Please see below for Mrs. O’s Spotlight for the week of February 3. You can also click here for a PDF.
Week of Feb. 3
Mon., Feb. 3 Book Drive through Feb. 6
Cyber Minecraft, 3:30-4:30, rm. 214
Intro to Minecraft, 3:30-4:30, rm. 219
Hip Hop, 3:30-4:30, gym
Claymation, 3:30-4:30, rm. 163
K Daisies, 3:30, rm. 236
Tues., Feb. 4 Book Drive
Big Learning for K-1, 3:30-4:30, rm. 159
Art Escapades, 3:30-4:30, rm. 163
Guitar, 3:30-4:30, rm. 165
Chess, 3:30-4:45 pm, media center
MSA Basketball, 3:30-4:45 pm, gym
PTA Meeting, 7:00 pm, Media Center
Wed., Feb. 5 Book Drive
Beginning/Intermediate French, 8:00 am, rm. 240
Intermediate French, 8:00 am, rm. 223
Spanish Intro, 8:15 am, rm. 212
OM Giraffes, 3:30 pm, rm. 154
Fitness Fun, 3:30-4:30, rm. 103
Gr. 4 Juniors, 3:30-4:30, rm. 239
Beginning Spanish, 3:30-4:30, rm. 235
Chess, 3:30-4:45 pm, Media Center
Thur., Feb. 6 Last day for Book Drive donations
Open House for next year’s kindergarteners/parents, 9:30-11:30 am
Beginning Chinese, 3:30-4:30 pm, rm. 218
Big Learning for 2-4, 3:30-4:30, rm. 148
Art Escapades, 3:30-4:30, rm. 163
Adventure Theater, 3:30-4:30, rm. 128
Tae Kwon Do, 3:30-4:30, rm. 120
i9 Basketball, 3:30-4:45 pm, gym
Gr. 5 Parent Orientation for Cabin John MS, 7:00 pm, Multipurpose Rm., CJMS
Fri., Feb. 7 Wear your Bells Mill Spirit Wear today!
Open House for next year’s kindergarteners/parents, 9:30-11:30 am
Intermediate Spanish, 8:00 am, rm. 239
OM, 3:30 pm, Media Center
Play-Well TEKnologies Legos, 3:30-5:00, rm. 163
A Look Ahead
Feb. 8 Movie Night, 6:00-8:00 pm, APR
Feb. 13 Parent Resource Meeting, 7:00 pm, Media Center
Feb. 14 Class Valentine Parties, 2:00 pm
- The Book Drive begins Monday, February 3! Here’s a chance to recycle the books your children have outgrown. From Monday, February 3, through Thursday, February 6, please send in your donations of gently used books. Donation boxes will be located in the main hall. On Friday, February 7, all students will have an opportunity to choose and keep a book from the books collected. Teachers will then select from any remaining books for classroom libraries, and the rest will be donated to non-profit organizations. What a terrific way to give our children a wonderful book to read!
- Parents and their future kindergarteners for the next school year are invited to Kindergarten Open House. Parents and their future kindergarteners may choose to come on either Thursday, February 6, or Friday, February 7, 9:30-11:30 am to observe a typical morning in a kindergarten classroom (we ask that younger siblings not attend). Our tentative dates for Kindergarten Orientation are Thursday and Friday, April 10 and 11 (by appointment). Parents should contact the school to get their child’s name on our list.
- On Monday, February 3, 2014, Superintendent Joshua P. Starr will be visiting our community. Dr. Starr will spend the day meeting with staff and students as he visits schools throughout the Bethesda Chevy-Chase, Winston Churchill, Walter Johnson, Richard Montgomery, Rockville, Walt Whitman, and Thomas S. Wootton clusters. He will end this Community Day with a Town Hall meeting for parents, where you can ask questions and share your thoughts and ideas. The Town Hall meeting will be held from 7:30 to 9:00 p.m. at Winston Churchill High School, 11300 Gainsborough Road in Potomac. Free child care (ages 4 and up) and interpretation services will be provided. For more information, visit the MCPS website at www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org and search “Community Days”, or call 301-279-3100. I hope you will be able to join Dr. Starr at the Town Hall meeting on February 3.
- Attention Grade 5 parents, you are invited to attend a parent orientation meeting to learn about the registration process for 6th grade, Thursday, February 6, 7:00 pm, Cabin John MS Multipurpose Room.
- Bells Mill students are invited to Bring Your “A” Game on Thursday, February 6, when the 8th-ranked Maryland Women’s Basketball Terps host Pittsburgh at Comcast Center at 7pm. Elementary and middle school students can claim a FREE youth general admission ticket when they present a report card or school assignment with an ‘A’ grade (or a ‘P’ or ‘ES’ grade for elementary school students) at the ticket window on game day.
- Superintendent Joshua Starr is recommending that MCPS consider changing school start and end times, also known as bell times. MCPS would like to hear from you. The remaining forum is at 7:00 pm, Monday, February 10, Montgomery Blair HS, 51 University Blvd., East, Silver Spring. Free child care (ages 4 and older) and interpretation services will be provided. For information about the bell times proposal and ways you can provide input, visit www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org, search “bell times.”
- Mark your calendars! July 7-25, 2014, we will again offer Camp Bells Mill for students entering grades K-5. This is our popular summer learning camp taught by our own teachers which prepares students for next year. In March students will bring home letters containing registration/tuition information.
- Prekindergarten and Head Start registration begins on March 3 and will continue through the summer. These programs offer a high-quality educational experience for children in order to prepare them for success in kindergarten and beyond. Children must be four years old on or before September 1, 2014, and families must be income-eligible to apply. For more information about eligibility guidelines, locations, and times of community registrations or required documents to complete an application, call 301-230-0676 or visit www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/earlychildhood/prek/.
- Sign up for AlertMCPS to receive text messages or emails from MCPS during weather-related emergencies and other major events that impact school system operations. You can also sign up to receive alerts specific to your child’s school. AlertMCPS messages are available in both English and Spanish. Visit http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/emergency/alertmcps.aspx to subscribe.
- The George B. Thomas Saturday School works in partnership with schools to address the academic needs of students. Students continue to be enrolled at the Saturday School’s 12 locations throughout the county. There is a one-time registration fee of $50 ($30 for free and reduced-price students). Payment plans are available. For registration information, http://www.saturdayschool.org/programs/enroll.shtm .
- Student Transfer Application Season Begins Feb. 3. Montgomery County parents/guardians who wish to request a Change of School Assignment (COSA) for their children may begin the process during the upcoming transfer season, which starts on February 3. All COSA requests must be submitted no later than April 1, 2014. The transfer process begins in the home school, where parents/guardians may request the Change of School Assignment Information Booklet that contains the COSA form, describes the process and provides useful information. Beginning the first week of February, the COSA booklet will be available in schools and online. The booklet will be available in English and Spanish.
- Superintendent’s Book Club event is set for Feb. 19. You are invited to join Superintendent Joshua Starr at a Book Club discussion on Wednesday, February 19, at 7:00 pm in the auditorium of the Carver Educational Services Center, 850 Hungerford Drive, Rockville. The Book Club will discuss Making Hope Happen by Dr. Shane Lopez, a senior scientist with the Gallup organization, who will join Dr. Starr for the discussion. The book introduces readers to the scientific study of hope, its power, how to create it, and how to teach it to others to lead happier, more successful lives. Parents, staff, students and community members who wish to be a part of the studio audience for this free event are asked to RSVP to [email protected]. Those watching online or on MCPS TV (Comcast Channel 34) can participate in the conversation by sending questions via Twitter (using the hashtag #mcpsbookclub) or by sending an email to [email protected]. Visit the MCPS website at www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org and search “Book Club” for more information.