Dear Lopez Students
and Families,
What a
wonderful summer it has been! I hope you and your families enjoyed
wonderful times together and created many memories. I just returned
from a family reunion in Iowa. It was so
great to see aunts, uncles, and cousins and be together again.
Many of
our staff members attended various professional development sessions over the
summer. We have been preparing lesson plans, assessments, and curriculum
aligned to the Colorado Academic Standards (CAS) which reflect the state's
adoption of the Common Core. Teachers have worked collaboratively and are
prepared to implement new strategies to differentiate the instruction for all
of our student’s needs. With this work, our leadership team decided to adopt a
supplemental tool for math instruction called Exemplars. Exemplars
features grade level specific problem-solving tools and assessments for
thinking more deeply about mathematics. We look forward to sharing more
about this at our upcoming parent meetings. Our teachers have been
working hard in preparing their classrooms and lesson plans that promise to
make for another exciting and productive year at Lopez.
Lopez is
a wonderful school, and I am proud to be part of it. You are all part of
its success. Last year, we became Colorado's first Lighthouse School
recognized by the Leader in Me organization. Our leadership assemblies,
leadership notebooks, student-led conferences, student leadership roles,
philanthropy projects, and 7 Habits of Successful Families Event have been
hallmarks to our school transformation as a leadership culture. Look for
more information and opportunities throughout the school year.
I would
like to invite and encourage you to be involved at Lopez. There are a
variety of opportunities for parent collaboration and participation. Our
parent community makes our school stronger! Please attend our quarterly
School Accountability Committee (SAC) meetings. This is where we talk
about goals for the school and collectively discuss plans for continuous
improvement. The first SAC meeting is September 18 at 5:30 PM. The
Lopez PTA is also a vital partner. This group meets monthly and plans
special events for families and students. They need your voice! The
first meeting is September 3 at 5:30 PM. Finally, there are many other
volunteer opportunities in classrooms and for special events. To begin
volunteering, make sure you have signed up on the district's website at www.psdschools.org
and have selected Lopez Elementary. Also at the PSD website, you can sign
up for our Lopez email distribution list to receive weekly newsletters and
other school communications.
Please
visit our school’s website at lop.psdschools.org. This will serve as a
resource tool for all upcoming events, student/parent handbook, important
reminders and you can catch up with our student reporters! You can also
check our monthly calendar. "Like" Lopez Elementary on Facebook
for featured items.
Also,
many thanks to our site custodian, Mr. Jones and the District’s entire
maintenance crew who have been working diligently to prepare our campus for the
start of the new school year. To see information about all of our new
staff, take a minute to read my Principal’s Blog at drgile.blogspot.com
It is going to be a
wonderful first day of school, and so great to see new and familiar
faces. I'm looking forward to another great school year!
Dr.
Traci Gile, Principal
