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Ridgeway RAP February 23, 2024
Phone (573)214-3550 ~ Fax (573)214-3551
Sibling Kindergarten Registration
As we prepare for next year's Kindergarten class, it is time to let the Ridgeway office know if you have a younger sibling of a current or former Ridgeway student entering Kindergarten next year. In order to hold a spot for your child, please let the office know by completing this form https://forms.gle/frfe8dbPjNdfy8Ub8 by Wednesday, February 28, 2023.
Upcoming Events
February 2024
- Wednesday, February 28: Parent-Teacher-Student Conferences & Book Fair 3:00 - 6:30 PM
- Thursday, February 29: Parent-Teacher-Student Conferences & Book Fair 3:00 - 6:30 PM
March 2024
- Friday, March 1: No School
- Friday, March 8: Munch-n-Read 1:50 - 2:20 PM
- Tuesday, March 12: Parent Advisory Council 6:00 PM
- Tuesday, March 12: PTSA Meeting 6:30 PM
- Monday, March 18 to Friday, March 22: Kindness Week
- Wednesday, March 20: No School, Teacher Workday
- Monday, March 25 to Friday, March 29: No School, Spring Break
Ridgeway Clubs
February 26 - March 1
Before School:
- Wednesday, February 28 - Running Club
- Friday, March 1 - No School
After School:
- Monday, February 26 - Building Club, Kindness Club
- Tuesday, February 27 - Missouri Wildlife Club
- Wednesday, February 28 - No Clubs: Parent-Teacher-Student Conferences
- Thursday, February 29- No Clubs: Parent-Teacher-Student Conferences
- Friday, March 1 - No Clubs
Principal's Pen
We are excited to see you at Parent-Student-Teacher conferences next week! Please prepare for conferences by following these suggestions:
- Watch for a reminder email from SignUp Genius two days before your conference.
- Be prompt or early for your assigned conference time.
- Please bring your child to the conference.
- The conference time will pass quickly. Help the teacher keep your conversation to 15 minutes. The teacher will want to give the next family their time as well.
- In advance, write down any questions you have. Bring them to the conference.
- Visit the Book Fair in the media center. All students get to put their name in a drawing for free book boxes, no purchase is necessary.
- Claim items in the Lost-n-Found.
Award Nominations - We need your help!
Hello Ridgeway Families and Community!
Each year the Columbia Fund for Academic Excellence recognizes one elementary teacher district-wide in each of the following categories: Outstanding K-2 Educator, Outstanding 3-5 Educator, Outstanding Educator in a Specialized Area and Outstanding New Teacher.
Each school determines a representative in each category. At Ridgeway we had staff cast their votes for who should represent our school at the district level. We are now collecting letters of support for each nominee. These letters are compiled into a nomination packet and sent on to the district selection committee who determines the district-wide winner of each award. These are our Ridgeway Nominees for the CFAE award (Columbia Fund for Academic Excellence).
Outstanding K-2 Educator: Alyssa Mincke
Outstanding 3-5 Educator: Alex Gray
Outstanding Educator in a Specialized Area: Rebecca Munsterman
Outstanding New Teacher: Katie Triplett
The quality and quantity of letters in the nomination packet does strongly impact each selection. We are calling on parents to submit letters of support for teachers you have a personal connection with. If you have a young child who would like to draw, that is great too! You may submit more than one letter for each person if multiple people in your family want to submit a letter of support (children, parents, grandparents, etc.). Please submit a letter in support of these candidates by noon on Friday, March 1. Letters/drawings must be in PDF format. Please note that you will have to log into a Google account in order to upload. If you do not have a Google account or have technical difficulties when trying to upload, please email your PDF letters to Taylor Graves (tgraves@cpsk12.org) or bring a hard copy to the RWE office.
Click HERE to upload your letter(s)!
Book Fair
Our Book Fair coincides with Parent-Teacher-Student conferences, so we hope to see you all there!
Wednesday, February 28, 3:00-6:30
Thursday, February 29, 3:00-6:30
Students can preview the selection ahead of time, but sales will only be conducted Wednesday and Thursday after school.
If you want to get a head start on shopping, you can order from our online fair now and at the conclusion of the book fair items will be shipped to our school and sent home with your student.
https://efairs.literati.com/?school=ridgeway-elementary-school-columbia-mo
Unit Notes
Unit A
Please make note that there is a change in our walking field trip to Hickman High School for the puppet show. We will now be going on Tuesday, February 27.
Unit B
Mrs. Basham and Mrs. Rice will not be sending home math homework until March 8th. Please continue to practice basic facts at home with your student. Please check with your student that they have a working set of headphones at school. If not, they need a working pair for future testing. Unit B has snack time each day! Please remind your student to pack one to have. We welcome and appreciate snack donations for those who sometimes forget!
Specialist News
Greetings RWE Families,
It is a great privilege to be a part of the RWE educational team. The Comprehensive School Counseling Program reaches all students in the areas of academic, personal/social and career growth. Classroom lessons, small groups, individual counseling, crisis counseling support as well as system support within the school is part of a school counselors job. 😊 RWE is a great place to be. If you would like more support for your student or family, please reach out anytime. I am here to help. I will be available for part of conference time. Please feel free to stop by my office or call to schedule a time to visit. 😊
Here are the happenings in counseling class
The Power of Words: We read the book Chrysanthemum and completed a wrinkled heart activity. Students learned that the words they use can have the power to help, support, and encourage or how using unkind words have a damaging effect. Students are learning about empathy in their second step lessons. The wrinkled heart activity compliments and expands on that learning!
Diversity: Students learned about diversity and the beauty of differences and respecting each other. Students learned that there is diversity everywhere. We looked at a map of the earth and noticed the differences of geography, weather, land forms, countries, cities, languages, cultures, people, animals, customs, holidays, personalities, likes dislikes, physical appearance, abilities,strengths, fingerprints, snowflakes and noticed the beauty of diversity in our world and learning about and respecting each other. Children’s Literature used for these lessons: Unit B and C: Authentically Addie: (a young girl with cerebral palsy visits the zoo and learns about the beauty of animals with differing abilities.) Unit A: Its okay to be different
Creation of calm: Chill Skills
Students learned about recognizing their feelings using weather feelings. What is your weather today? What is your sunny (something good), your cloudy (a challenge), your rainbow (hopeful or a goal you have set.) We discussed the Norwegian art of Hygge during the cold dark winter months for ways of creating connection and kindness with others as well as learning skills/exercises for calm and peace. This includes unplugging from technology and taking time to enjoy calm and peaceful activity (art, nature, music, exercise, rest and time with family and friends). Students learned about grounding techniques, practiced stretching and heart breathing and drew their peaceful places/activities.
Unit B and C: Chill Skills Assessment: What skills do you use to be calm? Children’s Literature:
What does it mean to be present?
UNIT C: Middle School Transition Discussion: We discussed feelings and did check-ins and goal setting for the New Year with calming techniques. 😊 Roll and Respond: Using Perseverance- Growth mindset, Academics, Study Skills:say it/ read it out loud/ record it/ hear it, see it, and think about the concept you are learning- Middle school video: round table discussion/dice game Video: https://youtu.be/wZxEYdOWDm8
Worked on goal setting and middle school transitions, careers and making plans for future, discussed how the skills they are learning now will help them now and in the future. We discussed skills for learning - to do lists, staying organized, hard work, self care, enjoyment of learning and perseverance. How to set short and long term goals. Goal worksheet:personal/ academic Skills: woodpecker/ perseverance
Conflict resolution: relationship and problem solving skills:
We discussed how to handle conflict. Students learned that conflicts are normal and learned problem solving strategies for working out conflicts: get calm first, size of the problem, getting help from an adult when needed, talking it out, finding a win win solution, turn taking, being fair, using kind words, encouraging others, have fun, using I statements: I feel_________when___________can we___________, what is the size of the problem? Get help from an adult when needed if the problem is big or unsafe. We worked on being assertive, with kindness. What makes conflicts better? Stop and pause, get calm first, use empathy, consider the other person’s perspective, take a break, use a kind tone of voice. What makes conflicts worse: arguing, complaining, not playing fair, being bossy, yelling, etc.Conflict to Resolution in 4 Steps
Cooperation: Students learned the value of cooperation and examples of cooperation in our world, the world of work, school, sports, and the animal kingdom: ants, bees, elephants, students took part in team building using strategies of cooperation including listening, talking it out, doing your part, encouraging others, being fair, brainstorming solutions, sharing ideas and learning the value of a job well done. Students created pictures, and took part in team building activities that required skills of cooperation.
Tiger Tuesday
PTSA News
Open positions in PTSA
•President: Looking for a way to get more involved in your child’s school experience and meet more parents? Then president is for you! No prior experience being on a board required and you will be very supported every step of the way by an incredible team. If you have any questions about the position or know a parent who would be excellent at this please email brittanyeast23@gmail.com.
•Deputy Treasurer: Interested in getting a firsthand look on how extra funds are used at Ridgeway? Then deputy treasurer is for you! This is a support position to our Treasurer and perfect for getting your feet wet if you’ve been looking for a way to be more involved but worried about time and energy commitment. Please email ridgewayptsa@gmail.com with any questions.
•Yearbook Chair: Looking for more of a liaison position between parents and teachers? Then yearbook chair is for you! We have an excellent team of teachers leading students in both a yearbook and photography club but they could use extra help in making sure yearbooks get put together and finalized. *Must have volunteer clearance to be present on school grounds without supervision. Please email ridgewayptsa@gmail.com if interested.
FunDay Donations
The FunDay Donations Committee would LOVE your help and input! If ANY of these describe you, please consider lending a hand in soliciting and collecting donations to make FunDay as successful as ever!
- Your employer offers charitable donations
- You own a business whose goods and/or services could be donated for prize packages or silent auctions
- You don’t mind reaching out to organizations near or far via phone, email, or in-person to inquire about FunDay donations
- You don’t have a ton of time for calling or emailing, but you have interesting ideas and are willing to share them!
Please contact RWEFunDay@gmail.com or SamHutmacher@gmail.com to learn more!
Ridgeway Tours for Prospective Families
It is time for prospective parents to visit Ridgeway! Tours begin next week, and the lottery is right around the corner this coming spring. Our Ridgeway families are one of the best ways to get the word out about Ridgeway. The below image is also attached as a PDF. You will notice the image has a QR code that takes you right to information on our website about Ridgeway. Please share the image/PDF with families that have a student entering kindergarten next year!