Principal's Press

-Principal Klemm 💙

At our Morning Meeting on Thursday, September 17, one of our Board of Directors members, Kayla Geiger, shared a beautifully poignant speech about the importance of community, and especially the importance of our community. GCS means so much to each and every one of us, and now more than ever, it is time for us to come together as a community to support the longevity and prosperity of this incredibly important school and institution. If you were not able to join us for Morning Meeting last Thursday, please take a few minutes to read Kayla’s speech in its entirety by clicking the link below. Thank you, Kayla, for sharing these important and impactful words with our GCS community. 💙

I was absolutely elated to receive our School Performance Score from the Colorado Department of Education! Our students scored 100% in academic growth, which is what learning is all about: the growth! These scores are a testament to our teachers, who work incredibly hard to understand our students, meet them where they are, and help them grow along their learning journey. They are a testament to our staff and community members who support and uplift our school every step of the way. They are a testament to our families for partnering with us, and most importantly, to our students, who are committed to learning, growing, and loving school! Congratulations to all of us! This is truly something to celebrate! 🎉

Every day, our toddler, preschool, and PreK students are moving, playing, learning, and growing. It is so exciting to watch their imaginations come to life as they build friendships, work together, explore, and have fun while learning. Their smiles truly light up our days here at GCS, and our bright little Rams remind us just how important our youngest learners are to the future of our community.

Mrs. Mack’s Math Band has been busy exploring data, graphs, probability, and sharing their mathematical thinking! Students have been collecting and comparing data, creating and analyzing graphs, exploring probability, and talking with one another about how they know what they know.

One of my favorite parts of seeing our Bands in action is watching students explain their thinking to one another. They are not just finding an answer; they are talking about their strategies, comparing their ideas, asking questions, and learning from each other. What a great way to build mathematical understanding while giving students the opportunity to be active participants in their own learning!

In Yoga, we have been learning coping skills to deal with big feelings. Two skills we've been focusing on are grounding into nature and using our five senses to reset and practice mindfulness. Sometimes, even as an adults, we get overwhelming feelings that we need support managing. Grounding into our senses allows us the space to think it through, calm our nervous system, and make better decisions.

Ms. Candlin and our first and second grade students just completed their Social Studies unit on the Seven Continents of the World! Students worked in pairs to uncover information about the continent they studied, learned a catchy song that I still can’t get out of my head (video linked below!) to help us remember all seven continents, and presented the research and facts they learned throughout the unit. What a great way to learn about world geography while also practicing how to share and present their learning! Check out the amazing video linked below. Fair warning, you’ll probably be singing the song all weekend long! 🌎🎶

Ms. McKenzie’s music class is working hard on rhythm, keeping a beat, and understanding the fundamentals of how music is created. What better way to learn than through movement and dance. Movement gives students a chance to experience the beat and rhythm in a different way, helping them internalize their learning while having fun. It’s a great way for students to connect music, rhythm, and movement as they build their musical skills! Click the big photo below to see the movement in action!

Mrs. Taylor’s Reading Band is digging deep into their anchor text, Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, to develop a deeper and more meaningful understanding of the novel. Students are working with point of view, summarizing, annotating text, taking notes, identifying figurative language, and discussing both their own perspectives and those of the characters throughout the novel. I have been so impressed with the discussions I’ve heard while observing Mrs. Taylor’s Reading Band. The students are invested and excited to dig into the text, share their thinking, and challenge one another’s ideas. Eventually, they will work toward writing their own chapters to enhance or elevate the novel. Great work! It is wonderful to see higher-order thinking skills in action!

Our 5th graders have started a school store called Vandertuin’s Shopping Time! The store will be open before Morning Meeting on Thursday, October 1st, with more dates to come. Students are taking on the business side of things by choosing the charity where the money will go, deciding what to purchase for inventory, making sales, counting money, and learning the foundations of what it takes to create and run a business. This is a great service-learning project for our 5th graders and a great opportunity for them to put their learning into action!

Georgetown local and realtor Shane Henry, with 303 Properties, has graciously decided to donate a portion of his commissions to GCS! Shane lives here in Georgetown and wanted to find a way to give back to his community. We feel so honored that he chose to support Georgetown Community School.

Thank you, Shane, for supporting our school and our community! We truly appreciate you!

Hey Families,

Just a reminder that next Thursday, October 1st, is a half day! I will be posting the bus schedule below. Students will be dismissed from school at 12:00 p.m., and this includes our ECE classrooms as well. There will be no after-school program that day, but the Rec Center is offering after-school care on the half day. GCS does have a bus stop at the Rec Center, so please reach out to them directly to set up care for your student.

October 1st is also Count Day! This is a very important day for our school, and it is crucial that every student attends school that day. Count Day helps determine our funding opportunities in the future, so every student counts!!

Finally, October 1st will be a fun half day! Please have your students dress in their House colors. We will be doing fun and active station rotations, and we will all enjoy a picnic lunch out on the playground before dismissal.

Thank you!

Principal Klemm

Alpine Festival is back! Saturday, October 10th from 11a-3pm in Strousse Park. Featuring artists, authors and our annual charity chili coookoff! All net proceeds from the chili cookoff will go directly to The Georgetown School. Stick around for s'mores on 6th that we will also be sponsoring with some fun fall flavors. Information and sign up sheets for the chili cookoff will be posted in the comments. If you are interested in being a vendor at Alpine Festival, please send me a DM, email or call me. Jaime LaCrosse ripplesofimpactfoundation@gmail.com (317)281-3113