Dear Families:

I hope this newsletter finds you all doing well and staying healthy. As we near the end of the school year, I wanted to take a moment to update you on the latest happenings at our school.

• Grades 3, 4 and 5 have completed CMAS testing, Colorado Measures of Academic Success. We will not receive results until July 2023. Thank you to Ms. Sueppel, who served as our SAC, School Assessment Coordinator.
  
• We are collecting end of the year data on students in grades, K-5, using iReady, our assessment tool for reading and math.
• Grades K-3, will also be administered the DIBELS, Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills.
• Second graders will be administered the CogAT, the Cognitive Abilities Test.
  

As we approach the final stretch of the year, I would like to remind you of a few important dates to keep in mind:

• May 2, 8:45 Mariachi concert
• May 15, Field Day, Grades 3, 4, 5, MSHS
• May 19, Field Day, Grades K, 1, 2, MSES
• May 25, Last day of school, 12:00 dismissal

As we near the close of the school, a reminder that Teacher Appreciation is around the corner. Help PAC celebrate our staff:

• Monday May 8th- Breakfast Treat- If you want to provide a breakfast treat that the staff can enjoy please sign up with the Sign Up Genius https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090b4da9ae29a2f58-teacher/32078628#/

• Tuesday May 9th- Bring a Flower Day

• Wednesday May 10th- Wear your Teacher's Favorite Color

• Thursday May 11th- Students write down something they learned this year.

• Friday May 12th- Write a Thank You note to your favorite staff member

MSES was awarded several MACH grants to fund local artists at MSES. In May, we will have local potters and a mariachi band funded by MACH, Manitou Artis, Cultural and Heritage Board. Read more about our local opportunities here.

MSSD open enrollment continues through 5/31/23. MSES is looking for kindergartners and second graders. Spread the word!

Have a lovely weekend!

Warmly,

Maria

To extend our learning about taking care of the earth, kindergartners learned about endangered animals this week. We discussed what causes animals to become endangered, identified some endangered animals, and even went to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo to see many of these animals. Each group was given a Seek-and-Find activity sheet to help them identify animals at the zoo who are endangered and challenged them to learn more about the animals. We had a wonderful time! Here are some guiding questions that you can ask your expert to see what they remember:

• What does it mean if an animal is endangered? (There is not a lot of this species left.)
  
• What does it mean if a species is extinct? (There are no more animals of this species that are alive.)
  
• What are the names of some of the endangered animals we have learned about? (pandas, rhinos, African elephant, mountain lion, gray wolf, polar bear, sea turtle, snow leopard, tiger, tree kangaroo, etc.)
  
• What are some reasons these animals are endangered? (Humans hunt them, humans cut down their habitats and take away their food and shelter, pollution, etc.)
  
• What was your favorite part of our trip to the zoo? (Answers will vary.)

In Social Studies we have started learning about communities and are creating a map of our community. We are also learning about how to construct our own key and legend. In doing so, we have explored the differences between natural and human features. Ask your expert: What is a human feature? A human feature is one that has been created by humans- buildings, parks, etc. What is a natural feature? A feature that is created by nature- hiking trails, creeks, rivers, mountains, etc. We will then continue our exploration into Colorado Springs, the state of Colorado, and our bordering states.

4th Grade has been busy with History projects and Poetry! We celebrated Night of Excellence with Silver Boom or Bust dioramas around the school as well as other Colorado History projects! Do you know the date and year our State became a state? Do you know our nickname? Also, Poetry as begun for us with CKLA. Ask your student about Slant Rhymes and what poem Roald Dahl wrote with a bit of a "twist" on a classic Fairy Tale! We are getting excited for our field trip on Monday to our State Capitol building as well!

Celebrate the lovely teachers and staff at MSES during Teacher Appreciation Week. Here are a few optional suggestions.

Monday May 8th- Breakfast Treat- If you want to provide a breakfast treat that the staff can enjoy please sign up with the Sign Up Genius below.

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090b4da9ae29a2f58-teacher/32078628#/

Tuesday May 9th- Bring a Flower Day

Wednesday May 10th- Wear your Teacher's Favorite Color

Thursday May 11th- Students write down something they learned this year.

Friday May 12th- Write a Thank You note

PARENT TRIVIA NIGHT MAY 6th

Parent Trivia night will be the evening of May 6th at Manitou WInery. Doors Open at 7pm Trivia starts at 7:30pm. The cost is $15 a person, you can pay cash at the door. We are capped at 50 people so it is very limited. Every MSES grade level submitted trivia questions. It will be a fun way to test our knowledge and see if we "ARE SMARTER THAN AN MSES STUDENT". If you have questions about trivia night please reach out to Andrea via email andrearalko@gmail.com

FUN RUN

We are doing a school wide end of the year Fun Run the morning of 5/24 the day before the last day of school. It will be a fundraiser event as well as a great way to get the MSES community together and say goodbye to teachers and staff.

When kids start to go online, whether they're playing multiplayer games, using educational apps, or just following their curiosity on Google, it's important that they understand the basics of online privacy and safety. With some general guidelines around what information is and isn't OK to share, and some help from parents when they're unsure, kids can have fun and learn a lot in the digital world.

Discuss personal vs. private info.

Talk about the difference between what's OK to share online (favorite color) and what's not (home address)

Use privacy settings.

Together, go through the settings on all new apps to make sure you both know what information your kids are sharing. Especially in the beginning, it's better to share very little

Avoid location tracking.

Location-aware apps can be super helpful. But apps that use a device's location to help people find your kid or offer them ads for nearby businesses should be used with caution. Turn them off if you can.

Power up passwords.

Work together with kids to help them come up with complex passwords. Think outside the dictionary. Use phrases and special characters that make passwords hard to guess but easy to remember. Remind kids to keep passwords private and change them regularly.

Skip quizzes.

Help kids identify and avoid clickbait, quizzes, special offers, and anything that asks for personal or private information. This helps keep information secure and devices safe.