PRINCIPAL'S POINT


 
We hope that everyone is having a wonderful summer balanced with family adventures and relaxation.  On behalf of the entire Saddle Ranch staff, we welcome our students and families back for another wonderful year. Though a new school year always brings a certain amount of change, a constant at Saddle Ranch is the continued commitment to the academic, social, and emotional growth of each child. Those of you new to Saddle Ranch, we hope you quickly experience the caring environment we have in place for kids!

Arrival/Dismissal
Safety has always and will continue to be a top priority at Saddle Ranch. We wanted to take this opportunity to review arrival and dismissal procedures in order to ensure that our community is on the same page.  For new families, classroom teachers will review these procedures during assessment conferences on August 4th and 5th.  Staff is also out early the first couple of days of school with signs to help establish a routine for the year.

•   8:25 AM – Crosswalk supervision begins and students line up.
•   8:30 AM – Teachers greet their students.
•   8:35 AM – Teachers walk their students into the building.
•   8:40 AM – Instructional minutes begin; students who arrive after 8:40 are considered tardy.
•   3:30 PM – Dismissal

Please continue to utilize our two Kiss ‘n Go lanes to drop your child off at school. It is extremely important that cars are not parked in these lanes or left unattended.  This will help ensure that traffic continues to flow.  Thank you for your cooperation.

•   North/South (Near the mobiles) Student Drop Off Loop:
o   Please use this drop off loop for students in the mobiles and green pod.
o   Enter from the north side of the loop and exit the south side. (This is the same direction we have always followed.)
o   There is no parent parking available; parking spots for parents are located in the front of the school.
o   Daycare buses and DCSD buses for students with significant needs will continue to use this loop.
•   East/West (Front of the School) Student Drop Off Loop:
o   Please use this drop off loop for students in the blue pod, red pod, and kindergarten classrooms.
o    Enter from the east side of the loop and exit the west side. (This is the same direction we have always followed.)
o   The parking lot is available for families to park and to walk into the building.  This parking lot should not be used for student drop off.


A Note of Gratitude
Douglas County School District continues to face a significant and severe budget deficit for the 2010-2011 school year.  I am proud to say that our staff and community continue to unite together in order to maintain educational excellence for our students.  Last spring, our Parent Teacher Involvement Organization (PTIO) raised over $40,000 for essential instructional materials for the 2010-2011 school year.  It is important to us that we share exactly how this money was spent.
•   $15,000 purchased Everyday Math consumable materials for every Saddle Ranch student.
•   $18,000 purchased FOSS (Full Option Science System) kits that align with new Colorado state science standards for every grade level. These kits are an inquiry-based science curriculum that was just approved through the district curriculum adoption process.
•   $7,000 purchased grade level specific curriculum materials including: online reading programs, reading sourcebooks, reader’s theater materials, Handwriting without Tears resources, assessments for our Instructional Support Services department, etc.

Our staff is comprised of many wonderfully talented educators with the commitment to kids at the heart of what they do. We work extremely hard to differentiate our instruction in an effort to reach each child and teach at his or her academic level. Students are expected to own their learning and participate in the learning process each step of the way. From our teachers to educational assistants, custodians to front office, this team of individuals comes to school each day to help kids.

Thank you for sending such wonderful kids to school each day. We anticipate another spectacular year for everyone here at Saddle Ranch. Please take time to read through the information contained within the parent handbook and all of the online documents. Specific information pertinent to your child’s class will come at Parent Information Night on August 12th, but if you have any questions please do not hesitate to give us a call.

Gratefully,

Mandy Leensvaart, Principal

Linda Jones, Assistant Principal