September 19th - October 4th

Dear Menchaca Families,

It is hard to believe how quickly the first several weeks of school have passed! Our littles are settling into their routines, building relationships, and showing us each day just how much they are capable of learning and growing.

As we continue through September, our teachers are wrapping up Beginning-of-the-Year assessments. These assessments help us understand where each child is starting so that we can celebrate their growth throughout the year and make sure we are providing the support they need along the way. Remember, at Menchaca, we believe extraordinary starts with a strong foundation, and that foundation is built through the partnership between school and home.

Thank you for continuing to support us with attendance, arriving on time, communicating with your child's teacher, and reinforcing the importance of school—even with our youngest learners. Every day matters, and every day gives our littles another opportunity to learn, grow, and shine.

We have so much to look forward to this fall, and we cannot wait to continue making memories with our Menchaca families. Thank you for trusting us with your littles and for being such an important part of our Menchaca family.

With Cardinal Pride,
Tanya Mares
Principal
Menchaca Early Childhood Center

Families, we are asking for your help keeping our staff hydrated during afternoon parent pick-up. Our team spends time outside each day helping make dismissal as safe and smooth as possible, and those South Texas afternoons can still be HOT! ☀️

If you would like to support our staff, we would greatly appreciate donations of bottled water or sports drinks. Donations may be dropped off at the drop-off/pick-up line or in the front office and will be shared with staff working afternoon dismissal.

Thank you for always supporting the people who take care of our little Cardinals! ❤️🐦 Every donation is appreciated!

Every day your little one is at school means another day of learning, practicing routines, building friendships, developing independence, and growing academically.

Remember, our school day begins at 7:00 AM. The holding-area gates close at 7:10 AM. Students who are already inside the holding area when the gates close will not be considered tardy.

If you arrive after 7:10 AM, please park and walk your child to the front entrance to sign them in.

Be Here. Be On Time. Be Ready to Learn! ❤️

Lights, camera, ATTENDANCE! 🎥 Our little Cardinals are working together to spell SHOWTIME! Each day a class has 100% attendance, they earn another letter toward completing the word.

Once a class spells SHOWTIME, they earn a special Movie & Popcorn Celebration! 🍿🎬 The celebration will be held on November 6, 2026.

Families, help your child’s class reach their goal by making every school day count. When our littles are here, they are learning, growing, and helping their whole class get one step closer to SHOWTIME! ❤️🐦

Our hearts—and our cafeteria—were FULL! ❤️

A huge THANK YOU to all of the wonderful grandparents who joined us for our PK and Kinder Grandparents Day celebrations!

There is something incredibly special about watching our littles spend time with their grandparents. Thank you for sharing breakfast, giving lots of hugs, taking pictures, laughing together, and simply spending time with your grandbaby.

We hope you enjoyed your visit to Menchaca as much as we enjoyed having you!

Grandparents make the world a little softer, a little kinder, and a whole lot sweeter. ❤️

Our littles have been busy showing us what they know!

Students across Menchaca are completing their Beginning-of-the-Year (BOY) assessments. PK3 and PK4 students are completing CLI CIRCLE assessments, while our Kinder students are completing their beginning-of-the-year assessments, including TX-KEA/KPM and i-Ready Math.

These assessments are not something families need to study or prepare for. They simply give our teachers a starting point so we can identify strengths, determine areas where additional support may be needed, plan instruction, and celebrate the tremendous growth our littles make throughout the year.

We cannot wait to see how far they grow! 🌱❤️

We LOVE having our families be part of the Menchaca experience! ❤️ Throughout the year, there will be opportunities for families to join us for special events, celebrations, meetings, and other campus activities.

Because we serve some of our district's youngest Cardinals, maintaining a safe and secure campus is always our top priority. We ask all visitors to help us by following our campus safety procedures.

🪪 Please Bring Your Photo ID

All visitors entering the building must check in through the front office and present a valid photo ID. Visitors will be screened through our campus visitor management system before being allowed into student areas.

Once checked in, please wear your visitor badge where it is clearly visible for the duration of your visit and remain in the area designated for the event or purpose of your visit.

🎒 What Can I Bring?

When attending a campus event or visiting during the school day, please remember that all items brought onto campus are subject to our campus and district safety procedures. Please bring only the items you need for your visit and follow any additional instructions provided for specific events.

If you are ever unsure whether an item is permitted, please contact our front office before bringing it to campus. We're happy to help!

❤️ Safety Is Everyone's Responsibility

We know these procedures may add an extra few minutes to your visit, especially during larger family events, so we appreciate your patience and cooperation.

These procedures aren't meant to make our families feel less welcome—they help us know who is in our building and why they are here so that we can protect every little Cardinal entrusted to our care.

We love having our families at Menchaca, and we appreciate your partnership in keeping our littles safe! ❤️🐦

Thank you, families, for continuing to help make arrival and dismissal safer and smoother each day!

Please remember that our school day begins at 7:00 AM and dismissal begins at 2:40 PM.

Please make every effort to arrive early enough to enter the holding area before 7:10 a.m. This will help your little Cardinal begin the day on time and ready to learn.

We appreciate your patience, kindness, and cooperation as we safely move hundreds of our littlest Cardinals to and from school each day. ❤️🐦

A few important reminders to help us keep everyone safe and moving efficiently:

• 🚙 Please remain in your vehicle at all times during arrival and dismissal. Our staff will assist your little one in and out of the vehicle.

• 👨‍👩‍👧 Please share our procedures with any family member or authorized person who may drop off or pick up your child.

• 🪪 Have your pickup tag visible and ready. Anyone without a pickup tag will need to visit the front office for a replacement and ID verification before a student can be released.

• 🚫 For everyone's safety, walk-up drop-off or pickup at the back of the school is not permitted.

• 💺 Need a little extra time to buckle your child safely? Please use one of our designated parking areas rather than remaining in the loading area.

• ❤️ If your little one has BIG feelings at drop-off, don't worry! Our staff and counselors are ready to provide extra love and support and help them safely transition to their classroom.

Safety will always come before speed. We promise our team is working as quickly and safely as possible to get each of our little Cardinals where they need to be.

Thank you for working with us and helping make arrival and dismissal safe for ALL of our littles! ❤️

Did you know you can track your little Cardinal's school bus? 🚌📍 Families can use SAMSARA GPS Bus Links to view their child's bus route and follow the location of the bus during transportation times.

📱 Track Your Little One's Bus

Use the SAMSARA GPS Bus Links provided by the district to:

• 🚌 View your child's bus route

• 📍 Track the bus location

• ⏰ Have a better idea of when the bus will arrive at your stop

We highly encourage our bus families to use this helpful tool, especially during the first few weeks of school as routes and routines become more familiar.

☎️ Interested in Bus Transportation?

If your little one is not currently assigned to a bus route and you are interested in district transportation, please contact the Transportation Department at 210-882-1624.

Transportation can assist you with determining your child's route and getting your little Cardinal routed for bus service.

❤️ Please Be at the Bus Stop!

Because our Menchaca Cardinals are so young, someone must be present at the bus stop to receive your little one when the bus arrives.

Please plan to arrive at the bus stop before the expected drop-off time and make sure anyone who may be receiving your child understands this important safety expectation.

Our goal is simple: every little Cardinal gets to school safely and back home safely! 🚌❤️

ClassDojo is one of the best ways to stay connected with your little Cardinal's school experience! ❤️

We encourage all Menchaca families to connect to ClassDojo and check the app regularly. It is an important communication tool that allows you to stay connected with both your child's teacher and our campus throughout the school year.

🍎 Stay Connected with Your Child's Teacher

Your child's teacher will use ClassDojo to share classroom updates, reminders, special activities, and other information specific to your little one's class. Families can also use the messaging feature to communicate directly with their child's teacher.

🏫 Stay Connected with Menchaca

Be sure you are also connected to our Menchaca Early Childhood Center ClassDojo! We use our campus page to share important announcements, upcoming events, reminders, dress-up days, schedule changes, and other information our families need to know.

❤️ Don't Miss an Update!

We know family life is busy! ClassDojo helps us keep important school information right at your fingertips.

Check Dojo often, keep your notifications on, and stay connected with us! Together, we can make sure you don't miss all the wonderful things happening at Menchaca. ❤️🐦

At Menchaca, we LOVE showing our Cardinal Pride! Each week, our littles are invited to participate in our weekly theme days as a fun way to build school spirit, create a sense of belonging, and make school just a little more exciting! 🎉

Families, be sure to check our campus calendar and ClassDojo for each week's themes and special dress-up days.

Participation is always meant to be FUN—please don't feel like you need to go out and purchase anything special. Get creative with what you already have at home and let your little Cardinal join in however they can! ❤️

We can't wait to see our hallways filled with school spirit, big smiles, and lots of Cardinal pride!

Little Cardinals. BIG Spirit. ❤️🐦

What does responsibility look like when you’re only 3, 4, 5, or 6 years old? It starts with the little things!

For our youngest Cardinals, responsibility means learning, “There are things I can do to take care of myself, my belongings, and the people and places around me.” Children don’t learn responsibility all at once—it grows through practice, routines, reminders, and lots of encouragement.

At school, our little Cardinals can show responsibility when they:

• 🎒Take care of their backpack, folder, and belongings

• 🧸Put toys and materials away when they are finished

• 👂Listen and follow classroom routines

• 🧹Help clean up a space, even if they didn’t make the whole mess

• 💕Use safe hands and make choices that help take care of others

• ✋Ask for help when they need it

• 💬Tell the truth and begin learning to take ownership of their choices

• ⭐Complete a classroom job or task they have been given

🏠Growing Responsibility at Home

Families can help children practice responsibility by giving them small jobs they can successfully complete on their own. Your child might put dirty clothes in the hamper, carry their lunch box to the kitchen, feed a pet with supervision, put toys away, help set the table, or get their backpack ready for school.

Instead of doing a task for them because it’s faster, give them time to try. You can say:

“That’s something you can be responsible for!”
“What do you need to do before we leave?”
“You remembered all by yourself!”
“Thank you for taking care of your things.”

And remember—responsibility doesn’t mean perfection! Our little Cardinals are still learning. They will forget, need reminders, make messes, and make mistakes. Each of those moments is another opportunity to practice.

When we give young children small responsibilities and show them that we believe they are capable, we help them develop independence, confidence, and pride in what they can do.

💗Little responsibilities today help grow responsible Cardinals tomorrow!

From Your Menchaca School Counselors, Dr. Morgan & Mrs. Hernandez
Helping little Cardinals grow big hearts, strong skills, and confidence in who they are.

• Front Office: (210) 882-1610

• Website: https://southsideisd.org/mecc/

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SISDMenchaca

• ClassDojo: Check messages and announcements daily

Thank you for sharing your little Cardinals with us. We’re honored to partner with you for a year full of growth, joy, and learning. Rockin’ the Nest—together! 🐦🎸