Fairmount Families Week END Report
01.27.2023
Happy Friday, Fairmount Families!
It was a snow-filled week, and we truly appreciate everyone's patience, especially during arrival, as we supported a larger volume of cars in the car line.
There is a great deal of important information below, including details regarding Grove Children's Preschool, Kindergarten Round-Up, District 58 summer programming and the 5Essentials Survey. I appreciate your review of these items, and as always, if you have any questions, please feel free to call the office at 630-719-5830.
As you are aware, our winter benchmarking period ended in mid-January. MAP Reports will be going home with your student on Wednesday, February 1st.
Thank you for your continued partnership. Have a great weekend!
Sincerely,
Lisa Niforatos, Principal
Be sure to follow me on Twitter @Fairmount58.
Please be sure to check out the "Lens into Learning" and "Celebration" sections later in the newsletter for photo highlights from the week.
Lost - Please find me!
Unclaimed items will be donated to a local charity on February 1st.
Thank you to Mrs. Liz Miller for capturing the pictures below to help unite lost items with their owners.
Grove Children's Preschool Open House 2/15
Grove Children’s Preschool will hold an open house on Feb. 15
Will your child be 3 or 4 years old this August? Do you have a neighbor or friend with a future preschooler? Please share! Grove Children’s Preschool will hold an open house on Wednesday, Feb. 15 from 5-6:30 p.m. at Henry Puffer School, 2220 Haddow Ave. Parents and guardians may tour the preschool, meet the staff, hear an overview of the program, and ask questions throughout the open house.
Grove Children’s Preschool tuition applications for the 2023-24 school year will open online at www.dg58.org/preschool on Wednesday, Feb. 22 at 8 a.m. First priority applications are due Wednesday, March 8. Learn more here.
Parent/Guardian and Student Surveys (previously emailed)
To help us ensure a nurturing, supportive and child-centered learning environment for every student, we ask our parents/guardians to please participate in District 58’s annual Parent/Guardian School Environment Survey. This survey should take just a few minutes, yet the valuable input you provide will help guide the work of our principals, teachers and district administrators as they plan school improvement efforts. All responses are anonymous.
Parents may take the Parent/Guardian School Environment Survey at www.surveymonkey.com/r/2023District58Survey now through Friday, Feb. 17. The survey is also linked online at www.dg58.org/surveys. If you do not have access to the Internet, please contact your child’s school for a paper copy. If you have a child attending more than one District 58 school, please complete a separate survey for each building. We value your responses and thank you for your time and effort!
We also invite parents/guardians to take the Illinois State Board of Education’s 5Essentials Parent Survey at https://survey.5-essentials.org/illinois/ now through Friday, March 31. District 58 will receive 5Essentials Parent Survey data if 20% or more of a school’s parents/guardians participate in this survey. This survey gathers data related to five indicators that can predict important student outcomes, including improved attendance and larger test score gains. Your participation in this survey will help us understand the conditions at your child’s school and guide improvement. Your identity and survey responses will be kept confidential and will not be connected to you or your child.
In addition to the parent/guardian surveys, fourth through eighth grade students will be asked to participate in a 5Essentials Student Survey sometime between Jan. 31-March 24. If you do not wish to have your fourth through eighth grade student(s) participate, please complete this Opt-Out Form and return it to your child’s school office by Friday, Jan. 27.
The Illinois 5Essentials Survey: Organizing Schools for Improvement was developed by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). The survey’s results will become part of the 2023 Illinois State Report Card for your child’s school. Student, staff and parent identities will be kept confidential, and responses will not be linked to any individual. To view the privacy policy related to this survey, visit https://survey.5-essentials.org/privacy. To view the 5Essentials survey that will be administered to fourth through eighth grade students, visit https://impactsurveyshelp.force.com/s/article/illinois-5essentials-survey-questions. The survey results will be used by your child’s school to inform planning.
If you have any questions about these surveys, please contact District 58 Community Relations Coordinator Megan Hewitt at mhewitt@dg58.org.
Parent-Teacher Conference Sign-Up
Winter 2023 parent-teacher conference signups are now open! Families can sign up using the PowerPTC system through Monday, February 6th at 11:00 a.m. If you miss the deadline and would like a conference, please contact the Fairmount office.
Conferences will take place the evenings of Tuesday, Feb. 7 and Thursday, Feb. 9. Learn more here.
View conference signup instructions here. (para Español: Registro para las reuniones de padres y maestros). If you still have questions, please complete a District 58 Technology Help Desk ticket at dg58.org/help.
Cougars' Reading Club Reminder
Please remember that the “first base” for the Cougar’s Reading Club is due on Monday, January 30th. Please contact Mrs. Glennon (aglennon@dg58.org) with any questions.
PTA Fun Lunch Orders Due 2/12
Congratulations!
Congratulations to the following students who participated in PTA Reflections and have advanced to the State level of competition:
Jessica F. - "The Forgetful Wedding" (Literature, Grade 1)
Ruben L. - "Wild Nature" (Photography, Grade 3)
Attendance and Arrival Reminders
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 hope you enjoy learning a little more about each of our staff members in the weekly Teacher Feature.
Teacher Feature - Ms. Glynn
Role at Fairmount: Social Worker
# of Years at Fairmount School: 2 Years
Favorite Food or Restaurant: Yard House
If she is not at school, you can catch Ms. Glynn taking her dog Loki to the dog park!
Favorite Quote: "Vulnerability sounds like truth and feels like courage. Truth and courage aren’t always comfortable, but they're never weakness." — Brené Brown
The best thing about working with children every day is... they remind me to celebrate the little things every single day.
Lens into Learning
Science Fair Success!
Positive Partners
Mining Modeling
Appreciating Art
Celebrating Students
Early Dismissal Monday
Mark your Calendars!
01.30: Happy Monday! Wear orange! 2:00 p.m. Early Dismissal; 6:30 p.m. Community Facility Visioning Session at O'Neill Middle School
01.31: Happy Tuesday!
02.01: 3:00-3:45 p.m. Sign Language Club for Registered Students; 3:00-4:00 p.m. Bricks for Kids for Registered Students
02.02: Happy Thursday!
02.03: Falcon Friday: Wear School Colors or Spiritwear
A Look Ahead...
02.07: Parent-Teacher Conferences
02.09: Parent-Teacher Conferences
02.20: No School: President's Day
02.25: The Reading Games at O'Neill Middle School
02.28: (Tuesday): No School Students - Teacher Institute Day!
Calendar Highlights:
Spring Break: March 27-31, 2023
Last Day of School: Wednesday, June 7, 2023 (if no emergency days are used)
Board Approves 2023-2024 School Calendar
The Board of Education approved the District 58 2023-24 school year calendar. To maximize the summer 2024 construction window, the calendar eliminates some single days off, while maintaining typical break periods in alignment with District 99. Highlights include:
First Day of School: Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023
Thanksgiving Break: Nov. 22-24, 2023
Winter Break: Dec. 25, 2023-Jan. 5, 2024
Spring Break: March 25-29, 2024
Last Day of School: Friday, May 24 (if no emergency days are used)
Below the Line
Building Bricks - Being our Best!
We will be continuously supporting students (both in and out of the classroom) to Be Ready, In Control, Kind and Safe.
Out Student Focus Committee will be wrapping up "Being in Control" and preparing to kick-off our next Falcon Focus the first week of February, "Being Kind".
Flu Season
Please see the attached informational fact sheet from the IDPH regarding influenza. The flu is different from the common cold and can cause fever, cough, sore throat, headache, muscle aches, and vomiting. We appreciate your support in keeping your child home from school if they have a fever, are vomiting, and/or exhibiting other signs of influenza. Students are encouraged to hand wash and/or utilize hand sanitizer at school and additional surface cleaning is conducted, as well.
Reminder: Cold Weather/Snow Gear
If your child would like to play in the snow/be on the field (assuming conditions are safe to do so), they must have both snow pants and snow boots. We also appreciate your support in making sure your child(ren) comes prepared for the weather/elements each day as we will typically go outside for recess if the conditions permit and the feels like temperature is above 0 degrees.
Please do not hesitate to reach out to Lisa Niforatos (Principal) or Jen Glynn (Social Worker) if you do not have access to the resources to secure cold-weather gear for your child(ren).
The Reading Games
The Reading Games will return for its ninth year on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2023 at O'Neill Middle School. The Reading Games is a fun and friendly reading competition open to District 58 students in grades 3-8. Visit www.readinggamesdg58.com for detailed information. The Reading Games also seeks question writer volunteers! Click here to learn more information and to sign up to volunteer.
Attendance & Change of Dismissal
If your child's dismissal plan will be different (e.g. not taking the bus), please communicate this to both the school secretaries and classroom teacher as promptly as possible. This is especially important for our younger students, so we can support their dismissal process. In the event of a last-minute change, we ask that you please call the school office (630-719.5830) as staff members may not check their emails prior to daily dismissal.
Safe 2 Help
District 58 has partnered with Safe2Help to give students a safe and confidential way to report potential threats or crises. Safe2Help was launched by the State of Illinois in December 2020 and aims to help prevent suicide, bullying, school violence and other threats to school safety.
With Safe2Help, students can connect with a trained crisis professional during their own crisis, or to report a potential threat. Students can submit a Safe2Help alert via 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
All alerts are responded to by a trained Safe2Help crisis professional. Safe2Help is available 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.
District 58 staff are not the initial responders to the alert and will receive each alert after the Safe2Help professional provides support. District 58 staff will review alerts sent by Safe2Help during regular school hours, unless the nature of the alert necessitates immediate school action.
Learn more about Safe2Help and District 58's crisis resources.
Fairmount Office Contact Information
Lisa Niforatos, Principal lniforatos@dg58.org
Jillian DeRango, Secretary jderango@dg58.org
Jill Darrah, Secretary jdarrah@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