October 14, 2015

Set Building- Oct. 17th or 24th

Are you interested or available to help build and paint sets for our Swift Theater Production?  If so, please sign up on this page to help with building set pieces and painting for our upcoming productions of Twelfth Night and Alice in Wonderland. The more the merrier, so add rows as needed! Skilled adult help will be needed and appreciated, as well as those who are willing to take direction and help out with small projects and painting.

We will be sending out costuming needs early next week as well.  We ask students to bring in base layers from home, such as black pants and shirts.  We will supply the rest here at school.  You will be receiving an e-mail for the specific base layer needs for each student.

Finally, remember to mark your calendar for our performance Thursday, November 5th @ 6:30 p.m.  Students will need to arrive earlier for costumes and make-up.  We will not be selling tickets in advance, just asking for donations at the door.  Your generosity there helps offset the cost of paint and supplies.

Kiva Presentations

We are always looking for students to share their talents with the team.   Help us encourage those musicians to perform for us!

Baker playing violin for the kiva

Portfolios and Conferences

We are working with students to continually update their portfolios by reflecting on their personal goals and adding finished work as evidence.  This week students reflected on their values after completing a survey on the topic.  Our values survey mirrored the one given to all Vermont 7th and 9th graders, which asked them to think about which qualities are most important to them now as they plan for the future.  7th graders completed this form through the "Naviance" website while the rest used our regular Google Classroom tools. Students will use this same "Naviance" site all the way through high school as they plan for what comes next!

We have been asking you to look at these reflections each week on the e-Portfolio, hence your signature line on the greensheet.  Your son or daughter's e-portfolio is a great site to bookmark!  The first trimester ends at our November break, at which time we will complete class evaluations.  We will plan another round of conferences starting in December to look at student work and these evaluations.

SPARK Enrichment- Session 2 (from School Bell)

We are repeating this announcement due to the great popularity and interest in this program...

The second session of Spark Thursday After School Enrichment, an after-school applied learning program for students in grades 5-8, runs October 22, 29, November 5, 12, and 19. These small group classes will be facilitated by school faculty and staff. Please access the link to the sign-up form below by October 19th. Click here to read more about the Session 2 offerings. Click here for the sign-up form.

Plate Tectonics Modeling Projects

See more examples of 7th and 8th graders modeling the effects of plate tectonic movement below.  We're moving from the macro scale to the micro scale as our next unit focuses on elements and properties of matter.

FAPAC October 2015 Meeting Highlights Information

To: All Swift House Parents
From:  Sarah Forbes, FAPAC Representative

The FAP Advisory Council held its first monthly meeting of this school year on October 8th.  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:  Greg Marino, our District Principal, talked about communication strategies for our schools, including Facebook and Twitter, about SBAC results which families of current 4th-8th graders should have received in the mail in the last 10 days and the exciting new Disk Golf Course.  Please check the full minutes for more information on these topics.

Williston Annual Fund:  This fund pays for your children's school field trips, among other educational items.  Current donations total $10, 328, which is less than one-third of our target.  So PLEASE SEND IN YOUR DONATION TODAY or you can do it online by clicking HERE.

Educational Grants:  FAP approved nearly $7,500 in educational grants for enhanced learning activities in our Williston Schools.  Please check out the full minutes for more information on this.

24th Annual Craft Fair at Williston Central School -- Saturday, November 7th, 9:30 am to 4:00 pm:  This first big FAP fundraiser is attended by hundreds of area residents.  We welcome back both crafters who come year after year and many new crafters this year.  AND the Media/Book Sale is back, sponsored by Voyager House!  We also need your help with this event; opportunities to help SET UP, HELP CRAFTERS UNPACK VEHICLES, AND HELP SERVE FOOD TO CRAFTERS.  WE ALSO NEED HELP IN THE KITCHEN THIS YEAR!!  Please CLICK HERE if you can donate an hour or two of your time to this event.  THANK YOU!

Scholastic Book Fair in the Williston Central School Dining Room — Monday, November 9th-Friday, November 13th:  Look for more information on this important school fundraiser in the School Bell.  This event needs parent help too!  Whether you want to help set up, clean up or help with sales in 2 hour shifts during the week, whatever time you can dedicate is appreciated.  Here is the SIGN UP LINK.

Parent Presentation:  How to Understand and Reduce Anxiety in Children with Dr. Paul Foxman, Ph.D., Tuesday, November 10^th from 6:30 – 8:00 in the WCS Auditorium:  Join us for an evening with psychologist and anxiety expert, Dr. Paul Foxman, Ph.D., Founder and Director of the Center for Anxiety Disorders in Vermont, and author of The Worried Child and Dancing with Fear.  Dr. Foxman will help parents learn:  How, why and when anxiety develops in children: The different forms of anxiety; What parents can do to reduce stress and anxiety; and When and how to refer for professional help.  If you need additional information about this event, please contact Chris Ford, WCS Guidance Counselor at cford@cssu.org.

Our next meeting is on Thursday, November 12th at 8:15 am at Williston Central School.  We hope you can attend!!!

Please contact me at sarahforbesdesign@comcast.net if you have feedback or questions on FAP.  Thanks.