Family Newsletter | December 2020
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Ms. Korn's kindergarten class (The University of Arizona) was caught admiring their artwork after art class with Ms. Perez during our Winter Spirit Week.
Setting the Stage for Semester 2
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As we end our first semester for the 2020-21 school year, we encourage families to reflect on how far we have come since July. We are so proud of the work our staff, students, and families have done throughout the first half of this year to ensure a safe and healthy learning environment. Despite our diligence with precautions in response to COVID-19, cases continue to increase throughout the state and in our local neighborhoods. Consequently, for the safety of all families, students, and staff, we will begin 2021 with distance learning. December 15 will serve as our last day of in-person instruction for semester one and December 16 - 18 will be asynchronous learning days where students will complete work at home and can reach out to teachers via Zoom. Meal service will still be offered to families on those days as well as in January. In January, we will be completely virtual for the first few weeks or until COVID-19 cases decrease across Maricopa County.
We encourage you to prepare your student(s) and yourself for Distance Learning in January as daily attendance to Zoom sessions and completion of graded assignments will be required. We will be equipping our students with Chromebooks and Wi-Fi hotspots, as needed. We plan to send our middle school students home on December 15 with Chromebook laptops and will be contacting our K-5 families to visit Flower to receive their students' Chromebooks beginning the week of December 28. We plan to send all students home with workbooks and worksheets to complete alongside the work that they will be given on computers. It is our goal to provide instruction primarily by computer technology and to limit use of packets.
We cannot thank you enough for your drive and passion for your child's education, despite living through a pandemic. We are forever grateful for your diligence and support. We wish you the happiest of holidays.
Mr. Walker
Principal
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Teacher & Staff Spotlight |
Each month, the newsletter will celebrate teachers and staff members who have gone above and beyond in their efforts to provide all students a high-quality education.
This month, we celebrate
the following teachers and staff members:
Ms. Anundson (Teacher of the Month) Ms. Trina, Ms. Betsy, & Mr. Roy (Staff Member of the Month)
Ms. Leshikar (Teacher of the Month) Mrs. Riffenburg (Staff Member of the Month)
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Ms. Anundson was born and raised Maple Grove, Minnesota. She moved out to Arizona in 2015 to escape the cold and attend college at ASU. Ms. Anundson earned a bachelor’s degree in Family and Human Development and minor in Educational Studies from Arizona State University. She is returning to ASU to obtain her master’s degree in education. Her sister recently relocated to Arizona, but most of her family is in Minnesota.
After graduating college, Ms. Anundson moved to Thailand where she taught kindergarten. She is back in Arizona and is excited to be a part of AMS Flower!
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Our lunch monitors, Trina, Betsy, and Roy, are always willing to go out of their way for our teachers and students. They work on so many aspects of the school, outside of providing meals. When students acknowledge you with thanks and gratitude, you know these people are demonstrating outstanding qualities and have an impact on those who are interacted with.
Our lunch monitors are kind to all, helpful to all and willing to help all.
Students love having the monitors come into the room during lunch time. They are always so happy to see them and they have made connections with every single student.
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This summer, Ms. Leshikar moved to Arizona from her hometown of Kennewick, Washington. Prior to moving, she was an after-school teacher at an elementary school in Portland, OR. Leshikar graduated from Multnomah University in 2019 where she played volleyball on scholarship.
Her secret hobby is juggling. Leshikar had her own juggling business where she would perform at events for some extra cash during the summers. She has one younger sister who studies journalism at the University of Washington (and she is a talented unicyclist).
Ms. Leshikar is beyond thrilled to be here at AMS Flower.
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Mrs. Riffenburg received her Master’s of Education in Educational Leadership from Arizona State University. Prior to that she obtained her Bachelor’s of Science in Elementary Education from Brigham Young University. During Mrs. Riffenburg’s educational career she has taught grades ranging from first to sixth at Blue Ribbon award winning and A+ schools and has worked as an administrator for Arizona State University’s STEM camps for grades K-12.
Mrs. Riffenburg is originally from Tennessee but moved to Arizona as a corps member for Teach for America. During this two-year program Mrs. Riffenburg was a finalist for the Wowee Award for excellence in her teaching. She has lived in many places including France, New Zealand, and Maryland, but so far Arizona is her favorite. When she has free time she enjoys spending it with her family, hiking, and cooking new recipes. She loves sharing her passion for life-long learning with others and is grateful to have the opportunity to do this as an administrator at AMS.
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Winter Spirit Week takes place the week of December 7 - 11.
media courtesy of Dean Farnham
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Re-Enrollment for the 2021-22 School Year Has Begun! |
Re-Enrollment for the next school year, starting Fall 2021, is not the same as the 2nd semester elections you have already completed.
Re-enrollment packets must be completed before January 15 to guarantee your child's seat for next school year. Secure your scholars seat for fall 2021!
For re-enrollment instructions and resources please follow this link: Click Here
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Want to communicate regularly with your child's teacher about the success of your child in class? Make sure you have downloaded the free Class Dojo app and begin communicating with your child's teachers today!
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If you or your child are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, please keep your child at home and seek testing.
If you have scheduled a visit to get tested, please immediately inform the front office and your child’s teachers and keep your child at home until you have results.
Doing this will slow the spread of COVID-19.
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Holiday Shoppe
The Holiday Shoppe gives students a chance to experience the wonderful feeling that comes with gift giving. Gifts for family member, friends, and teachers are all reasonably priced and available for the students to purchase same day, no ordering!
The shop will be open December 7-11, during designated times. The store will be open form 8:00-10:30 a.m. and 12:00-2:00 p.m. for classes to sign up for 30 minute shopping increments. We are also opening windows of time for parents/guardians to visit to shop.
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2020-21 AMS Flower Calendar: |
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December Dates
Dec 4: $1 Dress Down Day
Dec 7: Holiday Shoppe Begins
Dec 11: Holiday Shoppe Ends
Dec 15: $1 Dress Down Day
Dec 15: Last Day of In-Person for Semester 1
Dec 16 - 18: Remote Learning Days - No School
Dec 16 - 18: Meal Distribution at Flower (8:30 - 10 a.m.)
Dec 21- Jan 1: Winter Vacation - No School
Dec 28: AMS Flower Office Re-Opens
Dec 28: Chromebooks and Hotspot Wi-Fi Pick Up
Jan 4: Start of Virtual Learning for all Students
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Connect with the AMS Flower Office Team
602-888-9572
Connect with Principal Walker
cwalker@amsflower.org
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