Jaguar Journal Vol. 26
March 3, 2023
Hello #FAMILY,
Happy Friday! We had a fun week filled with competitions, crazy hair and celebrations.
A huge thank you and shout out to Ms. Wendy's Student Assistants for their presentation and celebration of inclusion.
Our fundraiser for the Turkey and Syria earthquake victims was a success! Way to go in raising $1053.22! Don't forget our own PTSA Merrill Fundraiser coming up on April 14th.
We had our first Attendance Pop-up Party! Way to go Merrill attenders with 95% or higher attendance for the month of February! Only 14 more days of school in March. How many more students will get to celebrate the next party on April 6! Keep up the strong attendance for the rest of the year! As a school we are only a few percentage points away from our goal for the state and district!
We are getting excited to show what we know and share our growth with the state on this year's CMAS assessments! Our students and teachers have worked very hard all year, and we are already seeing great results on our district and unit assessments.
Congratulations to Abby Heider, for winning second place in the KidWind Regional Challenge at CSU's Energy Institute! She built a wind turbine that was tested in a wind tunnel, competed in wind energy challenges, and presented her design and data to a panel of judges. She is thankful to Ms. Guillen and Mr. Geimer for their wonderful help!
And congratulations to our own Mr. Franklin for being selected as a speaker at the CHSCA DAY FOR COACHES! We know that he brought the inspiration to Empower Field that day while simultaneously saying, "Go Nuggets!"
Have a great weekend.
Have a great weekend!
FIRST POP UP PARTY!
COME TO SCHOOL IN MARCH AND JOIN THE NEXT PARTY ON APRIL 6th!
CMAS INFORMATION - PLEASE READ!
February 2023
Dear Merrill families:
Starting on March 20, 2023, Colorado students begin taking CMAS, the Colorado Measures of Academic Success. CMAS measures student proficiency on the Colorado Academic Standards. These standards provide clear and consistent guidelines on what students should know and be able to do at the end of the year, across grade levels and subject areas.
Grades 3-8 will take English language arts and math assessments. 8th graders will also take a science assessment.
Content Tested: Grade Levels
English Language Arts (ELA): 6th, 7th, 8th Grade
Math: 6th, 7th, 8th Grade
Science: 8th Grade
Calendar: The calendar below was created to communicate to you when the state assessments, Colorado Measurement of Academic Success (CMAS), are occurring. We believe that communicating these dates will help us by ensuring your child gets plenty of sleep and a good breakfast everyday, but especially the day of assessments. If there are doctors appointments or other appointments that need to be made, we hope this calendar will help you to make those appointments on non-assessment days. Going forward, the best place to see the most up-to-date calendar is on the school website at http://merrill.dpsk12.org/.
Attendance: We also want to communicate that all students should be in school on-time, all day and everyday, regardless of whether assessments are occurring or not. Important teaching and learning happens in-between testing, so it is imperative that students are here. Our expectations remain around vacations and we expect parents to continue to plan vacations around the DPS Calendar.
Make-Ups: Students do best when they are in their classroom environment for testing. In the event that your child has to miss a test session, they will have to make-up the test another time and will be pulled during their instructional time to do so. To prevent disruption to your child’s day and other students’ day, please make sure that your child is at school everyday and limit their absences to only when they are sick.
Student practice resources can be found here: https://coassessments.com/practice-resources/. More information about assessments in DPS can be found here: https://assessments.dpsk12.org.
If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me. Thank you, and go Jaguars!
Patrice Underwood
Principal
Merrill Middle School
Denver Public Schools
The following are additional resources from the Colorado Department of Education: http://www.cde.state.co.us/communications/cmaspurposeandvalue22-0 http://www.cde.state.co.us/communications/resourcesforparents
INCLUSION ASSEMBLY BY MS. WENDY'S STUDENT ASSISTANTS!
Thank you for helping the Earthquake victims in Turkey/Syria. MS. ZICK IS THE WINNER AND WILL GET DUNKED!
The Jaguars raised $1053.22. WOW! This will help so much.
If you are still wanting to give, you may do so directly to Doctors without Borders.
Thank you,
Ellie Foust
Dean of InstructionMerrill Middle School
MAKE A WISH WITH 150 PENNIES FOR A GOOD CAUSE!
Merrill is partnering with South High and Make a Wish
South High Student Council partnered with Make a Wish to help a young girl in Westminster Colorado, and we are happy to support their Wish Week by sharing our community and taking on a fun fundraiser to support this wonderful child by hosting “Penny Wars”.
About Our Wish child:
Marilyn is a 10 years old from Westminster, Colorado and has cystic fibrosis. Cystic fibrosis is a progressive, genetic disease that affects the lungs, pancreas, and other organs. Her wish to meet the cast of her favorite TV show.
Some of Marily’s favorite things: the color blue, the ‘I survived’ books, roblox, sushi, Love's cafe in Nashville, sour straws, chips, social studies, pop music & Olivia Rodrigo, newspaper club and podcasting, she LOVES Harry Potter and Stranger Things, Gayton Manarozo, Sadie Sing, dancing, goldendoodles, tuxedo cats, the Simpsons, biking, scootering, hanging out with friends, crafts, watching YouTube, playing Yahtzee, getting her nails done, and going shopping.
How can you help? Starting Tuesday March 7-10th. Send your kids with your loose change or cash donation and ask them at night where their class stands in the competition.
How it works: Advisement classes are going to compete against each other. The winning advisement class will enjoy an Olive Garden Lunch sponsored by our AVID program at Merrill after spring break.
Every morning an AVID student will go to Advisement class to collect pennies to add to their classes total.
During lunch AVID students and educators will have a subtraction table set up.
Students can add silver coins and bills to subtract penny totals from any class they want.
The donation of silver coins and dollars will help your students' advisement class win by subtracting the totals from other classes.
Merrill wants to reach a 900 dollar donation goal. That is only about $1.50 per student.
Thank you for helping to make wishes come true. Every penny counts!
COME SHOP AT THE RACK - IT'S NOT NORDSTROM'S BUT IT'S CLOSE!
THIS WEEKEND, COZY UP WITH A NEW BOOK PURCHASED AT BOOKIES!
READY. SET. SHOP! IT'S HERE!! THE FIRST DAY OF THE MERRILL BOOK FAIR FUNDRAISER STARTS TODAY!
Shop at The Bookies bookstore starting today March 3 through 12th and Merrill will receive 15% back off all purchases! Use the code Merrill online or in stores. Get your Spring Break slopeside or poolside reading material! Check out the teacher wishlist to not only help raise money for Merrill but you can help fill the shelves of classroom libraries. The registry is available on line or ask a sales associate at the store. Click here or scan the QR code to go directly to The Bookies Merrill webpage.
HOW IN THE WORLD DO I GET INTO SCHOOLOGY?
YOU ARE INVITED TO THE THEATRE AT MERRILL MARCH 17th @ 6:30 PM and MARCH 18th @ 1:30 PM
We have been working so hard on the musical and tickets are on sale NOW! Please come and support our wonderful and talented thespians! Runtime is approximately
60 minutes with no intermission. Friday’s show will be streamed!
Or at the door
See you at the show!
MERRILL AUCTION POWERS UPDATE!
GET IN THE AUCTION POWERS MOOD AND COME MINGLE !
Join other Merrill parents/guardians while enjoying cocktails and light appetizers and catching a scene or two of the famed Austin Powers movies!
Generously hosted by Laura Love and Keith Binkley at 2635 S Milwaukee Street
(parking on Vassar or on Milwaukee), Wednesday, March 15th , 6-8pm.
Please bring a bottle or two of wine valued at $30 or more to be won in our wine pull or
auctioned off during our Auction Powers event in April. Please be sure to RSVP (adults only).
And good news! Total Wine and More at 3905 E Evans (Evans and Colorado Blvd), is offering
30% off select wines to all Merrill families.
To get the discount, be sure to:
1. Select wine(s) with a yellow tag valued at $30 or more.
2. Head to the cashier and Ask for a manager.
3. Tell them you’re to receive “a 30% discount for supporting the PTA Colorado Congress”
(That is the nonprofit name under which the Merrill Middle School PTSA is registered,
and is the name they have for us in their system).
4. You’re good to go! Feel free to purchase as many bottles as you like using the discount.
Can’t make the Stock the Cellar event? Feel free to drop off donated bottles of wine at the
home of Brian and Lisa Glynn, 3511 E Harvard Ave any time before the auction on April 14th . OR
you can make a donation directly toward purchasing wine for the auction.
Don’t forget to SAVE THE DATE!!!
Auction Powers International Merrill of Mystery
April 14 th , 6-10pm, at the Space Annex, 95 S Cherokee St.
Tickets to go on sale soon!!!
WANT TO HOST A STUDENT FROM SPAIN THIS SUMMER?
TEACHER FUN FRIDAYS
CRAZY HAIR DAY
HAVE YOU TAKEN SOME GREAT PHOTOS DURING EVENTS AT MERRILL?
WANT TO KNOW WHAT KIDS TALK ABOUT IN ADVISEMENT?
2/27- Inspirational Black Women
2/28- Fact around Opioids and Fentanyl
3/1 Career Interest profiler
3/2 What is an "Upstander" vs. "Bystander" when in it comes to bullying
3/3 was a Fun Day
Please ask your student what they thought about the lesson or what stood out to them
Next week will be focusing on the following
3/6- Current Event in the news
3/7 Introducing Make a Wish and Penny Wars
3/8 Fill your World with Good campaign
3/9 Women's History
3/10 will be a Fun Friday activity.
ONLINE BOOKS AVAILABLE 24/7/365
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Help Stock the Merrill Store
The Merrill Store needs snack food donations, gift cards, and volunteers to run the store. Please see this SIGN UP for items and volunteers needed on Fridays.
FYI- $5-$10 Video game gift card (Playstation and Roblox) are in high demand.
Get in the Auction Powers mood and come mingle
Generously hosted by Laura Love and Keith Binkley at 2635 S Milwaukee Street
(parking on Vassar or on Milwaukee), Wednesday, March 15 th , 6-8pm.
Please bring a bottle or two of wine valued at $30 or more to be won in our wine pull or
auctioned off during our Auction Powers event in April. Please be sure to RSVP (adults only).
Can You Help Us Get Donations?
Donations of products and
services help us reach our auction goal! Here is the donation form:
SUPPORT MERRILL WITH YOUR SHOPPING
MORE RESOURCES IN OUR COMMUNITY
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MERRILL JAGUAR ATHLETICS
Floor hockey tryouts will be on Monday 13th from 4-5:30. There will only be one team and this year it will be more of an intramural team.
Any questions please email Wendy Shepard.
Baseball and Girl’s Soccer Registration is Now Open –
Student Registration for Baseball and Girls Soccer is now open. If your student is interested in trying out please complete the form below. Also, your student must have an up to date physical on file.
Tryouts – Girls Soccer – March 6th and March 8th (NOTE DATE CHANGE)
Tryouts – Baseball – March 7th and March 9th
Soccer Coach Kirk Heath kirk_heath@dpsk12.net
Coach Vince Franklin vincent_franklin@dpsk12.net
Please send all athletic questions to vincent_franklin@dpsk12.net or call 720.424.0621
Cool Classroom ~Ms. Aide’s 8th grade Drama Class
Students in Ms. Aide’s class participated in “speed dating” to learn from one another about important aspects of the play Detroit 1967. They presented their information and had peers give them quick feedback through the use of a TAG protocol (Tell something you liked, Ask a question, Give a suggestion). What a creative way to learn new information from one another, give feedback, and incorporate purposeful movement into the class!
AT HOME CONVERSATION STARTERS
For Women's History Month:
Who is a woman from your family that more people should know about? What makes this person so awesome? Who is a woman from history that more people should know about?