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Winter Concert

Dec2

Please read this message from our music director:

MMA is having a Winter Holiday Choir Concert Thursday, December 8th.   Mark it on your calendar!  Upper Elementary and Lower Elementary children are both performing in the gym.  We have very limited seating.  Because of this, we have split the student body in half by the students’ last name.  There will be TWO performances the same night, but you only need to come once at your specified time.  If you are in the Honor Choir you will need to be there for both performances.
 
Students with last A-K arrive at 5:50pm, program at 6:00pm
Students with last L-Z arrive at 6:50pm, program at 7:00pm
 
For the families that come at 6:50, please do not come earlier, because the other performance will just have ended and families will be exiting the building. 
 
If your children have different last names and are scheduled to go at different times, please only come to one.   Choose which one your family wants to attend.  
 
This is a Holiday concert and appropriate attire is encouraged.  It really makes the event feel special and it sometimes is fun to dress up.  Knee length dresses with covered shoulders and tights or leggings look best.  Slacks with button up shirts and ties would be nice….I call it Sunday best or if you were going to a wedding etc.  It does not have to be school dress code, but consider to wear the best you have. 
 
If you have any questions feel free to contact me at Cstarks@mariamontessoriacademy.org .  I am looking forward to celebrating this Holiday with you and show casing what we have been learning in music.  Hope to see you all there.
 
Happy Holidays!
Sincerely,
MMA Elementary Music Specialist
Connie Starks
This entry was posted on December 2, 2016, in Holidays.

Week 14

Nov15

Thank you all who participated in our annual Chili Cook Off!  This is my all time favorite community building event.

This week we are busy working and learning many new and different things.

Cultural

We have an amazing parent volunteer (and close friend of mine) teaching Botany lessons this year.  We are so lucky to have Rachael Bush in our classrooms once a month giving foundation lessons!  She brings a passion and energy to this subject that cannot be matched!  We are learning about the importance of roots as supporters and nitrogen fixers (thank you symbiotic relationships!).  We will be following up in class with a traveling nitrogen activity as well as a beautiful work demonstrating the nitrogen cycle.

International Festival is a month away.  Please be sure your child is working on this project at home.  The expectations for this project were given to your student, and can also be found under the International Festival tab at the top of the blog.  This year the festival will be held on Monday, December 19 from 9-11.  Parents are welcome to attend.

4th Level  – We have just started our fractions studies in class.  With Thanksgiving right around the corner, this is a wonderful time to have your child practice using fractions in the real world by reading recipes, measuring ingredients and spending time with family in the kitchen!  Understanding of fractions is a crucial part of our world.

5th Level  – We are continuing our fraction studies this week with multiplication of fractions by whole numbers.  Do you have a recipe that is written for 4, and need to scale it up for 8? Allow your child to help you with this fun and important task during the holidays when it is natural for you to spend time in the kitchen.

6th Level – Currently, rates and ratios are the focus of our math studies   Like fractions, ratios are used in the kitchen.  What better time to practice in the real world than during the time of year we spend a lot of time cooking and preparing for guests.

Redwoods payment due Wednesday, November 16.

Finally, if you have any questions regarding any of the grade level home projects, or the international festival, please send me an email.

No School – Monday, November 21-Friday, November 25.

 

Week 13 Update

Nov9

Happy Wednesday!

First of all, my apologies for the lack of blog and email updates.  My computer has not been working properly and I’ve had extremely limited internet and server access.  I have a temporary solution for now.  Hopefully I can get quickly caught up and back on track with my communication.

Due to the late notice, there are only 2 IXL assignments this week.  They are posted on the IXL page at the top of the blog and your student should have them written in their planners.  This reduced assignment load should have allowed some time for those students who are behind to get caught up.

4th – We are deep in our studies of Utah History and have finished up talking about early explorers and the Spanish Trail (ask your kiddos about our adventure!).  Utah History Fair topics were due last Friday.  Your students should have brought home their project timeline.  This timeline can also be found at the top of the blog.  Research notes, the first big step in the project, are due November 28.

5th – The invention convention assignments have gotten off to a very slow start.  Out of nine students, only 3 have turned in their first assignment.  The second assignment, “Problem Selection” is due Monday, November 14.  Please check in with your kids to see what help they need.  Partial completion of each assignment will not be accepted.  The more details they include now, the easier their end product will be.  A timeline of due dates can be found at the top of the blog.

6th – Our Expert Project is deep in the second week of note card development.  The project has been carefully designed to break down every step of the research process.  I can provide the instruction and help with questions during class time, but it is up to your children to take the initiative to complete the work.  It is crucial that your kids stay on task.  It is my goal to not give any work related to this project over Thanksgiving Break; however, if your child is missing assignments, they will need to be completed during this time.

Lastly, don’t forget our annual Chili Cook-Off tomorrow, November 10.  It’s not too late to sign up to bring a pot of chili to support this fun community event!

capture

Week 9 Update – AWHC Field Trip, Fall Festival, Book Fair

Oct10

With the 4th level field trip to the American West Heritage Center on Wednesday, Fall Festival Friday, and Parent Teacher Conferences next week, we are busy.

4th Level Field Trip – Please drop your child off by 8:05 on Wednesday, October 12 to ensure they are on the bus and ready to go at 8:15.  I will meet your kiddos at the front of the school and  walk them over to the bus at North Shore.  They will need a “sack” lunch and appropriate dress.  They can wear jeans, but must be in dress code shirt.  It will be chilly in the morning, but warm up in the afternoon.  Please make sure they are prepared with a jacket, water bottle and sunscreen.  This field trip is entirely outside.

5th Level Invention Convention – This year 5th level students will be participating in a STEM inspired Invention Convention rather than science fair.  I introduced the project to your students last week and gave them a rough timeline as well as their first assignment for the project.  Unfortunately, the timeline I gave them was quite rough and I have decided to change some of the details.  Please watch for an updated timeline to come home this week.  If you would like to view a digital version, you can see it under the invention convention tab at the top of the blog.

All Parents – During parent teacher conference next week, MAPA will be hosting our first book fair of the year. Please sign up to volunteer during book fair.  This vital event helps fund books for the library as well as pays for the beautiful scholastic magazines that all students receive.  This time will go towards your mandatory 40 hours per year.

 

Fall Festival Volunteers Needed

Oct3

Good Morning!

Our class is in need of volunteers and a few donations for the Fall Festival coming up on Friday, October 14.  We are looking for parents (all grade levels) to help supervise the fun.

We will need 3 parent volunteers (one hour each) to help run the double wave ride.

We will also need  6 – 6th grade student volunteers (2 students each hour) to run the Guess How Many game.  This will go toward the required volunteer hours.

Use this link to sign up to volunteer.  If you signed up to volunteer for the game through the email, please double check to be sure your name is still here.

We will need 3 parents to donate 2 lbs of Halloween candy each (ie, candy corn, candy pumpkins, gumballs, etc).  When you sign up please list the candy you will be donating.  All donations need to be brought to class no later than Wednesday, October 12th so that Meredith can get the game ready for the festival.  You can sign up at this link to donate candy.  

Thank you for helping us hold a successful Fall Festival!