MPA Weekly Update - 2/14/2013

In This Issue Dates to Remember Boys' Basketball Math Night Third Trimester Electives Power of the Pen Event Title FYI: Dates to Remember February 2/15-18 - Friday/Monday - no school for students 2/20 - Wednesday - Boys' Basketball Tryouts at 4:15pm 2/21 - Thursday - Boosters Meeting, 6pm 2/22 - Friday - MS Invention Convention workshop after school; Boys' Basketball Tryouts at 4:15pm 2/23 - Saturday - Power of the Pen Regional Competition 2/23 - Saturday - Menlo Park Family Night/Monsters Hockey Game 2/28 - Thursday - End of trimester    March 3/1 - Friday - NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS (teacher in-service) 3/6 - Wednesday - Invention Convention 3/7 - Thursday - Chemistry Competition, 6pm 3/9 - Saturday - Destination Imagination 3/14 - Math Night for K-4th grade    April 4/12 - Friday - Lego Olympiad 4/26 - Friday - Spelling Bee 4/27 - Saturday - State Chemistry Challenge Canned Food Drive              February 8th - March 4th Girl Scout troop 70029 will be collecting canned goods for a Community Service Project for the Fairview Park Food Bank from 2/8--3/4. Collection boxes will be located on the 1st floor. Thank you for your support! Log your volunteer hours online  Your time is appreciated! Please log your current volunteer hours online, either on the netbook near the sign-in at school, or at home.  We are not using the paper logs to record your hours anymore - all hours MUST be entered into the computer if you want credit for them! Any hours you put in the paper log over the summer or earlier this year WILL be entered for you - you just need to enter your CURRENT hours. When in doubt, keep recovering students home  Parents, please remember that it is in all of our best interests to keep our sick students at home long enough for them to completely recover from their illnesses.  As the policy is described in the MPA Parent/Student Handbook, Students with communicable illnesses like conjunctivitis (pink eye), head lice, or a suspicious rash should not attend school. Students should also stay home if they have vomited or have had a fever above 100 within the last 24 hours. Calling All Photobugs!  If you've captured any shots of our students or staff during lunch, recess, electives, or special events like the science fair, we need your help!  Please e-mail photos you'd like to submit to us, and we'll use them to add more depth to our yearbook coverage for the year.  No guarantees we'll use your photos, but if you've got some good ones, we'd love to check them out! Weekly Update - 2/14/13 Quick Links Menlo Park Academy Website MPA on Facebook Shop with Scrips by 7pm on Sunday Report your volunteer hours School calendar  Classroom Websites (click on Classroom Websites tab) No School For Students  Friday 2/15 and Monday 2/18   Enjoy the long weekend - we'll see you bright and early on Tuesday morning! Grade Book     This week representatives from the teaching staff attended a Gradebook meeting with our provider for this service.  We are excited about these changes that should greatly improve our school home communication. More coming next week on the Grade k-3 format and and access to growth data.    Grades 4-8   Parent Alerts You may now set Gradebook to send you alerts for the following: 1.  Missing Assignments 2.  Low Grades (this can be personalized by content and level of grade to receive the alert) This function will provide parents an additional tool to support students for educational success.  Email alerts will go out on Friday mornings at 5:00 am.  This will allow families to optimize weekends to address assignments that may need completion or adjustment.  Click  here for a document that will guide you through setting up alerts. PASSWORDS?  If you do not know the user name and password for accessing Gradebook, please contact Lynn Wilson.  You will find attached a parent manual on how to manuever Gradebook for your information. Spring Boys' Basketball Tryouts  Continue 2/20 and 2/22 at 4:15pm The tryouts for the Boys Spring Basketball (Grades 4-8) team are being held from 4:15-6:00 on February 20th and 22nd at the Westpark YMCA. New, players must turn in medical paperwork into the school office before attending tryouts.  Teams will be announced on the evening of February 22nd. Any questions, you may contact Coach Willie at mpahoops@yahoo.com. The season for the Varsity Team starts on Saturday Feb 23rd and will play a 10 game season. The first two games on Feb 23rd and March 2nd will be at the Warrensville YMCA at 3:00pm. Then,  every Saturday from March 9th thru April 27th at the Lakewood YMCA on Detroit Road.  The JV season will be 8 games and will start on March 9th in Lakewood.  It will end on April 27th and play every Saturday as well. Times for the Lakewood games for both teams will be released in two weeks.  Invention Convention  Wednesday, 3/6/2013 Students in grades 4-8 who are participating in Invention Convention will be bringing their boards home for the long weekend.  The competition will be held Wednesday, March 6.  The Awards ceremony will be from 4:00-4:30pm that day.  Only students whose parents will be attending the ceremony should stay after school that day. Also, a note from Mrs. Eby: "The science lab is missing many materials due to students who borrowed equipment for their science fair projects. If you child borrowed a thermometer, graduated cylinder, measuring tape, safety goggles or some other piece of equipment, please ask them if they have remembered to return it to the science lab. Thanks!" Recess Assistance for MS Students Students may now use recess time to complete missing assignments  In an effort to better support our students with their missing assignments, we will be be providing teacher assistance during recess time to complete missing work or study for that tough exam. Recess Assistance (RA) sessions will be Monday through Friday and will be used as quiet time for students to work on their assignments, if needed. Any student can be referred for this time by a teacher. When this occures, tudents will be informed of  work they have missing and be provided copies of worksheets if needed.   Students may self refer to Recess Assistance if they feel a need for more study time.   Parents can also refer students to RA using the RA form . Students are expected to stay in RA for the entire block of time to complete quality work.  Recess Assitance teachers will work with students and check student work before they are dismissed to class. It will be noted in a student's planner if he/she attended Recess Assistance so that parents can keep informed.  Please contact Mr. Kennedyjim.kenndedy@menloparkacadmy.com if you have any questions about this new program. Parking during Lent Please respect St. Mel's parking needs   St. Mel will hold a service in the Church on Fridays at noon during the Season of Lent: February 15 and 22nd and March 1,8,15, and 22nd. The signs that are put in place in the parking lot in the morning indicating "parking for church only" will be left in place until the service is over.  Please respect the signs and marked spaces that are "For Church Use Only" at all times - even when you are picking up or dropping off students. Also, the St. Mel Fish Fry will be held on all Fridays during Lent. The Fish Fry is from 4-7pm.  St. Mel Parish requires exclusive use of the parking lot during this time on the following dates:  February 15, 22 and March 1, 8, 15, 22, and 29th.  Please plan to use street parking on these days if you are coming to the school between 4 and 7 to pick up students or attend a meeting. Communication with the School Call early if you need to change transportation for your student Calls to communicate changes in student transportation (i.e. - "Susie is going to be a bus rider today because my car is still in the shop") must be made prior to 2:30pm.   This gives Mrs. Wilson time to contact teachers to make sure that students receive the message about changes to their transportation.  Thank you for your cooperation with this important safety matter.   Shop with Scrips Sunday by 7pm  Vacationing Over Easter Break? BONUS rebates recently posted for Marriott & more.  Plan ahead & purchase SCRIP cards to pay your way.  Choose from HUNDREDS, including:  Panera, Starbucks, Chipotle, Subway & Wendy's to eat along the way.  Bon Voyage!   Remember to order this Sunday by 7 PM to ensure delivery for next Thursday's folder.   Make sure to  check the Scrip program website to learn about the current offers that earn additional funds for our school.    Quiz Night a Success!                      Congratulations to winning team: "Skips A Generation" Thank you to the 126 Menlo Park Academy family members and friends who came out to the Second Annual Quiz Night Fundraiser this past Saturday night at Brennan's Banquet Center! Our master of ceremonies, Willie Littlejohn and his family dazzled, challenged, and in some cases, stumped our teams with 9 intense rounds of trivia! We learned new facts - for example: it's illegal to burn feathers in Galesburg, IL. Between, the delicious food, exhilarating (friendly!) competition, amazing silent auction and raffle, and social atmosphere, we're already looking forward to the Third Annual Quiz Night! The winning Quiz Night team, Skips A Generation, contained many members of last year's winning team, who happily defended their title.  Congratulations to the Quiz Night 2013 winning team, consisting of: Grant Henson, Jennifer Henson, Molly Leib (Mrs. Leib), David Foxall, Sean O'Neil, Latha Srinivasan, Terri Sandu, Vasile Sandu, and Srikanth Sivashankaran.   Our thanks go out to all the volunteers who helped make this event a success.  We couldn't have done it without all the people soliciting donations for the raffle, organizing the food and location, and (of course) coming up with the trivia questions! Monsters Tickets being sent home next week                     Check your Thursday Folder The Monsters tickets will be distributed via the Thursday folders next week. Be on the lookout for them! The winners of the Broomball Intermission show have been chosen. Congratulations to the following children who were randomly selected; Brendan Akins, Andrew Beck, Hunter Caraballo, Jackson Coleman, Hayden Costa, Lauren Dalton, Nadia Didytch, Aidan Elliot, Natasha Garlauskas, Jordan Howlett, Kate Johnson, Maeve Kelly, Jacob Kodicovic, Kiernan Kovach, Liam Kovach, Jonathan Lin, Vincent Lin, Miles Monnette, Max Tonsing and Alexandra Watters. Winners will receive special instructions as to when & where to meet for the intermission show. The next Boosters meeting will take place on Thursday, February 21st in the school gym at 6:00 pm. If you would like to be a part of conversations regarding upcoming events, please feel free to join us! Information can be submitted via email to: communications@menloparkacademy.com for review and inclusion in the weekly update. Submissions are subject to Director approval.