Dear Ridge View Families,

Welcome back to Ridge View! It was wonderful seeing so many families at Back to School Night, both familiar faces returning and new excited faces joining our community. We’re thrilled to kick off another great year together.

Our school theme this year is “Up, UP, and Away with Learning!” We can’t wait to watch our students soar as we launch into a year full of growth, curiosity, and joyful learning.

👋 Welcome to Our New Staff

Please help us welcome several new team members to Ridge View:

🏫 Visitor Procedures

All visitors must enter through the front office and sign in as visitors. Side doors cannot be used for entry. Belgrade School District has adopted the I Love U Guys safety protocol, and more information is included below. As part of our safety procedures, the playground is closed to parents during school hours. We kindly ask families to say goodbye to students at their drop‑off door, so they can begin their day smoothly and safely. Our staff will be there to welcome them into our building.

🚗 Parking Lot & Drop‑Off Reminders

Thank you for helping us keep drop‑off safe and smooth:

We appreciate your partnership in keeping our students safe and our mornings running efficiently.

We can't wait to welcome our students to the school!

Warmly,

Natalie Colombo

Principal

We want every child at Ridge View to feel safe, cared for, valued, and ready to learn. This year, our teachers are using Time to Teach!, a positive, research-based approach that emphasizes relationships, clear expectations, and calm, consistent responses.

Teachers work to ensure every child feels known, valued, and welcome. Children learn best when they know their teachers care about them.

We explicitly teach routines and expectations, just as we teach reading or math. Students learn what is expected so they can feel confident and successful.

When challenges arise, teachers respond calmly and consistently. We model the self-control we want students to develop.

When a student makes a choice that interferes with learning, teachers first use a quiet reminder or other classroom strategy. If the behavior continues, the student may take a brief Refocus break.

During Refocus, students have an opportunity to pause, think about what happened, regain self-control, and make a plan for what to do differently next time.

Refocus is not a punishment. It is a brief reset that allows students to return to learning ready to be successful. If your child mentions going to Refocus, please know that the goal is to address the issue at school, restore learning, and move forward.

Our goal is to hold high expectations while treating every child with dignity and care. We believe firm and loving can go together.

Thank you for partnering with us to create classrooms where every child can learn and thrive. Please reach out if you have any questions!

At Ridge View, student safety is a shared priority. This year, our district is using the Standard Response Protocol (SRP) from the I Love U Guys Foundation a safety system used in schools across the country. The SRP provides simple,. These are consistent actions that help students and staff know what to do in different situations.

The SRP includes five safety actions:

These actions use clear, age‑appropriate language so students can understand what is happening and what to do.

Before practicing any of these steps, students will learn about helpers, the trusted adults at school, at home, and in the community who keep them safe, including first responders.

A paper copy of this information will come home in your child’s back‑to‑school materials.