In the upcoming school year we will continue to develop our programs and offerings so that we can truly individualize learning for each student. We will work to understand the strengths and needs of each learner through the delivery of common formative assessments. We will use that information to strategically tailor instruction to meet student needs. As we move forward with the Colorado Academic Standards, our staff is transitioning learning opportunities to become even more focused on critical thinking, creativity, problem solving, communication, and integrating language arts into all content areas.
The following are some ways in which you can foster and encourage these 21st Century learning practices at home:
- Set aside time each day to ask what your child what he/she learned in school today, and why
that learning is important. Often kids will say “I don’t know…” and the conversation stops.
Work to shift that conversation and use papers they bring home to help guide your conversation.
Offer your child specific feedback, about the work you are seeing. For example, if your
child brings home a writing piece you might say something like, “I notice the way you added
figurative language to your piece, which helped me make a picture in my mind.” - Let your child be the expert! Have your child teach you a new way to solve a math problem or
use a computer device. Children love being the teacher, and when they can do this, their level
of understanding is far more complete. - Encourage questions! Kids have a million questions about the world. Foster those thoughts
and model ways of exploring their questions without just providing an answer. - Read together or consider reading the same novel or text as your child. This way you can ask
questions, discover new vocabulary/ideas, make predictions, discover connections, and enjoy
some special time together. - Promote written personal correspondence (thank you notes, friendly letters, invitations) as well
as business correspondence (requests, inquiries, complaints) in both hand-written and wordprocessed formats.
Thank you for the positive role that you play in supporting your child’s academic, social, and emotional
growth. We will look forward to seeing you often throughout the school year.
growth. We will look forward to seeing you often throughout the school year.
Warmly,
Vanessa Fisher, Principal
Shannon Morris, Assistant Principal