The Pine Crest Newsletter

Pine Crest Elementary School

Email: Joan_M_Stump@mcpsmd.org

Website: https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/pinecrestes/

Location: 201 Woodmoor Drive Silver Spring, MD 20901

Phone: 240-740-1970

• Message from Ms. Stump
• Election Day Bake Sale
• Consolidation & Closures Feedback
• Grade 5 Central Review Process for Middle School

• Food Market & Community Closet

• Mental Health Awareness Week
• Upcoming Open House
• The MKPC PTA Read-A-Thon
• Districtwide Climate & Culture Survey
• 6th Annual Taste of MCPS

• Parent Teacher Conferences

• Important Messages from MCPS
• PTA Reminders

• Two Schools One PTA

• Important Dates

The PTA is having an 11/3 Election Day Bake Sale outside of the PCES Polling Center and WE NEED VOLUNTEERS! Please use this sign up genius to let us know how you can help make this a success!

Please see the Elementary and Middle School Consolidation and Closure Study website for the most up to date information about this study.

Please complete the Community Feedback Form, which is open through Wednesday, November 4, 2026.

Grade 5 Central Review Process for MS Enrichment Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) (Preguntas frecuentes en español)

Middle school choice program (Argyle, Loiederman, Parkland) forms and additional information for the programs can be found here. The choice form is due by November 6th and you are encouraged to complete it with your child.

For the criteria programs (Eastern and Takoma Park Magnet programs), find information here. There are no current actions to take.

Montgomery Knolls Food Market will occur on Frinday, November 6th from 4:00-6:00.

As proud paired schools, we want to remind everyone that the Montgomery Knolls Food Market and Community Closet is here to support our entire combined community. The Food Market offers fresh, nutritious produce to our families once a month and the Community Closet offers free clothes and other essential items for all students, families, and community members of both Montgomery Knolls and Pine Crest.

If your family needs anything, please consider utilizing these great resource.

MCPS will observe Mental Health Awareness Week November 9–14, 2026, with the theme “Mental Health Matters: Connect. Support. Thrive.”

Pine Crest & Montgomery Knolls collaborated to provide aligned opportunities for students and staff to participate in activities promoting mental health, resilience, connection, and coping strategies.

The Mental Health and Wellness Fair will be held November 14 at James Hubert Blake HS.

Open House will occur next week on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. We are excited to welcome you into our classrooms to see the amazing instruction occurring.

We are offering two different time slots: 9:30 AM – 11:30 AM and 1:30 PM – 3:30 PM. Please choose whichever part of the school day works best for your schedule to observe our classrooms.SY 26-27 Comprehensive Schedule

At 10:30 AM and 2:30 PM, families will have the opportunity to "snack and chat" with administration. Please complete this this brief survey to share the topics you are most interested in learning more about.

As a reminder, Open House is geared toward adults. To ensure we are able to comfortably accommodate all families, please plan for a brief drop-in visit within your chosen time slot rather than staying for the entire two hours.

Our Read-A-Thon starts next week!!! We’re excited to see every student dive into a world of books, stories, and reading adventures. All families read differently — whether a caregiver reads to your student, your student reads independently, or you're listening to an audiobook, everyone can participate with a chance to win prizes! Last year, our students read and logged over 80,000 minutes - this year we have a goal to reach 100,000 minutes! Don't forget to log your student's reading minutes (fundraising not required to participate for reading prizes).

To activate your student's account to log reading minutes, you should have received flyers home in your student's folder with more information, or you can use the link below. If you have more than one reader, once set up, you should be able to flip between accounts easily. https://www.read-a-thon.com/readers/r/IyebzD?utm=email

At Pine Crest, we value our partnership with families and know that your voice plays a vital role in helping us create the best possible learning environment for all students.

We invite you to share your feedback by participating in the Family Survey. This short survey gives you the opportunity to share your experiences and opinions about our school and the broader school district. Your honest input will help us understand what’s working well and where we can improve.

The survey is easy to complete, takes only a few minutes, and your responses are completely confidential. The results will be used to guide our efforts in strengthening programs, services, and supports for students and families.

The survey is open from November 8, 2026 through November 20, 2026.

Please look out for the upcoming climate survey in your email. It will be sent to the primary email address linked to your child’s student profile.

We deeply appreciate your time and commitment to our school community. Your feedback makes a difference!

The Department of Food and Nutrition Services (DFNS) is hosting the sixth annual Taste of MCPS on Tues, Nov. 17, 2026, from 5:30–7:30 p.m. at Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring.

About Taste of MCPS

This open house-style event gives students, staff, and MCPS families the opportunity to sample and evaluate a variety of school meal favorites, learn more about the important role of school nutrition at MCPS, and get a taste of exciting new menu concepts that DFNS is exploring for students in the coming year.

We welcome you to join. Please use the RSVP link to confirm your attendance. We look forward to seeing you on the 17th at Blair HS.

Parent-teacher conferences will take place during the month of November. The purpose of these meetings is to build a strong partnership between home and school to support your child’s academic and personal growth. Your child's teacher will begin to reach out to you to schedule your conference time. We look forward to collaborating with you!

Turn Back Time This Weekend: Don’t forget to set your clocks back one hour on this Sunday, Nov. 1, for daylight saving time. As we return to shorter days and earlier evenings, remember to stay alert on the roads, and be extra vigilant for pedestrians and cyclists.

Calendar Notes:

• Nov. 2 is Grading and Planning for the end of term; no school for students

• Nov. 3 is Election Day - Schools and offices closed

MCPS Is on the Rise! More Schools Earn Top STAR Ratings
Big news worth celebrating! 134 MCPS schools, nearly 69%, earned 4 or 5 STAR ratings on the 2026 Maryland School Report Card. Fifty-six schools improved their STAR ratings, including 50 that reached four or five STARs. Even better, ZERO MCPS schools received a 1-STAR rating! These results reflect the hard work of our students, educators and school communities, with important gains in reading and math across the district.

Read the Press Release | Read the Information One-Pager | Watch the Event Video

School Closure and Consolidation Study: Last Round One Virtual Session; Nov. 2
MCPS is wrapping up the first phase of community engagement sessions on the elementary and middle school closure and consolidation study. The final opportunity to provide feedback in a virtual meeting is: Join on Zoom — Mon, Nov. 2, 6-7 p.m.

If you’ve already attended one of our sessions, please take the time to share your perspective on our feedback form. Your valuable input will be reflected in our updated FAQs, which will be available in the coming weeks. The form is open through Wednesday, Nov. 4.

A second round of engagement sessions will be held in late November and early December.

Visit mcpsstudy.org to review study information, explore frequently asked questions, learn about the process and find opportunities to share your feedback. Learn more.

Inside MCPS: The Realities of Our Aging Facilities
Leaking roofs. Failing heating and cooling systems. Aging buildings. Rising construction costs. The hard truth is that MCPS has significant facility needs, and waiting to address them only makes the problems more expensive.

In a new video series, "The Hard Truth," MCPS takes you inside schools and support facilities to show the real facilities challenges facing our district.

The Hard Truth: Doing nothing is not an option.
Watch the Video Series

The Latest EdTalk: Supporting Multilingual Students and Families

On the newest episode of EdTalk, hear from host Board of Education President Grace Rivera-Oven and principals Alicia Deeny (Richard Montgomery High School) and Isabelle Mensah (Rolling Terrace Elementary School) about how their schools create welcoming environments, engage students and maximize family involvement for multilingual students and families. Watch EdTalk | Vea Educación al Día

You can now listen to all the EdTalk and Educación al Día episodes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts.

Be Sure to Weigh In on the 2027-2028 School Calendar
As MCPS continues to develop the 2027-2028 school calendar, the district is seeking more input from you!

Complete this second survey to share input on the proposed draft calendar for the 2027-2028 school year. The survey will close on Friday, Nov. 6. Take the survey.

Public Comment on Two Policies Due Nov. 6
The Board of Education is seeking public comment on proposed amendments to two policies — Policy IPD: Travel Study Programs, Field Trips and Student Organization Trips and Policy BLB: Rules of Procedures in Appeals and Hearings.

• The comment period for Policy IPD closes Friday, Nov. 6. Submit comments on Policy IPD.

• The comment period for Policy BLB closes Friday, Nov. 6. Submit comments on Policy BLB.

Policies for Public Comment

Board Seeking Public Comment on Two Policies
The Board of Education is seeking public comment on proposed amendments to two policies — Policy IPD: Travel Study Programs, Field Trips and Student Organization Trips and Policy BLB: Rules of Procedures in Appeals and Hearings.

• The comment period for Policy IPD closes Friday, Nov. 6. Submit comments on Policy IPD.

• The comment period for Policy BLB closes Friday, Nov. 6. Submit comments on Policy BLB.

Policies for Public Comment

Student Opportunities

• Mental Health & Wellness Fair: From 10 a.m.-1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 14 at James Hubert Blake High School. Free and open to staff, students and families.

• Capital Weather invites K-8 kids to submit original artwork inspired by weather, seasons, climate or nature to its Kids Art Showcase. Learn more.

Stay Connected to MCPS

• VISIT the MCPS homepage.

• CALL 240-740-3000. Staff take calls from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, in English and Spanish (240-740-2845). Visit the AskMCPS website.

• READ news and information sent via email and text message and on the MCPS News page.

• FOLLOW the MCPS social media pages:
  x.com/mcps / facebook.com/mcpsmd / instagram.com/mcps_md facebook.com/mcpsespanol / x.com/MCPSEspanol / instagram.com/mcpsenespanol

• SIGN UP for emails and text alerts and make sure your ParentVue information is up to date.

• WATCH the MCPS cable channels Comcast 34 (1071 HD), Verizon 36 or RCN 89

More MCPS Resources

• School calendar

• Parent resource page

• News and Information page / Noticias en Español

• Latest photo galleries

• MCPS TV videos

• MCPS TV español

If you haven't already - make sure to join your grade level WhatsApp!

3rd Grade -

https://chat.whatsapp.com/Ci59i3txQTtGPhKDBBcAO4?s=cl&p=i&mlu=4&ilr=4

4th Grade -

https://chat.whatsapp.com/ELVzrtO9yanCviImm3426W?s=cl&p=i&mlu=4&ilr=4

5th Grade -

https://chat.whatsapp.com/Cdta1DbOzcd1pNyaVoykeI?s=cl&p=i&mlu=4&ilr=4

The MKPC PTA is a parent-volunteer organization dedicated to providing Montgomery Knolls and Pine Crest Elementary School ongoing support to achieve excellence for our students, teachers and the community.

Check out our fabulous PTA's website.

Join the PTA here.

MKPC Family Calendar

PTA October News

Noticias de octubre de la PTA

November 1 Daylight Savings!

November 2 Grading & Planning / No school for students

November 3 Election Day - Schools/offices closed

November 3 PTA Sponsored Bake Sale at PCES

November 5 PTA Sponsored In-House Assembly: Word Play to Kick Off the Read-a-Thon

November 5-11 PTA READ A THON

November 6 Food Market @ MKES

November 10 PTA Meeting @ PCES 7:00 pm

November 10 Marking Period 1 Report Cards Available in Synergy

November 11 Open House 9:30-11:30 & 1:30-3:30

November 12 Read-A-Thon Celebration at MKES from 6:30-7:30

November 12 MP1 Report Cards Distributed

November 16-20 PCES Book Fair

November 23 Early Dismissal

November 23 Parent Teacher Conferences

November 24 Virtual Learning Practice

November 24 Early Dismissal

November 24 Parent Teacher Conferences

November 25 Early Dismissal

November 26 Holiday

November 27 Holiday