Cowles Montessori Crier

Week of April 19th

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, ADOLESCENTS, and ADULTS) flourish in society (ALL ENVIRONMENTS).” - Cowles Montessori Vision

CMPG Board Members

A huge thanks to the outgoing CMPG Board members Rochelle Quiner (president), Teva Dawson (vice president), and Kate Thompson (secretary)! They served us well during this unique school year. Under their leadership, they provided Cowles with creative ways to connect as a community.

The parent community welcomes incoming CMPG Board members Andrea Lowe (co-president), Jenna Knox (co-president), and Sara Perez (secretary)! The board members were nominated and approved by vote at the April 12th CMPG meeting. The board will also include returning CMPG members Nikki Cosby (vice president) and Matt Wier (treasurer). The new board will convene during the May CMPG monthly meeting.

Important Dates to Remember

Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress (ISASP)

3rd-8th Grade Students
Format for both In-person and Virtual students
Testing window beings mid-May
Stay tuned for specific testing dates, times, and details

Last Day of School for Preschool Students

Friday, May 28th

Memorial Day

Monday, May 31st
No school for students, faculty, and staff

Last Day of School for Kindergarten through 8th Grade

Thursday, June 3rd - early dismissal (time TBA)

DMPS 6-12th Grade Virtual Campus Applications

Virtual Campus: Expanding Learning Opportunities for Grades 6-12 (Applications open until April 30th!)

This is a reminder that Des Moines Public School will be offering more online learning options next school year! Virtual Campus is expanding to include the middle school grade levels in addition to being open to more high school students with a larger course catalog. Applications are now being accepted through April 30, 2021.

If you are interested in applying for Virtual Campus 6-12 next year, you must fill out this application linked HERE before April 30th! (This goes for current Virtual Campus students as well).

If you are needing more information on the student experience at Virtual Campus, please click here

The Heart Of The Matter

Dear Cowles parents/guardians,

We are moving into the last 6 weeks of school. This time of year brings many opportunities for gathering together--spring sports, prom, graduation parties, school promotions, field days, etc.. While these are happy events, they increase the risk of COVID-19 transmission within our community. This is especially true with the more transmissible variant, B117, circulating widely in Iowa.

If you have an important event that you do not want to miss due to COVID-19, please take steps to reduce your risk and exposure in the 2-3 weeks leading up to it. Persons who are in isolation or quarantine at the time of a special event will have to remain at home, missing the special event.

The CDC has outlined suggestions for both small and large group gatherings. The guidance includes:

wear a mask
maintain physical distance
outdoor events provide better ventilation than indoor events
limit the number of people present at one time
stay home when ill; please don't put others at risk

While there are many benefits to COVID-19 vaccines, they take time to work and not everyone has received one. Please continue to practice the mitigation measures known to work. Wear a mask and enjoy your event!

REMINDERS:

The Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) requires Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis) AND meningitis vaccines for all students entering, advancing or transferring into 7th grade. By law, if students are not fully immunized for both vaccines by the first day of school, they will not be allowed to attend school, participate in sports or attend school-related activities.

Attention Parents of 6th grade students: I have emailed you if your child is missing one or both, of the vaccinations required to start 7th grade. Thank you for your time and attention on this very important matter.

Providers encourage parents to continue well-child visits that include vaccinations even during the COVID-19 pandemic, to keep your student and others safe. Clinics have precautions in place so they can continue to care for well patients. Please set up an appointment with your health care provider to get these vaccines as soon as possible.

If you do not have health insurance, you can schedule an appointment with the Polk County Health Department at 515-286-3798. Do not wait, as appointments will fill up fast and your child may not be able to see their provider in time. If you have any further questions or concerns, feel free to contact me, I am always happy to help! Feel free to contact me if you have any questions and thank you for your attention to this matter.

Hearing screens and rescreens have been completed for our PreK, K, 1st, 2nd, and 5th grade students for the 20-21 school year. Please keep in mind, that no news is GOOD news.

Please remember to notify us if anyone in your family tests positive for COVID-19 or is in quarantine. You can reach me by calling the main office at 515-242-7818 and leave a message or you may email me at ann.humphrey@dmschools.org and I will get back to you.

Kindness Challenge: “In a world where you can be anything, be kind.” Here are 11 Kindness Challenge ideas and FREE Printables for 2021. Enjoy! HERE

Have a great week!

Be well! Stay safe!

Nurse Ann

Nurse Ann's Office Hours

If parents want to book an appointment time to speak with Nurse Ann, click on the link below:

Nurse Ann's Office Hours

Cowles has HEART!

Hello Parents and Guardians,

The lifelong health of our students in very important to us here at Cowles Montessori School and this year we’re proud to partner with the American Heart Association through the Kid’s Heart Challenge.

The American Heart Association is working hard on the front lines to engage young people early and often as they form lifelong habits, while also working around the clock to ensure every community, including ours, has the latest science and research to be able to respond when we need it most. Beyond heart attacks, cardiac arrest, congenital heart defects and stroke – AHA has a frontline role in the COVID response, addressing the cardiovascular complications we’re seeing and getting our care providers what they need to help.

This service-learning program teaches students how to care for their hearts both physically and emotionally and teaches the importance of giving back by raising lifesaving donations to fight the nation’s #1 killer, heart disease!

To register your student(s) and fundraise for AHA please go to our personal school page here: http://www2.heart.org/goto/cowles
Fundraising to support AHA will end Friday May 7th
We encourage online donations this year, but please have any cash/check donations turned in to the main office with your student’s envelope

We’re challenging every student to register online and choose one of three things they will commit to doing better: BE KIND, MOVE MORE or CHOOSE WATER.

Thank you for supporting us and the lifesaving mission of the American Heart Association!

Iowa Legislative Updates

The Education Bill Tracking webpage provides regular updates during the Iowa legislative session on bills related to education in Iowa. Information about new bills, including names, numbers, and sponsors are provided.

As the session continues to move forward, there are certain session milestones that bills need to clear to stay alive. These milestones are listed within the session timetable

DMPS Early Childhood and District Board Goals

Early Childhood Department/School Readiness Goals & Learning Targets – 2020-2021

85% of 4 year-olds will meet or exceed kindergarten readiness in the Literacy Domain of GOLD including concepts of print, alliteration, letter names and letter sounds.
80% of 4 year-olds will meet or exceed kindergarten readiness in the Math Domain of GOLD including counts, quantifies and connects numerals with quantities.
90% of 4 year-olds will meet or exceed kindergarten readiness in the Social/Emotional Domain of GOLD, follows limits and expectations.

District Board Goals

LITERACY

Goal 1: The percent of all third grade students on track in reading will increase from 52% to 72% by June 2023, as measured by FAST.
Goal 2: The percent of black male third grade students on track in reading will increase from 35% to 72% by June 2023, as measured by FAST.

ALGEBRA

Goal 3: The percent of black male students earning a ‘B’ or higher in Algebra 1 by the end of 9th grade will increase from 17% to 35% by August 2023.

SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING

Goal 4: A goal will be developed once a baseline measure for social emotional learning is determined.

Cowles Montessori School Improvement Goal

Goal 1: The percent of all third through eighth grade students proficient and/or on track for college and career readiness in math will increase from 81% to 85% by Spring of 2023 as measured by state assessments: