MVES Newsletter

January

16- End of Semester

16- End of 2nd Grading Period

17- NO SCHOOL- Teacher Workday

20- NO SCHOOL- Holiday

20- Marcos Spirit Night

21- 4th Grade to JMU Planetarium

22- Growth Assessments

23- Growth Assessments

24- Geography Bee 9:00

31- Report Cards Issued

One of the joys of working with elementary-aged children is being around their natural curiosity and eagerness to learn. At Mountain View, we want to encourage that mindset to flourish so we are implementing monthly “club days” as we start the second semester.

Under the leadership of 3rd Grade Teacher Ms. Heidi French, MVES will be having several club days during the school day this year [made possible by funding through a grant provided by Merck]! On club days, club time will occur during the start of the school day so all students can participate and then we’ll operate on an adjusted instructional schedule the rest of the day.

A wide variety of science and health-themed clubs will be open to all 3-5th grade students! Pre-K-2nd grade students will be participating in classroom activities related to STEM experiences, or seasonal and health-related activities with their classmates or grade levels during this time.

Students have had a blast picking their club choices this week and are getting sorted into clubs based on their top 4 choices and interests. In order to give students the chance to explore, they will be able to pick a different club each month! As a school, we are excited for the opportunity to provide these unique experiences for our students! Be sure to ask you child(ren) about it!

Help provide the teacher meal for Conference Day on 2/18. Sign up to provide a part of the meal, setup/clean, or donate and the PTO will purchase needed items.

Jan. Week 1: States of Matter - You're a Magician! Make Milk Into Plastic!

Observation: There is a LOT of plastic in the world!

Question: Can plastic be made out of something biodegradable?

Materials:

• Paper Towels

• Sieve

• 2 bowls (one to mix in, another to catch liquid)

• 1 cup of whole fat milk

• 1 TBSP Vinegar

• Microwave

• Optional: cookie cutter

Investigation:

• Measure 1 cup of whole fat milk & microwave for 30 - 40 seconds in a microwave save cup/bowl until warm & frothy, but NOT boiling!

• While milk is heating, measure 1 TBSP of vinegar (or lemon juice) into a bowl.

• Once the milk is warm, pour it into the vinegar. It should start to curdle immediately, continue stirring.

• Place the sieve into the other bowl (to catch the liquid) and line it with 4 papertowels; pour the mixture into the sieve when ready. (It takes about 20 minutes to filter out the liquid.)

• Take the solid part that is left and press/squeeze it in dry paper towels, changing them out until the liquid is gone.

• Form the solid into a shape or cut out a shape using a cookie cutter.

• Place in a window to dry for 24 hours.

Results:

• Take a picture and submit it to your teacher on SeeSaw!

Reflection:

• What would happen if you made a double batch?

• Research: How long does it take for milk plastic to decompose? Is it safer for the environment?

Reference

Youtube Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QulxqE4XY9M&t=84s 6/11/24

The Duke Dog Reading Program is back for the 2024-2025 school year! The reading goal for students in grades K-3 is 5 books and the goal for students in grades 4-5 is 3 books. Once students have reached their goal, parents fill out the submission form at dukedogreading.com and students will receive 3 digital tickets for each of the following games, which admit the student and 2 additional guests to this season's Duke Dog Reading JMU Basketball Games:

Women's Basketball: December 29th, 2024 vs Troy
Men's Basketball: January 4th, 2025 vs Arkansas State
Women's Basketball: February 15th, 2025 vs Old Dominion

More information can be found in the attached parent letter!

If your child is going to be absent from school, please call the office at 540-438-1965 or email mvesattendance@rockingham.k12.va.us. If you are planning to take a vacation or your child will be out of school for an extended period of time, please contact the office. Thank you!

All transportation changes must be made by 2:00pm. Please contact the office at 540-438-1965 or you may send an email to mvesattendance@rockingham.k12.va.us with your change. If you’ve notified your child’s teacher please be sure to notify the office as well.

The parent portal is an online portal accessible anywhere on the web that parents can log in to and see all of their children in one place, their grades, assignments, scores, attendance, schedules, and teacher comments for each school your children attend.

Parents need to contact the school to get access information to create an account in PowerSchool.