Welcome to Our New 2024-2025 Families!

• Our school hours are 7:30am to 2:30pm. Our main office is open from 7:15am to 3:15pm. 
  
  
• We offer Discovery Link (DL) after-school care for all students (ECE-5th grade). To register for the 2024-2025 Discovery Link after-school program, visit the DL website on or after Thursday, May 16, which is when DL registration opens for McKinley-Thatcher families.
  
  
• We also partner with Discovery Link to offer after-school enrichment opportunities for students, including Spanish, cooking, science, chess, and much more!
  
  
• If McKinley-Thatcher is your boundary school and you live more than one mile from our building, your student is automatically eligible to ride our school bus. Visit transportation.dpsk12.org for information!
  • If your student is not automatically eligible, you can request to be added to our school bus route on the DPS Transportation Services website.
    
    
  • Please note that ECE-4 students may not ride the school bus unless they have an older sibling who also rides. 

We are proud to use an instructional model called “platooning” for our core content instruction. In kindergarten through fifth grade, our teachers specialize in teaching either literacy or math and science. This model allows teachers to develop deep expertise in their content areas, create more individualized support for students, and implement more experiential learning opportunities in our classrooms! 

We strive to create educational experiences that meet each child’s specific needs through differentiated instruction. All our students participate in hands-on learning and unique experiential opportunities with our partners, including South Platte River Environmental Education (SPREE) and the Denver Zoo. Our building also houses a state-of-the-art STEM SmartLab, art studio, library, and flexible learning spaces.

The McKinley-Thatcher Early Childhood Education (ECE) program is play-based, and teachers create curriculum to meet the needs and interests of our unique classes. Children engage in activities of their choice for most of their day, working with peers, creating, exploring, investigating, and solving problems. ECE students also attend specials classes, including art, drama, PE (Physical Education), and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, & Math), on a daily rotation.

Families of accepted ECE-4 students will receive an email from the DPS Enrollment Team containing additional information regarding steps to apply for funding through Universal Preschool Colorado (UPK).

All Denver Public Schools ECE classrooms are required to adhere to the Colorado Early Childhood Licensing requirements. Children must be signed in and out daily by an adult 18 years old or older. 

Each child is required to have a separate set of ECE-specific paperwork on file at school. This paperwork is different from the DPS-required paperwork that you will fill out during school registration. Please note, our ECE-specific forms will be available on our website in early August and must be completed and emailed or brought to the office at McKinley-Thatcher by the first day of school.

Additionally, children must have a health appraisal form on file that is signed by a healthcare professional. Many pediatrician offices have health appraisal forms they can print out, sign, and email to you. DPS also offers free healthcare services, including health appraisal forms, to all DPS students at our School-Based Health Centers (run by Denver Health). 

Helping Your Child Prepare for ECE 

In preparation for the beginning of ECE, here a few things to practice this summer:

• Toileting and washing hands independently.
• Asking to use the restroom.
• Putting on shoes.
• Putting on jackets.

In the fall, your child will need the following items for school:

• Small blanket for nap
• Full-size backpack
• Water bottle 
• McKinley-Thatcher collects a $75 supply fee from ECE families during school registration instead of having each family purchase supplies individually. This fee also pays for our fun field trips! Scholarships are available for families in need and can be requested during the registration process.