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Principal's Message
Greetings Fairmeadow Community,
Welcome to a new calendar year at Fairmeadow Elementary School! 2017 will be a significant year of academic, physical, social, and emotional growth for all of our children. I look forward to our ongoing partnership to ensure that your child reaches his or her fullest potential at school this year, and experiences joyful learning in our classrooms. Let's get going with this new year!
This year we will be launching a new
Design Studio at Fairmeadow, a space where teachers can bring students to learn design thinking and engineering skills. We envision a space with an abundance of materials and tools, and a space that encourages creativity, modeling, and problem solving within science. Before our student designers can start their creations they'll need some building materials. Please start to set aside your interesting recycling and other building materials, and prepare to donate them to Fairmeadow. Specific donation dates and times will be identified and sent out in the eNews next week, stay tuned!
For the Fairmeadow Design Studio,
we will be looking for the following materials that have been washed/cleaned, are label free, and are ready for constructing:
- Paper products: toilet paper rolls, wrapping paper rolls, paper towel rolls, shoe boxes, egg cartons, paper plates, paper cups, coffee filters
- Plastic products: berry baskets, small plastic containers, straws
- Craft supplies: yarn, fishing line, string/twine/rope, ribbons, buttons, fabric pieces, craft sticks, pipe cleaners, googly eyes
- Misc: rubber bands, paper clips, corks, straws, bottle tops (plastic and metal), disposable chopsticks
If you have other materials you would like to donate, please contact the Design Studio Planning Committee at
fairmeadowdesign@googlegroups.com
. Thank you for your contributions to this innovative space on our campus!
Please consider joining us for a
Parent Education Event on Tuesday, January 10th at 6:30 pm in the Fairmeadow MP Room, led by Fairmeadow parent and Professor of Medicine at Stanford, Christopher Gardner.
Deciphering Labels and Busting Myths: Healthy Eating Made Simple will demystify the language, habits, and strategies of healthy eating to help and inform nutrition choices for you and your family. I look forward to seeing you for this valuable evening discussion. Spanish translation and babysitting will be provided!
I would appreciate your assistance in helping our school remain safe for all students and community members in the time before and after school by
reviewing a few simple school rules with your family. First, bicycles, scooters, skateboards, and wheels of any kind are not to be used on school grounds for 30 minutes before school and 30 minutes after school. The redtop area is for walking only and can become very slippery when wet; it is never an area where children or adults should run. The black, red, and green flags displayed by the main office provide guidance for where students can play on rainy days. Lastly, for drivers dropping off students in the main driveway please drive as far forward as you can in the driveway and drop off students in the right lane only. Thank you for your attention to these important safety precautions at our school.
This January we continue with an exciting winter
Fairmeadow Tradition...our school Ice Skating Parties! The K-2 party will be on January 11th and the 3-5 party will be on January 18th. Both parties will run from 5:30-7:30 pm at the Winter Lodge in Palo Alto. I look forward to seeing you there!
I am thankful to be starting 2017 with each one of you at Fairmeadow, and I look forward to a productive year of learning and joy ahead!
Grant Althouse
Principal
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Fairmeadow Annual Ice Skating Parties
Wed, Jan 11 (K-2) and Wed, Jan 18 (3-5), 5:30-7:30 pm, Winter Lodge, 3009 Middlefield Rd
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Deciphering Labels and Busting Myths: Healthy Eating Made Simple - a Talk by Christopher Gardner
Tue, Jan 10, 6:30 pm, Fairmeadow MP Room
Is one of your new year's resolutions to start eating healthy? Not sure where to start or or what to feed your picky kids? We're faced with an often indecipherable barrage of health claims and warnings: low carb, low fat, high protein, omega 3 (flax or fish?), trans fats, high fructose corn syrup, glycemic index (or is it glycemic load?), gluten free, Paleo. What does it all mean and what's right for us?
Join us in the MP Room on January 10th at 6:30PM and learn from Fairmeadow dad Christopher Gardner, a PhD nutrition scientist and professor of medicine from the Stanford Prevention Research Center. Christopher is the father of Zachary (3rd grade) and Joshua (6th grade) and the husband of Melissa Michelson.
Christopher will offer solutions and insights to your dietary conundrums with an engaging blend of science and humor.
Childcare will be provided for the elementary school-aged children of those attending. Please RSVP
here
by providing your name, email address and the number of children who will be with you. For any questions, please contact Tracy Ballard-Tal.
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College for Students with Special Needs: What You Need to Know
Wed, Jan 18, 7-9 pm
, Santa Rita Elementary School (MP Room)
, 700 Los Altos Avenue, Los Altos
Many high school students with special needs, learning challenges, or disabilities (on an IEP or 504) will consider post-secondary education. Options include community college, 4-year college, and universities with a variety of options and support. It can be overwhelming at first. Come find out more about what's available and how you can help prepare for your student's education after high school. Panelists: Sandra Cernobori (counselor from Paly), Foothill Community College and Kevin Shields (disability services at UCB). Jointly sponsored by SELPA1 CAC and Palo Alto CAC. cacpaloalto.org
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Colegio para Estudiantes con Necesidades Especiales: Lo Que Necesita Saber
Miércoles, Enero 18, 7-9 pm, Santa Rita Elementary School, salón MP, 700 Los Altos Ave., Los Altos
Únase a nosotros! Muchos de los estudiantes de la preparatoria con necesidades especiales, retos de aprendizaje, o discapacidades ( en un PEI o 504) van a considerar educación postsecundaria. Opciones incluyen colegio comunitario, colegio de 4 años, y universidades con una variedad de opciones y apoyo. Ven infórmate mas sobre lo que esta disponible y como puedes ayudar preparar la educación de tu estudiante después de la preparatoria. Panelistas: Sandra Cernobori (consejera de Paly), Foothill Community College, Kevin Shields (servicios de discapacidades en UCB). cacpaloalto.org
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21st Annual Juana Run 8k/5k Run & Walk Races!
Sat, Feb 25, 8:30 am, Gunn High School
Early online registration discount! Get $5 off any race registration with promo code EARLY2017 now until December 31. Register here. You can choose from 8K run, a 5K fun run and walk (costumes encouraged!), a 1-mile race, and kids races. All the races are through the streets of the Barron Park neighborhood. Pancake breakfast and cool t-shirts! Proceeds donated to West Valley Track Club, Gunn High Sports Boosters, and Juana Briones and Terman PTAs. Other race info here.
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Tai Chi (Chinese Martial Art) Class
Sat, Jan 7 - Mar 11, 2:15-3:15 pm (10 classes total), Dance Studio, Gunn High School
This course is taught by a junior at Gunn High School. As a member of the US team, she won two gold medals and one silver medal at the 2nd World Taijiquan Championships in Warsaw, Poland. She will teach 24 simplified Tai Chi styles. All profits will be donated to the Ravenswood City School District, East Palo Alto. Click here for details and registration. Contact: svyouth1@gmail.com.
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Tickets Now Available for Anne Lamott
Sat, Mar 4, 9:30 am - 12:30 pm, Dinkelspiel Auditorium, Stanford University
Join us in conversation with award-winning author Anne Lamott. Tickets on sale now for the 2017 Mothers Symposium, a morning retreat for mothers with children of all ages to reflect on the profound undertaking of motherhood. Special Early Bird pricing: "Bring a Friend" and save $20 when you buy two tickets. Co-sponsored by the Palo Alto Council of PTAs. Click here for tickets and information.
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Let's Talk: Monthly Parent Support Meetings
Mon, Jan 9, 10 am - 12 pm, Los Altos Library (Conference Room), 13 S San Antonio Road, Los Altos
A chance to ask questions and share ideas/resources with other parents of students with IEPs, 504s, learning differences, mental health challenges, etc. Parents with students of all ages are welcome, participants must respect confidentiality. More info here.
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Ongoing Brain Study on Executive Function Skills
Looking for children ages 7-11 with a diagnosis of ADHD or with no diagnoses to participate in a study exploring changes in brain function in response to a novel neurofeedback training. Participation involves 6 sessions of neurofeedback training and 2 sessions of behavioral assessments. Email Lindsay Chromik
or call 650-724-2939 for more information or to enroll. For general information regarding participant rights, contact 1- 866-680-2906.
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Strengthening Families Program (SFP)
Weekly, Jan 11 - Mar 22
SFP is an evidence-based parent, youth, and family skills-building curriculum that helps prevent teen substance abuse and other problem behaviors while improving parent/child relationships. Advent Group Ministries is offering this free program designed for parents and their children ages 6 to 11 or 12 to 17. This is a non-religious based program. After a complimentary family meal, parents and youth meet in separate groups for one hour then come back together to practice the skills they've learned. Sessions are highly interactive and include role-playing, discussions, learning games, and family projects. Sponsored by Santa Clara County, Santa Clara County Substance Use Prevention Services (SUPS). Click here to see the flyer or register here.
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Archives and Publication Guidelines |
Fairmeadow eNews is a publication of the Fairmeadow PTA. Previous editions of eNews can be found at the
eNews archive
page.
Please see the PTA website for the eNews Publication Guidelines.
If you have any questions or suggestions, please contact
Christy Moision
, Fairmeadow's eNews editor.
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Jan 3 |
Return from Winter Break |
Jan 4 |
PTA Coffee and General Meeting |
Jan 10 |
Healthy Eating Parent Ed |
Jan 11 |
K-2 Ice Skating Party |
Jan 16 |
Martin Luther King Day - No School |
Jan 18 |
3-5 Ice Skating Party |
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