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McMeen Elementary

McMeen Elementary Newsletter - September 1, 2023

09/01/23, 4:00 PM

Weekly Happenings

Monday, September 4

No School - Labor Day

Tuesday, September 5

CSC Meeting @4pm via ZOOM

Wednesday, September 6

Thursday, September 7

Friday, September 8

Upcoming Events

Here is the McMeen Calendar for the 2023-2024 School Year

SEPTEMBER

September 11 - PTO Meeting

September 20 - Multilingual Education District Advisory Committee Meeting

September 22 - No School - Teacher Planning Day

September 25 - No School (McMeen Planning Day)

Ways to Get Involved

Donations

We are always looking for donations of school supplies, K-cups, gift cards for teacher prizes, etc. Please drop off any donations in the main office. Thank you to those who have already donated.

Parenting Partners Reunion

Join us at the Parenting Partners Reunion event on Wednesday, September 27th from 4-7pm to learn about 3 different programs we can launch at McMeen: Parenting Partners, Calm and Kind, and Family Mealtimes. This event is designed for parents to join in and build excitement for the opportunity to join in on these programs alongside school staff! There will be FOOD, PRIZES, and opportunities to connect with other schools who have used these programs. If you have YET to RSVP, please do so below. See this flier for more information and sign-up here.

Announcements

School Ends Promptly at 2:40pm

Please be sure you have someone to pick-up your child after school as school ends promptly at 2:40pm. The main office closes at 3pm. We DO NOT have staff available after 3pm for any late students. Please sign-up for Discovery Link if you are unable to make the 2:40pm dismissal time.

REMINDER Healthy School Meals for All: Complete the You Benefit! Form

Healthy School Meals for All Program

While meals will be provided for free to all DPS students through Healthy School Meals for All, ALL families will still need to complete a form to ensure DPS gets full access to available federal funding.

We have more than 300 students with missing forms.

Please access the FORM HERE

What this means for families:

We ask ALL DPS families to please complete the You Benefit! form.
By completing the form, you will help us access all available funds to cover the cost of meals, and other nutritional programs for students.
Families who fill out the You Benefit! form may qualify to receive discounted school fees, class materials, bus passes, utilities support and more!
All household income information provided through this form is strictly confidential and protected by law. Only one form is required for all children in the household. Immigration, migrant, citizenship or refugee status is not required when completing the form.

REMINDER Saturday School

CHANGE OF DATE: Due to the low parent interest, the start date of Saturday School has been postponed until Oct. 7th.

Starting Saturday, October 7th, McMeen will be hosting Saturday School from 9am - 12pm. Students should attend to help make up lost instructional time from the pandemic and/or from absences from school. We believe that with this targeted additional instructional time on Saturdays, we can help address some academic gaps.

During Saturday School, students will receive literacy and math instruction to support their academic success and engage with some Social Emotional Learning (SEL), as an extension of what we do during the regular school week. Students should arrive promptly at 9 a.m. at the main doors on Holly street. This is also the same location to be picked up at 12 noon. The school will provide snacks/ drinks as well as prizes/gifts and books at the end of the program for students who attend.

Please note, learning time on Saturday is in addition to the time they attend during the regular school week and should not be substituted. We hope you take advantage of this additional opportunity for your child to help prepare them for the next grade level.

If you have questions or concerns, please call Principal Hinman 720-424-5522. Thank you very much for supporting your student's education by helping her/him attend school and make up missed instructional time. The deadline for signing up is now Friday September 15th.

More information and the sign-up can be found here.

Parent Classes from the office of Family and Community Engagement (FACE)

FACE University is a resource and learning hub for families in the Denver Metro area. They are hosting some learning opportunities for families. You can learn more and RSVP here. Learning sessions are both virtual and in-person and translation can be provided. Here are some of their upcoming classes:

Parenting and Supporting LBGTQ+ Youth, Thursday, September 21st at 6:00 pm
Parenting Partners Reunion Event (see above), Wednesday, September 27th from 4:00 - 7:00 pm

Multilingual Education District Advisory Committee Meeting

The first Multilingual Education (MLE) District Advisory Committee (DAC) Meeting will be Wednesday, September 20th from 5:00 - 7:00 pm at Bruce Randolph High School. We encourage all parents of multilingual students to attend.This first meeting will be a Parent Academy, presented in conference style where families will get the opportunity to learn about several DPS and MLE programs, including their rights as parents of MLLs.

Collaborative School Committee (CSC)

Our next meeting will be September 5th from 4 pm-5 pm via ZOOM.

Classroom Updates

In ECE, we have been focusing on rituals and routines. We feel that teaching these in the beginning helps to set our students up for success throughout the school year. We are starting to learn about feelings, how to identify how we are feeling and how to express how we are feeling by verbalizing them to their peers.

Kindergarten (Room 101) -All the kids in rm 101 have been doing amazing learning of our classroom & school expectations!!

Student Affirmations

2nd Grade, Harmony Castille-Sullivan - WOW! Harmony worked SO hard on Wednesday for math and skills! She did All of her skills work and read the words by herself! Way to ROCK school, kiddo! I am so proud of you! - Ms. Johns

2nd Grade, Annie Romero - She has the biggest heart! She truly made our new students feel warmly welcomed into our classroom family! Her kindness rubbed off on other students who then also welcomed our new friends! Thank you for being a kindness superhero, Annie! - Ms. Johns

2nd Grade, Ava Wysong - She is a ROCK STAR! She works so hard every single day. Her focus and determination are taking her to great places! Way to be a super leader in our classroom! I am so proud of you! - Ms. Johns

ECE, Andy Saldivar Cabañas Jr. - Andy es un alumno valiente y capaz de superar sus temores porque durante las dos evacuaciones de incendio que tuvimos que hacer en un mismo día, Andy logró superar su nerviosismo y temor durante el sonido y parapadeo de las alarmas y durante las evacuaciones de incendio. ¡Nos sentimos muy orgullosas de ti Andy! - Mrs. Rivera

3rd Grade, Caden Chew - Caden is new to McMeen this year and he has already made so many new friends, made us all laugh in class and when it's time to work he is focused! We are do excited to have you in our class this school year Caden! - Ms. Caldwell

Kindergarten, Lucia Villegas - Lucy had a hard time transitioning into Kindergarten but when she came back from being sick she rocked it!! Thanks for being so brave, Lucy!! - Ms. Painter

2nd Grade, Jonah Smith - Jonah gives his very best effort in everything he does. He is able to elevate class discussions by sharing his thinking. AND he is kind and respectful. Way to go Jonah! - Ms. Claypool

3rd Grade, Ilan Fructher - Ilan challenged himself to read 5th & 6th grade words by segmenting them! He did an awesome job! - Ms. Fishman

Kindergarten, Brooklyn Owens - Brooklyn is such a bright and sweet person! I am so proud of her accomplishments so far here at McMeen. - Nurse Miriam

3rd Grade, Quincey Paris-Scott - Quincey dis such an amazing job breaking large words apart and reading them! - Ms. Fishman

ECE, Marli Brawner - Marli always comes to school with a smile on her face and is excited to learn. She is a great friend to her classmates and is always helping out friends in need.Thank you Marli, keep being amazing! - Mr. Hughes

4th Grade, Christian Hercules Portillo - Christian is a wonderful student. He is friendly, kind, and considerate. He worked really hard on his English exam, despite the fact that it was very difficult. After our exam was over, he began pushing in all of the chairs and cleaning up the classroom without even being asked. When other students saw him, they started to clean up too. He may be new to our school, but he is already a leader and role model to other students. Thank you Christian! - Ms. Hammond

News from McMeen PTO

Sign up for the PTO Newsletter and Updates by clicking on groups at the bottom of the ReachWell app and selecting PTO. Doing so will let you receive the information in your preferred language.

Join our Parent Teacher Organization (PTO)

PTO is always looking for more members and involvement from families. Reach out to them at mcmeenpto@gmail.com to learn more. Also, be sure to check the PTO portion of the weekly newsletter below to stay up-to-date on their activities. You can also sign-up to receive information directly through the PTO in ReachWell. Simply click on the groups icon at the bottom (it looks like 3 people), select "Update Groups" and select "PTO Communication" and "Update."

Next Meeting - Monday, September 11th at 6pm via ZOOM

Sign-Up to Volunteer: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090944aaab28aaf58-mcmeen2#/

Contact Us! Email: mcmeenpto@gmail.com Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/McMeenElementary Instagram: @realstudentsofmcmeen

McMeen Elementary School

1000 S Holly St Denver, CO 80246 720-424-5520` FAX 720-423-5547