Dear Valley View Families,

As 2024 comes to a close, we reflect on the incredible growth and achievements of our students and community. We are so proud of your student’s success thus far this year. We have seen tremendous growth academically, as well as social emotionally. Your continued partnership is critical to your child’s success. December is a busy and exciting month, and we’re thrilled to share updates, upcoming events, and important information with you!

• Cold Weather Gear: Please ensure your child comes to school dressed appropriately for winter weather. This includes a coat, hat, gloves, snow pants, and boots. Labeling items helps return lost belongings! Students will go outside for recess unless the temperature drops below 0 degrees temperature or windchill, therefore it is critical to have them dressed in cold weather gear to enjoy the outside weather.
• Parent Drop Off: When dropping off students, please make sure you stay in your car when dropping off by the curb. If you would like to walk your child to the front door, we kindly ask that you park in a parking space and then walk your child to the front doors. The drop off lane is for parents who are dropping their child at the curb and then leaving immediately. There is no parking in this area. We also ask that you stay off your cellphone while in the parking lot for student safety.
• Educational Benefits Forms: If you haven’t filled out your Educational Benefits form, please contact the office or Mr. Rene to do so. These forms bring money into our district to better support our learners.
• Volunteer Opportunities: Mr. Kevin has shifted roles and is our new Full-Service Community School Coordinator. Please reach out to him if you are looking to volunteer at Valley View. Each of you have talents and wisdom we would welcome in our school. We are always looking for volunteers to support our classrooms or our after-school programs. If you are interested in volunteering, please call Kevin at 763-528-4256.
• Winter Break: School will be closed for winter break from Monday, December 23 through Friday, January 3. Classes will resume on Monday, January 6, 2025.

Thank you for your continued support of Valley View Elementary. Let's have a great December!

Warm regards,
Jason Kuhlman

Hello everyone, my name is Rene Argueta, and I'm thrilled to be the new Home School Liaison this year! I'm passionate about creating a supportive and engaging learning environment where every student feels valued and has the opportunity to thrive. With 12 years of experience in family /community programs, I'm excited to be part of the excellent work that is been done here at Valley View.

As a home school liaison, my primary role is to act as a bridge between your family and the school, ensuring open communication and supporting your child's academic success by providing information about school activities, helping you understand your child's progress, addressing any concerns you might have, and connecting you with resources that can further assist your child's learning journey at home.

Please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns; I'm here to partner with you to make this a wonderful learning journey! My phone number is 763-528-4202.

PreK has finished our first round of assessments. You will see these three times this year. If you haven’t already, you will receive the first report card soon! It is amazing how fast the year is going. The children are getting the routines and rituals down pretty well. We always continue with reminders, and continuing to model the expectations for school.

We will be starting the clothing study soon! They will learn all about appropriate clothing for certain weather and jobs. They will learn to zipper, button, fasten, and lace. We will be helping to teach children how to put on winter gear. The order we teach it in is shoes off, snow pants on, boots on, jacket on, hat on, zipper coat, and gloves on. These skills are very important for pre-k to learn, to take care of themselves.

In December, Valley View Kindergartners will be learning about retelling a story with a gingerbread theme. We will read multiple books with different variations of the text. Then students will write and act out the story to show their understanding. This is a fun month to watch our young scholars interact with books and share their skills. Our projects help to build our fine motor skills with cutting, coloring, and painting. It is so fun to see how unique each student’s project turns out!

This past month students have learned about shapes. We have read about shapes, painted shapes, and even created a fun shape person. Learning in Kindergarten is always fun. Our students work really hard and are proud of the work they do.

We've been having a wonderful time learning and growing together in first grade! In math, we've been diving into subtraction, discovering how to "take away" and solve problems using various strategies.

One recent highlight in our class was a hands-on engineering project inspired by the "Three Little Pigs"! Using candy and toothpicks, students built structures to see if they could withstand the huffing and puffing of the "Big Bad Wolf"—which was really a fan (or hair dryer!). It was so much fun to watch their excitement as they tested their creations.

In literacy, we're building important reading, writing, and discussion skills. Recently we’ve explored animal habitats, talked about various jobs in the community, and looked at how people throughout history have worked to make our world a fairer place.

Thank you for your support. We look forward to another month filled with fun and learning!

Warmly,
The First Grade Team

Hello!

The second-grade students have been busy at work! We’ve learned about the elements of fiction: characters, setting, problem, solution and how characters can change throughout a story. We are now learning all about nonfiction and text features. We’ve worked hard to understand place value and the values of each digit in a three-digit number. We can’t wait to see what this quarter brings!

The Science of Spin® is coming to Valley View Elementary!

On December 2, “Dazzling Dave”, National Yo-Yo Master, will present a program called Science of Spin®. As part of this program, he will also teach the sport of yo-yo in Physical Education.

Dave teaches science through the use of toys and sporting equipment. This helps children understand how physics play a part of their everyday life. Yo-Yoing is a part of his demonstration. It is a skill that develops hand-eye coordination, builds self-esteem, enhances motor skills, and teaches the benefits of practice. It is also a lot of fun!

Yo-Yos will be provided in Physical Education, so buying a yo-yo is not mandatory. However, if your child does not have a good working yo-yo, the high-quality type used in class will be available at school to purchase with cash from Monday, December 2 through Thursday, December 12.

Items for sale are: yo-yo’s $10 & $15, yo-yo string $2, and a yo-yo hook for $4.

Parents and families,

With winter illness on the rise, here are some reminders of the health policies/guidelines we have in place to prevent the spread of illness and keep our students healthy.

When to keep your children home from school:

● Fever over 100 degrees F or higher

● Vomiting or diarrhea

● Rash of unknown origin that has not been assessed by a provider

● Drainage from the eye(s) that is yellow/green in color

● A positive Covid, Strep throat, or Influenza test result

● Uncontrolled cough/respiratory symptoms

When your student may return to school:

● When they have been fever-free for 24 hours without fever reducing medications (ibuprofen or acetaminophen)

● When they have been free from vomiting/diarrhea without medication for 24 hours

Please keep your children home when they present with the symptoms listed above and call their school's attendance line each day they are absent. When calling the attendance line, please:

● Say and spell your child’s name and state what classroom/grade they are in, the reason they are staying home, and your phone number.

● If they have tested positive for an illness (for example: Influenza, Covid, Strep Throat, Chicken pox, Measles, etc.)

● Has Influenza-Like-Illness (ILI): a fever of 100.0 degrees F or greater and a sore throat or cough

● Has Measles symptoms = Rash AND Fever AND one of these: Cough OR runny nose OR discharge from eyes

If your child has not yet gotten the Influenza vaccine or Covid booster, please call their provider to discuss. These vaccines are not required by the State of Minnesota, but these immunizations help to reduce the spread and severity of illness in our schools and community. Thank you so much for your cooperation in keeping your student healthy! If you have any health or attendance related questions, please call your school’s health office or the District Nurse and we will assist you.

Thank you,

Keturah Spriggs, RN, PHN, LSN (she/her) - District Nurse for CHPS

spriggsk@colheights.k12.mn.us

(763) 528-4580

Columbia Heights High School Theater Presents "Shrek the Musical"! Head to Far Far Away and step into the world of Shrek, Princess Fiona, Donkey and the rest of the crew NEXT WEEK!

All shows will take place in the CHHS Performing Arts Center (PAC):

• Thursday, December 5th at 7:00 p.m.
• Friday, December 6th at 7:00 p.m.
• Saturday, December 7th at 2:00 p.m.
• Sunday, December 8th at 2:00 p.m.

The show is free for all CHPS staff and students to attend! Tickets for adults are $6 and non-CHPS student tickets are $4, which you can purchase at the door or online.

All Belong, All Succeed

Email: KuhlmanJ@colheights.k12.mn.us
Website: https://www.colheights.k12.mn.us/VVES
Location: 800 49th Avenue Northeast, Columbia Heights, MN, USA
Phone: 763-528-4200
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VVisd13