News

Desert Meadows first graders are studying the works of American artist Georgia O’Keefe who is known for her paintings of flowers and landscapes of the Southwest. Students made large pictures of flowers with petals that went off the page.The flowers were then traced with oil pastels and painted with watercolor paint.

Over 50 female students from Desert Meadows School attended Intel’s TEC (Technology Engineering Computer Science) is for Girls event held at Phoenix College. TEC is for Girls is part of Intel’s She Will Connect initiative that brings middle school girls to a community college campus to explore technology, engineering, and computer science.

This event gave the girls an opportunity to engage in hands-on science activities, under the guidance of Phoenix College staff, to explore their interest in pursuing a TEC studies in high school and a career in the STEM field.

View photos from this event on our flickr page.

The T.R.A.C.K. acronym is something we are using to communicate with our students in and out of the classroom to support our behavioral/social expectations. We want to encourage parents to utilize the same wording at home to reinforce the skills of: Trustworthy, Respectful, Accountable, Collaborative & Kind.

To celebrate our T.R.A.C.K. stars, we are passing out “Bobcat Bucks” that students can redeem at the Bobcat Buck store every other Friday. This approach is already paying some dividends because of our teachers efforts to recognize students. So far this year, we have recognized over 300 students with positive postcards or positive referrals!

Beginning in August 2017, Laveen schools will utilize Peachjar’s e-flyer system to distribute flyers, newsletters, and other student-centered information to parents.

E-mail blasts containing flyers from your child’s school, PTO, or non-profit student-centered activities will be sent to parents generally once a week. Flyers are maintained on a dedicated webpage for later reference.

Only school information such as school newsletters, event flyers, and PTO happenings as well as approved flyers from non-profit child-centered organizations such as Girl Scouts, ball leagues, and local community groups will be sent to the email addresses on file for each family. Parents should make sure their school office has their current email address.

Parents may sign up for a free Peachjar account to utilize added features, like combining schools. But, this is not necessary to receive flyers.

Visit www.laveenschools.org/e-flyers for more information.

Laveen is implementing a new bus pass system for the 2017-18 school year. Because safety is a primary concern of the Laveen School District, this bus pass system will tell our dispatchers if a student was on board and where they exited.

All school buses will be equipped with electronic card readers; new student ID badges that contain a chip will be issued to all bus riders. As students board and exit the bus, he or she will tap their badge against the reader. A green light will illuminate on the reader if the swipe is successful.

While these two measures won’t be fully implemented until August 2017, our front office staff is currently preparing for the new procedures which will take effect May 15, 2017. Transportation labels will be affixed to student badges. This label will contain the student’s route number and bus stop location. In the event a student boards the wrong bus or is unsure as to where they should exit, the bus driver can easily look at the sticker and ensure the student is where they should be.

As these two phases are implemented, it will be important that your child have their badge with them each day. We will never leave a student at the bus stop in the morning and will bring all students to school. However, a student who has forgotten their badge must report to their school office for a temporary pass for the ride home.

Bus Pass Letter

Carta de pase para autobus

zSpace brought their mobile learning lab to Desert Meadows School. Students had the opportunity to participate in hands-on augmented reality and virtual reality-based learning experiences. Wearing 3D tracking glasses and using a stylus, students examined the human heart, analyzed Newton’s laws, and observed the life cycle of the butterfly.

Desert Meadows students participated in UNICEF’s Kid Power Month in March.

Students in grades three through five received Kid Power Bands that tracked their steps. Students then went on virtual UNICEF missions to earn points. Points unlock funding from UNICEF partners to provide for food deliveries to malnourished children around the world.

The participating students were recognized at a Phoenix Suns game for being the most active class in the Phoenix UNICEF Kid Power Month Challenge. They were hosted by Suns Center and UNICEF Ambassador Tyson Chandler and his wife, Kimberly.