April Newsletter 2021
Valley View Elementary School
From Principal Kuhlman
Dear Families,
March 13th was the one-year anniversary of leaving school because of the COVID-19 pandemic. At that time, we thought we would be leaving for a couple weeks, not even imagining an entire year. During that time many things have occurred in our world that have affected each and every one of us. The murder of George Floyd, the COVID-19 pandemic, the presidential election, and the storming of the capital, to mention a few, have deeply affected our community, as well as our children. In a normal school year, we would have been able to deeply address these issues in the classroom and help students process through them and the emotions, fears, and anxiety they have caused.
We are ready to support our students in their social-emotional needs, both in-person and virtually. We are a safe place for all our students. We are a space that works hard to be free of hate and racism. We love and cherish our children and families and work hard understand their perspectives. Our job is to help our children process their feelings, to identify the inequities they are experiencing, and work to correct these injustices in society. With the upcoming trial of Derek Chauvin and targeted hate crimes towards Asian Americans, we are anticipating our students will be experiencing some strong emotions. We have worked with our social worker and staff to prepare for class discussions that will need to happen to help our students through these times. As a white, male administrator, I cannot begin to understand the experiences our families of color have experienced. What I can do is listen, learn, and interrupt when I see these inequities happening. My mission is to create a space where all our students are honored and respected for who they are. I am always available to listen and talk.
I cannot thank everyone enough for the amazing turn out at the Winter Extravaganza. It felt so good to come together as a school community again. We estimated 300 people came throughout our event. I truly appreciate everyone being safe and wearing a mask. I know we are outside, but wanted to err on the side of caution as we came together. With the level of success and safety, I feel very confident we can host our annual Valley View Fun Run on June 5th. We are encouraging families who want to participate in the Fun Run to register when they pick up 4th quarter supplies. We will continue to be extra cautious and require masks during the Fun Run, as well. As the guidance from MDE changes, this may change. However, I strongly encourage our families to stay diligent in wearing masks and washing your hands. We are not out of the woods yet, and want to make sure we keep our students as safe as possible.
Students returning to school has gone very well. We are being very diligent in following all safety protocols and keeping students as socially distanced as possible. Both students and staff are elated to be back. There is a sense of a new normalcy to our lives again. In order to keep this being so successful, we are asking families to quarantine if they travel out of the state for any reason. The length of quarantine depends on if you get tested or not after returning. Students who get tested and are negative can return to school in 7 days. If you choose not to get tested, students will need to stay home for 10 days. If you have any questions, please reach out to Nurse Kelly for advice. During this quarantine period, students are expected to connect with their in-person teachers via Seesaw or other communication methods, or finish all assignment that were posted on Seesaw for that day to be counted “present” for attendance. We acknowledge this can be an inconvenience, but are trying to create the safest learning environment possible for all our learners. Students who opted for in-person learning cannot log onto Zoom with their previous Heights from Home teacher, as they are at very different stages in their curriculum sequence.
Thank you for all that you do to support us, together we will get through this!
Jason Kuhlman
Music
It’s Mr. Chao, music teacher at Valley View! This year music has certainly looked a lot different than previous years. Although challenges arise (singing together or playing instruments), we are making an effort to bring a similar music experience and education to the students at home with the help of our online curriculum.
Kindergarten through 3rd grade have been working on various concepts of music such as beat, tempos, rhythms, and literacy, through different ways like movement, singing, and physical practice. 4th graders have been hard at work with recorders, while the 5th graders learned about the history and the style of jazz in February. I have shared a couple of recorder videos below demonstrating their awesome skill!
Finally, I would like to remind families that music IS literacy! It supports improved fluency in language, learning new vocabulary, comprehension, and many more concepts like the alphabet, counting, and different cultures. While we do sing, use instruments, and play games a lot, the kids are learning much more than what appears on the surface. Music Education is important for all learners, and maybe more so during difficult times. Keep making music while your children are home.
Physical Education (PE)
PE has been very busy learning this year online! From jump ropes, beach balls, bean bags, chalk, cup stacking, cardio drumming, exercise bands to paddleball. Often times family members join in with the students and I ❤ it!! All are welcome in PE from the young to the mature! The up and coming quarter 4 PE activities will be dance, ribbon wands, chalk, and an at home track and field day. Stay active Valley View and I’ll see you on Zoom.
-Mrs. O
Art
LEAPing Between Two Schools
Having the grades 3-5 LEAP program at two buildings (HL and VV) hasn’t felt separate this year, because both LEAP classes have collaborated throughout this school year. Mrs. Nelson (VV) and Ms. Noll (HL) joined together to create a robust distance learning experience with added social-emotional evening experiences on Zoom. As 4th quarter approaches and some students are learning in person and others choose Heights from Home, this collaboration becomes even more evident. Both teachers are teaching across buildings no matter what the students’ learning model. All 41 students can connect with both of their teachers no matter their location. Smaller math and reading groups are taught via Zoom. This class is special with three different grade levels, yet the students have worked to overcome and meet the challenges given to them by their teachers and Covid. This group of students have loved getting to know each other, both academically and socially. The night time Zooms allow for students to share more about themselves and build friendships with their peers. We look forward to the day when we can all collaborate together in person.
Quarter 4 Supply Pick-up
Book Fair Information
BINGO Night
Fun Run
The 8th-annual Fun Run will be on Saturday, June 5th at noon. The Fun Run, which will be held rain or shine at Valley View, is open to the public and includes:
- The Kuhlman 5K
- The 2K Fenske Flash
- Children's Quarter Mile Run (1st grade and younger)
Come out, support our school, and have fun by participating in one of our races!
Cost to participate is $5 for students and $10 for adults.
T-shirts are provided for all registered participants. Refreshments will be served after the race.
For more information, visit colheights.k12.mn.us/2021FunRun. Students learning on-site received a paper registration form. Additionally, families who have students learning in the Heights from Home learning model can register and pay with cash or credit card during our quarter 4 supply pick-up on April 6th and 7th.
PTO Information
Hello from the Valley View Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO)!
Thank you for your support of the recent book fair- as a result of your help, we were able to earn money to buy new books for the media center. It was also great to see many of you at the spring-like Winter Extravaganza in March.
Our PTO is launching a new spring fundraiser through MN Brands for Good. You can support Valley View by shopping online for a variety of Minnesota-made goods. Products are shipped directly to you, and shipping is free for orders over $75.00 with the code FREE75. Valley View will receive 40% of sales. Watch for a catalog in your 4th quarter supply bag or from your classroom teacher.
Online ordering instructions for our fundraiser:
1. Visit www.mnbrandsforgood.com/shop
2. Browse the collection, add items to cart
3. Click the upper right cart icon to begin checkout, review cart for accuracy
4. Select "YES" when asked, “are you supporting a specific fundraising group today?”
5. Type “Valley View" in box for “group name”
6. Type “student name" in box for “seller name”
7. Click “check out” and process payment
Our next PTO meeting will be on Wednesday, April 14th at 6:00, held virtually via Zoom. We hope that you can join us! If you'd like to join our mailing list to get meeting announcements, virtual meeting links and other PTO information, please email us at valleyviewmnpto@gmail.com or fill out our mailing list form.
About Us
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