Head of School Tambi Tyler shared this video as part of the annual State of the School presentation, which was delivered virtually on Wednesday evening. Thank you to the 90-plus families, alumni, alumni parents, and grandparents who tuned for the virtual gathering.

Ms. Tyler shares our challenges of COVID-19, undoubtedly one of the greatest disruptors of our time and celebrates the school's successes. The presentation includes insight on enrollment trends, academic benchmarks, and school finance 101.

Please anticipate delays in carline as we adjust to COVID-19 check-ins. NEW: Volunteer for carline through October 30 using the link below.

The CSS Revue will be held Friday, October 2, 5:00-6:30 p.m., as an outdoor performance on the Trianon Terrace. The Revue will wow you with musical, acting, dance, and improv performances by students in grades 4-12.

Due to health and safety guidelines, this performance has a limitation on audience size. Reservations are required, and seating is at full capacity.

Views & Vibes, an all-parent social, will be held only outdoors this year on Saturday, October 10, 2020, from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. We invite CSS parents for a beautiful evening under the stars with music, delicious treats, and beverages on the beautiful and historic Trianon Quad and Terrace.

Due to health and safety guidelines, this event has a guest limitation and therefore requires a reservation. Views & Vibes is not open to the public. Space is limited and reservations will be first come first serve until capacity is reached.

This is an adult-only event. We are not able to provide childcare.

Questions? Please contact Joy Maguire-Parsons at 719-434-3520 or joym-p@css.org.

Our pilot offering of the Kodiak Harvest Bag was a great success! In response, we are doing it again this week.

In partnership with Colorado farmers and continuing to connect our kids and families to initiatives "beyond our walls," we offer our second round of the Kodiak Harvest Bag. For $30, you will receive an assortment of Colorado produce on Friday, October 2. Pickup of your Harvest Bag will take place following carline between 3:15 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. Drive to the lower level of Louisa Performing Arts Center in between the Middle and Upper School carline.

There are only 30 harvest bags available! Your bag may include items such as apples, carrots, corn, cucumbers, squash, peppers, and beets. Produce will vary based on growing conditions, weather patterns, and generally what's ripe and ready for harvest! These items will be sourced by Hunt or Gather, a wholesaler for local farmers.

Learn more about our own CSS garden.

What is your role at CSS? I teach Middle School English and Geography.

If you were a superhero, what powers would you have? Definitely time travel - or is that not a superhero power? If that isn't allowed on account of it being more of a mad scientist capability than a superhero power, I'd take the ability to fly. That would be useful right now.

What draws you to teaching? I love teaching because I love learning. And I'm always learning the most with and from my students.

What is your favorite spot in the world? Put me on a front porch rocking chair with my dog sitting nearby. Bonus points awarded if a summer thunderstorm is blowing in.

Tune into csskodiaks.com for athletics.

There are known and unknown risks in navigating these uncertain times. But individuality and isolation from one another are not long-term solutions to the adversity presented by our current world. Instead, we aim to build and promote a community that is solution-minded, embraces the mindset and practice of "we before me", and collectively adheres to the guidelines of medical professionals and elected officials. The Community Pledge has been written in the spirit of developing a common language and understanding by which we will all commit for the 2020-2021 school year.

In a time of a global pandemic, not only are we thrilled to welcome students back on campus, but Chef Lori Burgess is enthusiastic about continuing lunch service. We are asking families to pre-order lunch online through Family Portal to help us determine how much food to order and prepare.

Lunch orders need to be placed by 10 p.m. the Wednesday before the start of the next week. For example, if you want to order lunch for your child for Tuesday, October 13, the order must be placed by 10 p.m. Wednesday, October 7. Please note that due to supply, there may be times menu items are substituted.

Lunch must be ordered through a parent's login to the Family Portal, not a student's account. This limitation is tied to billing.

Your child’s lunch account must have funds in it to buy lunch. Here are several ways to add funds:

Check the balance of your child's lunch account through Family Portal by clicking "Family." Refer to Family Billing, where the lunch balance is listed. A negative balance indicates a credit, while a positive balance indicates amount owed.

As a result of COVID-19, CSS applied for and was subsequently funded with a Payroll Protection Plan (PPP) loan through the CARES Act. We're proud to put these dollars to work for our school. As a result of this loan/grant, CSS is a Federal Funds Recipient for the next several weeks. Members of the CSS administration have participated in several training sessions on Title IX (and Section 504, Title VI, and the Age Discrimination Act among other pieces of relevant Federal legislation), which apply to us as temporary federal funds recipients. Read the full notice here.

The Parents Association Board will hold virtual meetings for the foreseeable future on the first Thursday of each month. Anyone is welcomed to join.

Next Meeting: 11:30 a.m. Thursday, November 5, 2020

Where: Google Hangout, Let's chat during lunch!

Join by phone: ‪+1 617-675-4444‬

PIN: ‪881 238 046 0913#‬

Click here to learn more about the role of the Parents Association in building community in our school. Email the Parents Association at parentsassociation@css.org.

The Parents Association is excited to launch Parent Mixers, grade-level events that are designed to give new and returning parents an opportunity to socialize at the beginning of the school year.

In previous years, a families have hosted mixers in person. This year, the Parents Association is seeking hosts to plan virtual mixers. Maybe it's a trivia night via Zoom, a scavenger hunt on Google Hangout, or perhaps a virtual mixology class. The host gets to decide!

Questions? Contact Parents Association President Lynn Shepherd at lynn@docshepherd.com or (623) 680-3442.

Homecoming under the stars ✨To accommodate for our COVID-19 precautions, Upper School’s Forum held a “starry night” themed homecoming last weekend preceded by a Spirit Week. This included twin day, class color day, dodgeball, and more! #diaryofaCSSsenior View more photos here.

Simply reading a poem allows only so much insight. That's the idea behind the Metaphysical Own-A-Poem Project in AP Literature.

Students break down a poem by biological and historical details such as a brief biography of the poet's life, style, and philosophy; a biographical placement at the time the poem was written to highlight the poet's personal experiences that may be reflected in the poem; and paraphrasing the poem in prose. The assignment also calls for students to identify physical representations of imagery in the poem.

"You'll know it better than if you just read it," AP Lit teacher Amy Miller said. "Breaking it down like this brings about so much more understanding."

Last week, Ms. Miller demonstrated an Own-A-Poem project on Boddington Field to students Madeline K. '21 and Dane C. '21. They presented their own project today with the poem "The Flea" by John Donne.

"You have to look at the poem more in depth, especially doing the paraphrase," Madeline said. "It's really fun because bringing it into modern words you get more of an idea of what he's saying, what he means. You definitely see the depth of the poem more so in this way."

The assignment was so effective for Dane that he plans to use what he learned on other poems.

"I really had to take the poem and dig in and find meaning myself," Dane said. "Just the act of making my notes on the stanzas took me a little bit over an hour to dig in and find everything. Now that I've done that, I have that tool to take a poem and find meaning for myself."

Before 5th grade students crafted clay gargoyle statues, they learned about the history of gargoyles, their function, and why architects and stone carvers made them. Students then created and drew their own gargoyle by combining real animals with mythical and imaginary animals.

"I'm so excited because this is the first time I've gotten to make a mythical creature," said April C. '28.

Working with clay helps students create 3D objects and understand the differences between 3D and 2D art. They learn about the stages and properties of clay and can then apply this knowledge when making their creations.

Understanding how to slip and score to attach parts, how to make hollow shapes, and how to use tools to add texture are important skills 5th graders have been learning about since they were in 3rd grade.

Baron C. '28 added a unique feature to his flying pig gargoyle. "I'm putting mushrooms on his head!"

Eighth grade students learned how to make homemade batteries in physical science using vinegar, sponges, copper and zinc. "You can also make batteries using lemons or potatoes, anything with dissolved ions," teacher Eric Gaylord said. Voltage meters determined the strength of the students' batteries. "This is so cool," Hayden D. '25 said. View more photos here.

What happens when prekindergarten students show interest in pirates? Their teachers turn it into a hands-on experience. Teachers Bronwyn Holman and Sara Derr read a book to them about pirates, then they surprised our youngest Kodiaks with a pirate treasure hunt on campus. Each of the five clues sent students running to find the next red X.

The clues rhymed to help develop the students' phonemic awareness, the ability to identify and manipulate individual sounds in spoken words, which is essential in learning to read.

The last clue led to the snack Pirate's Booty:

There is one more clue, then your treasure awaits. Find the outdoor classroom, with steps so great. Look to the tree right by the stairs. Then find your treasure ... be sure to share.

Parents, teachers, and students are encouraged to submit nominations and digital photos of student achievements to Anslee Wolfe, Communications and Marketing Manager, at awolfe@css.org. These extracurricular achievements make us a well-rounded school and highlight the many unique talents and passions of our student body. A diverse selection of achievements is highlighted in ROAR and shared on social media. We also welcome alumni achievements!

Due to COVID-19 we will continue to make adjustments to the Major Dates calendar. We will continue to update school's google calendar as we progress from week to week. We are adhering to local, state, and federal guidelines regarding on-campus, in-person learning. As a result, planning for the 2020-2021 school year is ongoing and requires the school to respond with agility, grace, and a heavy dose of patience. View the calendar here.