PTSA Pulse vol. 8: December 11-15, 2017

Post date: Dec 12, 2017 3:38:45 AM

GIRLS ON THE RUN COMING TO HOYER?

We are trying to raise at least $2,000 by January 31 to bring a Girls on the Run team to Hoyer Montessori this Spring! GOTR-DC is trying to expand into Prince George’s County, and in order to address the expansion costs, they are asking all potential teams to raise money toward the expansion. (For more information, check out http://www.hoyermontessoriptsa.org/news-events/news/gotr-at-hoyer.) Please donate today on our team page (http://bit.ly/hoyer-gotr-2017) and share this with your family and friends.

INTERESTED IN GOING TO THE NATIONAL PTA LEGISLATIVE CONFERENCE?

Join fellow PTA advocates from across the country for National PTA’s in-depth conference focused on bringing your advocacy efforts and skill sets to the next level. Get ready to hit your advocacy goals out of the park! We have budgeted for one PTSA member to represent our local unit at the National PTA’s 2018 Legislative Conference. The conference is on March 13-15, 2018 in Arlington, VA. If you are interested in attending, please contact officers@hoyermontessoriptsa.org by Wednesday, December 13, 2017.

UPDATE FROM THE MONTESSORI ADVANCEMENT COMMITTEE

One of the charges of the Hoyer PTSA Montessori Advancement Committee is to follow county and state public school activities that impact our school including budget discussions and school infrastructure plans (the Capitol Improvement Program, CIP). We work to insure that the school is represented in testimony and bodies in seats during important Board of Ed meetings. We coordinate lobbying activities in Annapolis to further our children's educational needs and make sure that funding is appropriated.

If you are interested in getting involved, below are dates where we will seek Hoyer parent and scholar participation in the process! Keep a look out for more information as the year progresses. These meetings are held at the Sasscer Building in Upper Marlboro.

December 14, 2017: PGCPS CEO Dr. Maxwell presents his school system budget to the Board

January 23 and 30, 2018: Public testimony on the budget

If you'd like to keep active and learn more about these opportunities, feel free to reach out to MAC Chair, Jenn Porcari (Jennifer.porcari@gmail.com)

GIVE BACK TO THE SCHOOL DURING THE HOLIDAYS

Don’t forget that there are ways you can give back to the school while shopping for the holidays:

  • When buying from Amazon, don’t forget to check out at https://smile.amazon.com. Amazon will donate 0.5% of your eligible purchases back to the PTSA.
  • Shopping for photobooks or holiday cards? By going through http://hoyermontessoriptsa.shutterflystorefront.com, 13% of your Shutterfly or Tinyprints purchase will go toward the school.
  • Looking for activities to do with your students during winter break? Check out https://www.certifikid.com and use the promo code JPH to get $5 off your $30+ purchase and give $5 back to the school.
  • Doing most of your shopping online? Don’t forget to sign up and go through the eScrip online mall (http://www.escrip.com) first. Not only do they have promo codes and coupons, you can also earn money for the school through your purchases.

INTERNATIONAL NIGHT UPDATE

Mark your calendars! The new tentative date for our first International Night will be in February 2018. Please stay tuned for more details to come, and if you’re interested in helping out or participating, please reach out to Rashida Prioleau (secretary@hoyermontessoriptsa.org).

CALLING ALL VOLUNTEERS!

We would LOVE to move forward with some of our planned projects this year, but WE NEED YOUR HELP! No task is too small, so check out this list of tasks that could use your help and let officers@hoyermontessoriptsa.org know if you would like to take on one (or more!) of them.

Playground Improvements

  • Solicit feedback from students and school staff about what the most important/dire playground needs are.
  • Research possible solutions to those needs.

Hoyer Fun Run

  • Co-chair the Fun Run committee.
  • Solicit sponsorship or donations from companies. (This is actually easier than it sounds. We will provide the template and list of companies, and it’s just a matter of copy and paste and a little follow-up after.)
  • Research possible projects (such as MakerSpace) to highlight as our big project for the 2018-2019 school year.

PLEASE SEND IN YOUR ART SUPPLIES!

Please don’t forget to send in much needed art supplies for Ms. Parham’s class if you have not gotten them for your student(s). If you need the list, visit the PTSA website: http://www.hoyermontessoriptsa.org/news-events/news/ptsa-pulse-vol7

GET WINTER ALERTS FROM PGCPS

Winter is coming! Get the latest news about PGCPS emergency notifications, school closings and delays through:

You can also call the PGCPS Weather Line at 301-952-6000 (option 1) or tune into PGCPS-TV (96 Comcast/38 Verizon) and local news outlets for updates. For more information about the emergency weather plan process and other procedures: http://www.pgcps.org/weather/index.aspx?id=115324

SHARE YOUR INPUT ON THE PGCPS 2018-2019 CALENDAR

The PGCPS Calendar Committee is working to develop a calendar that fits within Governor Hogan's mandated start time (post-Labor Day) and last day for students (June 15) for Maryland public schools. Please visit http://bit.ly/2BAqun8 to open the community survey. Be sure to click on the two links at the top of the survey to view both versions of the school calendar before submitting your input.

UPCOMING SCHOOL EVENTS

Tuesday, December 12, 2017 from 4pm to 5pm: Montessori Model UN Information Session

Join Ms. Marquez and a couple of MMUN parents for a presentation about MMUN. The parents will talk about their children’s experiences. They will also discuss the things that parents need to do in preparation for the trip to the conferences. This meeting is open to all families who want to know more about what MMUN does and what it offers to help our children in being more active participants in shaping their future.

Thursday, December 21, 2017: Last day of enrichment clubs

Friday, December 22, 2017 at 9:45am: Winter Holiday Celebration

Join our students for the annual Winter Celebration. We will be joined by our special guest, Congressman Steny Hoyer. The doors will open at 9:15am, and the program will begin at 9:45am.

Monday, December 25, 2017 - Monday, January 1, 2018: Winter Break (Schools closed)