WEEKLY WONDERS
Charles Ellis Montessori Academy, September 20, 2021
"Any child who is self-sufficient, who can tie his shoes, dress or undress himself, reflects in his joy and sense of achievement the image of human dignity, which is derived from a sense of independence." Maria Montessori
Peace, Ms. Tanya
Important Dates
September 21- PTA Spirit Night at Chipotle
September 24- Donation Dress Down Day
September 25- PTA Parent Advocacy Workshop
October 8- Fall Break (No School!)
October 11- Staff Planning Day (No School for Students!)
October 12- Second Nine-Weeks Period Begins
October 18- Deadline for PTA Reflections Submissions
October 22- Drive-Thru PTA Fall Festival
School-Wide Grace & Courtesy Focus
The language for identifying/naming CREATIVITY in "The Self-Awakened Child" series by Jonathan Wolff:
- When I do something in my own special way, I am being creative.
- When I make something new that no one has ever made before, I am being creative.
- When I find a way to help myself or someone else fix a problem, I am being creative.
Publix Partners
Here's how you can enroll and participate in just a few steps:
- Visit publix.com/partners and select our school: Charles Ellis Montessori- Savannah, GA
- Provide your phone number every time you check out at Publix.
- Publix will donate a portion of qualifying purchases to our school!
COVID-19 Testing Sites
**Update 9/16/2021**
See updated list attached below.
Please see the attached PDF below for alternative COVID-19 testing sites.
Thank you for your help.
DDDD Supporting Ambucs
Please note: Students should follow the "Acceptable Dress for Non-Uniform Days" Guidelines on page 17 of the 21-22 Student Code of Conduct.
The mission for Savannah Ambucs is "Inspiring Mobility and Independence". You can check them out at Savannah Ambucs on Facebook or at savannahambucs.com. They include people with different abilities through their adaptive bike and bowling programs. They are a 501c3 organization. Proceeds from the Celebrity Bowlapalooza event benefit programs for children and adults with different abilities. These programs include-
- AMTRYKES- Specially Adapted 3 Wheels Bikes for Children and Adults with Different Abilities. Savannah AMBUCS gave away 45 bikes during the 2019-20 AMBUC Year!! Check out the facebook page- I bet you will see some familiar student faces!
- AMBUC Bowling for Adult and Children with Different Abilities- They currently have over 100 adults that bowl every Saturday from September to May. Children bowl periodically throughout the year also.
- Scholarships for Physical, Occupational, and Speech Therapy students from Savannah attending a program in Georgia or at The University of South Carolina or students in the PT and Speech programs at Georgia Southern.
- Scholarships for former students attending Savannah Tech.
Counselors' Corner
Upper Elementary and Erdkinder students received School Counseling Instruction this week on brain development and how challenges help our brains to grow. We talked about how to have a growth mindset, learning through our mistakes, and persevering to be successful.
If your child or someone you know could benefit from a bag of food for the weekends, please contact Ms. Rebecca regarding the Backpack Buddies food program. We proudly sponsor with The Collegiate Church of St. Paul the Apostle for this wonderful service to our families.
If there is anything that the School Counseling Department can support you with, reach out:
912-395-5470 x2
PTA Chipotle Spirit Night
Help raise funds for the Ellis PTA to support our school! Chipotle will donate 33% of all sales that use promo code G9GK4AY when ordering online. Pick up must be between 4-8 pm.
PTA Parent Advocacy Workshop
Got Questions about IEPs, 504s, and more?
Join us via Zoom on Saturday, September 25 from 9am-12pm for a conversation about Special Education Planning and Support. Register here. During this workshop we will discuss IEPs and 504s from start to finish, including the laws surrounding special education, Babies Can't Wait through a student's transition to college. We will explore the differences between an IEPs (Individualized Education Plans) and 504s and how to know what is best to ask for regarding your child. This workshop will also address how to prepare for your IEP/504 meeting, who you should expect to be there, who you can request to be there, and how to be assertive and advocate for your child. We will also discuss how to handle formal complaints, due process, and mediation. This workshop is sponsored by the Charles Ellis Montessori Academy PTA and is free to all participants.
PTA Reflections
Encourage your child(ren) to submit an entry to the PTA Reflections Competition!
The theme this year is "I Will Change the World By..." See the photo below.
All art forms are accepted: visual art, dance performances, literary compositions, film, and more! Click here for submission forms. If you have questions, email Amanda Fanelli, our PTA Reflections Chairman: ellisreflections@gmail.com.
We had three students place in the State finals last year, can we again "Change the World" this year?
All entries due (with forms in order and proper formats followed) to Ms. Lisa in the media center or to ellisreflections@gmail.com by Monday, October 18th. All entries will be showcased at the Drive-Thru Fall Festival on Friday, October 22nd!
Year-Round Update
From the SCCPSS District: The Year Round Update(YRU) form is available in the PowerSchool Parent Access Portal. This form allows parents/guardians the ability to update phone numbers, emails, and emergency contacts anytime throughout the rest of the school year. Data is updated immediately in PowerSchool upon form submission.
In addition, a link and acknowledgement for the SY 21-22 Code of Conduct is located on the YRU. This will allow schools to have anyone who has not acknowledged the SY 21-22 Code of Conduct do so by completing YRU form via the Parent Access portal.
Please note that addresses and parent/guardian names cannot be updated in the YRU. SIS will be launching a NEW online address update form very soon. Stay tuned!
Troubleshooting for parents:
- Have Parent log into their PowerSchool Parent Portal.
- On the left Navigation Pane (toward the bottom) click on “Year-Round Update ***Very Important Note: If the parent is unable to see left navigation pane or year round update please click the light blue arrow on the left hand corner and it should appear.***
- On the Year-Round Update Page Review the student’s information. The bottom of the form shows the Student Code of Conduct section. The Student code of Conduct link is clickable. Review the code of Conduct, check the acknowledgement box, type full name, and enter today’s date. Click Submit to save the changes.
Friendly Reminder:
It is imperative that we have up-to-date contact information for parents/guardians (including EMAIL addresses) in PowerSchool.
If you have access to PowerSchool with your parent account, please make sure that you have a valid email address (that you check regularly!) on file. If you do not have access to your parent account on PowerSchool, you can visit the SCCPSS website for information on how to obtain access.
If you don't have access to PowerSchool, you may email your student’s classroom teacher, provide them with your email address, and they will pass that information on to our student information specialists so that they can update your student’s account.
From the Clinic
For the health and safety of your student, please complete the 2021/2022 Ellis Student Medical Questionnaire regarding his/her medical conditions and/or allergies as soon as possible. This information will be an initial communication about the needs of your student and will be reviewed by the School Nurse. To ensure the proper care of your student, the information will be shared with the faculty and staff who interact with him/her and needs to be updated annually. Please complete a separate questionnaire for each of your students. Thank you for your help.
If your child is (or will be) absent for any reason, please email your child's teacher AND copy Nurse Chris on the email.
If your student is classified as a "Close Contact" with someone who has COVID-19 at school, you will receive a phone call from someone on the Ellis Contact Tracing team to pick them up immediately. When you pick up your student, you will be provided with a letter from Nurse Chris outlining further instructions including when your student will be allowed to return to the building. You can view that letter template on the Nurse's page of the Ellis school website for your future reference. It is also listed in the updated Ellis Family Handbook.
Contact Information:
Christine.O'boyle@sccpss.com
912-395-5474
Ellis PTA
The PTA is calling all local business owners to consider investing in our school by being a PTA Business Sponsor. See attached form below. We appreciate your consideration and help spreading the word out to our community about this great opportunity
If you haven't joined the PTA yet, please do!
Joining the PTA is a small but significant way to get involved in our school and to make a difference in the lives of our Ellis community.
WE NEED YOU!
There is still a PTA Committee Chair open:
Arts Enrichment
If interested in joining a PTA committee, contact Emily Salzer (emilycsalzer@gmail.com) or Kellie Groover (kellie.groover@focuslabllc.com), PTA Co-Presidents.
If you are a parent/guardian of a new Ellis student, request to join the Ellis PTA Facebook Group to connect with us.
Contact Us!
Principal
Ms. Tanya Melville
Ms. Ja'Dayia Coleman-Kennedy
jadayia.coleman-kennedy@sccpss.com
Information Specialist Clerk
Ms. Lucy Holloway
School Secretary
Ms. Patricia Solomon-Brown
patricia.solomon-brown@sccpss.com
Library Media Technology Specialist
PTA Teacher Liaison
Ms. Lisa O'Donnell
Email: Tanya.Melville@sccpss.com
Website: https://spwww.sccpss.com/schools/ellis/Pages/default.aspx
Location: 220 East 49th Street, Savannah, GA, USA
Phone: (912) 395-5470
Ellis Montessori Academy Website
Click here to view the new Charles Ellis Montessori Academy website.
SCCPSS Website
Please visit the SCCPSS website regularly for the most up-to-date district information.