Links: 24-25 Calendar (Spanish Calendar)

• Sept 12       Back to School Night 5:30-7:30pm 

• Sept 18       GT Screener 

• Sept 19       Mandatory 8th Parent Meeting 6-7pm 

• Sept 25      GT Screener 

• Sept 27       No school for students - DPS Staff Development Day

September is Attendance Awareness Month, and we’re excited to partner with you to ensure that your student is present and engaged in school every day.  Regular attendance is key to your student’s success, both academically and socially. When students are in school, they have the best opportunity to learn, participate, and connect with their peers and teachers.

We encourage you to read the DPS "Why Attendance Matters" document, which provides valuable insights into the importance of consistent school attendance. Thank you for your ongoing partnership. Together, we can help every student thrive by ensuring they’re in school and ready to learn.

We are excited to host Skinner families and students for Back to School Night!

• Please plan on attending on time with your child.  Students may not attend without a parent/guardian. 

• For the first hour, you’ll follow your child’s schedule for Period 1-7, with opportunities to meet every teacher in their classrooms.  Each class period will be 7 minutes, with a 3 minute passing period. Your child will email you a copy of their class schedule a day prior as a reminder. 

• The second hour will be a Community mix/mingle event on the back field with opportunities to connect with Skinner Staff and school/community resources. 

• Pizza will be provided after classroom rotations, with a suggested donation of $1-2 dollars per slice (cash only) and will be served outside on the back field.

• If you will need language interpretation, please contact Leybe_Paz@dpsk12.net (720-424-1482) by 9/10.

Skinner's Tardies Aren't Permitted (TAP) policy will start Monday September 9, 2024. Any student who is late to two or more classes in one day will stay after school the following day from 3:20-3:50pm. Parents/guardians will receive a text and email if your student(s) will be assigned TAP on a specific day. All students are expected to stay on their assigned day, including student athletes. 

*Please enter through Main Entrance - doors will be open at 5:45pm. At this meeting, you’ll learn more about:

• 8th grade Continuation Requirements  

• 8th grade Continuation Events

• Guest speakers from area high schools

• If you will need language interpretation, please contact Leybe_Paz@dpsk12.net (720-424-1482) by 9/17. 

• If you or your child is unable to attend, check the following week’s Skinner Family News for the slide-deck to review! 

Since Skinner does not have an official Librarian, we rely on parent volunteers to keep our library functioning!  We’re looking for parents who are willing to volunteer their time to check out books to students, re-shelving, inventorying, and creating and maintaining a visually appealing/stimulating learning environment. Hopefully we’ll have a combination of returning and new Skinner parents willing to support our efforts! All parents will be required to complete a background check through Denver Public Schools. All volunteers will need to complete volunteer approval via the DPS Family and Community Engagement department.

No experience needed - DPS Library Services Coordinator is available to provide Skinner Library Parent Volunteers training. Please complete this survey by September 13th to express your interest.

Skinner has a loaner closet for students that are out of dress code or in need in other ways. We also stock hygiene kits for our students in need. Our Social/Emotional team has set up an Amazon wish list for the items they need for the kits and loaner closet. Please click here and order some items to stock our closet today! Thanks in advance for your generosity. 

Skinner is excited to announce that we have installed several new bike racks, both outside the 6th grade entrance and near the existing bike corral. The new bike racks are thanks to a microgrant from the Denver Community Active Living Coalition. Thank you to parent Alejandra X. Castañeda for spearheading this effort and to our incredible Facilities Manager Andrew Delgado for getting them installed. 

We love to see our students engaging in sustainable, active transportation—our current designated bike parking is bursting at the seams! It’s probably why we have noticed some students are locking up their bikes to trees near the bike corral. This could potentially cause damage to our beautiful trees and the bikes themselves when doing landscaping work. Please ask your students to only lock bikes to a bike rack or the fence. We’re working on expanding bike parking in the future. Thank you!

Parent Webinar: "Youth Substance Use: Why Youth Use, How to Prevent Use, and How to Intervene If Your Child Is Using" September 25 at noon.

Participants of this webinar will gain an understanding about why youth might experiment with substances, such as nicotine and cannabis, learn how adults can prevent adolescent substance use, and how to intervene when a loved one is using. Dr. Bonnie Halpern-Felsher, a developmental psychologist, will share her knowledge about youth substance use. Dr. Halpern-Felsher is the founder and director of the Tobacco Prevention Toolkit, an online curriculum aimed at reducing and preventing youth tobacco use. Her research has focused on understanding and reducing health risk behaviors such as tobacco use, alcohol and marijuana use, risky driving, and risky sexual behavior. Spanish interpretation will be available. Register here.

We are happy to announce that our Wellpower Group Facilitator, Cassandra Garcia, will be back this school year on Tuesdays to facilitate small groups for students.  This year's first semester group topics include:  

1)  Anxiety -What is it and how do I manage it?  - An interactive group where students can learn a variety of skills to use when they experience anxiety. Trying out and practicing the activities in the group sessions will give students many ideas on how to both prevent and handle their anxiety.

2)  Introduction to Mindfulness - Students will practice how to be more aware of their thoughts and feelings, and how to manage them in a healthy way. Mindfulness can help students with daily stress/ things that upset them.

3)  Girls Empowerment Group - How do I navigate my friendships? - A group that will incorporate education and skills that will build problem solving skills, healthy communication skills, confidence, and self-esteem.

In addition, there will be a Voz Y Corazon Art Club available with Cassandra and local Denver artist, Cal Duran offered after school on Tuesdays. This weekly art group was designed by young people for young people. Learn from a professional artist and receive mentor and group support. No art skills needed!

All groups are space limited so register soon! - Placement will be first registered, first served. Deadline for the groups and Voz Art Club registration is due no later than October 1st.

All groups are held at Skinner during the school day for 45 minute group sessions for 6 weeks.  (Voz Art Club is after school for one hour and will meet weekly yearlong through May 20th, 2025 ) This year, families will need to register directly with Cassandra Garcia by calling 303-300-6293 OR email her at cassandra.garcia@wellpower.org.  Family Health Insurance or Medicaid information will need to be provided so have your health card available to register. Scholarships may be available for students without health care coverage or who have Blue Cross/Blue Shield insurance.

Ms. Garcia will have an information table regarding our group offerings at our Back to School Night on Thursday, 9/12/2024 so stop by for more information!!

Grief/Loss Group by Judi's House - Has your child experienced a significant death of a loved one recently or in the past?  Judi's House, located in Aurora and started by former Denver Broncos Quarterback, Brian Griese and his wife, will be offering a Grief group at Skinner this year.  We need a minimum of 6 students to start a group. The one hour, 10 week group will be held at Skinner during the school day (day/time TBD).  This group allows for education to students on the universal experience of grief and loss, and provides healthy grieving strategies and sacred time with peers who have also experienced loss, to memorialize the deceased loved one in a positive way.  There is no charge for this group.  For more information on the Grief group, contact Skinner Mental Health Team: Valerie Tomasi, Social Worker -Mon-Thursdays at 720-424-1426 or Lauren Wingender, Psychologist - Mon-Fridays at 720-424-1528.

The Denver North Viking Cheer Team is so excited to bring back the Junior Viking Cheerleaders Camp September 24-26th! This camp allows K-8th grade students to join Denver North High School's homecoming festivities throughout Homecoming Week alongside the Viking Cheer Team! 💜💛 North's Junior Cheerleaders Camp focuses on promoting teamwork, physical activity, and confidence through dance, stunts, jumps, and cheers. Registration includes a cheer clinic, participation in the annual homecoming parade, a performance at the homecoming football game, and more! Register here.

We wanted to inform you that all 6th grade students will soon be screened for giftedness.  A description of the assessment is included along with more specific details of testing date(s).  This tool is one of the many measures that can be used as a part of a larger body of evidence to identify students who may need advanced accommodations for their learning. Students who have already taken a cognitive assessment and received a Magnet Eligible or Highly Gifted designation will not be tested again.  Please reach out to Becca Glosser, GT Coordinator, rebecca_glosser1@dpsk12.net with any additional questions.

Intent To Test (English)      Intent to Test (Spanish)

A Skinner parent is wondering if there are other parents/guardians that might want to coordinate for walking/biking groups, carpools, or both.  She has created a form to gauge interest.  Please click here and complete by Thursday, September 5, if interested. This effort is completely volunteer parent led and Skinner MS is not involved in any coordination. 

Teachers have a whopping 13 DonorsChoose projects posted hoping to obtain classroom and project supplies for their students. Please click here to see all of the projects and consider a donation to one ore more projects today! Thank you in advance for your generosity.

We are excited to invite our DPS community to the 2024 Black Excellence Summit, a special event to celebrate and uplift Black Excellence within DPS. This summit offers professional development and learning opportunities for all, alongside a platform to honor achievements and advocate for even greater Black Excellence in our community. Additionally, a resource fair with community partners will provide opportunities to connect, share feedback and engage in meaningful conversations. Join us on Saturday, Sept. 14 from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. at the Education Building at University of Denver. Please complete this RSVP form to join us!

Back to School = Back to Fun! Fall Programs Are Here! With the new school year underway, now is the perfect time to check out fall programs at Denver Recreation Centers. From sports and fitness to arts and culture, there is something for everyone. Don’t miss out—register today to secure your spot! Click here for more info or visit any Denver Recreation Center to enroll.

CSC: Collaborative School Committee - first Wednesday of every month 4:00-5:30 in the Skinner Library

• Meets with parents, admin, staff to discuss issues, impacts, and solutions for the school

• Will need 2 new Parent representatives - please submit interest by filling out this survey by September 13th. 

PTO: Parent/Teacher Organization - first Wednesday of every month 5:30-6:30, usually in the Skinner Library (Please check the Skinner calendar to confirm date.)

• Fundraising, teacher appreciation, parent volunteers. 

• Check out Skinner Website PTO for more information. 

Want to see a prior issue of Skinner Family News? Links are posted on the Skinner website, click here to access.