Greetings FitzGerald Families!

We had so much fun at FitzGerald School over the last week!

1. Thank you!

- Trunk or Treat- Thank you to the FitzGerald PTO Events committee for putting together the fun "Trunk or Treat" last Friday night and to all of the volunteers who created car displays, helped with food/music, etc. It was so much fun!

- Pumpkin Drop- Thank you to the FitzGerald Enrichment Committee and the Waltham Fire Department for facilitating the Pumpkin Drop annual event for our school! The students had a lot of fun creating their pumpkin structures and seeing their structures drop from the top of a fire truck ladder! So many pumpkins were still in tact after falling to the ground. We appreciate all of the donations sent in to help with creating the pumpkin protective structures this week!

FitzGerald Multicultural Event:

You are cordially invited to participate in the FitzGerald Multicultural Event, sponsored by the FitzGerald Equity Team, to celebrate all of the many wonderful cultures within our FitzGerald School family! We hope that you can join us!

When: Friday November 15th, 2024

Time: 6:00-7:30pm

Where: FitzGerald Cafeteria

This is a free event.

If your family would like to share about your family's heritage, please either return the paper form that was sent home this week, or sign up electronically here:

MULTICULTURAL EVENT PARTICIPANT SIGN UP FORM

We can't wait!

Have a wonderful weekend! We'll see everyone on Monday! A reminder that there is no school on Tuesday November 5th, for Election Day.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Santillo, Principal- jennifersantillo@walthampublicschools.org

Mrs. Lamoly, Assistant Principal- julielamoly@walthampublicschools.org

Please see an update about Panorama Survey administration here:

Each year, we share a survey about school experience with students, faculty/staff, and parents. Your feedback as family members is very important to us and we appreciate any time that you might be able to take to share with us your thoughts regarding this school year so far. The link for a family feedback survey is here: https://surveys.panoramaed.com/waltham/family24/surveys?language=en. Please click on "FitzGerald Elementary" for our school's specific survey.

Here is more information on the family survey:

English: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1neSxRI_My4xcIl-4cpbcBf7GafaZyiq8/view?usp=sharing

Spanish: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1BtlnjVWO-7EA4lHgzUFScgltQQm8N88f/view?usp=sharing

Portuguese: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1B7FYnz-qQvryVOJU5dN29PaKviq4BeaT/view?usp=sharing

Grades 3-5 students will also be participating in a student survey. More information is coming home today to families of students in Grades 3-5 on this as well.

Greetings FitzGerald Families!

We hope that everyone is enjoying the beautiful summer-like Fall weather we have been having as Daylight Savings begins this weekend!

Today, we will begin new topics of SEL Skills for the month of November! In Community Circles students will be having collaborative conversations about our Core Value; Integrity which means showing honesty, fairness in one’s actions, not being a show-off and doing the right thing when no one is looking. The competency we will be focusing on is Responsible Decision Making where students will engage in activities and learning that helps support and foster growth in making decisions that are expected while understanding the outcome or consequences of their choices. Students will also be discussing and thinking about the Habit of “Thinking Win-Win” and “Beginning with the End in Mind” by considering how compromises benefit each other in addition to how their decisions impact their long term goals. As a school, we will be building on last month’s SEL skills and foundational knowledge as we continue to increase our understanding in all these areas.

November 13th is “World Kindness Day”! Students will learn the history of this day and discuss how we demonstrate kindness towards each other inside and outside of school while gaining an understanding of why this is so important in every community. Additionally, our whole school community will engage in a project that includes all students, parents and caregivers that will be on display here at school!

Our Fourth Grade Council has been meeting weekly and working hard at collaborating with each other to determine this year’s committees; which they chose today! They are demonstrating leadership qualities by listening to each other’s ideas and thinking about ways to help our school!

Lastly, our Panther Partners are underway! Students were so thoughtful sharing their ideas with why they wanted to participate in this opportunity. Teachers are excited to partner with students in their classrooms and other areas around the building to provide opportunities for students to demonstrate role model qualities for our younger grades. Students are eager to get started and they will receive their assignments soon!

As always we appreciate the home-school partnership with you! Please don’t hesitate to connect with me at jessebernard@walthampublicschools.org or 781-314-5689 with any questions about our SEL skills or any ways we may be able to support your child and/or family with information or resources.

Enjoy the weekend!

Ms. Bernard

School Adjustment Counselor

Would you like to be a guest reader in the library?

If you are interested in being a guest reader during your child’s library time, please email Ms. McKeever, elizabethmckeever@walthampublicschools.org.

Fall Reading Challenge:

To encourage students to read widely and often, the whole school will participate in the Fitzy Football Reading Challenge. All students will receive copies of the challenge on Monday, September 23rd.

See directions and challenges below:

K-2 Challenge and directions in English, Spanish, & Portuguese

Grades 3-5 Directions in English and Spanish

(Additional copies are always available in the library)

The FitzGerald School Council is a group that includes parent, staff, and community representatives that discuss items such as budget, School Improvement Plan, etc. Approved meeting minutes are posted in the Fitzy's Flyer office communication.

Please see below for the agenda from October's School Council Meeting and the approved meeting minutes from the last school meeting in June.

Next Virtual Meeting: Wednesday November 13, 2024

Time: 6:00-6:45pm

*Breakfast and Lunch are available for free for all students this school year!

** All students should bring one snack and a water bottle to school each day.

Every Friday is "Fitzy Friday" at FitzGerald! Everyone is invited to wear Fitzy Spirit Wear or the colors blue and/or yellow to school, if they would like to!

Tuesday November 5th- No School, Professional Day

Monday November 11th- No School, Veterans Day

Wednesday November 13th- Early Release Day, 1:00pm, Parent Conferences

Wednesday November 13th- Virtual School Council Meeting, 6:00pm

Wednesday November 13th- "Dessert and Dialogue" with Mrs. Santillo and Mrs. Lamoly- Virtual Principal Office Hours- 7:00-7:30pom

Friday November 15th- Multicultural Event 6:00-7:30pm (more information coming home soon)

Tuesday November 19th - Retake Picture Day

Wednesday November 27th- Half Day, 11:45am Dismissal, Lunch Will Be Served

Thursday November 28th- Friday November 29th- No School, Thanksgiving Break

Wednesday December 11th- Early Release Day, 1:00pm Dismissal

Monday 12/23- Wednesday January 1st- No School, December Break

--

Clever is an app we use at school that makes it easy for students to access many online learning programs and resources with their Waltham Public Schools Google account. Students can also access Clever at home on a personal device. Click HERE for directions.

Email: jennifersantillo@walthampublicschools.org
Website: https://www.walthampublicschools.org/o/fitzgerald
Location: 138 Beal Road, Waltham, MA, USA
Phone: 781-314-5680