Principals’ Paws Family Newsletter Published by the Principals of Mary Blount Elementary School
Volume 1, Issue 4		November 15, 2006
From the desk of…
			Mark Your Calendars Nov. 15: Progress Reports Nov. 16: MBE v. Maryville Christian, 6:00 Nov. 22: ½ day, dismiss at 11:00 Nov. 23-24: No School Nov. 27: MBE v. Middlesettlements, 6:00 Nov. 28: MBE v. Walland, 6:00 Dec. 9-15: Elementary Basketball Tournament at Heritage Middle School Dec. 14: Bear Night, K/1^st performing, 6:00 pm Dec. 20: Last day before Christmas Break Dec. 21-Jan. 2: Christmas Break Jan. 3: Return to school Jan. 10: Report Cards Jan. 15: No School, Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday
We hope this newsletter finds all Mary Blount families doing well and enjoying a fantastic fall season. We wish to extend “Happy Thanksgiving” wishes to all Mary Blount Bears. We are truly thankful for all of our families. This newsletter is accompanying your child’s 2^nd nine-weeks progress report. The report should provide information on your child’s performance thus far in the grading period. If you have questions or concerns, please call 980-1430 to discuss with the teacher or to setup a conference. You may have heard your child come home this year saying that he/she went to CAMP at school today. CAMP is our new name for specials. The acronym stands for Character education, Art, Music, media, and Physical education. Check out the bulletin board in the lobby to view pictures of activities taking place in our CAMP classes. Please check out our updated webpage at… http://www.blountk12.org/Mbweb/Mary_Blount_Elementary.htm Ms. Patty Myers, our technology coordinator, has put many hours into making the site informative and user friendly. Thanks to the efforts of Tommy Hunt of Calloway Oil, Mary Blount has been awarded a $500 ExxonMobil Educational Alliance Grant. The money will be used to fund ink cartridges for classroom printers. Funded by the Exxon Mobil Corporation, the ExxonMobil Educational Alliance program is designed to provide Exxon retailers like Calloway Oil with an opportunity to invest in the future of their community through educational grants to neighborhood schools. On Wednesday, November 20, Standard Aero, our Adopt-A-School partner, will be providing milk and donuts for the students and staff at MBE. We appreciate all their efforts to support our school. We would also like to thank Texas Roadhouse for providing incentives for our students and staff. Our next Bear Night is scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 14 at 6:00 pm. We will begin the evening with classroom visits, 6:00-6:45. At 6:45, we will gather in the gym for the Kindergarten and 1^st grade Christmas performance. Please mark your calendars to join us for the evening. Report cards for the second grading period will be going home on Wednesday, January 10. REMINDER…read with your child 20 minutes each evening. Appreciatively~~Mrs. Bell and Mr. Murrell
			Mary Blount Elementary School 131 South Old Glory Road Maryville, TN 37801 Phone: (865) 980-1430 Fax: (865) 980-1428 Sandra Bell, Principal sandra.bell@blountk12.org David C. Murrell, Assistant Principal david.murrell@blountk12.org
The vision of Mary Blount Elementary School is to encourage a love of learning, prepare responsible citizens, develop lifelong learners, and cultivate a respect for diversity.

Balanced Literacy, by Ms. Robin Henry, MBE Literacy Leader

Blount County Schools endorses using a balanced literacy approach to teaching reading in all schools. Mary Blount Elementary uses the Four-Block framework to ensure that all children will learn to read, write, and spell. The Four Block framework includes: Guided Reading, Self-Selected Reading, Writing, and Working with Words. These are four different approaches that teach children to read. Daily instruction in all Four Blocks provides numerous and varied opportunities for all children to learn to read and write. Doing all Four Blocks acknowledges that children do not all learn in the same way and provides substantial instruction to support whatever learning style a child has. Children also have different levels of literacy. This approach uses a variety of formats to make each block as multilevel as possible, providing additional support for children who struggle and additional challenges for children who catch on quickly.

If you would like to see any of the Four Block components in action, please contact your child’s teacher to make arrangements to come visit during the part of the framework that you would like to see.

For more information on Four Blocks, visit the following website: www.wfu.edu/fourblocks

Note: Kindergarten uses a program called Building Blocks, which is the foundation for the Four Block Balanced Literacy Program.

Musical notes, by Mr. Craig Hurst, MBE Music Teacher

Music classes are getting geared up for the Christmas season.  Permission forms have been sent home for any 1st-5th grade student who would like to play a bell and sing at the Hometown Christmas tree lighting at the Blount County Courthouse on Thursday, November 30, at 6:45 p.m.  Mary Blount 3rd grade classes will be performing at the Townsend Heritage Center on Friday, December 1, at 10:00 a.m.  Our 1st grade classes will be performing at Standard Aero (our adopt-a-school partner) on Wednesday, December 13.  Our kindergarten and 1st grade classes will combine to perform for our Bear Night on Thursday, December 14.  Hope you can join us for one of our holiday performances! 

From the Bookshelf, by Ms. Joy Bivens, MBE Media Director

Our Mary Blount Bears will continue to be very busy in the library during the coming 9 weeks.  The K - 1 students will continue hearing stories that reinforce the Lifeskills and Life-long guidelines that correspond with the classroom teachers' themes for the 9 weeks.  Second graders have been learning about the early Appalachian culture through Jack Tales and will extend their studies this nine-weeks by studying Tennessee plants and animals.  They will conclude their studies with tying-in how pollution and recycling affects all plant and animal life.  Third graders have been learning about Native Americans and will continue this nine-weeks with studies of the early Americans settlers, the Pilgrims, and important men in history of the early American Revolutionary War era.  Fourth and fifth graders have started learning how to use reference materials and have just finished a study of the World Almanac.  During the coming nine weeks, they will be using reference materials to extend their Social Studies work on the Civil War era. 

The Scholastic Book Fair is planned for the end of January.  It will begin on Monday, Jan. 22nd and end on Friday, Feb. 2nd.

PTO Update

REMINDER…remaining cookie dough money must be sent in ASAP. If money is not returned, please return the cookie dough.

Continue to send in Food City receipts, used ink cartridges, and Campbell’s soup labels. We also have dumpsters at the south entrance for aluminum cans and newspapers. January is box tops month—please start collecting today.

We appreciate your support of Mary Blount’s students and teachers.