THAT You Give is More Important ThanWHAT You Give 

The bar has been set! Mrs. Sokol's class has achieved 100% MBEF participation. Who's class will be next? Our fingers are crossed that all of our teachers will benefit from the 100% participation bonus! MBEF provides many advantages for our children. The teachers and staff they support at the elementary level equal $1250 per child. Only you know what is the right number for you and your family to give. The amount that is right for you is right for MBEF.  Click here to Donate or pledge today. Any classes reaching 75% participation by Jan 31st will receive a bonus for their teacher to spend in the class room this year. The bonus doubles if a class reaches 100%. Class standings are posted at each classroom door, check yours out today.

You should now have your students presentation time for the judging.  If not, please contact Mrs. Michael at jmichael@mbusd.org 4th and 5th grade students who are participating in the Science Fair must drop off their completed trifold board to the cafeteria before school on January 26th, where they will be arranged in order of presentation that afternoon. Judging will begin at 3:00 and run until approximately 5:00.

This is a fun, family event where you can discover the possibilities of Science! No tickets required, but it is recommended that you print the program with map for each student attending, from the websitehttp://meadowsscienceweek.weebly.com  which will act as your student's passport for the evening.  They will receive a stamp from each room they visit, which will make them eligible for a prize.  Some of the fantastic exhibits and demonstrations include: rocket making, composting/vermiculture, Round House Aquarium sea life, Beach Cities Robotics, Cotton Candy making/changing matter, Magnets, Toys in Space, slime, optical illusions and periscopes!! The evening will begin at 5:30pm with food for purchase. Meadows Boy Scouts will be selling pizza, hot and cold drinks, and Student Council will have delicious baked goods for sale! Enjoy viewing the 4th and 5th grade Science Fair projects, exhibits, show and more!  For questions or volunteer opportunities please email Barbara Randolph bdrando@verizon.net.

The City of Manhattan Beach is sponsoring a new "Watt Watcher" Energy Contest. The school with the most participants will win $1,000.00 plus PRIZES for their school and an iPad for their Principal.Help save electricity at home and your family could also win prizes and $1,000.00 in cash! Entry deadline has been extended to January 31. Ask your family to fill out the entry form by logging onto the Going Green Section of www.citymb.info. Look for the Watt Watcher Energy Contest in the FREE Environmental Program Section. Or go to http://www.ci.manhattan-beach.ca.us/Index.aspx?page=2053. YOUR household could reduce electricity use up to 50% through energy efficiency measures! The household that can reduce the most electricity over a three-month period will also get a reward.

Isn't that incredible? You and your children have a chance to hear these awesome singers. You won't want to miss their Carnegie Hall Send-off Concert on Sunday,February 12 at 5:30 p.m.

at Mira Costa Auditorium. The cost is $20 for adults; $15 for students. Take an evening to support the Costa Choirs and get a taste of the fabulous programs that Mira Costa has to offer. Before you know it your kids will be students there! Three easy ways you can get your tickets: 1.At these local businesses: Dietz Brothers Music, Patterson Cleaners and Strand Cleaners; 2.Order by e-mail: costachoirtix@gmail.com; 3.Buy tickets from any Costa choir student. We hope to see you there!

Looking for a great summer camp for your child? Then stop by the camp Expo and check out the many offerings for local and sleep away summer camps all in one convenient place! Camp Expo will be held onSaturday, March 17 from 10am-2pm at Manhattan Beach Middle School, 1501 Redondo Ave in Manhattan Beach. Admission to the Expo is free.

Know a camp or business who'd like to attend? Email Mari Kupiec at marikupiec@gmail.com or Nancy Young at nanyoung@aol.com with your contact info and we'll reply. Registration deadline is February 17 for vendor tables.

Hey moms!  The game trucks will be rolling in to Meadows on Friday, March 30th, from 6-9pm.  Kick off your spring break with some fun with your son!

We currently have 108 Meadows families whose registered Ralphs cards made over $1600 dollars for the first quarter of this school year!  It's that easy to earn money for Meadows. If you have not registered your card, do it TODAY! Go to www.ralphs.com to register or renew your registration. Contact Linda Nelson at lknelson@me.comfor assistance (ice cream vouchers are still being earned for each registration).

Did you know that you can get many of your favorite SCRIP cards emailed directly to you instantly?? It is true! Online at www.ShopWithScrip.com you can set up a "PrestoPay" account and order from a growing selection of great vendors like Amazon, Buca, Gap/Old Navy, Chili's, Home Depot, Lowe's, Starbucks and many more. You can also still pay by check/charge and still cut down on the delivery time.  ScripNOW! certificates can be used online or printed out to use in stores. Our goal is to make getting and using SCRIP as simple as possible. So jump in Meadows - let's save both time and paper while raising easy money for Meadows at no cost to you!! Need to create a new member account on www.ShopWithScrip.com? Meadows enrollment code isB77E79BF79L1. Need a hard copy of the order form? Get one here. Questions? Contact Carol Gerken at cgerken@gmail.com

Do you use Clorox/Lysol wipes in the plastic container? Grades of Green needs your empty containers for a recycling project. We are collecting empty Scotch tape dispensers, Elmer's glue bottles and sticks, and Sharpie and Papermate pens, markers and highlighters in our classrooms to be recycled by Terracycle. If you are interested in recycling these items at home, please put your items in the collection box in the office. The school receives money back for each item sent to Terracycle.

We are also looking for empty large buckets.  If you use Tidy Cat litter in the bucket, we would gladly reuse the buckets.  Did you know that we compost and recycle the lunch trays?  We are saving over 400 trays a week from going to the landfill. Your buckets will help us make this process easier.

Used iPhones, Macbooks, Macbook Pros for our very own MBMS App Club.  In this lunch time club, 6th grader Thomas Suarez is teaching other students how to make Applications like he did. For these enthusiastic students to learn how to make Apps themselves, they need "hand me down" equipment. Please keep our students in mind before discarding your old technology. All donations are tax deductible.  Equipment can be dropped off at the front office at MBMS during school hours.

The Manhattan Beach Centennial is coming and the committee is looking for some volunteers! Beginning Wednesday, they are looking for volunteers who are interested in working 4-8 hour shifts, M-F. These positions are purely administrative. Casual attire, making phone calls, writing letters, mailing letters, sourcing things for the events, etc. There are some really terrific events coming up - and it's going to be great fun planning it all! Interested? Contact Annie Walker at (310) 866-6362.