This month we are focused on helping students understand that courage is not a magical remedy for fear. Instead, courage is a choice to push through fear, self-doubt, and anxiety to do things that feel hard or frightening. We are partnering with you this month to grow your child’s courage. This month’s activities will help your child understand that courage can equip them to make a positive impact at home, in school, and in the community

ENGAGE: Courage Role-Play

Discuss having the courage to do the right thing. As a family, role-play situations with your child where they might have to demonstrate courage. For example, role-play what it would look like if they saw a friend being rude to someone else at school. What would they do? How can courage help them stand up for what is right?

EMPOWER: Roles at Home

Create a list of household chores. Assign the various chores to each family member. Discuss any additional tools or support needed to accomplish each job. Have a weekly family check-in to celebrate success in completing each job by taking turns giving each family member an affirmation. Rotate chores and ask what additional support is needed.

EXCEL:

Try Something New...ask each family member to share something positive they want to do but have been afraid to try. Discuss what fears are getting in the way and steps to overcome those fears. Encourage everyone to try something new this month. Don’t forget to celebrate each family member when they do!

Conversation Starters:

• Think of a friend at school you consider to be courageous. What are some ways they show courage?
• Describe a time when you were fearful at school, but you were able to overcome it because of your courage. What helped you to be courageous?
  
• Think of a recent failure at school. What was a lesson you learned from this experience?

During the first two weeks of April our 3rd, 4th and 5th grade students will begin taking the CMAS assessments. All of our state assessments should be wrapped up by April 25th. We will kick things off in style with a "DRESS FOR SUCCESS" day on April 1st.

Due to assessment rules and protocols, we must limit visitor access to the building while students are testing. If you are in the building, please honor all posted signs as we strive to provide a quiet and ideal testing environment for our students.

To learn more about the state assessment process you can visit Colorado Department of Education’s FAQ site for parents: http://www.cde.state.co.us/assessment/generalinfo-parents

Please support your students during assessment time by doing the following:

• Making sure they are on time and in school every day during the testing period (research shows that students do best on assessments when they are testing in class with the rest of their peers)
• Making sure they go to bed early and gets plenty of rest
• Ensure they eat a healthy breakfast (or get to school before 7:55 to eat a healthy breakfast at school)
• Talking to and encouraging them to do their very best on this test
• Remind your student that all phones and smart devices cannot be accessed during testing sessions