Hello #FAMILY,

We had a wonderful week celebrating our students from 6th and 7th grade Quarter 4 celebrations, i-Ready Wash Park Field Trips to 8th grade Elitch Gardens end of year trip. We have a full school day on Monday and a half day on Tuesday, with student be released at noon. 8th grade continuation is on Tuesday June 4th. We will begin at 1:30pm at South High School.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Sincerely,

Merrill Leadership

6/3/24 - 8th Grade BBQ and Continuation Rehearsal. 8th Graders report to school at the usual time! Rehearsal from 10-12. BBQ to follow!

6/4/24 - Last Day of School (half day) and 8th Grade Continuation 1:30pm at South HS.

Students report to South HS Main Gym at 12:45pm. Continuation in the Auditorium at 1:30pm. 8th graders do not need to report to school this day.

Please see the sign up below for volunteer opportunities for 8th Grade BBQ!

SUG

Happy almost summer from the Merrill PTSA Board!

Happy almost summer from the Merrill PTSA Board.

If you have a kiddo attending next year, please join

the 2024-2025 Merrill PTSA NOW by clicking HERE.

8th Grade is rounding out the week with a fun day at Elitch's! The kids had a blast!

6th and 7th Graders enjoyed their end of year celebrations at Dave and Busters this week! Almost summer!

This week we celebrated our students who demonstrated i-Ready growth this week by a field trip to Wash Park. Students played games, enjoyed snacks and the sunshine. Congratulations to our amazing students!

8th Grade Math

My name is Pat Mahoney, and I am originally from the tiny but mighty state of Rhode Island! I moved to Colorado to attend Colorado College and majored in economics and Spanish. At that time, I was lucky enough to tutor high school students in math, and I fell in love with teaching. Since graduating, I have been teaching 8th grade math and haven't looked back!

As a teacher, I really enjoy helping students develop their confidence as mathematicians. I am a firm believer that all students are capable of greatness. I particularly love helping students deepen their understanding of math concepts and see the real-world connection. Even if we don't notice it, math is everywhere around us!

Beyond teaching I am an avid New England sports fan and love being active. I enjoy biking, skiing, fishing, basketball, and pretty much any other sport. I love books, movies, and music.

6th Grade Math

Hi Team Merrill! My name is Kate Simmons (she/her) and I was born and raised in Fairfax, Virginia (just south of Washington D.C.!) I attended James Madison University, where I played a little softball and earned both my undergraduate and Master’s degrees in Inclusive Early Childhood and Elementary Education. I have taught in DPS for ten years, at the 4th and 5th grade levels! I'm excited to begin my journey with middle school scholars! I am particularly zealous about social justice, math, curiosity, and creative problem-solving. In my free time, you can find me hiking National Parks, baking tasty treats, hanging poolside, enjoying chats over coffee, or snuggling with my nieces and nephews!

7th Grade English Language Arts

Hi all! My name is Sophie Harris and I graduated from CU Boulder with a degree in English Creative Writing and I have my License in Secondary Education. Prior to working as a Language Arts teacher at Merrill, I was a long-term substitute for second graders at C3. I am thrilled to be part of the Merrill community, and I cannot wait to keep getting to know each student!

8th Grade Science

Hey everyone! I am Aidan Halpin, I have an undergraduate degree in physics, astrophysics, and education! I minored in math and am more than excited to be here. In my free time I love to hike, work on art or odd ball projects, cook, and play Magic the Gathering. I look forward to creating multi modal learning experiences for our 8th graders and working with other teachers across subjects.

Merrill Memories - K. Haybron Adams, First Merrill graduate

As we get ready for our 8th grade Merrill continuation ceremony, we can also think back to Merrill’s very first continuation and Merrill’s first graduate, (Kenneth) Haybron Adams. Mr. Adams recently wrote to Principal Underwood to share a historic photo and to share a little bit about Denver at the time that Merrill opened.

This photo shows Merrill’s first principal, Mr. Ginn, along with Miss Patterson, the Girls Advisor, and Mr. Gorsline, the Boys Advisor.

Mr. Adams, Professor Emeritus at Brigham Young University, was the very first person to graduate from Merrill since graduation was done in alphabetical order by last name and his last name, Adams, was at the beginning of the alphabet.

This link shows the principal’s remarks at continuation. And this link shows the 1954 Continuation Program.

At the time Mr. Adams was a Merrill student, he lived in the 2500 block of South Adams Street. Seven houses further down was where Denver ended in 1954.

Mr. Adams also wrote the following. “In that time period Colorado Blvd. was Colorado Road and it ended at Evans. There was no University Hills Shopping Center yet. There was no Valley Freeway (now I-25), there was no McDonalds. However, there were 5 high schools, e.g. North, East, South, (yea), West and Manual. But the number 8 bus ended on Evans at Fillmore. The Iliff Mansions were there, Miss Iliff still lived in the one at East Iliff and South Monroe. The other two Iliff mansions were out in the prairie then East of Denver proper.

What an amazing snapshot in time for Denver. Thank you Mr. Adams for writing to us and sharing.

The Yearbook Pre-Sale has ended, BUT you can still get your yearbook! if you would like to purchase a yearbook, you must do it directly through TreeRing using the following link. Yearbooks will be shipped directly to your home after the school year is over.

Link: https://www.treering.com/purchase?PassCode=1015403108471048

IvyMath is providing all Merrill families with a free online math tutoring session and an in-depth parent conference to discuss your child's strengths and weaknesses and how they compare to grade level.

IvyMath will also create a custom learning plan that maps out the exact areas your child should be focusing on in math for the rest of the year and what they will need to review over the summer. You'll have the opportunity to ask questions, and understand what your child needs to feel confident and stay on track in math next year.

The IvyMath tutoring session, parent conference, and learning plan are free for all Merrill families. Popular times fill up, so please register quickly! Signup now at: IvyMath.com/Boost

Opportunity for All Middle School Students: Apply for the Spark Summer Job Shadow Program

Have you ever wondered what it's like to step into the shoes of a professional for a day? Join us for an exciting four-hour job shadow program this summer right here in the Denver Metro Area! Get an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at a career path, meet professionals in the field and get hands-on experience. Choose from industries ranging from technology to healthcare, and gain invaluable insights to help shape your future. This unique opportunity will help you to explore your interests and ignite your passion for success! Register here by May 24.

Middle/High School Age

• Grades 3-8 Colorado Dream Foundation's Summer Program
• Grades 6-12 Montbello Crossroads
• Grades 5-12 SCD Enrichment Program
• Grades 8-12 SummerTEK
• Grades 8-10 Summer Youth Entrepreneur Workshop (Metro DEEP)
• Grades 8-10 Career Immersion Program (Metro DEEP)
• Denver Parks & Recreation Summer Activities
• Age 5-17 Opening Act Theatre Camp for Girls
• DPS Summer Programs

Denver Public Schools will provide the opportunity for incoming middle school students to participate in clinics geared towards Boys and Girls Swimming and Diving, Boys and Girls Lacrosse, Boys and Girls Tennis, and Boys and Girls Wrestling. These programs listed are hosted by the High School Coaches and are being offered over the summer, as they are not currently a part of the Middle School programming that takes place during the school year.

Sessions:

• 4 weeks in June and/or July

• June 6-27

• July 8-Aug 1

• 2 days a week/2 hours per day

• For Session 1, please register by Monday, June 3.

• For Session 2, please register by Monday, June 17.

Registration (FamilyID) & Details per program: 2024 DPS Summer Middle School Clinics- Details

Certified High School certified coaches will serve as the lead instructors from various DPS high schools.

Students must be incoming 6-8th graders attending DPS Middle Schools.

Cost: $35 per student per session. My Spark cards can be used to pay the registration fee.

A few opportunities are included below. Please click on this LINK for a complete list.

This new pilot program will provide 4,000 eligible Denver Public Schools middle school students with $1,000 to enroll in afterschool programs. As students enroll in participating programs, My Spark Denver will also invest $4 million in afterschool activities.

My Spark Denver gives parents the agency to decide how they want to use the money, which is provided to them in the form of a restricted debit card that can be redeemed across 100+ afterschool providers, big and small. Every kid is different and what parents really need are the resources to help their children pursue their sparks, whether it's fencing, football or fashion design.