Coyote Ridge Elementary

Dear Families,

Welcome to Coyote Ridge Elementary School! I am thrilled and honored to be the principal at Coyote Ridge. This will be my twenty-third year in education, and I have enjoyed every minute! During this tenure, I taught third and fourth grades where special education students were fully inclusioned into my classroom, coordinated K-6 gifted and talented programs, worked as a science and social studies curriculum specialist, and enjoyed being an elementary administrator for nine years. Coyote Ridge is being recognized nationally as a model Professional Learning Community. I present throughout the United States on Professional Learning Communities and love the fact that I get to "brag" about Coyote Ridge Elementary and its community! Please feel free to call, email, or just stop by if you have a concern, question, or just want to talk about your child or the school. My door is always open!

We are projected to have 585 students this year. There will be four sections of kindergarten through grade four. Grades five will have three rounds. Students are also fortunate to have classes in physical education, art and music and technology. Technology is also integrated into the regular classroom setting. Our teacher librarian also plans collaboratively with teachers in order to implement all standards.

Students are invited to enter the building at 7:35 a.m., and the late bell is at 7:45 a.m. Please do not drop off prior to 7:35 a.m., as we do not have supervision prior to that time. Staff will be on supervision duty for ten minutes before school and ten minutes after school. Please pick up your student promptly after school. We do have a Before and After School (BASE) program running from 6:30 a.m. until the start of school and after school until 6:00 p.m. If interested, please contact Brian Hart at 720-972-5795. Our early release day is on Wednesday, when school is dismissed at 1:15 p.m. Please see our website for specifics on morning and afternoon kindergarten times.

A map of the outside facility is provided, which indicates where parents and daycare providers can drop off/pick up students and where parents and visitors can park when coming to Coyote Ridge. Please be sure to drop off and pick up in designated areas only. The pullout lane in front of the school is a "Hug and Go" zone only. Vehicles may not be left unattended in this fire lane and pick up only lane. Your cooperation is greatly appreciated. The bus pullout on the northwest side of the school is for buses only and no drop off or pick up of students is allowed. Please also make sure to make a right hand turn onto Broadlands Drive as you exit the parking lot during high traffic times. This is posted on the sign as you exit the parking lot. We appreciate your cooperation and support in facilitating a much smoother traffic flow.

Colorado State Law governs the administering of medication at school. The steps to be taken are in the Student/Parent Handbook. Joni Cochran is our Health Aide, and she or one of the secretaries can help you with this process.

Lunch prices for students and adults will be provided at our Open House and at registration for new students. If you would like to purchase lunch credits for your child, please put a check in an envelope and add your name and the student's name on the front. It is also helpful to write your child's assigned lunch number on the check. Credits can be purchased for a day, week, or month and be used at your discretion. We will let students know when they are on their last lunch credit by stamping their hand.

We will again have two assessment days this year on September 4th and 5th. The assessment days enable teachers to determine the strengths and areas of growth for each child so proper instruction can begin immediately. If this is not determined as quickly, a great deal of time is spent during instructional time trying to assess each student. Please make sure to have your child here at his/her scheduled time so that the teacher is able to have the full testing time with your student. Because we are on a very tight schedule, it is also important to pick up your child on time. Attendance will be taken on the assessment days. Thank you in advance for your flexibility and support during this procedure. More information will be coming during the first week of school.

If you have new phone or emergency numbers since last registering, please contact the office. It is very important that the office have up to date emergency phone numbers on hand at all times.

Class lists will be posted on August 15th at 4:00 p.m. Please recognize that due to increases or decreases in number of students at various grade levels, we may need to make changes in classroom placements. We appreciate your flexibility and understanding as we try to keep class sizes at reasonable levels. Please also understand that we have spent many hours and a great deal of thought in creating balanced class lists. No changes will be made to the lists. All of our teachers are highly qualified and focused upon student success. Back to School Open House is on Friday, August 15th from either 4:30-5:15 or 6:00-6:45 p.m. Please plan on attending during the full forty-five minute session. The first fifteen minutes of each session will be held in the cafeteria/gymnasium. Be sure to have your student(s) attend with you. There will be information gathering and sharing of input from families. Students should bring their supplies to school at this time.

The Coyote Ridge staff is looking forward to an exciting 2008-2009 school year. We are excited to be working and learning with all of you!

Respectfully,

Kari S. Cocozzella,
Principal