Fairmount Families Week END Report
12.22.2023
Happy Friday, Fairmount Families!
It was certainly a fun and festive week at Fairmount! We are beyond appreciative of our PTA and all parent volunteers for making our Winter Parties a success. Our students also enjoyed the school-wide reward, which they collectively earned for demonstrating respectful, responsible and safe behaviors.
While Winter Break looks different for all of our families, I truly hope that this time is an opportunity for all of Fairmount families to enjoy any and all of your celebrations as well as memorable time with your child(ren).
I look forward to welcoming everyone back in 2024 and continue to be thankful for the amazing partnership we have in our wonderful school community.
Wishing you a wonderful and restful Winter Break!
Sincerely,
Lisa Niforatos, Principal
Be sure to follow me on Twitter/X @Fairmount58.
Quick Links:
Thank you Fairmount Families!
Information & Reminders
Winter Benchmarking Information
When students return from Winter Break, we will engage in Winter Benchmarking assessments including NWEA MAP and AimsWeb. As previously shared, some of our students engaged in AimsWeb prior to Winter Break. All students, Kindergarten through 6th grade, will take both the ELA and Math NWEA MAP assessment. Specific information regarding testing dates will be shared by your child's classroom teacher and testing dates can be found in the calendar section below.
Spoon, Forks or Sporks!
While all students are encouraged to bring their own utensils for lunch each day, we frequently provide students with spoons, forks or sporks during lunch. Our office is kindly asking for any donation of plastic spoons, forks or sporks to replenish our stock for students. There will be a bin in the Door 1 vestibule for any donations.
Mindful Club
Mindful Club will be offered to students in second and third grade. Sessions will be spent learning about mindfulness and building up a toolbox of mindful strategies. We will learn about and practice new strategies each week! Permission slips were distributed to 2nd and 3rd graders.
Please contact Annabeth Niemann (aniemann@dg58.org) or Marissa Remus (mremus@dg58.org) with any questions.
Sign Language Club
Sign Language Club begins on 1/9 from 3:00-3:45 for registered 4th grade students. Any questions please email Ms. Armbrust: carmbrust@dg58.org
Science Fair Registration Closes Today! (previously in Communicate 58)
Students in grades 1-6 are invited to participate in the Science Fair this winter! Registration will be open Monday, Nov. 27 through Friday, Dec. 22. To register for this year’s Science Fair, use this Registration Form. The Science Fair will take place Saturday, Jan. 20 from 8-11 a.m. at O’Neill Middle School. The fair is open to all District 58 students in grades 1-6. Participating in the Science Fair is voluntary, but District 58 encourages every student to consider participating! Students may register as an individual or with one partner. More details can be found here.
School Improvement Focus
Do you know about Dreambox?
This year our school improvement goal is focused on utilizing the Bridges curriculum and tailored small group instruction. Dreambox is an app that your child can access through their Clever account to continue working on this goal at home. Please encourage your child to access this individualized math tool at home. We understand that it can be challenging not to assist your child while they are working at home, but it is important that this application is used independently in order for your child to receive the appropriate support and instruction.
Fairmount PTA
Fairmount PTA
Fairmount is lucky to have a very active PTA. We encourage all parents/guardians to join the PTA. Please see the the PTA website for detailed information related to membership, events, and to subscribe to the weekly Falcon Flyer. We also encourage you to visit the events page on the PTA website to view all upcoming and ongoing events hosted by the PTA. As always, thank you to our wonderful PTA!
Orders due 01/21 for December PTA Fun Lunch
The first Fun Lunch of 2024 is scheduled for Friday, January 26th. Al's Catering will provide the food and orders are due by Sunday, January 21st. The ordering platform is now open. All meals are $5.00, and you can order for the remainder of the school year, if you wish. Contact Tiffany Melnyk at tiffanyjoy21@gmail.com with any questions about ordering, forgotten login information, or setting up an account.
Teacher Feature
Teacher Feature
We are so glad you are part of our school community! Whether this is your child's first or seventh year at Fairmount, we wanted to provide a fun way to get to know the many members of our teaching and school staff. We started this section last school year and look forward to continuing it during the 2023-2024 school year. Our teachers and staff have been asked new questions, so you can learn even more about them.
Meet Mrs. KC Chick
# of Years at Fairmount: This is my 23rd year teaching 6th grade!
Favorite Movie: All Things Tom Hanks! Green Mile, Captain Phillips, A League of their Own, Saving Private Ryan, Forest Gump, Toy Story, Etc!
Favorite Place to Go/Travel to: The Beach
Favorite Dessert or Sweet Treat: Mint Chip Ice Cream
A fun or unusual fact about me is... I taught myself how to sew in High School and was making skinny jeans out of men's 501s before skinny jeans were even a thing. I now can slip cover furniture, recover cushions, and make blinds. I would love to design/sew clothing and build furniture next!
Lens into Learning
Making Spirits Bright
Dress to Impress
School-Wide Movie
Students enjoyed time with their buddies as they watched Inside Out. This was a whole school incentive for filling our Star Jar!
Long Winter's Nap
It was a comfy, cozy day in our PJs. We enjoyed our School-Wide movie with our buddies today too!
Strike!
6th graders enjoyed bowling during PE with Mr. Zieman.
Talk about Tuesday
This week's Talk about Tuesday was brought to Fairmount by the spectacular 6th graders in Mrs. Chick's class. They rocked morning announcements.
Fill it Friday
It was our last Fill It Friday of 2023... Spolier Alert... they filled it! Looking forward to recognizing our students on January 8th!
Music in the Air
We were fortunate to have many mini performances from our band and orchestra students this week.
Fairmount MVPs - Celebrating Students
Calendar & Important Dates
Early Dismissal Monday, January 8th
Monday, January 8th is our next Professional Learning Monday. All students are dismissed at 2:00 p.m. according to their regular dismissal plan. Please be sure you have made arrangements for your child to be picked up from Fairmount at 2:00 p.m. each Monday.
Mark your Calendars!
01.08: 2:00 p.m. Early Dismissal; Wear Orange! Monthly Matters Assembly; Kindergarten, 1st, 5th and 6th Grade MAP Testing
01.09: 3:00-3:45 p.m. Mindful Club for Registered Students; 3:00-3:45 p.m. Sign Language Club for Registered Students; Kindergarten, 1st, 5th and 6th Grade MAP Testing
01.10: Fairmount PTA Meeting 7:00 p.m.; Kindergarten, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Grade MAP Testing
01.11: 4th and 5th Grade MAP Testing
01.12: Falcon Friday: Wear School Colors and Gear!; 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 6th Grade MAP Testing
A Look Ahead...
01.15: No School - Martin Luther King, Jr.
02.01 & 02.07: Parent-Teacher Conferences
02.19: No School - President's Day
2023-2024 School Calendar - Updated
Spring Break: March 25-29, 2024
Last Day of School: Tuesday, May 29, 2024 (if no additional emergency days are used)
Below the Line: Repeated Information
Below the Line
Referral GPS
District 58 strives to create a culture of well-being for students, parents, staff and community. To further support this endeavor, the District has invested in an additional support service through ReferralGPS.
ReferralGPS is a service providing assistance to our community in finding local mental health and substance use-related treatment resources. The service compliments the District’s existing systems of support as a tool for student service teams and families to connect with treatment. Along with a searchable database of treatment options, ReferralGPS assists families in triage and appointment setting.
School district staff and families may access ReferralGPS in two ways:
Contact Student Services (social workers, psychologists, counselors) to seek out treatment options
Visit this link at https://referralgps.com/find-help/DG58 to search for treatment resources or connect with a Care Navigator anonymously
The platform has the ability to filter by mental health concern, clinician gender/specialty, location, and insurance acceptance. The service is available for all types of private and public insurance options including PPO, HMO, Medicaid, and families that are uninsured or underinsured.
ReferralGPS is available for use by district students, staff, and families at no cost. All information entered on the ReferralGPS tool is completely confidential and securely stored.
District 58 shares e-learning plan and winter weather school closing procedures (previously shared in Communicate 58)
If inclement winter weather prompts District 58 to close its schools and facilities this year, the District will notify families and staff as soon as possible using a variety of communication tools. Please note, extreme weather is very unpredictable, and the decision to close schools is typically not able to be made until the morning of the event. District 58 will only send a message if schools will be closed. Otherwise, the day will proceed as usual. District 58 anticipates that most inclement weather "snow days" will be e-learning days.
If schools cannot be open due to inclement weather, District 58 will have the option to declare an emergency day (also known as “snow day”) or an e-learning day. The Board of Education has approved an e-learning plan that allows District 58 to use e-learning days in lieu of emergency days. As communicated previously, because of construction plans this summer and the need to maximize that time for construction, it is more likely that District 58 will prioritize an e-learning day in lieu of an emergency day (“snow day”). An e-learning day does not need to be made up in June. However, students are required to participate in e-learning from home in order to earn credit for the school day. If District 58 uses a traditional emergency day, that day will need to be made up in June. Read more about winter weather procedures.
Weather Reminders
As enter the month of December and have now experienced our first snowfall of the year, we wanted to share a few important reminders regarding outdoor gear to help support students during their recess and playtime outside.
Students will go outside, weather permitting, each day. In the event of inclement weather or the combined temperature and wind chill is below 0 degrees and/or if the conditions outside do not support safe play (e.g. extreme ice) students will take part in indoor recess.
It is important that students come prepared for outdoor weather each day. We certainly know that the weather can vary significantly at this time of year, so students are encouraged to have a “gear bag” that includes hats, gloves, snow pants, and snow/winter boots. Thank you, in advance, for writing your child’s name on all of their gear to support finding lost items.
In the event of snowfall/accumulated snow on the ground, students MUST have both snow pants and snow boots to play in the snow. This includes being on the field/grass area. While students do not need snow pants to play on the playground equipment, they do need to have snow boots in order to access the playground area.
If your family faces hardship in purchasing/securing winter gear, please contact Jen (Glynn) Mejdrech (jglynn@dg58.org) or Lisa Niforatos (lniforatos@dg58.org) for assistance.
Safe to Help
- Click here to connect with Safe2Help Illinois. Students can contact Safe2Help Illinois to safely and confidentially report a crisis or threat involving themselves or someone they know. Safe2Help is monitored 24/7 by trained crisis professionals. District 58 staff will receive an alert after the Safe2Help professional provides support. Through Safe2Help, students can report a crisis or threat through the following ways:
- Website: https://app.safe22helpil.com
- Text: SAFE2 (72332)
- Phone: 844-4-SAFEIL (844-472-3345)
- App: "Safe2Help Illinois" app available in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store
- Email: HELP@Safe2HelpIL.com
- Call or text "988" and the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline will provide 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones.
- Text “ACT” to 741741: The National Crisis Text line will connect you with free, confidential assistance.
Fairmount Office Contact Information
Lisa Niforatos, Principal lniforatos@dg58.org
Jill DeRango, Secretary jderango@dg58.org
Email: lniforatos@dg58.org
Website: www.dg58.org/fa/
Location: 6036 Blodgett Avenue, Downers Grove, IL, USA
Phone: 630.719.5830
Twitter: @Fairmount58