Reminder:7-12 Parent Teacher ConferencesThursday, January 24, 20194pm-7pm 

DRIVER'S EDUCATIONRegistration will start on Wednesday January 16th.Contact Mr. Coon for registration forms and for class information.Mr. Coon 468-9383 Ext 119neal.coon@cascade.k12.mt.usStudents must be 14 1/2 years old to enroll and fees are $275.00Mr. Coon will start with class on Monday, February 18th. Students will meet from 3:30-5:00 pm with a mandatory parent meeting at 5:00pm. Classes will run Monday through Friday from 3:30pm to 5:00pm. Driving time will be scheduled in the evenings and on Saturdays. 

Thank you, Mr. Skogley for an excellent 2018 Christmas Program!  The show was well-attended by the Cascade community and the students brought their festive clothing and entertaining music/dance acts.  A big thank you to all parents who supported our music program through the purchase of dessert during our pie social.

On December 3rd, a community meeting was held to gather information concerning a modified school day. The meeting gave everyone in attendance an opportunity to identify the positive aspects and negative aspects of a modified day. The district will look at this information and determine the next steps. One of the main goals of the district is to gather as much community and parent input as possible. The district will continue to provide information. If you have any questions, please feel free to call the superintendent’s office or drop an email. The district would like to thank everyone who attended the meeting.  Below is a copy of the Pro’s and Con’s identified in the meeting.   

Cascade Basketball Tip-Off 2018Friday, Dec 7th starting at 3:00 pmSaturday, Dec 8th starting at 11:00 amSchedule is attached

 Our focus on homework is having great success with students receiving extra help and spending extra time at lunch and after school to make sure all work is turned in. This is already having positive effects on individual grades and by reducing our ineligibility listOur AWARE program that focuses on supporting students through counseling and social support held an assembly on Tuesday the 4th. The focus of the assembly dealt with how to effectively deal with emotional, and mental challenges in school and in life. Kainen Lacasse, a young man from Great Falls spoke to the Junior High and High School students about his challenges in life at home and in school. The message had to do with being mentally tough and overcoming adversity.

  Cascade Elementary School Students Excel in MathematicsWe have received our standardized test results from last year and are super excited about the high marks our students earned.  We continue to be strong in science, but our greatest growth and strongest results are in mathematics. Since we have implemented our Eureka math program, our students have gone from scoring below state averages to scoring approximately 35% above the state average! This is a phenomenal turn around in just 2 ½ years. I am thankful for the collaborative efforts between parents and our talented and committed elementary teaching staff that has made this success a reality.Math has become an essential tool for success in the evolving work environment and the goal of CPS to provide the mathematical knowledge, understanding, and skills our students need to be successful in whatever profession they want to pursue. Mathematics is clearly becoming a foundation for nearly all aspects of our economy ranging from finance, to computer technology, to engineering, to education, to small business ownership, to auto mechanics, and to agricultural work and management.  It is exciting to know that Cascade Elementary School is doing a great job in preparing our students for the rigors of math in junior and senior high school, as well as college and professional careers.

The Cascade School Music Department would like to invite you to several events this December.  The first one is the annual Christmas concert on Tuesday, December 11, 2018, at 7:00 pm in the north gym.  The concert will include the bands in grades 7-12 as well as the junior high school choir and high school choir. Each group has been working hard on their music, in between all the busyness that happens in school, and are looking forward to sharing their music with you. We are excited to have some special guests this year--the Great Falls Tuba Christmas group will be performing before, during breaks and after the concert. This is a group that meets only at Christmas time and they play Christmas tunes on euphoniums (small tuba-like instruments) and tubas.  When do you ever get to hear tubas play Christmas carols?! Well, come join us at the Christmas concert on December 11 at 7:00 pm in the north gym and you will hear the tubas as well as our fantastic student musicians.The next event for the Cascade Music Department is the elementary Christmas Program, "A Swingin Country Christmas".  It will be presented on Thursday, December 13, 2018, at 7:00 in the north gym.  This program includes students in grades kindergarten through sixth-grade singing and dancing their way to a wonderful Country Christmas.  Each grade level will perform 2 songs during the program.  The evening also includes a concert from the fifth and sixth-grade bands. This will be a "premier event" for the fifth-grade band as this will be their very first performance in front of an audience! The sixth graders have a few more performances under their belts and are ready to share what they have learned so far this year. Please come and support our wonderful elementary music students at this event.The last thing to share with you is the annual pie social set to follow the Elementary Christmas Program.  It will be held in the school cafeteria immediately following the program, at about 8:00 pm. This is one of our favorite events of the year. How can you top a program, pie and juice, and conversation with friends and neighbors? As always, donations of pie and juice would be welcome. Without all of you this event would not be nearly so successful! You may bring a pie (or three) to the cafeteria before the program or earlier in the day if that is more convenient for you.  We will make sure the cafeteria is prepared for your donation. You may call Melody at 468-9380 or 406-600-7585 if you have questions or would like to help out. Thank you so much for your support! This is the only fundraiser the elementary music program does during the year and your generosity has helped buy new instruments, music, books, and many other things.I have been told that there will be a special visitor to the Cascade School the evening of the program (Ho Ho Ho!!), so please keep your eyes open and your ears tuned in during this special time!

Tonight's honor concert is available to view through streaming over the internet. The feed for the concert is available at 6:30 PM and will last 90 minutes. If you are interested in watching the concert, click on the link: nfhsnetwork.com. Once you are at the website, click the UPCOMING EVENTS on the left side (After 6:30 you will have to click on LIVE). Filter the events by NON-SPORT and MONTANA. The concert will be at the top of the list. Enjoy the concert, it's FREE.

I have been approached by community members concerning a modified school day. The requests were presented to the school board and the board agreed to allow the superintendent to look into the possibility further. The first step will be to gather information concerning a modified school day. On December 4th at 6 pm, the district would like to have a community meeting to gather information from our community and parents concerning the matter. Once we have gathered information from the community, parents, staff, and students, the district will decide on the next steps. I hope we see you there, we value your input. Rick Miller, Superintendent