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COLUMBIA RIDGE ELEMENTARY

We are unified in bridging KIDS and their LEARNING

January 2026 Newsletter

Posted Date: 01/09/26 (04:07 PM)
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MONTHLY NEWSLETTER

JANUARY 2026

MONTHLY NEWSLETTER

 

Welcome back, and Happy New Year!

We are excited to begin the new year with a fresh start and a strong focus on success for all students. January, February, and March are some of the most important months for academic growth. During this time, students are often motivated, focused, and ready to challenge themselves in all areas of learning. One of the most important ways you can support your child’s success is by ensuring they are at school every day—consistent attendance truly makes a difference.
With the colder weather, this is also a wonderful time to build family reading routines at home. Reading to, with, and by your child each evening greatly supports literacy development and fosters a lifelong love of reading.
Our first semester ends on January 20, marking the halfway point of the academic year. Continued daily practice with math facts and reading—whether at home or on the go—helps reinforce learning and supports continued growth.
We also encourage you to attend our PTO meeting on January 13 at 6:00 p.m. Ken Murray will be joining us to share information about the upcoming bond. This will be an informative session with time for questions.
Thank you for partnering with us to support your child’s success. Please feel free to call, email, or stop by if you have any questions, concerns, or ideas on how we can continue to make Columbia Ridge an even better place for our students.
Sincerely,
Karla Williams
Principal
 
UPCOMING EVENTS JAN 13: PTO MEETING: 6pm - KEN MURRAY will be presenting bond information JAN 19: NO SCHOOL: MARTIN LUTHER KING JAN 20: CR BLOOD DRIVE JAN 20: END OF QUARTER JAN 29: REPORT CARDS (WILL GO HOME IN STUDENTS FOLDER) FEB 13: Pastries with Parents (K,1,2) FEB 16: NO SCHOOL: PRESIDENTS DAY MAR ( ) pastries with parents (3,4) Date to be determined
 
 
COLUMBIA RIDGE PTO MEETING TUESDAY, JAN 13TH, 6PM IN THE CAFETERIA KEN MURRAY WILL BE SHARING ABOUT THE UPCOMING BOND AND HOW IT MAY BRING UPDATED BUILDINGS TO OUR DISTRICT. YOU MAY PARTICIPATE IN PERSON OR ONLINE. SEE LINK BELOW TO ATTEND.
Click Here for Online PTO Mtg
 

January Attendance Challenge

January Attendance Challenge: Every Day Counts!
This January, Columbia Ridge Elementary and Grant Elementary are teaming up for an exciting district-wide attendance campaign—and students have some fun incentives to look forward to!
🏆 Big Prize: Movie Theater Trip!
The grade level across both Columbia Ridge Elementary and Grant Elementary with the highest overall attendance percentage for the month of January will win a trip to the movie theater! This friendly competition encourages teamwork, school pride, and showing up every day ready to learn.
🍿 Weekly Incentives at Columbia Ridge Elementary
At Columbia Ridge, the fun continues each week:
  • Weekly grade-level attendance competition: The grade level with the highest attendance percentage each week will earn a fancy popcorn party!
  • Classroom rewards: Any class that achieves 95% or higher attendance for the week will receive special treats and festive door tags to celebrate their success.
📚 Why Attendance Matters
Regular school attendance is one of the most important factors in a child’s academic success—especially in elementary school. When students attend school consistently, they:
  • Build strong reading and math skills
  • Develop routines and responsibility
  • Strengthen friendships and social skills
  • Feel more confident and connected at school
Even missing just a day or two each month can add up and make learning harder over time. Every school day offers valuable instruction, collaboration, and growth that can’t be fully replaced.
🌟 Let’s Make January Count!
We encourage families to prioritize attendance whenever possible and help students arrive at school on time and ready to learn. Together, we can make January a month of strong habits, school spirit, and exciting celebrations!
Thank you for supporting student success—every day truly counts!
 

KELSO'S CHOICES

Counselors Corner -Mr Garcia

KELSO'S CHOICES: Solving small problems or conflicts.
Small Problems or Big Problems: What's the Difference

Small problems happen more often than big problems. Small problems are not scary, not dangerous, and no one will get hurt. Even though they are small, they can still make kids feel frustrated, annoyed, sad, or bothered.

When a small problem happens, students are encouraged to try to solve it on their own first before asking an adult for help. We want to help kids learn how to solve small problems by themselves. With practice and gentle reminders, students can learn healthy ways to work through conflicts.
Big problems are different. Big problems are scary, dangerous, or someone could get hurt. When a student experiences or sees a big problem, they should tell an adult right away..
If a student is not sure how big the problem is, we ask these questions:
  • Is it scary?
  • Is it dangerous?
  • Could anyone get hurt?
If the answer is no to all of these questions, it is a small problem. The student can try up to two of Kelso’s Choices to solve it on their own.
If the answer is yes to any of the questions, it is a big problem, and the student should report it to an adult right away.

Conflicts or disagreements (small problems) are normal and often happen when children get together and interact. The goal of Kelso Choices is to teach students several positive ways to deal with these situations. To do this, we are asking students who have small problems to try at least two of the following choices: 
  1. Go to Another Game
  2. Respectfully Talk it Out and listen to each other
  3. Walk Away from the problem/situation
  4. Ignore the problem or behavior
  5. Tell the person to Stop the problem behavior
  6. Apologize
  7. Make a Deal or Compromise
  8. Wait and Cool Off
  9. Share and Take Turns 

Kelso's Choices can be used with verbal or nonverbal responses. Words are not always needed to solve the problem. We hope this will help you at home as well. Families, siblings, cousins and more have small problems or conflicts at times. If you remind your children of these options for problem-solving, they will get more confident and become better at using these choices. You may even notice that they will need you less often for small problems.
The image shown can be found online. Search Kelso Wheel.
Kelso's Choice wheel can be found online.
 

Winter Weather

Winter weather has arrived, and we want to be sure our students are prepared to stay warm and comfortable at school. Please remember to send your child dressed in warm clothing appropriate for the cold temperatures, including coats, hats, and gloves. Writing your child’s name inside their clothing items is very helpful in returning any lost items. Please note that when the temperature drops below 20 degrees, students will remain indoors for recess. Thank you for your support in helping keep our students safe and warm this winter!
 

DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP

Our Winter focus on Digital citizenship helps us learn how to use technology in safe, kind, and smart ways. In kindergarten, we learn that media balance is important, so we make time for screens and time for playing, learning, and resting. In first grade, we talk about how technology makes us feel and learn to notice when something makes us happy, sad, or frustrated. In second grade, we learn that we are digital citizens and that our choices online matter just like our choices at school and home. In third grade, we discover the power of words and how using kind words online can help others feel safe and respected. By fourth grade, we are ready to be super digital citizens by making good choices, staying safe online, and helping others do the same.
 
CR Families Thank you for your wonderful support in encouraging your children to read over winter break. We are so proud of their efforts! Reading Challenge Achievements • 75 students completed a Blackout They will receive hot cocoa and a cookie at lunch on Friday. • 150 students completed a Four-in-a-Row They will receive hot cocoa at lunch on Friday. Top Reading Classes 🎉 🏆 Mrs. Park’s 1st grade class had the most readers! They earned a popcorn party on Friday!  Way to go, readers! Thank you again to our families for helping make reading a priority over the break. If you’d like this adapted for a flyer, newsletter, or social media post, I’m happy to tweak it!

Christmas Break Reading Challenge Results!

CR Families
Thank you for your wonderful support in encouraging your children to read over winter break. We are so proud of their efforts!

Reading Challenge Achievements
• 75 students completed a Blackout
They will receive hot cocoa and a cookie at lunch on Friday.
• 150 students completed a Four-in-a-Row
They will receive hot cocoa at lunch on Friday.

Top Reading Classes 🎉
🏆 Mrs. Park’s 1st grade class had the most readers!
They earned a popcorn party on Friday!

Way to go, readers!
Thank you again to our families for helping make reading a priority over the break.
If you’d like this adapted for a flyer, newsletter, or social media post, I’m happy to tweak it!
 

SCHOOL WIDE MONTHLY CHALLENGE

Throughout January and February, Columbia Ridge will be focusing on Targeted Life Skills to support positive student behavior. We have been working on helping students “keep hands to self.”
For the next two weeks, our focus will be on teaching students to “ask for help” by finding a trusted adult when they feel frustrated or anxious. Parents are encouraged to support this skill at home in any way you can.
Columbia Ridge has been working on helping students "keep hands to self". Throughout January and February we will be working on Targeted Life Skills that help students with this behavior. Our focused target for the next two weeks is "asking for help". We will be working together to teach students to find a trusting adult when they feel frustrated or anxious. Parents please find ways at home to find ways that you can support this behavior challenge!
 

So proud of You Ms Keegan

🎉 CR Families—We Have a Rose Parade Star! 🌹🎶 We are thrilled to share that our very own CR music teacher, Ms. Alicia Keegan, had the incredible honor of marching in the 2026 Pasadena Rose Parade® on January 1—an experience truly worthy of celebration! Ms. Keegan performed under the direction of Jon Waters as a member of the Band Directors Marching Band, a prestigious ensemble made up of music educators from all 50 states, Canada, Mexico, and Panama. “It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and an incredible experience to make music with such passionate educators while celebrating the importance of music education,” Ms. Keegan shared. She also had the opportunity to perform at Bandfest and Floatfest, adding even more excitement to this unforgettable event. “It was so much fun playing piccolo in a marching band with such amazing talent!” The band was proudly sponsored by the Michael D. Sewell Memorial Foundation, honoring Mr. Sewell’s lasting legacy and commitment to music education. We are so proud to have Ms. Keegan representing CR on such a world-class stage and inspiring our students every day through her passion for music! 🎵✨
 
Kids Heart Challenge The Kids Heart Challenge is coming to Columbia Ridge from February 2–February 27! Our school-wide fundraising goal this year is $7,500. More information and all event details will be sent home in your student’s Thursday folder in February. Thank you for your support as we work together to promote heart health!

Kids Heart Challenge

Kids Heart Challenge
The Kids Heart Challenge is coming to Columbia Ridge from February 2–February 27! Our school-wide fundraising goal this year is $7,500. More information and all event details will be sent home in your student’s Thursday folder in February. Thank you for your support as we work together to promote heart health!
 

NAEP TESTING

NAEP Testing – February 17
Columbia Ridge has been selected to participate in NAEP testing this year. NAEP, the National Assessment of Educational Progress, is a nationwide measure of student achievement in math and reading. On February 17, 50 of our fourth-grade students will be randomly selected to take part in the assessment. Families of selected students will receive a letter with additional information.

 
Save the Date. Spring Conferences are coming. Wed March 4 and Thursday March 5. Times to be determined. Friday March 6 will be an early release day, at 12:05pm.