October 24, 2025

We’ve had an amazing start to the Halloween season—thank you to everyone who came out for our Trunk or Treat event last weekend! The turnout was incredible, and it was so much fun seeing our school community come together in such creative (and spooky!) ways.

As we head into colder weather, please remember the importance of keeping sick kids home to help keep our classrooms and learning spaces healthy. Our district has clear guidelines on when to keep your child home, and following them helps everyone stay well and ready to learn. Thank you for helping us care for our whole community!

Looking ahead, our School Halloween Parade will take place on Friday, October 31 at 2:15 PM. Families are invited to join the fun! Please keep in mind that parking is limited—and be mindful of our neighbors’ driveways along Fern Hill Road when parking. Please also be mindful of our costume guidelines: no replica weapons or face paint. Masks are only permitted to be worn during the parade and are to be removed before re-entering the building. Please also be sure to label all costume items so that students return with all parts in time for trick-or-treating. If your child does not participate in Halloween, please contact their classroom teacher to arrange for an alternative learning activity during the parade.

And finally… next week our staff will be participating in an “Undercover Spirit Week!” Each day has a secret theme, and we can’t wait to see if students can guess what it is as we count down to Halloween! 👻

October 18 - PTO Trunk or Treat

October 20 - No School for Students

October 31 - Halloween Parade and Class Parties

November 3 - Fall Conference Sign-Up Opens

A Home and School Visitor (HSV) is here to support your students’ success by building strong connections between families and the school. We understand that every student is unique, and every family matters one connection at a time.

💬 How Can a Home and School Visitor Help You?

• 📅 Supports School Attendance:
  Helps families understand and overcome challenges that keep their students from attending school regularly.
• 🏡 Home Support & Visits:
  Offers home visits (if helpful or requested) to better understand and support family's needs, barriers and strengths to connect the home and school so students can thrive.
• 🧠 Connecting to Resources:
  Links families to helpful community services like food assistance, housing, counseling, and health care.
• 🤝 Advocating for Your Child:
  Supports students facing challenges and works with the school staff as a team to build school success.
• 📘 Explaining School Policies:
  Helps families understand how things work at school—from rules to resources.
• ✨ Building Connections:
  Keeps communication open between home and school and promotes positive school involvement.

📞 Let’s Stay Connected! HSV Contact Information:

Lisa Baker, LCSW

Home and School Visitor

West Chester Area School District

Fern Hill Elementary School (Tues & Friday) 484-266-1620

Exton Elementary School (Wed & Thurs) 484-266-1420

lbaker@wcasd.net

Mrs. Jenkins is looking for artists and hobbyists to participate in Guest Artist Day and our very own Fern Hill Art Market! Being a professional artist is not required—anyone with a creative hobby is encouraged to join. We’re inviting individuals who enjoy artistic activities such as henna art, crocheting, photography, watercolor painting, and more to share their talents with our school community. If you or someone you know might be interested, please pass this information along and have them scan the QR code to fill out the interest form. Let’s celebrate the creativity that makes Fern Hill shine!

Students who wish to have their picture retaken should bring their original picture package to exchange for their new photo.

If you placed an order online, you will receive a camera pass via email. This can be printed or shown on a phone and brought to picture day. The photographer will photograph the camera pass along with your child. If you’re unable to print the pass, no worries—our team can manually match your student’s order.

Families can still place an online order up to 24 hours after picture day. Once that window closes, our imaging team will process and match all submitted orders with the corresponding student photos.

When pictures arrive back at school:

• Students who purchased photos will receive their prepaid package.

• Students who did not order in advance will receive a proof sheet, providing another opportunity to order prints (shipping and handling up to $8.50).

For more details or to access the Picture Day Flyer and ordering site, visit www.pictureportal.org using Google Chrome. If you need login help, click “Forgot Password” on the site to reset your access.

Thank you for helping us make Picture Retake Day a success—we can’t wait to see those smiles!

As we continue our 7-week series on Standards-Based Grading, this week we’re focusing on how teachers gather information about student learning.

There are two main types of assessments your child experiences: Formative and Summative.

• Formative assessments are checkpoints along the way. They happen during learning—like class discussions, practice assignments, or quick checks—to help teachers see what students understand and what may need more support.

• Summative assessments happen after learning, such as end-of-unit tasks or projects, and show what a student knows and can do at that point in time.

Together, these assessments give teachers—and families—a clearer picture of each student’s current progress toward mastery, guiding next steps for instruction and celebration of growth.

We’re excited to introduce our district’s new Portrait of a Graduate, which highlights the durable skills our students will carry with them long after they leave our classrooms. These traits—problem-solving, adaptability, empathy, responsibility, and communication—will be woven into daily instruction and learning experiences here at Fern Hill.

This Portrait was developed by a district committee with representation from families, staff, students, and community members, and we’re grateful for their time and dedication. We look forward to sharing how these skills are coming to life in our classrooms and helping students grow into thoughtful, capable learners and leaders.

Thank you to all who joined us and/or volunteered at Trunk or Treat- it certainly was a Spooktacular night for all! A special THANK YOU to Steph Fawcett and the Trunk or Treat committee for planning such a fun event.

Congratulations to our trunk winners! First place goes to the Motz family, second place is the Roman family, and third place is the Tapper family!

Our Highland Orchards Thanksgiving sale is now open! We're selling fresh-baked pies and apple cider donuts at bakery prices with no mark-up. If we sell over 51 total items, Fern Hill PTO earns 20% of our total sales. It's a win-win!

Order online from now until Sunday, November 9th. No late orders or changes will be accepted after this, the bakery needs our order locked in.

Pick-up is Tuesday, November 25 (Fern Hill Elementary - half day for students)

Open to any friends, family, and neighbors if you can pick them up! For allergen information, please see Highland Orchards website.

Support Fern Hill’s PTO and give your Bobcat a fun snack to enjoy by ordering Philly Soft Pretzels! Pre-order payment of $25 due through Membership Toolkit by November 3.

Want one less thing on your to-do list in May? Order your yearbook early and save 10%—but hurry, the discount ends October 31st!

Click here to purchase [web.treering.com]

Earning money for our school has never been easier! All you need to do is download the Box Tops app, create an account, and scan your grocery receipt. Easy and quick! Last year we earned $500 from Box Tops for Fern Hill!

We love having our families volunteer throughout the building. In order to volunteer, adults are required to have their clearances on file with us. Clearances can take 4-6 weeks to acquire, so please be sure to get the process started if you're looking to volunteer this Fall.

If you are planning a family trip, please complete the Trip Approval Form to notify the Main Office and gain approval for your trip. The Vacation Request Form will also always be available on our Fern Hill Website under the "For Parents" section.

• Fern Hill Website
• PTO Website
• Vacation Approval Request Form

• FHE: Kindergarten Lunch Duty
• FHE: 1st Grade Lunch Duty

Jennifer Southmayd

Principal

Email: jsouthmayd@wcasd.net
Website: https://www.wcasd.net/fhe
Location: 915 Lincoln Avenue, West Chester, PA, USA
Phone: 484 266 1600
Twitter: @FernHillES