Principals’ Paws

Family Newsletter Published by the Principals of Mary Blount Elementary School

Volume 1, Issue 9

                                                       April 18, 2007

from the desks of Mrs. Bell and Mr. Murrell…

 

 
       Mark Your Calendars

 

April 24: Art Fest at Central Office,

               5-7 pm

 

April 27: Kindergarten Registration

 

April 30: Kindergarten Orientation at

               6:00 for new Kindergarten

               families

 

May 2: Breakfast Bunch, 8:30-9:30

            for 4th and 5th grade parents

 

May 4: Bear Run;

            Spring Sing at Fairview

            United Methodist, 7:00 pm

 

May 7: Current Events Bowl at

            Central Office, 6-8 pm

 

May 9: NO school at MBE for 5th

            graders; 6th grade 

            registration at WBMS, parent 

            information meeting at 5:00

 

May 11: Kindergarten Screening

 

May 21: Talent Show

 

May 22: last day of school, report

              cards, ˝ day (dismiss at

             11:00)

 

July 30: Registration for 2007-2008


We hope all MBE families are enjoying this spring season and looking forward to a strong finish to this school year.  This newsletter is being sent home with progress reports.  Please take time to review your child’s progress during the fourth grading period, and you may contact your child’s teacher if you have questions.

 

Upon receiving this newsletter, our 2nd-5th grade students will have just finished the state TCAP test.  Congratulations on a job well done.  We look forward to seeing high scores. 

 

We will be hosting 4th and 5th grade parents for our first Breakfast Bunch on Wednesday, May 2, 8:30-9:30.  Please RSVP to 980-1430 or david.murrell@blountk12.org.  We will be discussing school wide initiatives, parent resources, and our school improvement plan. 

 

Mary Blount’s annual Bear Run will be held on Friday, May 4.  Pledge sheets will be sent home the week of April 16.  With this year’s donations we will fund our computer replacement program, provide teachers with balanced literacy resources, make indoor and outdoor environmental upgrades, provide teachers with professional development opportunities, and install a water fountain on each playground.  With your help we can meet these goals.

 

We have two Summer School opportunities to share with you:

§         The Kindergarten Readiness program is available to students who will be attending kindergarten beginning in August 2007.  Enrollment information will be available in May.  The program dates are June 4-June 29.

§         The Sixth Grade Academy is a program that helps upcoming 6th graders transition to middle school.  The academy will be held at William Blount Middle School.  The dates for the Sixth Grade Academy are June 4-29.  Brochures will be sent home the week of April 16.  Please contact a 5th grade teacher for an enrollment form.

 

The state of Tennessee has set another tax holiday for April 27-29 on certain school supplies priced $100 or less on individual items.  A list of supplies may be found by calling 1-800-342-1003, email at salestax.holiday@state.tn.us, or website at www.Tennessee.gov/revenue or www.tntaxholiday.com.

 

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.

 

 

Hats off to…

 

  •  2nd-5th grade students who took TCAP tests April 11-17.  Great job on doing your personal best.  Special thanks goes to our testing coordinator, Ms. Tuck, and all classroom teachers, CAMP teachers, and assistants for a job well done in administering the tests.

 

§         MBE custodial staff for scoring 100% on the annual building inspection.  We are proud of our building and are thankful for the best custodial staff. 

 

Wellness Update
 

Many families have posed questions regarding the new federal and state wellness guidelines.  In this issue of the Principals’ Paws, we will address two Frequently Asked Questions:

 

1.  Does the new wellness policy prohibit taking kids to restaurants on field trip days?

NO.  The policy is applicable to all foods, on the school campus, during the school day.  If the teacher has approval to take the children off-campus for a field trip or as an incentive or reward, the policy does not apply.  Only foods provided on school campus are affected.  However, consistency of message to children should be considered and healthy food options encouraged.

 

2.  Can schools still have pizza parties or bring in other foods as incentives for kids?

A meal or food that meets nutritional standards may be used.  Parents, teachers and principals are encouraged to choose foods from an approved products list (from Principal or FS Manager) or order from the cafeteria. Better alternatives include extra recess, time on the computer, time to watch a curriculum related movie, etc. –research shows rewarding kids with food does not instill them with health eating behaviors. 

 

From the Bookshelf, by Ms. Joy Bivens, MBE Librarian

 

The end of the school year is always a hectic time in the library, but it seems even more hectic this year.  We are working on inventorying all the equipment in the school and will working toward closing up the library at the end of next month.

 

Our book fair was a HUGE success.  We sold a total of $15,089.82 worth of books.  Our part that we got to keep in cash amounted to $3,833.69, plus we received 150 books (cash value $682.84) for the library.  We've been spending our book fair profit to buy new VCR/DVD players for about half of the classrooms, approximately $1,000 worth of science and social studies DVDs to play in them, and approximately $2,400 for new books.  We're rushing around trying to get all of these new things cataloged before we have to inventory all the books, videos, DVDs, and teacher resource materials at the end of the school year.  We are also trying to round up lost and overdue library books.  Please check with your child to see if they have received any overdue notices and help us round up the "strays."  As always, we appreciate your help. 

 

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

 

The Mary Blount Talent Show will be held on Monday, May 21.  Students in grades 2-5 wanting to try-out for the show may do so during their regular music time after t-cap testing.  Kindergarten classes are now practicing songs for their end of the year program, which will be presented on Monday, May 21.  First grade classes are getting ready to perform songs for their Tennessee program, which will be presented on Friday, May 11.  Several 4th and 5th grade students will represent Mary Blount at the Elementary School Spring Sing on Thursday, May 3.  The final concert will be on Friday night, May 4, at Fairview United Methodist Church. 

 

 

Please check out our updated webpage at… http://www.blountk12.org/Mbweb/Mary_Blount_Elementary.htm