"Make us raise the bar for your kids."
DPS Superintendent Tom Boasberg, to northwest parents at the September 2009 Denver Plan presentation at North High

Northwest Neighborhood Middle Schools NOW was formed in 2009 by parents who were in search of an academically strong neighborhood middle school option in Northwest Denver that was socioeconomically and culturally diverse. Currently many NOW members have children attending Skinner with great success.

NOW members worked with the leaders of the already strong Skinner Middle School to win a $500,000 grant that strengthened honors options, Spanish (beginning and advanced) and instrumental music programs. Dedicated leaders and talented staff paired with the strong commitment to academic growth and the full range of sports and academic offerings have made Skinner a school of choice in Northwest Denver.

We encourage all families that seek the well-rounded education of a neighborhood school to join our mailing list (below) to learn about Skinner's programs, success stories, and garner information about how to get involved.

Jan 25, 2012

Published Poets at Skinner

"Poetry is thoughts that breathe, and words that burn," as famous 18th century English poet Thomas Gray once wrote.

Turns out that Skinner students know quite a bit about writing breathing, burning poems – 24 6th grade poets will have their poems exploring personification published in A Celebration of Poets published by Creative Communication. These students are in the running for the competition's "Top Ten" awards.

"We would like to congratulate you and your teaching efforts," wrote assistant editor Shannon Hernandez to Skinner language arts teacher Jessica Goebel. "Clearly your students have a great talent for writing poetry but the teacher is the one who helps bring that talent to the surface."

Consider this poem, written by 6th grader Avery Ahern:

The Rainstorm

A steady drum roll I hear

as your army chases the horizon

throwing a gray blanket over the world.

When you approach,

you unleash the fury of your crackling whip

and shower me in a thousand wet kisses,

which I return to you with a kiss of my own.

A welcome gift.

A goodbye present.

For soon you move on,

sharing your show with others

while the frightened sun curiously peeks out

from behind your gray clouds

boldly casting golden rays of light through the fading raindrops

creating a beautiful display of vivid colors;

peace

after your thrilling performance


We are so proud of Avery and all the Skinner poets – and are grateful for outstanding Skinner teachers like Ms. Goebel! Stay tuned for more information about our poets and the contest. For more information, please visit www.poeticpower.com.
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