Monocacy Valley Montessori Public Charter School

Parent Newsletter
MVMPCS CALENDAR:
Fri., 10/25School Closed for Students, Teacher Work Day Tues., 10/29Ms. Venus Class to Rosehill Manor, 9:15 a.m.1:00 p.m. Fri., 11/1International Childrens Day : 9:30-10:15 Program 1 Ms. Kim, Ms. Fran, Ms. Amy, Mr. Marty and Ms. Zoes classes; 10:15 10:30 Parade; 10:3011:15 Program 2Ms. Heidi, Ms. Susan, Ms. Gale, Ms. Venus, Ms. Christine and MS. Thurs., 11/7Hearing & Vision Check for all PK3, 1st & 8th grade; New PK4 & K students. Fri., 11/8Prospective Parent Tour, 9:15 a.m.; Report Cards Issued Thurs., 11/14L.E. to Gov. Thomas Johnson High for Performance , 9:00 a.m.12:00 noon; Thurs., 11/14MVMPCS Drama Performance -Space Pirates, 6:00 p.m. Fri., 11/15MVMPCS Drama PerformanceSpace Pirates, 6:00 p.m. Thurs., 11/21Absentee Photo Make-Up Day, 11:00 a.m.1:00 p.m. Fri., 11/22Community Coffee, 9:15 a.m.; 2 hour early dismissal at 12:45 p.m.; no After Care. Mon., 11/254 Hour Late Arrival for Parent Teacher Conferences, K8th Grade Students arrive at 12:45 p.m., No PreK or Pre-School students attend; No Before Care. Tues., 11/263.5 Hour Early Dismissal for Parent Teacher Conferences, Students dismiss at 12:15 p.m.; Lunches served on an early schedule. No After Care. Wed., 11/27Fri., 11/29School ClosedHappy Hanukkah and Happy Thanksgiving!

October 24, 2013

FROM THE PRINCIPAL
Dear Families, I am still concerned with the number of students that were absent over the past month. At my last Attendance Meeting, the team identified 31 students that have already been out of school more than 5 days. As I shared in my Back to School presentation, even when your child has an excused absence, they are not in school and losing valuable teaching. Please remember that when your child is absent from school , it is important that you inform the front office and the classroom teacher. If your family will be on a vacation, let Cita or Rose Ann know as soon as possible since this must be approved by Cita beforehand. Even during a vacation, your child is missing valuable lessons that cannot be made up. If your child is sick, please make sure that you send or email a note to the teacher or front office when they return to school. Remember all absences, unexcused and excused, count against our schools attendance rate for the year. Our schools attendance rate must be at 94% or better to meet the states requirement for attendance. Having a percentage lower than 94% will jeopardize our charter. Did you mark your calendar? School will be closed tomorrow for students. It is a Teacher Work Day. Enjoy the last weekend of October. Cita

MVMPCS COMMUNITY COFFEE FUNDRAISER MVMPCS has paired up with Dublin Roasters Coffee to create our own fair trade certified & organic coffee blend: Community Cup. It is $14/lb. and $5 of every pound sold goes directly to the MVMPCS Student Activity Fund. Look in your childs Thursday folder for the green information/order form. This would make a great holiday and/or hostess gift. Think globally, act locally and enjoy a great cup of coffee that benefits our children! Jennifer Nichols Community Outreach Committee SODA TABS COLLECTION

MVMPCS ATTENDANCE YEAR TO DATE: 96.78%

MD STATE REQUIRED ATTENDANCE: 94%

*Please send attendance notes to: Rose.Shapiro@fcps.org

One of our UE students is collecting soda tabs for her Girl Scout troop. They will be donating these tabs to the Ronald McDonald House.
The Ronald McDonald House is a place that families can stay when their loved one is in the hospital. The Ronald McDonald House will then turn the soda tabs into money. Aluminum and steel tabs are worth about 65 cents for every 12 tabs. The money from the tabs will be used for gas for the shuttle bus that takes families to and from the hospital. A collections container is outside the front office. Please help by sending in your soda tabs before you recycle the can.

MVMPCS BOOKFAIR NOW COMPLETE! All back orders from the fall Bookworm Book Fair have been received at school and should have been sent home. If you are missing anything, please email fundraising@mvmpcs.org. Thank you for another successful year and the proceeds earned for our school will be announced in the near future. Jen Shemer, Fundraising Chair

MVMPCS NEWSLETTER
TICKETS ON SALE THURSDAY, OCT. 24 FOR DRAMA PROGRAM SPACE PIRATES ***NEW ***BOX OFFICE EMAIL FOR RESERVATIONS: MVMPCSBOXOFFICE@GMAIL.COM Tickets for the fall MVMPCS production of Space Pirates go on sale today, Thursday, October 24th. The show dates are Thursday, Nov. 14 and Friday, Nov. 15 at 6:00 p.m. each night. Advance tickets cost $4 per child and $6 per adult from now until Nov. 8th. Starting on Monday, Nov. 11th ticket prices will be $6 and $8. Save money and buy your tickets early! Waiting until the last minute creates concern among our hard working student cast members who wonder how many tickets are sold and are there enough people coming? In addition, there is limited seating and last year a few people were turned away. For your convenience, there is a new box office email for reservations: mvmpcsboxoffice@gmail.com. You may email to request tickets and the order will be filled and waiting the next afternoon. All tickets that have been requested must be purchased by Fri., Nov. 8th! Tickets will be on sale at school each morning at 8:45 a.m. and each afternoon at 3:45 p.m. Thank you and we look forward to seeing you at the show!
MMCI ANNUAL COMMUNITY MEETING ON NOV 20TH

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HARVEST FOOD DRIVE COLLECTION

Donations for the Harvest Food Drive to benefit the Frederick Community Action Agencys food bank will be accepted through Oct. 31, 2013. Please donate fully labeled, unopened, nonperishable canned or dry food items for collection. Helpful items include: pasta and pasta sauces, hearty stews, soups, cereals, canned tuna and chicken and childrens birthday party packages (cake mixes, plates and hats). Also appreciated are toiletry items such as deodorant, soaps, shampoos and toothpaste. Please drop off your donations in the lunch alcove. Thank you so much for your generosity!

VOLUNTEERS WANTED FOR MVMPCS BLDG. & GROUNDS WORK DAY, SATURDAYNOV. 16 The building and ground committee is trying again! We will need volunteers Saturday, November 16 at 9:00 a.m. to help spread mulch in the front courtyard. Please email me to let me know if you plan on helping because we will need at least 8 people willing to break a sweat! We will also need a few wheelbarrows, if any community members have one we could borrow please let me know. This is a great way to meet your volunteer hours and make a huge impact on the day to day experience of your child. Thanks in advance! Erin Frank kfrank1@mac.com CHECK THE LOST AND FOUND Now that the cooler weather is here, be sure to check the lost and found periodically for discarded jackets, hats, and other missing valuables. The lost and found is located past the computer lab before going into the Sanctuary. You might be surprised at what you find! NEXT FRIDAY NOVEMBER 1ST MVMPCS INTERNATIONAL CHILDRENS DAY :

Dear MMCI Community (all parents and staff at MVM and CCM), The MMCI Nominating Committee is pleased to announce the 2013 MMCI Annual Community Meeting and invite everyone to attend on Wednesday, November 20th at 7pm at MVMPCS (217 Dill Avenue in Frederick). This is the meeting where we hold our annual elections for MMCI, MVMPCS, and CCMPCS positions that will open in 2014. There will also be updates about MMCI and its finances, both of the schools operated by MMCI (MVM and CCM), and additional information about the exciting changes that are coming up for MMCI and both schools in the coming months and years. There may be a vote on proposed changes to the MMCI bylaws. Volunteering does not require lots of experience, college degrees, or certifications. The most important things are a heart to serve, the desire to learn and adapt, and the ability to take on challenges until theyre completed. If you are interested in serving on the MMCI BOT, one of the GCs, or next years Nominating Committee, feel free to contact the MMCI Nominating committee by email or letter (placed in the MMCI mailboxes at MVM or CCM). A detailed list of positions and descriptions will come out next week and any proposed changes to the bylaws will be provided to the community by November 6th. Sincerely, Julie Clark (jclarkad@yahoo.com), Jonal Haley jonelhaley@westat.com), Anna Spencer (annacaro82@hotmail.com), Martina Adkins (martooni@msn.com), and Anthony Rood (anthony.rood@gmail.com)

9:30-10:15 Program 1Ms. Kim, Ms. Fran, Ms. Amy, Mr. Marty and Ms. Zoes classes;
10:1510:30 Parade; 10:3011:15 Program 2Ms. Heidi, Ms. Susan, Ms. Gale, Ms. Venus, Ms. Christine and Middle School.