AAK Dragon Mail News
August 6th, 2024
Welcome Back Dragons! We are so excited to see you!
Upcoming Important Dates
August 7th: FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!
August 15th: Back to School Night 5:30pm-7pm
August 16th: PICTURE DAY in the morning
August 24th: Corn Roast Parade 8:30am-11:30am
September 2nd: Labor Day - No School, No CLC
September 13th: Walk A Thon 1:30pm-3pm
September 19th-20th: Conferences: No School, CLC Open
See more upcoming dates and the school calendar here:
A Letter from Ms Schlagel-Hope in case you missed it!
Hello AAK Families!
We are beyond excited to welcome you all to the 24-25 school year! Our teachers and staff have been hard at work preparing for an amazing year.
Please welcome our new teachers to AAK!
Ms. Behm-Kindergarten
Ms. Tauren-1st grade
Ms. Benavidez-3rd grade
Ms. Potocki-4th grade
Mrs. Born-4th grade
Mr. Marco-Spanish Teacher
Mrs. Smith is in a new position this year. She is our new Interventionist/Instructional Coach.
We have an extremely talented group of teachers. AAK is very fortunate to have such a strong, committed group of educators!
Please welcome our new and amazing support staff!
Ms. Crockett-lunch service
Mrs. Rivera-lunch service
Mr. John-Support Staff/CLC Leader
Mrs. Martin-CLC Staff
Ms. O’Neil-Morning CLC/Support Staff
Please take note of the following changes to the 24-25 school year.
Morning CLC and Drop Off
CLC starts at 7am Monday-Friday. There will be some clubs and activities available to students in the mornings. Families can drop off their children between 7:00am and 7:45am. There will be no drop off between 7:45am-8:00am! During this time staff will be serving breakfast and transitioning to the start of the school day.
AAK drop off will begin at 8:00am. Families will park and walk their children to the front entrance. Please walk your child up to the front doors, and staff will be there ready to greet your child and ensure they go to breakfast or their classroom. We will no longer have staff outside to take children out of the car!
We ask that you have an AAK staff member walk your child to class while teachers are focusing on welcoming students and starting their school day. Teachers are not available to meet with families during this time. It will be a much smoother transition for students if they have the opportunity to say good-bye at the front door compared to the classroom.
Breakfast will be served from 8:00am-8:10am. CLC students will begin breakfast at 7:50am to make sure there is plenty of time for all students to eat. If you arrive after 8:10am, please walk your child to the door and ring the bell.
*Pre-Kindergarten drop off and pick up will be located at the north entrance (under the stairs).
Drop off will be from 8:00am-8:10am and pick up will be from 3:15pm-3:25pm.
Afternoon Pick Up
Afternoon pick up will remain the same. Please follow the line of cars that snake through the parking lot. We will check IDs and have your student ready to be picked up at one of the 4 teacher stations. Please do not walk up to the front of the school to pick up your child. This is for safety reasons. We need to ensure all students are leaving with the correct adult. We cannot monitor all of the students out front as well as check IDs of those walking up. If you choose to not wait in the line, you may pick up your child at 3:40pm from CLC. Please be patient with us as the first couple of weeks are much more difficult. We do have a great procedure, and the line will move very quickly.
Handicap Parking Spots
Our parking spots in the front of the building are designated handicap parking. Please do not park in these spots unless you have a handicap parking permit. We have many families and visitors that require these spots. If you are choosing to park in these spots, you will be ticketed and towed.
CLC Sign Up
If you have not signed up for the CLC before/after school program for the 24-25 school year please do so! ALL families will need to sign up, including families who attended last year and/or during the summer. 24-25 CLC School Year Sign Up
CLC Clubs
CLC Clubs will begin on August 26, 2024. We will be hosting a CLC Club open house where you will be able to meet the Club Leaders and learn more about what they will be doing and their expectations. More information will be sent out soon! Club signups will be sent out the week of August 19th-23rd.
Spanish at AAK
We will be offering Spanish in addition to our Music, Art, and Expressions classes. Students will take Spanish as one of their specials. Spanish will be combined with library time. Students will engage in Spanish class and have dedicated time to be in the library and check books out.
Assessments
AAK will be giving i-Ready Reading and i-Ready Math assessments to all of our students. We also use DIBELS. AAK will no longer be using NWEA MAPS assessments. We felt our students were being over assessed. i-Ready and DIBELS will give us the information we need to make data-driven decisions to support our students. If a student needs additional assessments, we are able to provide them on an individual basis.
i-Ready Classroom Mathematics
We are excited to be using a new math curriculum supported by CDE (Colorado Department of Education). This curriculum is highly engaging and hands-on. Students will have the opportunity to experience math on a new level! Math will be more interactive and provide the opportunity for all students to be thinking critically about solving mathematical concepts.
Monday Morning Assemblies
This year we will be holding a Monday Morning Assembly (or the first day of the school week). This time is dedicated to building school community. Monday Morning Assemblies will start at 8:15am on the first day of the school week. Assemblies will last for approximately 5-10 minutes.
Reminder!
Our first day of school is Wednesday, August 7th! School supply lists are located on our website. AAK School Supplies
We can not wait to see all of you on Wednesday!
Here is to the best year yet!
Mrs. Schlagel-Hope
Breakfast and Lunch Menu Link
Click here to view the menu from our new caterer! https://linqconnect.com/public/menu/Y2FT7A?buildingId=be11f078-9a3f-ef11-bec0-a35da61ebcdb
Please take a look at our new Student and Family Handbook here:
Sign up for your student to attend CLC during the 24/25 School Year!
Please fill out a CLC 24/25 Enrollment Form for each student Kindergarten - Fifth Grade.
Pre-K Students do not need to have a form.
School Supply Lists and more!
Here is the link to the 24/25 School Supply Lists, School Calendar, and
descriptions of all AAK events for the 24/25 school year.
Please Fill Out this Required Form
All families must fill out this form for the State of Colorado.
https://linqconnect.com/public/meal-application/new?identifier=FG3UQ5
Than you for your support!
School Lunch Information
We have a new meal caterer this year! Fast Fit Foods will be offering a more kid friendly menu that provides a broader variety of fruits and vegetables for our students. They also pride themselves on serving more organic and locally sourced foods than our previous caterer.
All Breakfasts and Lunches are free to all students for the 2024-25 school year!
The breakfast and lunch menu will be posted in dragon mail every week and we will be bulk ordering for meals, so you do not need to order ahead.
If your child has dietary restrictions, we are able to accommodate meals that are dairy free, gluten free, vegetarian, and nut free. Please come into the office to request a meal modification form. This form will need to be filled out and signed by a doctor and returned to the school prior to modified meals being ordered. Please email Jada Kankel jkankel@aakelementary.org. Or call 970-226-2800 if you have any questions.
Pre-K Pick Up and Drop Off
CLC - Before and After School Start and End Times
Morning - 7:00 - 8:00am (Drop off is from 7:00-7:45) There is NO DROP OFF between 7:45 - 8:00.)
Afternoon - 3:20 - 5:30pm (Please make sure your student is picked up by 5:30, our staff's shifts end at that time, thank you!)
Please call or text the CLC phone at 970-619-1077 if you have an emergency and are going to be late picking up in the afternoon, or if you have any questions.
Drop-Off and Pick-Up
Student Drop-Off is between 8:00 - 8:10am. Please park and walk your student to the front door. Students may not walk through the parking lot without an adult.
Breakfast will be served between 8:00-8:10 in the cafeteria. There is no drop off from 7:45 - 8:00am because staff is with students or preparing for breakfast.
We have a couple ways for families to pick up their child after school. Families can choose to go through the driver pick up line or you can park and walk into the school at 3:40pm. Please do not walk up and pick up your child during driver pick up. We work hard to ensure every student is safe and is going with the correct adult. It is not possible for us to do this during that time. The line will move much faster once CLC programming begins, in the meantime we ask for your patience.
Student Pick-Up begins is at 3:20pm. The pick up line zig zags through the parking lot to keep cars off Wheaton Drive. Please be sure to pull into this line and have your ID ready to show the staff member collecting student names. We will load your student into your car when you reach the loading area. Please do not park and come up to the building to collect your student, only the person collecting names from drivers has the check out list.
If you need your student early please come to the front office by 3pm and we will get them out of class. If you prefer to not wait in the driver line you may wait until 3:40pm, park and come to the front doors.
Indoor Pick-Up Procedure for Incliment Weather
In the event of inclement weather or freezing temperatures, we will implement our indoor pick-up procedure. We will send you a text letting you know as soon as we know, but please be aware that if the weather changes at the last minute this plan could be implemented late. Please note, pick-up begins at 3:20pm. If you arrive beforehand, please wait in your car until pick up starts. Here is how it will work:
You will receive a text letting you know we are doing Indoor Pick-Up
Please park your car
Between 3:20 and 3:40, enter through the main entrance with your picture ID
Go to your student’s classroom and check them out from their teacher
Exit the building through the North West doors (under the stairs)
Drive safe and have a great evening!
Indoor Pick-Up will end at 3:40, after that time, please pick up students at the front door
Please note that teachers need to focus on safely releasing students and will not be able to conference with you at that time.
If you have any questions, please feel free to call! 970-226-2800
Snacks
Nut Free Policy
Here are a few things that contain nuts that are common in lunch boxes:
Snack Mix
Granola
Cereal
Snack Bars
Nutella
Candy
Macaroon cookies
Lunchables containing candy
You can use Sun Butter in place of peanut butter! Thank you for helping with this.
Birthday Celebrations
Birthday Menu
*Pajama Day
*Stuffy Day
*Extra Recess
*Dance Party
*Show and Tell
Check us out on Facebook!
Link to previous newsletters:
Academy of Arts and Knowledge
Email: info@aakelementary.org
Website: https://www.aakelementary.org/
Location: 4800 Wheaton Drive, Fort Collins, CO, USA
Phone: (970) 226-2800
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AAKElementary/