Congratulations to this week's Heroes Jonathan and Debbie. We hope you enjoy your up-close parking spot.
A Note to Debbie Santy, TK Aide:
Thank you Debbie for always being willing to do what is best for our team and for the care of our students. You continually go above and beyond what is asked of you and when you see a need, you step up to fill it. I am so grateful for you and it is such a blessing to work alongside you everyday! Heart.
Jonathan Brown, Middle School Math Teacher:
For this week's Hero Highlight, I want to nominate Jonathan Brown! I admire how Jonathan expresses how much he cares for each of his students through not only his interactions with them but how he takes the time to talk to them about "life" and how they are doing, not just focusing on math. Speaking of math, how awesome is it that he can go from teaching Geometry one period to integrated Math 7 another and then make math fun and interesting in integrated Math 6. That is a gift!! He was a huge lifesaver during serve week from all the work he put into helping out with the games and activities at the beach to leading students to help out in various ways at lighthouse and the food bank. For these and so many other reasons, Jonathan is definitely deserving of our Hero Highlight of the week!
Is there any better way to start your teaching day than to be greeted by Mr. Brown's gospel songs coming up the stairs each morning? What a man of God and a team player! MCS is no easy place to walk into when you are only teaching one prep...let alone however many he has. Mr. Brown has a clear calling from God not only to teach kids math but to speak straight into their hearts. Not only has he fit right in with all three grade level teams, he is not afraid to step up whenever and wherever he is needed. Whether this be leading the gentlemen in dancing for that ridiculous....ly awesome video at the beginning of the year or volunteering to speak at chapel after only being here for a month. On top of all of this, MCS hired one man not expecting to get the whole Brown family who are always joyful and happy to jump in wherever needed, a testament to Mr. Brown's legacy both in and out of school. That all said, it is a pleasure to have him on our team and we are excited to see how God will continue to use him at MCS and beyond.
100% for HIS Bright Future
We Can Do It! 80% Family Participation by December 31st!
All-School In-N-Out Burger Bash Giving Incentive!
Let's reach 80% family participation by 12.31.18 so that all MCS students and staff can enjoy an All-School In-N-Out Burger Bash, underwritten by a generous alumni parent.
For details, please view the recent letter from our MCS Board of Trustees,
at this link..
From the Admissions Department
Sibling Applications for 2019-2010 OPEN!
Applications are now open for the 2019-2020 school year for siblings of current MCS students! We give priority to our current families applying for new siblings, and space is most limited in TK, Kindergarten, and 7th grade. Apply today! Please contact Ashlee Cowell [email protected] or Gisela Roufs [email protected] in the Admissions Department with any questions.
It's Not Too Late to Sponsor HOPE BEAR for the Toy Drive
It's not too late to sponsor a HOPE BEAR for the toy drive. The toys and HOPE BEARS that have been collected will be used on Monday during chapels to fill "Backpacks of Hope". This is a student led Difference Maker project, and the goal is to fill 300 backpacks that will be given to children in the hospital, foster children and children experiencing homelessness. All of our MCS students will get to write an encouraging note that will go into one of the backpacks during chapel.
All parents are warmly welcome to join Parents in Prayer on Monday weekly at 8:15AM in the ASP Room to pray for our school community. Please contact Kristen Derbyshire at
[email protected] if you have questions.
Elementary Highlights
UPDATE ON Helping the Homeless Difference Maker Initiatives
Thank you for your partnership in our Socktober Drive and the Fall Food Drive. We were excited to see our Help for the Homeless student led Difference Maker team lead Blessings Bags chapels for all elementary and middle school students. Each student present got to make their own blessing bag to keep in their car so that they are empowered to care for those in need while on the go with their families. We could not have done this without your generous partnership in the Socktober and Fall Food drives!
Please see the
attached IMPACT REPORT for more details on these projects and the impact on the local community!
MCS students presented their mobile apps at the AppJam+ Fall 2018 Showcase Finale held at UCI this week, the culmination of the MCS after school Mobile GameApp Creation class offered to 5th-8th students. During the 10-week class, our students were mentored by UC Irvine computer science and engineering students and supported by MCS Director of Technology and Maker Education Mrs. Rodriguez.
Congratulations to our 5th Grade Team, the Laser Chickens (pictured above), who took 2nd place at the competition. All of our teams did a great job but the competition was stiff!
January 2019
An Invitation for MCS Parents
MCS Parents are invited to stop by the front lobby for Starbucks coffee, morning treats, and fellowship. The dates are 1/9, 2/13, 3/13, 4/10, and 5/8. Hosted by the MCS Advancement Department, we hope to have a cup of coffee with you!
In The Know
Choice Lunch
Please remember to order Choice Lunch for your student(s) for December and January. Thanks so much!
www.choicelunch.com.
All Lost and Found Items Donated the Last School Day of the Month
Please note that lost and found items will be donated at the end of the school day on Friday, December 21st. Please take a moment to look for your lost items periodically.
Volunteers Needed!
Looking for a great way to volunteer that can fit your schedule? Lost and found distribution would love your help. There are lots of items wanting to find their owners! Please contact Jen Crowell at
[email protected] for more information.
Happy Birthday & Spirit Rock Fun!
December
Leilen Shelton 12/8
Christopher Lucas 12/10
Gisela Roufs 12/12
Natasha Lomakin 12/15
Sady Amend 12/28
Crystal Willis 12/30
January
Robin Walker 1/1
Sue Celek 1/2
Keven Kroehler 1/3
Troy Moore 1/5
Vanessa Gentry 1/11
Mirranda Parks 1/11
Jennifer Crowell 1/12
Kristin Knecth 1/12
Dianne McVay 1/16
Melissa Pena 1/18
Lynda Lynch 1/21
Allison Skelly 1/22
Kelly Han 1/24
Trang Nguyen 1/31
This list is provided to you by our Parent Teacher Fellowship.
Spirit Rock - Celebrating the MCS Family
Happy 8th Birthday Myah. What a beautiful name!
Wishing you a wonderful year filled with lots of love ~ blessings to your sister too!
Happy 13th Birthday Sage. Wishing you much success in your baseball career.
There are still a few spots open for those of you who want to celebrate something special on the PTF Spirit Rock:
https://tinyurl.com/PTFSpiritRock
If you would like to share your special rock design and person in E-News, please forward your photo to
[email protected].
Middle School E-Newsletter
H I S
"The earth is [His] and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it." Psalm 24:1 NIV
12.07.18
Chapel Recap
"Uncelebrated, unnoticed, courageous obedience," that's what made Joseph an unsung hero of the events surrounding the birth of Jesus! This week in chapel, Mr. Hellriegel shared how Joseph obeyed the calling on him to raise God's son, and how we can also courageously live out God's calling on each of our own lives! To see video footage of this message, please visit our Middle School Instagram Page
@mcs_middleschool_lyfe.
Held on the outdoor courts. Please attend all 3 days of tryouts.
*8th Graders will not attend tryouts on Wednesday, December 12th, and Wednesday, December 19th, due to private high school test prep with Mrs. Thurston. Tryouts on those Wednesdays will take place in PE class.
GO LIONS!
Middle School Share2Wear December 10th Tacky Christmas Attire
For our December Share 2 Wear, we held a Toy Drive last week. All middle schoolers were asked to donate card games of any kind (
see the Toy Drive details in last week's E-Newsletter). If your child forgot to bring in 1 or more decks of playing cards last week, they may bring cards in on Monday morning, and still participate in wearing Tacky Christmas attire. We want to fully embrace the Christmas cheer by wearing tacky Christmas sweaters, reindeer antlers, elf hats, other tacky Christmas accessories, and all things red and green!
Please remember that in order to participate in the dress day, the students must bring a deck of cards or card game for the Toy Drive by Monday morning (12/10).
They will also be able to wear their tacky Christmas attire straight to the Middle School Christmas Skate Party later that afternoon. (see details below).
MCS Middle School Christmas Party December 10th
Date/Time:
Monday, December 10, 2018, 4:00-6:00PM (please account for Monday afternoon traffic in your commute from MCS or home)
Location:
Fountain Valley Skate Center 9105 Recreation Cir, Fountain Valley, CA 92708
**All students should already be wearing their Tacky Christmas attire from our Share2Wear day at school that day! This includes Christmas Sweaters, Christmas accessories, Santa hats, reindeer antlers, red and green attire, etc
Other Details:
The FVSC Snack Bar will be available (food items ranging from $1-$5)
Parents may drop off any time after 4:00 pm and pick-up is promptly at 6:00 pm
MCS Staff will chaperone
Light refreshments provided
Must bring socks for rented skates, or students may bring their own skates
No need to RSVP, students just show up!
Middle School -
It's Not Too Late to Sponsor HOPE BEAR for the Toy Drive
It's not too late to sponsor a HOPE BEAR or bring in a deck of cards for the toy drive. The toys and HOPE BEARS that have been collected will be used on Monday during chapels to fill "Backpacks of Hope". This is a student led Difference Maker project, and the goal is to fill 300 backpacks that will be given to children in the hospital, foster children and children experiencing homelessness. All of our MCS students will get to write an encouraging note that will go into one of the backpacks during chapel.
Middle School students who participate in this month's SHARE will get to participate in this month's WEAR on Monday, December 10th!
UPDATE ON Helping the Homeless Difference Maker Initiatives
Thank you for your partnership in our Socktober Drive & the Fall Food Drive. We were excited to see our Help for the Homeless student led Difference Maker team lead Blessings Bags chapels for all elementary and middle school students. Each student present got to make their own blessing bag to keep in their car so that they are empowered to care for those in need while on the go with their families. We could not have done this without your generous partnership in the Socktober and Fall Food drives!
Please see the
attached IMPACT REPORT for more details on these projects and the impact on the local community!
We are offering four review sessions to help our MCS students prepare for private school entrance exams, specifically the High School Placement Test (HSPT) and the Independent School Entrance Exam (ISEE). Math and English will be reviewed in each session. All four sessions will be different, so we recommend you attend all four. Students are encouraged to purchase the HSPT or ISEE test books available at Barnes and Nobel or online. Any version of the HSPT or ISEE test book is fine. Please have your child bring the book to each session.
Students may attend any or all of the following sessions:
Wednesday, December 5th (3:00-4:30pm)
Wednesday, December 12th (3:00-4:30pm)
Wednesday, December 19th (3:00-4:30pm)
Wednesday, January 9th (3:00-4:30pm)
Location: Meet in Mrs. Thurston's room at the start of each session
The sessions are long, but are designed to allow review of both Math and English. We will also provide a short snack break. These sessions should provide a good stretching of our students' "test endurance." Generally, entrance exam testing periods are three to fours hours in length. Most middle school students are not used to sitting and testing for so long!
All four sessions are included in the $40 fee. Your FACTS account will be billed after the first session you attend.
Please RSVP to [email protected] if your child will be attending any sessions.
***Please let us know if you'd like to donate snack items for these review sessions. It would be much appreciated by the hungry students.
We have launched a "Shalimar Connections Club" where middle school students have the opportunity to plan the games, devotionals, and activities that they then get to lead at the Shalimar Learning Center. We are thrilled to be expanding our relationship with the children in the Shalimar community to also include a partnership with Think Together, the organization that runs the after school program at The Shalimar Learning Center.
In October, 24 middle school students jumped into building relationships with children at The Shalimar Learning Center through the language that all kids speak - PLAY! They played ice breaker games, taught the students a special dance to "Together" (High School Musical) that was choreographed by our Theatre Arts students, and 8th grader (Delara Gitibin) led the students in a devotional that focused on their unique gifts and talents and identity in Jesus! We finished our time in the community with free play at the park in the center of the neighborhood which provided an opportunity for our students to play and connect with the kids who live there. We are ALL looking forward to our next visit in December! We are grateful for the opportunity to build these relationships and connections.
There is still plenty of opportunity for our middle school students to get involved! Any students interested in getting plugged into the Shalimar Connections Club should attend the next lunch club meetings on December 6th and 13th to plan for the December 14th Shalimar visit!
High School Information
Corona del Mar High School: Prospective Parent Night for parents who are looking for an option for the 2019-20 school year. Held on Tuesday, December 11, at 6:00PM in the CDM Learning Resource Center. If you have questions, please contact Julie Rahmatulla at 949.515.6037.
Newport Harbor High School: Tours of NHHS will be held on Wednesday, December 12th, 12:00-11:30AM, and on Thursday, January 17th, 10:00-11:30AM. All 8th graders and parents are welcome! No reservation necessary. Questions? Please contact Diana Long at
[email protected] or 949.646.1556, ext. 1
Crean Lutheran High School- UPCOMING EVENTS December and January: Prospective students and families are cordially invited to attend these upcoming December and January events.Questions, please contact Mrs. Tara Mathis at [email protected].
School will be closed December 24th through January 4th as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Thank you for your partnership in our Socktober Drive and the Fall Food Drive. We were excited to see our Help for the Homeless student led Difference Maker team lead Blessings Bags chapels for all elementary and middle school students. Each student present got to make their own blessing bag to keep in their car so that they are empowered to care for those in need while on the go with their families. We could not have done this without your generous partnership in the Socktober and Fall Food drives!
Robin Walker 1/1
*Boys Basketball: 
For our December Share 2 Wear, we held a Toy Drive last week. All middle schoolers were asked to donate card games of any kind (
The sessions are long, but are designed to allow review of both Math and English. We will also provide a short snack break. These sessions should provide a good stretching of our students' "test endurance." Generally, entrance exam testing periods are three to fours hours in length. Most middle school students are not used to sitting and testing for so long!
We have launched a "Shalimar Connections Club" where middle school students have the opportunity to plan the games, devotionals, and activities that they then get to lead at the Shalimar Learning Center. We are thrilled to be expanding our relationship with the children in the Shalimar community to also include a partnership with Think Together, the organization that runs the after school program at The Shalimar Learning Center.
