Bella Mente Family Newsletter 9/5/17

Dear Parents,

Goodness is about character - integrity, honesty, kindness, generosity, moral courage, and the like. More than anything else, it is about how we treat other people. Dennis Prager

I am sure you have considered the importance of building character in your child(ren). As you know, it is important to be academically prepared for the world, but it is equally vital to have good character. Individuals who are defined as having good character are more likely to be successful, hold leadership roles and be trusted by their peers. At Bella Mente, we strive to instill good character traits in the lives of our students. In fact, our school motto is "RRSP"- "Respectful, Responsible, Safe and Productive". We expect our students to make good choices by asking themselves, "is this following RRSP?" However, we also expect our staff and families to consider RRSP when making decisions. After all, parents and educators are the daily role models for our students. When speaking with your students each day and following up on the day's actvities, I encourage you to ask, "Were you respectful? Were you responsible? Were you safe? Were you productive?" Then, have them give you examples of ways they were showing those positive character traits. You can also use this as a dinner topic discussion and brainstorm ways you can show RRSP in your daily lives. For examples, see below:

How can I be:

Responsible:

* Consider the impact my actions will have on others.

* Use my time wisely.

* Make a plan for success.

Respectful:

* Be honest with myself and others.

* Speak to others with a kind tone.

* Listen to others when they are speaking.

Safe:

* Refrain from running in the hallways and classrooms.

* Be aware of my personal space when conducting physical activities.

* Listen to directions.

Productive:

* Make long and short term goals.

* Discuss those goals with my teacher and parents.

* Follow my work plan and ask for assistance when needed.

What's Happening at Bella Mente:

Adopt A Classroom

In light of the unimaginable events happening in Texas, lower elementary has decided to adopt 5 classrooms in need. We are eagerly awaiting contact information from 3 of the 5 classrooms and should receive this within the next few days. As for the other two classrooms, one is located in Houston, and the other is located in Humble. Our Houston classroom is a pre-K class, and our Humble classroom is a 3rd grade class. We are asking our lovely community to come together and donate whatever supplies we can to these classrooms in need. Next week in class, students will be writing letters to each classroom. A popular supply donation is an Amazon gift card, as this allows teachers to order things online, since they may not currently have the ability to drive from store to store.

Other supply needs:

Pencils

Erases

Notebooks

Paper

Craft supplies

Scissors

Drawing utensils

Backpacks

Lunchboxes

Folders

For these teachers, many of their students have lost their homes as well. If you are willing and able to donate supplies for those children, please see the list below:

Toothbrush

Socks

Shoes

T-shirts

Pants

Jacket

Hairbrush

Toys

**New items are preferred**Please bring all donations within the next two weeks, to Ms.Jessica’s classroom in Rm.214. We will contact you all on the grade levels of the other 3 classrooms as soon as we know. Thank you so much. “The worst of mother nature often brings out the best in human nature.”

Reminders:

School Hours:

Monday-Thursday

Primary 9:00-2:45

Lower 8:25- 2:55

Upper 8:15-3:10

Adol 8:15- 3:10

Friday:

Primary 9:00-11:45

Lower 8:25-11:55

Upper 8:15-12:10

Adol 8:15-3:10

Front Office Hours: 8am-4pm Monday-Friday

If you have yet to visit our year round forms page, we highly encourage you to visit the link and view all of the attachments. Information regarding bell schedule, supply lists, uniforms, donations, and more can be found at Forms and Downloads

Registration:

Please make sure that your registration forms have been completed and submitted to the front office. Registration is mandatory.

Uniforms:

Uniforms can be ordered via our webstore. All uniform orders that are placed in August will be received by the end of September. Orders will be processed every 2 months starting September.

Free and Reduced Lunch Applications:

Applications were processed. You will receive an approval or a denial letter within 10 school days via email. Fees on orderlunches.com will be updated accordingly.

Lunch Orders:

https://topnotchcatering.orderlunches.com/access.php

School Code: BMC1

Create an account. Once an account is created then you will need to assign a teacher to your student.

Mr. Hank's Corner

Upcoming info for Mr. Hank’s Corner:

September is Food Literacy Month. The class with the most “Green Thumbs Up” for having healthy snacks and lunches receives smoothies for the class. Help us “Grow Healthy Kids.”

Look to vote for your favorite lunch item this month. Only way is to order lunch. So many new exciting items. Super pumped.

Wednesday September 27th, at 3:30 first Health Wellness Committee meeting.

Want to volunteer in the garden or nutrition lab? Email me at Hstelzl@bellamentecharter.org

For more of Mr. Hank’s Corner go to https://www.bellamentecharter.org/what-s-growing-on

Upcoming Events

Please click on the link below to see details about upcoming events at Bella Mente:

School Calendar of Events

PTO Events

Look for news and information from your 2017/18 PTO coming soon!

STAR Education

STAR Education is pleased to offer before and after school care on the BMMA campus, as well as drop in care for occasional attendance.

NOVA enrichment classes will begin on September 18th; registration information will be coming soon. This session's classes are:

Mondays: Introduction to Minecraft (3:10-4:10)

Fridays: RockSTAR (12:15-1:15)

Sewing (12:15-1:15)

Contact Laurie at Lauriec@starinc.org for more information

Bella Mente Montessori Academy Ph. 760-621-8948

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