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Wednesday, April 25, 2012

MPA Newsletter, 4/25/2012


Congratulations to the Busnawi family, the winner of last week's "are you paying attention" drawing.  A Red Robin gift card will be coming home in Shaira's Thursday folder.  Keep up the good work - and keep reading, you never know when I'm going to throw another drawing into the newsletter!

(Side note - yes, there are a lot of attachments that went out this week.  Please be sure to review them - there was a LOT of information to get out this week, and we decided to rely on the attachments to get some of it across, rather than having the main e-mail be 48 pages long.  So don't assume that you can safely skip the attachments - there's something in there for virtually everyone this week!)

Student Information

Just a reminder - in the mornings please do not line up for student drop-off before 8am.  Lining up early blocks parking spots that our teachers need to use, and makes it more difficult for the families who are dropping their children off for Edison Club.  Thanks for your consideration!

Congratulations (again!) to the boys' basketball team.  The Wizards split a double header Saturday at the Lakewood YMCA.In the first game, the Wizards beat the Bucks 29-13. Zach Peacock led the team in scoring with 10 points and Ojas Nadkarni had 8 points. It was the Wizards' third win in a row this season. In the second game, we were a little tired mentally and physically and the Wizards lost to Ridge Wood Academy 28-18. Again, Zach Peacock led the team in scoring in this game also with 11 points. I was really proud of their effort on the court. It has been a blast working with our team and the parents were rocking the building with cheers...as usual! The Wizards are now 3-1 in the Spring League, but remain in first place with 4 games left to play!

Congratulations to all Menlo Lego Olympiad participants! We had a record number of students participating this year with a total of 140 students and 50 teams. Menlo students once again showed their creativity and design skills and took home a number of prizes.  In fact, we had so many winners that we don't have room to list them all here!  Check out the attached document for a list of the winning teams.  Way to go, Menlo!

Just a reminder that the deadline for submitting "Shout Outs" for the 2011-2012 MPA yearbook has been extended to Friday, April 27th.  A "Shout Out" is a short message you can send to your child or a teacher in the pages of the yearbook.  It’s a way to say, “We’re proud of you” to your favorite student(s) or “thank you” to your favorite teacher(s). The cost is: 1-15 words $5.00 16-30 word $10.00.  Submit the attached form with your payment by Friday to be included this year.

Bee ready! MPA's All-School Spelling Bee is this Friday, April 27! Congratulations and good luck to all of the participants. The Bee will start at 8:45 a.m. in the Gym. The study word lists were sent home with the participants but can also be found on the school's website at: http://bit.ly/Ip2k7K.

Regarding Teacher Appreciation days: Because this is a surprise for the Teachers/Staff, please know the students have not heard about it from the school – so students will not know about it unless we the parents tell them.  So please talk with your child about doing the special things described in the message which went out last week, as it is an important part of Teacher/Staff Appreciation.   (FYI - Teachers/Staff get a copy of this newsletter so I cannot disclose what students are suppose to bring in - check the Thursday folder for more info.) Please tell your child to place their things in their classroom in the bag labeled “ for Mrs. Daugherty” by next Tuesday, May 1.  (Look to the Thursday folder for more information and/or the letter emailed to the parents last Sunday).  

To help make Teacher/Staff Appreciation “Extra Special” if anyone has new items, gift cards, etc. that they can donate to a raffle please email Janelle Daugherty at jldoc29@yahoo.com so that I know to look for it.  Please submit donated items to “Janelle Daugherty” by May 1st and list your name, your student’s name and teacher with each donation so that you can be recognized for your generosity at Teacher/Staff Appreciation.  Any questions, thoughts, suggestions or recommendations can be sent to Janelle Daugherty at jldoc29@yahoo.com or call her at 216-481-1680.   Thanks for your support of this important event!

Check your Thursday folder for information on purchasing tickets to the Crushers baseball game on Sunday, June 3rd. Everyone attending the game (including MPA students) needs a ticket, which will cost $9 each.   

Save the date: The "Young Authors" books our students have been working so hard to finish will be displayed Tuesday, May 8th.  Books will be available in the hallways until 6 pm, so people can come by anytime to read them.

Attached please the flyer for the Student Council Carnival being offered to students in Grade K-4 afterschool on Thursday, May 17th.  Your student can enjoy the St. Ignatius Circus Company, snacks, and carnival games.  Registration is required by May 8th - no late registrations will be accepted, so make sure to get your form in promptly! 

Is your Middle Schooler thinking of a career in a STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) field? Then mark your calendars for Thursday, May 24, 2012 at 6:30 p.m.! The STEM Enrichment Committee is pleased to announce a Middle School STEM Career Night where students can learn about different STEM careers and have one-on-one conversations with professionals in those areas. More information to come in a future newsletter! If you have any questions about Middle School Career Night, or are a STEM professional who can volunteer to speak with students that night, please contact Grant at granthens@gmail.com.

Field Day is Friday, June 1st As in previous years, we are dividing the school into two teams and will provide a t-shirt for each student.  Student t-shirts are free, and will be used for Field Day and the Crushers baseball game on June 3rd.  T-shirts for adults and siblings who do not attend MPA are available for only $5.  The order form is included in the Thursday folder and a copy is attached if you prefer to print it yourself.  Don't wait - order now!

Calling all basketball players!  Dates for the second annual MPA boys' basketball clinic have been announced!  The clinic will be held Wednesday, July 25 through Friday, July 27th, from 9:30-3:30 each day.  See the attached flyer for more details - and reserve your spot early so you don't forget in the rush to plan other summer activities!

Speaking of summer activities, are you looking for camps, contests, or activities to keep your gifted child busy this summer?  Check out the attached flyer for a pretty comprehensive list of possibilities, both in Cleveland and further afield.

Also attached to this message - the March issue of the student newspaper.  Great job, kids!

Development Information

Attention Box Tops collectors!  It’s the final days of the Classroom Box Tops Challenge 2011-2012!  Send in your (trimmed) Box Tops for Education in a bag or envelope labeled with student’s full name, grade, and teacher by Monday April 30 The top classroom wins a pizza party with the 2 runner up classrooms winning a popsicle/ice cream party!  Current leading classrooms are: Nagy, Rokas, O’Donnell, Schroeder, Shuder, and Thompson.  So round up the Box Tops and get ‘em in by Monday!

Please join us in thanking the Olympic Steel Corporate Citizenship Committee for their donation?  The group chose MPA as the organization to support for the month of March.  They hosted a jeans day along with other activities to benefit Menlo Park Academy and the money they collected was donated to the school.  Thank you so much for your support!

Sooooo, is there something you've forgotten to do?  Or maybe have been putting off, figuring you'll get to it later?  If "actually paying the amount you pledged to the MPA annual fund" is one of those things, please consider taking care of it today.  Pledged amounts can be sent to the attention of Tanya Reno, who is also happy to answer any questions you have about completing forms for your employer's matching gift program.  Feel free to contact her at Tanya.Reno@MenloParkAcademy.com with any questions you have.  And thanks, as always, for your support!


Volunteer Information

On May 7th, 8th, and 9th we will be celebrating our wonderful Teachers and Staff during Teacher/Staff Appreciation Week.  If you would like to volunteer to help with the activities planned for those days, please email Janelle at jldoc29@yahoo.comIf you have previously volunteered, but have not heard from Janelle this week kindly email her again so that she can make sure everyone is included. Thanks very much for your support!

The Student Council Carnival is being offered to students in Grade K-4 afterschool on Thursday, May 17th.  We're looking for parent volunteers to help supervise at this event.  Student Council Members will be running the event, butwe need adults to help supervise the participants.  If you can help out, please contact the Student Council advisor Marilyn Hahn at mhahn@cdcare.org.

Calendar Highlights:
  • April 26 (Thursday) - Seventh and Eighth Grade field trip to see Romeo and Juliet
  • April 27 (Friday) - School-wide Spelling Bee; basketball practice 4-6pm
  • April 28 (Saturday) - Quiz Night; Invention Convention; basketball game at 2:15 at Lakewood Gym
  • April 30-May 4 - Eighth Grade field trip to Washington D.C.; Sixth and Seventh Grade field trip to Mohican
  • May 4 (Friday) - Basketball practice 4-6pm; Third Grade overnight field trip at the zoo
  • May 5 (Saturday) - Basketball double header at 1:15 and 3pm at Lakewood Gym
  • May 7 (Monday) - Candid and group photo day for the yearbook
  • May 8 (Tuesday) - Young Authors book viewing day at school (open until 6pm)
  • May 10-11 - Fourth Grade field trip to COSI in Columbus
  • May 14-17 - Iowa Tests for grades K-4; Explore Tests for grades 5-8
  • May 17 (Thursday) - 3:30 - 5 pm K-4 Carnival Sponsored by Student Council
  • May 18 (Friday) - No school; 6:30 - 8:30 Middle School Dance
  • May 21 - 25 - Student Council Sponsored Spirit Week
  • May 24 (Thursday) - Middle School STEM career night, 6:30 pm
  • May 25 (Friday) - Volunteer Appreciation event
  • May 28 (Monday) - No school (Memorial Day)
  • May 29 - June 1 - Eighth Grade Celebration Week
  • June 1 (Friday) - Field Day at Lakewood Park
  • June 3 (Sunday) - Crushers baseball game, 5:05pm in Avon
  • August 26 (Sunday) - Back to School picnic at Lakewood Park
If you've got something you'd like to share with the school - a need for volunteers for your school event, an exciting achievement your child has made outside of school, or anything else you think MPA parents should know about - send the information to Gretchen Woods at avonhokie@yahoo.com.  The submission deadline for the weekly newsletter is each Wednesday at noon.

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