Tag Archives: Denair Elementary School

‘An Evening in Paris’ Huge Hit For Elementary Students

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An Evening in Paris

Submitted by Denair Unified School District

Even three days later, students, their families and staff members were buzzing about how much fun they had at Denair Elementary School’s first-ever dance event. Featuring “An Evening in Paris” theme, the May 1 event attracted more than 400 people to the school’s gym for three hours of Gaelic-inspired gaiety.

Many of the young boys donned nice shirts and ties, and the girls wore pretty pastel dresses. Their parents and older siblings also wore attire that would have been fashionable on the Champs de Elysees or at a restaurant overlooking the Seine River.

The gym was festively decorated with colored lights and small tables with miniature Eiffel Towers, transforming it into a faux Parisian nightclub.

The theme was chosen by the parents’ clubs that spearheaded and organized the dance, said Principal Sara Michelena.

“It was super cute and totally age appropriate,” she said, giving special thanks to parents Mary Prine, Kalee Lopes and Troy and Debbie Edwards for their hard work in making the night come to life.

Michelena estimated that two-thirds of the 300 families whose children attend the elementary school and adjacent Denair Academic Avenues participated in the party.

There was plenty of pizza and soft drinks, but the highlight clearly was the professional DJ and the dancing. He taught everyone how to line dance, the cha-cha slide and the chicken dance. And when he played “My Girl” by the Temptations, fathers danced with their daughters and mothers with their sons. Continue reading “‘An Evening in Paris’ Huge Hit For Elementary Students” »

DECA Petition Approved By DUSD Board

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Submitted by Denair Unified School District

Denair Unified School District trustees enthusiastically approved a plan Thursday night to create a new elementary charter school for next year that would combine Spanish instruction for all students with rigorous core subjects and exposure to fine arts.

One of the unique features of the Denair Elementary Charter Academy, or DECA, would be a dual immersion English/Spanish class for kindergarteners. The class would follow the 90% Spanish and 10% English dual immersion model, said Principal Sara Michelena. The goal is to have a 50/50 mix of English and Spanish speakers. The intent, she said, is to add a dual immersion class at successive grade levels each year as the first group of kindergartners gets older.

Response has been strong, Michelena said. Already, 36 kindergarteners have signed up for the immersion program.

“We are creating our very own, very unique program,” said Superintendent Aaron Rosander. “We will be the pre-eminent leader of this kind of education in our region.”

DECA would replace the current charter program, known as Denair Academic Avenues. Denair Elementary School, which shares the same campus today, will technically remain in existence, though district officials expect most of the students to enroll in the DECA program. Students in the same grade level will be in the same class for the core programs, but DECA students will have access to more electives.

“Because this is such a powerful program, we think the choice is easy,” Rosander said.

Trustee Sandi Dirkse said the early community reaction to the new charter has been tremendous.

“The energy and buzz around town is very positive,” she said. “I’m hearing from parents who are very excited.” Continue reading “DECA Petition Approved By DUSD Board” »

DUSD Officials and Teachers Thrilled With Plans for DECA

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Submitted by Denair Unified School District

Denair schools trustees and the public will have their first chance Thursday night to publicly review plans for a revamped elementary charter school.

The proposal calls for Denair Elementary School and the adjacent Denair Academic Avenues to form a new school known as Denair Elementary Charter Academy, or DECA, for the 2015-16 school year.  Together, the two campuses now have about 500 kindergarten through fifth-grade students from Denair and surrounding areas.

DECA’s mission, according to the proposed new charter, “is to provide students with an engaging, nurturing, equitable learning environment that promotes the development of skills necessary for the 21st century.”

The curriculum will be rich with core subjects such as language arts, math, science, social science and physical education. Electives will include world/foreign languages, drama, music, art, dance and computer instruction.

Already, DECA’s dual immersion English/Spanish class for kindergartens is proving to be popular, with 26 students signed up and five on a waiting list, said Principal Sara Michelena. A second class could be added if there at least 40 students.

The class will follow the 90% Spanish and 10% English dual immersion model, Michelena said. The goal is to have a 50/50 mix of English and Spanish speakers. The intent, she said, is to add a dual immersion class at successive grade levels each year as the first group of kindergartners gets older.

All other DECA students also will have regular Spanish instruction, Michelena said. In addition, the new charter school will have two 30-station computer labs to teach tech skills and will continue to focus on arts enrichment for all students. Even at the elementary level, there will be an emphasis on building a college-going culture among children. Continue reading “DUSD Officials and Teachers Thrilled With Plans for DECA” »

DMS Students Share Science With Elementary Classes

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Cell "Farm"

Submitted by Denair Unified School District

Denair Middle School science students became the teachers for a few minutes Friday morning, explaining the concepts of cellular structure to their elementary counterparts.

Seventh-graders from two of Barry Cole’s biology classes built elaborate replicas of farms, military bases, an Old West town and even a futuristic community to help with their 15-minute presentations.

A farmhouse became the cell’s “nucleus,” a silo was the “cell wall,” cattle and pigs were “ribosomes” and “lysosomes,” farmland became “cytoplasm” and the barn substituted as a “vacuole.”

The point, Cole explained, was to find “real-life applications for what these students are expected to know” as part of their life sciences instruction.

“On the very first day of class, I told them science is part of their everyday lives,” Cole said. “What we did today is part of Common Core. They are expected to not just understand what an organelle is, but what an organelle does.”

The seventh-graders spent most of the past month working on their projects and constructing their models. Friday morning, 12 teams of four or five students carried their work across the street to the elementary campus, ready to impart all they have learned in classes of first- to fifth-graders.

The older students already had made oral presentations in front of each other in their own classes, but Cole required them to come up with a different way of explaining cell structure to their younger peers.

“If forces them to be more serious,” he said. “This helps them show me that they understand the subject matter.” Continue reading “DMS Students Share Science With Elementary Classes” »

Kindergarten Registration Begins in Denair for 2015-16 School Year

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DES Coyote Cub

Submitted by Denair Unified School District

Kindergarten registration begins Tuesday at Denair Elementary School for the 2015-16 school year.

Application forms in English and Spanish can be downloaded from the school’s website or can be picked up at the school office at 3773 Madera Ave. Parents and guardians must provide copies of their child’s birth certificate and immunization records.

Officials will be on hand from 3-6 p.m. Tuesday to answer questions, offer assistance in filling out the forms and accept completed applications. People also can call the school office at 632-8887 for more information.

Denair offers three options for kindergarten:

  • Traditional full day classes for children who will be 5 years old by Sept. 1, 2015.
  • Dual immersion English and Spanish classes, also for children who will be 5 years old by Sept. 1, 2015.
  • Transitional kindergarten for children who will turn 5 between Sept. 2 and Dec. 2, 2015.

Denair is in the process of merging its two elementary programs – Denair Elementary School and Denair Academic Avenues – into a unified kindergarten through fifth-grade campus under a single charter. The proposed name for the new school is Denair Elementary Charter Academy.

In anticipation of the new arrangement, DES and D2A already have begun joint activities this year, including a 20-minute assembly each Friday morning.