MVES Newsletter

December

16- Marcos Pizza Night

17- Wildlife Assembly

17- Smiley's Fundraiser Night 5:00-9:00

18- 4th & 5th Grade FLE

19- 4th & 5th Grade FLE

DECEMBER 23-JANUARY 3 NO SCHOOL WINTER BREAK

On Saturday, December 14th, Mountain View teachers and West Rockingham Ruritans will be partnering together to barbecue some delicious chicken! All profits will go to our ongoing campaign to improve the play spaces for our hardworking students!

Chicken halves are $5 each and a quart of white beans is $4.

If you preorder (which is highly encouraged), please bring cash payment to Mountain View when you pick up your order between 8:30-10:30am on Saturday, December 14th.

Thanks for your support!

Pre-Order here!

For some reason, it’s hard for me to believe that Mr. Larry Wenger is going to be retiring from driving bus #91. At the young age of 89, Mr. Wenger’s last day driving will be Friday, December 20th.

Educators are different. They come in all shapes and sizes. They are driven by purpose and passion, not profit or profile. Mr. Wenger has been an educator nearly his entire life. He loved teaching and taught for several decades before he decided it was time to step away and begin driving the school bus. He continued to share his knowledge of the stars with his students on the bus. He never stopped learning and growing. Mr. Wenger measured his days in hearts and minds, not in weeks or years. We should all be so blessed to love what we do for as long as he did.

After last week’s newsletter, a parent reached out and asked me about alternatives to cell phones for their upper elementary child. When my son’s were old enough to stay home alone, ride their bikes to a friend’s house, or go play at one of the many parks in Bridgewater, we bought a prepaid cell phone. It was a great option since my wife and I wanted to wait until 8th grade before they got a cell phone. For other options, check out this article: https://www.commonsensemedia.org/articles/cellphones-and-devices-a-guide-for-parents-and-caregivers

Dec. Week 2: Simple Machines - Wheel & Axle-Pulley: Create a hand crank winch!

Observation: Work is HARD! One of the ways people are able to adapt is they are able to make machines that help make their work faster or easier.

Question: How can simple machines help make work easier?

Materials:

• Cardboard tubes (paper towel tubes)

• Empty Spool of Thread or ribbon (optional)

• Straw or a Pencil

• String

• Tape or Scissors

• Small Basket (or item)

Investigation:

• Tape the cardboard tubes (standing up) to a cardboard surface. (Use your pencil or straw to determine how far apart they should be.)

• Make two cut outs on the top of the cardboard tubes big enough for the straw to sit in and be able to move easily.

• Put your spool on the straw (or pencil). If you don’t have one, just tape the string to the straw!

• You can use a second straw’s bendy part to make a handle to turn!

• Attach the basket (or item) to the other end of the string and crank it up!

Results:

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

Conclusion:

• Did it work? Were you able to lift an object? Did it feel easier or harder to lift than just picking it up?

• Could you make a stronger winch using other materials?

Resource:

https://littlebinsforlittlehands.com/build-a-winch-simple-machine-recycled-stem-activity/ 6/11/24

Do you still need to order pictures? Our NEW Code Lookup Tool is now available. You can simply scan the QR code and follow the directions to access your child's picture ordering gallery. No need to contact Customer Service for an access code! *Student last name and Student ID number will be required for data security.*

If at any time you have questions about the Code Lookup or are having difficulty navigating the site, you can still reach out to our Customer Service team via the Live Chat on our website, www.strawbridge.net

We still need sign ups for cookies and gift cards!

Upcoming Spirit Nights

12/16 Marcos Pizza Use code MVES1016

12/17 Smiley's Ice Cream 5-9 Come for games and fun

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!

Be sure to check out updates from our Fine Arts here Fine Arts News.

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.