Ferson Creek eNews

September

Wednesday, September 13th - PTO Parents Night Out @ Flagship on the Fox

Friday, September 15th - Wear Yellow for Childhood Cancer Awareness

Sunday, September 24th - MOD Pizza Fundraiser

Wednesday, September 27 -Early Dismissal @ 2:10 pm

Friday, September 29 - Kick A Thon @ St. Charles East

October

Wednesday, October 4th - Buona Beef Fundraiser

Thursday & Friday, October 5th - 6th - Parent/Teacher Conferences - No School for Students

(More information to come)

Friday, October 20th - School Improvement Day - No School for Students

Wednesday, October 25th - Early Dismissal @ 2:10

It was amazing to see so many of you last night at Open House. I love watching your children lead you around the school so confidently. I hope you got a chance to meet our staff and some new families!

Have a great weekend,

Kristy McKnight

September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. In honor of this, we are asking all students and staff to wear gold/yellow next Friday. Let's bring some awareness to this cause that has truly affected so many!

Be on the look out for a couple more opportunities to support Childhood Cancer Awareness Month!

We are happy to inform you that Ferson Creek will be continuing to use The Zones of Regulation this year. The Zones of Regulation (or “Zones” for short), are colors that represent the four areas of self-regulation. Self Regulation can go by many names such as: self-control, self-management and impulse control.

The Zones are geared toward helping students gain skills in consciously regulating their feelings, which, in turn, leads to increased control and problem solving abilities. Students are taught to recognize when they are in different “states” called the Zones, with each of the four zones represented by a different color. Below is a visual of the Zones.

Students will learn how to self-regulate (also known as “returning to the green zone”) by exploring calming techniques, cognitive strategies, and sensory supports so they will have a toolbox of strategies to move between zones.

As a parent, you can support your student(s) at home during this process by doing the following:

• Use the language of the Zones. For example, “This is really frustrating and puts me in the Yellow Zone. I need to take some deep breaths to get back to the Green zone”.

• Talk about what zone is “expected” in the situation or how the zone may have been “unexpected”. For example, when trick or treating, it is expected to be excited and in the yellow zone but the yellow zone is not expected during math time.

• Show interest in learning about your student’s triggers and Zones strategies/tools. Ask what tools/strategies they use to get back to the green zone.

It is important to note that everyone experiences all of the zones. All feelings are a part of being human. The important part, and what the Zones teach us, is how to identify our feelings and respond to them appropriately.

Sincerely,

Alison DuCharm

Ferson Creek

Student Support Interventionist (SSI)

District 303 is pleased to present its lineup of Parent Education sessions for the 2023-2024 school year.

The Parent Education series (formerly Parent University) includes informational meetings and workshops intended to empower parents and guardians to support their children’s academic, social and emotional needs. Become informed on specialized topics, engage in two-way dialogue with speakers and fellow parents, and become a support resource for others.

Sessions for this school year will focus on bullying prevention, addressing anxiety, and include film screenings and discussions about the impact of screen time and cultural awareness. The schedule also includes college preparation workshops hosted by our high schools. Sessions were selected based in part on feedback from District 303 parents.

Explore the full lineup of sessions here. Signup forms for each session will be made available closer to the session dates. New this year, you can also register for Parent Education notifications and receive alerts as new information and session recaps become available.

An informational meeting will be held on Monday, September 18th from 3:00-3:30 in the LRC for 4th & 5th grade students interested in joining Chess Club. This meeting is for students only. Parents will need to arrange transportation home.

The first regular Chess Club meeting will be held on October 2nd from 3:00-3:50. Please reach out to Kathy Konstan kathleen.konstan@d303.org or Stacey Gorman at stacey.gorman@d303.org with any questions.

Ferson Creek will be represented at the 30th annual Kick-A-Thon on September 29th at St. Charles East High School. A few ways you can support the cause are listed below. You can also visit the website for more information.

2023 Kick-A-Thon

Restaurant Night: Wed. 9/20 at Chipotle on Main Street in St. Charles

Food Truck Night at East: Tue. 9/26

Food Truck Night at North: Thu. 9/28

Kick-A-Thon: Fri. 9/29 at St. Charles East HS

Our Lost & Found already has unclaimed items! So many wonderful Ferson items end up at Goodwill for donation because they go unclaimed for weeks. Please be sure to label your student's belongings. Some items to label:

• lunch boxes
• water bottles
• coats
• sweatshirts
• hoodies
• shoes
• hats
• gloves
• backpacks

When things are labeled, the can quickly find their way back to their owner!

We'd love to have parents spend time with Ferson Creek students during lunch and lunch recess! While it would be great to have you for all lunches (the full time is 10:55-12:55), we'd still like you to volunteer, even if you can only come for part of the time. Please refer to our lunch schedule (below) and let us know the time(s) you are available in the comment line of the SignUp Genius.

That being said, it is important to keep our students, staff members, and volunteers safe while they are in our schools. Given that, all volunteers must:

• Have your ID ready and sign in at the office to receive your visitor badge.
• Complete a Volunteer Liability Form EACH YEAR. If the school does not have one on file for you and you do not provide one, the office will provide one for you when you come for your first day as a volunteer.

For this volunteer opportunity, fingerprinting is not mandatory; HOWEVER, if you have completed the fingerprinting process, it allows us more flexibility in how we use you during lunch and recess. Please contact the PTO or Dr. DuCharm for more information about the fingerprinting process. WE STRONGLY ENCOURAGE ALL OF OUR LUNCH VOLUNTEERS TO DO THIS.

Our students and staff members appreciate your willingness to volunteer your time to assist in your school community.

Please sign up HERE.

If you have any questions, please contact:

Dr. DuCharm (331-228-5920, Alison.DuCharm@d303.org)

Kristy McKnight, Principal

Website: https://fersoncreek.d303.org/
Location: 38W160 Bolcum Road, St. Charles, IL, USA
Phone: 331-228-2300
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Ferson-Creek-Elementary-1492773537612187/