The Beeline

You know the proverb, "Time flies when you're having fun"? Well, that's how I feel as I reflect back on our 2023-2024 school year. It's hard to believe it is the last month of school. Thank you for all of your support this year and how you continue to invest in your child's education. At Fairmont, we truly have the very best families and students!

This month will be filled with many end-of-the-year activities, programs, yearbook distribution, field day, field trips, and awards. Please be sure to check out our May calendar below. Our students have worked so very hard this year, and we are excited to celebrate them and all their accomplishments.

We will also celebrate Mrs. Pam Moody, first grade teacher, who will be retiring after 27 years of teaching with almost all of her experience here at Fairmont. We know she is excited to rest, read (of course), travel, take walks, and enjoy her family. We wish Mrs. Moody the very best and thank her for ALL she has done in the lives of our Fairmont students!

I want to encourage you to get involved with our Fairmont PTA next school year. It is an amazing group of individuals who work tirelessly for our school. They truly support us in every way here at Fairmont. If you are interested in becoming more involved, please see the information below in the PTA section.

Looking ahead, please save the date for our 2024-2025 Meet and Greet, which will be on Thursday afternoon, August 1, 2024. More information and details will be posted on social media and on our website this summer. The first day of school will be a full day on Monday, August 5, 2024.

I hope you and your family have a wonderful and relaxing summer! Please don't forget to remind your student to read each and every day, so he/she will be ready for the next grade. Happy Reading!

Dr. JoDee Dotson, Principal

https://fairmont.jcschools.org/

We are now taking book donations to be used in Fairmont's first student Book Swap. Please send in any books you are no longer enjoying at home. On Monday, May 20, students will all get the opportunity to "shop" for books during their related arts time. PTA will provide refreshments and students will get to spend the rest of their specials hour enjoying some outside time with their grade level. We are looking forward to this event for our students!

Fairmont is gearing up for talent day. If your child has a talent they would like to share, practice up and let Mrs. O-H know. This year, the event promises an extra dose of musical magic with special guest artist, Emily Goins visiting Fairmont to share her enchanting harp talents.

If you plan on sharing, you must inform Mrs. O-H no later than Tuesday, May 7 via email or phone call.

odomc@jcschools.org or 434-5275

You have to provide your own music. A piano will be provided for those who need and access to music online will be available.

Wednesday, May 8 Talent Share will be: White, Milam, Rupard, Bowers, Peccia, Torres, Balch, Osborne, Hughes, DeSousa, McDannald, Depew and Armstong.

Thursday, May 9 Talent Share will be: Moody, Mays, Casey, Seeley, Stalcup, Peters, Davis, Snapp, Cox, Ratner, Reed, Allen, McLaughlin, Brewer, Whitson, and Smith.

We are super excited to hear all of our great talent and to have some enriching musical excerpts from Mrs. Goins. The Talent Share is for students only during their specials time.

“The Only Constant in Life Is Change.”

-Heraclitus

As we gear for the end of the school year, we are reminded of the many transitions that take place over the summer months. For students, this means a new grade, or perhaps, a new school. Approaching the end of another school year, it is a great time to look back and reflect on all that has been accomplished within the past school year. The memories we made, the friendships we developed, the work we produced. These moments are to be celebrated. But the harsh reality is, life moves on.

This begs the question, how are we to move forward while we fight feelings of fear, anxiousness or uncertainty? Especially for children, which can be deeply rooted in familiar routines. The first step in the process has already been presented: celebrate! Buy the yearbook, throw a party with friends and family, and have fun. Research will tell you that one of the best remedies for stress and anxiety is physical exercise and participating in activities that are enjoyable and fun. Next, involve children in summer activities, whether it is camp, sports, or other clubs. In doing so, this provides opportunities for children to stay engaged with peers, learn new routines, and practice adjusting to new environments and situations. Third, as summer comes to an end, talk with your student about their feelings going into next school year. Are they scared? What are they looking forward to? Do they have any expectations about what next year will look like? This is a great opportunity for goal setting and planning. Preparation is key to dealing with change. Finally, connect your student with new classmates and teachers as soon as possible, whether it is through orientation, or if you know of peers outside of school, set up times where they interact with one another. The more familiarity the better. After all, most students are anxious about transitions. Peers can be a great resource for the first day of school when things are new.

If you are interested in getting your student involved with a program or activity over summer, a great place to start is with Johnson City’s Parks and Recreation Department. You can find various groups and programs at this link: https://www.johnsoncitytn.org/residents/rec_services/classes___programs.php.

No matter the program, it is important to keep students in a routine and involved in order to keep them engaged and their brains active. We hope that our students have a fantastic summer and we look forward to the start of another amazing school year!

Johnson City Schools is very pleased to inform our families that beginning immediately all enrolled students at Fairmont will have access to free breakfast and free lunch each school day. This will be a pilot program for the remainder of the 2023-24 school year.

If you arrive before 8:00, students must report to the gym until the bell rings to go to classes. Students in the gym who would like breakfast may eat in the cafeteria. Any students that arrives after 8:00 will grab breakfast on the way to class, where they will eat their breakfast.

For real, we really do. We need you next year on our PTA board. Many current board members are leaving along with their 5th graders. We have so many different ways you can be involved on the board. Do not let it scare you! If you have a young student, get involved now and find your niche. Or, even if you have a 5th grader and you want to be around more for their last awesome year of elementary school, talk to us! We need all kinds of people…. Organized, creative, good with money, yearbook superstars, networkers, fundraisers, workhorses. We will take people with lots of extra time on their hands and those of you with just a few hours a month to give! GET INVOLVED!! PTA cannot continue without someone stepping into these roles. If you aren’t sure what this looks like, message us on Facebook. You can come sit in on a meeting and see how fun we are! We would be happy to have you join us to see the behind the scenes. Contact us soon as we are already planning for next year. We would love to have time to transition the new board over the next few months.

Teacher Appreciation Week will be May 6-10. We are looking for sponsors to make this week super amazing for our teachers! Last year, our committee did something each day to tell the teachers and staff just how much they are appreciated. We would love to make it even more magical this year. Any personal or business sponsors can send in a check to Fairmont PTA (identified for Teacher Appreciation) and we will recognize you throughout the week. If you have any specific questions, reach out and we will connect you with our team.

Bee on the lookout for a sign up to come out on our Facebook page! PTA, along with several individual donors, have scheduled for KONA ICE to come and spoil our kids on that day with a free snow cone! Thanks you so much to our generous sponsors of this event.

Big thanks to Katie Jett and Emily Jones, our PTA Hospitality committee. Doughnuts and coffee were provided for the week of TCAP's for our teachers and staff to help power through the difficult week. PTA also provided snacks to every student testing to ensure our kids had enough brain food to get it done! Popsicles are being provided to the kids on May 20th during our first annual Book Swap. Thank you again to our amazing PTA members for making this happen. Be on the lookout for Book Swap sign ups and more info about that event.

Thank you to all of our Fairmont Families for donating money, time and energy this past school year. Your contributions have provided some amazing things to our students this year. One last event coming up is the 5th Grade Field Trip. Your generosity made it possible for PTA to sponsor half of the cost of this trip and every 5th grader will get to attend, regardless of ability to pay! This is the second year in a row we were able to help pay for such a fun day for our 5th graders, so thank you!

This year we're making $800,000 available to participating schools to invest in classrooms, equipment and essential supplies. For every dollar spent at Food City* using your ValuCard, one point will be earned for your school. The more points earned, the larger share of the cash your school will receive. All you have to do is link your ValuCard to your school of choice and you'll automatically earn points every time you shop! Linking online is easy - log into your Food City account, and select your school.

The program begins Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2023, and runs through Tuesday, May 7, 2024. Deadline to register is Sunday, Dec. 31, 2023. Checks will be presented in the Fall.

Since its inception 20 years ago, School Bucks has provided over $21 million to regional schools — all with the help of volunteers like you. We thank you for your assistance and for being a valued Food City customer!

• Please call in before 9:00am each day to report an absence if your child will be absent.
• If you need to change afternoon transportation plans for your child, changes MUST be called in BEFORE 2:00 p.m.
• Check-in with the attendance QR code on Tuesdays for a chance to win prizes just for coming to school.
• On the 4th unexcused early dismissal and/or tardy, students will miss recess to make up missed work.
• Please DO NOT block neighborhood driveways during morning and afternoon car line.
• Call the office to update contact information as it changes. It is important that we have correct phone numbers to reach parents.

There are lots of students coming through morning carline each day. We are doing our best to make sure that this goes quickly and efficiently so students are not tardy. You can help with this process by making sure your children are unbuckled with backpacks packed and ready to go as soon as their doors are opened by a staff member. Thank you!

Students are not allowed to walk up from the lower parking lot ALONE for morning drop off. Students are also not to be dropped off along sidewalks, around the lower parking lot and driveways. This is unsafe for the students. If you chose to park to avoid a long drop off line, a parent MUST walk up WITH their child. Thank you for your help keeping all of our students safe!

If you have medication in the clinic it must be picked up by the end of the school year. Any medication left in the clinic will be DISCARDED. Parents of summer school students and summer educare students will need to contact Nurse Erin to make arrangements.

Summer Educare will be open for the months of June and July. Educare opens at 7:00 a.m. and closes at 6:00 p.m. Educare is available for students attending summer school as well. Summer registration is first come, first serve. Registration for the summer program is separate from the school year. Registration packets are available upon request. The educare staff have lots of fun events and activities planned to keep the kids engaged and active. Guest speakers will visit, on site water play days are scheduled, walking field trips to Rotary Park and the splash pad are planned and the last two weeks are packed full of field trips to finish out the summer.

If you have questions please reach out to Educare Director, Jen Smith 423-434-5280 or smithj2@jcschools.org

May 6-10 - Teacher Appreciation Week

May 8 - ITMS Sneak Peek

May 9 - Last day of Coalition

May 9 - Last day of HWC

May 10 - Field Day

May 10 - Girls on the Run Race

May 12 - Mother's Day

May 14 - PTA/Kindergarten Performance 6:00

May 15 - Senior Tea

May 20 - Book Swap

May 22 - Last day of school. 1/2 day. Dismiss at 11:30.