Lil Steamer Families --

March is rolling right along, and next week is packed with excitement! We’re kicking things off on Monday with St. Patrick’s Day, so remind your child to wear green -- or risk getting "pinched" by the leprechauns (don’t worry, our school leprechauns are very well-behaved). We can’t promise anyone will find a pot of gold, but we do guarantee plenty of fun and festive cheer throughout the day!

Then, on Tuesday the 18th, our 5th graders begin state testing with the Illinois Science Assessment. We know they’ll do a fantastic job showing off what they’ve learned, and a good night’s sleep plus a solid breakfast can work wonders.

Speaking of breakfast, our PTO Donuts with Grown-Ups event is happening Tuesday through Friday morning -- a perfect chance to fuel up with some sugary goodness and quality time together before the school day begins. Take a look further in the newsletter to see when your child's House day is scheduled.

Finally, let’s not forget the light at the end of the tunnel: Spring Break starts next week! One more week of learning and fun before we all take a well-earned break to rest, recharge, and maybe pretend we have no idea what time it is for a few days.

Enjoy your weekend, and we’ll see everyone back on Monday in their best green gear!

JAGH

Funny story...

Earlier this week, one of the bus drivers told me that the students on his bus vote on something every morning. For a while, it was whether we'd have indoor or outdoor recess. Lately, they'd been voting on whether I'd be wearing my sunglasses that morning. He suggested I put them up on my forehead one day just to throw them off, which caused me to chuckle. Once I got in the building I quickly forgot about the interaction and went about what turned out to be a very long day. When afternoon dismissal rolled around I grabbed my sunglasses, thought of the conversation from that morning, and chuckled again. My lessons for that day...you never know who is watching, is what you're doing what you want them to see? And find something to laugh or smile about every day, it really does make the day go better.

Enjoy the weekend!

Kelli 😎🚍

Congratulations to the following staff members who were recognized for going above and beyond at the Greatest Little Elementary School in the Universe!

Everyone LOVES Dog Man! The Dog Man and Cat Kid books are the most checked out books in our library!

These students are great estimators! They correctly guessed how many were in each jar at Family Fun Night!

Thank you to everyone that came out to enjoy FES Family Night! It was a fun-filled event with many great jungle-themed activities.

SHOUT OUT! Kinsley Hodge has read and earned 100 points in the Accelerated Reader program.

Congratulation Kinsley and keep reading!

Diane Baker,from the Farm Bureau, came to visit our classroom. She taught us about how cattle have 4 compartments to their stomachs. We experimented with how food moves through the animal from the mouth to becoming waste.

The 4th grade had a group reveal of states for their state projects. Students were given an envelope with the name of the state they will be researching in the next few weeks. They will create slides with their research, a tri-fold with the information to display, and a at-home project. These will be shared at our State Showcase in April. STAY TUNED for more details.

The PTO is in full planning mode for several exciting events! Here's what’s coming up:

Gift a Lucky Duck – St. Patrick’s Day
We are thrilled to provide our Gift a Lucky Duck event for FES and preschool students! Flyers have been sent home, and we encourage families to participate. To ensure proper delivery, please make sure all cards are filled out completely. Due to limited supplies, each student will receive only one duck but will receive all the heartfelt messages written for them. This is a wonderful way for family and loved ones to send a little joy to students at school! Additional cards will be available at the PTO table during Family Fun Night. Money and completed cards must be turned in by the end of the school day on March 14th.

Donuts with Grown-Ups – March 18-21
We are excited to host Donuts with Grown-Ups at FES this year! With our spacious new parking lot, we ask that all guests be mindful of buses and students during arrival times. Please enter through the main FES doors and join us in the gym for a special morning treat!

• Tuesday, March 18 – Bridge House

• Wednesday, March 19 – River House

• Thursday, March 20 – Anchor House

• Friday, March 21 – Wheel House

If your assigned house day doesn’t fit your schedule, feel free to attend on a day that works for you. Since preschoolers aren’t assigned houses until kindergarten, they may join on any day. We will also have a designated area for photos—get ready for smiles and fun memories!

Outdoor Basketball Hoops Fundraiser
Mr. Hoese has expressed a strong need for new adjustable basketball hoops for the outdoor playground, ensuring that students of all sizes can enjoy them. To help make this possible, the PTO will be running a change drive in April (flyers with details will be sent home). The PTO has pledged to match up to $1,000 of the total change collected!

Each hoop costs between $750-$1,200, and we need four. If you’d like to contribute beyond the change drive, donations are welcome, and a tax receipt will be available upon request.

Preschool Transportation & Tiny Town Visit
We’re pleased to share that the PTO has approved funding for preschool transportation costs. Additionally, as a thank-you to Erie Elementary for allowing our preschoolers to participate in Tiny Town on March 3rd & 4th, we have arranged for a cookie platter to be dropped off for their staff.

PTO Elections & End-of-Year Event Ideas
Our next PTO meeting is a big one—it’s time for PTO Elections! We are also looking for ideas for an end-of-year fun experience for students. Past events have included:

• Inflatable bounce houses

• T-shirt design contest (with a free T-shirt for each student)

• Fun afternoon with games & giveaways

• Special guest entertainers (magicians, Tae Kwon Do instructors, etc.)

We welcome your suggestions! Please reach out to a current board member, send us an email, or message us on Facebook.

PTO Board Nominees:

• Co-Presidents: Katie Overstreet & Abra Richards

• Vice President: Kendra Terry

• Secretary: Cassie Johnson

• Treasurer: Tarah Manon

We invite all nominees and PTO members to join us in person for elections at our next meeting. (No Online Voting Permitted), Childcare provided:
April 1, 20257:00 PM
FES Conference Room

For updates and to stay connected, find and follow us on Facebook: Fulton PTO. If you have any questions, reach out to the PTO at Fultonelempto@gmail.com.

Our 7th Grade students have been solving algebraic equations using icons in place of traditional variables. Likewise, our 2nd grade students have been busy solving the same type of equations appropriate for their grade level.

A small group of 7th grade students were challenged to create “Icon Puzzles” for the 2nd graders to solve. Prior to this, the 7th grade students “studied” their own level of puzzles to find similarities among each of the puzzles. They identified strategies needed to be successful in solving the puzzles; one such strategy being the need for a starting problem that provides a definitive value for the icon.

One of the challenges in creating these types of puzzles is making them fun and interesting. The 7th graders brainstormed which categories of icons would be interesting to seven and eight year old students to make them as fun and engaging as possible. A big lesson, and take away, for the 7th graders was understanding the importance of having others solve a self-created puzzle before presenting it to the 2nd graders. There is nothing worse than presenting something that has not been tested and does not work the way that you think it will.

The 7th graders took the lead in presenting their puzzles to 2nd grade students. They used common vocabulary, “doubles”, to show that identical icons were the same value in the puzzle being presented (substitution). Mrs. Stern pointed out to her 2nd grade students the concept of “Fact Families”, and two of our 7th graders, Noah and Dylan, explained to the 2nd graders that they use fact families in 7th grade math. It always amazes students that math concepts carry over from year to year!

Can you solve these puzzles created by our 7th graders for our 2nd grade classes?

Starting pay is $18/hour. AM/PM Route. Up to 4 hours per day.

Paid holidays, sick, personal and bereavement time, and insurance available as well as participation in the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund.

Come join River Bend's excellent team of transportation professionals! All of our vehicles are well maintained, newer models and are all parked indoors.

No CDL? No problem! Paid training is provided (terms apply.)

Email Transportation Director Taylor Whitney at twhitney@riverbendschools.net to apply.

Be sure to read through the conversation starters at the bottom of the newsletter for great ways to discuss how to be a courageous student. Courage is our March monthly character trait!

Art - Mrs. Long

Counselor - Mrs. Meumann

Speech - Ms. Bri

Intervention - Mrs. Fish

PK - Mrs. Kurtz

PK Resource - Mrs. Marten

KB - Mrs. VanZuiden

KC - Mrs. Gardner

K/1 Resource - Mrs. Whitney

1A - Mrs. Robertson

1C - Mrs. Schipper

2A - Ms. Maloney

2B - Mrs. Roos

2C - Mrs. Stern

2/3 Resource - Mr. Hartman

3A - Ms. Guerrero

3B - Ms. Norman

3D - Mrs. Kuehl

4A - Mrs. Alexander

4B - Mrs. Iben

4C - Mrs. Miner

5A - Mrs. Snyder

Email: jhoese@riverbendschools.net
Website: riverbendschools.org/fes
Location: 1301 7th Avenue, Fulton, IL, USA
Phone: (815)589-2911
Twitter: @FultonSteamers