• January 17th - End of Term 2
• January 28th - Conferences 4 p.m. - 8 p.m.
• January 30th - Early Dismissal - 12:50 p.m.
• January 30th - Conferences 1 p.m. - 8 p.m.
• January 31st - Conferences 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Our goal is for ALL TF Families to participate in parent/teacher conferences!

Winter conferences are scheduled for:

• January 28: 4-8pm

• January 30: 1-8pm

• January 31: 8am-noon

Conference sign up will close at 11:00 pm on Monday, January 20th.

Starting Friday, January 10th, follow these steps to sign up for your conference times:

• Click here to sign up for a date and time.

• Click on the teacher you wish to conference with

• Select an open time on the teacher's schedule and click Sign Up

• Complete the form/required information

• Click Sign Up For Your Conference (at the bottom of the form)

When you have successfully completed the sign-up process, you will receive an email confirmation. Families are allowed to schedule one conference per student with the teacher.

*If you have more than one student at TFE, use the “Register for Multiple Conferences” process. You will be able to see multiple teacher’s schedules to make scheduling easier for your family.

Need Help? Have Questions?

• If you need help signing up for a conference, click on the “Help” link

• If you still need help, you can contact Ms. Palmer at rpalmer@isd2144.org

If you don’t have internet access, contact your student’s teacher to set up a conference.

Since we've been back from winter break, there has been a significant increase in illness at TFE. Many students are being sent home sick from the health room each day this week, and we are noting high rates of absences from school due to illness.

Common symptoms are: gastrointestinal upset (stomach aches, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea), respiratory symptoms (congestion and cough), fever, sore throat and headache. Please be sure to reinforce frequent handwashing, not touching your face, and covering your cough.

Please keep your child home if they have any of the following:

• Vomiting within the last 24 hours
• Diarrhea within the last 24 hours
• Fever of 100 degrees Fahrenheit or higher in the last 24 hours
• Rash of unknown origin

Students may not return to school until they are free from the above symptoms (vomiting, diarrhea, fever) for 24 hours, without fever reducing medications. Call or email the health room/attendance line day your child is staying home, stating the specific reason for their absence.

Please call the health room 651-213-2105 if there are questions or concerns.

Thank you ~

Kori Severson RN, LSN

kseverson@isd2144.org

Less than three weeks into 2025 and we have been BUSY--and we're just getting started:

• Next week is Paraprofessional Appreciation Week! We've got a fun project planned to show love to our paras and you can be a part of it! Send us a message about how a para has helped your student and we will include it in our super-secret (for a few more days) project. Send us an email or message us on Facebook to have your note included!

• We need your help! We need several more dishes to make our Conference Dinners for Teachers a success! Please consider joining in on our long-standing tradition of providing dinner for teachers on these extra-long days! You can access our Sign-Up Geniuses here and here. Thank you for participating!

• New year, new habits: stop leaving money on the table! Scan or forward your grocery receipts to BoxTopsforEducation and help earn cash for Taylors Falls Elementary! Click here to learn more about How to Earn--it's fast, free, and so easy! You can even set reminders to scan to make sure you don't miss a shopping trip.

• Mark your calendars for our favorite FUNraiser on Thursday, February 6th: we're headed to Wild Chutes! We'll be sending home more information soon, but you can get a sneak peek here.

January Events

• Paraprofessional Appreciation Week: January 20th-24th
• TFPFE Day at Jake's On The Lakes: Monday, January 27th
• Conference Dinners: January 28th and 30th

Are you on our email list? Send us a message at tfpfe@isd2144.org to be added. No SPAM, we promise!

• Did you know we share a specialist teacher with Chisago Lakes Primary School?
• How this works: At term change, which goes into effect Tuesday January 21st, students will switch from music to art for their fine arts time, and will receive art instruction until we switch back. Students will receive two back to back semesters of art (they most recently received two back to back semesters of music).
• Mrs. Leasure will be teaching music at the Primary School, and will be back at TF after term change next year (January 2026). At this time, music instruction will resume.
• Ms. Schreyer, our Art Teacher, will be doing art with our students during specials until that time!

The Taylors Falls Elementary Scholastic Book Fair begins Tuesday, January 28. Learn more about it by visiting our Book Fair Homepage. All purchases support our school and media center. Here are a few things you can do before the Fair opens:

1. Set up an eWallet account for your child to shop before school from 8:45-9:00 am on:

Wednesday, January 29: 3rd-5th grades

Thursday, January 30: Kindergarten-2nd grade

When you set up an account, you can set a spending limit; you’ll only be charged for what’s purchased. Learn more here. All sales support our school.

2. Shop online by clicking on the Shop Now button on the Book Fair Homepage. Taylors Falls will receive 25% from all online purchases in Scholastic dollars between now and Thursday, January 30.

3. Check your child's backpack for a parent letter and flyer.

• Jan 20th - No School: Staff Development
• Thurs Jan 30th & Fri Jan 31st - No Little Wildcats Preschool or ECFE
• Thurs Jan 30th & Fri Jan 31st - Early Childhood Screening (By Appt Only)
• Mon Feb 17th - No School: Staff Development
• Mon Mar 3rd - Little Wildcats Preschool and ECFE Registration Opens @8am
• Mon Mar 10th - Fri Mar 14th - No School: Spring Break
• Thurs Mar 27th - Early Childhood Screening (By Appt Only)
• Mon Mar 31st - No School: Staff Development

Join us to help your son or daughter learn to be active and confident! In the gymnastics room at the Wildcat Community Center, Active and Confident class encourages parents to participate and learn various skills.

Active and Confident 2-3 Year Olds

Active and Confident 4-5 Year Olds

Active and Confident 2-5 Year Olds

Welcoming children birth to 5 years old. Come and engage in purposeful and interactive play with your children in this class of movers and shakers. Parents and children stay together for the entire class. During the first half, parents and children will enjoying regular classroom activities along with movement areas, art, and story time. Parents and children will participate in an interactive circle time with singing and movement. During snack time, parents will engage in deeper parent discussion while children continue to play in the classroom with staff.

Registration will stay open as new families are always welcome to join!

No Sibling Care available during this session

This class will help your child develop as a basketball player. Fundamentals will be taught with skills time followed by fun games. All equipment provided.

Primary School - Starts Tues, Feb 11

Lakeside Elementary - Starts Wed, Feb 12

Taylors Falls - Starts Thurs, Feb 13

Embark on a captivating journey into nature with our certified naturalist-led after-school program! Students will get involved in the wonders of the natural world, discovering the secrets of tree identification, the art of seed harvesting and preservation.

This curriculum evolves with the changing seasons, ensuring fresh experiences and discoveries with each passing month

Be sure to dress in weather-appropriate clothing and footwear, as we'll venture outdoors to fully immerse ourselves in the beauty and splendor of nature.

Start Dates:

Taylors Falls: Mondays, Feb. 3

Lakeside: Tuesdays, Feb. 11

Primary School: Thursdays, Feb. 13

• Student Handbook
• Morning Drop Off Procedures
• Afternoon Pick Up Procedures
• CL School Calendar
• Stop and Think Room Information for Families

Mr. Riebe is in his twelfth year as principal at TFE. Prior to having his dream job as TFE Principal, he served as a middle school associate principal, special education administrator, special education teacher, school psychologist, and special education paraprofessional. He has been working in public education for over 20 years. He received his master's and education specialist degrees from the University of Wisconsin.

Mr. Riebe lives with his wife of twenty years and four children (all of whom attend/ed TF Elementary) in Taylors Falls. On a weekend, you'll find him doing pretty much anything outside: Fishing with the kids, hiking, hunting, camping, or tinkering with a new woodworking project in the garage. He's an avid Boundary Waters explorer, North Shore adventurer, ardent angler, and is fond of weekend experiments on his smoker.

Fun facts about Mr. Riebe

• His right eye is two different colors. This is called heterochromia!
• The only food he can't (and won't) eat is green peppers.
• In college, he worked in orphanages in Mexico and the Republic of Trinidad.
• He and his wife once hiked in the Andes Mountains in Peru for 6 days.
  
• He loves birds!

Email: jriebe@isd2144.org
Location: 648 West Street, Taylors Falls, MN, USA
Phone: 651-213-2101