Mack Memo

Mack Memo ~ Parent Newsletter

11/16/2020

Mrs. Fiona Waller, First Grade Teacher

First Grade has had a busy few months to start the year. My Deep Hope is that we will discover beauty in our world, our friends, and ourselves as we seek to learn more about God's kingdom. We have learned about beauty in our world through our study of Genesis and the learning of God's

infinite care into the very creation of the world. We discovered beauty in ourselves and our friends in our first Social Studies unit, All About Me, in which we learned all about what makes each of us unique and special to God. In our Science unit, we learned about the invisible miracle that is air – God uses it to sustain our bodies every minute of every day. He also made it a powerful physical force, and we enjoyed discovering that as we created and tested rocket balloons last week.

This month, we used Operation Gratitude as an inspiration for our first Formational Learning Experience (FLEx). In addition to bringing in candy to donate, we spent time discussing in our classes what it means to show gratitude. We talked about the real people who would be

receiving the care packages from Operation Gratitude. We identified the real need- for all of us to show appreciation to those who give up their comfort and freedom to serve our country, and talked about how we could do that. Then we spent time doing real work – creating beautiful works of art and writing letters of thanks to accompanying the gifts of candy.

First Grade students put their hearts into their writing and creating a letter full of big words like appreciation, gratitude, and service is a big task for a young writer! But they did it, and I am very proud of the results of their hard work. We may not be able to go out this year, but we can still use our talents to share Jesus' love beyond our walls.

Reminders & Announcements

NEW COVID-19 Flow Chart

King County has released a new and detailed flowchart.

It is for teachers, staff and students to follow and is extremely helpful to know when your child can return to school should s/he present symptoms.

One important change to the guidelines is:

Flow Chart

If your child has only ONE short term symptom (see list of specific symptoms below) AND that symptom resolves without medication within 24 hours AND they have had no known contact with someone with COVID-19, they can now return without COVID testing.

Thank you for completing the daily health screening on the Magnus Health App. For more on COVID-19 related information, please visit to our website.

Bus Service

Transportation guidelines during COVID-19

• Maximize outside air and keep windows open as much as possible.

• Encourage walking, biking, or being driven by caregivers as much as possible.

• Riders and staff members must wear a cloth face covering.

• Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces.

• Keep riders as far apart as possible on the bus.

If your child rides the bus, encourage them to wear an extra layer of clothing or a heavy coat to keep them warm.

Nov.

EARLY DISMISSAL

As a reminder, school dismisses at 12:55pm tomorrow. There is no PM preschool on early release days.

NO SCHOOL

11/23-11/26 ~ Thanksgiving Break.

Parent-Teacher conferences for elementary students are scheduled for 11/23 & 11/24.

Please schedule your conference with your child's teacher if you haven't already done so.

Portraits & Class Photos

Order your child's school portrait and

class photos today

before PRICES GOES UP on 12/5.

Click here to order!

Giving Tree

This year, we have chosen the clients of Maltby Food Bank to be the recipients of this Christmas Giving Tree. The Mack family has consistently been a generous supporter of this organization and has an opportunity to help those less fortunate within our greater community.

As you prepare your holiday shopping list this year, please consider adding Maltby Food Bank to it. They are requesting a set per family that includes: dish towel, dish rag, oven mitts, dish soap, and a new sponge or scrub brush. Please avoid holiday themed items.

You can sign up to donate items in sets of 5 (ex: 5 dish rags), then leave them with us at drop-off or in the bin located in front of the office. The 6th grade class will assemble the sets. We will be collecting these from 11/30-12/8. Thank you in advance for your support and generosity.

Giving Tree Sign Up

Weekly Chapel

We believe the spiritual formation of our students is one of the ways we live out our mission, "To prepare young people to live faithfully for Christ." Our Director of Discipleship enhances the Christian discipleship and mentorship taking place at the school’s three campuses. Rev. Daniel Rogers (aka "Rev") hosts weekly Chapel services at our three campuses, produces videos and podcasts, prays with students, advises administrators, teachers and staff, and works closely with students to help them discover their gifts and give them away for the Glory of God and others. Your child watches each week's chapel in his or her classroom, typically on Tuesdays. You are welcome to watch this week's chapel by clicking on the button below.

Chapel

Parent Portal

Our Mack Campus Parent Portal is your best go-to resource as a parent. Everything from the school calendar, transportation, to COVID-19 news and your connection to RenWeb can be found there.

Preschool Highlights

Trees, Turkeys, and Zoo Animals

Last week Mrs. Underhill’s class explored fall themes, such as leaves, acorns, and trees. The children had a lot of fun making handprint trees with pumpkin seed leaves. Meanwhile Mrs. Wasson’s students learned about zoo animals and the letter Z. The children explored literacy by stamping animal names and painting zig-zags on letter Z’s at the easel, and one class got to design their own paper plate zoo animals. As part of her class’s focus on zoo animals, Mrs. Schroeder enjoyed sharing one of her favorite books, Good Night, Gorilla. Her students also learned about the letter Z and Noah’s ark.

Creating a turtle mosaic and painting a turkey

Mrs. Kaskes’ students turned their attention to letter T words, including turtle, tree, truck, and especially turkey! Among many activities, the children examined turtle shells at the science table, played with turtles in water at the sensory table, painted turkeys at the easel, and made collage pictures with hand print turkeys based on the story, Setting the Turkeys Free.

Student learning records will be going home this week right before our break. On our list of blessings this year is your children’s presence at Mack Preschool.

Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving!

Elementary News

Holiday Food Bank Needs

As we move toward the Thanksgiving and Christmas season, we love helping Maltby Food Bank be the hands and feet of Jesus by meeting the physical needs of those in our community.

One way we can do this is by donating items that help those in need.

Canned green beans
Canned Corn
Canned Fruit
French Fried Onions
Cream of Mushroom Soup
Canned Cranberry sauce
Boxed Stuffing Mix
Instant Mashed Potatoes
Canned/Jarred Gravy
Chicken or Turkey Broth/Stock
Salad Dressing
Cake Mixes
Frosting

Sugar
Flour
Oil
Canned pumpkin
Spices (cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, nutmeg)
Canned Sweet Potatoes/Yams
Olives
Pickles
Canned milk (sweetened condensed or evaporated)
Jell-O
Pudding Mix
Apple or Grape Juice

They would also appreciate donations of frozen turkeys or ham. They can be delivered directly to Maltby Foodbank at 21104 86th Ave SE, Snohomish, WA 98296 Tuesday thru Thursday between 9am-4pm or call (425) 344-1490 to schedule a different time.