The Farmingville Files

Dear Farmingville Families,

We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to our families for their generous donation of over 830 boxes of cereal to the Daily Bread Food Pantry! This incredible contribution from our school will make a significant impact on local families in need. We truly appreciate your support!

We had a fantastic two weeks showcasing the talents of RPS! Last week, our fourth and fifth-grade orchestra, band, and chorus performed for our school community. This week, the RHS District Choral Festival impressed us all!

This past weekend on Saturday, Ridgefield Public Schools presented our BOE Budget Workshop for FY26. You can watch the presentation here and find some highlights from the elementary proposed budget below:

• Next phase of the implementation of a world language program - addition of one full-time world language teacher

• One full-time staff member to support AIG (academically and/or intellectually gifted) coordination programming and professional learning

• Funding for math tutors in all elementary schools

• Addition of one full-time special education teacher at Ridgebury and Barlow Mountain Elementary Schools and .5 special education teacher at Farmingville to support students

The FY26 budget proposal brings us to the next level by…

• guaranteeing that learning materials and services are available and meet the needs of ALL students

• offering students in K-2 their first school experiences with a world language

• equipping all elementary schools with funding for math tutoring

Please find our RPS Budget Info Site linked HERE. We are continuing to update this site with all budget info as we move through the process.

Warmly,

Nancy & Jackie

Ms. Alida Ballou is thrilled to be joining the FES community as the new Social Worker! Ms. Ballou graduated from University of Connecticut in 2022 with her master's in social work, with a focus in individuals, groups, and families. She has clinical experience working with kids in both school and outpatient settings, and is passionate about supporting students' emotional wellbeing in order to foster a positive learning experience. When she is not at school, she enjoys singing, traveling, and watching UConn Women's Basketball.

Head lice: They’re the words no parent wants to hear. Head lice can be acquired by anyone, but it is most common in kids ages 5-12. According to the CDC every year as many as 6-12 million children are affected by head lice. Our own community has just experienced our first few reported cases. The good news is that head lice are not harmful and can be treated. To detect, treat and prevent head lice, it helps to know more about them.

Below I have included a link to an article titled Head Lice: What Parents Needs to Know. Please take a few minutes to read the article. It provides parents with a good source of information about head lice detection, management, and treatment.

Lice information

The State Board of Education has defined two levels of criteria for an absence to be considered an excused absence.

“Level 1” includes the first nine absences and these days are considered excused absences for any reason that the student’s parent or guardian approves. The parent or guardian must submit either written or oral documentation within ten school days of the student’s return to school.

Excused “Level 2” absences are the days beginning at the tenth absence and meet one or more of the State’s acceptable reasons. For more information regarding the acceptable reasons, please visit the Connecticut State Department of Education Guidelines for Absences.

If your child reaches the thresholds below, you will receive a notification. The notifications will lag the actual absences. For example, your child may reach their 6th absence on a Wednesday and you may not be notified until the following Monday.

Typical attendance notification thresholds.

• At 6 absences a notification is emailed.

• At 9 absences a notification is emailed.

• At 9 absences and 6 unexcused, a notification is emailed.

• At 9 excused absences and 10 unexcused absences, a truancy notification is emailed.

Please find our district Weather Related Process and Expectations here.

We know how fun it is for our students to get together after school and enjoy time together! Due to safety and limited space on the buses, we are asking that students have no more than 2 guest riders with them at a time. Anytime there is a need for more than 2 additional students to ride, families will need to make arrangements for parent pick up that day. Thank you for understanding!

Please fill out the form below a day prior to visiting FES. Thank you!

If you are visiting FES, please help us to expedite the entry process by filling out this form a day prior to a planned visit (teacher meeting, PTA meeting, mystery reader, library or art volunteer, etc.) and your badge will be waiting for you when you arrive. If you have something to drop off for your child during the school day such as a forgotten lunch or instrument, there will be a table outside of the entrance to place the item.

When you arrive to enter the building, we ask that you press the video doorbell button and identify yourself. Once granted access, please do NOT hold the door open for a different guest entering the building. While this may be inconvenient and feel impolite, we are standardizing access to the buildings across the district so that everyone knows what to expect.

For visits to FES during the school day, I recommend that you arrive early as it takes some time to process your visitor badge. For a visit that is not arranged a day ahead of time, calling the main office at 203-894-5570 ahead of your visit is a helpful practice.

• RPS Orchestra Festival - Monday, February 3rd @ 7:00 pm at RHS
• RPS Band Festival - Tuesday, February 4th @ 7:00 pm at RHS
• Raccoon Night @ The Danbury Hat Tricks - Saturday, February 8th
• No School - Professional Learning - Friday, February 14th
• No School - February Break - Monday, February 17th - Friday, February 21st

We treat smartwatches (e.g. the Apple Watch, the Gizmo Watch, the Android Smart Watch) or other similar devices that provide a student with the ability to text, take photos or make calls in the same way we treat a cell phone and they are subject to the same practice. If a parent makes the decision to permit their child to have a cell phone, smartwatch, or similar device at school the cell phone or smartwatch:

• must be turned off
• must remain in the child’s backpack at all times during the school day
• must remain in the child’s backpack for the duration of the bus ride to and from school

As you might imagine, a cell phone or similar device in any school setting has proven to be a disruption to learning and the social environment. We have also witnessed that Fitbit and other fitness trackers can be a distraction. If these fitness devices cause a distraction, a teacher will ask the student to remove the device, and likely the teacher will contact you about the concern.

E-readers, Nooks, and Kindles are only permitted to support reading in school or on the bus if a teacher determines it is helpful and has told a parent it is allowed.

If any of the above devices mentioned become a repeated concern, parents/guardians will be contacted to retrieve the device which will be held in the main office.

We appreciate your understanding for the safety and focus of our students, therefore, we kindly request that only parents or guardians attend events/volunteer opportunities in the presence of enrolled students within the elementary school building during the school day. For example, an infant or younger child with a parent may attend a PTA meeting that takes place at the school.

A sibling is not permitted to accompany a parent when they are:

• volunteering in a classroom
• attending daytime activities
• attending class parties
• volunteering in the library
• mystery reader
• attending a class performance
• or any other activities within the building when students are present

This practice helps ensure a secure and conducive learning environment for all children. Siblings are welcome to attend evening events unless otherwise specified.

Please check your students' e-Backpack for this important information and other programs across the district. Organizations that meet the RPS policy may submit their request for inclusion to cmelagrano@ridgefieldps.net.