September 27, 2013

NECAP Testing- Snacks and Sleep

This year's NECAP testing will take place between Tuesday, October 8th to Friday, October 11th.  During these days we emphasize the importance of sleep and a great breakfast.  Students should also plan on bringing an engaging book to read in case they finish any portion of the test early.  There will be two tests each day which will encompass most academic time.  Students will have reduced homework assignments during this time. 

We are looking for parent volunteers to bring in healthy snacks on our NECAP testing days.  Apples and cheddar cheese, crackers and cheese, banana bread, muffins, bagels and cream cheese, veggies and dips; any snack of the sort provides students with a special break before the testing begins and does wonders for our morale. Please click here for the exact testing schedule and to sign-up by grade level to bring in a snack.  Thank you!

Fun Night

Fun Night, scheduled for Friday, October 4th is being sponsored by Swift. Fun Night coincides with the first middle school dance and is open to all K-5th graders to attend. It is a fabulous fundraiser in support of our end of the year field trip to NYC. We still need more parent volunteers to make this evening a success! Please click here to sign up to volunteer. If you happen to have any small "trinkets" that could serve as prizes during Fun Night please send them in to school and ask your student to give them to Mr. Hunt or Ms. Donnelly. Last spring we ran out of goodies at our prize table!!

5th Grade World Language

World Language classes for 5th graders begin this Monday at 11:50 and continue every Monday, Wednesday and Friday for the rest of the year. Students are enrolled based on the forms completed at the end of 4th grade.  Please contact your son or daughter's core teacher if you have questions about enrollment.

Polar Express- December 14th

Calling all elves!  Parents and students, please join us for a Swift House tradition from 3:30-8:00 on December 14th.  Each year we volunteer as elves to greet the trains as they arrive at the North Pole as part of Burlington's Polar Express fundraiser.  This amazing event benefits the Vermont Children's Trust Fund.  We contribute by bringing at least 40 elves (parents and students) each year to make the event festive.   To sign up please click here to add your name and t-shirt size.  Remember, adults make great elves, too.  Watching the faces of the little folks on the train when they see us elves at the North Pole makes it all worth it! 

Parent Retreat

Thank you so much to all parents who were able to make attend our Parent Retreat. We started with great potluck dinner and then equipped all participants with school iPads for the evening. All joined in on a presentation on Nearpod, an interactive presentation app, which allows participants to give direct input. Major topics included technology, communication, curriculum and parent involvement. Notes from the presentation and discussion can be found here. If you would like to add any ideas to our brainstorms please e-mail your son or daughter’s core teacher.

FAPAC September Meeting Highlights Information 

To: Swift Parents
From: Sarah Forbes and Gabrielle Young, FAPAC Representatives

The FAP Advisory Council held its first monthly meeting of this school year on September12th. FAP is Williston's equivalent of a parent-teacher organization. We meet each month, our meetings our open to all, and you will receive an email like this every month with highlights of the meeting and a link to the FAP website for the full minutes. Check the full minutes in a PDF format by clicking HERE. Below are a few meeting highlights:

Administration Report -- Walter Nardelli, District Principal, speaks at every FAPAC meeting. Topics he covered this month were: placement change requests, the large number of 5th graders this year, Algebra/8th grade math changes, Spark Academy options, and the WCS IPad purchase. Check the full minutes for his remarks!

Williston Annual Fund -- This replaces Williston Wins and to date over $7000 in donations has come in. Thank you! Remember that this fund pays for your children's school field trips, among other educational items. So please send in your donation today or you can do it online. Click here for information.

FAP Events -- Dates have been set for many FAP Community Events; check the School Bell over the coming weeks for more information on these. Those coming up in the next 60 days are listed below and all events are on the calendar on the FAP section of the school website:

• Learning Expo and Potluck Dinner -- the new date for this event is Thursday, October 24th (revised from Minutes). This is a first ever FAP community event where we expect to have booths set up with information on many school programs and opportunities for your children along with a few presentations. 
• Craft Fair at Williston Central School -- Saturday, November 2nd 
• Circus Smirkus After School Camp and Performance -- November 4-8th 
• Scholastic Book Fair -- November 11-15th 

Calendar 2.0 Forums -- Changes are being proposed to the School Calendar in several Vermont counties. The changes would be put in place as early as the 2014-2015 school year. Community Forums are being held on this topic. The forums in our area, all scheduled to begin at 6:30 pm, are: October 2nd at Essex High School, October 9th at Burlington High School, and October 10th at CVU High School. You should try to attend one of these forums to learn more about this.

Please contact Sarah at sarahforbesdesign@comcast.net or Gabrielle at scotian0495@yahoo.com if you have feedback or questions on FAP. Thanks.