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Kodiak ROAR: Reminders, Opportunities, Achievements & Requests, 
a CSS eCommunication newsletter
  Reminders  
Welcome and Welcome Back

New year. New semester. New students. New opportunities.

Welcome to our three new students (Silas R. in PreK, Presley S. in 7th and Caleb J. in 7th) and their families joining our community this week. And welcome back from Winter Break to our returning students and families. 
Geography Bee
Tuesday, January 12, 2016, 9:40 a.m. - 10:25 a.m. 
Louisa Performing Arts Center
Middle School students qualified for the Middle School Geography Bee by finishing in the top four of their class in the grade level competitions held the last couple days. The winner of the CSS
Geography Bee will take a qualifying test to then compete in the state competition later this spring. The finalists competing this coming Tuesday are:

6TH GRADE: Henry G., Shively K., Izzy S., and Graham B. 
7TH GRADE: Aadi N., Alair F., Caleb J., Gabe E.
8TH GRADE: Luke S., Kyle J., Matthew P., and Sam J.

Parents are welcome to come and watch this academic competition and quest for the top spot!  
Meet the Middle School Teachers      

Children's School parents are invited to view this 20-minute screencast video from Mr. Amos White, MiddleSchool Division Lead entitled, MiddleSchool: A Road to Discovery. Additionally, you are invited to attend a special evening designed for Children's School parents to learn more about our MiddleSchool program. This program is especially beneficial for 4th and 5th grade parents, but all Children's School parents are welcome!

 
Join us on Wednesday, January 13, 2016 from 6:30 - 7:30 p.m., as the CSS Middle School hosts "Meet the Middle School Teachers Night" for Children's School parents in the Trianon Terrace Room. After opening remarks, parents will informally rotate between curriculum department tables, which will be a great opportunity to get to know the Middle School teachers and to ask them about their curriculum and programs.

After watching this shared screencast on the Middle School, the evening will be a great follow-up for parents to learn about what differentiates CSS from other schools in the region.  
This Week In Sports  

Upper School Basketball:
Saturday, January 9, 2015 - CSS at Kiowa; JV Girls and JV Boys at 1:00 p.m.; Varsity Girls at 2:30 p.m. and Varsity Boys at 4:00 p.m.
Friday, January 15, 2015 - Callhan at CSS; JV Girls at 4:00 p.m., JV Boys at 5:15 p.m., Varsity Girls at 6:30 p.m. and Varsity Boys at 8:00 p.m.

Middle School Basketball:
Thursday, January 7, 2015 - CSS at Kiowa;  "B" Boys and "B" Girls at 4:00 p.m.; "A" Boys and "A" Girls at 5:00 p.m. (early dismissal at 2:15 p.m.).
Saturday, January 9, 2015 - Simla at CSS; "B" Girls at 9:00 p.m., "A" Girls at 10:00 p.m., "B" Boys at 11:00 a.m. and "A" Boys at 12:00 noon.
Monday, January 11, 2015 - ECA at CSS; "B" Boys at 4:00 p.m., "A" Girls at 5:00 p.m. and "A" Boys at 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, January 16, 2015 - "A" Girls Tournament at Vanguard beginning at 9:00 a.m.

Upper School Girls' Swimming:
Thursday, January 7, 2015 - FVS/CSS vs Pueblo County at Fountain Valley at 4:00 p.m.
Winter Test Prep    
Saturday, January 30, 2016, 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.           
Sunday, January 31, 2016, 8:00 a.m. - noon   

The Test Prep Workshops will provide test preparation for the SAT Reasoning Test and the ACT, both with the essay component. The ACT and the SAT Reasoning Test are college entrance examinations used in the college admission process. Both tests have undergone significant changes, so familiarity with the tests and practice may be even more critical this year.
 
Workshop Dates and Times:
Please note that each workshop will run for approximately 4 hours on the days listed below. This round of sessions is scheduled to fall before the February-June test administration dates and will specifically cover material for both the SAT and ACT with essay component. (We will also offer a series of workshops in April, but avoiding conflicts that month will be tricky, as well as a weeklong workshop in July). Workshops will be held on The Colorado Springs School campus in the El Pomar Academic Center.

Registration and Fees:
These workshops are open to all upper or high school students, but they will be most relevant for those students planning to take the spring/summer tests. This 2-session workshop must have a minimum of 5 students in order to be held. Please plan to attend both sessions. You may mail the attached registration form to The Colorado Springs School, c/o Amy Johnson-Smith, 21 Broadmoor Avenue, Colorado Springs, CO 80906. You may also fax the completed form to 719-475-9864, attn. Amy Johnson-Smith or email registration information to ajohnsonsmith@css.org.
 
The cost of the Workshop is $200.00 for CSS students and $225.00 for non-CSS students.
 
Financial assistance is available for students who demonstrate need. Please contact Amy Johnson-Smith for more information. Checks should be made out to The Colorado Springs School and payment must be made by the beginning of the workshop.
Tech Trends at CSS Webinar in the Library Archive     



The Tech Trends webinar presented in December by Mr. Gaylord is archived as a webinar on the website. This presentation included information about the roll-out of Google Classroom as a new Learning Management Systems for students, daily data-driven instruction, and ZPD (zone of proximal development)!

The next Parent Coffee Connection will be on Monday, February 1, 2016 at 8:10 a.m. in Louisa. The presentation will cover Athletics at CSS. Click here for a schedule of future topics.

Find past presentations recorded as webinars on topics ranging from Data-Driven Instruction, to an Upper School program overview, The Marshmallow Test: Non-Cognitive Skills, and State of the School archived on the website in the webinar library.
Annual Fund Update
The December Parent Challenge for the Annual Fund ended with the parent body reaching 57% participation as of December 31, 2015. 
 
In the grade level challenge, the class winners from each week with the highest parent participation levels will receive $50 in classroom enhancements.    
Week One: PreK (94%) 
Week Two: 1st Grade (77%) 
Week Three: 3rd Grade (83%)
Week Four: 6th Grade (70%)        








The two winners of the custom gear are
Matt Dagostino, Current Parent 
Chase Taylor '01, Alumnus

Anyone who made a gift/commitment to the Annual Fund between July 1, 2015 and December 31, 2015 was eligible to win.
 
Tax summaries for complete giving in 2015 are being compiled and will be sent out at the end of January.
  Opportunities 
Sweatshirt Second Run 


Thank you to all parents and students who supported the sophomore class fundraiser with the purchase of a CSS Bear wear sweatshirt! There is a chance that we will run a second order at $30 per sweatshirt. Please contact Ms. Taylor at ataylor@css.org if you are interested in ordering a sweatshirt.  We would need to have at least 12 orders. Please let Ms Taylor know of your interest by January 15th.  Depending upon the level of response, we will create and send out additional order forms after the long weekend.   
Seeking Judges for Model UN Conference

The CSS MUN team would like to cordially invite you to judge at our conference on Saturday, January 23, 2016. Model United Nations is an international high school club in which students are encouraged to debate current or historical events in a formal setting similar to the actual UN.

As judges, you would be observing debate and reviewing short summaries submitted by delegates, detailing the political position of their country/organization, known as position papers.

We would ask that you arrive at 8:00 a.m. on January 23, 2016 for a short orientation. The conference will take place from 9:30 a.m. until 3:00 p.m., with a lunch break from noon to 1:00 p.m. Breakfast and lunch will be provided.

Your presence would be greatly appreciated by the CSS Model UN Team, seeing that judges are an essential part of any MUN conference. If you have any questions or are interested in participating please contact Nadja Hunter and David Benson, at nhunter@css.org and dbenson@css.org.
Gear Lists for Spring Trips!

With the early announcement of spring gear lists for Children's School Colorado Expeditions, Middle School Seminars and Upper School Experience Centered Seminar families might consider advance planning for spring overnights.
Please note only gear lists have been compiled for seminars with an overnight component.
  Achievements 
Achievements 

Poetry While You Wait
Congratulations to 6th grader, Mara B., '22 for having her poem selected for inclusion in the 2016 edition of Poetry While You Wait, a Pikes Peak Poet Laureate Project. Her poem is titled The Panda Is Born.

Middle School students in Mrs. Hatch's English Class were encouraged to make submissions to the contest as part of a Kodiak Scholar challenge.

Winter Break Adventures
We are constantly impressed by our motivated students. Many students and families embarked on Winter Break experiences fueled by academic curriculum, social & emotional reflections, and outdoor wildlife pursuits. Here are a few adventures that were shared with us over Winter Break.

Civics Lesson with the Mayor

Kindergartner, Tyler J. '28 had a special civics lesson over Winter Break with Mayor John Suthers. Tyler wanted the Mayor to have a copy of his favorite book, Roadwork, as Mayor Suthers works to fix and improve the roads in Colorado Springs. This idea was initiated by the six-year-old after overhearing many discussions about potholes and road conditions in the community. Mayor Suthers also included Director of Public Works, Corey Farkas in the meeting and reading of the book. #WinterBreakAdventure

Spreading Christmas Cheer

Twenty-seven children living at Salvation Army Family Shelter received generous gifts from 5th graders, Marina B. '23 and Cameron R. '23 for Christmas. While Marina was shopping at Target for the gifts, a complete stranger donated $200 when she heard what it was for. Several other families contributed to the cause as well. The Christmas spirit is alive and well, it's just outside your door. #WinterBreakAdventure

Figure Skating Fifth Grader

Over the holidays, Libby W. '23, CSS 5th grader and figure skater, performed at the Bode Ice Arena in St. Joseph, Missouri, for their two-day annual Christmas skating celebration. She was grateful for the opportunity to perform in front of the huge home town crowd and had a blast! She trains at the Broadmoor World Arena Ice Hall under Eddie Shipstad and a team of great coaches. She is very thankful for her family, CSS, and the sport of figure skating which gives her joy every day. #WinterBreakAdventure

Click here to see the video of Libby's skate, twirls and spins! 

National History Day Preparations

In anticipation of National History Day, Jamie and Molly B. '17 visited the National Museum of World War II Aviation in Colorado Springs during winter break. One of their great grandfathers was an aircrew member aboard a B-25 in the Pacific theater; the museum features a flyable version of that aircraft and other aircraft in addition to unique artifacts and exhibits from all phases and theaters. #WinterBreakAdventure

Bravo! We Applaud Student Achievements
Highlights from the end of the semester included many concerts and performances as well as culminating projects. Check out the many photo albums and recaps highlighting these tremendous student celebrations.
 
Upper School Play "10 Squared"
Middle School Play "Hard Luck"
Upper School Vocal Ensemble Performance, Middle and Upper School Band Concert
Children's School Holiday Tea and 4th & 5th Grade Band Concert
Children's School Geography Day and Book Exchange

We've partnered with Vaughan & Walker Photography to capture many of these events. Their incredible images are available for personal purchase and download from the Vaughan & Walker website.  Throughout the year, they are also on the sidelines catching many of the Kodiak teams in action. These action-packed images are available in their Featured Galleries.  
Submit Achievements and Photos  
Parents and teachers are encouraged to submit nominations and digital photos of student achievements to Jessica James, Director of Communications, at jjames@css.org. These extracurricular achievements make us a well-rounded school and highlight the many unique talents and passions of our student body.  Each week, a diverse selection of achievements is highlighted in ROAR.
  Requests 
Major Vacations and Important Dates for 2016-2017 

Click here for a link to the Major Vacations and Important Dates for 2016-2017 (PDF).

Inclement Weather Procedures
As cooler weather approaches, please use the following means to learn of an inclement weather delay or cancellation:
  • First, tune into local television and radio stations, or their websites, for listings.
  • Visit the school's website, at www.css.org In the event of a delay or cancellation, the school's website will display prominent weather-related messages. Please refresh the homepage to ensure proper viewing.   
  • The school's Facebook page will announce weather-related news. 
  • Call the school's general line at (719) 475-9747. A recorded message will convey any weather-related announcements.
  • ParentAlert: To receive a text message alert about delays or cancellations, please include your cell phone information in RenWeb. Students may also list their cell phone information. Please be sure your settings are activated to receive text messages. If you did not receive this week's ParentAlert, please contact Nadja Hunter at nhunter@css.org.
As always, we encourage each family to use good judgement about the roads and conditions in your area and stay safe. 
Kodiak Kids Playgroup  


Kodiak Kids is a campus-based playgroup for families with newborn - 3 year-olds on Tuesdays (during the school year). Kodiak Kids will be held on Tuesdays from 9:00 a.m. - 10:15 a.m. in the Children's Library in the Children's Academic Center on campus. Parents, nannies and grandparents are welcome to bring little ones to campus for this community connection.

#free #opentothepublic #CoSprings #playgroup

Click here for more details.
Table of Contents: In This Issue
Welcome and Welcome Back
Geography Bee
Meet the Middle School Teachers
This Week in Sports
Tech Trends at CSS
Annual Fund Update
Sweatshirt Second Run
Seeking Judges for Model UN Conference
Gear Lists for Spring Trips
Achievements
Major Vacations and Important Dates for 2016-2017
Inclement Weather Procedures
Kodiak Kids Playgroup
Join Our Mailing List
Mission: Through superior academics and mentoring, The Colorado Springs School prepares students to think independently and meet the challenges of a dynamic world with leadership, ingenuity, problem-solving skills, and personal integrity.
To submit content for future Kodiak ROAR communications, please email details to
Jessica James, Director of Communications, at jjames@css.org.