SUPERSTAR NEWS

Ushering in a new year comes with excitement, anticipation and, of course, the Second Semester of our school year. We look forward to continuing the pathway of providing excellent and lasting academic, social and emotional learning opportunities for all at Swanson. Let us too continue our resolution to be a safe, respectful and responsible Superstar all year long. Wishing everyone a happy and healthy 2025!

Mrs. Jennifer Harr

Please look in your child's backpack for the 2nd Quarter Report Card. The reports were sent home with students this afternoon. If you have questions, please reach out to your child's teacher.

A reminder that there will be no school on Monday, January 20th in recognition of the Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Holiday. Also, there will be No School for Students on Tuesday, January 21st, 2025 (Teacher In-Service Day). We encourage students and families to consider taking time to learn more about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and, if able to do so safely to consider ways to participate in the annual day of service promoted on this day each year.

Goal Update: Happy New Year! With one semester in the books, let’s reflect on our reading achievements so far in 2024 and set intentions for 2025 and our upcoming winter screenings.

Tip for Parents: Help your child set a personal reading goal for the new year. It could be the number of books they want to read or a specific genre they want to explore. Check in weekly to celebrate their progress!

Congratulations to our Superstar students who completed the Winter Reading Challenge!

Each first Friday of the month is Swanson Spirit Day. On this day we all wear our Swanson logo wear or school colors, blue and white, to show our spirit. We begin our day by saying the Swanson Pledge together. It’s a fun day filled with terrific Swanson spirit! Our next First Friday Spirit Day is Friday, February 7th.

*December's Swanson Spirit Day Winner was Mrs. Heuertz's fifth grade class. Congratulations Superstars!

It's time to ease on down to the Swanson Variety Show! See the flyer below for important dates, and sign up via this Google Doc with all the relevant information — exactly as you’d like it to appear in the program. (If you have multiple superstars in your act, please list each one on their own line). IMPORTANT: If your act requires music, we will need it in an MP3 file.

Tryouts: February 6th @ 3:40 PM in Swanson's Gym

Variety Show Dress Rehearsal @ WMS: February 26th, 7:00 PM

Variety Show @ WMS: February 28th, 7:00 PM

We can’t wait to see all our fabulous SUPERSTAR talents!!

Band-o-rama will take place on Monday, April 7 at Westside High School. This evening will feature our district wide fifth grade, sixth grade, and our seventh grade band students as well as our award winning Concert Jazz Band.

WestFest will take place on Tuesday, April 8 at Westside High School and will feature our elementary, middle school and high school string and orchestra performance groups!

Participating students will attend a rehearsal during the school day to prepare for this event. These evenings are an amazing celebration of music education and we hope to see you there!

Dear Swanson 4-6 Grade Families,

Studies have shown that social media and digital devices can significantly impact the mental health of our youth. That is why Westside Community Schools has expanded its partnership with SmartGEN Society to now include grades 4-12. WCS has been partnering with SMARTGen Society with conversations happening at WHS and WMS, as well as community forums. We appreciate SmartGEN Society's approach, which is age-appropriate, non-judgemental, and relevant to each grade level. Their relatable content allows students to connect quickly and hear the heart of the message.

SmartGEN Society will be at Swanson presenting to our students on February 4th. Additionally, SmartGEN Society will hold a Swanson Parent Session on the evening of February 4th at 6:30 PM in our library. More information regarding SMARTGen Society is found below.

Our Valentine's Day Parties are scheduled for Thursday, February 13th due to NO SCHOOL on Friday, February 14th. If you would be interested in signing up to help, please click on the following link. We appreciate your time, talent and treasure in making for a Happy Valentine's Day! Valentine's Day Sign-Up

Please look for information regarding Valentine's Day boxes and cards from your child's teacher in the weeks to come.

The National Institutes of Health recognizes bullying as a significant public health problem. In the social media era, harassment and intimidation take place both offline and on, which amplifies the severity of aggression and stress in children and their parents. Children’s Hospital has made available this 15 minute “Just Kids Health” episode on Bullying & Cyberbullying to help parents understand bullying behaviors and how to address signs of bullying and prevent it. To best support our students, Westside is pleased to provide system-wide, bullying prevention programming to tackle bullying behavior.

Recess will be held outdoors, except when extended exposure to the elements is inadvisable or when the Principal determines it to be otherwise unsafe. Students will not have outdoor recess when either the air temperature or wind chill factor is 10 degrees fahrenheit or lower.

The Excellence In Youth Team is excited to showcase Johan P. from Swanson as the most recent recipient of the Digital Dozen award for the 24-25 school year! The Digital Dozen award is presented to WCS students who earn 12 of the digital badges from the EY Website (ey.westside66.org), which is available to students district-wide. It takes self-motivation, grit, and determination to earn these badges, and this star student should be proud of this accomplishment!

It's back! Last year, we set a Westside record amount for fundraising and participants and have even higher goals for this year! Everyone of all ages is welcome to take the plunge!

We are making it a competition again this year, with a traveling trophy for the school that raises the most money and has the most participants! We will have one trophy for the elementary level, and one for the secondary level. There will be frequent updates for who is in the lead! We highly encourage administrators, teachers, students and EA's to join in and fundraise. We promise it's not THAT cold and we have donuts, hot chocolate, a tent, and a heater for when you are done! School themed costumes are ALWAYS encouraged!

Date: February 8, 2025

Time: Check-in: 9:30am, Plunge: 11am

Location: Lake Zorinsky
156th and F St, Omaha, NE 68137

Post-Plunge Party: Brewsky's Food & Spirits
15350 Weir St

Please use the link to sign up with the Special Olympics AND fill out the form, so we know which school you are representing!

Check out Westside Community Schools Online Breakfast and Lunch Menu! https://schools.mealviewer.com/school/SwansonElementarySchool

Email is a great way to communicate with your child’s teacher. The Westside format is as follows:

lastname.firstname@westside66.net

Sample: harr.jennifer@westside66.net

wendelin.jessie@westside66.net

Visit our web page for current information on school happenings and activities during the year. Go to www.westside66.org and click on schools and then the Swanson link.

January 20-21- NO SCHOOL/Dr. Martin Luther King Day/Teacher Work Day

January 23- K/1 Music Performance @ WMS, 6:30 PM

January 28- Community Club Mtg., 6:30 pm

January 30 - Bingo Night @ WMS, 6:00 pm

February 6 - Variety Show Tryouts, 3:40 pm in the Swanson Gym

February 13 - Valentine's Day Parties, 2:45 pm

February 14-17- NO SCHOOL for Students

February 20-Godfather's Slice of Pie Night, 4-9 pm

February 25 - Community Club Mtg., 6:30 pm

February 26-Variety Show Rehearsal @WMS, 4:30-7:00 pm

February 28-Variety Show at WMS, 7:00-9:00 pm

Mission

The Mission of Swanson School, as a dynamic community alliance and model of innovative education, is to support and empower all learners to achieve academic excellence.

School Improvement

Swanson's school improvement goal is all students will increase reading comprehension.

Swanson's Expectations

• Be Safe
• Be Respectful
• Be Responsible

Email: harr.jennifer@westside66.net
Website: swanson.westside66.org
Location: 410 South 86th Street, Omaha, NE, USA
Phone: 402-390-6485
Facebook: facebook.com/SwansonElementary
Twitter: @swansonstars66