Conference Night Book Fair!! @ MAM
Get excited for MAM’s IN-SCHOOL book fair! Rainbow Books, a local, independent Children’s Bookstore, will supply books for the event, and books in all price ranges will be available. 25% of the proceeds will go to MAM. The  fair will be held on the 2nd floor in Room 25 during conferences, from 3-6 PM on Thursday, March 15 and from noon-6 PM on Wednesday, March 21. On Wednesday, March 21 children will be able to attend the fair during afternoon school hours. The fair will be held in conjunction with the bake sale for the Lower El Camp Matawa fundraiser. So be sure to stop by before or after your conferences!

Volunteers are (desperately) needed during the following times:
Thursday, March 15 from 8 AM-10 AM for set-up, from 3-4:30 PM to work the fair,and from 4:30-6 PM to work the fair.
Wednesday, March 21 from noon-2 PM, 2-4 PM  and 4-6 PM to work the fair.

From the Adolescent Students:
One Week Only Pre-order Limited Edition Jaguar Apparel!
We are selling black t-shirts and hoodies with a royal blue and yellow logo on the front in both adult and youth sizes. The yellow paw on the back is optional at pre-order. Ordering now is the only way to guarantee you get the exact garment you want as we will have a limited surplus supply of each item, both with and without a paw. Order now to guarantee your garment
Once we sell out – that’s it!
Order forms are going home today! Extras are located outside the office.
See Ms. Kemp if you have any questions!
A big THANK YOU to Michelle Hays for coordinating and running this year’s Jump for Heart and Hoops for Heart during each classes gym time along with all the parents that helped facilitate.  The students have a lot of fun during this event and we appreciate the volunteers that help make it happen.  This event is usually coordinated by the gym teacher or nurse, which as you know we don’t have this year, so now it’s our responsibility to keep it going and I really appreciate Michelle stepping up so it could continue.

A TWO DAY Red Cross Certified Babysitter course will be offered at MAM April 24th & 26th 2:30-6PM. Offered to students aged 11 and up, must be present for both days for the entire time! Snacks provided. Cost $85.00 per participant.
Class will be capped at 12, stay tuned for more information.
View information about the course specifics here.

From Lake Park Little League:
Spring is right around the corner! Does your child have an interest in baseball? If so, be sure to register for 2012 Spring/Summer Baseball. Please go to the website (http://lakeparklittleleague.com/) and click on “Online Registration” to sign up. Do it soon to ensure your spot! Registration ends March 15th. If you register after that date, there is a $200 late registration fee, and you may not get on a team.

Lake Park Little League is a wonderful league for all ages.There are many children from Maryland Avenue already in the league, and you don’t have to live on the east side to join. It is a fun place to learn and play baseball with friends and classmates (and the parents have fun too!). Minor league participants can start as young as 6 years old, as long as the child has had some previous exposure to baseball.  See more information.

We are at 300+ signatures (almost as many as we have students thriving in our school) please sign and share the link with friends and family who support the wonderful program at Maryland Ave Montessori!

This petition to Dr. Gregory Thornton, MPS Superintendent, Michael Bonds, MPS – School Board President, and Larry Miller, MPS – School Board Director, states our ask:

“Provide adequate funding to Maryland Avenue Montessori to maintain our current staffing levels and the integrity of our highly successful Montessori program.”

Click here to add your name/or view.

Thanks!

Mr. DiCarlo has been working with the district administration to gain the necessary support to keep the Montessori staff and provide funding to maintain the integrity of our highly successful Montessori program.  The Montessori community in MPS is also collaborating to address these budget concerns with the district administration and school board members.  Since the budget has not yet been finalized and approved, we have time to influence the district to make the necessary changes to support our program.

Here’s what you can do to help:

• Contact school board members by email or phone (see list on back).
• Contact the superintendent’s office (see information on back).
• Attend the Maryland Avenue Montessori Community Meeting sponsored by the SGC and PTO on Wednesday, March 14, 2012 at 6:00pm.
• Watch for updates from the school via Wednesday folders and weekly emails.

The Maryland Montessori Community, along with the entire MPS Montessori Community, is organizing and mobilizing to discuss possible options to address the current budget concerns for all of the Montessori schools.  The district has also expressed interest in supporting the MPS Montessori programs and we are in the process of scheduling a meeting in early May with the superintendent, school board members and parents and staff from all of the Montessori programs in MPS.

The Maryland Avenue Montessori SGC and PTO are asking for your continued support of our program.  Although the current budget situation brings challenges, our school community has always stuck together to provide the necessary resources to ensure a quality Montessori education in a supportive environment for our children.  With your support throughout this budget process and beyond, we can continue to work together to keep Maryland Avenue Montessori a high achieving Montessori program with a committed parent community.  If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the school SGC, PTO or Mr. DiCarlo.

Contact your Board Directors:
President Michael Bonds  governance@milwaukee.k12.wi.us  520-3890

Vice-President Peter Blewett blewett@milwaukee.k12.wi.us 422-2807

Director Annie Woodward woodwaax@milwaukee.k12.wi.us 342-1813

Director Terry Falk tfalk@wi.rr.com & falktf@milwaukee.k12.wi.us 510-9073

Director Larry Miller  governance@milwaukee.k12.wi.us 469-9319 (Maryland Avenue Montessori Board Member)

Director David Voeltner voeltndw@milwaukee.k12.wi.us 546-9880

Director Jeff Spence jspence@wi.rr.com 535-0997

Director Mark A. Sain sainm1@milwaukee.k12.wi.us & marksain@att.net  760-6140

Director Meagan Holman  holmanmw@milwaukee.k12.wi.us 614-1720

Superintendent:  Dr. Gregory Thornton  475-8001

Here is the data collection sheet for the school-wide challenge regarding screen time.

Starting on Saturday, January 21, 2012, please have each child that attends Maryland Avenue Montessori keep track of the amount of time they spend playing video games, watching television, surfing the internet, etc.

Remember to total the screen time at the end of each day.   Then, do a grand total at the end of the week.

On Friday, January 27, 2012, make sure to attend MAM unPlugged (if you haven’t sent in an RSVP, please do so soon)!!

Starting Saturday, January 28, 2012, MAM challenges each child to cut their screen time in half!!

Continue tracking time spent with each type of media and totaling at the end of each day through February 3, 2012.  Be sure to return the data collection sheets to your classroom on Monday, February 6, 2012!  We will use the sheets at school for math lessons.

Questions or to RSVP contact Ms. Kendra!

Kendra Robinson, M.S. CCC-SLP
Maryland Avenue Montessori School 906-4832

Our 5th Annual
MAM PJ Party & Boswell Book Night
Sunday, December 4th
4:00-8:00PM
Boswell Book Company 2559 N Downer Ave.
(Next to Starbucks)

Shopping, Food, Fun, Prizes!
Help our Teachers Earn FREE BOOKS.
Student Art Displays, Support a Local Business/Neighbor, Cute Kids (maybe some adults) Wearing PJ’s, MAM Celebrity Readers 4-7PM, Adolescent/Upper El Poetry, Short Story, Essay Readings & FREE Gift Wrapping!

We could still use some help during the Boswell event. The link below allows you to see what we still need and sign up if interested.
http://www.signupgenius.com/go/mambook

WEAR YOUR PJ’s & be entered to WIN.
Open to the Public!
SHOP LOCAL!

Novemberfest was a wonderful event again this year.  I would like to thank all of the organizers for their efforts to make this annual event, sponsored by the Maryland Montessori Fund, a huge success.  The families and friends who attended Novemberfest and participated in the silent auction helped to raise over $20,000 to support student programming.  The Fund, and school community as a whole, continues to show an awesome generosity of time and resources to help support the students’ overall educational experience at Maryland Avenue Montessori.

The school selection period to sign up for the next school year is from January 9 through January 27, 2012.  This is the time for all families wishing to enroll their child at Maryland Avenue Montessori to turn in an application to our school office.  Siblings of Maryland Avenue Montessori students who will be three years old by September 1, 2012 need to apply during this period in order to be eligible for school next fall.   Please inform the school secretary that they are siblings when applying.  If you know of any families interested in attending Maryland Avenue Montessori, please encourage them to register in January and call the school at 906-4800 for a tour and further information.

The holiday season is a special time for sharing with family, friends and others in need.  This time of year is especially memorable for children.  Please remember to cherish your children and spend quality time talking and playing with them throughout this season, creating life-long memories.  I wish everyone a joyful and peaceful holiday season.

Peace,
Joe DiCarlo, Principal

The proposed facilities change for Maryland Avenue Montessori School has been withdrawn by the district.  Upon careful consideration, the district administration has decided that more careful planning would be needed to effectively expand the Maryland Montessori program to the Carver site as originally proposed.  Although there will be no changes to the Maryland Program for fall 2012, the district continues to express interest in collaborating to meet the future needs of the Maryland Avenue Montessori School Community.

No change to programming or grade structure for Maryland Avenue Montessori is currently being proposed.  Maryland Avenue Montessori will continue to house K3 through grade 8 for the 2012 – 2013 school year, with all students remaining at the Maryland Avenue site.

There has been a very involved community response to the original facilities proposal with a diversity of perspectives being expressed.  The Maryland Avenue Montessori School Governance Council has deliberated on the comments from parents and continues to work with the school administration to develop a long range plan to meet the needs of our school community.

The community meeting scheduled for this Thursday, December 1 at 5:30pm will still take place in the Maryland gym.  The purpose of having this meeting, even though there are no planned changes to the Maryland Montessori Program, is to inform parents of the change, answer questions and give an overview of the current and future vision of Maryland Avenue Montessori School.

I would like to thank each member of our school community for your continued dedication and commitment to our Montessori program and the positive results your efforts have on the students of Maryland Avenue Montessori School.  I continue to look forward to working for you and your children into the future.

Peace,
Joe DiCarlo, Principal