Timberwolf Times
March 11, 2022
Tiffany Ridge Elementary School
School Hours: 9:10-4:00
School Phone: 816-359-4400
Principal: Desiree Rios Assistant Principal: Megan Pudenz
Counselor: Leslie Andes Social Worker: Gayle Laney
Office Staff: Robin Meyers and Andrea Berka
Nurse: Nicole Snodgrass
Important Dates!
March 11th: Timberwolf Spirit Day!
March 11th: End of 3rd Quarter
March 11th: 1/2 Day for Students, Dismissal at 12:50 (Lunch will be served)
March 12th-20th: NO SCHOOL, Spring Break
March 21st-April 8th: One School, One Book (Family Reading Event)
March 22nd: PTA Meeting, 6:30pm, TR Library
March 22nd: Culver's Fundraiser, All Day
March 24th: College Spirit Day
March 25th: Timberwolf Spirit Day
March 25th: Report Cards Distributed to Families
April 18th: No School
April 21st: STEM Night/Student Showcase, 6-7:30pm
April 22nd: Global Cardboard Challenge Day
April 23rd-24th: Park Hill Art Festival, Park Hill High School, 10am-4pm
May 5th: Kindergarten Kick-off, 5:30-7:00pm
Silent Auction Information:
The Silent Auction will close at TODAY, March 10th, at 4pm. Families who submitted the winning bids will be notified on Friday, March 11th. Teacher treasure totals will also be sent to families. Payment for Silent Auction items and Teacher Treasures can be paid with cash or check (TR PTA). An online option to pay will be available when we send you confirmation of your total. When sending cash or check payments, please include the name of your child and what Teacher Treasures you are purchasing.
Bidder Information Form - https://forms.gle/f2pKrvwHmD4oqWK69
Silent Auction - https://sites.google.com/parkhill.k12.mo.us/trptasilentauction/home
Teacher Treasures - https://forms.gle/vJTRM982245DeSQw9
Get excited!!! One School, One Book begins on Monday, March 21! You should have received a copy of Frindle at the math carnival. If you weren’t able to attend, books will be delivered to your child’s classroom. Each family’s oldest or only child will receive a copy to keep. Set 15-20 minutes each night aside as a family during these weeks. It will be a wonderful experience to read as a family and discuss the chapters you read.
Let us know if you have questions,
Amy Hoban: hobana@parkhill.k12.mo.us
Lorenna Anderson: andersonlo@parkhill.k12.mo.us
Service Project for 4th Quarter
Parents and students, start saving those aluminum pop-tabs for our Tiffany Ridge spring service project! Your tabs will help support our local Ronald McDonald House. More information to follow soon!
Survey for Parents
Reminder: Approved Birthday Treats
Thank you for understanding that all classroom treats must come from this list. All treats and food items shared with students must be free of allergens that could threaten the health of some students. Please bring birthday treats ahead of time (two hours after the start of school, at the latest).
- Stickers
- Erasers
- Pencils
- Crazy straws
- Blow Pops
- Juice boxes
- Popcorn
- Smarties
- Dum Dum lollipops
- Jelly Belly
- Nerds
- Ring Pops
- Skittles
- Sour Patch Kids
- Starburst
- Swedish Fish
- Life Saver Gummies
No-Tax-Increase Ballot Propositions
The Park Hill Board of Education placed Proposition I and Proposition N on the April 5 ballot. Together, these questions mean no tax rate increase, and they would allow us to maintain the community's investment in our facilities and bring them up to date. They would also let us build a 12th elementary to help us move students out of classroom trailers and maintain class sizes. And they would help us maintain our high-quality school operations, including keeping our staff salaries competitive, so we can recruit and retain the best teachers and support staff.
You can find out more information on the district website, including specific ways the no-tax-increase ballot propositions will affect our school.
[link to: https://www.parkhill.k12.mo.us/news-and-stories/2021-2022/no-tax-increase-ballot-propositions]
Kindergarten Kick-off
Children who turn five on or before July 31 are eligible for kindergarten for the 2022-2023 school year. If you have a neighbor with an incoming kindergarten student, please share this information. Beginning April 4th, you can enroll your child in your assigned school. For now, mark your calendar for the Kindergarten Kickoff event on May 5th. Please check out our district website for more details coming soon!
Technology/Phones and Elementary Students
Technology plays a big part in many of our lives today. While it can be helpful in many ways, it is important to weigh the advantages against the disadvantages – especially in elementary aged students. Having access to computers, iPads, tablets, and smartphones can be educationally beneficial to students. Over the past two years technology has connected students and classrooms who would have otherwise been isolated and without a consistent source of education. It also encourages active learning and growth, can incorporate different learning styles, and helps prepare students for real world experiences.
However, overuse of technology can cause disrupted sleep, social isolation, heightened attention-deficit symptoms, and impaired emotional and social intelligence. Studies have shown that by age 11 more than half of the children in the US have smartphones, and that students 8-12 years old spend on average 5 hours a day on a screen. Many students at Tiffany Ridge are coming to school tired and reporting that they ‘snuck’ the phone or tablet late at night and stayed up on the internet. Not only is this a concern for the lack of much needed sleep elementary students need, but they are also being exposed to content that is far above their social and emotional age level. Other students are bringing their phones to school and have trouble keeping them in their backpacks and lockers. (Phones are not allowed to be out of their backpack during school hours.)
If you are concerned about your student’s tech usage here are some simple steps, you can follow:
- Watch things together. This will help you know what their interests really are, but also allow you to lead conversations about the content. Use the time to promote your family values that are either displayed or not displayed in the videos you watch.
Set restrictions for both time and location of screen usage. Many phone companies have parental controls installed that allow you to shut off device usage at certain times and limit app or certain content.
Do not make screen time THE reward (or consequence). Making screen time THE reward or taking it away for unruly behavior makes it even more desirable. Choose another desirable reward for good behavior.
Encourage other activities. Balance indoor and outdoor activities.
For more information on navigating technology with your students check out https://childmind.org/topics/screen-time-technology/
Weekly Pack Point Winners!
At Tiffany Ridge, we utilize Positive Behavior Interventions and Support (PBIS). We recognize students who are actively meeting our four core expectations of being a Problem Solver, Acting Responsibly, Caring for Everyone, and Keeping Safe. We will highlight students in various ways over the course of the year. Here are last week's winners!
March Curriculum Connections
Check out the linked Curriculum Connections below to see what our Timberwolves will be working on in each subject area during the month of March! We want to share the learning topics at all of the grade levels so that you are familiar with what topics and content are taught this month! Your child's teacher is always happy to provide more details should you have questions!
March Curriculum Connections: English Language Arts
March Curriculum Connections: Math
Family Support Service Options:
Nominate a Staff Member for the Park Hill STAR Award
That is why we present the Park Hill Star award once a month to a Pre-K or elementary teacher, a secondary teacher and a support employee. Anyone can nominate an employee for this award by using the form below. It asks you to share how your nominee demonstrates our district values of continuous improvement, high expectations, integrity, visionary leadership and student focus. You can also share how your nominee supports the goals in our district’s strategic plan.
Tiffany Ridge PTA
2021-2022 PTA Board
President: Krista HeaivilinVice President of Fund Raising: Christine Carlson
Vice President of Membership: Amy Hoban
Secretary: Michelle Anderson
Treasurer: Courtney Pratten
Tiffany Ridge Elementary
Follow us for up-to-date information on all the events at Tiffany Ridge through social media!
Email: TiffanyRidgeAdministrativeAssistants@parkhill.k12.mo.us
Website: https://tiffanyridge.parkhill.k12.mo.us/
Location: 5301 Northwest Old Tiffany Springs Road, KCMO, MO, United States
Phone: (816) 359-4400
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TiffanyRidgeElementary/
Twitter: @TiffanyRidgeES