News from the Nest — December 20, 2024

Posted December 20, 2024

REMINDER:
NO SCHOOL from Monday, 12/23 to Monday, 1/6!

We have NO SCHOOL from Monday, December 23 to Monday, January 6 for our winter break! School resumes on Tuesday, January 7.

Participate in Our Annual Winter Reading Challenge!

Students are invited to join in our annual Winter Reading Challenge during winter break! Our challenge information is coming home in your child’s Friday Folder today (Friday, December 20). 

To complete the challenge, kids get to read in a lot of fun ways and in fun places in order to fill their cocoa cup with marshmallows! Kids should turn their completed cocoa cup papers into the office by Friday, January 10, 2025. All completed cocoa cups will be entered into a raffle for fun prizes the following week!

Here’s a digital version of the cocoa cup paper, in case you need it!

McKinley-Thatcher Elementary Yearbook – We Need Your Help!

Do you have photos from school events that we can include in the yearbook? We’d love to include your photo submissions so we have the best chance at representing the whole school community! We’re looking for pictures of specials, library time, staff appreciation, snow days, field trips, Movie Night, Glow Dance, International Night, and more!

Parents, guardians, caregivers, students, staff – please submit photos here! If you already have a Shutterfly account, you might have to log in with that account, or try using a different email address altogether.

If you get prompted for a passcode for our school, it’s MKT-YEARBOOK-25.

The Lifetouch link above is the preferred way to submit, but, if that doesn’t work, feel free to upload your photos via Dropbox here!

The submission tool is easy to use, but, for any questions, please reach out to Matt, one of our volunteer yearbook coordinators, at matthew.l.safran@gmail.com. Thank you!

Volunteer with Free Book Friday to Help Our Students Build a Love of Reading!

Our school librarian, Ms. Goldberg, is looking for volunteers to help out with Free Book Friday, a recurring book giveaway organized by school staff for the McKinley-Thatcher community!

Most Fridays from November through May, we are planning to hand out books from our donation boxes for FREE to our students after school. If you’d like to assist, please sign up here!

What Does Volunteering Look Like?

Free Book Friday volunteering involves:

  • Arrive at 2:00 p.m. and check in as a visitor in the main office.
  • Set up folding tables and preselected books on the playground.
  • From 2:30 p.m. to 2:50 p.m., facilitate book giveaways by helping children select books and restocking tables as needed.
  • At 2:50 p.m., return leftover books to the boxes. Move boxes and folding tables back inside the building.

I Have Questions or Need More Information!

Contact our librarian, Ms. Karen Goldberg, at MaryKaren_Goldberg@dpsk12.net.

Other School News

  • Save-the-date: our PTA’s January monthly meeting will be held on Friday, January 10 at 7:30 a.m. in our library! We’ll share another meeting reminder when we’re back at school in January!

  • Save-the-date: Round 1 of the 2025-2026 SchoolChoice Application Window will open at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, January 15 and run until Tuesday, February 18.

    Due to our transition to an enrollment zone SchoolChoice model, families with students who will be entering ECE and kindergarten next school year must apply for a spot during Round 1. To learn more about the SchoolChoice process, visit this website. To read about our transition to the enrollment zone model, check out our November 22 Principal’s Update.

    Current McKinley students in kindergarten through 4th grade do not need to complete a SchoolChoice application for next year. These students are guaranteed a spot at McKinley until they graduate!

Community News & Resources

  • Tasty Food during Winter Break 2024: the City of Denver’s Tasty Food program, which provides FREE meals and snacks to youths ages 3-18, will be open from Monday, December 23 to Friday, January 3. No ID or registration required! Find a location near you at denvergov.org/tastyfood!

Upcoming School Events

Click here to view the McKinley-Thatcher school calendar.

  • Monday, 12/23 to Monday, 1/6 – NO SCHOOL: Winter Break
  • Tuesday, 1/7 – SCHOOL RESUMES!
  • Thursday, 1/9 – 2nd Grade Field Trip: Denver Museum of Nature & Science
  • Friday, 1/10 – January PTA Meeting, 7:30 a.m. in our library

Upcoming DPS & Community Events

  • None at this time!