones from my phone), I have the following text.

Want to meet?  Click here to make an appointment. Be sure to add the topic/agenda of our meeting in the Notes section, so that I am prepared. I look forward to speaking with you.

I wholeheartedly mean it when I say that I am happy to meet with you anytime you’d like to talk. It can be something you’re excited or upset about, a new idea you have for the school, if you want to share news about your family, or just to connect.  I would love to meet with you!

*********************************************