Welcome to Fall in Colorado! We have many new families to the area, and I really enjoy hearing the comments every morning as we all remember what we love about living here!
Your students have settled in nicely to the daily school routines. Our PBS/HERO (Positive Behavior Support) program is in full swing. We have worked with each grade level to teach appropriate behaviors in common areas (HERO Passport) and in classrooms. Each week, we draw green slips from each classroom and award students with extra recess, organized games, extra library time, etc. In October, teachers will begin this in their classrooms. By November, we are hoping to have a school wide celebration of our HERO behavior. This celebration will be a performance provided by the Imagination Makers sponsored by a partial grant we received from the Douglas County Scientific and Cultural Facilities District. The play, entitled, "The Trouble With Jesse", has Conflict Resolution and Literacy Themes and fits into our PBS and school focus.
We celebrate learning and our students every day in many ways and hope that your child is having a positive school experience. The theme of time is prevalent in our work, and to illustrate the importance of being present to learn, I have begun tracking data on absences, tardies and early departure. The numbers are unsettling. To date, we have had 93 tardies at an average of 5 minutes = 7 hours and 69 Early Departures at an average 20 minutes = 23 hours, totaling 30 hours of lost instructional time at the end of the fifth week of school! Please help us maximize instructional time by scheduling appointments on Teacher Inservice days if possible. We appreciate your support and attention to this growing issue. Please know we begin instruction at 9:10 am. and end at 4 pm.
Thanks again for your support and for the wonderful kids you send us to work with everyday.
Robin
