VCS East Hawk Talk
March 2021
4th Quarter Plans
Your Vanguard Classical School Leadership Team and VCS COVID Response Team are excited to be planning for a return to Hybrid (A and B Cohort) in-person learning starting in the 4th quarter. This will begin for Cohort A students on March 22nd, and Cohort B students on March 23rd. On Wed, March 24th and all subsequent Fridays, instruction for all Cohort A and B students will be fully remote.
Remote learning for the remainder of the school year will also remain as an option for any VCS family that is uncomfortable with returning to in-person Hybrid instruction.
VCS uniforms will not be required for the remainder of the 2020-21 school year. Hair color restrictions will also be relaxed for the remainder of the 2020-21 school year. Dress of Choice rules will apply as clothing and hair must still be deemed appropriate and non-distracting.
To limit cross-cohort exposure, before and after school childcare will be postponed until Fall 2021.
Requests to change cohorts will not be honored. Classes are split evenly in order to properly follow safety guidelines.
Chromebooks
Please note that students may NOT bring a personal device into the school building. They will not be able to connect to our wifi network, and IT support is not available for personal devices.
Every Vanguard student has been issued a Chromebook to utilize at home and when they are in the building.
If your child's VCS Chromebook is broken, the time to submit a ticket is now. The sooner we know about a broken device the sooner we can do something about it.
PikMyKid
Parent/Teacher Conferences
K-4 Families:
- Select ONLY ONE slot with your child's homeroom teacher.
5-6 Families:
- Select ONLY ONE slot with your child's homeroom teacher.
- Content teachers will provide notes to homeroom teachers to go over during your conference.
- Should you need to speak with a teacher other than your child's homeroom teacher, please contact them directly to set up an appointment on another day.
7-12 Families:
- Under normal in-person circumstances, we typically have all 7-12 teachers in one space, and families have the opportunity to wait in line to see any teacher they wish. In a virtual setting, it's impossible for all of our teachers to see every family of every student they serve on conference day.
- Should you run into scheduling issues on conference day, please contact teachers directly to set up an appointment on another day.
CMAS
Beginning Monday, April 5th, our students will join other students throughout Colorado in taking a set of state tests called the CMAS (Colorado Measures of Academic Success). CMAS will be given to students in grades 3-8 in Math and English Language Arts. Students in grades 5, 8, and 11 will be completing the CMAS Science test.
The VCS testing window closes on Friday, April 30th. The tests are aligned with the Colorado Academic Standards. These standards set our community’s expectations for what students must know to be ready for college level courses or a career after they graduate from high school. Families should know if their children are on the right path, and these assessments will provide an “academic checkup” to help us know if our students are ready for what comes next. These assessments also provide information to the district and state on how schools are performing.
We ask that you make a special effort to have your child (ren) to school on time every day as the assessments will begin soon after arrival. Listed below are important things students can do to help ensure they are ready each day to do their best.
- Get a good night’s sleep.
- Eat a healthy breakfast.
- Come to school on time, every day.
- Per state requirements, cell phones are not allowed in the testing environment. Secondary students must have their phones turned off and stored in their lockers. Elementary students must give their phones to their teachers to be placed in a secure location.
- Do your very best.
According to Aurora Public Schools polices (adopted by VCS), IKA and IKAR, the parent/guardian of a student enrolled in the district may request that their child be exempt from participating in one or more state assessments.
Filling out the form below meets the requirements for our district and the Colorado Department of Education.
*If you are choosing this option, this form must be completed by Wednesday, March 10th.
If you have any questions please contact Ms. Winner (mwinner@vanguardclassical.org) or Ms. Richardson (lrichardson@vanguardclassical.org).
SAT/PSAT
9th and 10th graders will take the Colorado PSAT and 11th graders will take the Colorado SAT.
College Board partners use information from these test scores to expand access to various scholarships.
We encourage students and parents to explore an online help tool, Khan Academy, to prepare for these tests. Khan Academy gives students free personalized practice, including study and test-taking tips, six official full-length practice tests and a tailored
practice plan. Please visit khanacademy.org.
- SAT (11th grade) April 13, 2021
- PSAT (9th grade) April 14, 2021
- PSAT (10th grade) April 15, 2021
PICTURE DAY!!
Annual Earth Day Shirts
Cost: $8.95-11.95 (depending on size)
Orders Due Online: Thursday, March 4...no money will exchanged through Vanguard
Download the flyer below for more information.
"LOVE" Earth Day Shirt
Tiger "Earth Day Always" Shirt
We will have a yearbook this year!
K-12 families...we need your help!
Send teachers photos of your child in their remote learning space, doing a fun activity with the family, enjoying time outside, etc.
- Soft cover yearbooks: $20
- Hard cover yearbooks: $25
Core Virtue of the Month: Faithfulness
Faithfulness is standing by those we love, those we serve, and what we believe.
Resources from the School Health Professionals
Nicole Nina, Social Worker
720-551-9641
Shequeeta Hazard, Social Worker
720-551-9319
Katie Buckman, RN
720-551-9414
Medications & Immunizations
This is the school nurse Ms. Buckman reminding you that if your child has medications needed at school or a health condition needing a health care plan from their physician, please drop them off at the school before they return to hybrid learning on March 22nd or March 23rd. Make sure all medications are properly labeled with your child’s name and prescription when dropping off and physicians orders signed.
Remember if you have not handed in your child’s UPDATED immunizations please send those to me or drop them off at the front desk. If you plan on excusing your child from immunizations, I will need an updated personal or medical exemption form filled out. All these forms can be downloaded below, filled out, and emailed to kbuckman@vanguardclassical.org.
Stay healthy, happy, and safe!!
Social Groups & Mindfulness Club
Safe2Tell
COVID-19 Resources/Information
Click the pdf below to download our 2021-2022 calendar.
Do you love VANGUARD?
Please send positive reviews/testimonials to info@vanguardclassical.org.
Thank you for your support!
Attendance
Have you moved or changed your phone number?
Front Desk: 303-338-4110
Quick Links
Are you having tech issues?
Our team will work to resolve your issues in a timely manner.
Infinite Campus Parent Portal
Contact Ms. Torres, Ms. Zewdu, or Ms. Holtz for assistance at 303-338-4110.