Cowles Montessori Crier

“Human flourishing, as Maria Montessori put it, means becoming a person of one’s time and place with the means and wherewithal not only to function within but to shape society (NCMPS, 2019).”

“All humans (CHILDREN and ADULTS) flourish in society (ENVIRONMENT).” - Cowles Montessori Vision

For all humans to flourish in our current society, we are exercising “social distancing” during the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this process is to slow the spread of the virus. It is a collaborative effort to “flatten the curve,” which is a process to reduce the number of individuals needing medical attention and to not overwhelm the current health care responders with those in need. This means that students are not able to attend and learn in their traditional school environments. Virtual and distance learning programs were developed to ensure the highest level of safety for our school community and continue our students' academic growth and development.

School Board Decision Meeting

• The School Board is meeting Monday evening to follow up on their discussion earlier last week on how to best develop and approve a return to learn plan that is compliant with State mandates.
• At Monday's meeting a plan will be presented that is compliant. While details of the plan to be presented are still being finalized, and must ultimately be approved by the School Board, it will include two choices for families: (a) an in-person option that would provide instruction 50% or more of the time in school, or (b) a voluntary all-virtual option.
• If a plan is approved by the School Board on Monday, DMPS families will receive communication on Tuesday with additional information to help make a choice that's best for them as we work to educate students in the midst of a pandemic.
• Monday's School Board meeting will begin at 5:00 PM, and can be viewed on the DMPS Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/DMPStv

• Free meals can be picked up at Cowles from 11:00-1:00 p.m.
• Drive through the parking lot to the loading doc by the cafeteria and the lunches will be brought out to you
• Any DMPS/Cowles family can receive meals regardless of income or life circumstance
• More information is posted below

21-Day Equity Challenge

• October 5th through November 2nd
• www.equitychallenge.org
• See the United Way flyer posted below

For updated troubleshooting tips go to: https://www.smore.com/z2sgk

Dear families,

We want to provide some clarification about our attendance system for our virtual school setting.

Teachers will monitor student participation in daily opportunities for instruction. Opportunities for participation include:

1. Synchronous learning participation (student participates in a group lesson, either synchronously or participated via recording)
2. Canvas module participation (student engages in Canvas module(s))
3. Work submission (student submits evidence or work)
4. Office hour meeting (student meets one on one with a teacher regarding instructional content)

Teachers will update student attendance each day to indicate if a student participated in instruction. At 5:00pm Infinite Campus will automatically update and will post participation/non-participation in the student attendance record. If a student participates in instruction after 5:00pm, the teacher will update this information in Infinite Campus, and the student attendance record will reflect the change on the following day at 5:00pm.

Parents/guardians should contact their student’s school if the student is unable to participate in daily instruction due to illness, internet connectivity issues, or other extenuating circumstances. School office staff will receive this information and will update student attendance records accordingly.

Announcing Virtual Spanish Clubs

Spanish club is going virtual! This fall The Language Project is offering virtual Spanish clubs for PreK – 4th grade featuring music, games, stories and more! Same fun—different format!

• Clubs begin first week of October. Multiple days and times available for your convenience.
• Spanish-speaking teachers trained in teaching second language for kids.
• Little to no parental assistance required with activities designed for students to participate independently.

• Registration cost includes all supplies. 10-week session is $135.
• Capped at 10 students per club.
• Can complete a full level of Spanish with three 10-week units.
• Sibling and military discounts available.

To register, go to www.languageprojectkids.com. Click on Enroll Now. For questions, please contact Dominique Miles at [dmiles@languageprojectkids.com]dmiles@languageprojectkids.com. Gracias!

Thank you for all that you are doing for our young people. Please let me know if you have any questions about this.

Sincerely,

(877) 532-6797

[dmiles@languageprojectkids.com]dmiles@languageprojectkids.com

www.languageprojectkids.com

https://www.dmschools.org/news_release/fall-meals-free-for-all-children-at-dmps-schools/

Des Moines Public Schools is excited to share we will offer a free breakfast and lunch each school day to every child in our community. Beginning Sept. 8, any child aged 1-18 is eligible to receive a school breakfast and lunch at almost any DMPS school. The offering is expected to impact thousands of children.

The U. S. Department of Agriculture announced this week that it would grant the flexibility for school districts to offer no-cost meals to every child for as long as USDA funding lasts, which could be as late as December 2020.

“It’s important to DMPS and the entire community that every child has enough to eat during this significant economic downturn,” Food and Nutrition Director Amanda Miller said. “We are encouraging every family, regardless of current income or enrollment, to find the DMPS school nearest to them and join us for a grab-and-go, no-cost breakfast and lunch on school days.”

DMPS students and families with young children can pick up a grab-and-go breakfast and lunch at any DMPS elementary, middle or high school between 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. each school day. For working families, DMPS will also offer drive-thru service at six middle schools for the same meals pickup from 4:00 – 6:00 p.m.

Students and young children do not need to be present when parents and guardians pick up meals, student IDs are not required, and meals are available at any DMPS school with the exception of Ruby Van Meter and our early childhood centers. Students do not need to travel to their current school to pick up a breakfast and lunch, they may visit the school closest to them.

The middle schools offering meal service from 4:00 – 6:00 p.m. on school days are Harding, Hoyt, McCombs, Merrill, Meredith, and Weeks middle schools. For a map of all DMPS schools, click here.

Email: todd.johnson@dmschools.org
Website: cowles.dmschools.org
Location: 6401 College Avenue, Windsor Heights, IA, USA
Phone: 515-242-7818
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CowlesMontessori/
Twitter: @CowlesDMPS