Due to inclement weather, Mountain Song Community School will be closed Friday, November 22. Be safe and have a good Thanksgiving Break.
Dates to Remember
November 25-29 - Thanksgiving Break -- NO SCHOOL

December 7 - Winter Faire

December 10 - Middle School Winter Concert

December 13 & 16 - Vision and Hearing Screening

December 23 - January 7 -- Winter Break -- NO SCHOOL

January 6-7 - Teacher Work Days

January 8 -- School Resumes
From the Principal
Today was to be the last day of school before the Thanksgiving Break, and now it has turned into a Snow Day with school closure. We hope everyone stays safe and warm, and that you enjoy the early start of the break.

With Thanksgiving nearly here, we naturally turn our thoughts to gratitude. Scientific research now provides evidence that feeling and expressing gratitude truly helps us feel happier and more satisfied in life. This is a habit of mind and heart that we help children learn at Mountain Song so that it becomes a life-long practice. I have offered a link below to helpful hints for fostering gratitude in children, as well as a link to how to reduce stress for children during holidays.

We are so grateful for all the active hands, hearts, and minds preparing for the Winter Faire on December 7th! We look forward to this lovely event after the Thanksgiving Break, and hope you all join us! Please note the other upcoming events, deadlines, and information below.

I wish you and your family a restful, rejuvenating, and joyous giving-of-thanks break. I deeply appreciate the generosity, care, and grace that each of you offers to others. Your kindness provides so many blessings for our school community, and I am deeply moved on a daily basis by our Mountain Song Community.  

With gratitude,
Dr. Teresa M. Woods
Winter Faire
Please join us for our annual Winter Faire, Saturday, December 7, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m
Gratitude and Reducing Stress for Children
Many of us pause in this season to pay attention to family, friends, and the non-material blessings we are fortunate to have in our lives. We also want our children to be appreciative and not take things for granted. Scientific research shows that feeling and expressing gratitude can improve kids’ relationships, ability to empathize, and overall happiness. It is a habit of mind and heart that we aim to help children develop at Mountain Song so that it becomes a life-long practice. The article linked here offers tips for fostering gratitude in children, and I find it very helpful:  Ten Tips for Raising Grateful Kids: How to Help Kids Show (and Feel) Appreciation.

This time of year often means family gatherings, special foods, extra activities, travel, and magical encounters. It can also cause anxiety for children through disrupted routines, new people to interact with, loneliness, overstimulation, and unrealistic expectations. The article linked below is another very helpful one that provides suggestions on how to reduce stress for children during the holidays, and thereby nurture resilience so they can fully enjoy the special activities over break. These practices will also help them return to school rested and ready to learn again, which is, of course, what we treasure. How to Take the Stress Out of the Holidays: Helping Kids Rise to the Occasion, and Don’t Aim Too High.
Thanksgiving Meals from the Heart
If you or someone you know is seeking complementary Thanksgiving meals, these local offerings are available.

Thanksgiving Meal (Manitou Springs) - Salvation Army 
Where: 606 Manitou Avenue, Manitou Springs, CO 80829
When: Thursday, November 28, 2019 from 11:00 am - 1:00 pm
For more information, please call 719-636-3891

Thanksgiving Meal (Fountain) - Salvation Army
Where: 5745 Southmoor Drive, Fountain, CO 80817
When: Thursday, November 28, 2019 from 11:00 am - 1:00 pm
For more information, please call 719-636-3891

Thanksgiving Meal (Colorado Springs) - Springs Rescue Mission
Where: City Auditorium at 221 E. Kiowa St., Colorado Springs, CO 80903
When: Wednesday, November 27, 2019 from 11:00 am - 1:00 pm 
For more information, please call 719-632-1822
Thank You, Parent Council, for Supporting the Internal Festivals!
We on the Internal Festivals Committee would like to give a heartfelt recognition and thanks to the MSCS Parent Council for their amazing support and contributions to the first Internal Festivals of the 2019-20 school year so far! 

For Michaelmas, PC helped to deliver and sort apples for all the grades’ students to enjoy after their fun adventure through the annual Michaelmas Obstacle Course! These apples have been a treasured highlight to the end of the obstacle course each year since the beginning of MSCS, a true example of how often the simplest of traditions are the most well received by our students. 

MSCS Parent Council has also been so very supportive of the nourishment of our faculty and staff by providing set up and delicious homemade foods during events such as Professional Development Day, Parent Teacher Conferences, and our most recent Harvest Tea. The Harvest Tea is a rare time when all of the MSCS faculty and staff come together in celebration and recognition of our daily dedication to the MSCS students and community. This event allows time for the teachers and staff to connect with one another, serving to strengthen the commitments and supports which develop between colleagues. Sharing food and conversation, relating ideas, and showing moral support throughout our teaching and staff teams is just one of the unique strengths of our community at MSCS. 

Parent Council, we send out our warmest gratitude for your beautiful support! 

Thank you, 
Internal Festivals Committee
Dismissal Safety
Dear Families,

I’m writing to express a real concern about safety at dismissal time. Our primary objective at dismissal is to supervise the safe transfer of children from being under the care of school personnel to being under the care of designated family or friends.  

Naturally, parents also like to visit at this time, while multiple ages of children, including toddlers, play on the playground. It can be a fun visiting and play time, yet in these circumstances, multiple safety concerns arise. Unfortunately, we have experienced an increase in the number of children’s injuries at dismissal time, including a recent one that prompted emergency responders to be called. This trend requires us to put greater safety measures in place in the near future.

While the Executive Leadership Team and the Safety Committee work internally to structure a safer dismissal process, we also appeal to you to help in these ways:  

  • If you only have children in the elementary grades who dismiss at 2:55 p.m., we kindly ask that you linger no longer than 10 minutes, that is, until 3:05 p.m.
  • If you have children in both elementary and middle school grades, and need to wait with your younger children for your middle school students who dismiss at 3:10 p.m., please directly supervise your younger children in close proximity, and linger no longer than 10 minutes after the middle school students are dismissed, that is, until 3:20 p.m.
  • Keep the pick-up-and-go lanes in front and on the side of the building moving. These are pick-up and go lanes, and they are not for parking.  
  • Consider serving as a volunteer if you are willing to be trained, wear orange vests, and serve as monitors for traffic and playground safety.
  • Please abide by Mountain Song’s Playground Rules.
  • Please remember that our after-care program operates after school, and we need to clear the playground after dismissal so they can conduct their program.

Thank you for attending to the safety, care, and nurturing of our Mountain Song children!

Dr. Teresa M. Woods
Accepting Intent to Enroll Forms for the 2020-2021 School Year
Families interested in enrolling their children in Kindergarten through Grade 8 classes or our Homeschool Enrichment Program must submit a SY 20-21 Intent to Enroll form by January 31, 2020 to place their child(ren) in the Enrollment Lottery . The Intent to Enroll forms are also available at the front office .  The lottery will occur on Tuesday, February 11, 2020. If your child is selected in the lottery, enrollment packets will be sent to you from our Director of School Performance after confirmation in February. Please contact Sarah Kreger with questions at skreger@mountainsongschool.com .
Vision and Hearing Screenings December 13th
On December 13th, we will be conducting our annual vision and hearing screenings per state mandate. Make-up screenings will occur on Monday, December 16th. We will screen all K, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, and 7th graders. In addition, we will screen the following students from all grades: 

  • Students who are new to MSCS this year
  • Students who received referrals from the nurse last year or students whose teachers refer them this year
  • Students with 504 plans
  • Students with new IEPs or whose IEPs will go under triennial review this year

If you do not want your child screened, please inform Kate Pettey at the front office in person or by email ( kpettey@mountainsongschool.com ) no later than December 12th. Please include your child's name and grade, as well as your preference not to have them screened for the 2019-20 academic year.
Volunteers Needed: Vision and Hearing Screenings
CALLING ALL VOLUNTEERS: Mountain Song's eyes and ears need you! We need 6 - 8 volunteers to conduct the hearing and vision screenings under the guidance of our consulting nurse, Kimberly Nowland, on Friday, December 13, and for make-ups on Monday, December 16.

Ms. Nowland will provide training to all volunteers on Friday, December 13, so please do not hesitate if you've never done this type of volunteering before. Lunch from Qdoba will be provided. We ask that volunteers be available from 8:00 a.m. - 2:45 p.m., as we expect it to take all day to conduct all of the screenings. However, the more volunteers we have helping, the faster we can screen classes and finish the day. We will also need volunteers for make-up screenings on Monday, December 16th only until noon.  

Please email Kate Pettey ( kpettey@mountainsongschool.com ), or leave a message on the attendance line (719-203-6364, option 1) if you are able to help.
6th Grade Aspen Class Fundraiser
Christmas Cacti will be sold by the 6th Grade Aspen Class for the holidays! These beautiful festive cacti will bloom for the holidays year after year. Orders will be taken after school on December 4th, 5th, and 6th. The cacti will be delivered the following week, and pick up will be after school on Friday, December 13th.
2019 Mountain Song Community School Annual Appeal
(November 15 – December 31)

The Mountain Song Community School Annual Appeal is an important time for Mountain Song Community School where we ask families, friends, and other members of our community to support the school with a philanthropic gift.

Save the Date: Grandparents Day
Thursday, March 18th
We are very excited to announce our second annual Grandparents Day Celebration on Thursday, March 18th. At MSCS, we love and appreciate our grandparents, and believe they are to be honored, treasured and celebrated. In order to send our grandparents a special invitation from the school, we need your help. Please provide us with the mailing and email addresses of the grandparents. We need this information in order to get invitations and information out. To reply with the requested information you can simply click the button below, fill out the needed information and hit submit.
Volunteers Needed for the Farm
The Farm is in Need of Volunteers! This is a very integral part of our school, so please consider using some of your volunteer hours to keep The Farm up and running. Children are more than welcome to help and are encouraged to participate. Links are now live for signing up for Fall/Winter and Winter/Spring volunteer hours. See below:  



Thank you! Parent Council
Songbird Contributions
Article or announcement contributions must be submitted to Dr. Woods by Tuesday at 5 p.m. for inclusion in each week’s Songbird newsletter, typically distributed on Fridays. ( twoods@mountainsongschool.com )
Mountain Song School Event Calendar
Mark your calendar with these important Mountain Song Community School dates.

Mountain Song Community School | 2904 West Kiowa St, Colorado Springs, CO 80904