The ESPN- October 2024

October 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!

One important reminder: 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

Breakfast is served from 7:40-7:55 AM. Grab and go breakfast will be offered after 7:55 AM. Students in grades 1-5 who ride the bus will head straight to breakfast. Preschool and kindergarten eat with their classrooms after school starts. Parents who drop off students, please make every effort to be here by 7:45 AM so that you child has enough time to eat their breakfast. We are seeing a lot of students being dropped off after 7:55 AM desiring to get breakfast. At that time, they will be offered a grab and go. Thank you for your help!

*A reminder: You must notify the school if your child is going to be absent for any reason. Please call the office at 507-263-6800 opt. 4, or email: cfattendanceelem@cf.k12.mn.us by 9:00 AM.

Missing school can impact your child's success. 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. Students who miss more than 10% of school days are more likely to fall behind academically and struggle with social skills.

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

Mrs. Chappuis hosted a meet and greet with new students to Cannon Falls Elementary School. Pictured below is some of our new Bombers in their new Keep It Real Bomber t-shirt! Welcome to all our new students.

At this time, parents/guardians are no longer be able to walk their child to their classroom upon arrival. 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 conduct safety drills throughout the week of 9/9-9/13, 9/16-9/20, 9/30- 10/4 and 10/7-10/11. The drills will include fire drills as well as ALICE lockdown drills. Staff and students will be instructed to follow proper Fire Drill procedures for exiting the building. There will be 1 to 2 drills done per week.

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

Cannon Falls Area Schools is participating in the Walk & Roll to school Day on October 9th.

Walk & Roll to School Day is an annual event that involves communities from across the country (and globe!) walking and rolling to school on the same day. It began in 1997 as a one-day event. Today, thousands of schools across America—from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico—participate every October. Over time, this celebration has become part of a movement for year-round safe routes to school. Join children and adults around the world to celebrate the benefits of walking and bicycling.

We will meet in the city parking lot near the gazebo at 7:15 AM and will begin walking/riding to school at 7:20 AM. Parents can drop their students off to join in the walk but are encouraged to walk along. If your child is riding, we do need you to stay with your child to supervise.

Everyone: Please be alert for our young walkers and bikers if you are driving to work at that time. Thank you!

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 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

Fall Parent/Teacher Conferences are on Oct. 14th and 15th. This is a great opportunity to meet with the teacher(s) and your children to discuss how things are going. I strongly encourage everyone to attend. Our building attendance goal for conferences is always 100%. We again are using PTCfast (just like bomber day conferences) for our conference sign-up. The link will be live on Wednesday, Oct. 2nd at 9:00 AM.

***The scholastic book fair put on by our PTO will be running during conferences!

The CARE Dental Clinic is coming to Cannon Falls Schools on Friday October 25th to provide free dental screenings and preventive care at school during regular school hours to qualifying students (uninsured or state-insured and whose families meet certain income guidelines). If you are interested please contact the school nurse for the form. They can be reached at 507-263-6800 ext. 1262.

You may contact the CARE Clinic if you have any questions about the services they provide.

CARE Clinic Phone Number: 651-388-1022

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.

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.

Kindergarten Informances - Week of December 9

1st Grade Informances - Week of March 24

2nd and 3rd Grade Concert - April 24

4th and 5th Grade Concert - February 27

We will be having a Fall Bomber Academy session this year that will tentatively be starting after our Fall break. Students are recommended by their classroom teacher using district assessments. This will run on Tuesday's and Thursday's from 3:00-4:15 PM. Please look for registration paperwork to come home if your child's teacher believes it to be a good fit for him/her. The amount of students we will be able to service will be pending our teacher availability.

If you are volunteering in the classroom for parties or chaperoning for a field trip 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.

If you have district transportation questions please contact Alison Godfrey at godfrey.alison@cf.k12.mn.us or by calling 507-263-3597.

• Oct. 8 Jostens Picture Retakes 7:30 AM - 11:00 AM- Event Code: FE15824
• Oct. 9 Fire Safety Presentations to Students
• Oct. 9 National Walk & Roll to School Day
• Oct. 11 NO SCHOOL- Staff Development Day
  
• Oct. 14 & 15 Fall Parent/Teacher Conferences (and scholastic book fair)
• Oct. 17-18 NO SCHOOL (MEA Break: Education Minnesota)
• Oct. 22 5th grade Kindness Retreat
• Oct. 25 PTO Family Halloween Event 5-7 PM