Weekly Update 10/12/2017

Head of School's Message

“Of all things love is the most potent.” -  Maria Montessori

Dear RMS Parents,

Thank you to all of you who have already responded to our Mission Support campaign.  Thanks to your prompt generosity, we’re off to a great start.

If you haven’t already, please do consider participating with a recurring monthly gift, or a one-time donation.  Every amount helps us offset costs, which in turn helps us keep tuition low and aid high.  Thank you in advance for your generous and prayerful consideration!

God bless,

Sean Garvey

Mission Support Update

We are nearing the one month mark of our 2017 Mission Support Campaign. We are excited to report we have already achieved 20% participation and have raised close to $7K for our school.

Help us reach our goal of 100% participation!

DONATE NOW

Harris Teeter Rewards

Harris Teeter offers our school a great rewards program (cash) for shopping there over the school year and it requires very little on our part--we just have to sign up and then shop with our VIC card!

So if you are a Harris Teeter shopper and signed up with their VIC program, please email Paula O'Keefe sokeefe407@aol.com your info and she will get you signed up. She simply needs your last name and the phone number associated with the card or the 9 digit VIC number and your last name.

If you prefer to sign yourself up when you are at Harris Teeter, our school number is 8616.

Thanks for helping our school!

Chick-fil-A

Save the Date!  Chick-fil-A in Bristow will host a Spirit Night for RMS on Wednesday, November 15th from 4-7 pm. Come and enjoy a meal at Chick-fil-A and a portion of the proceeds will be given to RMS!  More details to come.

Upcoming Events

• 10/9/17 - No School - Columbus Day
• 10/11/17 - Parents Guild Meeting 8:30 AM
• 10/19/17 - Parent Night #1 (Revised Date)
• 10/20/17 - No School - Teacher In-Service

Reminders

Picture Day

It's that time of year again, Picture Day! This year Picture Day will be on Thursday November, 2nd. We are using the same photographer that we used last year. Please make sure to have your children in on time, we will start at 8:45 am sharp and try to get everyone's pictures in before noon. The picture types are: individual, class, sibling and whole school. We will give you more information on the price and packages once that becomes available to us.

If you have a Toddler that comes on Tues/Wed only and you want them to be a part of the class picture, you are welcome to bring them in at 8:45.

SCRIP Update

Don't forget to order scrip weekly at www.shopwithscrip.com and drop off your cash or checks by Tuesday. Mr Garvey will collect them curbside or you can put them directly into the SCRIP box in the office. If you haven't set up an account yet, our enrollment code is 8F91287E14129.

Remember that if you want to earn that $300 quickly, it is best to set up a PrestoPay account because you can purchase and use electronic SCRIP immediately from your handheld device or home computer, no more dealing with dropping off checks and waiting a week for your cards to arrive.

Forgot to place an order? No problem, there is a SCRIP binder in the office with an array of cards for purchase. Simply go into the office and Kristina will help you through the purchase process. Any questions or problems please contact Rosanne Garvey at rosanne505@verizon.net or 703-447-9229.

RMS Family Directory

The 2017-2018 version of the RMS Family Directory is now available. You can download the directory HERE or find it anytime on the Parents Page of the website.

Parent Teacher Conferences

Parent-Teacher conferences occur twice a year; once in the fall and once in the spring. The conferences provide parents with one-on-one time with the teacher, to share our joint observations of the child, so we can best acknowledge who they are and what they need next.  Conferences can be scheduled during “office hours”, which are unique to the environment and directress.

In order to make these as fruitful as possible, parents need to have observed at least once in the environment before their conference.

Use the links below to schedule a conference. If there is an emergency and you are not able to make your scheduled time, please contact the office to let us know. Then reschedule through the sign up below for an available time. Thank you in advance for your prompt arrival.

Elementary North Star Southern Cross Toddler

Erd Kinder Conferences Times - Contact Dr. Rubin directly to schedule. Monday 10/09  and 10/ 16 3:15 - 3:45 3:45 - 4:15 Wednesday 10/11 and 10/ 18 3:15 - 3:45 3:45 - 4:15

Volunteer Hours and Tracking

This year we are implementing a new tool to help parents easily find opportunities to volunteer and track hours - Track it Forward. If you did not receive an email from Track it Forward to set up your account, please let Kristina know.

In addition to being able to see volunteer needs and track hours on the Track it Forward website, you can also do both in the "Volunteering" drop down of the parents section of the RMS website HERE. There is also a link to this page at the top of each weekly update for easy access. If you attended the Guild meeting yesterday, don't forget to go ahead and log your hours!

As always, we are here to help so let us know if you have any questions at all!

Weekly Update 10/5/17

Head of School's Message

When dealing with children there is greater need for observing than of probing. -    Maria Montessori

Dear RMS Parents,

There’s no denying that the school year is in full swing now. We’ve had a great initial response to our invitation to come and observe, so thank you to all of you who have made the time for that. As I said last week, observation is the heart of the entire method, so I’m hopeful that those of you who haven’t had a chance yet to schedule your observation will have a chance soon.

“Ordinary Time” in the Liturgical calendar is the time of growth, and most growth, both in nature and in the human soul, is hidden.  As we enter this period of ‘ordinary time’ in the school year, it is important to remember that to observe is not to inspect or ‘probe’ as the quote above says. It is to watch, carefully and attentively, to try and see that hidden growth.

God bless,

Sean Garvey

SCHEDULE A CLASSROOM OBSERVATION

Picture Day

It's that time of year again, Picture Day! This year Picture Day will be on Thursday November, 2nd. We are using the same photographer that we used last year. Please make sure to have your children in on time, we will start at 8:45 am sharp and try to get everyone's pictures in before noon. The picture types are: individual, class, sibling and whole school. We will give you more information on the price and packages once that becomes available to us.

If you have a Toddler that comes on Tues/Wed only and you want them to be a part of the class picture, you are welcome to bring them in at 8:45.

SCRIP Update

September was a great month for our SCRIP fundraising. We had 21 families participate and raised a total of $1005! What a great way to start the year. We also want to give a shout out to Gail Dolan, Kimberly Cook and Debbie Pienta - the SCRIP superstars for this first month of the year. All 3 are have met or almost met 1/3 of their $300 goal in the first month.

TIP: A Sheetz has just opened up down the road from the school. They give the highest percentage back for gas stations (3%) AND they are re-loadable if you have a PrestoPay account. This means you can buy one card and keep re-loading from your phone or home computer for years!

Don't forget to order scrip weekly at www.shopwithscrip.com and drop off your cash or checks by Tuesday. Mr Garvey will collect them curbside or you can put them directly into the SCRIP box in the office. If you haven't set up an account yet, our enrollment code is 8F91287E14129.

Remember that if you want to earn that $300 quickly, it is best to set up a PrestoPay account because you can purchase and use electronic SCRIP immediately from your handheld device or home computer, no more dealing with dropping off checks and waiting a week for your cards to arrive.

Forgot to place an order? No problem, there is a SCRIP binder in the office with an array of cards for purchase. Simply go into the office and Kristina will help you through the purchase process. Any questions or problems please contact Rosanne Garvey at rosanne505@verizon.net or 703-447-9229.

RMS Family Directory

The 2017-2018 version of the RMS Family Directory is now available. You can download the directory HERE or find it anytime on the Parents Page of the website.

Upcoming Events

• 10/9/17 - No School - Columbus Day
• 10/11/17 - Parents Guild Meeting 8:30 AM
• 10/19/17 - Parent Night #1 (Revised Date)
• 10/20/17 - No School - Teacher In-Service

Reminders

Parent Teacher Conferences

Parent-Teacher conferences occur twice a year; once in the fall and once in the spring. The conferences provide parents with one-on-one time with the teacher, to share our joint observations of the child, so we can best acknowledge who they are and what they need next.  Conferences can be scheduled during “office hours”, which are unique to the environment and directress.

In order to make these as fruitful as possible, parents need to have observed at least once in the environment before their conference.

Use the links below to schedule a conference. If there is an emergency and you are not able to make your scheduled time, please contact the office to let us know. Then reschedule through the sign up below for an available time. Thank you in advance for your prompt arrival.

Elementary North Star Southern Cross Toddler

Erd Kinder Conferences Times - Contact Dr. Rubin directly to schedule. Monday 10/09  and 10/ 16 3:15 - 3:45 3:45 - 4:15 Wednesday 10/11 and 10/ 18 3:15 - 3:45 3:45 - 4:15

Volunteer Hours and Tracking

This year we are implementing a new tool to help parents easily find opportunities to volunteer and track hours - Track it Forward. If you did not receive an email from Track it Forward to set up your account, please let Kristina know.

In addition to being able to see volunteer needs and track hours on the Track it Forward website, you can also do both in the "Volunteering" drop down of the parents section of the RMS website HERE. There is also a link to this page at the top of each weekly update for easy access. If you attended the Guild meeting yesterday, don't forget to go ahead and log your hours!

As always, we are here to help so let us know if you have any questions at all!

Parent Night Date Change

Due to the many events celebrating the 100 Year Anniversary of Our Lady at Fatima, we have rescheduled Parent Night #1, originally scheduled on October 13th, to October 19th at 6:30 PM.

The new revised calendar can be found in the parent section of the website.

Carpool Safety

Because we have small children entering and leaving the toddler building and children coming from the Erd Kinder building, we want to remind everyone to please stay in the carpool line, even after you receive all your children; do not exit and pull around the line. We know this slows down the movement of the line but it is vital to help keeping everyone safe. Thanks!

October Pizza Order Form

The pizza order form for the month of October is available now. As always, orders are due by Wednesday for pizza lunch on Friday.

PIZZA ORDER FORM

Box Tops

RMS is once again collecting Box Tops. As most of you know, these are the pink coupon-looking squares you see on many items that already purchase. Each one is worth 10 cents for the school which can add up fast! Please collect them and turn them into the school office by Thursday, Oct 19th. You can hand them in to any of the staff at drop off or pick up or have your children bring them in. RMS mom, Michelle Clune, is the Box Top coordinator. If you have any questions, please contact her at michelleclune@yahoo.com. Thank you!

Referral Bonanza

Hello Dear RMS Parents, When we took over our lovely new campus and moved our little school last fall, it was the beginning of an exciting and challenging new phase in our development. The site offered the potential for everything we could ever want to do, but presented us with the challenge of growing into it, and growing in a way that was organic and would enhance the quality of all our programs, not diminish it. Accordingly, we mapped a 5 year growth strategy that covered each program, how they related to each other, a finance and fundraising plan that would allow us to take the time to “grow smart,” and site development plans to accompany the growth envisioned.

Although I am a firm believer that plans are mainly for God’s amusement, we’re one year into that plan and I’m happy to report that we’ve made steady progress on all fronts, thanks be to God.

One of the most exciting milestones we’ve hit is that we are full in our Elementary program!  Don’t worry, however. If your child is enrolled in Primary, they have a guaranteed spot in Elementary. In fact, we have plans in place to expand our elementary further to make sure that every child matriculating from Primary will be guaranteed a spot in Elementary.

But here’s where we need your help.  From here on out, our expansion plan for Elementary and Erdkinder will be organic growth, meaning children moving up from Primary and Elementary respectively. We currently still have spots in our Primary and Toddler environments, especially for 2 and 3 yr olds. We’ve also designed a special pricing plan to help families begin the Montessori journey at the optimal time for their children. What we need now are REFERALS.

To that end, we’re launching a “Referral Bonanza” and this is how it will work:

1. Any referred family that decides to apply after their observation and visit will have their application fee waived.
2. If a referred family is admitted and decides to enroll, the referring family will get a $500 tuition discount.
   • If you feel you don’t need that discount but your referred friend does, you can gift it to them!

We’re ramping up our marketing effort, and anticipate getting close to full enrollment by next Fall, God willing. So now is the time to get your friends to come and see what Renaissance is all about. And don’t forget we have rolling admissions in Toddler, and the possibility of January starts for Primary. So don’t wait to encourage your friends to “come and see”.

Forward this email to your friend using the button below. Tell them to schedule their visit now while space is still available.

Thank you, and if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask me!

Sean

PS – We are only enrolling 2 and 3 yr olds, but we recognize, of course, that children come from families. So if a family you know has Elementary aged children in addition to Toddler and Primary aged children, please know that we will consider their elementary aged child for placement in our elementary, should they decide to apply as a family.