Carrillo Community Update
April 21 - 27
Message from Ms. Bittel
I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! This week our cougars finished up their AASA testing. Only a few students need to make up their tests this week. Thank you so much to everyone for your partnership in getting students to school on time, well-rested, and ready to go!
We hope to see everyone on Tuesday for Carrillo's STEAM Night. Ms. Stroup has been hard at work collaborating with Carrillo teachers as well as our community partners to put on an incredible event. After 3 weeks of testing, this should be a fun event for students and families! We also hope that you can make it to the April PTO meeting this Friday. Big topics for the night include elections for next year, Luau, and Teacher Appreciation. Please check out the PTO section of the newsletter for more information.
Finally, I wanted to share a few photos from the National Magnet School of America conference. Carrillo was recognized there as a National Certified Demonstration Magnet school at the opening session and again as a Top Merit School of Excellence at the closing. These awards are a testament to the hard work and dedication of the Carrillo teachers, staff, students, and families. Thank you for making Carrillo one of the best schools in not only Tucson but one of the best in the nation!
Let's make it another incredible week Cougar Families!
-Ms. Bittel
Carrillo K-5 ... Creating Tomorrow's Leaders, Today!
Save the Date
Upcoming Events
- Tuesday, April 23 - STEAM Night
- Wednesday, April 25 - Administrative Assistant's Day
- Friday, April 26 - PTO Meeting and Elections
COMING SOON
- Monday, April 29 - Spring Book Fair Begins
- Friday, May 3 - Lunch Hero Day
- Friday, May 3 - Luau
- Monday, May 6 - Teacher Appreciation Week Begins
- Wednesday, May 8 - Nurse Appreciation Day
- Wednesday, May 15 - Field Day!
- Friday, May 17 - Parent and Volunteer Appreciation Day (Grab and Go Breakfast on us!)
Kind Campus Weekly Activity
Kindness Question of the Month
How can we become more aware of kindness in our community so we can experience all of its benefits?
Changing Behavior Patterns
- Have students make a list of three strengths they are proud of, and three difficulties that they face when practicing kindness.
- How did they work to overcome these challenges?
- Ask students to share items from either list with the family.
This Week's Highlights
Yearbook Pre-Sales
It's time for the Carrillo Yearbook Pre-Sale! Order your student's yearbook in the front office from now until May 3rd for the pre-sale price of $10. Prices will go up on May 4th, so order yours today!
Order forms are available in the front office. For families with multiple students, please complete a different order form for each student. Thank you!
As of last Friday, we had 70 left.
Pop! Online to Register
Please help us by registering your student for the 2024 -25 school year. Everything can be done online. On Friday we had our first class reach 100%. Congratulations to Ms.Peralta's class!
We are still missing 31 registrations for next year. Thank you for helping us get these down to zero to ensure proper funding and class sizes for next year. If you need any assistance, do not hesitate to call Diane or Kenia in the office or drop by. They are more than happy to assist you. Below are the number of missing registrations by grade level.
- Kindergarten - missing 1 registrations
- 1st Grade - missing 8 registrations
- 2nd Grade - missing 6 registrations
- 3rd Grade - missing 11 registrations
- 4th Grade - missing 5 registrations
Pima County Fair Ride Tickets
Do your students like to read? Do you plan to attend the Pima County Fair? Will they want to go on a few rides?
If you answered yes to all those questions, Ray Cammack Shows (RCSFUN) and the Pima County Fair would love to reward your student's hard work with a two free ride pass! Please fill out the linked form to qualify. One submission per child, per email. The two free rides are valid only in Kidland. Your submission will be reviewed and approved by the Pima County Fair.
The Book Fair is Coming to Carrillo!
The Carrillo Spring Book Fair is just around the corner! If you are able to donate even 30 minutes to help Mr. Brandt with the book fair, please sign up using the linked form. Thank you!
Attendance Matters
Missing an average of 2 days of school a month negatively impacts student performance in school. Thank you for getting your cougar to school on time and for scheduling appointments and family business outside of school hours when possible. So far in April, we have 129 students with perfect attendance! Here are the classes with the most students with perfect attendance this month! Thank you!
- 1st place - Ms. Maldonado (3rd Grade) 52% perfect attendance
- 2nd place - Ms. Lujan (3rd Grade) 50% perfect attendance
- 3rd place - Ms. Matsushino (2nd Grade) 48% perfect attendance
Read more online at Attendance Works.
Improving Reading and Math at Home
We encourage students to practice skills at home on IXL when they are able. Research shows that doing just 1 extra ELA and Math sessions per week can significantly increase student growth. Especially when students work on teacher-suggested skills in the app. Here are the top 5 classes with total hours using IXL at home as well as the increase from last week.
- Ms. Matsushino's class with 78 hours and 18 minutes
- Ms. Barraza's class with 32 hours and 19 minutes
- Ms. Peralta's class with 17 hours and 45 minutes
- Ms. Acosta's class with 15 hours and 4 minutes (top at-home users this week)
- Ms. Vasquez's class with 15 hours and 1 minute
*Our Grade 3, 1, and kinder students also have access to RAZ-Plus to support literacy.
To access IXL or RAZ Plus students just log into their Clever accounts and select the icons. Clever can be accessed from the Carrillo web page by selecting the "Applications" tab in the upper right-hand corner of the page. Please contact your student's teacher if they have any trouble.
Tax Credit Contributions
Spread the Word
If you have donated to the fund or have paid for Extended Day, thank you for your support.
If you have not yet donated and you are able to contribute, every dollar helps us to fund programs that open doors for all students. To contribute, visit TUSD's Tax Credit page. From the drop-down, select Carrillo K-5 Magnet. Selecting the "undesignated Tax Credit" option allows the Carrillo Site Council to place the funds in the area of greatest need,
Thank you for your help and for spreading the word! Please feel free to print out the attached flier and share it with neighbors or anyone who might be interested in supporting public education. We are trying to raise an additional $20,000 to support after-school tutoring next school year.
General Information
Books and Bundts!
Nothing Bundt Cakes has a special way to make reading even sweeter! Elementary students who read for 400 or more minutes a month and complete the reading tracker can turn in their reading tracker for a free bundtlet every month. This is the last month to take advantage of this "sweet" deal! To participate, simply open the attachment below on your computer, print them out, and take them to Nothing Bundt Cakes when complete.
FREE Kid's Clinic
The University of Arizona College of Medicine is sponsoring a FREE Kid's Clinic the first and third Saturday of every month. If your student is in need of vaccinations or sports physicals. Please visit their Facebook Page for more information.
Information form TUSD's Family Resource Center
Family Resource Center services are available to TUSD students and their families, free of charge. Please call the center to register for classes. Childcare is available to TUSD students and siblings for most classes. Please inform staff of the need for childcare when you register. Include the number of children, ages, and any special needs. Interpreter services are available. Please inform staff of the need for an interpreter when you register. Please register at least two weeks in advance if interpreter services are needed.
Other services include:
- Clothing bank
- Food pantry
- Help with TUSD forms
- Information and referrals
We hope to see you soon!
Visit the Family Resource Center's Webpage.
Social Media
Parents, we are asking for your help with social media. As a reminder, most social media user agreements state that users must be 13 or older to have an account. Please take a moment to discuss the reasons for the age limits with your students.
Most social media sites do not allow attacks or abuse based on race, ethnicity, national origin, sex, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, disability or disease. Please encourage students to be socially conscious and report any accounts that violate those policies directly to the social media platform before blocking the account.
Parent-Teacher Meetings
The teaching staff is quite busy preparing for daily instruction in the morning. Thank you for emailing to schedule a meeting time with them rather than just dropping in. Teacher email addresses can be found on our staff webpage. Thank you for your help!
Cafeteria Offerings
The Food Services website also has a page dedicated to this month's breakfast and lunch offerings. You can even even get a mobile app for your phone online.
Carrillo Online Spirit Store
Looking for Carrillo spirit gear? Adrian from Big Frog has set up this year's online store. You can purchase this year's "Success Across the Eduverse" shirt as well as classic Carrillo spirit gear.
Transportation and Parent Pick Up and Drop Off Reminders
TUSD Buses
For more information, visit Transportation's website to see if your student qualifies for FREE transportation and to begin routing.
Morning Drop Off Reminders
Just a friendly reminder that the earliest students can be dropped off is 7:35 a.m. at 17th Street. The office does not open until 8:00 and while Ms. Bittel is usually on campus well before 8:00, she is often in meetings or other parts of the building and unable to hear the doorbell. From 7:35 - 8:00 the only safe drop off is 17th Street. Thank you for helping us to keep all our cougars safe in the morning.
After School Reminders
The primary pick-up is 17th Street. Due to the size of our office, students will be unable to wait in the office. Parents, if you are parking up front, we invite you to wait in the Carrillo Art Gallery to meet your students.
Affter school Pick-Up Updates and Request
We know that the 17th Street area can get a bit congested at pickup. To help alleviate the situation, the City of Tucson has installed new signs to direct traffic and changed the direction of Samaniego Street.
The City of Tucson is requesting that families picking up on 17th Street exit the neighborhood using the following route.
- Travel west on 17th Street
- Turn south on 11th Avenue
- Turn west to access the frontage road or turn east to return to Main Avenue and 22nd Street.
Our neighbors kindly ask that you leave the driveways and corners open when you park so they can enter and exit their homes safely. If you do wait in your car along Samaniego, thank you for waiting at the bottom of the hill on the east side of the street so the roadway is clear for all vehicles and families crossing the street.
We are also asking families to arrive no earlier than 2:35 on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday and no earlier than 1:35 on Wednesdays. Parents of intermediate students, if you plan to arrive at 2:50 or 1:50, that will give the primary students time to load up and reduce your wait time.
Thank you also for being patient, driving slowly, and watching the road carefully. The streets behind Carrillo are narrow and we want to avoid any further accidents. Thank you for helping us keep our Cougars and our community safe.
Follow these signs.
Thank you for exiting via S. 11th Ave.
Attendance and Absence Reporting
Attendance Reporting Made Easy
- Log into ParentVue from App or Computer
- Click the "Attendance" tab on the left column on the computer or on the App as soon as you log in the blue "report absence" with a small bell icon is there.
- On the top right corner of the page it will have a blue link that says "Report Absence" click on this
- Use the calendar to select dates and the drop-down for the reason for the absence.
- You may also add notes or upload a doctor's note and hit "save".
Of course, you may still give Ms. Diane Quiroz a ring at (520) 225-1200 if you prefer. Thank you for reporting all absences!
Attendance Matters
Missing a day of school here and there may not seem like much, but it adds up.
When a student misses 2 days a month they will miss...
- 20 days a year (the equivalent of a month of instruction)
- 30 hours of math instruction
- 60 hours of reading and writing instruction
- Over a 1 year of instruction by graduation
When a student misses 4 days a month they will miss...
- 40 days a year (the equivalent of two months of instruction)
- 60 hours of math instruction
- 120 hours of reading and writing instruction
- Over a 2 years of instruction by graduation
PTO News and Volunteering Opportunities
PTO Meeting This Month
Good evening families,
Thank you to everyone who attended our last PTO meeting. It is spring and we are looking for nominations for the PTO board. If you are interested in serving on the board, please nominate yourself or a friend who is willing to accept the nomination using this Google Form.
The next PTO Meeting will be Friday, April 26th online. Please email PTO to have the ZOOM link sent to your inbox.
-PTO
Please email PTO if you have any questions.
Volunteers / Visitors
We encourage all parents to register as volunteers on the TUSD website as the process takes a few weeks to complete. Parents cannot volunteer on field trips without completing this in advance.
We ask non-parental volunteers (grandparents, aunts, uncles, community members, etc.) to contact the office before registering as a volunteer so we can explain the process and help identify volunteer opportunities.
Art Volunteers Needed
Box Tops for Education
As of April 7th, the Carrillo community has raised $59.40 for the Carrillo Student Council while grocery shopping.
The Top Classes are...
- #1 - Grade 1 with 131 box tops
- #2 - Grade 4 with 83 box tops
- #3 - Kindergarten with 49 box tops
- #4 - Grade 3 with 42 box tops
- #5 - Grade 5 with 16 box tops
- #6 - Grade 2 with 4 box tops
*Italics indicate an increase this week.
Community Events
Tucson Community Tennis Program
June 3 - 20
June 24 - 18
Please open the attachment online to see their flier.
For more information about TCTP, please visit their website.
Camp Kind
Ben's Bells will be hosting a series of week-long summer camps for kindergarten through third-grade students. Please open the attached flier online for more information.
Discovery Nights at the Children's Museum
Join us for Free Discovery Nights
from 5-7 pm every Thursday
at Children’s Museum Tucson!
Enjoy free admission, bilingual programming, and extended hours every Thursday! Reserve your tickets on the Discovery Nights webpage.
Art After Dark
Every Second Saturday, come learn about Tucson's vibrant arts community!
- Guest artists each month
- Hands-on activities
- Free museum admission 5:30 - 7:30 pm
- First 400 people receive a free return-visit pass.
Stay in Touch!
Stay current on our events by visiting our Facebook Page as well as the school website. If you have any questions, comments, suggestions, or concerns please reach out. It is our mission to provide all students with a first-rate education in a kind and respectful environment.
Email the Principal:
Visit Our Website:
Location: 440 South Main Avenue, Tucson, AZ, USA
Phone: (520) 225-1200
Like Us On Facebook:
Mission Statement
Carrillo K-5 Communication and Creative Arts Magnet School engages children's minds, bodies, and senses using multiple modes of learning, thought, and self-expression.
Vision Statement
At Carrillo K-5 Communication and Creative Arts Magnet School, students become 21st Century leaders in a diverse world, through the development of a strong academic core, communication skills and creative arts abilities.