Ferson Creek eNews

Monday, February 19th - Presidents' Day Holiday - NO SCHOOL

Wednesday, February 21st - Early Release Day, dismissal at 2:10 pm

Thursday, Feb. 22nd - Rookies Restaurant Night

Monday, Feb. 26th - ProKids Family Assembly @ 6:00 pm Sponsored by PTO

*Details Below*

Monday, Feb. 26th - Friday, March 22nd - Kindergarten virtual enrollment for 24-25 school year

Thursday, February 29th - Elementary Conferences - Half Day Dismissal at 11:30 am

Friday, March 1st - Teacher Work Day - NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS

Friday, March 1st - Fiddle Fest @ 7:00 pm -See flyer below

Tuesday, March 12th - 1st Grade Music Program 6:00 pm

Last week Ferson students participated in a school wide reward for following the Ferson Way. There were three stations for student to participate in. At the first station, students cut up magazines and sorted them into different colors. These colored pieces will be used at a different time to make collages for our cafeteria. At the second station, students colored fox pictures to be included in the yearbook. The kids could either color the fox just as it was, or add something special to the background or image to make it more unique. The creativity with these pictures was amazing! The last station was painting a mural. Each grade level painted a Ferson Way mural that will be displayed in our hallways here at Ferson.

A HUGE thank you to all the parents that helped support our students with these projects! Attached below is a link to the fox images that were used in station two. If your child was absent or didn't finish their piece, please feel free to have them print an image and turn it into the office next week.

Last week an email was sent to families providing instructions and links to registration for After School Enrichment (ASE) 2024! Below are the links for volunteering and student registration. Please note that student registration closes tonight at 11:59 pm.

Link for volunteering: https://fersoncreekpto.tiny.us/2024ASEVolunteers

Link to register students: https://fersoncreekpto.tiny.us/2024ASERegistration

We have some students bringing footballs and basketballs to use during recess. While this has been great during recess, it has become an issue during dismissal. Some students are attempting to play catch and bounce balls while waiting for their buses. On more than one occasion, balls have rolled out into dismissal traffic. We prompt the children to not play during dismissal, but some are continuing to do so. If you can help us by talking with your kids about holding onto the basketballs and footballs during dismissal, we would greatly appreciate it.

The District 303 Board has approved boundary maps for elementary, middle, and high schools. Maps are effective with the 2024-2025 school year beginning this fall. The Board's decision completes a process that began last fall to reduce school overcrowding and help to ensure equitable learning experiences across the District. District 303 had contracted with demographer RSP & Associates to create concept maps based on Board-approved guiding principles and community feedback. Please see the parent notice from Superintendent Gordon to learn more and review the approved maps.

Each year D303 participates in the 5Essentials Survey. This survey is completed by parents, staff and students in grades 4-11. You can find information regarding the survey here , including the link to complete the survey. We strive for as much participation as possible, so if you can take a few minutes to complete the survey, it would be greatly appreciated. Our 4th and 5th grade students will complete their survey during the day with their classroom teacher. You can find the parent survey here.

For additional information, please visit our D303 5Essentials page.

This year the Talent Show will be Wednesday, May 8th at 6:00 pm at the Arcada Theater in St. Charles. Sign up will start on April 5th with auditions on Thursday, April 25th. More details to follow!

February is our official Love the Bus Month! The yellow school bus is not just an iconic symbol of education, but a true contributor to education! This month….think school buses….love school buses…love our drivers and workers…and love our industry which positively impacts the lives of children nationwide.

Feel free to print and share the fun coloring activity sheet and appreciation cards with your students so they can let their school bus driver know just how much they love the bus!

Happy Love the Bus Month!

Because of our PTO, we are able to have Tim Hannig provide his amazing Pro Kids assembly on Monday, February 26th. During the day we will have a K-2 and 3-5 assembly with a focus on character. He will also be here that evening for a family show at 6:00 pm. The family show is completely different than the day time show but with the same focus. We are so thankful to all that supported the PTO's fundraising allowing us to bring in this entertaining assembly with such a wonderful message. We are excited to have the Pro Kids Show here for the afternoon assemblies and the evening family night!

Technology can be a wonderful way to keep in touch with family members. However, smartwatches and phones can become quite disruptive to the learning environment when parents are contacting their children throughout the day (and vice versa). The Elementary Student Handbook contains the following language:

Students are extended the privilege of possessing phones/smartwatches on school grounds;

however, their use is limited to after-school dismissal and non-school days. These devices must be in the off position, or not used once the student arrives on campus until the end of the school day.

Girl Scouts of Northern Illinois is hosting their winter cookies & cocoa event called Share Your Love of Girl Scouts! Happening on Saturday, February 17th 10:00am-2:00pm at South Elgin Girl Scout Resource Center located at 353 Randall Road South Elgin, IL 60177 (next to the Jewel on the corner of Randall and McDonald).

This is a free bring-a-friend event for anyone interested in joining Girl Scouts! There will be fun cookie related activities, a STEM activity and challenge game, a store discount, incentives for Girl Scouts if their non-member friend joins that day, and more. It is open house style, however we encourage an RSVP using the link on the attached flyers

If there are any questions, please reach out to Beth Stricklin. bethstricklin2013@gmail.com

Thank you!

The Spirit Morning schedule has been updated with dates for second semester. Please come and join us for a morning of welcoming our Ferson students to school. Each month we have a theme to welcome students into their school day. If you are interested in helping bring some excitement to school drop off from 7:40 - 8:00 am, sign up here.

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/