Dear Families,

We have conferences this week, so I wanted to send out our newsletter a little early. Conferences will take place this Thursday and Friday, October 21st and 22nd. Conferences will be offered in-person and virtually. On Thursday, October 21, we will have early dismissal at 12:30 and no school on October 22, to accommodate conferences. After meeting with your child's teacher, come check out student work in our hallways, along with our Book Fair.

As a reminder our school Core Values are : Relationships, Deep Learning and Opportunity. After more than a year of COVID, we are working on a new teaching format to address Deep Learning for primary students through a flooding model. Flooding is a technique in which multiple staff members provide educational instruction to an individual grade level at the same time to remediate and extend student learning to ensure we reach the individual needs of our students. This technique is especially beneficial after the educational challenges caused by COVID. We have three reading interventionists: Judy Bray, Keren Hale and Steve Smith. In addition, paraprofessional Luz Shoemaker, and On Beyond /Gifted teacher, Kristen Kanaga, round out this dynamic crew. Our goal is to have each and every student in our school reading at or above grade level. You can support our goal by reading to your child or having your child read to you every day!

Thursday, October 21st at 10:00am, we will have our PAC meeting, Parent Advisory Committee in the Commons at MSES. We would love to have you join us to develop our future goals. PAC is planning to offer a chili dinner after Merchant Trick-or-Treating on October 29, at 5:00pm.

Next week, we will be celebrating Halloween with a costume parade on the playground October 29, at 2:00pm. Parents can join the parade by entering the playground at the gates on the corner of Prospect and Pawnee. Students will return to class after the parade and will be released at 2:50pm. We ask that parents wait for release at 2:50 to pick up your child.. If need to check your child out earlier, please make arrangements with your child's teacher. While we would love to welcome parents for Halloween parties, we are continuing to follow COVID protocols and limit the number of people in the building.

If you would like to celebrate your child's birthday, please remember that individually store bought treats are welcome.

The city of Manitou Springs will celebrate Halloween with Merchant Trick-or-Treating from 3-5pm on Friday, October 29.

We now offer after school care for our students at MSES. Please see the flyer below.

Keep reading with your child at home and check out this link to extend your child's learning.

https://www.mclasshome.com/homeconnect

See you at conferences!

Maria

• Oct 21 - PAC Meeting 10:00am
• Oct 21 - Parent/Teacher Conferences 12:30pm-7:00pm
• Oct 21 - Book Fair 7:30am-8:00am and 12:30pm-7:00pm
• Oct 22 - Parent/Teacher Conferences
  
• Oct 22 - Book Fair 7:30am-11:00am
  
• Oct 27 - Late Start Wednesday (2 Hour Delay)
• Oct 29 - Merchant Trick-or-Treating 3 - 5pm
  
• Oct 29 - PAC Dinner, 5:00pm-6:00pm
  
• Nov 3 - Late Start Wednesday (2 Hour Delay)
• Nov 10 - Late Start Wednesday (2 Hour Delay)
• Nov 17 - Late Start Wednesday (2 Hour Delay)
• Nov 22-26 - Thanksgiving Break
  

PLEASE REMEMBER TO CHECK THE LOST AND FOUND IF YOU ARE IN THE BUILDING FOR CONFERENCES!

If your child will be absent, please call the front office to have the absence excused. This may include illness, car trouble, appointments, family trips etc. This helps teachers with planning, and adds an additional safety measure for our kids. Thank you!

In Music class, 1st and 2nd grade students are partnering on keyboards! This week, 1st graders studied Beethoven's Ode to Joy. We worked on the German lyrics to the chorus, practiced some fun rhythms, and started working on choral focus and blending as we sang The Armed Force Medley and Thank You, Soldiers. Below, Avery and Sabrina work together on the keyboard melody Ode to Joy.

Third graders are busy learning about three human body systems: skeletal, muscular and nervous. Students put together and labeled the skeletal system. Ask your expert where their humerus and femur are! They should know the functions of the skeletal system as well (support, protect vital organs, produce red blood cells). Students have also learned about the three kinds of joints: movable, immovable and partially movable. (Movable joints are ball and socket or hinge joints, an immovable joint would be the skull, and ribs are partially movable joints). Ask your expert to describe the difference between involuntary and voluntary muscles (involuntary muscles are automatic, voluntary muscles we can control). Next week we will learn about the nervous system and the brain, with an even closer look at eyes and ears. Watch for diagrams of the eyes and ears to come home for an opportunity to practice labeling the parts!

Ms. Goldman and Ms. Larsen's classes went to Starsmore Discovery Canyon last week. They learned about the Ute Indigeneous American Culture by raising and lowering a tipi, participating in a nature walk, making bracelets that represent the Ute sacred colors, dancing a friendship dance, and painting parfleches with yucca strands and natural paints. It was the perfect day for a field trip and we are looking forward to many more to come.

Art students have been working hard during their time in art class to create beautiful pieces of art for our annual art fundraiser, Original Works. Next week, your child will be bringing home a packet which will include their artwork and ordering supplies. Some students were unable to finish within our class time together and may need to complete their artwork at home. If you are interested in ordering any products, please return your completed order form, artwork and payment to MSES no later than Friday, October 29th. Products will arrive the week of Dec. 3rd. Thank you as always for supporting the art program at our school. With last year’s profit we were able to buy enough art supplies to put together nearly 100 supply kits for our families that may need supplies at home. Please contact Carrie Dunlap at cdunlap@mssd14.org or our front office if you have any questions or are in need of an art supply kit for your child.

If your family could use some extra help (food, clothing, toys) during the upcoming holiday season, or you want to sponsor a family who is needing help, check out the flyers below before November 15th!

Breakfast and lunch are free for all students. We would still like all families that qualify to fill out the Free and Reduced Lunch form on our district website.

Breakfast and lunch menus are available online here.