Welcome New Families!

May – Order school supplies

While schools are responsible for providing all basic supplies, please consider supporting our school and classrooms with a contribution of school supplies.  

Suggested school supply list by grade and instructions on how to order the supplies can be found here.  

If you order the kit(s) by the deadline (usually mid-June), the kits can be bought at a discounted rate and delivered to the school directly.  

If you miss the deadline to order a discounted school supply kit, don’t worry! You can still order the kits at regular price. Alternatively, you can purchase the supplies at your local store and bring them to your child’s classroom teacher. 

August – Attend a Kinder/New Family playdate

Monta Loma PTA usually organizes two Kinder/New Family playdates during August.

Though the playdates are optional, they provide a great opportunity for your child to meet his/her potential future classmates and teachers and for you to meet other incoming Monta Loma families, the principal and some of the PTA Board members.

Week before school starts – Attend Lemonade Social

The Lemonade Social, organized by the PTA, is usually held the Thursday before the first day of school.  Some things to do at the Social: 

• Meet new families and reconnect with old friends!
• Attend New Family Orientation
• Discover your student’s classroom assignment. Classroom assignment lists are posted outside either the Main Office or the Multipurpose Utility Room (MUR) after the New Family Orientation. 
• Visit your child’s classroom and meet his/ her classroom teacher for the first time.
• Buy your student some school spiritwear!  Students are encouraged to wear school spiritwear on Mondays for Leopard Launch and on Fridays for Spirit Days. Spiritwear can also be bought online here
• Join the PTA!  Joining the PTA is the quickest way to connect to the Monta Loma community, to feel involved  and to have your voice heard.  You can also join the PTA online here
• Sign up for volunteer opportunities.  Remember, even a very small time commitment can have a huge beneficial impact on your child.  You can also sign up for volunteer opportunities using UpToUs.  See more information here
• Relax and enjoy a glass (or two) of refreshing Lemonade!

The first day of school is a minimum day. Dismissal will be at 12:30pm

What to send to school

Backpack– A backpack should be roomy enough to transport snack, lunch, and important papers/ homework to and from school, but not so big that your child struggles with it.  Be sure that your child can open and close his/her backpack (and lunch box) by himself/ herself. 

School Supplies – Schools are responsible for providing all basic supplies.  However, if you chose to donate supplies, and had ordered a kit online through the PTA, but were not able to pick it up at the Lemonade social, rest assured that the kit will be hand delivered, by the PTA, to your child’s classroom within the first few days of school.

Labels – Put your child’s name on his/her lunchbox, snack containers, backpack, jacket, sweater, etc.  Any unlabeled lost items will be put in the “Lost and Found” located outside the MUR. Items in the “Lost and Found”, not picked up by the end of each trimester will be donated to local charities. 

Healthy Snack – Please send a healthy snack for morning recess.

Lunch – If your child will be picked up in-person, there is no need to pack lunch for a minimum day.  If your child will be taking the school bus home on minimum days, they will eat lunch in the MUR before the school bus ride home.  Students opting to stay at school on minimum days for afterschool activities must eat lunch in the MUR and remain in the MUR until 12:55pm.  

There are no microwaves or refrigerators on school property for student use.  Details regarding Snack/ Lunch purchase options, including menus, instructions on how to pay online for meals and information on National School Lunch Program can be found here.

Water – Every incoming Kinder and children transferring to Monta Loma will receive a Monta Loma reusable water bottle!    There are water bottle refill stations placed strategically around the school. Speak with your child’s classroom teacher in regards to his/her specific preferences and/ or rules regarding use of water bottles in the classroom. 

What time to arrive 

Playground supervision begins at 8:20am. All students must report to the MUR if they arrive prior to 8:20am.  

Supervision is provided in the MUR beginning at 7:45am.  Students are not to arrive at school before 7:45am. 

Where to go for morning drop off

Students can be dropped off curbside in front of the school office or MUR.  There are limited parking spaces in the school parking lot so be prepared to park on side streets.  Walking and biking to school is encouraged for those who live nearby.

Kindergarten students should go to the fenced Kinder playground.  Gr.1 – Gr.5 students should go the blacktop or the blue playground.

At 8:30 am (1st bell), students line up at their classroom lines.  Teachers will greet students at their respective classroom lines and will walk the students to their classrooms.  Parents should be prepared to say goodbye to their student(s) before the 8:35am 2nd bell.

There’s usually a Principal’s coffee in the MUR at 8:40am on the first day of school for new families. 

Where to go for afternoon pick up

All students should be picked up at 12:30pm on minimum days.  For regular school days, release times are 2:05pm for Kinders and 3:05pm for Gr.1- Gr.5 students.  

Gr.1 to Gr. 5 students can be picked up in-person from the MUR or at curbside in front of the MUR.

Kindergarten students should always be picked up in-person in front of their respective classrooms.  Students not picked up from their classrooms by 12:30pm on minimum days and 2:05pm on regular days, will be walked to the main office by their classroom teachers.  Parents arriving late for pick up should go directly the main office to pick up their child. 

You must pick up your child by 1:15pm on minimum days and by 3:30pm on regular days.  

Leopard Launch

Monday Mornings start with a Leopard Launch on the blacktop.  Parents are invited to join.  During the launch, students do all or some of the following routines: 

• Recite the Pledge of Allegiance
• Recite the Monta Loma Creed & the Monta Loma Anthem
• Listen to announcements
• Receive certificate of excellence for being a Leopard Leader
• Participate in a core value song, poem or other creative activity

Spirit Days

Spirit days are held once a month, either on the 3rd or 4th Friday of the month.  Students and teachers are encouraged to dress up in either Monta Loma spiritwear or according to preselected themes.  Examples of recent spirit days are: Mustache Day, Leopard Day, Mismatch Day, Pajama/ Stuffed Animal Day, Sports Day, Superhero Day, Crazy Hair Day and Sunglasses Day.

Leopard Spots

Students receive Leopard Spots for being “spotted” exhibiting one or more of Monta Loma’s five core values.  Students may trade in Leopard spots for school supplies, leopard print items, or special activities. 

Check out our Events page here for specific dates of events and activities. Some examples include: 

• Back to school Night (BTSN)
• Fall Festival
• Movie Nights
• Game Night
• Used Book Sale
• VIP Reading Day
• Walk-A-Thon
• Open House Night
• Staff Appreciation Week
• Fun Fitness Day

School Address: 460 Thompson Avenue, Mountain View, CA 94043
Office Phone Number: 650-903-6915
Office Hours: 8am – 4pm, M-F during the school year.  Summer hours vary.

Attendance Line/ Email: 650-903-6915 or MLabsence@mvwsd.org
*Be sure to include student name, parent/guardian name, classroom, date and reason for absence in your phone or email message.

Principal: Gloria Higgins ext. 3811
Secretary: Brenda A. Cortez ext. 3803
Clerk: Eva Parra Bornstein ext. 3804
Nurse: Daniel Myers ext. 3820

Kindergarten: 8:35am – 2:10pm
Gr.1 to Gr.5: 8:35 am – 3:05pm

• Every Thursday is a minimum day with a release time of 12:30pm for all grade levels.
• The first day of school and end of each trimester are always minimum school days!
• 1st bell is at 8:30am for all students. 2nd bell is at 8:35 for all students.
• Supervision is provided in the MUR beginning at 7:45am.  Students are not to arrive at school before 7:45am.
• Playground supervision begins at 8:20am. All students must report to the MUR if they arrive prior to 8:20am.
• Students arriving to school after 8:35am should go to the main office to obtain a late slip before heading to their respective classrooms.
• There is no supervision after school.  Students are to leave the school campus immediately after school unless they are enrolled in an afterschool program such as Right at School, Beyond the Bell, YMCA, or other after-school programs.

Detailed school bell schedule (including for recess/ lunch time slots) for each grade can be found here.

• MVWSD Website: https://www.mvwsd.org/
• School Website: https://montaloma.mvwsd.org/
• Monta Loma PTA Website: https://montalomapta.org/
• School Spotlights Newsletter: sent by school secretary every Wednesday via email.
• MVWSD Superintendent eNews: emails sent through SchoolMessenger service.  
• Phone Calls/ texts/ emails from MVWSD:  sent through SchoolMessenger service. Contact information comes from District’s Information System.  Must opt-in for text messages by texting “Y” to 68453 using cell phone number District has on file.