The ESPN- November 2023

November is here!

Each month, I will be sending out a monthly newsletter that will include all of the happenings and other informational items about our building. Our goal is to stay as connected as we can with all of our families. If you ever have questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us!

Three important reminders on arrival/dismissal:

1. ALL parents/guardians/students/staff NEED to use a crosswalk when coming or going. We have repeat offenders to this and while we know this is an inconvenience, we have procedures in place for the safety of all.
2. Students should never have to cross in front of a lane of traffic without a crossing guard You must be in either lane 1 or lane 2 to drop or pick up your child. Any other area is dangerous! We are seeing more of this everyday and need your help!
3. Doors B and C lock at 8:00 AM therefore, if you arrive after 8:00 AM your child will need to go through the main doors to the office to get a tardy pass.

Thank you as well for your continued support to the CFES school community! - Mrs. Chappuis

Cannon Falls Elementary has partnered with Booster again for our main PTO fundraiser. Registration is open here! We typically do this fundraiser every other year. It is the main source of funds that go back into the school each year. Our goal is to raise $20,000 this year to put towards a hammock reading garden and more classroom enhancement's! We are currently halfway to our goal!! Rumor has it, that some principal may be kissing a pig if we reach our goal.

Outdoor (weather permitting) Fun Run will be November 8th. If needed, we will do an indoor glow run. Schedule is below. The weather forecast will be looked at Nov. 6th and a decision will be made and communicated out. Parents are welcome to attend.

Outdoor fun Run (weather permitting)-

9:00-10:00 AM Grades 1 and 2

10:00-11:00 AM Grades PK and K

12:00-1:00 PM 5th grade

1:00-2:00 PM Grades 3 and 4

OR

Indoor Fun Run if needed:

8:20-9:05 AM 3rd grade

9:05-9:50 AM Kinders

9:50-10:35 AM Preschool

10:35-11:20 5th Grade

11:20-12:05 4th Grade

12:30-1:15 PM 1st Grade

1:15-2:00 PM 2nd Grade

The holiday season can be a stressful time for many. Cannon Falls Schools works with many community members who graciously help sponsor families who are in need. If you are a family struggling to provide gifts this holiday season, please fill out this form so that we may find a group to help support you by purchasing and wrapping gifts! We do our best to match every family who reaches out in need of holiday gift help, however, this is not guaranteed as it depends on available sponsors. The program is completely anonymous, and our school social workers and counselor will keep this information confidential.

The deadline for this form will be November 17th.

https://forms.gle/amf4TKPtHMDY2wvp9

“WIN” (which stands for “What I Need”) is a time when teachers will be personalizing instruction to further meet the unique needs of each learner in every classroom. It is a period of reinforcement, support, and/or enrichment.

Cannon Falls Elementary School is fortunate to have a multi-tiered system of support, which gives students the opportunity to improve math and literacy skills in a small group setting. This means that in addition to the literacy/math instruction your student receives in his/her classroom, he/she may receive small group instruction in the WIN classroom (or their own classroom) 20 minutes per day. Students may switch amongst the WIN teachers but the same curriculum is used throughout. Please note, this is not connected to the special education department in our school. This is an additional form of academic support for all students.

You might hear or see some different titles and acronyms such as RtI (Response to Intervention), ADSIS (Alternative Delivery of Specialized Instructional Services), and Title 1. These labels just explain the State and Federal programs where some of the funding for our WIN teachers comes from. This is why filling out the free/reduced lunch form (regardless of income status) is so important as they directly impact our WIN programming.

The Cannon Falls Education Foundation is truly one of a kind. CFEF supports and promotes excellence in education by providing funding for all types of educational programs and activities that are above and beyond the programs supported by general education dollars. The following listed projects totaling just under $13,000 dollars were funded so far this year at the elementary school.

• Nugget Furniture (pictured) - Mrs. Rezac
• Bridges Intervention Program- Mrs. Jackson
• 5th Grade Kindness Retreat- Mrs. Molitor
• 4th Grade Flexible Seating- Mrs. Schliep
• Raz Kids Reading Program- Mrs. Larson
• Hands on Poetry Activities- Mrs. Kopp

Thank you to the CFEF for these amazing items and for supporting our district. We are so grateful for our partnership. If you would like to donate to this incredible foundation you may do so online by clicking here!

The lost and found will be cleared out and donated on November 21st at 3:00 PM. This gives all families three weeks to claim their items. If you are wondering if an item is there, please call the school. You may visit the lost and found before or after school or call the school and ask for other times to visit. Thank you for your help as we really want these items to go back to their owners!!

Please read the document below for expectations of our parent pick-up/drop-off and other parking lot helpful hints. One main item that needs to be addressed is that ALL parents/guardians/students/staff NEED to use a crosswalk when coming or going. Please do NOT cut across the car lane. Students are always watching and we want to model for them how to safely cross in the parking lot. The document for reference can be found below. I encourage you to revisit it often. Please share with anyone that is going to be picking up your student.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1g2N7u-B_us0TtPOseZJ2e8N_btNzzy0nRe_C5oY2udM/edit?usp=sharing

As a reminder, parents/guardians will no longer be able to walk their child to their classroom. A students independence grows so much when they get an opportunity to walk into the building by themselves. You may only walk them up to their designated door. Please drop off any items that your child needs for their day in the main office and we will get it to them.

Emergency Drills

Cannon Falls Elementary school will conducted safety drills throughout the last week in Sept. and first two weeks in Oct. The drills included fire drills as well as ALICE lockdown drills. Staff and students were instructed to follow proper Fire Drill procedures for exiting the building.

For those of you unaware, our district uses the ALICE method in the event of a threat. We will continue to remind students of our expectations during both of these types of drills. Our ALICE drills are not intended to create anxiety for our students but rather provide a knowledge base that will help them in the event they need it. During the ALICE drills, staff and students will be discussing how to follow directions when given a specific set of threat scenarios. For example: An announcement will be made over the loud speaker stating for example: "There is a threat in the cafeteria, Activate ALICE now." Here is a short video for more information on ALICE. Severe weather drills will take place in the Spring.

**If you would wish that your child opt out of safety drills, please notify Mrs. Chappuis at chappuis.jennifer@cf.k12.mn.us

Energy drinks, candy, and high sugar snacks are not ideal when it comes to fueling learning. Please only send water with your child for their beverage as well as healthy snacks. There will be times where a sugared beverage/treat is allowed for a special occasion. Thank you for your help with this.

Kindergarten Informances - Week of December 4

1st Grade Informances - Week of March 11

2nd and 3rd Grade Concert - April 25

4th and 5th Grade Concert - February 22

Cannon Falls Elementary School's PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports) fund recently received a generous grant of $5,000.00 from the Nibbe Family Foundation.

The Nibbe Family Foundation aims to give back to communities by providing support in the areas of Arts & Athletics, Health & Wellness, and Education. Social work intern, Vienna Qualey, applied for the grant in hopes of expanding the scope of prizes awarded to CFES students for behavioral accomplishments.

Pictured is the Elementary School Principal, Jennifer Chappuis, and Nibbe's President, Dawn Guse.

Cannon Falls Area Schools partnered with Care Solace to support the well-being of students and their family members. Care Solace is a complimentary and confidential care coordination service that can help you quickly find mental health or substance use treatment options matched to your needs, regardless of circumstance.

If you or a family member are looking for help with mental health or substance use and would like to use Care Solace to find a provider:

• Call 888-515-0595. Support is available 24/7/365 in any language.
• Visit www.caresolace.com/cfk12 and either search on your own OR click “Book Appointment” for assistance by video chat, email, or phone.

If you are volunteering in the classroom for parties or chaperoning for a field trip we have updated our process. You will be required to submit a copy of your drivers license and sign our volunteer agreement. This will be done once per school year. There may be situations that require a background check in addition to the two items mentioned above. This ensures the most safest environment for our students and staff. Thank you for your willingness to volunteer and partnership in our process.

Students are released at 12:50 PM on the following Friday's:

• Nov. 10th
• Dec. 8th
• Jan. 12th
• Feb. 9th
• Mar. 15th
• Apr. 12th

Attending school regularly helps children feel better about school AND themselves. Start building this habit early (PK or kindergarten) so they learn that going to school on time, every day is important. Eventually good attendance will be a skill that will help them succeed

Please see the document here for more information about the importance of Attendance.

If you have district transportation questions please contact Alison Godfrey at godfrey.alison@cf.k12.mn.us

• Oct. 30-Nov. 8 PTO Booster-thon
• Nov. 6 No School- Teacher Workshop
• Nov. 8 PTO Booster-thon Bomber Fun Run
• Nov. 9 STEAM Night 5:30-7:00 PM
• Nov. 10 Veterans Day Program for Elem. Students
• Nov. 10 Early Release Day
• Nov. 16 PTO Meeting via Zoom 6:30 PM
• Nov. 17 Preschool Screening
• Nov. 21 ALL School Turkey Bingo
• Nov. 22, 23, 24 No School Fall Break