Minne Scoop
December 2, 2021
A Note From Mr. Archer
Minnehaha Family,
It’s hard to believe we are already in December!! There is much to share with you but I will try to be brief.
Minnehaha Extreme Makeover!
First, a huge THANK YOU to our community for a positive vote on the building bond. This vote shows how serious our community is regarding the education of their children. Thank you for putting your trust in us and for the long-overdue opportunity to give the Minnehaha an “extreme makeover”! I will be providing monthly updates on this project via the “Minne Scoop”. However, the district will maintain the “Anchor our Future”, website during the building process as a way for the entire community to stay informed during the planning and building process.
COVID Update
As of this morning, we have 6 COVID-positive students and/or staff and 14 in quarantine.
The Delta variant hit and bumped our numbers up a bit this past month but things have settled back down. We continue to work on distancing and masking at the Minnehaha. Regardless of opinions on the efficacy of these measures, this community must be doing something right as we have avoided the ramped spread seen in some schools. One regional school actually went back to distance learning for a short period of time. Parents deserve much of the credit. You have been diligent in keeping your students healthy and informing the school nurse when your children have tested or when they present symptoms of infection. Keeping our schools open and our children healthy is truly a community-wide effort.
Please call even on the weekends!
If your child is diagnosed with COVID over the weekend please call the school ASAP and leave a message to let us know. Once we know we can start the contact tracing process right away and avoid a lot of confusion on Monday morning. Jenny Falk and Nurse Sherri monitor their messages over the weekend.
Lastly, attendance.
State statute requires schools to keep accurate attendance records and report truancy to Lake County. As you can imagine, COVID has made this very difficult. We have an attendance committee that meets monthly to discuss any attendance trends. If we notice concerns we send out attendance letters. These letters range from simple reminders about good attendance to truancy notifications. If Covid has made this process hard for our schools, it is even more difficult for parents. Parents are told to keep kids home if they are sick or symptomatic. They are told to quarantine their children if they have a close exposure. Add to that numerous other reasons for absences such as vacations and doctor's appointments, and the result will be unintended attendance issues.
When we monitor attendance and respond to excessive absences we do so out of legal obligation and with good motives. There are mountains of research showing that good regular attendance is critical to a child's success in school. Especially at the elementary level. After so much disruption over the past couple of years, we want to do everything we can to support you in getting your children to school. With all that said we understand these are difficult times. If you receive an attendance letter, don't panic. Reach out to the school so we can figure out how to alleviate the concern together. Again your child's education is a true team effort.
Enjoy the upcoming holiday season!
Principal Archer
Kindergarten Thanksgiving Balloon Parade
Minnehaha Upcoming Events
- Thursday, December 9th ~ Midquarter
- Monday, December 27th-Thursday, December 30th ~ Holiday Break
- Monday, January 17th ~ Martin Luther King Jr. Day - No School
- Thursday, January 20th ~ End of Quarter 2
- Monday, February 21st ~ President's Day - No School
- Wednesday, February 23rd ~ Midquarter
From the Nurse's Office
For those families who have chosen to vaccinate their kids, please notify the nurse’s office if your child has received the vaccine or is scheduled to receive one. This will help our process to determine the quarantine guidelines of students in the event of a positive Covid case in your student's class. Guidelines can be found in our safe learning plan which can be located on our district website under the COVID Hub tab. Again, thank you to all families for working together to keep the students safe and healthy. Please call your nurse’s office to report positive Covid cases and close contacts.
In addition to Covid infections, we also have been experiencing cases of strep throat, RSV, and influenza in the students. Following are helpful guidelines as to when your student can return to school after being diagnosed.
Strep Throat - Your student can return to school 12 hours after antibiotic treatment has started.
RSV or Influenza - Keep your child home until they are fever-free for 24 hours (without fever-reducing medicine) and your child is healthy enough for routine activities.
K-5 Virtual Minnehaha Holiday Program
Minnehaha students will present holiday music that will be recorded and sent to our families. The recordings will take place on December 14th, 15th & 16th.
- Tuesday, December 14th ~ VanKekerix, Gilsvik, Scamehorn, T. Cavallin, A. Cavallin & Rees
- Wednesday, December 15th ~ Lundquist, Hagglund, Voltz, Hurd, Peterson & Haavisto
- Thursday, December 16th ~ Fahlin, Claflin, Edlund, LeBlanc, Bopp & Olson
*** All students should dress in festive holiday clothes. Kindergarten and first-grade students should bring a scarf & hat.
What We're Up To!
Student Spotlight ~ Kyndyn Maydole
Teacher: Mrs. Hurd
Student's Accomplishment: Kyndyn is very bright and LOVES school. He comes in every day with the best attitude and a “Good Morning!” for everyone we meet in the halls. Kyndyn loves to read and especially likes Pete the Cat and Dogman books.
Staff Spotlight ~ Andrea Ruberg - Title One Teacher
About Me: My name is Andrea Ruberg. I've taught at the Minnehaha for 4 years now and love it. I am getting married in July and am looking forward to that very much!
Education: Hermantown High School, University of North Dakota for Elementary Education and a minor in Special Education and a kindergarten endorsement
Hobbies: Some of my favorite hobbies include baking and crafting. Baking is a lot of fun, especially when I get to make stuff for others. I especially enjoy crafting and making things with my Cricut.
Why Did You Go Into Education: I went into education because I love working with kids and being able to help them become the best version of themselves. I thoroughly enjoy opportunities to teach and watch kids become successful.
What do you enjoy most about the Minnehaha: What I enjoy most is the students. They put a smile on my face every day and get me excited to come to work.
About Us
Email: barcher@isd381.org
Website: https://www.isd381.k12.mn.us/minnehaha/
Location: Minnehaha Elementary School, 7th Street, Two Harbors, MN, USA
Phone: 218-834-8221
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Minnehaha-Elementary-Lake-Superior-School-District-103493627983228