2008-2009 School Calendar
Sept. 2 08-09 School Year begins.
Sept. 27 All School Picnic
Oct. 1,2,3 School Pictures
Oct. 13 Columbus Day, School closed
Nov. 11 Veterans Day, School closed
Nov. 14 AMS Conference, School closed
Nov. 24-28 Thanksgiving Holiday week, School closed
Dec. 19, Friday Last Day of School before Winter Break.
Dec. 22 - Jan. 2 Winter Break. School Closed.
Jan. 5 School Back in Session.
Jan. 19 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day School Closed.
Feb. 13, & 16. Presidents Day Weekend, School Closed.
TBA Evening Open House
Apr. 3 Last day of school before Spring Break.
School Closes at 3:30 p.m. No Child Care
Apr. 6-13 Spring Break.
Apr. 14 School Back in session.
May 25 Memorial Day. School Closed.
June 5 Sixth Grade Graduation.
June 9 Last day of school. School closes at 3:30 no childcare.

Tax ID #
For income tax purposes our Tax ID# is 95-2975393


!NOTICE ALERT!


Please click on the above icon then use our
online store ID: 889782

School Library


Our school library is now in place with storybooks, fiction books and biographies. Of course each classroom has its own collection of books but additionally we wanted to give our children the experience of “going to the library”. We also have a Parent Section and invite parents to come in from 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m., have a cup of coffee and visit our Library. We wish to thank all of our parents who have helped to make our Library possible by donating money and books. The Library is an on going “work in progress” and we welcome any help that you would like to offer.


Check out our "Student Creations!" Section. This Addition to our website brings a whole new way for you at home to admire the fabulous work our students do here during their school days. Currently Featured in our "Student Creations!" Section:
Book Reviews, Web Pages, and Art Work.


Diversity and Human Values

Respect for Diversity and Human Values is an important part of any Montessori program.

Diversity can be found in many areas of a child’s life such as cultural characteristics of holiday celebrations, mannerisms, practices, manners, dress and attitudes. We also find Diversity in the many patterns of the family make-up such as in multicultural families, single parent families, adoptive parents, same gender parent families, children being raised by grandparents and blended families with step-siblings and half siblings.

We are asking our parents to give us any other ideas you might have on Diversity. Please contact the office if there is any thing you would like to contribute. We look forward to hearing from you.

Security Gate

The school has a security gate at the front entrance. When the gate is not unlocked, parents and other visitors will need to press the buzzer and may be asked to identify themselves. Then a school staff member will buzz them in.

IMPORTANT NOTICE ABOUT CHILD CARE

This is a reminder that After School Child Care closes at 5:30.

We ask your cooperation in observing the closing time. This allows the staff members who are here to be free to lock up the school, putting Child Care materials away to get ready for the next day and to attend to all the other duties that are necessary for closing the school. Some of the Child Care staff leave the school and attend classes or keep other appointments they have. Also, when a teacher has late children after 5:30, that teacher cannot do his/her other end of the day responsibilities and must stay after 6:00 p.m. to finalize, which extents their eight hour work day to overtime.

We have intentionally set high the charges after 5:30 to discourage parents from being late in picking up their child/children. Please help us with this situation so that we can continue providing Child Care for our working parents.

Child-Care

Before school child-care begins at 7:00 a.m. After school child care ends at 5:30 p.m.

Dropping Off/Picking Up Students
The traffic flow and congestion is a serious problem at drop-off and pick-up times. We feel we have put much energy and time into finding solutions for helping to make the arrival and dismissal times easier and less hazardous for parents. One of the first things we did was to ask for advice from both police officers and city traffic department representatives about the installation of speed signs. We were told that we could have a "Slow School Zone" sign installed but not speed bumps, crosswalks, and speed signs or a crosswalk going across Pocahontas Ave. at the corner (we were able to get one painted across Hatteras St.). The traffic engineering and transportation department helped us get a loading zone approved. They painted the curb white to designate that it is to be used for a 3 minute drop off area for before school arrival and after school departure. Teachers are on duty to greet parents, sign children in and take them to the classroms so that parents can stay in their car and be on their way quickly. From 8:00 to 8:30 cars may not park in the front of the school for longer than the three minutes it takes to drop off their children. If you wish to bring your child into the school you must park in an appropriate location on the street and walk with your child into the school. For all the reasons above, we summarized our policy in the Parent Handbook which is given to each family with the enrollment packet in July.

Officer Brown from the San Diego Police Department has advised us about the hazardous driving situations that sometimes exist at arrival and dismissal time at our school. Following are some of the most serious ones:

  • Making U-turns in the middle of the street where there is less than 200ft. clearance;
  • Double parking;
  • Parking in crosswalks;
  • Parking across the street and running across traffic to the school side of the street;

Not only are parents teaching their children unsafe driving and parking practices, but also they are putting themselves and others in danger, as well.

The officer also warned us that traffic violation tickets will be issued for violations of the above. We understand some parents have already received such tickets.

We ask your cooperation in driving safely and helping us alleviate this serious problem.

Our Proactive Stance on Bullying

At Montessori Schoolhouse/Maria Montessori Elementary, we have always encouraged students to show their respect for their peers and teachers by using both kind words and actions. Our Human Values curriculum has as its primary focus, the development of self-respect and respect for others. We have always taken a proactive approach to the problem of bullying. It is far preferable to prevent bullying before it happens than to deal with the consequences after the fact. Now, both national and worldwide attention has also turned to the problem of bullying in schools and the often devastating effect it has on both victims and bullies.

Section 32051 of the California Education Code states "The commission of any act that is likey to cause bodily danger, physical harm or personal degradation or disgrace resulting in physical or mental harm to a fellow student or person attending the school is a misdemeanor". Bullying can be physical or psychological abuse and consists of "repeated harmful acts and an imbalance of power", according to a Dept. of Justice Study. Bullying affects the student's sense of security and self-worth. The victim may not feel safe to come to school and need the assistance of parents and teachers to restore his/her sense of security. The bully may be dealing with emotional challenges and need active intervention to prevent further incidents. In both instances, the school is the front line for combating bullying and its effects. We take this responsibility very seriously, and our anti-bullying program revolves around what the National School Safety Center calls "the three R's of bullying prevention":

  1. Rules- Parents and educators will demonstrate that they will not tolerate a student harming another student physically or psychologically.
  2. Rights - every student has the right not to be hurt by others and feel safe at school.
  3. Responsibility - Students will respect the rights of their classmates and themselves and report any incidents of bullying immediately. Educators will take active roles in preventing bullying by addressing this issue as a part of the Human Values program and teaching strategies for dealing with and reporting bullies. Educators will also intervene and inform the administration immediately when they witness incidents of bullying. Parents will quickly inform the school if their child has been involved in an incident of bullying so that we can take measures to prevent a reoccurrence and provide appropriate consequences.

We have always had a "no tolerance" policy for bullying, when we are aware of it. However, students have not always felt comfortable reporting it to us. In the past, we have often had to deal with the attitude that "boys will be boys" or been told that victims should "learn to be tough and take it" when they are teased or mistreated. Now, throughout the country, there is a climate in which bullying is considered an unacceptable behavior and the reporting of it, by victims and witnesses, is strongy encouraged. This rise in the national consciousness has fostered an "intolerance of intimidation" and we are no longer alone in addressing this issue.

Because we are educating young children, we know that their "bullying" is often the result of frustration, impulsiveness or thoughtlessness rather than cruelty. If we can address these issues early and provide the children with tools for handling anger, thinking before speaking or acting, and being empathetic when dealing with others, it is our hope that we can provide a learning environment in which each and every child feels secure and loved.

We also want children to know how to not be victimized and to be armed with strategies which will empower them if they are being bullied. We want them to know that it is ok to speak up, to tell and to ask for help when dealing with a bully. It does not mean you are a "tattler" or that you are "weak". It means that you are smart and know how to stay safe. We appreciate your support in our effort to create a safe and supportive school environment for the children of Maria Montessori Schoolhouse/Maria Montessori Elementary.

How You Can Support Our Easy Fundraising Programs

We are pleased to announce that the Box Tops for Education program has been a big success! According to the Box Tops web site, we’ve earned $1,600 over the years, including $350 in 2005-06! Just clip the red Box Tops For Education coupons from hundreds of participating General Mills products, and turn them in at the collection boxes in the coat room or at the childcare podium. There are some exciting new products this year including:
Saran Wrap, Hefty bags, Scott, Viva, Kleenex, and Cottonelle


And old favorites like:
-Betty Crocker products: Bisquick, Hamburger Helper, cake mixes, potatoes
-All General Mills Cereals including Wheaties, Cheerios, Raisin Bran, Total, Kix…
-Yoplait Yogurt, Yumsters, Go-gurt, Trix yogurt
-Old El Paso, Pillsbury
-Lloyds Barbecue - all varieties
-Ziplock bags
Also, look for bonus box tops on some grocery receipts which could be worth two dollars or more. Thank you for your participation in the fund-raising programs.


eScrip

Now it is easier than ever for you to help our school raise funds by using the eScrip program. Just by registering your grocery card, Debit, ATM, and credit cards online or by mailing in the eScrip registration form, a percentage of purchases you would be making anyway will be automatically deposited into the school’s eScrip account (Group ID # 4964778). Some of the participating stores include Vons, Macy’s, Pepboys, Eddie Bauer, Office Max, Pavilions, Big 5, Bristol Farms, Claim Jumper, The Neighborhood built by MCI. After you have registered, use your registered cards when paying for merchandise at participating merchants. Visit www.escrip.com for participating merchant locations, and cards accepted by each merchant.

This will be an ongoing fundraiser for our school this year.

Thank you for your support.