Wolves Newsletter

Focus on Fitness ... Good for our Bodies ... Good for our Brains!

First Day of School: Tuesday, September 8, 2025

A Special Edition Wolves Newsletter will be delivered to all families to share more about Park Brook's Focus on Fitness Initiative, along with opportunities in September & October.

August 2026

Dear Park Brook Families,

I first want to welcome families who are joining the Park Brook Community while acknowledging that some are joining the Park Brook Community because of boundary changes, which means some may understandably feel loss from a school they greatly enjoyed. As a teacher I was at a school for five years that I truly enjoyed, the school then closed through budget cuts. I was then at another school that I also enjoyed for five years that was repurposed, and staff and families all went to different schools the following year. I state this as I have experienced loss with a school community, and it is not easy. Each time, I have found a community that I have enjoyed, just as I have for the past 18 years here at Park Brook, yet treasuring my years prior to Park Brook as well. I want you to feel welcome while understanding and acknowledging the loss you may feel at this time.

This newsletter includes information about Park Brook. A second newsletter will be delivered with information about our Focus on Fitness Initiative. The Focus on Fitness Initiative is unique to Park Brook, but perhaps too much information for one newsletter.

I want parents to be a part of the school, and a school where they feel welcome. As I look at this newsletter and know of activities we have planned for the school year, it is impossible for students to participate in all of the activities, and it is not possible for parents to be at all events. Feel welcome to be at events you can, and know that I understand that parents cannot be at all events.

Sincerely,

Mr. Scott Taylor

Mission Bay High School, San Diego, California

Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona; BS History/Education

St. Cloud State University, St. Cloud, Minnesota; MS Special Education, EBD

St. Mary's University, Minneapolis, Minnesota; Administration Licensure Program

Open House

Wednesday, September 2, 2026

4:30 pm – 6:00 pm

Class lists will be posted on the office windows by 2:00 pm on Wednesday, September 2.

Costco Maple Grove has generously donated a backpack for every student at Park Brook. At Open House, there will be a table for students to select their backpack.

In addition to the backpacks, Costco provided a generous financial donation that will be used for the New Family Dinner, Park Brook Winter Funland, and other Park Brook events.

After Open House, and once backpacks are reserved for Park Brook Students who did not attend Open House, there may be backpacks available for older siblings of Park Brook Students who are in middle school or high school.

Funding for Park Brook Elementary is dependent upon free/reduced cost lunch forms. We kindly request that all families complete a form (including Pre-K), even if your child will not be eating school lunches. Please complete the form in September if there is a possibility you may qualify for free/reduced lunches.

Completing the lunch forms before October 1 will assist Park Brook in providing Title I services; TAG services; additional teachers to reduce instructional group size; and ESP support.

While breakfast and lunch are free for all students in the State of Minnesota, the forms are important for funding purposes.

Students eat breakfast with their class, if they so choose, beginning just after 8:40 am. Some classes go immediately, and other classes begin the day with a short lesson and then go to the cafeteria. If a student arrives AFTER the class has gone to the cafeteria for breakfast, it is assumed that the parent/guardian has provided breakfast; it is the parent/guardians responsibility to provide breakfast at home if a student is late for school.

Students need to be to school on time in order to participate in all academics and activities that begin at the beginning of the school day.

Summer Hours: 7:30 am – 11:00 am & 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm

(The office will generally be closed for one-hour during the lunch hour during the summer, but the time varies based upon need. Please call if you need to stop-in at a specific time during the lunch hour.)

The office is closed for staff development on the following days in August:

• Tuesday, August 18, 8:15 am - 2:15 pm - Staff Meeting
• Thursday, August 27, 1:45 - 4:00 pm - Staff Function
• Monday, August 31, 7:30 am - 10:00 am - Staff Development
• Tuesday, September 1, All Day - Staff Development
• Wednesday, September 2, 12:00 pm - 4:30 pm - Final Preparations for Open House
• Thursday, September 3, 10:00 am - 4:30 pm - Osseo Area Schools' Staff Event
• Monday, September 7, All Day, Labor Day

Office Hours on Regular School Days: 7:30 am – 4:00 pm

Daily attendance, including being on time to school, is closely related to academic growth.

Continuing truant, regardless of reason, is being absent more than 25 times during the school year. Last year, 38% of the students at Park Brook fell into this category. Some fell into this category because of being repeatedly late to school, which may be worse as the student misses the same subject over and over. (I have had a few students who have missed the same subject, or part of the same subject, over 100 times in a school year.)

I am addressing this issue because Park Brook typically posts strong academic gains, however, the gains would be stronger if the attendance rate was higher. The issue is not about the overall scores of the school, but the individual students who are negatively impacted by their attendance.

• Students who have an academic intervention time before breakfast, miss the academic intervention.
• If a class begins right away with Math Corner (part of the math instruction to set the stage for the math lesson or review key concepts), the student does not receive the instruction that the other students receive.
• If the class goes to phy ed or music at 9:15, some students miss this class. (I had a parent upset because their child did not get to attend phy ed; the issue was the student was late most days and therefore missed phy ed multiple times.)
• Students miss breakfast if their class has already had breakfast.
• Some grades have reading in the morning; therefore, students miss reading instruction if they are late to school.

Students are not marked late until 8:50 a.m. Students enter the building at 8:40 a.m. The students who are on time have a chance to put their belongings away, visit with friends, do the fun activity the teacher has prepared for them, and so on.

Students who come in late have to put their coat away, put their backpack away, get their books out, and so on, while the other students are engaged in learning. To be blunt, students who come in late are missing academic instruction.

I do not think parents/guardians are fully aware of the loss of instruction when students are late to school, and I don't know how to communicate it more effectively that I want all students at Park Brook to receive the best education possible, and all of the instruction that we offer.

I believe parents want the best education for their children, However, I do not feel that some understand what being late or missing school does to their child's academic growth.

Mr. Taylor

• 38% of Park Brook Students were considered continuing truant - absent over 25 days during the school year. (Orange in graph above.)
• 31% of Park Brook Students were considered trending towards or on the verge of being a continuing truant. (Green in graph above.)
• 32% of Park Brook Students had no attendance concerns. (Blue in graph above.) In school at least 95% of the instructional time. A student with no attendance concerns can be absent just over 8.5 days during the school year.

2025 - 2026 School Year

Monday, September 28, 2026

Students in grades 1 - 5 will take math facts tests once-a-month. The goal of math instruction is for students to think mathematically, which includes math discussions with classmates. However, it has been observed that students who do not know their math facts do not participate at the same levels as students who know their math facts.

Math instruction is not rote memorization, but rather to guide students to think mathematically. In order to increase students ability to engage in mathematical thinking, Park Brook has taken on an initiative to increase the ability of students to recall math facts.

Growth is the goal with math facts, not just to be the fastest in the grade level at knowing math facts.

1st Grade: Addition math facts, with a goal of increasing five (5) problems per month on the three-minute timed test. Students will begin math facts tests in November.

2nd Grade: Subtraction math facts, with a goal of increasing five (5) problems per month on the three-minute timed test.

3rd Grade:

• Addition/Subtraction math facts to increase awareness of math signs, with a goal of increasing ten (10) problems per month on the three-minute timed test. (September - December)
• Multiplication math facts, with a goal of increasing ten (10) problems per month on the three-minute timed test. (January - June)

4th & 5th Grades:

• Multiplication math facts, with a goal of increasing ten (10) problems per month on the three-minute timed test.
• Division test after students complete over 100 problems per month on the three-minute timed test, with a goal of increasing ten (10) problems per month.

The use of math facts tests is strictly to allow and cause students to be able to engage in math discussions with peers and to think mathematically by having ready access in their minds to math facts.

Families at Park Brook speak a number of languages and we aim to ensure all parents can fully participate in the school and receive information in a language that each one can understand.

• This newsletter, as well as all newsletters, can be translated to many languages.
• Messages will be sent home via texts using platforms that allow parents/guardians to receive the message in their preferred language.
• Parents can text teachers using Talking Points so that the teacher receives the message in English, and the parent/guardian receives and write the text in their preferred language.
• Permission slips for field trips will be sent via Talking Points on the day that permission slips are sent home so that parents have a copy in their preferred language.
• Staff at Park Brook have access to the Language Line, a phone service that allows us to contact translators in any language. If you call the school you can simply state the language you need and we can get a translator on the phone. We can call you with a translator at any time.
• If a parent comes into the school, you can state the language you need, and we will immediately call a translator.
• PTO, Coffee with Mr. Taylor, and so on: we can and will get a translator so you can participate. If you simply come, we will use the Language Line. We want you to feel welcome, and we will easily get a translator.
• An interpreter will be available for all conferences where a translator is needed.

8:30 a.m. - Supervision in front of the school

8:40 a.m. - Students enter the building. (Teachers have learning activities prepared for students during this time in the younger grades, and upper grades go right to breakfast when they enter the building.)

8:50 a.m.- Students considered late to school.

3:20 p.m. - Dismissal

AM Pre-K 8:50 AM - 11:20 AM; PM Pre-K 12:50 PM - 3:20 PM

(Parents/guardians of Pre-K students need to wait with their child until 8:40 a.m., or 12:50 p.m.)

Please Note: There is no supervision before 8:30 AM, or after 3:30 PM.

Students are welcome to use the school playgrounds after school, however students MUST go home first and are welcome to come back and play (unsupervised by school staff), UNLESS a parent/guardian is with their own children before/after school.

Please call the school office if your child is out ill, or for some other excused reason. If the office does not hear from an adult, the absence will be considered unexcused.

Absences are excused at the discretion of the principal. Repeated days late for appointments, doctors appointments, illnesses, and so on will necessitate a note from the doctor/dentist or individual whom the child had an appointment with that day.

If out ill:

• Students can return to school if they are fever free, no vomiting, and no diarrhea for 24 hours WITHOUT medication.

Kindergarten has great fun with a different color for each day for the 2nd and 3rd weeks of school. Staff and students throughout the school are welcome to join the fun by dressing in the color of the day.

While it is great fun, we encourage families to just look at what they have in the closet already. Please do not go out and buy clothes for the day. When possible, have fun with the day and plan ahead for the color of the day. The colors are on the school calendar on the school website.

• Monday, September 14 - Red Day
• Tuesday, September 15 - Yellow Day
• Wednesday, September 16 - Blue Day
• Thursday, September 17 - Green Day
• Friday, September 18 - Purple Day (Viking's Day)

• Monday, September 21 - Orange Day
• Tuesday, September 22 - Black Day (New Families, Pre - K & Kindergarten Families Dinner)
• Wednesday, September 23 - Brown Day
• Thursday, September 24 - White Day (All School BBQ)
• Friday, September 25 - Rainbow Day

Children are expected to be clean, neat, and dressed appropriately for the school day. Clothing must not interfere with the educational process and must comply with requirements for health and safety.

Parents, please monitor your child’s choice of dress by adhering to the following guidelines:

• Shirts must cover the entire midsection, have no language or illustrations that are offensive, nor have “spaghetti straps”. Straps should be at least 1.5” wide.
• Shorts/skirts must come to the bottom of the fingertips when the student is standing.
• Jackets and coats are not to be worn during the school day.
• Hats, caps, or headwear (including hoods) are not allowed, except during school-sponsored events and/or for religious, or medical reasons, with the principal’s approval.
• Pants must be at a length so that the student will not trip on them and fit so that the student can run during recess and physical education without having to hold their pants with their hands. No undergarments should be showing.

Park Brook Elementary does not have a supply of clothing for students dressed inappropriately or for use during physical education or recess.

Please have students wear shoes to school that they can comfortably participate in recess and physical education in.

Minnesota Vikings Day - Friday, September 18

Hat Day - October 1

Hoodie Day - October 14

1. Be in school and on time every day.
2. Read - Please have your child read every day, or you can read to your child.
3. Exercise - Get 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous activity (play time) every day.
4. Eat - Enjoy eating together as a family without the television or cell phones.
5. Sleep - Elementary age students need 9 - 11 hours of sleep every day.
6. Technology - Monitor and Limit
7. Practice Math Facts

• 1st grade - addition facts
• 2nd grade - subtraction facts
• 3rd grade - addition and subtraction facts (September - January), multiplication facts (February - June)
• 4th and 5th grades - multiplication facts (Students who get over 100 problems correct on the 3-minute timed test for three (3) months in a row move to division facts.)
• Each month students will take a three-minute timed test for the purpose of increasing speed with the math facts.

You will note that homework is not necessarily mentioned above. Homework is not the most effective method for increasing academic growth. Reading, eating together, and playing are all things that will hopefully be enjoyable for your family to do together, which increases academic growth.

Tuesday, October 6, 2026

Thursday, October 8, 2026

Monday, October 12, 2026

Wednesday, February 3, 2027

Tuesday, February 9, 2027

Thursday, February 11, 2027

Prior to conferences, a form will be sent home for you to indicate ALL times that work for your family. A specific time will be scheduled for you to meet with your child's teacher. Interpreters will be scheduled for all families who request an interpreter.

Conferences will be held in October to give parents/guardians an opportunity to visit with their child’s teacher, share information with their child’s teacher, and for teachers to share with parents and guardians.

Conversations will include hopes-and-dreams for the school year; math, reading and fitness goals; and interventions to meet and exceed goals.

A sign-up sheet will be sent home with your students in September. Please complete the form and return to school by the date on the form. A confirmation will then be sent home with a specific date and time for your family.

Students in grades K - 3 will be issued an iPad, and students in grades 4 and 5 will be issued a Chromebook. These devices are remain at school unless there is a specific school-related assignment to complete. Families are responsible for replacement/repair of technology when students take the devices home.

In addition, families are responsible for devices if a student carelessly handles their own device, or the device checked-out to another student.

Students need to come to school prepared to go outside and enjoy time playing during recess.

• Students go outside every day unless the weather is colder than -5 degrees, or it is raining.
• Please label your children's belongings with their name or initials so that their items can easily be returned if they are misplaced.
• Parents are not permitted to be on the playground during recess.
• Recess staff know the students, but they do not know parents/guardians of students. For this reason, parents/guardians are not permitted to just join the students on the playground.

ParentVUE is an online system where parents can update contact information, view report cards, check attendance, and so on.

Report cards are online only.

It is essential that you have your current phone number and email address on file in the school office. If there are any changes, please update in ParentVUE or call the school office.

Students are not allowed to access their cell phones or smart watches during the school day.

Students are not permitted to use their cell phones to take pictures during the school day, this eliminates pictures of other students being posted to social media, sent to others, and so on.

If a phone or smart watch is an issue, personal devices may be confiscated and will need to be picked up by a parent at the end of the day.

Any use of a phone (regardless of whether it is being used as a camera or not) or recording device in restrooms or locker rooms is strictly prohibited as the privacy rights of individuals can easily be violated.

If a parent needs to contact their child, please call the school office at 763-561-6870 and messages will be delivered to your child. Communication as to how students go home needs to be between adults-at-home and adults-at-school.

Park Brook Elementary, Osseo Area Schools, and staff members are not responsible for lost or damaged cell phones.

Medications can only be administered at school if there is a prescription from the doctor, signed permission from parent/guardian, and the medication is in the original bottle with the prescription on the bottle.

If your child takes medications at home, it is important to have a list of those medications on file in the health office if there should be a medical emergency.

If your child has been ill, they must be fever free, no vomiting, and no diarrhea for 24 hours WITHOUT medication. Medications reduce the symptoms of an illness, but they are still ill.

Students MUST be 24-hours fever-free, without medication, to be in school. Medication to bring down a fever only reduces symptoms, but the individual is still sick and possibly contagious. This guideline was in place prior to COVID.

Birthdays are a special time for students. At Park Brook we recognize birthdays, unless a parent or guardian indicates that we should not. However, students do not bring birthday treats to school on their birthday at Park Brook.

Click on 'Birthday Treats' icon/picture for more information.

Please label your child's belongings. Lost & Found is usually overflowing with items that are not labeled with student names. If an item is labeled, we do not place it in Lost & Found, but rather return it to the student.

Several times a year unclaimed items are donated to a local charity.

PTO meets once a month. The dates are on the calendar on the website. All parents/guardians are welcome to come!

Parents/guardians are welcome to bring their children. Children will have options for coloring, Legos, and other things that they can choose to do while parents/guardians are meeting.

Each month a different staff member will share a few items, to both inform and be a discussion starter. Mr. Taylor shares a few items regarding the school, as well.

PTO is a place for parents to connect, learn about the school, and provide input.

The first meeting is during the Pre-K/Kindergarten/New Family Dinner on September 16. All parents who want to be a part of PTO are more than welcome to come.

Families New to Park Brook, and all Pre-K and Kindergarten Families

Tuesday, September 22, 2025

5:00 pm – 7:00 pm

Families are welcome and encouraged to join us for dinner and conversation.

· Families and staff will enjoy time together eating dinner.

· Following dinner, students will go to the gym for activities.

· Parents/guardians will spend time together visiting about Park Brook, discuss questions families have, and a time for everyone to get to know each other.

While the food choice for dinner has not been finalized, if hot dogs are selected they will be pork free.

Families are welcome to come to school to enjoy a BBQ hamburger lunch with their children. Students will eat during their regularly scheduled lunch period. Specific times for each grade level will be available on the website, Open House and sent home once the school year begins. (The final daily schedule has not been set as adjustments must be made for the coming school year.)

Late summer, families will be completing back-to-school forms online via ParentVUE. Forms that will be a part of this process will include emergency cards, family contact information updates and photo releases. Even though this process is not occurring until later this summer, there are steps you can take now to prepare.

In order to participate in this process, parents/caregivers need to engage with the ParentVUE application. This is accessible by clicking Family Access toward the top right of any district or school website. If you haven’t activated your ParentVUE account, please call Mr. Vang at school at 763-561-6870 between 7:30 am and 4:00 pm.

ParentVUE holds a variety of student information, including grades, progress reports and transportation assignments. Students use a similar application called StudentVUE.

For additional assistance, please reach out to Mr. Vang at Park Brook, help@district279.org or the district’s help desk at 763-391-7180.

A parent/guardian needs to communicate to the school by note, phone call, email or text if there is a change in how your child will go home from school at the end of the day. Communication needs to be between adults-at-home and adults-at-school; please do not ask your child to communicate change in plans after school. (While your child may be able to deliver the accurate message to school staff, there are over 300 students at Park Brook and we need to ensure we have the correct information from parents/guardians.)

If a student is registered for an after-school program, they are expected to stay unless the school hears from a parent or guardian.

If you need to communicate a change in plans, please let the office know by 2:45 p.m. so we can send a note to your child and their teacher.

There is no supervision of students after 3:30 p.m.

Students and families are welcome to use the playgrounds after school and on weekends, however, students MUST go home after school unless they are directly supervised by a parent/guardian on the playground.

Please Note: New sidewalks have been installed along the front and side of the school which will make walking to/from school much safer. Guidance for where to pick up students after school, if driving, will be provided closer to the start of the school year. This will alleviate some congestion in the parking lot.

• Pick-up BETWEEN 3:20 p.m. and 3:30 p.m.
• Students are NOT permitted to walk across the parking lot without an adult.
• Do not pick up your children or park in the cross walk.
• Students need to enter the car from the curb.
• Do not walk through the bus circle.
• The bus circle is for school busses, day care center vans, and other vehicles hired by the district to transport students to/from school.
• Drivers and walkers must obey school patrols.

Cars must be next to the curb for students to safely enter or exit a car, with kids entering/exiting from the curb.

DROPPING OFF or PICKING UP: please pull your car to the curb, so your child can enter or exit your vehicle at the curb. Stopping in the middle of the lot to pick-up or drop-off a student is extremely dangerous for your child.

If you are PARKING, please use the diagonal parking spaces. Students should walk on the sidewalk rather than crossing the parking lot.

Students are never permitted to walk across the parking lot without an adult.

The handicap parking spots are reserved for those who:

• Have a handicap placard displayed either in the car or on the license plate, and,
• The individual for whom the placard was given is entering or exiting the car.

At Park Brook there are students who have been issued a handicap placard, as well as individuals who have been issued a handicap placard who need to enter the building for a variety of reasons. The staff do not appreciate having to monitor the use of these spots by adults.

One may have a handicap placard or license plate, but if you are not entering/exiting the car, there is absolutely no reason why you cannot circle as other parents/guardians must do.

You may think you are stopping for a short time, however, unless you have a handicap placard and the person issued the handicap placard is entering or exiting the vehicle, you should not be using these parking spots.

• W - We will respect ourselves and others.
• O - Own our actions.
• L - Listen and Learn.
• F - Follow Directions.

In the event of an emergency situation at the school, we kindly ask that you not follow your first instinct to call or come to the school. The first priority is the safety of all at the school. During an emergency situation, each person who calls takes staff away from assisting or responding to the emergency. In addition, additional traffic in the vicinity stops or slows down those who may be responding.

In the event of severe weather, we will move all students to a safe location, and can do so in about a minute. Please keep yourself safe while we keep the students and staff safe. Front office staff will move to a safe location, and will not place themselves in danger to respond to those who may come to the school for their children.

Staff members review and practice safety protocols. If you have questions, Mr. Taylor welcomes conversations about safety protocols at Park Brook.

• Breakfast and lunch are free for all students at Park Brook Elementary.
• Milk is available for students to purchase if they bring a cold lunch from home.
• All classes go to the cafeteria for breakfast. If students arrive late for school, breakfast is not available after their class has finished breakfast. It is assumed and understood that it is the parents' responsibility to provide breakfast if a student is late for school.
• Students should not bring breakfast items to school. Students either eat the breakfast provided at school, or eat breakfast at home.
• Students should not bring snacks to supplement the lunch menu. Students are welcome to take additional fruits and vegetables.
• Sharing of food at the lunch table is not allowed.

Park Brook Elementary and ISD 279 are not responsible for toys or electronics that students bring to school. Please supervise what students bring to school. Generally, there is no need for students to bring toys to school. If a student needs to bring a cell phone to school, they need to turn it off and put it in their backpack during the day. If a situation arises where an electronic device or toy is a disruption, the device may be confiscated, and a parent or guardian may be requested to come in to pick it up.

Parents are responsible for reading and understanding the information in the ISD 279 Parent

Handbook. We ask that you read it, not necessarily for agreement, but for understanding. The Park Brook Behavior Expectation Handbook will be sent home, after it is reviewed in the classroom, that we ask you to read and review with your child. We will ask parents to sign that they have received a copy of the handbook.

The Newsletter for Families New to Park Brook is sent to all families as they join the community throughout the school year. Come information may be duplicated from other newsletters and questions that pertain to families who are just joining Park Brook.