Montpelier Elementary School s2

MONTPELIER ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 9200 Muirkirk Road Laurel, Maryland 20708 www.pgcps1.org/~mtpelier Mrs. Carla Furlow, Principal Telephone: 301-497-3670 Ms. Denise Mahdi, Assistant Principal Fax: 301-497-5431 PARENT BULLETIN October 7, 2011

PTA’s ICE CREAM SOCIAL What a delicious way to meet and greet other Montpelier families! Come to the Ice Cream Social sponsored by the Montpelier Elementary PTA on October 20th from 6:30 – 8:00 PM. All are invited.

HISPANIC HERITAGE CELEBRATION The period September 15, 2011, through October 15, 2011, has been designated National Hispanic Heritage Month. This year’s theme is “Many Backgrounds, Many Stories…One American Spirit.” Please take a moment to view the wonderful lobby showcase featuring Latin American musicians and their music. Our students are learning Latino children’s songs & dances.

JAXCO FUND RAISER We are very pleased with the response to our annual fundraiser. Sales exceeded $10,000! Orders will be delivered to the school by early November. Orders small enough to be carried will be sent home with your child. Larger orders must be picked up. We greatly appreciate the efforts of everyone who participated this year. Thank you very much for your support.

READY…SET…GO! Testing for grades 3-6 begins on October 17th and ends on October 26th. Please help us by making certain your child is well rested, well fed, on time, and ready to do their best.

STUDENTS REWARDED FOR GOOD BEHAVIOR Today, over 500 very excited Montpelier students received a reward for good behavior during the month of September. Congratulations to these wonderful students! It is hoped that all of our students will strive to do their very best each day and everyone can be rewarded for their good behavior in our next behavior incentive program!

ANNUAL WALK FOR THE HOMELESS Each year, Montpelier in conjunction with L.A.R.S. (Laurel Advocacy and Referral Service), sponsors a Walk for the Homeless around the school grounds. All participants receive a free T-shirt. Parental permission is required and contributions are appreciated. This year’s walk is scheduled for November 4th. Look for information to come home in your child’s Friday Folder shortly.

VOLUNTEERS ARE NEEDED Our Book Fair is scheduled for October 24th – 28th. (The Book Fair will be open the evening of October 26th from 6:30 PM until 8:00 PM, too.) Help is needed during the day to assist students with selections and check-out. Please contact Ms. D’Aria or Ms. Stone in our media center if you are able to volunteer during these days.

BACK TO SCHOOL DONATIONS Special acknowledgement is extended to the following local businesses/organizations for donating school supplies and materials during the 2011-2012 school year: Eaton Corporation and Side By Side. Thank you so much for your generosity! Your support is greatly appreciated especially in these tough economic times.

PTA WEBSITE To access information about the Montpelier Elementary PTA, the officers, upcoming events, and general news items, visit them on the web at: http://montpelierelementary.webs.com/. In addition, the PTA Membership form and the order form for the very popular Montpelier Elementary T-shirt (which may be worn on Friday’s instead of the uniform shirt) are available at this website.

HEALTH DEPARTMENT SCHOOL INFLUENZA VACCINATION CAMPAIGN Flu vaccination consent forms were recently sent home with ALL Montpelier students. This consent form authorizes the FREE flu vaccination being administered on Wednesday, October 19th at Montpelier Elementary. A signed completed consent form MUST be returned to be considered for the FREE vaccine (certain medical conditions may preclude a child from receiving the vaccine.)

CALLING ALL 5TH GRADE PARENTS! Please join us from 9:15 – 10:00 AM in our Multi-purpose room on October 13th for a presentation on the upcoming overnight trip to CAMP SCHMIDT (November 17th – 18th.) PLEASE CHECK YOUR VOICE MAIL “Did someone call me from this number?” Please check your voicemail before you return a phone call from Montpelier Elementary. Our entire staff uses the same 3 main phone lines and we cannot easily determine exactly who called you. We will be happy to check the nurse’s office in case your child is sick. Beyond that, we cannot interrupt important instructional time to determine whether or not your child’s teacher called. Checking your voicemail just might give you the information you need. Please check it first.

CONGRATULATIONS SCIENCE BOWL TEAM! The Science Bowl team is busy preparing for their October 11th match against Bond Mill. Team members include: Alfarid Adeite, Ethan Steide, Jonathan Ortiz, Seth Lamb, and Xavier Smith. Captain and alternates will be named next week.

SchoolMAX FAMILY PORTAL SchoolMAX is an online student information system. This system keeps track of student data such as contact information, attendance, grades, and discipline. The Family Portal is a feature of SchoolMAX that allows parents to view this information for their children. Each family is assigned a “Family Portal Access Key.” This “key” is used to create your “user account.” If you previously created your “user account,” it should still be valid. If you haven’t created your “user account,” you will find your “key” and instructions attached to your child’s 1 st Quarter Progress Report.

DISMISSAL REMINDER – DO NOT LEAVE YOUR CAR UNATTENDED Please remember to send a note to school on any occasion when your child needs to deviate from his/her normal dismissal routine. (Leaving a voice mail, e-mail or telephone message cannot be substituted for written authorization.) In addition, please notify your aftercare provider if your child is absent to assist them in locating their passengers at the end of the school day. Your cooperation will help us to ensure your child’s safety.

CAFETERIA ACCOUNTS You can help your child(ren) avoid waiting in long lines each morning by putting as much money as possible into the cafeteria account(s). Remember, too, that writing a check, payable to Food and Nutrition Services with the student’s PIN on it, will save your child(ren) from waiting in a long line. Checks are collected from the students and deposited into their accounts after they have gone to class. Students with cash are given an envelope for the cash. They should then seal it and write their name, the amount and their PIN on the front. A basket is available in the cafeteria to collect theses envelope. These deposits will also be made after students have gone to class. Or, consider using PayPams. PayPams is a quick and convenient way to ensure your student always has money on his/her lunch account. Go to http://www1.pgcps.org/foodandnutrition/ for more information. There may be service fee and a 3-4 day delay so allow time for processing.

FREE & REDUCED PRICED MEALS INFORMATION If your child received free or reduced meals at Montpelier last year, he/she continued to receive free or reduced meals through September 30th. As of October 1st, payment is required of students who have not been approved for free/reduced meals for the current school year. (Breakfast $1.50/Lunch $2.60) Contact the Department of Food and Nutrition Services by calling 301-952-6517 for additional information.

IT’S THE LAW This is a reminder that, if your child is riding a bicycle to school, a safety helmet must be worn. It is the law and it is for the safety of the child. Also, we recommend that a bicycle lock be used when parked at our bicycle rack located in the front of the building.

DATES TO REMEMBER October 7 Release of 1st Quarter Progress Reports (K-6th Grade) Behavior Incentive for September October 13 CAMP SCHMIDT presentation (Grade 5 families) at 9:15 AM October 17-26 FAST testing (Grades 3-6). Be on time! October 19 Health Dept. Flu Vaccination Clinic October 20 PTA sponsored Ice Cream Social (6:30 pm – 8:00 pm) October 21 MSEA Convention-School Closed (subject to change…stay tuned!) October 24-28 Book Fair – Media Center October 28 End of 1st Quarter October 31 School closed for grading/planning November 11 Parent/Teacher Conferences – School closed for students November 14 Honor Roll Assembly Anyone who requires an auxiliary aide/service for effective communication, or the modification of a procedure/policy in order to participate in a school system sponsored program/service/activity should contact the school principal, individual or organization hosting the event, or the PGCPS ADA Compliance Officer. Requests should be made as soon as possible, but not later than 48 hours before the scheduled event.