Highlights
The HOUSE system is back in business. We hosted our opening assembly by creating house banners. Every member of each house signed the banner and we will use these banners as a way to celebrate for our house walks. We have some very exciting things planned for this year and want to thank our house sponsors again for all of their support. We are abundantly grateful for all of their support.
Frogtown Cafe
Kloppmann Architects
Martic Pantry
Pine Creek Animal Hospital
Finally, our school is filled with kids again and it seems normal. There is a buzz in the hallways and tons of fun. Some of our new students have already been assigned HOUSE shirts. We will host our kick off HOUSE ASSEMBLY on Thursday morning. We encourage all kids to wear their house shirts or the color of their house to represent their HOUSE excitement. For those who are new to Martic, we are so very lucky. We have four local sponsors who support our house program. Every student in our building is assigned a HOUSE team/color and throughout the year we host HOUSE events. More information to come about our gracious sponsors and the house system.
As we look to turn the calendar to August, it is time to start planning for our amazing school year. Parents please take a look at the School Supplies tab, so you are informed about grade level requests from teachers. Please note that any child who shows up without items from that list will be provided school supplies. Sometimes children have favorites, so we always appreciate your support.
Some other important dates to record on your calendars now. Kindergarten orientation is scheduled for Wednesday, August 21st at 5:30 PM. The orientation will last for one hour. Our kindergartners will have the full hour of activities. Immediately following the kindergarten orientation, Dr. Sugra will offer a NEW STUDENT TOUR to any students who are new to Martic. This does not apply to kindergartners since we have our orientation earlier that evening. The new student orientation will be Wednesday, August 21st at 6:30 PM. We cannot wait to welcome you to our Martic family.
Last week the Penn Manor Education Foundation sponsored an event where they recognized seniors and offered scholarship money to the graduating seniors. Our gracious PTO sponsors two different scholarships for Martic graduates. Our recipients of these awards this year were: Molly Bushong-Academic Achievement and Kari Anderson-Community service
Tuesday, we invited the graduating seniors who attended Martic Elementary to walk the halls of their elementary school for the last time as a student within the Penn Manor district. It was pretty amazing to see what an incredible turnout we had and the memories they shared from their days at Martic Elementary School. Our hearts were full as we watched with great pride.
Senator Scott Martin was able to come to Martic to recognize our two citizen awards for 4th and 5th grade. Congratulations to Adalynn Martin and Calleigh Huyard for earning this special honor. Although we have many amazing young citizens at Martic, it was fun to publicly recognize these two. It was delightful that parents could join us to celebrate.
The Martic PTO and the members from our Penn Manor Education Foundation are proud to announce that again for 2024 they will be offering two scholarship opportunities for our Martic graduates. We are very blessed to have this level of support for our Martic alumni and Penn Manor graduates. Please encourage all seniors interested in applying to complete the application by clicking here.
Our Martic PTO scholarship committee looks forward to reviewing these applications. Good luck.
As you know we have some fun winter related events planned for Friday. Our school team is going big with their bingo boards and big smiles when they are able to find the Jan Brett gingerbread book in the library. There are great joys associated with working at an elementary school around these times. Thank you for being the most supportive parents ever. We appreciate each and every one of you. We want to wish you a wonderful holiday break and Happy New Year. We are looking forward to an amazing 2024.
As we close the chapter of summer, we want to look back on some of the Martic summer happenings. Thank you to Mrs. Goe for planning three summer gatherings for our students to reconnect and play over the summer. We appreciate these efforts.
Calling all graduating seniors ~
On Wednesday, May 31st at 1:30 PM, all seniors who attended Martic Elementary School are invited to visit Martic wearing their cap and gown. It is such an inspiration to our elementary students to see the result of working hard all through school. If you know someone who attended Martic Elementary and is graduating this year, please pass along this information. If they can RSVP to let us know they will be coming, that would give us an idea of how many to expect; however, it is not a requirement. We are looking forward to seeing all our Martic graduates so we can help to celebrate your accomplishment. Graduates will gather on the front porch.
May 1, 2023
If you were not able to attend the Spring Fling on Friday evening, you missed a ton of fun. Mrs. Jodie Stark took over this year and decided it was going to be a Mexican theme. There was Mexican music playing, walking tacos and fun games to enjoy. Thank you Jodie for coordinating this event for our entire school community.
I was able to capture some photos of the face paint, crafts and of course the highlight of the evening, the NACHO EATING CONTEST. Thank you to all of our parents who volunteered in some capacity. We are only as strong as our volunteers. We appreciate all of you.
April 12, 2023
You're invited to attend Penn Manor High School dedication activities this weekend. Events include the district art show Thursday night, April 13, the Distinguished Alumni Induction Ceremony on Friday, April 14, the Penn Manor Community Day festival on Saturday, April 15, and the high school dedication ceremony on Sunday, April 16.
Here are all the details.
March 29, 2023
The Penn Manor Education Foundation has sponsored another awesome experience for the students at Martic. The VanGo bus is a traveling art museum from the Susquehanna Art Museum located in Harrisburg. Children were able to visit this special bus and experience many forms of recycled art. They also were able to evaluate various art projects while not on the bus. If you are interested in learning more about this assembly, log into their website. https://susquehannaartmuseum.org/ The featured exhibitions change and rotate every few months; here is the current schedule https://susquehannaartmuseum.org/exhibitions/. A huge thank you to our PMEF for funding this adventure.
March 15, 2023
We often hear the term “paying it forward” and never really think how we can embrace that statement and make it our own. Well today I had evidence from a kindergartner that age is not lost on that challenge. Jayleigh studied our March Madness calendar and knew there was a day dedicated to positive messages. She worked with her parents to get a huge roll of stickers that all revealed a kind message. Jayleigh brought that roll of stickers to school and asked her teacher if she could share a sticker with everyone in our school. Students, staff and teachers all got one. You can see from the photo that her stickers are throughout the building. That is the true definition of paying it forward. I love being reminded by a six year old that people are amazing and we can spread joy at any age.
February 28, 2023
In Art, our sixth grade students are working on making their own creative masks. Last week, a special guest, Mrs. Pat Simmons came to Martic to share her artistic process. She has been making masks for over 20 years for different occasions and events. Students learned about her methods and various materials she uses. She also brought her extensive collection for students to view and have fun trying them on. Special thanks to Trinity Yeager, 6th grade student, who helped bring Mrs. Simmons to our school!
February 10, 2023
On Tuesday, Dolce Vita hosted a night out for Martic Elementary families. It was a great evening and well attended. Thank you everyone who participated and thank you Ashley Mellinger for coordinating this event for us. It is awesome to announce that we earned $950.00 for the PTO and enjoyed amazing food. A win/win for all of us. Yum. We love our community businesses.
December 7, 2022
Feature Story:
Today students participated in an up close and personal look at our Earth. Students traveled around a large dome blown up in the gym with all seven continents located on it. Our guide shared different fun facts about important places located on each continent. Our tour of the Earth ended with a journey into the center of the dome. Students loved learning about our Earth from both the inside and out! Thank you to the Martic PTO for sponsoring this amazing assembly.
November 16, 2022
Feature Story:
The word GRIT was never really a part of my vocabulary before my tenure at Martic. I was exposed to the word by some of our second grade teachers. Although the word was not a word I felt a connection to, it resonated with me as determination. Over the course of the past two years all of us can relate to grit or determination. Last week, our fifth grade had to show some grit. They were bummed, their field trip was canceled and they had to adjust. They dug in and made it a great day, despite the poor weather that changed our plans last minute. That same GRIT will be a skill they need later in life. There will be times that things may not go their way and they are learning how to dig in and find a healthy solution. I love this word now…. It means something to me and has a positive spin. Thank you for modeling for your kids.
November 9, 2022
I always feel great joy about my job, but one of the reasons is directly tied to the humans I get to interact with daily. Last week, while teachers diligently prepared report cards, we decided to take time out and eat together. I felt like it was one big happy family all crammed together in our faculty room, laughing and enjoying each other’s company. I am so blessed by the little humans who come here every day and the adult humans who work here. :) Feeling happy.
Earlier this week, while I was circulating to different classrooms, one of our 4th grades was transformed to a NEON glow classroom. All of the children were equipped with glow rings, flashlights and some even had head gear. Can you think of any other way to learn mathematics in fourth grade? The kids were so excited.
November 2, 2022
Meet Mrs. Moyer. She is our new Applied Engineering teacher. What is Applied Engineering? Every student in grades 1 through 6 participates in this STEM related class, but too often, parents are unclear about what exactly the students are learning about or what they're working on in this field. Here is a website that not only explains what Applied Engineering is, but it also showcases the projects that each grade level works on with an explanation and pictures of example projects. You can always contact Jenna Moyer with questions!
October 26, 2022
Community members are invited to meet Penn Manor’s new superintendent, Dr. Phil Gale, and the district’s leadership team during community meetings scheduled for Thursday, November 10, and Monday, November 14, at Penn Manor High School.
In addition to introducing themselves to participants, district staff members will share important information about Penn Manor School District and meet informally with community members after each session. The content for both sessions will be the same.
The meetings will begin at 7 p.m. both nights in the large group instruction room at the high school. Prior to each session, participants will be invited to take self-guided tours of the high school beginning at 6 p.m.
This is an opportunity to meet the district’s leadership team and learn more about what makes Penn Manor such a great place for teaching and learning.
Reservations are not required, and light refreshments will be available.
We hope to see you there!
October 26, 2022
We are closing in on the end of the first marking period. This is the time when teachers are beginning to plan for parent-teacher conferences. Please don’t share this secret, but our teachers get so excited to meet with you. After spending six hours a day with someone it is awesome to meet their parents/guardians. If you have not already signed up for your child’s conference, please consider signing up soon. As a reminder, our specialists love to see you too… here are the links to sign up for a specialist conference.
October 05, 2022
Feature Story:
Mrs. Eckroat created an amazing display showcasing all of our new students. It is great to connect to new families and learn more about our new students. This display is in our cafeteria and everyone can learn more about our new friends. We are so happy to welcome all of these families to the Martic community.
September 21, 2022
Feature Story: The summer reading program at Martic certainly promotes quality reading over the summer. Seventy six students were able to celebrate their reading success by attending a private showing of Minions, The Rise of Gru. It was a great morning and the kids also enjoyed some movie treats. Thank you to the Martic PTO for sponsoring this event and all of our parents who found many books for children to read this summer.
Feature Story:
September 15, 2022
September 15th is international DOT day. Mrs. Harnish celebrated with the Martic students by having students MAKE THEIR MARK. Each contribution from EVERY child at Martic evolved into this amazing final product. It is a beautiful creation from your amazing children. Take a peek at our collective mural.
Feature Story:
September 14, 2022
We are well into our school year already. Kids are settling into amazing routines and teachers are deep into elementary content. Thank you to all of our parents for supporting this amazing kick off. We cannot make any of it happen without your support.
Great news! We just learned that every child will be provided FREE BREAKFAST starting October 1, 2022. This means any child can come to school and enjoy a hot breakfast in our Martic cafeteria starting at 8:30 AM every morning. We hope our Martic families take advantage of this opportunity. Remember this is just for breakfast.
Bus Evacuation Drill
Meet Mrs. Burkhart
Feature Story:
September 7, 2022
On Wednesday, we pulled our entire school together to meet our new secretary, sing the Martic Song and creatively share some of the rules associated with being in school. It was a fun assembly that will kick us off in the right direction for the school year. A huge welcome goes out to Mrs. Jessica Burkhart who is joining Martic as our new secretary. Please help me give her a warm Martic welcome and provide her grace as she learns so many names and procedures. Thank you.
Feature Story:
August 29, 2022
Today has been a great first day. We are so excited that our building is buzzing with the voices of young inquisitive children. Thank you for sending them back to us after their summer adventures.
As a reminder, if you are picking your child up, please complete the pick up list form. If you were having trouble, we apologize.... hopefully the error was fixed. Here is the link.
Dr. Janssen in looking for volunteers to assist with the Martic recess running club. If you are able to volunteer and are an approved volunteer through Penn Manor, please consider helping.
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E084CACA92AA02-recess
Please read over Dr. Janssen's PE reminders by clicking here.
As a reminder we need all parents to sign off on COPPA permissions for their children. If you have not already completed this, please CLICK HERE to complete this permission form.
As a reminder, we are no longer working off of the Martic Blog. Please refer to the Martic Elementary Google Site for any of the information coming out. You can also expect an increase in email reminders for timely communication.
This week:
8/31 Meet the teacher open house 4-6 PM
9/1 Early Dismissal 1:30. / AM kindergarten attends/ No PM kdg
9/2-9/5 No School
Feature Story:
The halls have been alive with teacher talk, decorating galore and an energetic buzz that is contagious. It is so exciting to think about our amazing school year ahead. Yesterday we hosted our incoming kindergarten class to come and tour their classroom. We also hosted new student tours. I smile as I reflect on the excitement of the children ready to return. We cannot wait! Thank you Martic PTO for providing a new student gift to all of our new kids. Some photos from this week that might make you wonder……. It is okay… I like to keep you in suspense.
First Day of School
The first day of school is Monday, August 29th. We look forward to seeing everyone soon!
As a reminder, we will welcome all incoming kindergarten students to Martic on Wednesday, August 24th at 6 PM for an orientation.
Dr. Sugra will also be offering new student tours for any newly enrolled student in grade 1-6 on Wednesday, August 24th at 7 PM.
Apply for Free and Reduced Lunches
08-12-22
Penn Manor School District has, for the past two years, provided breakfast and lunch free of charge to all students. For the upcoming school year, the waivers that enabled school districts to offer free meals during the pandemic have expired.
This means that families that want to receive meals free of charge in the 2022-2023 school year must apply for free and reduced-priced meal benefits. If your children qualified for free and reduced-priced meals in previous years, they will be able to receive them until October 1, 2022. To extend those benefits for the entire 2022-2023 school year, families must reapply.
Click here to fill out the application, which considers family size and household income. Parents will need to create a SchoolCafe account to access the application.
Here are instructions for filling out 2022-2023 application. Here is a paper copy of the application that can be filled out and submitted to the food service department. Here are income requirements for families.
By submitting your application, your school may receive additional funding to improve nutrition and education programs. Applying for free and reduced-price meals also can help families with fees for SATs, PSATs, college applications, advanced-placement exams and other expenses that may come up during a child’s high school career. Qualifying for free and reduced-price meals also means your family may qualify for additional benefits, such as a low-cost internet service.
Please complete the 2022-2023 application online as soon as possible to take advantage of these benefits!
If you have any questions or need help with the application process, please contact Penn Manor food service assistant Deanna Witmer, at Deanna.Witmer@Pennmanor.net or food service director Courtney Kolp, at Courtney.Kolp@Pennmanor.net.