Falcon Ridge Elementary Newsletter
January 2020
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
- FeePay: link to FeePay (various payments)
- 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): PAC Member Form
- Volunteer Opportunities: Volunteer Opportunities Form
- Facebook: Like Falcon Ridge Elementary on Facebook.
- Twitter: Follow FalconRidge721 on Twitter.
- Instagram: Follow FalconRidge721 on Instagram.
- Website: https://www.npaschools.org/falcon-ridge
School Closings and Blended Learning Days
Attention Scientists and Engineers in Grades 3-6!
Please click on the following link for more information about the upcoming Elementary Science Fair, the Kick-off Night, and Science Fair Help Sessions.
Grades 3-6 Science Fair Sign-Up QR Code
- If not using the QR Code, you can sign up by clicking on this website link.
- Science Fair Packet
- Science Fair Approval Form
- If working with humans, hazardous materials, animals, or bacteria, use the Forms Wizard to print out any additional forms you may need.
- Science Fair display boards are $5 and can be picked up at the Falcon Ridge office. Checks are payable to New Prague Community Education.
Falcon Ridge Staff Festive Sweater Day
Falcon Ridge Staff Caroling
December Students of the Month
Principal's Perspective
Happy New Year, everyone! As we move forward to a new year and a new decade, it's important to reflect on all that we have to be thankful for in our school community. I am personally appreciative and grateful for the support that we continue to receive from the families within our school community. Your continued support of our teaching staff and our building makes it possible to make an impact when it comes to teaching and learning with your students.
Fundraising
In the month of December, I met with our Falcon Ridge PAC (Parent Advisory Committee), and one of the topics we discussed was the outcome of our Apex Fun Run Fundraiser. This is the third year that we held the Apex fundraiser, and while we are appreciative of the financial support that we received once again, our profit did drop from the previous year. Below are the dollar amounts gained over the course of the last three years:
2017 - $29,419.60
2018 - $27,091.45
2019 - $23,379.14
Another question that came up had to do with how these funds are used within our school. Attached to this newsletter is our 2019-2020 financial budget that I work on with our PAC Executive Committee. As you will see from this spreadsheet, the overwhelming majority of our funds go directly back to our students. The biggest cost to our annual budget is tied to both the transportation and the fee for our student field trips.
Next Steps
In working with our PAC Executive Committee, we would like to work aggressively to add new pieces of equipment to our Falcon Ridge playground. At this point, we haven't yet determined the vendor, number of pieces, or estimated cost. However, we do feel that a portion of our fundraised dollars will need to go towards this endeavor to help it be successful. In doing so, we would likely be repurposing how some of our fundraised dollars are spent. As mentioned, one of the biggest costs to our budget over the past few years has been the cost of field trips and field trip transportation. We are currently exploring the possibility of shifting the cost of field trips back to families for a year, so that these funds could be directly allocated to additional pieces of playground equipment. This message is being shared in the spirit of transparency, but also so that we can begin planning accordingly. We continually strive to make our school the best that it can be, and at this time feel this is a consideration that we should make when looking to best utilize our fundraised dollars.
Family Fun Night
We are in the midst of planning a Family Fun Night for the end of January/beginning of February. There will be more information and details coming very soon - stay tuned!
Have a great month of January!
Sincerely,
David Giesen
(952) 758-1601
Staff Perspective - Terrye Wagner, 5th Grade Teacher
Happy New Year! I hope you all had a wonderful break. It is hard to believe we are already saying goodbye to 2019 and hello to 2020. At this point in the year, it is always a great time to reflect on how much we have accomplished this school year and revisit our goals we established at the beginning of the year.
As we head back into the classrooms next week, we will be spending time revisiting our goals for the school year with students, taking a look at the goals we had for us at the beginning of the year, and modify or adjust. This is also a time for us to take a look at some of our routines we have and start 2020 off with a fresh start. If you have an opportunity, try to sit down with your child and visit with them about their goals for the remainder of the school year. Are there organizational habits, behaviors, or academics they would like to improve on? Maybe they have some great routines from 2019 that they would like to continue as we move into the year 2020.
I hope this break has allowed you time with family and given you a chance to recharge from the busy hustle and bustle of the holidays. I know we are looking forward to heading back into the classrooms and seeing all of our amazing students.
2019-2020 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)