Monroe Messenger

Click below to sign up for your student(s) Parent/Teacher Conference

Please sign up ASAP to get the best time! The link will be closed on Tuesday, November 11th.

For your student's safety, please do not use the staff parking lot for student drop off and pick up. There should not be any students walking through the parking lot. Drop off is on Center Street along the sidewalk. Thank you for your cooperation.

Our school operates under a Schoolwide Plan, which allows us to use Title I funds to improve the educational performance of all students. Through school improvement strategies and initiatives, we aim to address the specific needs of our students and enhance their academic achievement. A copy of Monroe’s Schoolwide Plan is available upon request.

Please note that teachers may not be able to check their email regularly throughout the school day and, as a result, may be unable to respond immediately. If you require immediate assistance, contact the school office at 507-387-7889.

When calling the attendance line, please be sure to leave a detailed message. Rest assured that voicemail is monitored frequently, and there is no need to call the office to confirm that your message has been received.

When leaving a message, include the student’s name, teacher’s name, reason for the absence or call, and your contact information in case we need to reach out.

Thanks for your cooperation.

The BackPack and Power Pack Food Programs discreetly provides packs of youth-friendly food for weekends and school breaks. Each food pack consists of breakfast, lunch, and snack for each day out of school. Packs are received weekly.

Youth are eligible for this program if they are in grades K-12 and their parent/guardian are not financially able to provide enough food for them. Your student must attend Mankato Area Public Schools to enroll. This is not a school-operated program, is not federally funded, and has no income requirements.

Here is the LINK to the website, or feel free to use the QR code. If you are having difficulty, please contact Lindsey Northenscold at 507-387-7889 or LNorth1@isd77.org.

🌟 Top 10 Reasons to Be Here Every Day! (Because every day of learning matters!)

1. Every Day Counts. Missing just two days a month adds up fast—nearly a month of learning lost each year!
   
   

2. Learning Builds Daily. Lessons connect like puzzle pieces—missing one day means missing a piece of understanding.
   
   

3. Attendance = Achievement. Students who attend regularly are more likely to meet grade-level expectations and feel confident in their learning.
   
   

4. Routines Create Success. Consistent attendance helps children build healthy habits for school—and life.
   
   

5. Friends and Belonging. Being here every day strengthens friendships and helps every child feel connected to their school community.
   
   

6. Start Strong, Stay Strong. Good attendance in elementary school sets the foundation for success in middle and high school.
   
   

7. Teachers Notice. We notice when students are here—and when they’re not. Every student matters to us!
   
   

8. Health Happens—Communication Helps. When absences are necessary, staying in touch keeps students connected and supported.
   
   

9. Family Routines Matter. Setting regular bedtimes, morning routines, and backup plans helps prevent last-minute absences.
   
   

10. We’re Here to Help. Transportation, illness, or family challenges—whatever the reason, let’s work together to make sure every child can be here, every day.

Dear Parent/Guardian,

Your student’s assessment results have been updated in their Student Test Detail in Infinite Campus. New results for DIBELS (K-5), ACCESS, MCA Math, Reading and Science Assessment are available to you through the Parent Portal.

The results of the new Science Assessment reflect the first year of the new MCA-IV Science Test Administration, given in grades 5, 8, and high school when students complete life science instruction. The new science assessment reflects a significant change in the standards and shift in instructional practice.

As with any assessment, these results are only one piece of information about what your student learned last year. The science assessment that students took in the spring of 2025 was different than in the past, so comparing results for the previous assessment isn’t accurate as they are two different assessments.

To access your child's scores:

1. Log in to Infinite Campus Parent Portal

2. At the bottom of the navigation bar in the portal, click on "More"

3. A drop-down menu appears: click on "Student Reports”

4. A drop-down menu appears: click on "Select a Student”

5. Then select the Individual Score Report (ISR) you wish to view:

1. To view scores, Student Test Detail

2. To View MCA Click on MCA

3. To View ACCESS Scores Click on ACCESS

How to video of the Directions

Sincerely,

Mollie Meyer

Monroe Principal

My name is Larissa Christ and I have the pleasure of serving as the Occupational Therapist at Monroe. This year, we received special funding from the Educare Foundation to build a sensory room at Monroe! This is a space where students can go to take a break, get their wiggles out, and then quickly return to class when their body is calm again. Students have learned different ways to calm their bodies with all types of sensory tools like our trampoline, swing, and even a ball pit! We are so grateful for this space and the students have loved using it. Make sure you stop by to see the space during conference nights! It is located in the kindergarten wing, room 113. Thanks for all your support!

Hello Monroe Parents,

I wanted to share a quick update on what we’ve been working on in STEM this past month!

We recently wrapped up our Digital Citizenship lessons across all grade levels. Students learned about:

• Balancing screen time with non-screen activities
  
  

• Pausing and thinking before they click or post
  
  

• Understanding their digital footprints and staying safe online (what’s okay to share—and what’s not!)
  
  

• Showing respect and kindness in digital spaces (our 4th graders even created stickers to remind others to be kind online!)
  
  

• Recognizing clickbait—and creating some of their own for fun! (5th grade)
  
  

• Beginning our first steps into coding
  
  

We’ve now launched into our Life Science units:

• Kindergarten is learning about animals and algorithms, exploring living things and their needs, and participating in unplugged coding activities.
  
  

• 1st Grade is discovering designs inspired by nature, studying offspring and parents, and learning how animals communicate.
  
  

• 2nd Grade is focused on form and function. We’ve examined the parts of a flower, completed pollination experiments, and are now diving into seed growth.
  
  

• 3rd Grade has been learning about life cycles, with a special focus on honeybees through interactive simulations.
  
  

• 4th Grade is exploring variations of traits. Students loved discussing their own traits and finding similarities among classmates. We’ll begin our animal creation project soon!
  
  

• 5th Grade is studying ecosystems, specifically the flow of matter and energy. Students are learning about photosynthesis and creating models to demonstrate their understanding. We’ll soon be exploring seed growth and food webs.
  
  

Thank you so much for your generous donations of toilet paper and paper towel rolls, as well as cardboard! It's always amazing to see how creatively students incorporate something as simple as cardboard into their projects. It’s definitely helpful to keep a supply on hand for future activities.

If we finish our main lesson early, students get BUILD Time—a chance to explore, play, and create with the materials and kits in the room. This has been a great incentive and a favorite part of STEM for many students.

I also wanted to note on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, I leave right after school to teach a STEM club at Eagle Lake. So if it's a day 1,2,4 and it's Tuesday or Wednesday after school, that is where I will be. This will run until January. You can always send me an email if you miss me after school one of these days.

It’s been another great month of creativity, curiosity, and collaboration in STEM. Thank you for your continued patience, kindness, and support.

Have a wonderful day!
– Mrs. Udermann

The yearbook is in need of your school activity photos. Any first-day-of-school pictures, field trips, classroom parties, book fairs, and general fun photos that you take in any school-related activity can be submitted to Amy Demaster at amydemaster@gmail.com.

November

3 - 7 - School Psychologist Week

3 - 20 Stuff-A-Truck Food Drive

6 - Popcorn with Pals - Parent's Night Out

11 - Veteran's Day

11 - PTO Meeting - Media Center

12 - PLC/2-hr Early Out

13 - Conferences

18 - Conferences

19 - Winter Weather Safety Presentation - 3rd Grade

20 - Conferences

26 - Lockdown Drill #2

27 - NO SCHOOL K-12 Thanksgiving Break

28 - NO SCHOOL K-12 Thanksgiving Break

Website:

www.me.isd77.org

441 Monroe Ave, North Mankato, MN, USA

507-387-7889

Facebook:

Monroe Elementary PTO - North Mankato

https://www.facebook.com/MonroeElementaryPto