LCIS Friday Afternoon Shout Out 2-2-24

by tvincent · February 2, 2024

Dear LCIS Families:

Thank you to those of you who were able to attend our Community Meeting last Wednesday! Our 6th graders did a fine job of debating the merits of chocolate! There were two students who presented the argument to allow our food service staff to serve chocolate. The other two students presented an argument against serving chocolate. Both sides had incredibly interesting and intelligent facts to present based on their research. At the end of the presentation, the students asked for a show of hands either in favor of or against chocolate at school To the surprise of no one, the Chocolate supporters had the biggest vote. Of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean we will be serving chocolate, but we really appreciated the event!

Our 4th graders are studying the 10th Mountain Division as part of their social studies unit. They will get to hear a presentation by the Descendents of the 10th Mountain on Monday to help them better understand who these brave soldiers were and what they did for our country. The presentation will include a movie, some artifacts, and a question and answer session. On Tuesday, the students will get to travel to Camp Hale in order to further their understanding of the 10th Mountain by seeing where their training took place. Students will also get to visit the Colorado Snowsports Museum in Vail on Tuesday. There, they will see the most comprehensive 10th Mountain Division exhibit in the world. We are so thankful that our students can study the history of Leadville and learn more about the pivotal role that these soldiers played in the world arena.

Students will be taking the final mid-year assessment next week. Each student will read a grade-level text and respond to an informative writing prompt related to that text. Students are expected to craft a well designed essay that includes an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Throughout the essay, students will need to cite evidence from the text to support their claim. All of our students have been working on this skill. Be sure to talk with your child about the work they’ve been doing in writing. At spring conferences it’s very likely that you will see their essay from the mid-year assessment and be able to compare it with the essay they wrote in August. It’s always great to see and celebrate the growth!

The LCIS annual Spelling Bee is this Wednesday! Our school-wide Spelling Bee will take place on Wednesday, February 7th at 8:15 in the LCIS Gym. The first place classroom spellers will compete in the gym in front of the student body and panel of guest judges to be the LCIS spelling champion. The winner of our school bee will then take an online test to determine if they will move on to the state wide Spelling Bee in Denver. We are very proud of all of the Spelling Bee participants!

ACADEMIC UPDATE:

STEM Adventures:

3^rd and 5^th graders built detachable snow plow prototypes for the Sphero to help clear the snowy streets of Leadville.

5^th graders were tasked with automating the snowplow by coding the Sphero to plow their testing street without needing a driver.

4^th and 6^th graders built detachable sleigh prototypes for the Sphero to help the overworked post office keep up with the incoming holiday packages.

6^th graders were tasked with automating their sleigh delivery by coding the Sphero to travel to 3 houses without needing a driver.

3rd graders have been hard at work learning all about Light and Sound. They are currently writing research papers about an inventor and their ground-breaking invention. Ask a third grader what invention they’re writing about and who made it! In math we have just finished our unit on the area of rectangles to practice multiplication. We are beginning fractions- and fractions are everywhere! Please help your third grader to notice fractions in the world around them.

In 5^th grade this week, students went between NWEA testing and finishing up their Renaissance project. This weekend’s homework includes reading from our next unit on the Reformation and development of the printing press. In math, we continue to work with multiplying fractions, writing expressions, and converting units. We will have a mid-module assessment next week! Students should practice at home with homework paper practice or IXL to strengthen their skills!

LCIS welcomed a new paraprofessional in January. We are so excited to have her join our crew! Please read below to find out more.

My name is Lily Christensen, and I’m the new paraprofessional at LCIS! I just moved to Leadville from the Denver/Boulder area. I currently have two jobs and am going to school (I like to stay busy). I’m going to CMC to major in psychology in hopes of being a therapist or counselor. I have nine years of experience working with kids. I’ve worked at an after-school program and have volunteered and worked with kids with special needs. I also worked for summer programs such as Rockies Rock. I play the electric bass and I am learning guitar. I love hiking, cross country skiing, and I am learning to rock climb. I enjoy painting, paper art and crocheting. I have loved spending time in Leadville over the years and am so happy to live here! I’m excited to be a part of such a welcoming community.

PROJECT DREAM UPDATE:

Project Dream is excited to be the recipient of a $5,000 grant award from the Leadville Trail 100 Legacy Foundation and Leadville Race Series! The funds will be used to purchase updated STEM supplies and Cooking Club materials. Project Dream runs Cooking Clubs at the Lake County Elementary School, Lake County Intermediate School, and Lake County High School. STEM Clubs are run at all three schools plus on El Camioncito (Mobile Learning Center). At the elementary level, students participate in No-Cook Cooking where they learn to make fun treats for themselves without the use of an oven or stove. At this level, students are also introduced to the basics of STEM through science experiments and construction projects with STEM materials. At the intermediate level, students move into Cooking with an experienced leader using different kitchen tools. Students also become more advanced in their STEM skills, learning advanced creation techniques and coding skills. Once students reach the high school level, they take on the role of Club Leaders alongside an Adult Sponsor, leading other students in cooking and baking techniques plus individualized STEM interests. Project Dream is eager to continue these successful projects with support from Leadville Trail 100 and Legacy Foundation.

Project Dream is excited to continue programs this spring! Find all spring information, including updated bus routes, here: https://www.lakecountyschools.net/project-dream-spring-information/

ATHLETIC UPDATE:

Panther Gear! If you are looking for Lake County spirit gear, our Panther store is still open. This year there are additional sport-specific options. You can find those here. Spirit wear (in the bottom right hand corner) says Panthers instead of a specific sport. 5% of sales comes back to the athletic/activities department.

This year we will be charging for ALL GYM sporting events- high school and middle school.

Ticket prices will be $7/adults and $5/seniors for HS games and $3/adults and $1/seniors for MS games. We will NOT be taking cash at the front door, but we will take credit cards at the door.

You can also buy your tickets online in advance at: https://gofan.co/app/school/CO11697

The Lake County Annual Pass will get you into any home event- HS or MS, volleyball or basketball.

Reminder: Lake County students will need to show their school ID to get free entry into the games.

Lake County School District Athletics calendar – click this link

Amy Peters, Athletic/Activities Director – 719-293-0105 – apeters@lakecountyschools.net

First Baptist Church of Leadville hosts a free monthly family movie night! Movie nights are the 3rd Friday of the month. We hope to see you for our FREE movie (with popcorn!). Licensing constraints prevent us from always being able to advertise the movie titles, but you can always email church@fbcleadville.com to ask about this month’s movie!

So many exciting events happen in our community every month – too many for us to list on this communication! Please click this link to access the Community Calendar for upcoming events.

Upcoming Events:

February 5	4th grade 10th Mountain Soldiers Assembly
February 6	4th grade trip to Camp Hale & Colorado Snowsports Museum 8:30 am – 2:45 pm
February 7	LCIS Annual Spelling Bee – LCIS Gym – 8-9 am
February 20	Fire Drill
February 28	Community Meeting 5th grade led – LCIS Gym 8-8:30

Looking Ahead:

March 4-7	Dr. Seuss Spirit Week! Start preparing for Lorax day (orange & yellow clothes), Whoville Hair day (crazy hair), Dr. Seuss Hat day (red & white stripes or silly hat), and Pajama Day
March 7	Attendance Celebration
March 11-14	Spring Break!
March 20 -21	1/2 day School for Students
March 20-21	Parent Teacher Conferences
March 20-21	No Project Dream
March 25	Fire Drill
March 27	Community Meeting – 4th grade led 8-8:30
March 28	4th Grade to Ski Cooper – 8:30am to 2:30pm
April 2	Fire Drill
April 8-25	CMAS Testing Window
April 24	Community Meeting 3rd grade led 8-8:30