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Maryland Avenue Montessori School
February / March 2021 Newsletter
Maryland Avenue Montessori Parents,
Virtual Learning Support
As we move forward with our virtual learning, I would like to again thank all of the students, families and staff for their dedicated work to continue the Montessori educational process during these challenging times. While not an ideal situation during the pandemic, I see wonderful growth and learning in our virtual classrooms. Teachers continue to develop high quality and engaging activities, and the students show amazing academic involvement and collaboration with their peers. I often see parents (especially of the younger students) actively involved in supporting their child while still allowing independence in their learning.
We all recognize that the cold winter months can be even more emotionally challenging for many children (and adults), and we acknowledge the need for more social-emotional connections, even if virtually. The teachers continue to emphasize these connections and activities with, and for, students during their virtual sessions. I encourage everyone to take some extra time for fun family connections at home to keep the positive connections and relationships flowing. Having extra empathy, kindness and understanding for each other (and ourselves) can be especially helpful this winter. Adding some physical activity at home or safely outside is another way to relieve stress and get out the extra energy that often leads to challenges in relating positively. Everyone’s emotional health can be supported with a little extra intentional attention.
To supports parents, we will offer “Wellness Wednesdays” with Ms. Corrie Porter, our school psychologist, and Ms. Jenni Hofschulte, our parent engagement coordinator. These evening virtual sessions will begin in March to provide a platform for discussion and resources for everyone’s wellness at home. Check out the school website or weekly e for details.
Black History Celebration
Thank you to all students and families who participated in our virtual Black History activities at home. A video montage of “Our Stories Our Song”, a celebration of Black Lives Matter (BLM) at Maryland Avenue Montessori (MAM) will be premiered on Thursday, February 25th at 6:00pm. Click http://www5.milwaukee.k12.wi.us/school/maryland/ to reach our school website to join the livestream under ‘upcoming events’. The video will be available for viewing 24/7 on our school website following the premier. We will continue our focus on BLM at MAM to increase our community cultural awareness with the online weekly book readings (found on the weekly e and school website) for students and families of all ages. Our goal is to add perspective to our own stories and stories of others through these readings and discussions, sharing our thoughts and realizations with the community. We will share additional student, staff and family stories and perspectives on the weekly e and website throughout the school year.
Parent - Teacher Conferences Sign-up begins Monday, March 1st
Virtual parent teacher conferences will be held on Wednesday, March 10th and Wednesday, March 17th from 3:15 – 7:00pm. Individual conference sign-ups are required through your child’s google classroom or Seesaw platforms. The sign-up forms will open on Monday, March 1st at 7:45am and will close on Monday, March 8th at 10:00am. Individual conference confirmations and links can be accessed on your child’s school google account calendar.
Report Cards
Trimester II Report Cards will be confirmed for parent viewing on Friday, March 5th at 4:00pm through your parent portal account. Paper copies of the report card will not be mailed home to families. They will only be available online.
If you have not yet set up your parent portal account, please contact Ms. Brenda Martinez, our school secretary, at 906-4800 to get the necessary information to establish your account and view your child’s report card.
Possible Return to School
MPS District administration and the MPS School Board of Directors have been discussing a possible hybrid return to in-person learning (Phase 2) this April. At a special January school board meeting, the board approved a motion to review the MPS re-opening criteria during the March board meeting cycle (no exact date set yet). The criteria include percentages of positive COVID cases in Milwaukee and staff vaccination rates. The school board will vote at a March board meeting to determine whether students will have the option to return to hybrid in-person learning after spring break in April (April 12 for K3 – grade 2, April 19 for Grades 3-8, and April 26 for grades 9-12). If the board votes to move to Phase 2 hybrid in-person learning, they stated that parents will still have the option to keep their child fully virtual at home. Go to the MPS homepage for more details of the MPS reopening plan and the school board motion for voting in March on a potential hybrid return to school in April. Whatever the decision of the school board, we will continue to work diligently to provide a safe and quality Montessori education for your child(ren). I will keep the school community updated as information becomes confirmed.
Enrollment
The school selection period (“MPS Kindergarten Enrollment”) to sign up for next school year is currently open through March 21, 2021. This enrollment period is the time for all families wishing to enroll a new student at Maryland Avenue Montessori to enroll online and receive an application confirmation.
Siblings of Maryland Avenue Montessori students who will be three years old by September 1, 2021 must apply online by March 21, 2021 in order to be able to attend Maryland Montessori in the fall. Please complete a new student application form online and ensure that the sibling preference is noted for preference in the lottery process. If you know of any families interested in attending Maryland Avenue Montessori, please encourage them to register online and connect to the school website for a virtual tour / information session. Please contact me, the school office or Jenni Hofschulte, parent engagement coordinator at hofschjr@milwaukee.k12.wi.us, with any questions regarding enrollment.
All current Maryland Avenue Montessori students do not need to re-enroll. Currently enrolled students automatically continue their enrollment year to year at Maryland Avenue Montessori.
Spring FUNDraiser
The MAM Fund, our parent Fund board connected to the MPS Foundation, is sponsoring a spring FUNDraiser to replace our annual Springfest event this year. The “Jaguar Jog” will provide a safe, family-oriented opportunity for everyone to get some exercise while raising money to support our school community. Sign up will begin in March for this May event. Watch for details!
Thank you for your continued support of your child’s education at Maryland Avenue Montessori School! Remember: Together, we can do virtually anything!
Peace,
Joe DiCarlo, Principal
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