Las Animas Elementary School

Posted May 29, 2009

We've enjoyed several years of the Dual Immersion (DI) Program, which I highly recommend. Overall the teachers are really wonderful with only a couple of exceptions. Unfortunately, the principal is generally unavailable (not on campus), and does not respond proactively to complaints of bullying or other problems. The principal does, however, strongly support the DI program, and seems to assign the best teachers there. Parent support and volunteerism is fairly high among the DI classes, but not so much in the mainstream classes. If my children were not in the DI program at Las Animas, I would definitely choose another school. Communication from the front office leaves a lot to be desired, including late nor non-existent newsletters.
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Posted May 23, 2009

This has been a very trying year. My child entered school very prepared, and instead of being challenged I was told to work with him at home (they basically did not have time for him since so much time was placed on students who were below and needed to catch up). In addition every time you turned around the kids were being tested instead of being taught. Science, Social Studies, PE, and Art all took a back seat to what would be covered on the test. My child has told me on a regular basis that he was bored. He was in the DI program, and yes he learned Spanish, but at what cost? My son needs and deserves a well rounded education. We will be attending a new school in the fall. When considering schools, please look at what they really offer.
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Posted February 14, 2009

This is in response to the parent comment dated May 27, 2008. I wish I shared your enthusiasm and outlook on Las Animas. Unfortunately, the Distinguished Award was partly obtained as a result of 'principal...pushes her teachers and kids...' This has come at a great cost, especially to some of the teachers. Have you checked the teacher turnover rate there? You'll be surprised...and the word is, there are more surprises yet to come. Something has got to give....you can't keep pushing and pushing without ending up with negative results, too. I think someone has forgotten that there's much more to teaching than high scores and notoriety. Teachers need support and communication, which are both sadly lacking for some at Las Animas.
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Posted February 14, 2009

I agree with the lackof support for the teachers. My childwent there last year and I left as there was no support for new or teachers that did not necessarily qualify for BITSA and still could have used a lot of support and orgainzation from the principal and district. My child basically wasted a whole year.
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