It is now week 8 of distance learning! Keep up the hard work! We are in the home stretch! Staying engaged can be especially challenging right now.  Please reach out if you would like any assistance in keeping your child engaged!

Important Dates

Monday, June 1st - Night of the Notables project due! Please email or share any files with your teacher.

Thursday, June 4th - Goodbye Parade in the Westgate parking lot (10:00am - 11:00am)

Friday, June 5th - Last Day of School / Yearbook Pickup / Equipment Return (more details coming soon)

Advocacy Activities from Mr. Rowan ( see previous post)

This month’s theme is Wellness! Please see the additional post with information and activities from Mr. Rowan 

Night of the Notables 

If your child is working on our optional Night of the Notables project, we have a few updates to share!

1. The project will be due on Monday, June 1st

2. Your child should be prepared to dress up as their person to the best of their ability

3. Your child should choose to present in one of the 2 following ways

1. Record an approximately 2 minute video presentation and email it to their teacher

2. Create a PowerPoint about their person, including pictures of them dressed up as their person and share it with their teacher

Advocacy Zoom Meeting

Our Advocacy Zoom meeting is Today at 10:00 am. I hope to see all the kids there! 

Hello All

I am going to set my office hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:00pm to 5:00pm.  I will be available to answer email directly during those times.  Feel free to email at anytime however and I will answer as soon as possible outside of those times.

 

As we wade through these uncharted waters, we are doing the best we can to keep kiddos safe. Thank you for your patience and grace!

I sent home a reading activity in which the students need to compete at least 20 minutes of reading in different locations over the next three weeks.  The requirement is that they do 10 different locations and I have attached a free book reward if they do more.

The other packet of work they have is to work on comprehension and writing.  There are three comprehension worksheets and a writing a story prompt.  The written responses can be sent to me via email or they can keep the worksheets until we return. Likewise the story can be written into an online document and the shared with me as well.

Stay safe and enjoy the extra time with your kiddos.

Hello All,

With the cancellation of Conferences, Student Report Cards will not be printed. You can access the final quarter 3 grade via the Parent Portal in Infinite  Campus.  Instructions are available by following this link,

I should have all grade completed by 3/17/2020

Please email me directly if you have any further questions

 

Have a great day!

Monday 2/10 - Be KIND to the ENVIRONMENT 

• Everyone Wear Green 
• Kindness Tree in lobby – More information to come!

 

Tuesday 2/11- Be KIND to YOURSELVES

• Everyone Wear Your Favorite Color! 
• Self-Compassion Activities and Treat

Wednesday 2/12 - Be KIND to YOUR CLASSMATES 

• Everyone Wear Blue
• We will have blue nail polish at recess for the Blue Pinky Challenge – Kindness and Anti-Bullying Campaign

 

Thursday 2/13 - Be KIND to YOUR TEACHERS 

• Everyone Wear Red for Ed
• Spread kindness to your teachers through notes of gratitude, words of affirmation, and more!

Friday 2/14 - Be KIND to EVERYONE! 

• Wear Westgate Shirts 
• Community Kindness Day! 

Dear Families,

We are asking for your help in raising awareness of Westgate Community School.  Specifically, we’d like you to tell your Westgate story on the social media channels you use.  As you know, we are a small charter school and we’ve found that many new families don’t consider Westgate because they don’t know we exist.  Being able to consider all the choices available allows families to make an informed decision regarding the best educational fit for their student.  

Westgate is now on Nextdoor and you can leave comments at https://nextdoor.com/pages/westgate-community-school-thornton-co/recommend/. 

In recognition of your efforts, we are giving a drawstring bag to any family who sends a screenshot of their post/recommendation to [email protected]. 

If you receive feedback requesting a point of contact at the school, please ask them to contact Ms. Rochelle Goforth at 303-452-0967 or via email at [email protected].  Rochelle can answer any questions and coordinate tours.

Thanks for supporting our community.

Sharon Collins
Executive Director

Welcome Back!  We are excited for the second semester of school and hope you all are as well!  Here's what is going on and coming up: 

PALS testing window is open from January 13 - January 29, so we will be spending the next couple of weeks getting all third graders and some of the 4th graders tested to see their reading and comprehension progress.   

JA in a day is coming on Friday, January 31st.  All classes will have guest teachers to lead in learning about economic principles during the entire school day.  3rd and 4th graders will be separated for this day as they are learning about different topics. We will let students know soon which teacher they will be spending the day with.  The school is also still looking for a couple of volunteer teachers for this event. Please let us know if you are willing and able to volunteer.  

Our Advocacy Focus for January is Self-Compassion.  The learning goal for January is: Students will learn the basic tenets or self compassion (Self-kindness vs.  Self-judgment, Common Humanity vs. Isolation, Mindfulness vs. Overidentification). Students will examine their own places for growth and they will work toward changing negative self-talk into positive mantras. 

Bully Reports 

Westgate’s Bully Report webpage has been redone! It can be accessed at the following link:  

https://www.westgateschool.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=597781&type=d&pREC_ID=form.WESCS.rGRJahe.1mH 

We will be showing kids what this new form looks like and how to complete it.  It is very important that students know when and why they should be accessing this form.  Bullying occurs when the following happens: 

1. It is repeated 

1. There is an imbalance of power 

1. There is intent to harm 

Please speak with your child about this.  Many students are filling out forms when what might be happening isn’t truly bullying.  These sorts of incidents should be reported to a teacher or adult. Westgate is committed to being bully-free, and one of the best ways to do this is by providing a way to report it when it is truly happening.   

Field Trips 

We have a couple of field trips coming up this January! We will be going to the National Western Stock Show on January 23rd and to the Denver Center of Performing Arts on January 28th.  Please look for permission slips coming home soon! 

Kindness Day 

Kindness Day will be on Friday, February 14th.  More information on this will be coming within the next few weeks! We will not be exchanging Valentines or having a party.  Instead, we will be visiting local businesses to spread kindness within the community.  

COMING UP ON THE CALENDAR 

January 20: No School - Martin Luther King Jr. Day 

January 23: Field Trip - National Western Stock Show 

January 28: Field Trip - Beethoven’s Birthday at the DCPA 

February 14: Kindness Card Delivery in our Community 

February 17: No School - Presidents’ Day 

February 18: No School - Teacher Work Day 

We will be having our winter party on Wednesday, December 18th from 2:15-3:15pm.  Cleanup is from 3:15-3:25pm.  Parents may only attend the party if they are signed up as a volunteer.  Volunteers must have a background check completed prior to signing up. In an effort to keep the community culturally inclusive, the teachers request the crafts and videos be winter-themed, not holiday specific.If you have any questions please email your child's advocacy teacher or Nicole Fox at [email protected] 

ADVOCACY FOCUS 

This month’s focus for Advocacy is Mindfulness so all classes will be doing activities focused on that topic during our mornings together. 

DRUMS OF THE WORLD FIELD TRIP ON DECEMBER 3rd HAS BEEN CANCELED  

MAP ASSESSMENTS 

Winter MAP testing is upon us and our schedule for those tests is as follows:  

Monday, December 2nd in the morning, students will take the Math assessment 

Wednesday, December 4th in the morning students will take the Reading assessment 

Friday, December 6th in the morning students will take the Math assessment.   

Please discuss with your child how important it is to give your best effort, read carefully, and get a good night's sleep the night before!  Students are working on setting goals for each test as well. Ask your child if they met their goal each day! 

HOLIDAY SHOP 

Running from December 9-13 

We will have a preview day on Monday only at lunch/quiet time (students with money will be allowed to shop).  Students will not be allowed in the shop any other time the rest of the week without money. 

Tuesday – Friday: only students with money can shop during lunch and quiet time. 

The shop is also open M-F from 3:15 - 4:30 for students with money or students with a parent. 

CONFERENCES 

Winter Parent Teacher Conferences will take place from 8:00am - 8:00pm on Thursday, December 19th and from 8:00am - 12:00pm on Friday, December 20tht.  The link to the sign up will be emailed to all parents and will also be available on every teacher’s Advocacy pages.  Please make sure to sign up for only one slot and indicate the teachers you would like to be present. We will make the final determination about who will attend based on the other conferences taking place at the same time.  Thanks for your understanding that we are trying to be present with as many parents as possible. 

JA IN A DAY 

Jr. Achievement will be taking place on Friday, January 31st, 2020.  We need volunteers! If you are interested in teaching & volunteering that day, please reach out to your child’s advocacy teacher! A training session is required in order to participate.  For more information, please see the following link: https://www.jacolorado.org/volunteer-resources/ 

LUNCH CLEAN UP 

Please help us in helping your child to keep track of their things and clean up after themselves properly following lunches.  We are having some issues with students being very careless about their clean up and it is resulting in food being left in places it should not be and the sink and drinking fountain being left with food that clogs our system.  Please talk with your child about appropriately cleaning up after lunch. 

IMPORTANT DATES 

12/11/19                                         All past assignments due! 

12/19/19 (8 a.m.- 8 p.m.)                Winter Conferences 

12/20/19 (8 a.m.- 12 p.m.) Winter Conferences 

12/23/19 – 1/10/19         Winter Break 

 

Hello everyone,

We wanted to let you know that due to some unforeseen issues, we need to move the K-8 Field Trip. The trip is now on January 28. A new permission slip will be sent out when we get back from winter break. I’m sorry for the inconvenience but we wanted to get you the information as soon as we could so you could plan accordingly.  Have Wonderful Thanksgiving!