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January 2024

Principal NEWS

Dear Granite Ridge Families:

We welcome 2024 with high hopes for more snow and lovely winter days! Please ensure students are “Winter Ready” with a jacket, snow pants, boots, hat, and gloves when we have snow.

Wisconsin School Crossing Guard Week is January 22-26. Crossing Guards help ensure our students get to school safely and on time. Give them an appreciative thumbs up when you drive by, or have your child make a thank you card if they cross with a Crossing Guard. Also, thank you for honoring our car drop-off and pick-up protocol, as safety is one of our biggest priorities.

Student report cards will be posted in Infinite Campus on January 29th. Also, please remind your children to consider physical, social, and mental safety at Granite Ridge. We will continue to keep safety as a major priority as we progress and learn.

Happy New Year!

Reed Foster

We want to hear from you!

The elementary principals in Cottage Grove--Emily Foster (TPS), Jesse Starr (CGS), and Reed Foster (GRS)--are hosting "Coffee and Conversation" on January 16th, at 6:30 p.m. at Granite Ridge School. If this time does not work for you, reach out anytime! Our goal is to listen to your experiences so that we can understand what is working well and where we can improve and grow. We plan to hold these session again on March 12th @ 8:15 a.m. at Dunkin Doughnuts.

January’s Safety Drill -

Tornado/Severe Weather (Shelter) Drill

Granite Ridge School will hold a tornado/severe weather (shelter) drill on January 8 for all students and staff.

The safety of our students is a top priority which is why it’s important for students to be present for monthly drills. This shelter drill is designed to help students understand what they can do to protect themselves in the unlikely case of a critical event. In all cases of a safety drill, our staff will inform students beforehand of the drill and what they can expect so they are fully prepared. We follow best practices to use trauma sensitive language and exercises to mitigate fear and anxiety during the drill.

What your student will experience: Staff will prepare students by explaining the purpose of the drill, what they can expect and what they will need to do during the drill. The drill will begin when the tornado warning alarm sounds throughout the building using the public address system. The noise of the alarm will be loud and the classroom and hallway clocks will display the Tornado Warning. Staff will calmly and quietly guide students to the nearest place of shelter in the building. Once all students and staff are in this space, staff will take attendance to ensure everyone is accounted for. Staff and students will be given the all clear after the building has been identified as safe. After the drill, staff will use trauma sensitive language to help students process the experience. No visitors, staff, or students will be allowed to enter or leave the building during the drill.

Students with sensory and other special considerations will be accommodated according to their needs.

For resources on how to communicate with your student(s) about the importance of safety, visit our website.

OFFICE HOURS:

7:15 a.m.–3:45 p.m.

CONTACT:

Main Office: (608) 839-8980

Attendance: contact via email

UPCOMING EVENTS:

Jan 2

Classes Resume

Jan 9

Bridging Brighter Smiles

Jan 15

No School-

Vacation Day

Jan 26

No School-

Staff Professional Day

Feb 1

4th Grade Music Fieldtrip

Feb 5

5th Grade Music Fieldtrip

Feb 22

No School -

Staff Professional Day

Feb 23

No School -

Vacation Day

Bridging Brighter Smiles

Bridging Brighter Smiles will be at Granite Ridge on January 9th.

Receive Dental Care Right At School! Click HERE for enrollment information. Click HERE for Spanish

2024-25 School Year Calendar

Visit our website to view the approved 2024-25 school year calendar.

News from the Art Room!

Artsonia -

Students at GRS are building their on-line art portfolios on Artsonia.com! Use this school code to connect to your child's gallery: WBYHWTHM

New Infinite Campus Attendance Feature

Does your student have an upcoming absence? Entering an absence request is quick and easy, and can be done using your desktop computer or the Parent Portal app on your mobile device. Follow these simple steps:

Log in to your Infinite Campus Parent Portal account.
Select More from the Navigation area.
Select Absence Requests.
Fill in the required information, including the date and reason for the absence.
Submit your request.

From the School Counselor

Great Kindness Challenge

January 22 - January 25, 2024

All students at Taylor Prairie School, Cottage Grove School and Granite Ridge School will be participating in the nation-wide Great Kindness Challenge. During this week we will be doing different activities and dressing up in ways that relate to kindness! Thanks for helping your child enjoy the Great Kindness Challenge!

Monday, January 22: Kindness comes from the Heart!

Wear red or hearts!!

Tuesday, January 23: Community Kindness - Team MG!

Wear your TP/CGS/GRS gear, MG gear, blue, white, or silver!

We invite you to bring in non-perishable food items for our food drive! Items most needed are cereal, brownie mix, canned fruit, hamburger helper, dry pasta including spaghetti, soups, pasta sauce, tuna, jelly, mac & cheese, pancake mix, syrup, and crackers.

You are also welcome to donate a Piggly Wiggly gift card! The food pantry uses the gift cards to purchase perishable items including hamburger, milk, yogurt, and fresh fruits & veggies!

Wednesday, January 24: Working on Kindness!

Wear workout/athletic clothing!

We invite you to bring in items for our toiletry drive! Items most needed are toilet paper, shampoo, conditioner, dish soap, and laundry detergent.

Thursday, January 25: Dream of Kindness!

Dress up in your pajamas!

While we are focusing on the food drive on Tuesday and the toiletry drive on Wednesday, you can bring in the items or gift cards at any time throughout the week!

We are excited for a wonderful week of fun activities that focus on kindness! Please talk with your child’s teacher if you have any questions!

Thank you!

The Taylor Prairie, Cottage Grove School & Granite Ridge PBIS Teams

From the Reading Corner!

What happened to spelling???

I know many of you are asking this question when you see your child’s writing or have to constantly answer their question of “how do you spell…..” Well you’re not alone. We’ve seen the dip in spelling at school as well. Some of this could have been because of virtual instruction since we had to focus more on math and reading than other areas. Some it could also be because we didn’t have a consistent spelling curriculum for many years and were using supplemental things. I believe some of the problem is even due to technology. Technology now tells you when you have something spelled wrong, reads things to you, or doesn’t use any words at all and just has pictures and voice. Kids also don’t seem to be reading as many books as they used to. Now they have computers or video games to occupy them and just aren’t reading as many books. You’re probably wondering what all this has to do with spelling but it does! The more words and vocabulary kids are exposed to, the more sinks in and they are able to connect to and retain. Our new curriculum expects students to be firm in most spelling patterns after third grade. In grades kindergarten through second, they learn all the letters and sounds and letter combinations that make those sounds. Did you know there are 26 letters in the alphabet but 44 sounds and over 100 different ways to make those 44 sounds? That’s a lot for a second grader to have mastered especially when you include all the tricky words or sight words they should know by then. This is why phonics instruction in K-2 is so important and why exposure to books and vocabulary is as well. After second grade, our new curriculum has students review all those patterns in third grade and then focus on roots and affixes in third through fifth grade. So you may not see spelling lists come home with your student because they’re review words or they’re more morphology/meaning based. If spelling is something you want to work on with your child, you can ask your child’s teacher for spelling words. Since our brains learn by looking for patterns, help your student recognize letter patterns in words or see common chunks/syllables in those words in order to spell them. And unfortunately, to get better at spelling, you have to practice and that’s not always fun. Try making it fun by turning spelling practice into a game. Just keep at it and keep them reading books and it will get better.

As always, I’m available by email at erin.verhagen@mgschools.net

Erin Verhagen

Reading Specialist

Granite Ridge School

Cottage Grove PTO

Stay up to date on all future events by visiting:

The Fall/Winter Community Guide is available online. Check out the may opportunities for you and/or your child to become involved!

Dane County Library

Here are links for local connections:

5301 Monona Drive, Monona, WI 53716 Phone: (608) 221-7660 Fax: (608) 221-7688