This Week At MSES!This Week At MSES! Monday, April 30 5:30pm-8:00pm MSMS & MSHS Choir Awards Banquet- MSES Commons & Auditorium Tuesday, May 1 10:30am- 11:30am 4th Grade Music Performance- MSES Auditorium 12:15pm- 1:15pm Kindergarten Piano Recital- Ms. Thompson’s- MSES Auditorium 3:00pm – 4:15pm Girls on the Run 6:00pm- 7:00pm 4th Grade Music Performance- MSES Auditorium Wednesday, May 2 8:00am- 10:50am No AM Preschool 8:30am- 2:00pm Kindergarten Field Trip- Cheyenne Mountain Zoo 10:15am- 12:30pm Pre- Kindergarten Luncheon- Preschool Room 8:30am- 1:30pm Cogat- 2nd Grade 10:15am- 12:30pm Pre- Kindergarten Luncheon- Preschool Room 3:00pm- 4:00pm MSES Imagineers- Ms. Knezha’s Room 4:00pm- 8:00pm Spirit of the Mustang Award Dinner- Commons 6:00pm – 7:00pm LandSharks Running Club Practice – MSHS Track Thursday, May 3 9:00am- 10:30am Preschool Field Trip- Red Stone Castle 10:30am 1st Grade Poetry Recitation- Mr. Pletsch’s- MSES Auditorium 12:00pm- 2:00pm Preschool Field Trip- Red Stone Castle 12:15pm- 1:15pm Kindergarten Piano Recital- MS. Hammel’s- MSES Auditorium 12:30pm 1st Grade Poetry Recitation- Ms. Loftin’s- MSES Auditorium 2:00pm 1st Grade Poetry Recitation- Ms. Mortensen’s- MSES Auditorium 3:00pm - 4:15pm Girls on the Run- MSES Commons 3:30pm – 6:00pm Incredible Years Friday, May 4 7:30am – 8:00am Walking School Bus – Memorial Park & Miramont Castle 12:15pm- 1:15pm Kindergarten Piano Recital- Ms. Farrell’s- MSES Auditorium 3:15pm- 6:15pm PAC Fun Run- MSES Track 6:00pm – 7:00pm LandSharks Running Club Practice – MSHS Track Sunday, May 6 1:30pm- 3:30pm LandSharks Running Club Practice- MSHS Track

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Ask Your Expert! Ask Your Expert! Family Questions From Your Mustangs’ Lessons This Week Preschool: Habitats Domain continues: We are continuing to learn about habitats and the plants and animals that live in them. We learned about the desert and ocean this week--and hope to take a field trip to Mr. Vogel's office to see his pet spider. We are also taking a walking field trip to support what we have learned about plants, animals, and habitats. We will be visiting a local "backyard farm" with baby goats, chickens, and beautiful gardens: Name an animal that lives in the desert. (Jackrabbit, spider, bobcat, rattlesnake.) Is the ocean deep or shallow? (Deep! A pond--another habitat--is shallow.) Kindergarten: We have been studying about Caring for the Earth, after Earth Day last week. What is the difference between fresh water, salt water, and wastewater? (You can drink fresh water, you can’t drink salt water, and wastewater could make you sick if you drank it.) What are clouds made of? (Water droplets.) What different kinds of pollution do we have on planet Earth? (Air pollution, water pollution, land pollution.) What part of our body do we use to breath? (Lungs.) Why is air pollution bad for our lungs? (It can make it hard to breath.) What are some things we can do to help reduce pollution? (Ride bikes, walk, carpool, pick up trash, turn off lights when we leave the room, turn off the TV when we are done watching it.) What do you think might happen to the land, water, and air on Earth if every person does not take responsibility to take care of the Earth? (Answers will vary.) First Grade: As first grade wraps up learning about how a "New Nation" was formed as the United States of America, we are now moving toward our “Frontier Explorers" Domain about how the land west of the Appalachian Mountains was discovered and explored! To kick off this new domain, the first grade classes took a field trip to Rock Ledge Ranch near Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs. While there, they were able to see a cabin from the initial homestead, visit a blacksmith's shop and see the blacksmith make a coat hook, meet Punkin the cow and learn about what a valuable resource she is to the farm, learn about the other animals on the farm and how they support it, and visit the Carriage House where they learned about Native Americans and how they successfully lived on the land. Ask your expert to tell you some of the things they saw and did while on their field trip and look for more exciting things to come as we learn about Frontier Explorers! Second Grade: Insects Domain: Describe an insect’s exoskeleton. (A hard covering on the outside of the insect's body.) Explain why spiders are not insects. (They have 8 legs instead of 6.) Describe the lifecycles and the processes of complete and incomplete metamorphosis. (Complete: 4 stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult Incomplete: 3 stages: egg, nymph, and adult.) Explain why some insects molt. (They molt as they grow larger.) Third Grade: Colonial America Domain: This week we will be learning about some key historical events. What happened at the Boston Massacre? (During a dispute between British soldiers and colonists, British soldiers fired their guns and killed 5 colonists.) What was the Boston Tea Party? (The Sons of Liberty threw tea off of 3 British trade ships into the water in protest.) What happened in Paul Revere's Ride? (He rode through the night to warn his fellow Patriots that the British were coming to seize the weapons stored in Concord.)

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Reminder to Sign Up Your Kids for Summer Library Program You can enhance your child's summer reading and learning by registering them for Pikes Peak Library District's free Summer Adventure Program! Registration begins June 1 and the program continues through July 31. Students receive prizes for reading as well as learning activities and are invited to free shows, special programs, and a big party at the end! Go to any Pikes Peak Library or ppld.org for more information. -- Kristin Brown Children’s Outreach Librarian, kbrown@ppld.org, 719-531-6333 x. 2402.

Ask Your Expert! Ask Your Expert! Family Questions From Your Mustangs’ Lessons This Week Fourth Grade: Colorado History and Geography Domain: Colorado had a gold and silver Boom and Bust. What is a Boom? (A burst of good fortune.) What is a Bust? (Bad fortune.) What happened to the Native Americans during these times? (They were pushed off their lands, so the settlers and miners could have their land to mine.) How did the Native Americans handle this? (Some fought back with violence; some, like Chief Ouray, with words; some just moved to the reservation and hoped that the treaties would be honored this time.) Fifth Grade: We started our Native American Domain. Why did the Native Americans move from their homeland areas? (They did not understand about "owning land", so when European explorers and settlers arrived in North America and claimed their land, the natives became subject to "forced relocation.") What was most important to their survival? (The buffalo: They used every part after hunting them, for food, tools, clothing, shelter.)

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PAC’s Annual Fun Run Coming This Friday! Fundraiser Features T-shirts, Two Food Trucks, Music, Fun!

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Manitou Springs Elementary School Invites your child to our. . .

Growing Gardens, Cultivating Kids Summer Program This year’s theme is…Geology Rocks!

Again this year - ONE Great THREE WEEK Session: Monday through Thursday , June 4th - 21th, 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Three weeks of fun hands-on experiences in our mountain environment.

“Earth is ancient now, but all knowledge is stored up in her. She keeps a record of everything that has happened since time began. Her mud and lava is a message from the past. Of time to come,

she says much, but who listens?” ~ Jeanette Winterson

Who Should Attend? Any child entering 1st - 5th grade with a curious mind and a love of the outdoors. No green thumb required! Where? Manitou Springs Elementary School Library and school grounds. (Enter at library door on north end of building.) Three Week Session June 4th -21st

◊ Explore the effects of weather on soil erosion ◊ Create a small-scale rock garden ◊ Hands on exploration ◊ Plant a rock garden ◊ Nature scavenger hunt ◊ Explore what’s in the soil ◊ Mindful/sensory walks ◊ STEM activities ◊ Digital photography ◊ Summer’s bounty cooking

Session includes: ◊ nature journaling – reading, observing, and sketching

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◊ outdoor hands-on activities ◊ investigating the outdoors through math, science, art, and literature ◊ challenges for a curious mind ◊ connecting art media with nature ◊ dirty hands and happy smiles!

This program is designed to cultivate kids by engaging them in experiential learning in an outdoor setting and offers reading, math, science, art, and social studies enrichment;

“whole child” education in the best, MSES, sense of the word! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Geology Rocks! Registration

Enroll now to ensure your child a spot! Student Name_________________________ Parent’s Name__________________________ Daytime Phone__________________________ Cell phone ____________________________ Address_________________________________ City/Zip_______________________________ Email: ___________________________ (Email used for initial communication, please print clearly.) Emergency Contact and Phone____________________________________________________________________ Grade Level Next Year ______ (open to kids entering 1st – 5th grade) Please indicate transportation means: ___ I will pick up my child after school. ___ My child will walk home after school. ___ My child may be picked up by: $150 for the 3 week session ($5 early bird discount for registrations received by May 11th.) Total enclosed $_______ ----------------------------------------------------------------- Parent/Guardian Signature Date Send registration form and payment to: MSES Growing Gardens, Cultivating Kids, Manitou

Springs School, District 14, 405 El Monte Place, Manitou Springs, CO, 80829