Inside:
PAGE
Upcoming Events
Healthy Heart Day
Parent Services
Directory
cover
cover
Maria Montessori
Charter Academy
cover
MMCA PTA Newsletter
February 1, 2013
Misc. Info / Yearbook
PTA Announcements
Page 2
Page 3
Garden News from
the students
Page 4&5
Classroom Reports:
Purple:
Yellow:
Blue:
Red:
Aqua:
Coral:
Orange:
Green:
Children’s House:
Page 6
Page 7
Page 8
Page 9
Page 10
Page 11
Page 12
Page 13
Page 14
Upcoming Events:
 2/1 – Parent’s Night Out, 6:00-10:30
 2/9 – Garden Work Day, 8:30-11:30
 2/13 – Skipolini’s Fundraiser, 11:30a-9:30p
 2/14 – Heart Healthy Day / Free Dress
 2/15 – Re-enrollment/Lottery Deadline
 2/15&18 – President’s Holidays
Parent Services Directory On-line Now!
Here is a link to the first edition of our new
“Parent Services Directory.”
http://mmcharter.org/wpcontent/uploads/2011/02/ParentServicesDirector
y1213.pdf
This is a simple database of MMCA parents listing
the business / service they provide with their
contact information. Moving forward, we will
update the database on a monthly basis. If you
would like to be added to the database, please go to
this link
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/CPXZR2R
and fill out your information. Both links are
available on the “Important Parent Information”
page of the main website,
http://www.mmcharter.org.
February 2013
Healthy Heart Day
As part of this year's Healthy Heart Day walk-a-thon,
we've decided to team-up with the American Cancer
Society and host a Relay Recess event on Thursday,
Feb. 14th at 9:00 am. Students heard from a Heroof-Hope survivor last week to kick-off three weeks of
fundraising in their community.
On Friday, February 1st and February 8th, students
are allowed to wear a hat ALL DAY long in school for
only a $1 donation. Remind your children to have a
$1 donation or they won't be allowed to wear their
hat! Checks made payable to the American Cancer
Society and cash donations can be turned in to
classroom teachers.
On Thursday, February 14th, students will participate
in the Relay Recess event which includes learning
about ways to protect themselves from cancer, such
as eating healthfully and walking around the track for
exercise.
Please make sure that your child wears comfortable
shoes, wears purple and brings in any donations
collected on the event date. This is a great way to
empower students to become heroes in their own
communities and support those people whose lives
have been touched by cancer!
For more information on Relay Recess, please visit
relayrecess.org. Or contact Mrs. Jennings in the
Orange Room at ejennings@mmcharter.org.
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Lost & Found
Please check the lost & found garment rack for any items that may be your child(ren)’s. The garment rack will be out front during morning
drop-off and afternoon pick-up next week as well as in the office during the day! All unclaimed items will be donated on Friday,
February 1st.
Uniform Shirts/Spirit Wear
We'd like to remind you that our uniform shirts are available throughout the year from Family Sports Apparel (FSA). A zippered hoodie is
good for these cool mornings or stock up on polos or tshirts. Order forms are in the office and shirts should be delivered approximately a
week after ordered. Don't want to wait? FSA also has a store where they stock our uniform shirts. Visit them at 4923 Greenback Lane in
Orangevale (corner of Greenback and Hazel) and ask for the MMCA rack.
Thank You Green Room Parents!
Thank you for the terrific luncheon provided for the staff last Friday. Everything was tasty!
Hot Lunch Ordering
When you are placing your hot lunch order, please order a "regular" sized meal if your child is in grades K-5 and a "large"
sized meal if your child is in 6th-8th grade. The size of the meal is based on CDE nutritional requirements to which we must
adhere. If you have a K-5th grade student with a large appetite, you should encourage him/her to fill up on the fruits and
veggies that come with their lunch--they can even go back for a second helping of veggies!
Baseball Mitts Wanted!
I you would like to donate any new or used baseball mitts towards our P.E. equipment, the students would greatly appreciate
it. Please see Mrs. Cohodes in the Orange Room for the donations. Thank you in advance!
Kindergarten/Sibling Enrollment
Applications for the 2013/2014 school year must be in by 2/15/13 for any siblings that will be attending next year. Please
note the new birthday requirements. Your Kindergartener must be 5 by 10/1/13 for the 13/14 school year and 9/1 for the
14/15 school year and each school year thereafter.
Visitor Reminder
Please remember that anytime you are on campus during school hours you must sign in at the office and wear one of our
visitor stickers!
Yearbook Info
Parents/Students - Get your pictures in the yearbook!
The Yearbook Staff invites students and parents to submit photos for the yearbook. If you've got great photos of school and
community events of you and your friends just having fun, we'd like to see them. Our photographers can't be everywhere.
Help us get as many photos as possible to create a terrific book everyone will want to have.
Here is how you can submit photos online:
• Go to: https://images.schoolannualonline.com/login
• If it does not automatically log you into the site, enter username: 400144778 and password: mmca
• Browse to select the photo(s) you wish to upload.
• Enter information about the photo and provide contact information in case the staff needs additional information.
• Click "Save Details".
It's that easy! Submit your photos today! Thank you, and enjoy the rest of the school year!
Yearbook Adviser and the 2013 Yearbook Staff
February 2013
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MMCA PTA UPDATE
UPCOMING EVENTS
MARCH 18,, 2013
PTA EXECUTIVE BOARD ELECTIONS
If you are a PTA member, please attend and vote!
The MMCA PTA Executive Board Elections are coming up on March18th.
Do you want to nominate someone or run for a position yourself?!?
By joining the PTA Executive Board you can fulfill your 40 hours while helping plan yearly family events and
fundraisers for MMCA with a great group people who want to help the school. You will get a vote in where the
funds raised are allocated. Be a part of a great organization. Contact Nicole Andrade at
elocin_a@yahoo.com for information.
Positions are: President, Vice President, Vice President in charge of Fundraising, Treasurer, Financial Secretary,
Secretary, Parliamentarian, Historian, and Auditor
Positions are one year in length from July – June.
The Executive Board meetings are once a month and there are three general meetings a year.
If elected, there are trainings provided by the CA State PTA here in Sacramento.
APRIL 19, 2013, 6:30-8:30 p.m.:
ART AUCTION
Location: Beermann’s
The Art Auction is Our Biggest Fundraiser Of The Year!
Art Docents have been working with your children to create some wonderful Art!
View your children's art work. Bid on wonderful silent and live auction items.
Classroom projects will be available for bid. Drawings, Food, Drinks, and Fun!
More information coming soon.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Thank you for all that you do to help impact your student’s school.
Sincerely,
MMCA PTA
Visit www.mmcharter.org/pta for more information about these events, meetings, fundraisers, and more.
February 2013
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February 2013
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February 2013
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Purple Room Update
Upcoming Events:
Feb. 1st and 8th
Feb. 11th
Feb. 13th
Feb. 14th
Feb. 15-18th
Hat Day- $1.00 to wear a hat all day (goes to Relay Recess)
Secret Valentines and 100th Day projects are due
100th Day of School
Walkathon (Relay Recess) and Valentine’s Day Celebration
Wear Purple
No School – President’s Day Break
We have almost reached the 100th day of school!!!! Can you believe it? We have a day full of fun activities planned
to celebrate our 100 days that we have been in school. Please make sure to work on your 100 th day project with
your child, as well as bring in your item for the 100th day celebration.
We will be celebrating Valentine’s Day on Thursday, February 14th with a Secret Pal. Each child will pick one name
and make one homemade friendship valentine card. The more creative the better… lots of glitter and glue.
Language Arts: We are working on reading fluently. The children will continue to take home books to be read at
home. We are working in our journals daily and practicing writing descriptive sentences. We will also be using the
Writing Traits workbooks with First graders.
Math: We are working on addition, and subtraction, as well as, months of the year and money.
Science: We are learning about space, penguins and groundhogs.
Cultural: We are learning about Antarctica and will begin to learn about Australia and the people and animals who
live there. We will be celebrating Chinese New Year and learning about our presidents.
Reminder:
We will be celebrating Valentine’s Day on February 14th. Please make sure to check in your child’s purple folder to
see who their Secret Pal is. Directions are also included in the purple folder. Please turn the Valentine in no later
than Monday, February 11th. We do not want anyone to be left out. Also, remember that we will not be exchanging
Valentines to the entire class.
Relay Recess:
Our school is participating in a fundraiser to help support the fight against cancer. The first graders attended an
assembly regarding our school walk-a-thon and our desire to raise money to support this wonderful cause.
February 1st and 8th, the children are encouraged to wear hats to school (all day, even in the classroom). In order to
wear the hats, the must donate $1.00. We are also encouraging the children to ask their parents and family
members for donations from now until the 14th of February for the American Cancer Society.
Save the Date
Our class will begin working on our class play in the month of March. We will have a performance for the parents
on April 26th at 1:00pm in the Multi-purpose room.
Purple Room
Jolyn Martin and Diane Bryant
February 2013
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News from the Yellow Room
Important Dates:
Feb. 13th 100th Day of School
Feb. 15th and 18th No School/President’s Day
Feb. 14th Relay for Recess/Valentine’s Party
February may be a short month but it is full of lots of fun and adventure for us here in Yellow room.
SCIENCE: We have begun our exploration of space which included our field trip to the planetarium. The kids
are enjoying this unit very much and we encourage you to ask them questions and to enjoy the night sky with
your little scientist.
CULTURAL: We started our travels here on Earth to. Students will be learning about the different countries,
animals, and cultures of Asia during the month of February. We will travel to China and celebrate the Chinese
New Year and we will travel to India and taste some Indian food. If you have any cultural items, pictures or
information you would like to share with students about these countries or cultures please feel free to come to
class and share. We would love to have you!!
Our 100th day of school will be celebrated on Feb. 13th. We will have fun activities for students to do in class
throughout the day. A list of needed supplies has been sent home so that these activities can take place. Thanks
for bringing them in. STUDENTS CAN WEAR CLOTHING WITH NUMBERS or UNIFORM.
RELAY FOR RECESS: Our students are very excited about the opportunity to help scientist and doctors find
a cure for Cancer. They feel empowered by the idea that they can help those who are ill and that they can do it
by taking care of their healthy bodies and running/walking laps for them to earn money. Students can bring in
earned money starting now until the day of the Relay for Recess. The students will be setting up a monetary
goal to reach as a whole class. The morning of the Relay for Recess we will need parent volunteers. Keep an
eye out for an email from our class parent regarding this volunteer opportunity. STUDENTS CAN WEAR
PURPLE or UNIFORM.
Valentine’s Day will conclude with a class party; crafts, treats and fun. This will be the time students will
exchange their secret Valentine. Please bring them in as soon as they finish their creation. We will put them in
safe place until Valentine’s.
A change to student’s work charts will take place this month. Each day the student will color a “How was my
day?” box at the bottom of the work chart that coordinates with their clothes pin color. This will allow you to
see how their week went on Friday when work charts come home. Please discuss the work charts with your
child. They can show you their “must do” work for each day too.
HOMEWORK NEEDS TO BE RETURNED EACH WEEK! Homework goes home on Friday in yellow
folders and needs to be returned by the following Friday or earlier! Your child should be reading or be read to
each night for 20 minutes too.
Mrs. Kelley and Mrs. Medeiros
February 2013
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Blue Room Newsletter
We are having a fabulous month in Blue Room. The students came back from break
rested and ready to work. We have another busy month ahead.
Next month, the students will learn about the food groups and healthy eating. We will
be celebrating Healthy Heart Day on February 14th. We will start with a field trip to
Bounce U. The students will learn about the heart and its functions. Then the students
will move into the bounce rooms to get some exercise. After the field trip, we will
come back to school and make some healthy sandwiches. We will end the day with
exchanging Valentines and the walk-a-thon.
This year the students will be raising funds for The American Cancer Society. The
students will be doing a walk-a-thon at the end of the day February 14th. Our class
goal is to raise $170. If every student brings in $5 we should meet this goal. In
addition to the walk-a-thon, the students can bring in a dollar on February 1 and 8 and
they can wear a hat all day. This is a great cause and we hope all of you participate.
We will also be learning about Black History this month. The students will be learning
about different important figures of their time and the past. Each student will pick a
person to research further. They will also do a project on that person. We will need a
square tissue box for each student. Please save your empties. This project will be done
in class.
As always we are thankful for the parents in our room. Without your support and
generous donations to the classroom, we would not be able to do the things that we
do. Thank you!!!
Mrs. Harper
Mrs. Schmich
February 2013
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Red Room Newsletter Notes
As usual, January passed by way too quickly as we settled back into our schedule!
On Wednesday, February 13th, the Steelhead Trout arrive. A big thank you to
Tracy Montez for sterilizing the fish tank and rocks in time for the Steelhead.
Black
History will be the subject of several lessons and activities. We will be learning about
Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., Ruby Bridges, Maya Angelou, Booker T.
Washington, Thurgood Marshall just to mention a few.
Thursday, February 14th is Healthy Heart Day. In the morning we will be going to
Bounce U for a science lesson about the heart. Socks are required to participate at
Bounce U. Also, on that day, our school will be participating in a Relay Recess
fundraiser for the American Cancer Society. Please have your child wear purple and
comfortable shoes for the walk-a-thon. (More information to follow regarding the walka-thon.)
The children continue to work diligently in math, reading, grammar, Spanish,
Science, Social Studies and handwriting. They are making great progress in math.
Several of our students are exploring division – static and long. Fractions are next for
several of our 3rd graders!! Grammar will bring abstract nouns, common and proper
nouns, and verbs. We are getting quite proficient in Spanish – numbers, colors, days
of the week and months of the year. In Geometry, we will explore triangles,
rectangles, and lines.
Thank you to all the parents who volunteer in the classroom. You are truly
appreciated. We look forward to a great month!!!
February 2013
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Aqua Room Update

"Away in a meadow all covered with snow. The little old groundhog looks for his shadow. The clouds in the sky
determine our fate, if winter will leave us early or late. ~Don Halley

Fourth graders have begun rehearsing for their play, California Mission and More! Please encourage your child to
rehearse at home.

Fifth graders are plugging away on their State Report. We look forward to the final project.

In Language Arts, we have begun our study of verbs. Students are learning and discovering all about actions!!

Girls on the Run is back at MMCA. Please keep an eye out for information about this awesome program.

Hat Days- Students will be permitted to wear hats in the classroom if they donate one dollar (each of the two
days) to Relay for Life.

Parent’s Night Out: Support our Green Room students who are going to Washington D.C.

Tip of the Month: Encourage Curiosity: Babies explore by crawling, putting things in their mouth and knocking
things over. Young kids learn by asking questions and taking things apart. Older kids continue to hone their
knowledge as they develop a passion (or sometimes an obsession) for a topic or theme. Nurture their curiosity no
matter what age! Allow them to explore, ask questions, read and test out theories.
http://www.kidsdiscover.com/blog/parentresources/9-tips-for-raising-lifelong-learners/.

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Upcoming Dates:
o
February 1st: Parent’s Night Out
o
February 1st: Hat Day
o
February 2nd: Groundhog’s Day
o
February 8th: Hat Day
o
February 13th: Skipolini’s Fundraiser
o
February 14th: Healthy Heart/Relay Recess/Walk-a-thon
o
February 15th: No School
o
February 18th: No School
Our student led Spring Conferences are coming up in March. Please keep an eye out at the end of February for
information regarding conferences.
~Ms. Sherman and Ms. Fratessa
“Education is a natural process carried out by the child and is not acquired by listening to words but by experiences
in the environment.” ~Maria Montessori
February 2013
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Coral Communication
It seems like the year 2012 is already whizzing by! The month of February has already begun and
we’ve put the pedal to the medal with learning! We have really been working on our character
education lessons and tying them into our everyday situations like recess and PE. Our “buzz” words
are respect, control, choices, body language, and responsibility.
In math, we have been studying a variety of Geometry topics, including different types of graphs,
coordinate graphing, triangles, quadrilaterals, and how to measure angles. In our other math lessons
we’ve been diving into the world of decimals, estimation, number theory, distributive property,
multiplication and division. The 5th graders have begun their study on exponents! Our Mathscore
topics are directly related to what the students have been given lessons on. The topics shouldn’t be a
“new” topic, but an extension of what they have learned in class. They should be working on
Mathscore every day. Each month they are assigned new topics. When they reach a rating of 100 on
all the assigned topics, a custom assessment will be assigned.
The realm of science has taken us to Earth Science. Mrs. Garber and Ms. Fratessa have been working
diligently to provide your child with in-depth and exciting Earth Science lessons.
History has taken the 4th graders on a trip to the missions. They have begun to work on a play about
missions. Be on the lookout for a date and time on when the performance will be. The 5th graders are
continuing their study of the 13 Colonies and are moving in to the causes that bring on the American
Revolution. Be ready to hear about the different taxes that were being imposed on the colonists.
We will begin the assessment process for report cards in the coming weeks. The online signups will
be happening soon. Register early to get your spot. We’d love to sit down with each and every one of
you to discuss your child’s progress since November.
In the month of March, we are welcoming Ms. Paola Clark into our classroom. She is a student from
William Jessup University. She’s in her last stages of her teaching program and she needs to do some
student teaching. She will be joining us from March to May. We are very excited to share our
classroom and philosophy with her! You will have the opportunity to meet her at our Spring
Conferences.
There a few important dates you need to be aware of:






February 7 – Newberry Book Report Due
February 8 – Hat Day, Bring $1 and wear your hat all day!
February 14th – Relay for Life pledges due. Relay for Life event at school
February 15 & 18th – No School
February 22nd – Extreme Gymnastics Field Trip
March 19, 20, 22 – Minimum Days for Spring Conferences
Mrs. Boothby & Mrs. Garber
February 2013
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Orange Room Newsletter
February/March Independent Project: Getting Into Character
The “Getting Into Character” book completion form was due February 1st. The character map is due
March 1st. Students will analyze the main character’s feelings, thoughts, and actions throughout the story in
the form of a poster project and present them to the class!
February 13th Field Trip 9:30am-11:00am
We will be going to Bounce-U for a healthy heart science lesson and then bouncing for exercise in their
indoor bounce facility to help celebrate Healthy Heart Month. Afterwards we will head back to the
classroom for a healthy snack to refuel and nourish our bodies. We will need drivers for this field trip.
To continue our celebration of Healthy Heart Month, we will be participating in a Walk-a-thon on Thurs,
Feb. 14th at 9:30am. Students should bring their monetary pledges and wear comfortable shoes on the day
of the event. Monies raised will be donated to the American Cancer Society. We are in need of volunteers
from 9am-10:30am to mark student laps around the track. Please email Mrs. Jennings if you are interested!
History
Students had an excellent time participating in their in-class field trip, Walk Through the Ancient World.
We have pictures posted on our Orange Classroom Shutterfly account! We have started a new unit on
Ancient China; so make sure to ask your child about the information we’re learning.
Science
Students just finished learning about Earth’s atmosphere and are now learning about weather factors.
Students will be watching videos, completing various labs and activities that correlate with this unit.
Language Arts:
Students recently finished an expository writing piece that focused on explanation and description. This
was due on February 1st. Students have also been working on grammar, dictation, free writing in the form
of “unjournaling”, and literature group assignments for this past month.
Math:
We recently finished our unit on measurement conversion and are now learning concepts that focus on
various geometry standards.
Important Dates to Remember:
Feb. 13th Bounce-U field trip
Feb. 14th Walk-A-Thon for Relay Recess
Feb. 15th and 18th No School
st
March 1 -Getting Into Character Project Due
Any questions should be directed to Mrs. Jennings or Mrs. Cohodes:
ejennings@mmcharter.org or jcohodes@mmcharter.org
February 2013
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Green Room Update
Dear Parents,
Happy Valentine’s Day! Fast away the old year passed and we're well on our way into the new year.
We would like to thank all of our fantastic families for the lovely holiday gifts and also for the fantastic
luncheon you provided last week. We greatly appreciate it!
We have a bullet point menu of reminders and updates for you:
Relay for Life
-Hat days are Feb 1 and 8. Bring $1 to wear a hat in class!
-Pledge forms and money are due on February 14th when we will be doing a Relay for Life at school.
Field Trips
-Our next field trip is in March to Extreme Gymnastics. Please check your calendar and let us know if
you can drive.
Parent Teacher Conferences
-The trimester ends March 8 and conferences are shortly after. Please watch for the notification and
sign up early online!
Garden
-Garden work days are coming up, please watch for them. We need all the help we can get to
continue the remarkable progress that has been made.
-Check out the Garden Newsletter!
Electives
-If you are free on Friday afternoons between 2 and 3PM, please consider helping out with an
elective!
CERT
-Fire suppression instruction and practice will be Friday, February 22nd. All 7th graders should wear
pants to school that day and tennis shoe or boots. Our firefighter dad, Battalion Chief Payan will be
there with training extinguishers and the fire pan. Every student will use the fire extinguisher at least
once.
-Mock Disaster has been moved from Monday February 18th to Thursday, March 21st. Thursday is a
minimum day and it makes more sense to use this day.
Have a great month!
Mrs. Crouch, Ms. Proett, and Mrs. Watkins
February 2013
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Children’s Chatter
Winter break came and went so fast! We have been busy in the classroom learning about
Antarctica (where it is located and the animals, whales, & penguins that inhabit the continent), and the
solar system – (order and names of the planets, stars and moo). The children have been busy making a
planet book using different types of mediums of art. We also recognized Martin Luther King, Jr. and
learned many interesting facts about his life. The students are working hard on all their jobs and continue
to strengthen their skills in both the Language and Math Areas. We have been developing our problem
solving skills, independence, and positive communication with friends inside and outside the class.
The chefs from our class have been enjoying weekly cooking projects. A few of our delicious
creations included Penguin veggie egg treats and fruit cookie pizzas. Special thanks to our cooking moms,
Deepa Sharma and Nikki Armstrong for directing the children in the kitchen.
The children have enjoyed our weekly trips to the library while learning about “library manners”
at our school and singing with Mr. Baldonade playing the ukulele.
Dancing is becoming our latest interest as we learn several new types of dances which include: the
hula, bean bag dances, the limbo and the twist. These dances have helped during the rainy days of
January. Our bi-weekly music program with Ms. Lisa from “Music in the Foothills” has been wonderful as
the children learn musical terms and rhythms with instruments and games. We have also enjoyed our
movement program with Ms Allie.
February is the month of friendship. We will be celebrating Valentine’s Day with a secret pal. We
will also be incorporating the theme “HEALTHLY HEART” for our valentine treats. We will be having a
small celebration in the afternoon with food and one homemade card exchange on Thursday, February
14th. The month of February will also bring the study of nutrition and healthy dental care with a
presentation by Dr. Liz Harmon DDS on February 1st.
We will continue our continent travel to Europe as we learn about the diverse people and culture
this continent has to offer. They will also learn about the different biomes and animals which live in these
habitats. Reptiles will be our new discovery in zoology.
The children’s’ small motor skills are being developed by activities on the shelves which include
tracing, cutting, sewing, punching out shapes, and handwriting with sandpaper letters.
 Walk A Thon for Ataxia and Valentine Day Celebration, Thursday, February 14th
 FREE DRESS DAY! Thursday, February 14th
 No School, February 15-18 President’s Day
We really enjoy Working With your children…
Mrs. Bass, Mrs. Baldonade and Mrs. Garabedian
February 2013
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