Swift Flyer: February 22, 2013

Science Fair- Thursday, March 28th @ 6:00 pm

Ms. Laberge and Ms. Skapof introduced this year's science fair for 7th and 8th graders on Friday. Students received a packet explaining each step of the science fair process. A list of due dates can be found here.

Students will work throughout the month of March to design, carry out, analyze and present a testable question. Students may work with partners, though will need to complete a permission slip signed by parents in order to do so. We only have 8 classes scheduled to work on projects (Tuesdays and Thursdays) so students should be prepared to work outside of class time.

FAPAC February Meeting Highlights

To: Swift Parents
From: Liz Neeld, acting FAPAC Representative

The FAP Advisory Council held its monthly meeting on February 14th. Check the full minutes in a PDF format by clicking HERE. Below are a few meeting highlights:

Williston Wins: About 50 percent of Williston School District families participated in this so far. All house fieldtrips and activities that students have done so far this year have been paid for by FAP and we are looking to replenish the funds for next year’s trips so that we can continue to support them at the same level. The suggested donation of $40/student, or any amount that is affordable, can be made to Williston FAP at any time. A parent survey will be going out in the next month to collect feedback on this fundraising approach and the responses will help guide our funding and fundraising efforts in the future. See the full minutes for more information on this.

Proposed School Budget: Walter Nardelli, District Principal, led a discussion of budget highlights, including the 1:1 iPad proposal, the co-teaching model, and other items. Please see the minutes for some of the issues raised during this discussion. And remember to vote on Tuesday, March 5th!!
Regarding the 1:1 iPad discussions, please check out the school website for information on this, including frequently asked questions and other helpful information. Click here to get to that information.

Next FAPAC meeting is on Thursday, March 14th at 8:15 am. All are welcome!!!
Please contact me at lneeld711@gmail.com if you have feedback or questions on FAP. Thanks.

March Dance Chaperones- Only two Chaperones have signed up

Swift House will be hosting the next middle school dance on Friday, March 8th at 6:30. Please sign up to chaperone here. (This really is fun!) We we request that students in Longchamp and Donnelly's Core bring two-2 liter bottles of cold soda or juice and Mrs. Skapof and Mrs. Laberge's core bring individually wrapped snacks.

Stock Market Game Update

We discovered that the 5/6th graders should be in the "Elementary" category, so you will notice that the Region is different than the 7/8th graders. The lessons this week looked at Risk, What Causes Stock Prices to Change, and the Ripple Effect. All students also looked at Current Events by reading our Scholastic (5/6) and New York Times Upfront (7/8) magazines and had class discussions.

7/8th Graders
1st Place Swift (3rd Region and 8th overall) Team A242: Brock W., Matthew M, Cam L, Aaron W
2nd Place Swift (13th Region and 39th overall) Team A232: Jeff and Baxter ? (2nd Portfolio)
3rd Place Swift (14th Region and 41st overall) Team A231: Alyse, Eliza, Julia N, Molly

5/6th Graders (Check back for names)

1st Place Swift (13th Region and 34th overall) Team A259:
2nd Place Swift (20th Region and 56th overall) Team A253:
3rd Place Swift (37th Region and 106 overall) Team A247:

Some Pictures from the Week

After vacation, we will upload more to our Swift Photo site, accessible from our homepage. Remember that the password is "flyforever." You may download any picture without charge.