Falcon Ridge Elementary Newsletter
April 2021
Important Information:
Office/Main Line: 952-758-1600
24/7 Attendance Line: 952-758-1605
FR Nurse: 952-758-1606
Fax: 952-758-1699
- Nutrition Services: 952-758-1774 and Lunch Menus/Times
- Transportation: 952-758-1480 and FR Drop Off/Pick Up
- Campus Portal: Campus Portal and Instructions
- Calendar/Dates to Note: Falcon Ridge Calendar
- School Supply Lists: Falcon Ridge School Supply Lists
- MN Dept. of Revenue K-12 Tax Benefits: K-12 Tax Benefits
- Parent Advisory Committee (PAC): FR PAC Website
- Hybrid/DL/COVID-19 Information: Important Information
- Facebook: Like Falcon Ridge Elementary on Facebook.
- Twitter: Follow FalconRidge721 on Twitter.
- Instagram: Follow FalconRidge721 on Instagram.
- Website: https://www.npaschools.org/falcon-ridge
Attendance/Absences, Vacations and Pickup Messages
Just a reminder about messages regarding your child(ren):
- The office needs to be notified about attendance (illness, running late, appointments, etc.). Calls should be made by 9:10 am on the day that your child(ren) will be absent to be considered excused. The 24-hour attendance line is 952-758-1605.
- If your child will be absent for any reason, please call 952-758-1605 or send a note prior to them being absent.
- Pickup (during or at end of day) emails should be sent to the three office assistants: lbisek@isd721.org, nschmitz@isd721.org, and amusil@isd721.org. This will ensure that the office, teachers, or substitute teachers will receive the message. Sending a note to school or calling the main line (952-758-1600) are also great options.
If you email the teacher about any of the above, it is important that you also notify the office (952-758-1600) or attendance line (952-758-1605). Thank you!
Falcon Ridge March Students of the Month
Congratulations to the Falcon Ridge March Students of the Month!
Square 1 Art Spring Fundraiser/Artwork
- April 5 - Custom catalog order packets arrive and are sent home for students who participated.
- April 16 - Orders and money are shipped/purchased online by today (no late orders accepted).
- May 7 - Approximate product arrival date.
2020-21 Falcon Ridge Yearbooks
Principal's Perspective - David Giesen
Falcon Ridge Families,
We hope you are enjoying your spring break!
Educational Requests
Requests for your child(ren)'s placement for the 2021-2022 school year need to be submitted in writing/email to me (Mr. Giesen) no later than April 23, 2021. Any requests received after that date will not be considered.
All requests must include a legitimate educational concern that should be considered when balancing class lists. Individual student learning styles and specific student characteristics are examples of information that can be shared. Please do not include teacher names when submitting information.
There are several items taken into account when creating class lists, such as ratio of boys to girls, students with higher educational needs and students with challenging behaviors, to name only a few. Fluctuations in enrollment may create the need to increase or decrease class size. Creating class lists is a challenging task; it is critical that all classes are as balanced as possible to maintain an optimal educational environment for all students. We will make every effort to honor requests, but there are no guarantees.
MCA Testing Dates
Please see below for our Falcon Ridge MCA testing dates. We ask that parents make efforts to schedule appointments around these times, if at all possible.
Reading (April 12-16)
Grade 5 (1:00-2:30)
Grade 4 (11:05-12:15)
Grade 3 (9:30-10:40)
Math (April 19-23)
Grade 5 (1:00-2:30)
Grade 4 (11:05-12:15)
Grade 3 (9:30-10:40
Science (April 26-28)
Grade 5 (1:00-2:30)
End-of-Year Information
As we look ahead to the end of the school year and the celebrations that typically accompany this time, we are hoping to safely hold as many of these events as possible. At this time, it is difficult to predict what we will be able to hold, but please know that we are having discussions and looking for ways to possibly hold ACES in the Sun, Track and Field Day (5th Grade) and grade level/classroom picnics. More information will follow in the next few weeks, if we are able to hold these events.
Mr. David Giesen
Falcon Ridge Elementary Principal
(952) 758-1601 and dgiesen@isd721.org
Staff Perspective - Terrye Wagner, 5th Grade Teacher
- There is joy and laughter that fill the hallways by students and staff each day.
- Teachers are rising up to a new challenge and being innovative in ways we never thought we would teach.
- Each day, we have the reminder of just how important our connections with students are.
- We recognize the importance of being together, no matter what the learning may look like that day in the classroom.
- We have made adjustments and continue to adjust to meet our students where they are at, not where we thought they would be.
Fundraising Made Simple
In working with our Falcon Ridge PAC, I want to make all of our families aware of some easy ways to support our students at Falcon Ridge by using a few simple steps with businesses that you may already be spending money with:
- Shutterfly - Simply click on this Shutterfly link and start shopping. A percentage will go directly to our Falcon Ridge PAC.
- Amazon Smile - when you shop online at Amazon. This will help raise money for the Falcon Ridge PAC, which supports all students and all staff! Again, it's easy to do so: 1. Sign in to smile.amazon.com in your desktop or mobile phone browser, 2. from your desktop, go to "Your Account" from the navigation at the top of the page, 3. select the option to "Change your Charity" from the options at the bottom of the page, 4. choose Falcon Ridge Elementary PAC. For every eligible purchase you make on smile.amazon.com, Amazon will donate 0.5% directly to our Falcon Ridge PAC.
- Coborns School Rewards - Coborn's, Inc. is committed to donating $150,000 to local entities during the 2019-2020 school year. The points your school earns will help grow their share of the $150,000 total. It's like a pie; the size of your school's slice will depend on how many points they have received. Schools should encourage their supporters to register for their location at moreRewards.com: 1. Go to moreRewards.com, 2. create a login, 3. proceed to login, 4. go to "manage my membership," 5. choose school rewards, 6. select Falcon Ridge, and you are done! It is just that easy! You can also easily add it through the More Rewards phone app: 1. go to rewards, 2. slide the school rewards button to green, 3. below the button there should be an option for you to change to your school, 4. search for Falcon Ridge, and 5. select Falcon Ridge.
2020-21 Falcon Ridge Monthly Character Traits
R-espect (September)
E-ffort (October)
A-ttitude (November)
P-ride (December)
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C-ooperation (January)
A-ssertion (February)
R-esponsibility (March)
E-mpathy (April)
S-elf Control (May)