January 9-17 - MAP Testing Grades 3-8
January 17 - Town Hall Meeting TONIGHT
January 20 - MLK Day -- NO SCHOOL
January 21 - 23 -- Kinder Assessments - No School for Kinder / Regular Days for Grades 1-8
January 24 -- K-3 Assessment Day - No School for K-3/Regular Day for Grades 4-8
February 17-19 -- President’s Day and Teacher Conference Days -- NO SCHOOL
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Town Hall
Tonight!
January 17, 2019 5:30-7:00PM
MSCS Gymnasium
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Please don't miss this opportunity to hear updates about items the Board of Directors are working on, as well as ask questions and provide feedback. Yes, we want to hear from YOU! The Town Hall is an opportunity for the Board to share updates regarding a new location for the school, as well as our work on re-chartering the school with the Colorado Charter School Institute (CSI), our authorizing institution (our current contract runs through 2021, and we must renew our charter in order to remain in operation). Come learn about our performance rating from the state (why our students have to take those standardized tests!), and how YOU can help us in moving the school and maintaining our free, public school status!
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Hearing and Vision Referrals
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Please check your child’s backpack or homework folder for any Hearing and Vision Referral if your child did
not
pass one or both of the screenings. The Hearing and Vision Referrals are always delivered by hard copy only, and
they will be going home today, Friday, January 17th.
Paperwork is only going home for students who did not pass one or both screenings. Nothing will be sent home with students who passed both screenings. Please direct any questions to Kate Pettey:
kpettey@mountainsongschool.com
, or (719) 203-6364.
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Parent Information Sessions
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Families interested in enrolling their children at Mountain Song are encouraged to attend Parent Information Sessions to learn more about Waldorf-inspired education, enrollment expectations, our school culture, and a general overview about our unique approach to education. The sessions will be from 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm at MSCS on January 15th, 22nd, and 29th.
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Confirmation of Continued Enrollment for 2020-21 School Year
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This week, your student(s) will be bringing home a yellow Confirmation of Continued Enrollment form. Please read it carefully, complete it with the appropriate information, and return it to the school no later than January 31st. If you intend to re-enroll your student(s) in Mountain Song next year, this form is essential to ensuring your placement.
If you have other children you are interested in enrolling for the first time at Mountain Song next school year, please fill out the SY20/21 Intent to Enroll form by clicking
here
or visiting our website at
www.mountainsongschool.com/enrollment
.
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Federal Impact Aid Extension -
DEADLINE TODAY
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Calling all military and federally connected families!
The deadline for submitting a Federal Impact Aid form has been extended to January 17th.
If you or someone in your household is an active military member, or you work or live on federal lands, please send your form to the front office by January 17th. If we have enough households turn in their forms, then we are eligible for additional funds! Thank you all for your assistance.
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Greetings, Mountain Song Families!
As we enter the new semester, we continue to offer our students social support as they navigate their feelings and relationships. We are implementing school-wide conversations and specific activities which blanket Mountain Song in warmth and kindness. Acts of kindness to ourselves, others, and the environment are being woven into our lessons, play, and interpersonal relationships on a daily basis.
Under this umbrella of kindness, we will be conducting two new groups for students who would like help with Social Skills and Grief & Loss. These will consist of small, age-appropriate group discussions and corresponding activities. Social skill building helps children feel confident and empathetic as they navigate changing social relationships with peers, family members, and adults. Grief can present differently in children, and may result from many circumstances including death, divorce, deployment, moving away, loss of a pet, and loss of friendships.
If you have a child who you believe would benefit from these group discussions, please contact me. We will begin the last week of January and continue through the end of the semester. Our ongoing group for students coping with upcoming or current military deployments will also continue through the end of the school year.
Thank you for your support and consideration.
Cori Karasiuk
Dean of Students
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K-3 Assessment Day
Friday, January 24th, 2020
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The K-3 Assessment Day is Friday, January 24th. This will not be a typical school day for grades K-3. Instead, please bring your K-3 children to school only in their assessment time slot during which they will be assessed for reading. Sign up with your class teacher.
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No School on Monday, January 20th
Martin Luther King Jr. Day
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Please remember that there will be no school for students on Monday, January 20th, as it is Martin Luther King Jr. Day. This marks the 25th anniversary of the day of service that celebrates the Civil Rights leader’s life and legacy. MLK Day is the only federal holiday designated as a national day of service to encourage all Americans to volunteer to improve their communities. We encourage our families and staff to do what we can on this day to contribute to our communities.
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Mountain Song is pleased to announce that Ms. Melissa Rossi will be our long-term substitute Reading Interventionist in grades 1-4 for the spring semester, as Ms. Leslie Conrad takes a leave of absence to be present for the births of her grandchildren expected in the upcoming months. We send our best wishes to Ms. Conrad, and we look forward to seeing her next Fall (and visiting our halls from time to time during the spring!).
We extend our warmest welcome to Ms. Rossi, who has over 25 years of classroom experience, with the majority of them teaching children in 2nd and 3rd grades. She earned her B.A. in Elementary Education from the University of Northern Colorado, and holds a current Colorado Professional Teaching License. Additionally, she taught several years of summer school and also gifted and talented classes at UCCS. She especially enjoys working with small groups teaching reading interventions. We are delighted and fortunate to have such a competent and skilled teacher joining us this spring!
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Help for Parents/Guardians of Children with Behavioral Issues
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NAMI Basics
is a free, six-week education program for parents and family caregivers of children and teens who are experiencing symptoms of a mental illness or whom have already been diagnosed. It is offered by the National Alliance on Mental Illness (
NAMI
) - Colorado Springs. For more information, click
here
.
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Carpooling Requests on Community Bulletin Board
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Do you need help getting your child to and from school?
The community bulletin board in the front entrance of the school is a place that MSCS families can post carpool requests for other families in their area. If you know of other Mountain Song families living in your area who may need transportation assistance, please consider carpooling. It's a great way to assist other families in our community and it cuts down on traffic congestion!
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Save the Date: Grandparents Day
Thursday, March 19th
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We are very excited to announce our second annual Grandparents Day Celebration on Thursday, March 19th. 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.
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Volunteers Needed for the Farm
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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
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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
)
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Mountain Song School Calendar
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Mark your calendar with these important Mountain Song Community School dates.
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Mountain Song Community School | 2904 West Kiowa St, Colorado Springs, CO 80904
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Looking for past issues of the Songbird or to sign up new recipients
click here
.
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