Dora Moore ECE-8 School

Attendance Check-up: We Need Your Help To Meet Our Goals!

First of all--THANK YOU. We are parents ourselves, and we see you working hard to balance the demands placed on you. It does not go unnoticed. Keep working hard on behalf of your students to get them to school each day!

Our goal is for every student to attend school at least 90% of the instructional days. This means on average, students should not miss more than 1 day our every 10 instructional days. This can be very challenging--cars break down, kids get sick (all the time--and we still stand by the fact that sick kids don't belong at school!), work schedules change, and there are vacations and trips to be taken. We get it! 

Regular attendance in elementary and middle school is crucial as it ensures students have consistent access to learning opportunities and foundational knowledge, fostering academic success and social development. Additionally, consistent attendance establishes positive habits early on, laying the groundwork for students' overall success. 

As February nears a close, we are running our monthly reports looking at our attendance for the month, and overall for the year up to the present date. It's great to leave behind January for a number of reasons, but most notably our attendance in January was the lowest in all grade levels for the entire year. 

Here is February's data: 

And--We need you help in trying to meet our goal of 90% or better attendance in March! 

Thank you for all your hard work on getting your children to school on-time!  If there are barriers in the way that we might be able to help with, let us know! We have a very supportive PTSA and our staff meets regularly to deploy and distribute resources and supports. Email joshua_konz@dpsk12.net and abram_janson@dpsk12.net for help!

February 28th @ 3:00pm--National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) x DM Collaboration for Black History Month

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s (NREL’s) Black Employee Resource Group (ERG) invites middle school students and their parents to attend a special Black History Month event at Dora Moore ECE-8!

Students and families will watch clips from The Space Race, a soon-to-be-released film from National Geographic about the first Black pilots, engineers, and scientists that became NASA astronauts. Stephen Leach from National Geographic will introduce the film and talk about creativity and diverse storytelling at Disney. NREL researchers from the Black ERG will also share their education stories.

Students will learn about the researchers’ scientific passions, their journeys to NREL, and how they are leading the clean energy future here in Colorado.

All students and families are welcome and encouraged to participate and ask questions!

If you have a middle school student, we'd love for you to join us for this event!

LAST WEEK To Purchase A Yearbook: March 1st

If you would like to buy a yearbook for the 2023-2024 school year, please follow the link below! The deadline to purchase a yearbook is March 1st!

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CMAS Update

Hello Families!

In April Colorado students will take end-of-year assessments called CMAS or Colorado Measures of Academic Success.  Students in grades 3-8 will take English language arts and math tests.  Students in grades 5, 8 and 11 will take science tests.  A Spanish language arts test (CSLA) is available for qualifying multilingual learners in grades 3-4.

CMAS tests measure student progress on the Colorado Academic Standards, which outline what students should understand, know and be able to do at each grade level and in each content area.  CMAS data helps determine if educational goals are being met and if students are on track to graduate prepared for college and career.  Although state tests are not perfect and are only one measurement of student progress, when all Colorado students take CMAS, schools can improve instruction for all students and parents can gain important insights.

• Results provide information that shows what your child has been learning and practicing in their classroom, and how well they are connecting with classroom instruction.

• Results for the whole school lets you know how well your school is teaching all students.

• Results provide you and other families in your community with information about how local schools are meeting the needs of all students.

Review the below CMAS Schedule to see when your child will be testing.  Makeup testing and missed instruction can be avoided by scheduling appointments and vacations for non-testing days, and by ensuring that your student arrives at school on-time.  Students may not have electronic devices during testing and will be asked to turn them off and give them to the teacher before testing begins.  This provides standardized testing environments and ensures the validity of tests for Colorado students.  

English Language Arts: Tuesday - Thursday April 9th - 11th

Math: Tuesday - Thursday April 16th - 18th

Science (Grades 5 & 8 only): Tuesday - Wednesday April 23rd - 24th

Your support is appreciated; however if you do plan to excuse your student from testing, you may do so in the Parent Portal through February (which gives the school time to plan and schedule accordingly).  Scroll to the bottom of this page for opt out instructions. Please also email jillian_watson@dpsk12.net and bianka_grijalva@dpsk12.net to ensure we are aware of your decision.

Student practice resources can be found here: https://coassessments.com/practice-resources/.  More information about assessments can be found here: https://assessments.dpsk12.org and here: http://www.cde.state.co.us/communications/resourcesforparents.

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me.  We are excited for students to have the opportunity to demonstrate their learning and growth!

Jillian Watson

Assistant Principal

jillian_watston@dpsk12.net

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FREE Social Media Safety Training for Families

 

The Family of Community Engagement is offering a Social Media Safety for Families Workshop on March 12 from 5-6 p.m. This session will provide resources and tips for families on the dangers of social media and how to help students stay safe and smart online. Families will gain valuable information and collaborate with other families on technology safety solutions.

 

We will launch an interactive training module for DPS families as well to use after this session and receive certification they have completed the training. Families can learn more and RSVP here. 

 

Questions can be directed to Jasmine Rigby.

Education Through Music (ETM) Colorado x Dora Moore Update

February 22, 2024

Dear Dora Moore Community,

In January, Dora Moore and Education Through Music-Colorado partnered to provide general
music classes for grades ECE-3. We expected to provide a consistent music teacher for the rest
of this school year.

Because of unforeseen circumstances, we have had to pause music classes as we search
diligently for another music teacher. We are sorry for the disruption of the students’ music
education and any inconveniences this may cause.

Thank you,

Karissa Swanson
Program Manager, Education Through Music-Colorado
karissa.swanson@etmcolorado.org

SAVE THE DATES: Continuation Ceremonies for ECE, K, 5th, & 8th Grade

All ceremonies/festivities will be at Dora Moore. 

ECE: Tuesday, June 4th, 10:00am - 11:30am, In Classrooms and on the ECE playground!

Kinder: Tuesday, June 4th, 10:00am - 11:30am, On the playground!

5th Grade: Tuesday, June 4th, 2:00pm - 3:00pm, In the auditorium!

8th Grade: Friday, May 31st, 10:00am - 11:00am, In the auditorium!