As we enter Coyote Creek's tenth year, there are two stories I want to share with you.

On the last day of the 2003-04 school year—June 18—students were viewing the Second Annual Video Yearbook. There was much excitement in the air as each student looked for a glimpse of himself or a friend or a favorite teacher, and memories of the past year were relived. This is one occasion when silence is not demanded; our students are allowed to enjoy this event within the bounds of appropriate audience behavior.

So the music is cool, and the pictures are fun, and the students are thoroughly enjoying themselves when up on the screen comes a video of a student playing her flute for the Talent Show. Spontaneously, the students are shushing each other so her music can be heard. What a touching, proud moment for those of us who work with your children every day. We hear so much about how self-absorbed young people are these days, but here in our own gym we saw evidence that OUR young people do show appreciation for their peers and their talent and hard work. Wow!
Just a couple of weeks later, as we began the new school year, it was time for the new kindergarteners of Track D to enter the school world officially. There is no pomp or ceremony because we don't want to overwhelm these children who find themselves entering a new world—only the annual ritual of parents watching their "baby" walk into the school with the teacher, dealing with conflicting emotions of being so proud of their grown-up little one and, at the same time, realizing that this is a rite of passage for their child and for them. I like to stand just inside the door and watch and greet these new young students as they enter. This particular day as I was watching this first group of the graduation class of 2017, I heard a noise behind me. When I turned around, there was the entire office staff plus several other staff members who happened to be in the front hallway at this particular moment—all standing very quietly with smiles and a few tears as we watched these precious little ones joining the ranks of students that we will have the honor of serving for the next seven years.

Thank you for entrusting your children to us—they enrich our lives as they do yours. Here's to another successful year at Coyote Creek!
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Sixth graders at Coyote Creek Elementary will have their poems included in the Anthology of Poetry by Young Americans. They are:

On May 8, students from several Douglas County schools competed in the Second Annual World Cup Stacking Championships at the Denver Coliseum. Cup stacking involves two stack competitions—the Cycle and 3-6-3—that help students develop focus, rhythm and hand-eye coordination. Coyote Creek was well-represented! Top winners from Coyote Creek were:

1st Place 3-6-3 Elementary Divisions
Chase B., Grade 1, Coyote Creek
2nd Place Cycle Elementary Divisions
Eric S., Grade 6, Coyote Creek
3rd Place 3-6-3 Elementary Divisions
Wade S., Grade 3, Coyote Creek
Jesse R., Grade 6, Coyote Creek


Congratulations to every single student who practiced and practiced, and took part in this competition. All of you were wonderful ambassadors for Coyote Creek!

Readers are encouraged to submit items for this column. Often we at school do not know the accomplishments of students outside school. Please include your phone number so we can reach you if we need more information.
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As you will remember, we promised last spring to review the attendance policy that was in place. While the need to monitor attendance and to take steps to ensure that all students are at school on time and consistently is a mandate by state law, how we actually enforce that law at the individual school level on a day-to-day basis is pretty much left up to us.
Last March, we had received feedback that the language in letters being used to communicate high rates of tardies or absences was intimating that the family receiving such letters did not value education and/or did not instill a strong work ethic in their children. So we immediately suspended use of those letters except in cases that were very serious, and began looking at data from the SASI system (Schools Administrative Student Information-- which is used by the district to maintain student attendance information) to develop a more valid process of notifying parents of excessive absences and tardies.
Until this year, we had been using the number of days a student was absent or tardy to determine whether or not parents needed to receive a reminder about the necessity of students being in school. For example, if a student missed 10 days during the first 9 weeks of school, his parents would receive a letter reminding them that he needs to be in raw numbers was not resulting in equitable treatment of students' attendance patterns.
Consequently, this year we are instituting a new process. We are looking at the overall attendance rate—using percentages instead of raw numbers. This will help us keep attendance in perspective. We are targeting 90% as the minimal attendance rate, which translates into a 10% absence rate. For example, 10% is 4.5 days within the first nine weeks (45 days), or 9 days within the first 18 weeks (90 days), etc. A (revised) letter will be sent home when a student's absences reach 10% of the total number of school days that have passed. Additional letters will be sent if the absences continue at the 10% level or higher.
We will be monitoring the success of these new procedures throughout the year. Our overall attendance rate has been declining over the past three years, so we are hoping this new process will help bring focus to the importance of school attendance.
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We have five new teachers at Coyote Creek this year, and we felt this was a perfect time to introduce them to you. Watch future issues of The Chronicle for glimpses into the lives of other teachers!

Rebecca Eller is the new 4D teacher. She comes to us with a Bachelor's degree in Elementary Education, a Master's degree in Curriculum and Instruction, and five years of teaching instruction. Her hobbies include traveling, reading, and spending time with her family. She says that when she walked into Coyote Creek she could tell that the staff was friendly and students were well-mannered. She also saw that our staff works hard as a team to make this a wonderful place to work. Rebecca also noticed that we have abundant supplies, materials, support, AND air conditioning! As a child, she and her sister played school all the time. She always knew she wanted to be a teacher—it was in her heart. Coyote Creek is excited to have Rebecca on our team!

Kaitlin Riley is the new 2C teacher, after having completed a half year as a long-term substitute at Coyote Creek last year. Although she is a native of Colorado, she attended the University of Michigan where she earned a Bachelor's degree in Elementary Education. Her hobbies include running, skiing, hiking, reading, and listening to all types of music. Observing the changes in her students throughout the year, both socially and academically, really excites Kaitlin. She loves to hear students' perspectives on issues and to watch them as they deal with particular situations and solve problems. Kaitlin was motivated to apply for a job at Coyote Creek because she had such a positive experience last year as a substitute working with our parents and students. Welcome back, Kaitlin!

Melissa Deets is our new 1C teacher. Melissa holds a Bachelor's degree in Human Development and Family Studies, as well as licensure in Elementary Education. She brings a high level of excitement and energy, and when she isn't at school she enjoys skiing and golfing. When asked about her passion, her immediate response was "Teaching!" She believes that this is what she is meant to do in life. She particularly enjoys watching students grow; in first grade there is a huge change between the beginning of the year and the end. Melissa can't wait to help her students make this transformation, and wants to be sure that all of them reach their highest potential. It's great to have you at Coyote Creek, Melissa!

Heather Coslet is the new kindergarten teacher on Track C. She holds a Bachelor's degree in in Human Development and Family Studies with an emphasis in Early Childhood Education. Running, kickboxing, reading and playing with her dog Casey are some of the things Heather enjoys doing when she is away from school. One of the most enjoyable aspects of teaching for Heather is watching children grow, and hearing about their thinking processes. She has made some observations about life at Coyote Creek—high levels of family support and staff support, as well as the dedication of the staff to the education of every student. Welcome to the Coyote Creek family, Heather!

Lost & Found
Check our Lost and Found barrels near Door #4 (by the cafeteria). There are many lunch boxes and miscellaneous coats and jackets to be found there!

Field Trips

August 6-1 A Roxborough State Park
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