New students and families, welcome to North Metro Flex Academy!

Welcome back to all of our returning students and families! It has been a busy start of the school year.

I hope your families had a good summer! I tried to spend a lot of time outdoors over the summer with my family at the cabin and along the North Shore. Picking blueberries and strawberries is always a favorite activity for our family! (We have been making strawberry jam for over 30 years.)

In addition to having some new student faces at our school, we also have some new staff faces!

Mrs. Block is teaching English Language Arts for Middle School Grades 6-8.

Mrs. Tuma is teaching Science for Middle School Grades 6 - 8.

Mrs. Roling-Moreno is our new ELL teacher for grades K-8. She will also be teaching Spanish to our MS students.

Dr Jazilyn Paige will be our new School Psychologist (She will be at our school on Tuesdays every week!)

Mrs. Marchetti is our new Special Ed Director and teacher.

Ms. Erin, Mr. Joe, and Ms Molly are new Special Ed paras, and

Ms. Stephanie will be our new Kitchen Manager and server.

Have you heard about The Read Act in Minnesota? Our teachers are engaging with professional development called LETRS this year and next year. We have also adopted new reading curriculum for Grades K-8, that is aligned with The Science of Reading. We have adopted FIsh Tank for our core reading instruction and UFLI for the foundational reading. (See links below.)

Please join us next week at our WELCOME BACK North St. Paul Fall Round up Tailgating BBQ at 4:30, before the NSP FALL ROUND UP Parade at 6:00 PM. (We will have inexpensive fall food and beverages for sale such as brats, hot dogs, corn, and apple cider.)

We are looking forward to a wonderful year with all of you!

Warmly,

Mrs. Kranz

dkranz@nmfamn.org

#651-300-6300

• September 15-October 15 Hispanic Heritage Month
• Monday, September 16 - Hill Murray Service Students start tutoring.
• Wednesday, September 18th NMFA School Board Meeting 4:00 PM (All parents welcome!)
• Thursday, September 19th NSP Fall Round Up
• Tail Gate BBQ 4:30 PM in parking lot in front of the school
• Walk with us in the parade and/or sit along the parade route.
• **For safety reasons parents please need to accompany students if they are walking in the parade.

Dear Parents and Guardians,

You may have noticed that this year’s 6th grade class is slightly larger than in previous years. We want to take a moment to explain the rationale behind this decision and how it benefits our Middle School students. Our middle school program is for grades 6th, 7th and 8th grades. We have made the decision to have 3 rotations, along with the support of the ELL teacher and Special Education Teachers.

1. Enhanced Support and Resources: By keeping the 6th grade class as one group rather than splitting into two smaller sections, we are able to optimize and be flexible with our resources. This approach allows us to maintain three middle school classes overall, which supports a more robust and dynamic educational environment and programming. Specifically, it enables us to offer two dedicated experienced ELA/Social Studies/Humanities teachers, Mr. Johnson and Mrs. Block (new to our school and a very experienced ELA and Social Studies Teacher), who will collaborate to provide targeted instruction in both English Language Arts and Social Studies. This arrangement ensures that each student receives personalized support and instruction.

2. Focused Reading Lab Time: Our Humanities program includes a built-in 30-minute Reading Lab designed to address each student's individual needs. During this time, students may work in small groups, engage in quiet reading, or receive direct assistance from an adult, with Mr. Johnson, Mrs. Block, Mr. Isaacson or Ms. Marchetti. This targeted approach helps prepare students for their next day's lessons, ensuring that their specific needs are met and allowing for differentiated instruction.

3. Small Group Instruction in Math: In Math, Mrs. Winter will lead the main lessons, while both she and Mr. Chris, along with other staff, will pull students into smaller groups during work time. This small group instruction ensures that every student receives the attention needed to master essential math concepts. It allows personalized instruction for students above, at and below grade level.

4. Engaging Science Labs: We have a (new to us) very experienced Science teacher, Mrs. Tuma. She has taught science for many years in the Moundsview School District. Our Science curriculum includes hands-on labs and interactive activities. Additional staff support will be provided to support class size and ensure effective learning experiences, so each student can fully engage in practical and investigative learning. Mrs. Tuma is able to utilize two classrooms across from each other to teach and set up engaging, interactive science experiments and explorations.

5. Comprehensive Support Through the BARR Program: We are committed to supporting the whole student—academically, socially, and emotionally. Our involvement in the BARR (Building Assets, Reducing Risks) program means that we continuously monitor and address students' needs, ensuring they feel valued and supported throughout the school year.

6. Electives and Enrichment Activities: Since we have numerous teachers to support our middle school grades, by keeping a 3 class rotation, we are also able to plan and offer electives and enrichment activities.

In summary, while the 6th grade class size may be slightly larger this year, the structure and resources we have in place for programming are designed to provide each student with a high-quality, personalized education. Our goal is to create a nurturing and high achieving environment where every student feels safe, supported, and engaged.

Thank you for your continued support.

If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Mrs. Kranz, principal. Dkranz@nmfamn.org or call the school at #651-300-6300.

Warm regards,

Middle School Team

Ms. Anderson, Music and Art Specialist

Ms. Crowley, District Assessment Coordinator

Mrs. Engstrom, PE Teacher

Mrs. Block, ELA/Social Studies and Humanities Teacher

Mr. Carey, Special Ed Para Professional and Reading Interventionist

Mr. Chris Cowan, Math Interventionist

Mrs.Holsten, Literacy Specialist and Instructional Coach

Mr. Isaacson, Special Ed Coordinator/Lead Teacher and NMFA School Board Member

Mr. Johnson, ELA/Social Studies and Humanities Teacher and NMFA School Board Member

Ms. Marchetti, Special Education Director and Teacher

Mr. Mark Robinson, Behavior Interventionist

Ms. Emma Roling, ELL and Spanish Teacher

Mrs. Tuma, Science Teacher

Mrs. Winter, Lead Math Teacher and Instructional Coach

https://www.renaissance.com/products/fastbridge/

GenieMeltzer@gmail.com

Attending school regularly helps children feel better about school - and themselves. Let's help our NMFA children by building the habit of a good attendance record early which will lead to success in the classroom!

School hours are: 7:30am – 2:00pm

School doors for parent pick up in the morning: 7:15am - 7:30 AM

School doors for parents pick up open in the afternoon: 2:00pm

PARENTS - DROP OFF AND PICK UP REMINDERS

All students must be signed in by an adult after 7:30 AM. Students will be marked tardy if they are arriving after 7:45 AM.

Any students being dropped off in the morning should be brought to the cul-de-sac on Helen Street until 7:30 AM. If you are needing to pick up your student who normally rides a bus, please call the office no later than 1pm to notify the front desk. They will get the message to their teacher.

For students who ride bus stops, your students must be at their assigned stop 5 minutes prior to the pick up time.

If your student is sick, please leave a message on the attendance line, utilize the attendance form on our website, or use the JMC Family App to submit attendance. As a general reminder, students will be sent home from school if they have a fever of 100 or over, they have vomited or have diarrhea. We may also call to ask that you pick your student up if they are not able to participate in class due to feeling ill. Students should be kept home until they are fever, vomit, or diarrhea free for 24 hours with no medication. Students who miss 3 or more days will need a doctors note.

Please call the front office if you are needing to speak with a staff member directly, or send an email to that staff member. During the day they may not be available to take a call directly but will call you back as soon they have a free moment.

Buses C, S2 PM ............. (651-777-2319)

East side Families ......... (612-808-8868)

Please see the link below to enroll in a free weekend meal program! If you are interested and sign up student will receive 1 bag of ingredients. You have different options to choose from as well. All information requested in the form is for the school only.

o Debbie Kranz ~ Principal dkranz@nmfamn.org

o Dave Isaacson ~ Special Education Coordinator disaacson@nmfamn.org

o Chelsea Smieja ~ Operations Manager csmieja@nmfamn.org

o Jenny Hubin ~ Office Assistant jhubin@nmfamn.org

Email: info@nmfamn.org
Website: www.nmfamn.org
Location: 2350 Helen Street North, North Saint Paul, MN, USA
Phone: (651)300-6300
Facebook: https://facebook.com/NorthMetroFlexAcademy/