When: November 3-14**All food needs to be at LCS by noon on Friday, Nov. 14th.  

Benefits: Food Bank for Larimer County

Most Needed Items: Peanut butter, canned meat/fish, canned fruit in juice, whole grain cereal

PLEASE check expiration dates on food.  Expired food has to be thrown away and cannot be donated.

If students collect 2014 Food Items they will receive a Free Dress Day.

If students collect 4028 Food Items their teachers will treat them to a Fashion Show.   

You may have noticed the new look of our Volunteer Kiosk.  It looks GREAT!  A special thanks to Mrs. Tiffany Green for bringing it all together! Liberty Common needs parent involvement and depends on parent volunteers to make our school great.  We will be posting volunteer needs and announcements at the kiosk and in Monday Notes.  So watch for your opportunity to get involved!  If you have any questions please feel free to contact LCS's Volunteer Coordinator Marnie Dame at [email protected].

Niagara Falls Panoramic

At the beginning of October, Ms. Rencher and I had the privilege of attending the Core Knowledge (CK) Conference in one of the oldest state parks in the US, Niagara Falls, New York. It is always such a joy to rub elbows with other schools across the county to discuss and share all the great things being done to educate children to read. The focus of this conference was literacy. The Foundation has been promoting their new Core Knowledge Language Arts (CKLA) program and this was a focal point. While Liberty is still testing the waters to see if CKLA is a good fit for our school, it was energizing to attend school presentations, teacher round tables, and visit with other CK administrators and teachers.

Ms. Rencher's Egypt display board.

My PowerPoint presentation focused on best practices of operating a CK school. Liberty has a lot to share on how we operate. I outlined our history, demographics, professional development of teachers, curriculum maps and outlines, and ways we identify and help struggling students. I also shared the many books our teachers read each summer to help them be the best they can be.

Keynote Speaker - Daniel T. Willingham

One of those books is Why Don't Students Like School by Daniel T. Willingham. Dr. Willingham was the keynote speaker in Niagara. He is a role model to me and the staff, and I was privileged to hear him speak. I have since contacted him to come to Liberty to present to all the LCS staff and parents. Dr. Willingham's talk will take place on March 27^th from 6:30 p.m.-8:00 p.m. (SAVE THE DATE) here at Liberty Common School.   CLICK HERE for event flyer.

 

 During his talk, Dr. Willingham will describe theories of choice: what factors influence the child's decision to read a book versus play a video game? Based on his analysis, he'll suggest four general principles that parents ought to keep in mind as they seek to raise a reader. He will also show how those principles translate into action at home. And although educators can't control what happens at home, he will suggest concrete steps teachers can take in their classrooms to encourage reading.

As always, we walk away from conferences with a new appreciation for what we have here at Liberty as well as a good handful of tricks, tips, suggestions to become better educators. Liberty Common School continues to be a role model for all other CK schools. I was pleased and honored to attend this conference with Ms. Rencher in one of the United States most beautiful national landmarks.

Mr. Churchill, CK Consultant friends from Arizona, Ms. Rencher.

Dear Parent,

These new computer based summative assessments for Social Studies - grade 4, 7, 12 and Science - grades 5, 8, 12, were developed collaboratively by Colorado teachers, the Colorado Department of Education, and assessment contractor Pearson. Developers discussed each question/item, as well as the specific knowledge, skills and abilities that students need to correctly answer them. In contrast to the previous fill-in-the-bubble tests, the new tests are designed to be more interactive and measure deeper learning and critical thinking skills, in accordance with higher expectations of the Colorado Academic Standards.

Details about standards and assessments are available on the Colorado Department of Education web site at http://www.cde.state.co.us/Assessment. 

Student's results are provided with performance level, scale scores, and percent correct, which are intended to gauge student progress over time, inform classroom practice, and improve school/district programs. Results must be interpreted with an understanding that the new standards and assessments are more focused and rigorous, which may cause a score dip when compared to previous TCAP results. Individual student performance level indicates your student's preparation in terms of knowledge and skills on track for success in college and career. Levels are reported in one of four categories: Distinguished command, Strong command, Moderate command, or Limited command. A student is on track to be College and Career ready when they score in the Distinguish or Strong command. The Performance Level Descriptors describe the skills and knowledge a student need for each level.

Scale scores provide reporting of performance overall and within content standards, framed in terms of district and state averages. The Subscale Performance score is an indicator of the strength or weakness within a specific area on the assessment.

Within each standard, Prepared Graduate Competencies (PGC) are identified. PGCs represent the concepts and skills that students need to master in order to be postsecondary and workforce ready. The percent correct within each PGC is taking in count the number of items and the difficulty of items which may vary in each PGC. That is why we cannot compare scores across years because individual items change every year.

Different assessments tell us different things.

Veterans Day 5k Run

Saturday, November 8, 2014 @ 9:00 a.m.

Event Description:

The Colorado State University Veterans Day 5K is an annual, non-profit fundraiser designed to raise money for the Veterans Scholarship fund. This scholarship is awarded to veterans who were honorably or medically discharged and are living with disabilities related to their military experience. Each year we honor a member of our armed forces who has a personal connection to Colorado State University. Over the years, the run has attracted hundreds of participants -- CSU alumni, Veterans, kids in strollers, experienced runners, and everyone in between.

This course is as flat and quick as they come. The route takes participants around The Oval, a CSU landmark, and across the campus, highlighting much of what CSU has to offer.

*Meet south of the Engineering Building at the sculpture fountain plaza east of Glover*

Event schedule and times

7:30 a.m. - Day of race registration begins

8:45 a.m. - Registration closes

8:55 a.m. - Pre-race speech and playing of our National Anthem

9:00 a.m. - Race starts

10:00 a.m. - Awards for top finishers will be handed out

Please Note: This race will conclude our Liberty Common Running Club. However, the Veterans Day 5K is not a Liberty sponsored or chaperoned event. Mrs. Hersh and Mrs. Schupp will be attending and would love to run with your student. However, you must register your child, pay the $15 entrance fee, and be at the starting and finishing lines. We will not be responsible for transportation   

Liberty Common families and grandparents who have attended previous 

Grandparents Day events and filled-out informational table cards at those 

events should have received their invitations for Grandparents Day 2014.

This portion of the newsletter is also a reminder and 'save the date' notice for those families who may have family coming from out of town and would like them to attend!

If you do not receive an invitation, please visit our Grandparents Day Webpage as an open invitation to all grandparents of Liberty Common students.   

Please read the content of the page for lots of information about the day and check the FAQ section to see if your questions can be answered there.

Parental families of Liberty Common students who receive an invitation should

share the invitation with their childrens' grandparents if they have not been able 

to add their addresses to our Grandparents Day mailing list.

We ask that if grandparents cannot attend, parents do not come in their place.

We do not have the capacity to host every parent plus grandparents.  Please

allow this to be a special day for grandparents and grandchildren.  

Grandparents Day 2014 promises to be the best event yet!  At the elementary 

school, grandparents will be treated to a fantastic, home made breakfast that 

is a recipe of a fellow Liberty Common grandparent, as well as performances 

by students, and a chance to visit their grandchildren's classrooms, meet the 

wonderful Liberty Common teachers, and get a grand tour of the fantastic 

school given with pride by their own grandchildren.  

At the secondary school, grandparents will be treated to some afternoon 

snacks and performances by the amazingly talented students as well as get

to tour of the newly expanded, beautiful building and classrooms as well as 

experience some interaction with the amazing teachers at this exceptional 

educational institution.  

Grandparents who are able to attend should not miss this wonderful experience

to spend a wonderful morning and/or afternoon with their bright, excited, and

proud grandchildren.  Liberty Common staff, teachers, administration, the 

Grandparents Day Planning Committee and all of the students look forward to

hosting people who are so special to the lives of the Liberty kids!  

This event cannot exist without the support of parent volunteers.  The Grandparents Day Planning Committee is still seeking volunteers to help the evening before the event beginning at 5pm in the elementary gym to set up seating, tables, and decor. Also needed are volunteers to help the day of the event anywhere from 7am am to 11:00am. The high school is seeking volunteers to help from noon until 3:30pm.

If you would be interested in helping make this wonderful, unique event a smooth 

success, please use this SignUp Genius page to secure your spot!  

CLICK HERE to volunteer, CLICK HERE to donate.   

If you have any questions about volunteering for the event, contact Erin Mihulka 

via email at [email protected]  

The Gala 2015 committee needs your gently used Reading List books to help raise funds for the school. To donate your books, leave them in the drop boxes located near the front office and back doors to the school.

Pink Bags are back!  Gala planning and preparations are underway, and we've filled pink bags with projects that are simple to complete.  Most of the projects can be done at home.  All the supplies and instructions are included in each bag.  Many hands make light work!  Visit the front office to check out your Pink Bag Project today!