Peace • Love • Park Maitland
#Empathy
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Dear Parents,
It is almost here, that much anticipated first day of the new school year! The campus is brimming with excitement! Teachers and staff returned this week rejuvenated and ready to begin a wonderful new school year. We look forward to seeing all of you at our Meet and Greet events!
An important reminder:
One of the most exciting things that happens each school year is that the students have the opportunity to meet new teachers and make new friends. This important part of school allows children to gain confidence and new skills. On that note we make the following request:
As parents, you want to do everything possible to help your children achieve in school and in life. One thing you can do to teach them confidence, perseverance, or "grit" is to give them opportunities to accept and adapt to change, make new friends, and handle little "bumps" in the road.
Please remember, our teachers and administrators use their best professional judgment in creating the class groupings for the upcoming year. They know their students very well, not only as individuals, but also as learners. Each child's "style of learning" is of paramount importance. Experiences of learning to adapt,
synergize
, and be with a new group of friends are vitally important life skills. We respectfully ask that you not request any class change after receiving your child's placement at his/her "Meet and Greet" event. (The only possibility of a change would be if there is a very serious problem, of which we may be unaware, that might affect a child's school performance.) Careful consideration is given to the placement of each child for the beginning of the school term. When parents allow their children these experiences, they are telling them that they have confidence in them to adapt and learn to make friends on their own. These experiences will give them the important tools that they need to grow into strong and capable young people.
We thank you for working with us to help create the best experiences to help your child thrive! It's going to be a fantastic year of learning, growing, gaining confidence and practicing "empathy!"
I look forward to seeing you all next week at Meet and Greets!
Warm thanks,
Mrs. Moon
Head of School
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Meet and Greet Schedule
Monday, Aug. 12th
8:00 AM - 9:00 AM: Grade 1
9:30 AM - 10:30 AM: Grade 2
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM: Grade 3
2:00 PM - 3:00 PM: Grade 4
Tuesday, August 13th
8:00 AM - 9:30 AM: Grade K-5
(Please arrive at 8:00 a.m. for a short meeting prior to touring the classrooms)
10:00 AM - 11:30 AM: Grade K-4
(Please arrive at 10:00 a.m. for a short meeting prior to touring the classrooms)
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM: Grade 5
2:00 PM - 3:00 PM: Grade 6
(Please arrive at 2:00 p.m.)
WEDNESDAY, August 14th
K-4/K-5 First Day of School
THURSDAY, August 15th
Grades 1-6 First Day of School
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Sign-up for Club Eagle After Care, Eaglette Morning Care, Parker's Pals, and After School Clubs & Activities!
Club Eagle
K4 Eaglettes Morning Care
Parker's Pals
After School Clubs & Activities
You will find all of the necessary links above. For your convenience, the links are also located on the school's website. Go to the "For Parents" tab at the top of the home page, then click on the "Parent Resources" page.
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MANDATORY FORMS REMINDER
Please remember to submit both mandatory and health forms for your children if you have not already done so. Student schedules cannot be released at Meet and Greet if mandatory forms are not on file.
* If your child requires an Individual Health Care Plan (due to chronic medical conditions), and/or a Food Allergy Action Plan (FAAP), please
CLICK HERE
to read an important message from Nurse Chouljian.
STEP 4 -- UPDATED RECORDS
Each student must have the items below on record prior to the first day of school. By Florida law, children are not allowed to enter school until these forms have been submitted and are on file.
- Updated immunization form (new and K-5 students only)
- Updated physical form (new students and rising 6th grade students only)
- Copy of the birth certificate (new students)
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Important Security Update
Be on the lookout for an important letter from our Security Manager, Mr. Johnson, that will be sent home in your Meet and Greet packets.
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Important Alma Update!
If you did not receive an email from Alma (our new payment portal) on August 1st to set up payment details, please email our Business Manager, Ms. Ieleen Rundgren, for assistance (
irundgren@parkmaitland.org
).
The Alma portal will allow you to manage your account quickly and easily online. Functions include the ability to:
- Pay tuition and other school-related expenses
- Manage payment methods
- Set up automatic payments
- View/print account statements
Please be sure to frequently check your account for any new charges.
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CARPOOL REMINDER
During the first few weeks of school, carpool may take a little longer than usual as our surrounding neighbors and all of our families adjust to our carpool routines. You can do a few things to help us make the process safe and more efficient. Please keep in mind, carpool rules are in place to prevent confusion (makes parents happy), to assist the city's flow of traffic (makes the policemen happy), and to keep the children safe (makes everyone happy).
* At drop off, students should have their bags close by, seat unbuckled, and ready to "jump out" when an "arrival specialist" opens the door! Being prepared really does make a difference!
* At pick up, be sure to display the Park Maitland issued yellow carpool tag with your child's name or carpool animal throughout the entire carpool line - from entering campus to exiting at the gates! This is a very important step in ensuring your child's safety! The yellow sign tells us the person in the car is authorized to pick up the child whose last name appears on the sign, and it helps us get to know parents and drivers by associating names with cars and faces!
* NEVER EVER use your cell phone during carpool or any time you are driving on campus!
*If you haven't done so, please fill out the carpool information form below.*
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PARENTS' NIGHT
Tuesday, August 27th: Grade 6 @ 4:30pm
Wednesday, August 28th: Grade 2 @ 4:30pm
Thursday, August 29th: Grade 4 @ 4:30pm
Tuesday, September 3rd: Grade 3 @ 4:30pm
Wednesday, September 4th: K-5 @ 4:30pm
Thursday, September 5th: Grade 5 @ 4:30pm
Tuesday, September 10th: K-4 @ 4:30pm
Wednesday, September 11th: Grade 1 @ 4:30pm
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NEW SCHOOL "EMPATHY" TEE
Don't forget to check out this year's school t-shirt! We will have monthly "empathy" days and encourage everyone to wear their shirts! You can find it and many other great items in the gym (AAC) at your child's special "Meet & Greet"!
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As a reminder, there will be no textbook distribution
this year at Meet and Greet!
Any necessary hard copy textbooks or online resources needed by the students will be distributed by the individual teachers in the classrooms. These materials are covered by the Instructional Materials Fee assessed to all families over the summer.
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MEET OUR NEW FACULTY AND STAFF!
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Ms. Marilina Richardson
(Spanish Grades 3-5)
is a native of Puerto Rico and she moved to Michigan with her family at the age of nine. From a very young age she felt a connection to teaching and the joy of being in school. She completed a Bachelor of Science in teaching in the areas of Spanish, physical education, and psychology at Central Michigan University. Five years later, she earned a Masters with a concentration in instruction and curriculum writing. Marilina has been in education for 14 years. She taught Spanish to all grade levels from kindergarten through Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate Spanish. Throughout these years she had the opportunity to take her students to Spain, take part in Spanish club, create lessons for school-wide character education implementation and events, coached basketball, and created a Latin dance club. Marilina learned of Park Maitland while still teaching in Michigan and traveled to discover that the incredible family and culture at the school aligned to what her heart felt. Through learning of other cultures and different perspectives, Marilina hopes to instill a love of learning languages in her students. Marilina believes that our priority is to help each child feel valued, to teach and model empathy, and to encourage students in discovering their own potential. Marilina is honored and feels blessed to be welcomed to the Park Maitland family along with her six year old daughter, Leila, who will attend the first grade.
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Ms. Jennifer Lightman
(Design Thinking/Tinkering Lab K-4 - 2nd grade)
is thrilled to join our Innovation Department as the new Tinkering Lab instructor and will continue the Design Thinking curriculum with our K4 through 2nd-grade students. Jennifer earned a BA in Economics from Vanderbilt University, and this fall, she will complete Seminole State’s Educator Preparation Institute.
Before finding her calling as a teacher, Jennifer held positions with both corporations and educational institutions. She worked in IT training and software development for Coca-Cola Enterprises, alternative asset management for Cornell University’s endowment, and corporate financial planning and analysis for MASCO Contractor Services.
Jennifer’s teaching strategy bridges real-world experience with a passion for childhood education. She looks forward to creating opportunities in our Tinkering Lab that spark creativity and foster persistence and collaboration in problem-solving.
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Ms. Meghan Marc
(
Long Term Substitute - Design Thinking 4th and 5th Grade
)
returns to our staff by popular demand. Ms. Marc joined our school community last year as a much loved short term substitute teacher and part time afterschool staff member. We are honored to have her work as the long term substitute teacher for our beloved Ms. Martinez while she is on maternity leave. Ms. Marc is an educator who is committed to creating a fun and engaging educational experience for students and is so very excited to teach Design Thinking in our IHub to 4th and 5th grade. An alumna from the University of Central Florida, Ms. Marc has a Bachelor of Arts in English with a concentration in Creative Writing. After completing her degree, she has taught in various schools in the Orlando area as a substitute teacher. Ms. Marc strives to promote compassion and creativity in the classroom as well as promote critical thinking and collaborative learning communities.
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Mr. John Courson:
We are excited and proud to announce that John Courson will be joining our incredible administrative team as our Director of Student Life! He will remain as our 5th grade social studies teacher and grade chair extraordinaire. This new role and position will also entail all things related to extracurricular and student leadership opportunities such as Student Ambassador Programs, Athletic Director for our exploding sports program and our expanding summer camp! Mr. Courson's hard work and passion has been evidenced by his outstanding work and leadership with our service learning and outreach programs, summer camp and quest for ongoing professional growth as he completes his Doctorate in Educational Leadership!
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Mr. John Driscoll:
In addition to teaching a few 5th grade math classes, Mr. Driscoll is thrilled to be moving up with his students as our 6th grade math teacher! Our lucky Super Seniors are so very excited to have their much loved math teacher continue on as their engaging and motivating math inspiration! Mr. Driscoll will continue to coach our school wide math competition teams as well as head up our math department as Math Department Chair.
Mr. Driscoll's
famous Math Bees and rubik's cubes challenges will continue on in 6th grade!
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Ms. Jane Hicks:
Our multi- talented Lower School Assistant Principal, Ms. Hicks will be jumping back into teaching (very part time) this year in addition to her administrative role in the lower school office. She will live her dream and passion as our K-4 Music Teacher! In addition to her many years of teaching in the classroom, Ms. Hicks has directed children’s choirs and musical productions, has 13 years of private voice instruction, participated in choirs and vocal ensembles
and starred in many roles in musical theatre productions throughout college and high school! We all have been witness to her beautiful voice and creative musical skits that she has led with our aspiring and “hopeful” admin team!
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Ms. Renee Watts:
We are thrilled to have Ms. Renee Watts join our 5th grade team teaching to her passion and expertise! This marks her 15th year at Park Maitland School as a master teacher in the science and the STEAM/STEM department! She spent many years as our 4th grade science and social studies teacher, one year in 6th grade science, and most recently, taught design thinking to 4th grade. Her wealth of experience and knowledge of our science program and “special connection” with the incoming 5th grade makes her the perfect fit for this class! Her exceptional credentials include a Bachelor of Elementary Education, Masters of Curriculum and Instruction, and Gifted and Exceptional Education Endorsement and Certification.
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Mr. Andres Joubert:
In addition to being our school’s outstanding Technology and Innovation Coordinator, Mr. Joubert will have the opportunity to embrace one of his teaching passions once again as he joins the math department in 5th grade this year! He is excited to be teaching math alongside Mr. Driscoll! Mr. Joubert holds a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics Education and taught math for over 10 years at Gulliver Academy, a highly regarded FCIS school in Miami before moving here last year. He is passionate about emphasizing differentiation and growing the skills of each student and helping them reach their full math potential! We are certain that he and Mr. Driscoll will make a dynamo duo in 5th grade math. We are so very fortunate to have Mr. Joubert continue as an integral member of the design thinking team in 3rd grade and lead our school in technology initiatives and support. His unwavering commitment to excellence and the success of each and every child is evidenced in all he does!
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Mr. Josh Eleazer:
We are thrilled to have Mr. Eleazer join us full-time and expand his teaching repertoire to the lower grades this year! Mr. Eleazer is excited to teach K-5 and 1st grade music! He has proven himself as a fun and engaging teacher in the early grades these past few years while assisting in a variety of different disciplines and we know that he will continue to inspire and motivate our students as they learn to love music and performance! As many of you know, Mr. Eleazer has been acting, singing and playing professionally since 2002. He has toured the U.S. and Canada with the Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons tribute show
Let’s Hang On
!
Mr. Eleazer
will continue to direct our “famous” and highly regarded Glee club as well as teach music and co-teach drama to grades 4-6!
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Ms. Stefanie Johnston:
The wonderful Ms. Johnston will be moving to a "previous" true love- right back into the classroom with our K-4 students! Stefanie is excited to work as a K-4 classroom assistant as well as work with Ms. Hicks to lead the school in yoga and mindfulness practices. Many of you already know that she is a registered kids yoga teacher, with over 10 years of experience teaching yoga, meditation, and mindfulness to children. As we all know, she has been our capable and talented Communications Coordinator during the last school year- She will continue to play an important part of our communications team by assisting in the "design" department.
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Ms. Lauren Kuharske:
Ms. Kuharske
will continue her masterful work as our Marketing Director and will also expand her duties to the communications role! Ms. Kuharske will be creating the weekly news as well as sharing pertinent school communications. Her many years of experience in marketing and communications at our school and beyond, in addition to her breadth of knowledge and history of Park Maitland, will make this a seamless transition. Ms. Kuharske has fulfilled so many different roles at our school over the years as the granddaughter of our beloved Founders and daughter of Ms. Carolyn Fritch. We know that her understanding of our sweet school and its mission will shine through in all communications!
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We are so excited for another great year of Eagle Athletics!
We will be offering 5 sports this year for our students: volleyball, soccer, flag football, basketball, and have added track and field!
- Soccer and basketball programs will be available for all students in 1st through 6th grades.
- Volleyball will be available for girls only in 4th through 6th grades.
- Flag football will be available for all students in 3rd through 6th grades.
- Track and field will be available to all students in K-4 through 5th grade.
We do not hold tryouts for any of our sports but if we have enough interest in a particular grade level to form multiple teams, we will be holding player evaluations. These evaluation will allow us to best assess the skill levels of our students.
New custom designed jerseys will be provided to each athlete participating in a sport. Each student will be required to purchase a new uniform jersey for this year and will not be able to wear a jersey from a previous year.
Our volleyball, soccer, and track and field programs will begin in September and registration information can be found on our
website
. Goooo Eagles!
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Teachers and Administrators had the opportunity to attend EdcampMagic, a summer learning conference!
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Park Maitland Summer Camp campers had a wonder-filled summer of learning, laughing, and exploring! We are already looking forward to next summer!
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August 12:
Meet and Greet (Grades 1, 2 ,3 & 4)
August 13:
Meet and Greet (Grades K4, K5, 5, & 6)
August 14:
K4/K5 First Day of School
August 15:
Grades 1-6 First Day of School
August 20/21
: Glee Auditions (Grades 4-6)
August 22/23:
6th Grade Beach Bonding Trip
August 27:
Parent Night - Grade 6
August 28:
Parent Night - Grade 2
August 29:
Parent Night - Grade 4
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September 2:
Labor Day holiday for students and faculty
September 3:
Empathy T-shirt Day; Parent Night - Grade 3
September 4:
Parent Night - Grade K-5
September 5:
Parent Night - Grade 5
September 10:
Parent Night - Grade K-4
September 11:
Parent Night - Grade 1
September 18/19:
School Photos
September 25:
Admissions Open House
September 26
: Fall Writing Day
September 27:
Fall Writing Day; K-5 Johnny Appleseed Day
September 30:
Student Holiday - No School / Faculty Professional Development Day
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GRADE LEVEL LINKS
(Please note: Teacher pages are not updated for
the following week until Sunday at 4:00 p.m.)
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Let's get social! Follow us on social Media today!
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