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Weekly News from Steele Elementary

02 25  2016   
Contents
From the Principal
School News
PTA News
Community News
Quick Links
Dates To Remember
From the Principal

Coffee with the Principal
I would like to invite everyone to Coffee with the Principal next Thursday, March 3rd. We will meet in the cafeteria from 8:30-9:30; coffee and light refreshments will be served. This is a great time to get to know one another better, share successes and concerns, and also talk about what is coming up in the near future at Steele. What I've always loved about Coffee with the Principal is the learning that parents get to do from one another. Often a parent will have a question for me and another parent in the room will have experienced the same issue and we get to problem solve together. I hope you are able to join us on Thursday March 3rd. I look forward to connecting with you.
Emergency Plans at Steele
Some one recently told me that 9 news has been asking parents to contact them if they are concerned that their school does not have an Emergency Plan. I realized that this is not something that I explicitly communicate to parents and wanted to ensure everyone that we do have an emergency plan in place. If there is an intruder in the building we go into lockdown, hiding in our respective classrooms and staying out of sight. We have started practicing this on a monthly basis. If we were to evacuate, we have two schools that we would walk to, depending on the easiest direction to move during an evacuation, one school is to the Southwest; the other is to the Northwest. We also have people assigned to various roles to make sure that a re-union with parents would go smoothly. All DPS schools share their emergency plan with DPS Safety and Security. If you have questions or concerns about our emergency plan, please set up a time to chat with me. Keeping your child safe is always our first priority.

Thanks for all you do-cheers Kevin



School News
 Student Council Box Top Contest
Student Council is collecting Box Tops for Education! We are challenging each classroom to collect at least 100 box tops by March 24th. In addition, the class that raises the most box tops will earn
Box Tops for Education logoa pizza party (with a salad and pop) on the day before Spring Break, Friday, March 25th! :) 
We will continue a school-wide collection for the remainder of the year but any box tops collected between now and March 25th will be a part of the competition.
Containers will be stored in each classroom for students to put their box tops in.
If you have any questions please contact Michelle Parks, Room 306 or via e-mail at michelle_reedy@dpsk12.org  

Jump Rope for Heart Wrapping Up
Thank you to all of the students who joined our Steele team for Jump Rope for Heart. Coach Welch will be finishing our event by collecting the remaining envelopes this week and next. If you collected cash or checks, please turn them into Coach Welch's office or box in the main office. Please fill out all of the info on the envelope so your child will get credit for their total amount and the correct thank you gifts can be ordered. 
Friday, March 4th will be the last day to turn in your envelope before Coach Welch places Steele's dog/thank you gift order on
March 5th. Generally it takes AHA 3-4 weeks to fill and ship our order. 
Our students have been jumping single, partner, long, team, double-dutch, and Witch's Hat styles for the entire month of February. Our jumping bonanza (to celebrate the completion of JRFH 2016) having all sorts of jumping stations, will be held Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday March 2nd- 4th. Thanks again to everyone who helped the fight against heart disease and strokes.
 
Drama News
The third grade classes will be presenting Wizard of Oz. Here are the dates and times.
3rd Grade
Presents

The Wizard of Oz

308 - Tuesday, April 19 @ 5:30

211-Wednesday, April 20 @ 5:30

312- Thursday, April 21 @ 5:30

After School Enrichment
There are many wonderful after school programs being offered at Steele this spring to allow children to broaden their cultural horizons. Visit the Steele website for further details on these and other programs offered. 
 
PTA News
PTA Executive Board Meeting: March 2, 8:20 AM
 The monthly PTA Executive Board (EB) meetings are always open to the school community. The next meeting will be Wednesday, March 2, and parents are invited to attend and learn more about the Executive Board's work. For any parent considering running for an Executive BoardNew PTA Logo position this spring, this is also a great place to get a firsthand idea of what the Executive Board roles entail. The meeting runs from 8:20 to 10:15 AM in the school library. Guests are welcome to arrive and depart as schedules allow. Please RSVP to  Steelepresident@gmail.com.      

Winter Dance Photos 
A special thanks to the Family Programs Committee, students and  their families for an amazing Winter Dance!  View the online album to see if you made the paparazzi photos!

After School Garden Program
We're inviting 20 students to learn about caring for seeds, planting, and much, much more!  Registration is open now.  We will meet on Wednesdays from April 6th to May 25th,  3-4pm.  This year we will include a garden milk jug experiment, transplanting, and if weather permits, planting a few beds in the garden.  Download the Registration Form  for more information.
Community News

Are you interested in becoming a teacher? 
Steele has a long history of training skilled and dedicated teachers!
The Stanley Teacher Prep program is seeking intern candidates for placements at Steele, as well as other public school and private schools! Intern teachers gain an understanding of experience-based, developmentally appropriate education over the course of 1 school year.    They take on steadily increasing responsibilities as their skills and confidence grow, while working with a skilled mentor teacher.  With ongoing feedback and support from both their mentor teacher and educational advisor, interns participate in all aspects of the teaching process. They learn to help children with a wide range of abilities and share in celebrating diversity within the classroom.  Intern teachers take 225 hours of course work on Thursday afternoons in order to obtain licensure through the state of Colorado. For more information please visit http://www.stanleyteacherprep.org or email Jessamyn Lockhart at jlockhart@pebc.org.

South High School Sports Summer Camp
Denver South Athletics is excited to announce our new summer sports camp, 241Sports Denver South!  We have partnered with 241 Sports, a national leader in sport sampling to bring our community the BEST multi-sport summer camp experience in Denver!  At 2-4-1 Denver South, our Head and Assistant High School Coaches will offer top notch instruction along with our High School Athlete counselors who will bring the FUN and enthusiasm that make summer sports camp a great experience!
 
Please visit our website:  www.241denversouth.com
 
Adventures Outside Summer Day Camp (SPREE)
Looking for a way to get your kids outside and active this summer while you are at work? Don't want them to stop learning just because it's summer? Then Adventures Outside is for you! Click here for more information. 

To check out what's happening at Merrill Middle School, click here.
To submit information to this newsletter, send it in edited, final-draft format to the appropriate person from the list below by 5 PM on Tuesdays:
For all other questions, please email Cynthia Swanson and Liz Marvan (parent volunteers) at steelestallionpress@gmail.com.