First Grade at Bells Mill Elementary School 2015-2016
Welcome to our first grade website!
Our first grade website is a great place to view our weekly newsletter, view our weekly homework, learn about curriculum 2.0, and read about what our students are learning in class. There are helpful resources and websites for the students to practice their skills at home. You may also have a chance to see our students in pictures that will be posted! Weekly Newsletters:
Thinking and Academic Success Skills
Marking Period 1
Collaboration- Working effectively and respectfully to reach a group goal.
Analysis- Breaking down a whole into parts that may not be immediately obvious and examining parts so that the structure of the whole is understood.
Marking Period 2
Intellectual Risk Taking- Accepting uncertainty or challenging the norm to reach a goal.
Fluency- Generating multiple responses to a problem or idea.
Marking Period 3
Synthesis-
Putting parts together to build understanding of a whole concept or to form a new or unique whole.
Effort/Motivation/Persistence-
Working diligently and applying effective strategies to reach a goal or solve a problem; continuing in the face of obstacles and completing pressures.
Marking Period 4
Orginality-
Creating ideas or solutions that are novel or unique to the individual, group, or situation.
Metacognition-
Knowing and being aware of one's own thinking and having the ability to monitor and evaluate one's own thinking.
Meet the First Grade Teachers:
Mrs. Abramson
Contact- Rachael_L_Abramson@mcpsmd.org
All about Mrs. Abramson:
I love first grade so much that I decided to return to first grade this year! This is my third year teaching at Bells Mill and I am thrilled to be here! I have taught first grade in Montgomery County at Somerset Elementary in Chevy Chase for seven years. Last year, I spent the year being the Reading Specialist at Somerset. I am not originally from Maryland. I grew up just outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I have a bachelors degree in elementary education from Towson University and I have a masters degree as a reading specialist from Johns Hopkins University. I truly enjoyed my position as a reading specialist but chose to go back into the classroom because I missed having a class of first graders! I love making learning fun and exciting and I enjoy making each day special. Teaching is very important to me but if I'm not in my classroom I am spending time with my family. I love spending my time with my husband David, my two year old daughter Stella, and our big 130 pound American bulldog Howie! We are looking forward to welcoming our second baby this March!
I know we will have an amazing year in first grade!
Mrs. Bedell
Contact- Ellen_C_Bedell@mcpsmd.org
All about Mrs. Bedell:
I think that developing a love of books was my inspiration for becoming a teacher. Teaching actually runs in my family. I have cousins who are teachers and principals. My daughter teaches children with emotional disabilities and my other daughter works in the class with children with autism. My sister just retired after teaching forty years in first grade. I began teaching in the mid seventies and stopped to raise three wonderful children. I began teaching in this county in 1999. My goal is to instill in your children a love of learning and to prepare them for lifelong goals. I want them to learn in a safe, nurturing, and supportive environment. I consider all of you stakeholders and my hope is that we can work as a team to support the children. I believe that everyone can learn. We are having a great beginning to this school year and the children love watching their compliment chain grow! I see all good things coming are way! As a final note, I am proud to be a grandmother of my two grandsons, Matthew and Keith.
Ms. Hirsch
Contact- Rebecca_A_Hirsch@mcpsmd.org
All about Ms. Hirsch:
My name is Rebecca Hirsch and I am so excited to be joining Bells Mill and the first grade team! This is my 6th year teaching first grade and my first year at Bells Mill. I taught for the last 5 years in the Archdiocese of Washington. I grew up in Montgomery County and attended Good Counsel High School. I received my Bachelors degree from Elon University in North Carolina in elementary and special Education. I attended Johns Hopkins University for my Masters in Educational Studies with a concentration in gifted and talented education.
I love reading, going to the beach, running and cheering on the Redskins and Caps! I am looking forward to a great year in first grade!
