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Cowles Montessori Crier

Teacher Appreciation Week Edition!

CowlesMontessori CrierTeacher Appreciation Week Edition!
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Cowles Montessori Vision

“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

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week!

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Cowles Community Rock Garden

During this time of distance, we are still connected as a Cowles community. Though we are unable to be together physically, we can still come together in spirit. The garden committee invites our Cowles families to grow our rock garden.


We are dedicating this garden to the joy and community that the late Deb Rock-Schroeder helped foster during her 8 years at Cowles.


How to grow our garden:

  1. Gather some rocks- there is a small supply of river rocks under the tree in the garden, if needed.
  2. Paint your rocks any way you would like: Cowles Spirit, in honor of Deb Rock-Schroeder, peace, encouragements, and more.
  3. Bring your rocks to our Cowles Community Rock Garden in front of the school under the tree.
  4. Snap picture of your contribution to the garden and send it to: savannah.calaway@dmschools.org


- The Cowles Montessori Garden Committee

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Remembering Deb Schroeder

A video memorial of Deb can be viewed here:


Deborah Diane Rock-Schroeder, 59, passed away on April 25, 2020 at Mayo Clinic Hospital Methodist Campus, Rochester, MN. She was born in Des Moines, on November 22, 1960 to James and Mildred (Powell) Rock.

Deb was an Educational Instructional Coach and mentor through the school system. Her passion for teaching, especially the Montessori philosophy which fit her beliefs on teaching and learning, was felt by all.

She thoroughly embraced life no matter what obstacles were in her way, prioritizing faith, hope and positivity, even to the end. A chance encounter with Deb usually led to a connection and a friend who would immediately discover her spunk and love for life.

She enjoyed spending time with friends, family and her teaching community through her career. She also enjoyed camping, spending time at her cabin, being outside and being with her faithful companions, Kurt and Java.

Deb is survived by her husband, Kurt Schroeder; step daughter, Amy Schroeder (fiancé, Jameson Schaefer); sister, Donna Rock-Wenzl; brother, Jim (Suzanne) Rock; nieces and nephews, Abbey Djuric, Lauren (William) Linahon, James (Tonya) Joseph Rock III, Lindsey Rock, Nicole Rock, Isabel (Jacob) Roloff, Nico (Lauren) Garreton; as well as other loving family and countless friends. She was preceded in death by her parents; sister, Toni Rock-Garreton; and nephew, Tomas Garreton.

We encourage friends to share their sympathies with her family using Hamilton’s online condolences at www.HamiltonsFuneralHome.com.

Memorial contributions may be directed to Scleroderma Foundation or American Cancer Society in loving memory of Deb.

Ways to Engage in Distance Learning

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Virtual Class Gatherings and Teacher 1-on-1s

Teachers will send out invitations through email for your child to join Virtual Class Gatherings each week through Microsoft Teams. Teachers will also invite your child to virtual 1-on-1s throughout the five-week distance learning session.
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Continuous Learning Canvas Course

Your child can engage in distance learning through the DMPS Continuous Learning Canvas Course. A 'Canvas Parent Guide" and "Distance Learning Suggested Schedule" are posted below this message.

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DMPS@Home Packets

Your child can further engage in distance learning through the DMPS@Home Packets that were mailed to your home. If you have not yet received your child's packet, they should be arriving on May 5th. Online versions of the packets can be located at:

Distance Learning Support and Troubleshooting

Technology Support:

For technological assistance, email us at: bts.cowles@dmschools.org


DMPS@Home:


DMPS Canvas Coursework:

To access your child's Canvas Course, go to: https://dmschools.instructure.com/

  • The username is (your student ID #)@student.dmschools.org
  • The default password is the child’s birthdate: MMDDYYYY


Microsoft Teams

You will receive a calendar invite from your child's teacher to Join the Microsoft Teams Meeting for Virtual Class Gatherings and 1-on-1 check-ins. There are 3 ways to join Microsoft Teams (App, web page, phone call):
- Step 1: Click on "Join Microsoft Teams Meeting" in the calendar invite

- Step 2: It will pull up another page, in the middle it will say:

  • "Already have the Teams app? Launch it now". Click on "Launch it now". Click on "Join Meeting"
  • OR you can "Join on the Web instead". Click on "Join Meeting"
  • OR you can receive a phone call from the Teams app (it will have a 319 area code)
- Step 3: Mute your mic. There tends to be a lot of unwanted audio feedback if too many people have their mic turned on. You or the teacher can turn the mic on if it's your child's turn to speak.

School Closures Due to COVID-19

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. Distance learning programs were developed to ensure the highest level of safety for our school community and to continue the academic growth and development of our students.


  • The Cowles building remains closed
  • As soon as we are granted permission, we will schedule times for staff and families to safely to gather their belongings