Friday, January 27 – Last Chance to Personalize Yearbook!

Your yearbook and personalization are guaranteed if you order today!

TODAY'S GOOD TIMES = TOMORROW'S GREAT MEMORIES

The friendships. The skills. The memories. What your student builds in these years can last a lifetime, and your Morningside Elementary School yearbook is a beautiful record of it all. Order TODAY to guarantee your copy!

Order Your Yearbook Here!

Please note that Friday, January 27 is the last day for personalization. Make your yearbook exclusive to your student! Last chance to add your student's name and up to four icons representing their passions and personal style!

*Credit card installment plan available on orders of $30 or more.

Friday, January 27 - SWAG Playground Cleanup

Come help keep MES at Inman beautiful by joining us for SWAG Campus Clean Up Days this spring! Volunteers will meet at the walker pad after school beginning at 2:45pm. Gloves, garbage bags, and snacks will be provided for everyone. In the event of rain, a make up date will be planned.

Here are all of the planned Campus Clean Up Days for the spring semester:

• Friday, January 27
• Friday, February 10
• Friday, March 17
• Friday, April 21
• Friday, May 12

We will also have two SWAG Parents Coffee and Clean Up Days this spring:

• Friday, March 3rd at 8am
• Friday, May 5th at 8am

Please be sure to sign in at the office before meeting up with us on the walker pad for the parent clean up events. 

Please visit the SWAG Campus Beautification webpage for more information and contact Heather Low with any questions.

Tuesday, January 31 - MES GO Team Meeting

Be sure to tune into this month's Go Team Meeting on Tuesday, January 31st at 5pm. This meeting will be livestreamed on the MES YouTube channel, which can be found HERE.

Please contact Mr. Bookspun with any questions. For more information about the MES Go Team, please click HERE.

Wednesday, February 1 - Comfort Bags for People Experiencing Homelessness A Dolphins Do Good + No Place For Hate® Project

In January and February, the entire MES community will have the opportunity to take part in a community-wide service project to provide a comfort bag of hygiene items to people experiencing homelessness. This is an expansion of a program that MES has participated in for many years called Homeless at Heart. This year there is a classroom learning component and an opportunity for parents and caregivers to pitch in!

Classroom Activities: During the month of January, all MES students will take part in a No Place for Hate® program led by our counselor Ms. Deal in their classrooms. Then, on February 1, MES will participate in the Global School Play Day and students will pack comfort bags which will be donated to Crossroads Community Ministries, an organization that provides resources to people experiencing homelessness in Atlanta.

How You Can Help:

Please donate items by helping us fulfill an Amazon 'Wish' registry to gather the needed items to create comfort bags for people experiencing homelessness. All items will be shipped directly to the school.

IMPORTANT DATES

* On January 27, from 2:45 to 5:00 PM, families are invited to come to MES to help sort the items to get ready for the in-class service project. This is a GREAT do-it-together, hands-on activity for you and your students.

* On February 1, we will need floaters and in-class volunteers to help students pack the bags. Sign Up HERE to help!

Since 2015 APS has implemented the No Place for Hate® initiative District-wide. Each year all APS schools participate in programs around the goal of creating a welcoming community committed to stopping all forms of bias and bullying.

Questions? Email Lorraine Hatch or Robin Deutsch Edwards.

Wednesday, February 1 – Global School Play Day

Global School Play Day is observed annually every first Wednesday in February and this year it will be held on February 1. This will be our second year participating in this event. The Global School Play Day promotes the importance of unstructured (but supervised), regular play for children without the use of screen time or electronics. The campaign was started by a group of six educators in 2015 who realized that playtime for children was decreasing both at home and in school. This will be an amazing day of play!

Friday, February 3 - Spirit Day - Pajama Day

It's chilly outside so let's get cozy! Wear your favorite pajamas to school on Friday, February 3 for Spirit Day!

Friday, February 3 - Lost and Found Donation Day

Are you missing a water bottle or coat? Please be sure to look for it before the next donation day, 2/3/2023! Lost and Found has been moved to the main hall for more visibility, so please try to obtain lost items today!

The following are dates of upcoming donation dates

• Friday, February 3rd
• Friday, March 10th
• Friday, April 21st
• Thursday, May 25th

Please see opportunities to volunteer to help with Lost and Found HERE.

Saturday, February 4 - 3rd Grade Winter Social

3rd grade parents, please mark your calendars for the 3rd Grade Winter Social on Saturday, February 4 from 10am to noon at John Howell Park in Virginia Highlands (across from the school). More details to come soon!

Saturday, February 4 - Cookies & Cocoa Kindergarten Playdate

Kindergarten families, please join us for Cookies & Cocoa on Saturday, February 4th. We will be screening a Valentines-themed movie. You're welcome to bring anything to make sitting on the floor more cozy or comfortable for yourself and your kinder (picnic blanket, yoga mat, flat pillow).

Saturday, March 11 - SAVE THE DATE! Spring Parent Social-Casino Night and Raffle benefitting Morningside Elementary PTA

When: Saturday, March 11th, 2023

6pm-7pm: VIP reception for Family and Business Sponsors

7pm-11pm: Casino Night!

7:15pm-10:15pm: Casino floor gaming open and raffle to follow!

Enjoy a night filled with food, drinks, music, and mingling with fellow Morningside Elementary parents!

Interested in volunteering?

Please contact Justin Hubbarth or Rafael Morales we are building our team and would love to have you.

Raffle Prizes

Work or know someone in the entertainment, sports, or travel industry? Does grandma have a beach house? If you have an experience or item that you would like to offer for our raffle, please contact Lori Brown or Stuart Lake.

Saturday, March 18 - MES Night Out with Atlanta United Fundraiser

Please join us for a fundraiser and a night out with our MES community as the Atlanta United take on the Portland Timbers on Saturday, March 18th at 7:30pm.

We will have a block of discounted tickets ($42 each) in section 223 of the Mercedes Benz stadium for the game. A portion of tickets sales will support the MES PTA and tickets will be available for purchase through the MES Square site, the week of January 30th.

Additionally, 50 kids, who attend MES, will be eligible to participate in an on-field experience (Penalty kicks) after the game.

If you are interested and would like to commit to purchasing tickets, please fill out the form HERE.

Registration For This Year’s MES Family Science Night Is Now Open!

Can I get a robot to clean my room? Do I have a popular first name? How are big heavy airplanes able to stay up in the sky? Find out the answers to all of these questions and more at MES’s Family Science Night (FSN)! All MES students (and their parents, caregivers, and siblings) are invited to attend.

Register Here Today (registration ends January 30th)!

As with prior FSN events, volunteers are a key part of making sure this event runs smoothly and is a wonderful experience for all involved. Let us know if you’re interested in helping!

Now Accepting Submissions For MES Waves - Create Your Own Path

Which Way Do You Want To Perform? Live and In Charge Or As A Video Sensation?

At MES you have the unique ability to highlight your performing talents in two different ways: AUDITION and show your work on the stage LIVE or VIDEO your work to show your talents! LIVE ACTS and VIDEOS must be five minutes or less and can include but are not limited to: singing, dancing, instrumental, cultural performances, gymnastics, karate, stand-up comedy, magic acts, and Tik-Tok like submissions. Your creativity is the only limitation! (Please make sure all submissions are rated G and appropriate for school)

WAVES is requesting submissions for a student-created logo to represent our theme “CREATE YOUR OWN PATH.” This logo will be used on t-shirts, marketing materials, the school website, and decorations for our show on April 23. If you have a creative student who has an idea for the logo, please ask them to submit their art by WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 1. Submissions can be dropped in the WAVES box in the main office or emailed to [email protected]. Ideal logos will utilize less than four colors in the design, to aid in printing. We cannot wait to see what you create!

CALLING ALL FIFTH GRADERS

We are looking for a group of fifth-grade volunteers interested in helping us run the Art Showcase with jobs ranging from being an MC to helping run the sound booth. If this sounds like something your child would be interested in, please fill out this FORM.and we will reach out ASAP.

PTA Nominating Committee Election Results

This morning at our General PTA meeting, we formally voted in our Nominating Committee to prepare the slate of PTA Executive Committee Officers for the 2023-23 school year. We're excited to announce that the following people will be fulfilling this important role:

Brian Baron - MES School Business Manager

Robin Duetsch Edwards - MES 3rd Grade Parent

Ryan Hebert - MES Kinder Parent

Stephanie Mayfield - MES 1st Grade Parent

Susan Mapen - MES 3rd Grade Parent

Prit Patra (Alternate) - MES 3rd Grade Parent

The committee will be preparing their recommended slate of officers over the coming months, which will be voted on at our final PTA General Meeting of the year in April. Thank you everyone for your service to our school!

Donate Prizes to the MES Go B.L.U.E. Weekly Raffle!

Donate prizes to the MES Go B.L.U.E. weekly raffle! Select an item (or items) from our wish-list, and have the item(s) sent to the school address: Behavior Committee 774 VIRGINIA AVE NE. ATLANTA, GA 30306-3631. US.

Every Friday, we hold a raffle to celebrate two of our amazing students for upholding the school code of conduct. Your donations help motivate our learners to Go B.L.U.E! (Be respectful, Listen and Learn, Use self-control, and Embrace diversity).

Our wish-list is HERE

Principal's Blog and Coffee Talks

Catch up on Everything MES straight from Principal Sofianos by bookmarking her Principal's Blog and checking back often!

CLICK HERE for the latest blog.

Rising 6th Graders (2023-2024)

Straight from this week's Rams Report, the weekly newsletter for David T. Howard Middle School, we have a few dates to be aware for the soon-to-be Rising 6th Graders:

• February 7 & 9 - Rising 6th Graders visit Howard.
• March 21 - Parent Night with Tours

Please note that more information will be shared directly with our current 5th grade families via the school counselors, including the specific dates for the student visits to Howard in February.

APS Board of Education Monthly Meeting - Monday, February 6th

The next monthly APS Board of Education meeting will take place on Monday, February 6th from 2:30-8:00pm. All meetings are held at the Atlanta Public Schools Center for Learning and Leadership Auditorium and are typically livestreamed via the APS Board of Education Facebook Page. Interested parties are welcome to provide comments during the Community Meeting portion (which begins at 6:00pm) by signing up in person from 5:00-5:50pm.

Stay Up to Date with the APS Midtown Cluster

Click HERE for resources directly related to our cluster.

Stay Up to Date with the 2022-2023 APS Calendar 

Click HERE to view the district calendar and start planning for all the breaks.

Click HERE to view the Atlanta BOE 2023 Calendar.

Transportation Town Hall Meeting - February 9th

Please join Mr. John Franklin, Executive Director of Transportation for Atlanta Public Schools, as he answers your questions about bus routes, bus stops, walk zones, and more. The meeting wiil begin promptly at 6pm in the Inman Auditorium on Thursday, February 9th. Please enter through the Inman Auditorium entrance located on Virginia Ave and Park.

Pre-K at VaHi Elementary

It was recently announced that VaHi Elementary will have an onsite Pre-K program starting in the Fall of 2023! The Pre-K lottery application window is open now through March 12 at 11:59pm, with the lottery drawing to be held on March 27. Additional details about the program, including the program requirements can be found here.

VaHi Elementary Website Updates

For our future VaHi Elementary families - if you looking for information about the new school, please be sure to check out the growing website for the school, as new information is being added on a regular basis! Be sure to use the drop down menus at the top of the page to navigate to the various areas of the page, including a new About Page, information on school policies and procedures for the new school (under the New Students tab), a section dedicated to academics (under the Academics tab), and pages for the school's GO Team and the PTO.

Thank you to our Diamond Dolphin, Dolphin, and Platinum-level sponsors for supporting our school!

For more information about Dolphin Donors, please click HERE.