Panther Pride
June 2023
We create and maintain a safe and consistent learning community by establishing positive behavioral supports and a culture where all students achieve social, emotional and academic success.
Fernwood Elementary
3933 Jewell Rd
Bothell, WA 98021
425.408.4500
In This Issue:
Principal Message
Dear Fernwood Families,
It seems like just yesterday we were gathering for our Supply Drop Off before the school year began, and now we are getting ready to wrap up the 2022-23 school year. It sure does seem like this school year has gone by quickly!
As we wrap up this year and begin to look toward the future, I would like to take a moment to share images from our new building and site layout set to open in the fall of 2025. Our priorities for our decision-making process around the design have centered around:
Celebration of student, staff, and community culture and diversity
Student learning spaces outside the classroom
Minimize stress at arrival & dismissal
Improved site accessibility
Teacher collaboration
Community gathering spaces for the entire school
Improve security and visibility of students
Avoid long walks and improve school traffic circulation patterns
Below are DRAFT images of both the site plan and our new building that include the POSSIBLE look of the exterior of the new building. Putting the new building at the front of our campus will allow us to secure our ENTIRE campus in additional fencing added to support safety.
Our planning committee is in the process of brainstorming how we can best capture the diversity of our Fernwood community as we begin planning for the interior design of the new building. We would GREATLY appreciate your input by sharing thoughts within this four question survey. The survey is linked here.
You are invited to come to our PTSA meeting on Tuesday, June 6th from 7:00-8:00pm in the Fernwood library or through Zoom (see the PTSA section below) to learn more about these construction updates from NAC, our architecture company. They will be our guest speakers!
Kind regards,
Kate Eicher, Proud Principal
Fernwood Site Plan
Frontal View of the New Building
View of the New Student Plaza
Celebrating Our Staff Retiring or Moving to Other Schools
In thinking about wrapping up the year, we are so fortunate to have a dedicated staff who care deeply about our students’ individual, social-emotional, and academic needs. As we near the conclusion of the 2022-23 school year, it is important we acknowledge those staff that will not be returning next year so students and families can share their goodbyes. Staff named below will be retiring or returning to work at another school within the Northshore School District as next school year begins. They have taken a moment to share some of the memories they will hold onto as they move on from Fernwood.
Ali Fada - Special Education Para Educator
After tutoring students at my church in an after-school program, I decided that I would love to work at a school and help students who were struggling. I started working at Canyon Creek in 2003 as a split class paraeducator for 2 hours a day. Eventually more hours were added, and I ended up working in the Contained Learning Center. In 2011 an opening in the inclusive classroom at Fernwood came available and I decided to apply. I will miss the students so much but look forward to being able to spend more time with my grandchildren. I will also miss the staff and especially my team. Everyone at Fernwood is so supportive and are my heroes.
Alyssa Mueller - 2/3 EAP Teacher
My favorite part of being at Fernwood is my students. I am so grateful to have had such an amazing, respectful, intelligent, creative, and fun class. I will miss all of the students, families, and teachers I have come to know while at Fernwood. Fernwood is a loving and supportive community and I appreciate that I was welcomed in with open arms. I know my students will all do amazing things. I hope they continue to find joy in learning and are always willing to try new things. I am proud of the good choices they make and will continue to make. I appreciate the happiness they bring to those around them and know they will keep spreading positivity.
Callie White - Kindergarten Teacher
One of the most meaningful aspects of a teacher's work is the positive relationships we form with our students and their families. As I move on and immerse myself in a new school, the ways in which I was welcomed, embraced, and supported by the families here at Fernwood will remain with me. What I will miss the most about Fernwood is the opportunity to watch my students (past and present) grow and flourish as they move through the elementary grades. My hopes and dreams for my students' future is that they remain willing to take safe risks in their learning and try their best without fear of failure. I hope they believe in themselves and take great pride in all that they will accomplish. It has been an honor and a joy to serve all that have been under my care here at Fernwood.
As teachers, students, or families move on from Fernwood, they still remain a part of our community by the imprint they have left in our lives and hearts. Our Panther Pride extends beyond our school walls and we hope it remains a piece of each individual that has come across our campus.
Dates To Remember
Counselor Connection
As we have the long days of summer ahead, we’d like to share with you a review about our school counseling program AND some information/resources to help your family stay safe this summer.
As you are aware, your Fernwood school counselors serve all students, K-5. We help students with their academic, social-emotional, and career development. Here is an overview of ways our program served students this year: In partnership with teachers, our school counseling program included over 240 classroom lessons on Conflict Management, Bullying Prevention, Emotional Regulation and Career Development. In addition, we’ve led 40 small groups focused upon various school-success skills, serving approximately 182 invited participants. Students have been working so hard, and we’re so pleased to see all their continued growth! Thank you for your support and partnership this school year!
In closing, we also want to share information and resources to help your family stay safe this summer. If you’re like most parents, there may have been times that you struggled to understand and appropriately respond to your child’s behavior. Because children’s behavior can seem complex at times, you have likely wondered the best approach to disciplining your child when misbehavior occurs. And because responses to behavior can be dependent upon a child’s age and presenting needs, we encourage you to see the resources on child development milestones and positive parenting linked below.
In addition, you may have questions about corporal punishment. While a parent has discretion on how they deem appropriate to discipline their child, it is important to be aware corporal punishment that is likely to cause bodily harm greater than transient pain or minor temporary marks or which is injurious to your child’s health, welfare, and safety can be suspected as child abuse. (WAC 388-15-009). For more information, please see the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services website also linked below.
Lastly, for tips and reminders on how to help keep your child safe while being active this summer, please see link below.
If you have any questions or would like to request any additional support for your student, please do not hesitate to reach out! We are here for your student’s success!
Best Regards,
Jennifer Brisbine (Grades 1, 3, & 5) jbrisbine@nsd.org and 425-408-4570
Sarah Cue (Grades K, 2, & 4) scue@nsd.org and 425-408-4572
Resources:
- Child Development & Positive Parenting
- Washington State Department of Social and Health Services
- Keep Your Child Safe: Summer Tips
In The Know
Dismissal Time Changes
Wednesday, June 14th - Full Day Wednesday, dismissal at 3:50pm
Tuesday, June 20th - Last day of school, dismissal at 11:50am
End of the Year Dates and Events
Tuesday, June 13th - Yearbooks distributed
Wednesday, June 14th - Field Day
Friday, June 16th - End of the Year Assembly (Virtual)
Monday, June 19th - No School
Tuesday, June 20th - Last Day of School Dismissal at 11:50am
Volunteer Appreciation
Our volunteers do so much to support our partnership around carrying out our school’s mission. We will be holding a Volunteer Appreciation Celebration on Friday, June 9th to honor those that have provided ongoing support for us this school year. Specific invitations with more details will be emailed to our volunteers.
Field Day
Students will be able to participate in Field Day on Wednesday, June 14th. Field Day is a chance for students to engage in fun and safe activities as a celebration for all their effort and hard work over the course of the year.
Schedule
Intermediate classrooms (3, 4, and 5): Students will engage in Field Day from 9:45-11:15am.
Primary classrooms (K, 1, and 2): Students will engage in Field Day from 1:45-3:15pm.
Items to Bring
Students may get wet! They can wear a swimsuit under their clothes. No stomachs can show. Please make sure to have your child wear closed-toed shoes. All students may also bring a towel.
Intermediate Students: They can bring (but do not have to bring) a change of clothes and shoes. We will provide specific monitored changing areas for students if they choose to access them. Students are not required to change.
Primary Students: They will go home soon after field day, so they just need a towel. Even if you send them with a change of clothes, they will not have time to change before packing up to go home.
Color Day
Students can wear the color below to represent their grade level:
Kindergarten: Green
1st Grade: Yellow
2nd Grade: Purple
3rd Grade: Blue
4th Grade: Red
5th Grade: Pink
Volunteers
We are in need of 30-40 volunteers for each section of Field Day. Please complete this link to volunteer: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c084cada62ba7fcc25-field#/
Even after you sign up, volunteers must have approved background checks to participate.
See more information in the PTSA section.
5th Grade Celebration
Our Fifth Grade PTSA Chairs are creating a 5th grade celebration to acknowledge the changing of a chapter; their elementary experience comes to a close and their secondary experience begins. This will be held on Friday, June 16th from 2:10-3:40pm in the gym and cafeteria.
2:10-3:00pm, Students will be acknowledged and celebrated in the gym.
3:00-3:40pm, Students will enjoy light refreshments in the cafeteria.
Space is limited, so we ask that attendance is reserved for immediate family only. As a reminder, this is for families with fifth grade students only. To help us ensure we have adequate space, please RSVP. If you are only able to come to one of these two parts of the celebration, we understand and you can state that in the RSVP form. You can find the RSVP form linked here. We are working to see if we can do live streaming for families unable to attend in person. Stay tuned for more details!
End-of-the-Year Assembly
It is important for us to celebrate students’ accomplishments throughout the year. We will engage ALL students in a virtual end-of-the-year assembly on Friday, June 16th.
Medications and Medication Pick Up
Medications your child may have leftover at school will need to get home in a safe manner. Please make arrangements to pick up any medication(s) at school (call or email nurse to schedule a time for pickup).
Any medications left at Fernwood after Tuesday, June 20th at 4:00 pm will be destroyed (includes emergency medications for seizures, diabetes, EPI Pens, as well as daily and as needed medications).
Please note that medications cannot go home with students and will need to be picked up by a parent (ADHD, seizure medications, etc).
Medications can be picked up during the hours of 11:30 am – 3:30 pm on June 20, 2023. Contact the school nurse if other pickup arrangements need to be made.
If your child needs to take medication during school hours next year, please have your healthcare provider complete a Medication Authorization Form before school starts in the fall. Bring the completed medication authorization and medication in a properly labeled, original container when school begins in the fall. Forms are available on Fernwood and District websites.
Life - Threatening conditions:
Students who have Life Threatening Conditions will need to make plans over the summer to have Emergency Medications with physician’s orders at school and ready before the first day of school. Letters will be sent home in June for those students who currently have Emergency Care Plans in place and will include all necessary forms to be completed for next fall. Please contact the school nurse if you need assistance with forms or have questions. (425-408-4506 or pmansahia@nsd.org)
Thank you,
Pavi M. School Nurse
Report Cards
Report cards will be mailed home on June 23rd. They will also be available for viewing through Parent VUE. The information within the report card is more robust as compared to your child’s progress report from the fall. For assistance in understanding the scores provided, please see review the following documents based on your child’s grade level:
Class Placements for 2023-24
Student classroom placements will be sent out in late August through ParentVUE. You will be notified when this information is available.
LOST AND FOUND
It’s that time of year when our students come to school with coats on but by the afternoon it's too warm to wear them and they get left on the playground! Our lost and found racks are starting to fill up! If you notice a coat or sweatshirt is missing, please have your students check the lost and found collection located by the gym foyer. Any items that are not claimed by noon on June 20th will be donated to charity!
Community Serve Day at Fernwood
Join us on Sunday, August 27 for Community Serve Day! This one day, thousands of volunteers at 30 local schools will gather to help them prepare for the first day of school. CSD volunteers will help teachers organize their classrooms, spruce up the school landscaping and prep the playgrounds for students. This is a community event, so invite your friends, family and neighbors to join you on Sunday, August 27 from 9am-1pm to volunteer at Community Serve Day 2023.
Registration for volunteers to sign up for Community Serve Day opens May 15. Registration can be found at Communityserveday.org. Questions? Contact your school site leader, Kristie McVay kmcvay@nsd.org, or email the CSD Team.
District Information
Use of District Technology Over the Summer
Students in grades 2-5 will keep their devices over the summer. If you would prefer to NOT have your child keep their device, please complete the linked form.
i-Ready Use in the Summer
Northshore will continue to provide access for students to practice math and reading through i-Ready over the summer. i-Ready lessons are aligned to students’ current strengths and needs based on their spring diagnostic assessment. This is a great resource to use to ensure students are practicing skills at their level. Students are encouraged to use this resource no more than 1.5 hours per week. That is 45 minutes a week for reading and 45 minutes for writing.
Early Childhood Program
Northshore School District's Early Childhood Programs are currently enrolling eligible 3-5 year old children in our free preschool programs. There are 3 different free preschool programs in the district, Head Start, ECEAP, and Ready Start. There is one application process for all 3 programs. Children must have turned 3 on or before 8/31/2023 in order to be eligible for the 2023-24 school year.
Northshore Schools Foundation Backpack & School Supply Kit
The Northshore Schools Foundation is here to help you! If you are experiencing financial limitations, the Foundation would like to provide your Northshore student with a backpack and or a school supply kit for the 2023-2024 school year.
Backpacks and school supply kits are packaged separately. If your student needs both items, please be sure to request both when completing this form: https://forms.office.com/r/qZrwwjtht9
If you do not request them on this form, you may not receive them during the distribution event.
DISTRIBUTION EVENT IS SATURDAY, AUGUST 26 FROM 10 AM TO NOON AT POP KEENEY STADIUM.
If you have any questions about the Backpack for Kids, please contact Heather Erickson
PTSA Information
Connection with the Principal
There is no Connection with the Principal this month. This is because Mrs. Eicher and Ms. Morton will be busy meeting new kindergarten families during our Incoming Kindergarten Night event.
PTSA Meeting
The month’s PTSA meeting will be on Tuesday, June 6th at 7:00pm in the Fernwood Library. Our guest speaker will be NAC Architecture Company to provide an update on plans for the Fernwood site as a whole as well as specifically to the new building.
Join the Zoom Meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88273278271?pwd=QWgzTUV5RU5hUi9INTBnODEyYVg5Zz09
Meeting ID: 882 7327 8271
Passcode: 413952
On behalf of the Fernwood PTSA Board of Directors: we hope to see you there.
Thank you Families
Thank you to the Fernwood community for making our teacher and staff appreciation week earlier in May a huge hit! Fernwood teachers and staff enjoyed the week where they felt appreciation for all of their hard work. Thank you to everyone who volunteered their time during the week and to those that sent in donations, the staff enjoyed the coffee, snacks, beverages, tasty treats, popcorn, and more that was delivered throughout the week.
Thank you,
Ashley Sharp
Fernwood Field Day Volunteers and Donations Needed
Sign Up to Volunteer
The PE team will be hosting field day on Wednesday, June 14th. (*please note that there is no early release that day, school will be dismissed at 3:50pm). Field Day will be tons of fun for the whole school and a great kick off to the last days of our school year.
We'd love your help! We are looking for 30-40 volunteers per session to help with stations. There is a morning session (9:00-11:30) and an afternoon session (1:15-3:45) that you can volunteer to sign up for. You MUST be an approved NSD volunteer to sign up. Please do not sign up if you have not been through the NSD process. NSD guidelines listed here: https://www.nsd.org/get-involved/volunteer/become-a-volunteer
If you’re able to volunteer the whole day, that’s great, too. Click here to volunteer: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c084cada62ba7fcc25-field#/
Donations Needed
If you’re unable to volunteer your time, you can still help by donating water balloons (we recommend the Bunch O Balloons brand), sidewalk chalk, bubbles and bubble solution and Otter Pops. Donations can be dropped off at the main office anytime up to the morning of the 14th.
Yearbook Distribution – June 13th!
The 2022-2023 Fernwood Elementary School yearbooks will be distributed on Tuesday, June 13th to students who ordered by the April 1st deadline. Yearbooks will be distributed in class, by classroom teachers.
For any students who did not order a yearbook but would still like to purchase one, the yearbook committee will sell a VERY limited number of remaining yearbooks for $30 CASH ONLY (exact change) on Wednesday, June 14th at 8:30am, on a first come, first served basis until all yearbooks have been sold. Cash sales will take place in front of the Fernwood gymnasium, in person only. Questions can be directed to fernwoodyearbook@gmail.com.
Ongoing School-Wide Communication
We will send out a Weekly Update each Sunday following our June Panther Pride.