Upcoming Dates to Remember
September 30
Festival of Courage
Heroic Feats of Courage Course
October 01
Harvest Stone Soup Festival 11:00 a.m
October 03
Student October Count Day
October 04
Board Meeting 6:00 p.m.
October 07
October 13
In-school Health Screening
October 18
Board Meeting 6:00 p.m.
October 21 and 24
Teacher Inservice - NO SCHOOL
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From the Director
Autumn Equinox Updates and Renewal
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Click on the photo to view the video.
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Yesterday we marked the Autumn Equinox, one of two points in the year when the length of light and dark in the day are equal across the globe. It's the mid-point in time between Summer Solstice and Winter Solstice. In the video above, I discuss some of the sources of renewal we can find at this time of year.
And so we return to our theme of the year, “The Space Between as a Source of Renewal.” We have a webpage on our website dedicated to this theme linked here. You’ll see on this webpage that our staff wrote Haikus* on the theme just before school started.
It’s now time to update this webpage and include inspirations at this Equinox time. We warmly invite YOU to add to this page by sending in your own Haikus on the theme of the Autumn Equinox as a Source of Renewal. Please email them to Kirsten Meehleis kmeehleis@mountainsongschool.com. We’d like this inspirational page to include the wisdom and whimsy of our larger community.
*A Haiku is a simple poem consisting of only three lines:
the first with 5 syllables;
the second with 7 syllables;
the third with 5 syllables.
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Last Chance to Waive School Fees with F.E.D.S
Deadline: September 29th
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With a few moments of your time, you help promote benefits for present and future Mountain Song families, including your own!
Completion of the Family Economic Data Survey determines your family’s eligibility to have this year's school fees waived (see Student Fees Policy). It also influences future additional funding for the school, dependent on high levels of family participation. Even if you think you might not qualify to have school fees waived, your participation is crucial and completely confidential.
For our families who have yet to complete the Economic Data Survey, please do so by Thursday, September 29th.
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Student October Count Day
October 3rd
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Student October Count Day is when all public schools in Colorado report the number of enrolled students. Did you know that daily student attendance impacts school budgets for the rest of the school year? Make sure your student is counted! Please do not schedule family vacations or extended absences during the October Count window (Sep 26 - Oct 7).
What Is Count Day?
The Student October Count is based on a one (1) day count in which all public schools and districts in Colorado must report all students who are actively enrolled and attending classes through their district on that date. This year, the official Count Day is October 3rd.
Why Does it Matter?
All public schools in Colorado are allocated a budget based on the number of students enrolled, and Mountain Song is no exception. This is in accordance with the Public School Finance Act (22-54-101, C.R.S.). We must provide documentation that your student was actively enrolled in the school on October Count Day.
What If My Student is Sick That Day?
Although we strive to have all our students present on Count Day, we understand that it is unlikely that every student will be able to attend that day. Luckily, the state looks at student enrollment and attendance the five-days prior to Count Day and five-days after Count Day. So long as we have proof that a student is enrolled and is attending within this 11-day window, we can count that student for funding. Please DON'T schedule family vacations or extended absences during this time.
Any questions? Please contact Ms. Sarah Kreger. Thank you for supporting your child’s education and school!
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Mountain Song’s Attendance Policy |
As the school year progresses, we would like to remind our families of our attendance policy located in our Parent Handbook.
Students are required to be in school except in cases of emergency, illness, or religious observance. It is the family’s responsibility to notify the office of a student’s absence before 9:30 a.m. on the day of the absence (use Daily Attendance Form or call 719-203-6364), otherwise it will be unexcused. For absences surrounding illness, a physician's statement will be requested after the 3rd consecutive day of absence. For guidelines on when your child should stay home, please see How Sick is Too Sick.
Other reasons for absences will require the completion of the Excused Absence Request form (available at front office) accompanied with approval from Administration. Please note that no more than 5 days per school year are eligible for approval.
Mountain Song is accountable for overall student performance. A low attendance rate generally has a negative effect on student performance and can therefore affect the school as a whole. Being a public school we rely primarily on state funding which is calculated through various outside factors, including the number of students in attendance on “Count Day.”
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Stone Soup Festival Donations
September 28th-30th
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Parent Circle is asking for donations of vegetables, loaves of bread, and apple cider for our Stone Soup Harvest Festival celebration on October 1st! You can bring donations to the front office Wednesday through Friday (28th-30th) of next week!
Mark your calendars to join us at the school on October 1st, from 11-2 for our Harvest Festival. We will be serving the lovely "Stone Soup" we make from community donations, along with bread and drinks. There will be stories to listen to, along with other activities for the kids. Everything is FREE! Please bring your own bowl, spoon, and cup for each person. If you forget, we will have eco-friendly items available to you for a suggested $1 donation.
If you would like to help out, we will be meeting Friday, Sept. 30 at 3:30 p.m. in front of the school, where we will gather to prepare the veggies for making the wonderful soup for our celebration. Bring your own cutting board and knife, please!
“Bring what you’ve got! Put it in the pot! We’re making Stone Soup!”
For more volunteer or donation opportunities, or further questions, email Ashley at pcchair@mountainsongschool.org.
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Monday Village Homeschool Class Highlight |
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Village Homeschool classes begin each day on the farm. We start with our morning blessing and then the children help with farm chores which consist of feeding the chickens and fish, dumping compost and watering the plants inside the dome. These activities help to ground them in our day and give them a sense of community to Mountain Song.
Shannon Leifer, Village Homeschool Teacher
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7th Grade Mountain Maple Class Field Trip |
The Mountain Maple class had a chance to visit the Old Colorado City Library this week! The 7th graders were welcomed by the library’s elementary and middle school activities coordinators to show them all the library has to offer, as well as the civic responsibilities that come with using the library!
After being shown the process to check out a book, each student was issued their own library card, creating the perfect opportunity for them to check out books for their upcoming Anatomy and Physiology research project!
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Kindness Curriculum - Willow Class
Acts of Kindness
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At Mountain Song, kindness is an important part of everything we do. Classes have been using our new curriculum, Acts of Kindness, to support our students’ learning of these important social and emotional skills.
In Ms. Keiser’s 2nd grade classroom, students have been focusing on Respect– another of Mountain Song’s central tenets! The curriculum has taken students from self-respect and taking care of themselves, to respectful listening with their whole bodies, to being respectful of our school building and materials (see drawings). Students hear stories that relate to each topic and then complete an activity afterwards.
The Willow Class has been using a ‘Listening Pond’ where stones are put in the pond each time the class shows good listening skills and ‘ripples of kindness’ come out from each action. The second graders also played a game where students had to work together to cross the classroom and use respectful teamwork to support each other.
Ms. Keiser has noticed many of the students continuing to use the language learned through our new kindness curriculum and incorporating these important topics into their daily lives.
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In an effort to better maintain our Lost and Found, it is now located to the right of the Front Office, just after the kindergarten cubbies. As items accumulate quickly and space is limited, we will be sorting the “lost” items on a bi-weekly basis for donation.
To minimize the chance of items being lost, please be sure to label all your child’s belongings with their first and last name.
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Passionate About Water?
Submission Deadline - October 7th
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Water '22 and Colorado Humanities invite all students grades K-12 to share their passion for water by submitting an original art work to the Water '22 Student Showcase for a chance to win prizes up to $2,000.
Students can enter (both English and Spanish accepted) in various categories such as creative writing, photography or video, digital art, music and performance, sculpture, or fashion. Students must also include a paragraph (up to 300 words) explaining the relationship between their work and a few learning objectives related to water in Colorado.
All teachers who help students submit works will be entered into a drawing for 1 of 2 $250 cash prizes.
Mr. Matt Thomas is happy to help any students interested in entering this showcase before or after school. Email him at mthomas@mountainsongschool.com to schedule time with him. To learn more and to enter, please visit the Water ‘22 webpage.
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Colorado Food Cluster - Update |
After running a story about the Colorado Food Cluster program a few weeks ago, we learned of unexpected barriers they encountered, which has unfortunately delayed their free weekly meal delivery program for children 3-18 years old. While working through remaining kinks, they hope to have this year's sign-up available early to mid-October via their website Colorado Food Cluster.
To locate local community sites that provide no-cost meals for youth 18 and under near you, visit Kids Food Finder.
Additional community resources, food and nutrition programs, and other public benefit services in your community can be found at Hunger Free Colorado.
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Food to Power
Harvest Celebration
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Do you want to see our Ag Arts dynamic duo on a weekend? Well, you’re in luck.
Tomorrow, Saturday 24th from 5:00-8:00 p.m. you can find Mr. Matt and Mr. Adam enjoying this year's Harvest Celebration hosted by Food to Power Hillside Hub.
There will be food and drinks (vegan, vegetarian, and gluten free options available) and live music from local artists, among other unique opportunities.
For further details or to purchase tickets, please visit Food to Power.
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Weekend Garden Volunteers Needed
October Dates Now Available
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This is a wonderful opportunity for you and your family to engage with our school garden, to get outside, and witness the impact of nurturing all living things.
With the help of our devoted summer volunteers, the greenhouse is flourishing, our garden beds are alive, and our animals are untroubled. Thank you for the abundance of love and hard work put into the garden this summer!
This school year we encourage our families to join in the fun and support our beloved garden by feeding and interacting with the animals and watering the crops.
Please email Mr. Adam (awright@mountainsongschool.com) if you have any questions or want to receive training.droppable-1662687666852
Mr. Adam Wright
Agricultural Arts Coordinator and Teacher
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2022-2023 Calendars and Schedule |
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Please find the 2022-2023 school calendar below.
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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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