Pawprints

MARK YOUR CALENDARS

Sept. 11: Remembrance Motorcade

Sept. 14: Picture Day

Sept. 19: 5:30-7:30 Back to School Picnic

Sept. 25: Chat with Interim Superintendent, Dr. Darneika Watson; School Site Council Meeting

Sept. 27: PTA Dine Out

Sept. 28: Progress Reports are sent home

Sept. 29: Spirit Assembly - “Responsibility”

CHAT WITH INTERIM SUPERINTENDENT, DR. DARNEIKA WATSON

GUSD Interim Superintendent, Dr. Watson, will be visiting Monte Vista on September 25 at 9:00am to meet with Monte Vista families. Parents/Guardians are cordially invited to attend this meeting, when Dr. Watson will share information and answer questions about what our students learn at school and how parents can get more involved in their child’s education. Please keep in mind that this meeting is for Monte Vista families only. It is an opportunity for you to ask questions and share feedback directly with our Interim Superintendent. If you would like to submit a question before the meeting, please fill out this Google Form. You may also ask questions during the meeting. Feel free to email Principal Babayan if you have any questions.

MONTY TIMES

Calling all writers! The Monty Times needs you! If your 4th, 5th or 6th grader wants to create, investigate, write a story, write some jokes or edit a newspaper, have them come to the first Monty Times meeting on Wednesday, September 13 from 1:40 -2:30 to find out more. Meeting will be in Room 4109. Other meetings will be on 10/11 and 10/25.

CONSTRUCTION UPDATE:

• The date for the setting of the building which was tentatively set to start on September 11 has been pushed back to some time at the end of the month. A date has not yet been confirmed.

• Concrete was poured for the mechanical room.

SCHOOL FOCUS FOR 2023-24:

Based on our data from last year, our instructional priorities for the current school year are as follows:

• We will provide engaging and differentiated instruction to all students in mathematics incorporating real-life problem-solving scenarios.

• We will foster students’ social-emotional well-being with a focus on emotional regulation through community building and mindfulness strategies.

BOOKMARK CONTEST

The La Crescenta Library would like to invite students to participate in LA County Library’s 44th Annual Bookmark Contest, an annual program that encourages a love of books and reading while also promoting creativity, artistic expression, and community engagement. For more information, click on this link.

VOLUNTEER REQUIREMENTS UPDATE

All volunteers who work directly with students, will need to obtain the following clearance in order to do so:

• TB Clearance

• Registration on our RAPTOR system

• *Fingerprinting - for more than 15 hours per week (obtained through the district’s Human Resources Department). Please see the Front Office if you will be volunteering for 15+ hours during the school week.

NOTE: COVID Vaccine and negative test is no longer required.

CAR SIGNS

Help the process during Monty Lane pickup by printing the linked car sign (pdf or Word) and adding your child’s grade and teacher’s name. Then, place the sign on your dashboard on the passenger side of your car during pick up.

MEAL APPLICATIONS

Even though school meals are free this year, we need all families to fill out a meal application online whether or not you feel you would qualify. We need 100% participation. This helps our school receive funding and so much more. Apply at mealapp.gusd.net. Thank you.

DONATION REQUEST

The Monte Vista Health Office and YDAs are requesting disinfecting wipes and boxes of tissue. Please drop off to the front office. Any donation is greatly appreciated. Thank you!

FALL ENRICHMENT CLASSES

Afterschool enrichment classes will be offered by many different vendors this fall. These will be paid for by parents. See the flyers for more information on class dates and how to register.

• Academic Chess

• Dramamaniacs

• Kidtastic Science

• Parker Anderson

• Darin to Improv

VIRTUAL KOREAN CLASSES FOR PARENTS:

We are happy to announce that King Sejong Institute Center will be offering Korean language online classes for GUSD parents. This virtual program is designed to help GUSD families learn the basic Korean alphabet, sounds, and develop basic Korean language skills. Families with students in the Korean dual language program may consider learning Korean to help support students in the target language at home. Many shared that learning the same target language as their children has positively motivated their young kids to speak in Korean at home.

If interested, please see below for more information. Should you have any questions about the course offerings, please contact King Sejong Institute Center ksicusa@ksif.or.kr or email Unis Choi, FLAG Korean Teacher Specialist - uchoi@gusd.net.

BACK TO SCHOOL PICNIC

Please join other families and friends at Monte Vista’s Back to School Picnic on Tuesday, September 19th from 5:30 -7:30 pm! We will have IN-N-OUT and KONA ICE Food Trucks available. Please submit payment by September 14.

PTA DINE OUT at BAJA FRESH -- WEDNESDAY, September 27!

Take a break from cooking and get something FRESH! Join us on Wednesday, September 27th anytime between 3:00-8:00 pm at Baja Fresh in La Crescenta. The owner will generously donate 20% of the proceeds to our school. Order take out, delivery, or in-person, but you must type in or mention "Monte Vista PTA." Recommendations from the owner for an optimal restaurant experience:

• Order ahead (and early) online @ https://www.bajafresh.com/ and schedule a pick-up/delivery time (the ASAP times may get delayed to meet in-person orders).

• Dine-in service available but limited seating

• If ordering in person, wait times will be higher than normal

• Remember to mention or type in comments Monte Vista PTA

• Lastly, please be patient. The team is currently understaffed and working extra hard to make your order FRESH.

Your Dineout Chairs,

Margaux Chan and Danielle Bell

JOIN THE PTA

We need your help to reach our 100% Membership goal! As of this week, we are at 80% of our goal school wide! Please see the current classroom membership %: Doom 43%, Sesay 59%, A. Kim 41%, Gershen 38%, S. Kim 70%, Fong 48%, Nakano 68%, Smith 64%, HARVEY 119%, Stephan 77%, Cho 75%, Vroman 63%, Blessinger 77%, H. Kim 87%, Pardo 64%, Weingarten 36%, Tahk 96%, Nelson 72%, R. KIM 100%, Oh 65%, Son 64%, C. Kim 89%, Yniguez 71%, Kang 69%, Widholm 56%, Lee 78%. If you are joining online, please include your child’s name and teacher. There are currently 63 members that I don’t know which class they’re in.

EACH CLASS that receives 100% membership, which is one PTA member per student, will receive popsicles! We will also identify the highest percentage in membership for primary and for upper grades and those classes will receive a special pizza party! The deadline for classrooms to earn both incentives is September 29, 2023.

We can accomplish this goal by getting one PTA Member per student at Monte Vista. Each $10 membership positively impacts ALL students through advocacy at local, state, and national levels.

There are other perks to being a PTA member! PTA members can save money on everyday purchases thanks to these National PTA Member offers. PTA Benefits

Please review the Membership Flyer or on our Monte Vista website. You also join online on Totem.

~ Mary Klausner

DOLLAR-A-DAY CAMPAIGN

Unfortunately tax dollars simply don’t fund all of the enrichment programs and events that our school provides for our students. Our PTA Dollar-A-Day contributions are what make these programs possible:

• Primary Music Program

• PE for Primary Grade students

• Monty’s Science Night

• Assemblies

• Carnival

• Red Ribbons Week

• and SO much more!

None of this could happen if not for your generous donations. How can you help? We suggest a contribution of $1 for each day of the school year, for a total of $180 per student. BUT ANY AMOUNT MAKES A DIFFERENCE! 100% of your contribution is tax-deductible and goes directly toward enriching our children’s education.

• Each student who turns in $180 will receive a pair of custom Monte Vista socks.

• Each family that contributes $180 or more will be recognized on the Monte Vista website.

Please look for the Dollar-A-Day Campaign Flyer in next week’s Thursday Folder. To qualify for these incentives, please remember to remit your donation by Friday, September 29, 2023.

– Brenda Sullivan

REFLECTIONS ART PROGRAM 2023-24 | I am Hopeful Because…

Calling all budding artists! Did you make something special over the summer you'd like to share with the world? Start preparing your submissions for this year's Reflections Program, "I am Hopeful Because...". Drawings, paintings, poems, stories, photography, dance, film, music and more are all welcome! All grades (K-6th) are eligible to submit entries as well. More information can be found here and the digital submission form is now OPEN! Entries are due by October 13th!

~ Jessica Baron, Reflections Chair

GROCERY & LABEL REWARD PROGRAMS

Did you know that our PTA can earn money when you grocery shop at Ralphs? Learn more HERE. Flyers will be available in this week’s Thursday folder!

- Emily Geller, Grocery & Label Programs Chair

MONTE VISTA PTA INSTAGRAM

Follow our PTA on Instagram @monte_vista_pta and get updates on what is happening with our PTA in real time! #instagram #pta #weloveMV

Monte Vista Elementary serves students in grades K-6. We are a National Blue Ribbon School offering one of GUSD's FLAG dual immersion programs in Korean. Recently, Monte Vista has been selected as a 2022 California Pivotal Practice (CAPP) Award Program winner!

Website: https://www.gusd.net/montevista
Location: 2620 Orange Avenue, La Crescenta, CA, 91214
Phone: (818) 248-2617
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/montevistagusd

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/montevistagusd